Children of God Led by the Spirit
For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. (Rom 8:13-14)
They were resilient men of faith, filled and led by the Holy Spirit: Commemorating the Uganda Martyrs, however, reminds us that the benefits of Christ’s work are not all enjoyed on this earth – as Pastor Kenneth Mbugua has written. It is false to teach or claim that, in our world, believers ‘who know who they are’ cannot suffer or die; the painless bliss belongs to the new heaven and the new earth where there will be ‘no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying’ (Rev. 21:4). Whoever enjoys the love of God in Christ Jesus when at ease, should also believe with Paul that nothing can separate us from that love – not even the most severe hardships (Rom 8:35-37).
The connection between the Coming of the Holy Spirit and the confirmation of the Great Commission is clearly evident in both the Old and the New Testaments. To be led by the Spirit and to live according to the Spirit (putting to death the misdeeds of the body), will result in performing God-given assignments. To do God’s work, you need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. And if you are filled with the Holy Spirit, you cannot help but perform God’s assignments. But first, we have a good and functional identity and definition of the Holy Spirit from Isaiah: In this Messianic prophecy, it is written: “The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him – the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the LORD” (Is 11:2). When the Holy Spirit comes and fills one’s life, these six items are the components of the package; whether or not noticeable physically by our eyes and senses, they are real. These catapult action – the kind of action that is a response to instructions from God who created each one of us for a purpose.
Each of the Judges was described in a similar way: “The Spirit of the Lord came upon him…” and that with the assignment, which they executed. In the case of Samson, the Spirit of God manifested in physical might and power even to the extent of fighting and defeating a lion and numerous strong enemies, and he delivered the peace that had eluded God’s people for many decades. Isaiah’s vision in Chapter 6 is ‘an encounter with the Holy Spirit’ that ended up in a commissioning that Isaiah received warmly. Similarly in the Acts 2 Pentecostal Holy Spirit outpouring, we not only see excitement among the apostles, but also a launch of the great mission that they now embrace without fear or favour.Set yourself for a balanced understanding of being led by the Holy Spirit as a beloved child of God, and open your heart for higher Kingdom assignments.
God bless you all.