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Ivey Rorie On February 16, 2018 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Isaiah 30: 1

“Woe to the rebellious children,” declares the Lord, “Who execute a plan, but not Mine, and make an alliance, but not of My Spirit, in order to add sin to sin.”

This is one of those verses which is easy to read right over, never seeing how it may apply to us. “I am not a rebellious child,” I say to myself, then discount the rest of the verse. However, look at how God defines the rebellious child. Rebellion is found in one who makes and executes a plan which is not of God or sanctioned by Him. Rebellious children are those who make a partnership not of God’s Spirit. This goes to the very heart of our New Testament relationship with the Divine Trinity.

In the Old Testament, very little was known about either Jesus or the Spirit. The Jews had the promise of the Messiah and the Holy Spirit. In the New Testament, we are introduced to Jesus. Then, at Jesus’ exit from the surface of earth, he told us that he was about to send us this promised Spirit. He also told us that the Spirit would not only be with us but that he would live in us. Jesus said that the Spirit would lead us and be our teacher. So, here is the tricky part, we discover that we are supposed to walk with and by the Spirit every day and in every way. Everything we do is supposed to be in partnership with the Holy Spirit. Even in the Old Testament, God said that to make plans relying on our own intellect and strength was to add sin to sin. If God revealed that to pre-Messianic believers, how much more truth does it carry for us.

Even our partnerships, our alliances are supposed to be formed in the guidance and advice of the Holy Spirit. God calls us rebellious when we fail to involve him in these decisions. So, now I have gone from denying my rebellion to realizing that my sin is every bit as great as those of the Israelites we like to condemn.

God insists that the plans of our lives must be made by Him or at least with Him. Actually, He has already made a plan for us and it is a good plan (Jeremiah 29: 11). I cannot overemphasize how important this topic is to God. He requires us to cooperate with His plan for us rather than to run around making our own plans, which, by the way, are almost always destined to fail. So, if this is such a big deal to God, how are we going to co-author our plans with the Spirit and thus avoid adding sin upon sin?

How did you come to know Jesus? How did you develop a relationship with the Father? The Holy Spirit is the third person of God. Therefore, you get to know him as you did the Father and the Son. First, you find him in the Bible. Second, go to our website and search the key words Holy Spirit which go down the right-hand side of the page. There is article upon article there. There are books about him too, but don’t neglect simple prayer. Talk to him. Ask the Father for guidance. Petition Jesus for insights.

The Holy Spirit was sent here for you. He wants to be found by you. Once you begin your search, I think you find that he is hiding in plain sight. Then, since he was sent here to guide us into all truth, ask him how to walk with him all day every day. He will guide you. It’s his job and his heart’s desire.

Bonding Agent

Ivey Rorie On February 15, 2018 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Ephesians 2: 20 – 22

Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building being fitted together is growing into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is the glue which holds the church together. You know he is our teacher, comforter and the one who goes alongside us daily. You have learned many of his roles in the earth. Here is another of his important roles, to bind us together as one.

I have written previously about the things of the Spirit having actual substance, things like faith, for example. Well, you too have substance in the Spiritual realm. In Christ, we all are bricks which are being glued together to form the church, one edifice built for the glory of God.

We come from many different backgrounds. We represent many denominations, countries and ethnicities. Some of us are protestant; some of us are not. However, we all have one thing in common and it is the only thing of true importance. That, of course, is Jesus Christ. How do you get so many people of such varied backgrounds and beliefs together? The Holy Spirit binds us together in Christ to form one holy temple unto the Lord.

Have you ever used a glue which required a activating agent in order to function as an adhesive? A chemical reaction occurs when you mix the two components. Without that chemical reaction, there is no adhesion. So it is with the body of Christ. We do not stick together very well but, in the Spirit, we become one. We can bond to one another in the Spirit because he is the bonding agent. He joins us as one to Jesus. When you are in the Spirit, differences dissipate, overshadowed by the glory of Christ, the anointed one.

This is very important for these latter days. We must unite as one body. What good is an arm all by itself? It is useless. However, put us all together and we are strong and powerful. We are functional. The key is not our individual adherence to Jesus. It is our adherence to Jesus in the Spirit. Unity is essential. I think we all can agree to that. The challenge we have faced is ignorance of the Spirit. We can be like some of Paul’s followers. Paul asked them, “‘Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?’ And they said to him, ‘No, we have not even heard whether there is a Holy Spirit,’” (Acts 19: 2).

