THE GOAL TO WHICH ACTS 2:38 LEADS US
PART  2

March 18, 2012
MF Blume

  Scripture Text:



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.