THE
GOAL TO WHICH ACTS 2:38 LEADS US
PART 2
March 18, 2012
MF Blume
Isa 40:28-31 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the
everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the
earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of
his understanding. (29) He giveth power to the faint; and
to them that have no might he increaseth strength. (30)
Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall
utterly fall: (31) But they that wait upon the
LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as
eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk,
and not faint.
This passage begins the same way Romans 6 speaks.
Romans 6:1-7 KJV What shall we say then? Shall we continue in
sin, that grace may abound? (2) God forbid. How shall we,
that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? (3) Know ye
not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were
baptized into his death? (4) Therefore we are buried with
him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the
dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness
of life. (5) For if we have been planted together in the
likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his
resurrection: (6) Knowing this, that our old man is
crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that
henceforth we should not serve sin. (7) For he that is dead
is freed from sin.
Have you not known?
· Know ye not?
· The entire problem with too many saints is
that they do not know they do not have to sin again.
· Isaiah dealt with this as well.
Peter mentioned the same thing in association with baptism.
1 Peter 3:20-4:2 KJV Which sometime were disobedient, when once
the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was
a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by
water. (21) The like figure whereunto even baptism doth
also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but
the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of
Jesus Christ: (22) Who is gone into heaven, and is on the
right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject
unto him. (4:1) Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for
us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he
that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; (2)
That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the
lusts of men, but to the will of God.
Isaiah 40 said God does not faint nor grow weary.
Isa 40:28-31 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the
everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the
earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of
his understanding.
But the strongest of humanity is the youth.
· Even they faint.
(29) He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might
he increaseth strength. (30) Even the youths shall faint
and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
· But if we wait on the Lord, we will run and
not grow weary and walk and not faint.
(31) But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their
strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run,
and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
This can only mean God's power is transferred to us!
And that is what Isa. 40:29 already said.
(29) He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might
he increaseth strength.
The same two elements of WEARY and FAINT in verse 28, which God does
not experience, are said to be what we will not experience IF WE WAIT
ON THE LORD.
Isa 40:28-31 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the
everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the
earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of
his understanding. …(31) But they that wait
upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with
wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall
walk, and not faint.
· Waiting on the Lord is yielding to Him
according to Romans 6:13, for His empowerment, by faith He will empower
us!
People think of their own fleshly power when they propose we
cannot live without sinning. But if they think of God's power,
and that it can be transferred onto us, they would realize we can live
without sinning!
How does He do it? "There is no searching of his understanding"
(v. 28). But He does do it!
It is wings as eagles because it is NOT NATURAL TO US.
· This strength is not Human strength.
When we go deeper into this understanding, we learn we are in UNION
WITH JESUS NOW.
· We are not left to our own wits to do OUR
best to be Christians.
· So long as we think that way we are between
two worlds, and useless to both.
· We are out of the world of sin and simply
will not join with the ways of the world, so we are useless to it.
· But although we are saved from sin, we are
useless to GOD as well, until we learn we are IN UNION WITH HIM.
Instead of waiting on the Lord, and yielding to Him, we are still
deceived to a degree.
· God has to get this final form of error out
of our lives.
· WE THINK WE HAVE TO DO OUR BEST to please
God.
The key is that we came into Union with Jesus when we were baptized
into Him.
· We died with Him, buried with Him, and
resurrected with Him.
· Now we are seated with Him.
· Do you see the common denominator in all
these stages?
· It is us WITH HIM!
Remember that MOSES left the ways of Egypt.
· But he did not know the full truth yet, just
like many believers do not know the full truth of salvation.
· HE TRIED HIS BEST.
Exodus 2:11-17 Complete Apostles' Bible (11) And it came to
pass in that length of time, that Moses, having grown, went out to his
brothers, the sons of Israel. And having noticed their distress, he saw
an Egyptian striking a certain Hebrew of his brothers, the children of
Israel. (12) And having looked round this way and that way,
he saw no one. And he killed the Egyptian, and hid him in the
sand. (13) And having gone out the second day, he saw two
Hebrew men fighting; and he said to the injurer, Why do you strike your
neighbor? (14) And he said, Who made you a ruler and a
judge over us? Will you slay me as you slew the Egyptian yesterday?
Then Moses was alarmed, and said, If it be thus, this matter has become
known. (15) And Pharaoh heard this matter, and sought to
kill Moses. And Moses departed from the presence of Pharaoh, and dwelt
in the land of Midian. And having come into the land of Midian, he sat
on the well. (16) And the priest of Midian had seven
daughters, feeding the flock of their father Jethro. And they came and
drew water until they filled their pitchers, to water the flock of
their father Jethro. (17) And the shepherds came, and were
driving them away; and Moses rose up and rescued them, and drew water
for them, and watered their sheep.