Most of us have at least heard of the Spirit but as a group, we do not know this third person of the trinity. We certainly have not fallen in love with the Spirit. Neither have we developed a personal relationship with him. Honestly, it is difficult to even understand what it means to be in him or led by him. That is the challenge of our generation. We are the ones who were destined, from the beginning of time, to pursue and know the Spirit of God. Until we have the divine glue on us, we will have difficulty bonding with all the varieties of other Christians. Jesus’ departure opened the door to this great gift of the Holy Spirit. Now we must pursue him relentlessly until we understand what it means to be in the Spirit and can live every day in his company.

Concerning Righteousness

Ivey Rorie On February 13, 2018 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

John 16: 10

I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.

In John 16: 7 – 11, Jesus revealed that He would send the Holy Spirit and He made known some of the tasks the Spirit would perform in the earth. Besides convicting the world concerning sin and judgment, he also convicts our hearts about righteousness.

The segment of Jesus’ statement about righteousness, is just as involved as that concerning sin which we looked at yesterday. This Greek word translated as “convict” in the New American Standard is more complex than one might initially suspect. While we hear that the Holy Spirit came to pass sentence on us or imprison, punish or berate us in the context of sin, righteousness and judgment, that is not the understanding a Greek reader would have taken away from this passage. The word “elegcho” certainly contains elements of that translation but in this verse, I think some of the other words in its definition are more apropos; words such as convince and to prove. It means, also, to bring to light. Therefore, read this verse in this way, “And He, when He comes, will convince the world concerning righteousness.”

The Holy Spirit is proving and convincing us regarding righteousness because Jesus has gone to the Father. Jesus’ departure ushered in an entire new way of being, much less a new way of thinking. Jesus’ words undoubtedly perplexed his followers who thought they knew about sin and righteousness. It really took until the Apostle Paul’s writings for it to become clear. He wrote, “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him,” (2 Corinthians 5: 21). Those words never cease to amaze. God took Jesus’ righteousness and made an even trade with us for our sin. In so doing, Jesus became all sin and we became the righteousness of God. What a deal!

The Holy Spirit is now in the earth trying to convince you of your righteousness. He offers proofs of the righteousness of God so that we may believe. That is what Jesus was expressing in this statement. You see, the Holy Spirit was sent into the earth for our benefit. He didn’t come into the earth to condemn us. We had already very successfully done that for ourselves. He came to prove to you the goodness of God and the love with which the Father has already saved and blessed you. Through no effort on our part, through no miracle of human ingenuity or wisdom, we have become righteousness so that when God looks upon us, He sees His own righteousness in Christ upon us. That is crazy cool! What a miracle!

Convicted to Love

Ivey Rorie On February 12, 2018 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

John 16: 7 – 11

I bet you have read these verses dozens of times. I, also, have read this passage many times. I did not always understand its depth and richness though, and truly, I probably still do not see all that Jesus conveys with these words. Let us look more closely for a few minutes.

First, if you read the previous verses, you discover that Jesus was speaking of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the starting place for all of this. Jesus then describes part of the impact of the coming of the Spirit. First, he will convict the world concerning sin. Concerning sin, the Spirit convicts the world because they do not believe in Jesus as the Christ. These are the words which stopped me this week.

I thought he convicted the world concerning their sin, i.e. adultery, usury, lying, idol worship, etc. Shock of the week, that is not what the scripture says. I should have known better. God is love. Duh! The Spirit convicts people’s hearts about Christ. Guilt and Satan convict them about their behaviors. Do you see the subtlety? The Holy Spirit is preaching Christ. He is preaching the love of God.

Are we nuts? Revelation 12: 10 tells us that Satan is the accuser of the beloved. What are we thinking? Somehow, we turned that on its head and made the Holy Spirit he who condemns us and the world. How wrong can we possibly be? It is frightening how far we have twisted the scriptures. We have certainly been deceived.

The Holy Spirit preaches Jesus which, as we know, is the good news. How did we even turn the sending of the Holy Spirit, and his coming, into a negative? It is only because of the brokenness of our own hearts. The Spirit has come to continue the work of Jesus. We would all agree to that, wouldn’t we? That commission is to spread deliverance, truth and the loving, redemptive grace of the Father.

I will never see this scripture the same again. Perhaps you will say the same. The Holy Spirit didn’t come with a whip, He came with a heart, the heart of the Father. We know that heart to be one of love and compassion. When we receive the Spirit in his fullness, then our hearts will be full of love and compassion as well. Our hearts will be mended of their scars and the injuries therein healed. The healing must begin with us, then we will be able to tell the world of the love that saved and healed us. Then we will be able to spread the good news to all people. The good news is attractive; as Jesus said, “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself,” (John 12: 32). Amen!

