In Spirit And Truth

Welcome, and thank you for joining this message by David Entry at Carish Church.! In this season of Great Awakening, may God pour out His Spirit through His Word,! refreshing your heart and awakening you to His will.

John chapter 4, reading from verse 20 to 24. Thank you, Jesus. Let's go to 19. I think it'll make more sense.

The woman said unto Him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain, and ye say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Jesus answered unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh when ye shall neither in this mountain nor yet at Jerusalem worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what. We know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.

But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth. For the Father seeketh such to worship Him. God is a spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.

Shall we all read verse 24 together? God is a spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit. Amen. One more time, please. God is a spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. Amen.

Let's pray. Father, here we stand, being exposed to your word. We pray that by your spirit, give us insight, understanding of your word.

Speak to our hearts. Let us hear what the Spirit says to the churches. Give us open ears, circumcised ears, soft hearts, to receive what you have got to say.

In Jesus' name. Amen. Hallelujah. We are living in exciting times. And we found out that the Bible is a speaking book.

It's a living book. It's a book that contains living words.

Words of life. The words in Scripture are organic to those whose hearts are open to God with reverence.

When your heart is open to God with reverence, the words of Scripture become organic. They become digestible. They find a space in your heart to bring forth fruits, godly fruits.

The Bible says that there are some teachings that do not work for godliness. It's 2 Timothy chapter, the first Timothy chapter 6 actually.

You know, from verse 3 somewhere there. It talks about, and 2 Timothy chapter 2 too. It talks about certain teachings that do not accord with godliness.

So, the teachings that feed are the teachings that produce or generate godliness. Anyone who teaches otherwise and does not consent to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to doctrines which accord with godliness.

There are some doctrines where you are exposed to, you only create, when you expose yourself to certain doctrines, worldliness will be created in your life.

On godliness, platform for godliness is generated and built. Whilst there are healthy words that when you expose yourself to, it dismantles and tears down every platform for carnality and ungodliness and allow platform for godliness to be erected in your heart and in your life.

So, the Bible contains the words of life. Now, because of that, when the Bible speaks, it's speaking so that life can enter somebody so the Bible can live.

That's why we spoke our, let the Bible live. Now, when the Bible live in your life, it's not about obeying religious instructions. Okay, when we talk about the Bible live, it's not about obeying religious instructions.

It's more about carrying out in an organic fashion or in a default fashion the purpose and the agenda of God. Because we cannot all know the purpose and the plan of God comprehensively.

But as we open our hearts and let the scripture or the word of God, the Bible live in us, it proves the way for us to be in tune, in sync, and in line with God's agenda.

Else, like Paul said, he was fighting the agenda of God thinking he was doing God's service. You can fight the purpose of God thinking you are doing God's service.

Whilst you are doing him great disservice. The only way any man can work and walk with God is when their hearts are open to God's word.

And the word of God finds an expression in their lives. You cannot please God just in your mind. That is why self-discipline alone is not good enough to fulfill God's purpose.

Because no human being has in himself comprehensively what it takes to please God and to work with God and work for God or work with God.

The Bible says in Philippians chapter 2, 13, It is God who is at work in you. For it is God who works in you. Both, even the desire must be engineered by God.

Both to will and then to do. Another translation puts it this way. It is God who works in you to produce the willing and the doing of his good pleasure.

No human being has in himself what it takes to do God's good pleasure. God can use you at subjunctions like the way he used the donkey to speak. He can use anything and anybody has subjunctions.

But to work with God and be in flow with his purpose, we must let the Bible live. Now, if the Bible should live, I'm not just talking about going to the Bible and just reading and looking for letters to obey.

You must read the Bible constantly like Colossians chapter 3, 16 says, Let the word of God dwell in you richly. Oh, I like Apollos. The Bible testifies of him in Acts chapter 18, verse 24 and 25.

He was mighty in the scriptures. Ah, I like that. I like that. He was an eloquent man. That's not it. That's fine, but that's not me. What I like is mighty in the scriptures.

Mighty. 18, 24. Acts, yeah. He was mighty in scriptures. May that be our testimony. Amen. Amen. So, now to be mighty in scriptures or to be flowing with the scriptures, he was even mighty in scriptures, but he was limited because his teaching was kept.

