In his book Holy Sweat (pg. 46-47) Tim Hansel tells the following story:
One day, while my son Zac and I were out in the country, climbing around in some cliffs, I heard a voice from above me yell, “Hey Dad! Catch me!” I turned around to see Zac joyfully jumping off a rock straight at me. He had jumped and then yelled “Hey Dad!” I became an instant circus act, catching him. We both fell to the ground. For a moment after I caught him I could hardly talk. When I found my voice again I gasped in exasperation: “Zac! Can you give me one good reason why you did that???” He responded with remarkable calmness: “Sure…because you’re my Dad.”
There is a beautiful picture in the fact that the only assurance this boy needed to take such a leap was the trustworthiness of his father. Such a degree of trust is readily seen in Paul’s words to young Timothy – “For therefore we both labor and suffer reproach, we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, specially of those that believe” (1 Timothy 4:10). “Trust” is the verb form of a word meaning “favorable and confident expectation, to do with the unseen future.” Elsewhere this word is commonly translated as “hope.” It is this concept of “trust” or “hope” that was the main idea behind this sermon I preached a little over a year ago in which we considered the need to “give way to God.”
Title: Give Way to God
Text: Galatians 5:16,18,22,25
Main Point: We do not have a perfect knowledge of all that is or is to come. But what we do have is Divine expectation and when you combine that expectation with an unseen future you must look forward to it with trust. Ultimately this brings us to the need to simply give way to God, trusting in His discernment of what’s right and wrong and allowing His will to direct our lives whatever may come. But in order to throw caution to the wind and give way to God there are certain responsibilities that we maintain with regard to God’s Spirit:
Discussion Points:
- We Must Walk in the Spirit – To give priority to spiritual purity we prevent ourselves from spending time in sinful pursuits. That’s where walking in the Spirit comes in. To “walk in the Spirit” is to allow God’s will to supersede our own will thereby following His direction for our lives. Anything outside of this commitment is considered riotous living. The Bible has a lot to say about the consequences of riotous living. Proverbs 28:7 tells us that riotous living shames our Father and Luke 15:13 demonstrates how riotous living separates us from our Father. Because of just how devastating the effects of self-willed living is we must remember that it can all be remedied by walking in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16). Our lives should be so preoccupied with righteous pursuits that no time is left to serve sin. When we choose to walk in the Spirit we give way to God and trust His counsel to direct our lives properly.
- We Must be Led by the Spirit – Paul emphasized the importance of being led by the Spirit, even going to the extent of saying that the validity of our relationship with God depends on it (Romans 8:12-14). At this point it is important for us to ask the question, “How are we led by the Spirit?” Miraculous intervention does not exist any longer (1 Corinthians 13:8-10). Outside of direct intervention the only option remaining is indirect. But what indirect guiding force has the Spirit had a hand in providing? 2 Timothy 3:16 and 2 Peter 1:20-21 speak of the scriptures as having been inspired by the Spirit of God. Thus why could we not be led by the Spirit simply by abiding by the Spirit inspired Word? And when we are truly led by the Spirit our lives are consumed by His guidance, providing no opportunity to be led or influenced by any other (Galatians 5:17-18). It is a declaration of allegiance to God as our only source of authority and expectation in life. When we reject conformation to the world and choose transformation by the transforming power of God’s word we place our trust in God and give way to His will in our lives.
- We Must Add the Fruit of the Spirit – One of the great contrasts in the Bible is that discussed between the works of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:19-23). Common sense demonstrates the value of each set of actions – one is damaging to self, society and the soul while the other builds up one’s self, society, and soul. The most telling contrast is found in these statements by Paul: Of the works of the flesh he says, “…of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:21b). Of the fruit of the Spirit he says, “…against such there is no law” (Galatians 5:23b). The fruit of the Spirit consists of 9 component parts that make of the wholeness of that into which we are to transform. When we make the development of the fruit of the Spirit a priority in our lives we are giving way to God’s plan.
- We Must Live in the Spirit – If all of the Divine advice given above is followed the result will be a lifestyle unlike any other – it will be a life lived in the Spirit (Galatians 5:25). Christianity is a lifestyle in which we need to “put up or shut up!” There are far too many Christians who pretend to be Christians but are not really Christians – they are Christians in name only. They pretend to be shining their lights (Matthew 5:14-16) but forget that they must first walk in the light (1 John 1:7). See also Paul’s words in Ephesians 5:15-17. If we will throw caution to the wind, worry not about the earthly consequences of our righteous actions, and live in the Spirit we give way to God and trust Him to guide us properly.
A man once wrote of having to learn to fly:
“Some years ago when I was learning to fly, my instructor told me to put the plane into a steep and extended dive. I was totally unprepared for what was about to happen. After a brief time the engine stalled, and the plane began to plunge out of control. It soon became evident that the instructor was not going to help me at all. After a few seconds, which seemed like eternity, my mind began to function again. I quickly corrected the situation. Immediately I turned to the instructor and began to vent my fearful frustrations on him. He very calmly said to me, “There is no position you can yet this airplane into that I cannot get you out of.”
What a marvelous picture of the trust that we must have in God. If we truly want to live successfully we need to get out of our own way and give way to God!
-Andy Brewer