David’s Psalm of Deliverance

Ivey Rorie On February 9, 2018 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

2 Samuel 22: 1 – 11

And David spoke the words of this song to the Lord in the day that the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. 2 He said,

“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer;
3 My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge;
My savior, you save me from violence.
4 “I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
And I am saved from my enemies.
5 “For the waves of death encompassed me;
The torrents of destruction overwhelmed me;
6 The cords of Sheol surrounded me;
The snares of death confronted me.
7 “In my distress I called upon the Lord,
Yes, I cried to my God;
And from His temple He heard my voice,
And my cry for help came into His ears.
8 “Then the earth shook and quaked,
The foundations of heaven were trembling
And were shaken, because He was angry.
9 “Smoke went up out of His nostrils,
Fire from His mouth devoured;
Coals were kindled by it.
10 “He bowed the heavens also, and came down
With thick darkness under His feet.
11 “And He rode on a cherub and flew;
And He appeared on the wings of the wind.

David gave us much to ponder in this song from his heart. I would add only one thing. As you meditate on this praise song, consider that the wings of the wind likely refers to the Holy Spirit. That should give you more to ponder.

Armored Fruit

Ivey Rorie On January 31, 2018 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Proverb 3: 3

Do not let kindness and truth leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.

Within this short, little passage we have the makings of greatness. First of all, there is the command quality of the statement. It is a declarative sentence. It makes a statement, not a suggestion. Here wisdom is speaking; a wise father telling His kids what to do so that they will experience success. There is also a promise attached which is in the next verse. It promises favor and a good reputation in the sight of God and man if you will keep truth and kindness as your trademarks.

The command alone should be enough to compel us but if the command does not, the promise certainly should. Yet there is more. In this little verse we also see the application of the fruit of the Spirit and the armor of God. You see, kindness is one of the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5: 22). Truth is part of the armor of God (Ephesians 6: 14). Here God has combined his armor with the fruit of the Spirit. Your protection and success are here. God is leading us into success in all areas of our lives by teaching us to walk according to the Spirit instead of walking according to the flesh. If you walk by the Spirit, you will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. The fruit will protect you from the lusts of the flesh. You have to decide to live by the Spirit though.

Secondly, God wants to protect you with His armor. Again, though, it is your decision to walk by truth instead of deceit. You have to choose to put on His armor. Then His protection surrounds you and you can call on all of His angels to reinforce you. Kindness and Truth will go before you like a guard. When you out of an act of your will, choose to operate in Kindness and in Truth, then you are marshaling the forces of God into your ranks as your soldiers. If you lie and deceive or behave unkindly, you are using the weapons of the enemy and you will defeat yourself.

God would have you wear kindness and truth close to you, even inscribe them on your heart. He wants you to do this so that He can cover you with His favor and bring all His blessings to your house. Don’t let the devil deceive you into lying and or being unkind. Don’t let him steal your blessings from you.

Fruit Bowl

Ivey Rorie On January 30, 2018 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Galatians 5: 22

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.

We have seen that the Holy Spirit comes to us laden with gifts. When he moves in with us, he brings his gifts with him. The same is true of his fruit. Jesus told us to check people’s fruit, that in so doing we can know the nature of a person (Matthew 7: 16). Well, the Holy Spirit has fruit too.

As you re-read the list above, let me ask a question, is this the kind of person you would like to know? Do you want to hang out with people who bear this fruit? The Holy Spirit never loses control. He is always patient and kind, faithful and gentle and above all things, he is characterized by love. What a good buddy to have.

There is a second benefit to his fruit. When the Spirit moves in with you, his fruit fills the house. He lives in you and his fruit is also, therefore, resident within you. Most of us would like to be known to have the character traits listed in this verse. When the Spirit moves in with us, his fruit becomes part of us. We are learning that the Spirit is our leader, that part of his role is to guide us. He is also our teacher. As we follow his leading, we begin to release that which he teaches us. The more we follow him and yield to his ways and to those things which we learn with him, the more we manifest his characteristics. Becoming integrated with him yields the expression of his fruit.

The best part of this is that you do not have to change yourself. If you have been trying for years to become patient, quit. Yes, give up. Or should I say give in to the leading of the Spirit. You can spend the rest of your life trying to learn to be kind and probably never make it or you can simply yield to the leading of the Spirit and begin expressing kindness today. You can be an overnight sensation if you will let the Spirit lead you instead of yielding to your human frailties.

Invite him to become completely intertwined with you. Ask him to take up residence within you. Then begin practicing letting him speak to you and through you. It is a much less stressful way to live. I find that the more time I spend praying, the more I am able to release his ways. It is his desire to help you in everything you do today. He even wants to give you the fruit of his being. So, have a bowl full of Holy Spirit fruit and enjoy your day.

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