He only knew John the Baptist's teaching. And John the Baptist didn't preach about the cross and about the church and about the resurrection. So, if you stay with John the Baptist, you'll be an Old Testament prophet.

Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. He then was schooled by Priscilla and Aquila who had had interactions with Paul and to be at speed with the agenda of God.

Now, to let the Bible live in your life is not purely a mental exercise. Jesus told the Samaritan woman.

The Samaritan woman brought up a religious discourse when she suspected this man was a prophet. Because the man told her everything about her life.

She said to the people, I've met a man who told me everything I've done. But Jesus only said, he says that, come and see a man who told me all things that I ever did.

But what was recorded was, he just said you have five husbands. You've had five husbands. But probably there was more that was said. But the gospel writer didn't capture it because it was not necessary for our salvation, necessary for the purpose of God in our lives.

What was necessary is what was recorded. Because he himself said there were a lot of things Jesus did and said we are not captured. So the woman's testimony tells us that Jesus told her so much. Everything she ever did, Jesus said to her.

So once she found out that, she said, are you a prophet? He says that, I perceive you a prophet. Because this one is only a prophet. So then she introduces into the discourse a religious question.

He said that our fathers worshiped us, the Samaritan fathers. They worshiped on this mountain. But you Jews says that we have to worship in Jerusalem. So they had a false version of Judaism.

A mountain they have come from themselves, the Samaritans. Because they can't go to Jerusalem where they have to worship. And the Jews will not accept them. So he said, you Jews say we should worship in Jerusalem. And Jesus said, salvation is actually of the Jews.

That's quite a strong statement. Woman, believe you, me. Jesus said to her, verse 20. Woman, believe you, me. The hour is coming and now is that neither on this mountain or in Jerusalem will people worship their father.

So you don't have to go to Israel. But I will go there. It's not to make my worship quality. But it's nice.

I would like to. But Jesus said you don't need that for worship. And then he further told the woman, you Samaritans worship what you don't know.

But we worship what we know. Okay, so we know what we worship. Because salvation is of the Jews. That's a serious claim. Salvation is of the Jews.

These are not some lecturers' message or comments. These are Jesus' ways. God came on earth and he said, salvation is of the Jews. That's why in Romans chapter 1 verse 16 it says that, I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ.

For it is the power of God unto salvation. To the Jew first. To the Jew first. Salvation is of the Jews. Paul told them the gospel should be preached to you in Acts chapter 13 from verse 44 somewhere there.

God said, but since you deem yourself not worthy of the gospel, we turn to the Gentiles. But first it was meant to go to the Jews. Verse 46. Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said, it was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first.

But since you reject it and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles. Sometimes God will choose you first. But he'll pass on to somebody else.

He'll pass on to somebody else. In spite of your background. Sometimes your background will give you an advantage. But God can use others who don't have your beautiful background. And use others with a very interesting, colorful, rough background.

But God will still use them. Because those who were born in church and have always been in church were not interested. So God will go out and pick somebody from the bar stools. Praise the Lord.

So Jesus said salvation of the Jews. Then he went on to tell them that the hour is coming and now is verse 23. When the true worshipers shall worship the Father in two ways.

Okay. You need both. It's like two legs. Like two wings of the plane. Which one is more important? You need both. You can't leave one and fly with one.

You're praying. Yes. You need both wings. Both the left wing and the right wing are needed. So when Jesus said they'll worship the Father in spirit and in truth.

You can't be only doing it in spirit. Always jumping around and there's nothing you know. No. You can't be only doing it in truth. In other words, you saw theology.

When I was in Bible school, one of the lecturers said, some people dive so deep into theology and they come out dry. So you can be just heard. The Bible says that knowledge puffs up.

You can be so heady, heady, heady in your work with God that when God comes, you actually miss him. So we need the two. So if we're saying that let the Bible live, there is one core aspect that really make that real.

Not just when your wishes and our intentions and our desires are important. But when you study Genesis, nothing gets done on earth by God without his spirit. So when God formed man, there is something that was so essential about man for God to have interactions with man, which the animals don't have.

