Why Spirit-Led Living?

 


For those of you who are new to this blog or even if you are long time follower, you may have wondered why I call it Spirit-Led Living instead of something else like “Walking with Jesus”.

I love Jesus passionately and I have committed my life to serving Him. However, when I read the pages of the New Testament they tell me that Jesus came, taught and modeled the Good News of the Kingdom, He died on the cross as payment for my sins, was raised on the third day and now sits at the right hand of the Father. There are at least 20 verses throughout the Gospels, the Epistles and the Book of Revelation that tell us this. When it is mentioned that many times, it would seem that it is an important concept for us to know and understand.

Acts 7:55-56

But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.

Positionally, Jesus is in heaven seated at the right hand of the Father. As Christians we like to use a lot of language that sounds nice but is inaccurate. Jesus is not walking with us or beside us; He is not working in us or empowering us. This may come as heresy to many of you. But let’s look at what Scripture says about this.

John 16:7

But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.

Jesus is at the right hand of the Father but that does not mean He doesn’t work in our lives or that He has abandoned us. No, He has sent the Holy Spirit to be with us, to point us to Himself and His teaching and to empower us to walk in faith every day.

John 16:13-15

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 14 He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.

This does not diminish the work of Jesus in any way. In fact, it exalts Him even higher because even though it is the Spirit that is with us, He does not act of His own accord; rather He represents to us the ministry and lordship of Jesus Christ.

If you follow this way of thinking, then Spirit-Led Living is an accurate way of looking at things. Jesus is Lord. Jesus points to the Father who sits on the throne. The Holy Spirit points us at every step to Jesus, who in turn points us to the Father.

Another one of the reasons why this blog is titled the way it is, is because so much of western evangelical Christianity is so focused on Jesus, that many believers have no idea the role that the Holy Spirit plays in the lives of believers.

If you go back to the first verse I quoted from the book of Acts, you will see that it was through the work of the Holy Spirit that Stephen was able to see Jesus. Not only that, but it says that he was “full” of the Holy Spirit. That is a significant distinction. Throughout the New Testament, before every significant event and commissioning we see those words; “full of the Holy Spirit” or a similar variation.

Throughout history, every major revival or move of God has been characterized by a filling and empowering of the Holy Spirit. Different language may be used to describe it, but there is no doubt of what is happening. From Luther to Calvin to John Wesley, from the Welsh revival to Azusa Street and the birth of the Vineyard movement; the Holy Spirit has been the engine that moves Christianity forward and empowers believers to live questionable lives and to share their faith.

Thus, Spirit-Led Living is a guide to practical Christianity. It represents my journey of becoming aware of the work of Holy Spirit in my daily walk as He points me to Jesus and empowers my ministry.

Passionately in love with Jesus, Pastor Jay Molina, Ph.D.

Comments

  1. UnknownJanuary 5, 2021 at 9:14 PM

    Wow that's very insightful. Definitely tweaked my perspective of Jesus and the Holy spirit. Thank you

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jay Molina, Ph.D.January 6, 2021 at 11:20 AM

    You are Welcome. My hope is to instigate people to look at things in a different light.

    ReplyDelete

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