1
Timothy 4:1
Now
the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith
by themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons.
So,
the question is, and it is a question that I have been asked many times: How
can you tell the difference between what is God’s spirit or what is my desire
or what is a different spirit?
I
want to give some guidance over the next two weeks on how to decern God’s
Spirit.
One
test is how this spiritual experience affects our relationship to God, our
concept of God, and our attitude toward Him.
Isaiah
42:8
I
am the Lord; that is My name; My glory I give to no other, nor My praise to carved
idols.
It
needs to lead us to praise God as the Lord over all.
Revelation
4:11
Worthy
are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you
created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created.
It
needs to lead us to honor and obey God as our Creator.
Psalm
145:3
Great
is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and His greatness is unsearchable.
It
needs to lead us to see and experience that God is great. That He is above
everything else.
The
experience has to lead us to have a closer and deeper relationship with God.
Raise
the Roof and Remove the Walls is worshiping and serving God as Creator and
Lord.
A
second test is how this spiritual experience affects my attitude toward Jesus.
Matthew
3:17
And
behold a voice from heaven said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well
pleased.”
It
needs to lead us to know that Jesus is the Son of God. Jesus is God the Son,
God in the flesh.
Acts
2:36
Let
all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made Him both
Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.
It
needs to lead us to know that Jesus is the Lord and Messiah who died on the
cross to pay the penalty for our sin.
John
14:6
Jesus
said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through Me.”
It
needs to lead us to know Jesus as the way to heaven, the truth that leads us to
salvation, the life that God created us to live, and the exclusive path to God
the Father.
Raise
the Roof and Remove the Walls is knowing and experiencing Jesus for who He
really is.
A
third test is how this spiritual experience affects my attitude toward the Holy
Spirit.
Romans
8:6
For
to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is
life and peace.
It
needs to lead us to know and experience that the Holy Spirit brings life and
peace to us.
Romans
8:16
The
Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.
It
needs to lead us to receive from the Holy Spirit the assurance that we are
children of God.
Romans
8:26-27
Likewise,
the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we
ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for
words. And He who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because
the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
Raise
the Roof and Remove the Walls is experiencing the powerful working of the
Holy Spirit in our daily lives.
Any
experience that enables you to know God more, love God more deeply, and serve
God more devotedly is from God. Any experience that does not is not from God.
Experiencing Closeness
with God by Raising the Roof
and Removing the Walls,
Joe
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