God, in Genesis chapter 2, says that, and God breathed. And the Lord God formed man out of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils. Breath of life.

And man became a living being. That breath of life is the spirit. So in Zechariah chapter 12, verse 1, God first of all made the heavens. And he made the earth.

So the burden of the word of the Lord against Israel. Thus he has the Lord who stretched out where the heavens and then laid the foundation of the earth. He did all that for man.

And when he made man, the center of the universe is the spirit of man. Can I repeat it? The center of the universe is not the sun. It's the spirit of man.

God did all that. That's why man was the last one to be made. And then Genesis chapter 1, verse 26 says, then God said, now let's make man. And then when he made man, Genesis chapter 2, verse 7 tells us that he just didn't form man out of the dust.

But then after he finished making man, there's nothing else on earth that has spirit. So God breathed into man. So Zechariah said, when God made the heavens, he made the earth and then formed the spirit of a man inside him.

Every human being has a spirit. Every human being has a spirit. In the book of Ecclesiastes chapter 12, verse 7, it points to the fact that you have a spirit. Then the dust will return to the earth as it was.

And the spirit will return to God. This is not talking about the spirit of God. It's talking about the human spirit. First Thessalonians chapter 5, verse 23. It said, may God sanctify you, your host, your spirit truly.

It said, may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely. You are made up of. So may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord.

So you are a spirit, soul, and a body. Amen. You are a spirit. You have a soul. You live in a body. In our body, we have world consciousness. In our souls, we have self-consciousness.

And in our spirit, we have God-consciousness. So you can never have interactions with God outside of the spirit. These things are very important. In Romans chapter 1, verse 9, Paul said, I thank my God, whom I serve with my spirit.

All right? God is my witness, who I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his son. And that without ceasing, I make mention of. He said, God is my witness, that I make mention of you.

But I serve God with my spirit. So the human spirit is a necessary component for worship. So if you are talking about the Bible living, it doesn't happen outside of your spirit.

But your spirit, first of all, must receive the spirit of God. So the aspect of your being that interacts with God is your spirit. Why?

Because God is your spirit. John chapter 4, verse 24. It clearly says, what is God? Spirit. Let's not read it out. Let's go. God is your spirit.

One more time. God is your spirit. Louder, please. God is your spirit. God is your spirit. King James says, God is a spirit. God is spirit. So if you're going to interact with God and worship with God, you can only do it in spirit.

But not just in spirit. You also need the truth of God's word to do it. Hallelujah. We must worship it in spirit and truth.

Why? Because God is spirit. There are three places where the Bible describes what God is. One is here, God is spirit. The other place is God is life. The other place is God is love.

God is love. God is spirit. And God is life. In him is life. God who is alive. So we have to worship God in spirit and in truth.

Now, so when you look at Genesis, this is very important, brothers and sisters. Genesis chapter 1, before God started creating, the spirit was around. Bible says that the earth was without form and darkness was opened.

And the spirit of God. God does nothing on earth without his spirit. God does.

When it was time for creation, the spirit has to be around. And when it was, this is good. When it was time for God to give us his word, the word. Without the spirit, you will be reading lectures.

These are words of the spirit. 2 Timothy chapter 3, verse 16. All scripture is given by the breath of God. You know the breath of God? Genesis chapter 2, verse 7.

The breath of God. God breathed into man. And so what was responsible for our spirit is the same thing responsible for the word. When God formed us out of the dust of the earth, he breathed it and then we became life.

But when it came to his word, he just breathed it out. So when you go into the word, there is some similarity in the word of God spiritually and your spirit's man.

That's why the word of God really works on your spirit. It opens the eye of your spirit. It says that in my prayer, Ephesians chapter 3, verse 16. My prayer is that God will strengthen you with man through his spirit in your inner man.

It's the spirit that is able to work in your inner man. Bible says that the spirit of man is the candle of the Lord. Searching the innermost paths. So your spirit is God's searchlight.

So that God knows exactly what is in you. 1 Corinthians chapter 2, verse 10 and then verse 11. It talks about how God has revealed by his spirit. For the spirit searches all things.

Yeah, the deep things of God. The spirit of God. You want the Bible to live? It starts with the spirit. The spirit searches the deep things of God. Look at verse 11. That's interesting.