Exodus 3:1-12 Complete Apostles' Bible (1) And Moses was
feeding the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian.
And he brought the sheep close to the wilderness, and came to the mount
of Horeb. (2) And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in
flaming fire out of the bush, and he saw that the bush burned with
fire, but the bush was not consumed. (3) And Moses said, I
will go near and see this great sight, why the bush is not
consumed. (4) And when the Lord saw that he drew near to
see, the Lord called him out of the bush, saying, Moses, Moses. And he
said, What is it? (5) And He said, Draw no closer! Loose
your sandals from off your feet, for the place on which you stand is
holy ground. (6) And He said, I am the God of your father
— the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
And Moses turned away his face, for he was afraid to gaze at God.
(7) And the Lord said to Moses, I have surely seen the affliction
of My people that is in Egypt, and I have heard their cry caused by
their taskmasters; for I know their affliction. (8) And I
have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to
bring them out of that land, and to bring them into a good and wide
land, into a land flowing with milk and honey, into the place of the
Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and
Girgashites and Hivites and Jebusites. (9) And now behold,
the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have seen the
affliction with which the Egyptians afflict them. (10) And
now come, I will send you to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and you shall
bring out My people the children of Israel from the land of
Egypt. (11) And Moses said to God, Who am I, that I should
go to Pharaoh king of Egypt, and that I should bring out the children
of Israel from the land of Egypt? (12) And God spoke to
Moses, saying, I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you
that I shall send you forth: when you bring out My people out of Egypt,
then you shall serve God in this mountain.
I WILL BE WITH YOU!
· The burning bush was GOD IN A COMMON BUSH,
SPEAKING OUT OF IT.
· That bush stood for Moses.
· After he GAVE UP trying on his own.
· He burned out in his own power.
· BUT HE WOULD RUN AND NOT BE WEARY!
· BURN AND NOT BE CONSUMED!
God would deliver Israel USING MOSES.
It was after this lesson on COMBINATION OF GOD AND MOSES that we later
read of the death of the Lamb, and Israel’s escape by the SHED
BLOOD that wreaked death on the enemy, while the Hebrew firstborn were
COUNTED DEAD BY THE LAMB’S DEATH.
Even GOOD is part of the knowledge of GOOD AND EVIL.
· It is not getting knowledge in you for
knowing good to do good and avoid evil, but GETTING LIFE IN YOU!
Romans 7 shows a struggle people have after they are saved of trying
their best and failing.
We lived for SELF as sinners.
· We were servants of sin.
· We realized we cannot be servants and slaves
of the devil any more.
· We admitted that was wrong, and so we seek
salvation.
· BUT AFTER SALVATION we still have that same
deception when we think we now have to choose to do good and serve the
Lord.
· The truth is that we are still servants.
· But now we are servants of RIGHTEOUSNESS.
The big error is in thinking that now that we are saved WE MAKE
OURSELVES PLEASE GOD.
· We are actually throwing ourselves into
servitude to the enemy again, and we do not know it.
· ANY CONCEPT OF US MAKING OURSELVES FUNCTION
is the devil’s deception.
· It’s like we are gods ourselves!
· The truth is that we are not to use our
abilities to TRY AND DO to do good instead of evil, because US TRYING
IN OUR OWN EFFORT is still wrong.
· The Bible taught WAIT ON THE LORD.
· YIELD TO HIM AND WAIT for his empowerment.
· HIS EMPOWERMENT IS HIM WORKING WITH YOU.
· Cooperation.
That is why we begin reading that WE ARE SERVANTS TO THE LORD NOW, and
not to sin.
Romans 6:19-23 KJV I speak after the manner of men because of the
infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants
to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your
members servants to righteousness unto holiness. (20) For
when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from
righteousness. (21) What fruit had ye then in those things
whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.
(22) But now being made free from sin, and become servants to
God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting
life. (23) For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of
God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
He said he used metaphors from everyday life because they were not
spiritual enough to really grasp these things without that method.
· Now we are still servants, after being freed
from being servants to sin.
· We’re just servants to God now and
THAT IS A GOOD THING.
· We served sin as though it was in us and
forced to do bad.
· Now God’s life is in us and he works
in us to do good!
Think of being a slave and your master is away after day and the slave
does some things on his own.
· But he returns to be the salve again.
· Same with servants to Jesus.
· We sometimes go off and do our own thing AND
IT IS THE RELIGIOUS THING.
· But we need to return and be the servants
who rely upon the Spirit of God inside to do the work instead of our
own little religious thing every now and then.