For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of that man, of the man which is inside him. So your spirit actually knows you.

Better than your father. Better than your mother. Better than your wife. Better than your husband. Better than your children. Better than yourself. Your spirit knows you better than yourself.

Because according to Jeremiah chapter 17, verse 10, verse 9. It says the heart of man is desperately wicked. Who can know? So sometimes your heart can deceive you. You might think, ask for me, I'm a good person.

But you are not that good, you know. You are not that good as you're supposed to. You are not that good because the spirit of a man is desperately wicked. That is why I watched this in Hebrews chapter 4, verse 12.

We need the word of God which is living. Which is able to separate with the spirit from the soul. It pierces asunder. It takes the word of God to separate your soul from what is spirit.

So we need the spirit of God. When it came to giving us the Bible, the Bible says that God breathed out by his spirit. In 2 Peter chapter 1, verse 20 and 19. It says that no scripture is of any private interpretation.

But holy man of God. Hallelujah. It said scripture, for the prophecy, that scripture, never came by the will of man. No, let's go to the verse 20. It's what I started from, please.

Knowing first that no prophecy of scripture is of private interpretation. So how do we get it? It said, but prophecy never came by the will of man. So men didn't decide, I'm going to write it.

So, see, when someone says, I'm a prophet. If you come, I will prophesy to you. You let me just prophesy. No. Prophecy doesn't come purely by the will of man. So no prophecy came, never came by the will of man.

But holy men of God speak as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. That's why we call this holy scripture. Because it was given by the Holy Spirit.

So you see that the spirit of God was instrumental in giving us the text of scripture. So how can I think I'm going into the text of scripture by my own educated mind and get everything that is outside of his spirit?

Spiritualia, spiritualite, examinato. The things of God are foolishness to the eternal man. They can only be designed and understood by a person whose spirit is submitted to God with reverence.

I'm talking about 1 Corinthians 2, verse 14. Now, the Bible, because it's produced by the spirit of God, let me just give you these statistics just for your information.

It will be helpful. It's an extraordinary book. It has 66 books. This is actually a library of collection of books. And how many books are in it? 66 and nothing. It was written over 1,600 years.

Can you imagine? Even if someone lives 100 years away from us, their philosophy will be slightly different from our philosophy. But this is 1,600 years. It is. But some people, some of them who wrote were 1,600 years away from others who also were used to produce scripture.

40 different authors. Not one person, but 40 different authors. Three languages on three continents. And what is even interesting is the authorial diversity.

The authors were very diverse. There were two kings. There were two priests. One physician. Two fishermen. Two shepherds. One Pharisee. Two statesmen. One tax collector.

One military general. One scribe. One cap bearer. One gold header. From diverse backgrounds. And yet, nothing, no one thing contradicted what the other.

Can you imagine if a physician is writing something and giving a presentation and you compare it to what a fisherman would give. You can realize there might be some contradiction.

A king and some were prisoners. Some were in their palace. And someone who grew up in their palace writing something or sending an information or telling you his opinion about life.

It would significantly be different from a criminal who is in prison. Or a tax collector. But none of them, whatever thing they wrote, they didn't contradict. Because they didn't write it by their own will.

Holy Spirit. Oh, I feel like preaching. So, it is not like the words that they were writing, they thought, okay, what should I say? No. And it wasn't like they were zombies.

They didn't know. No. They had their will, everything. But as they read, whatever they wrote, Bible said, all scripture was given by. So, what they were writing, even though it was a man who was writing, God was breathing it out to man.

It's like I'm preaching, you can hear my voice through the microphone. It's not the microphone that is generating the voice. The microphone is not speaking to you. It's just a channel.

And so, we have all this authorial diversity. And then, the style was also diverse. We have diversity in styles. Hallelujah. We have narratives. We have proverbs.

We have poetry. We have prophecy. Parable. Epistle. Allegory. Psalm. Legal writings. Diversity of where the books were written. Some books were written in Macedonia.

Palace of Jerusalem. Cave of Judea. By the river of Babylon. Sanai Desert. Palace of Sharshan. Rome. Greece. The barren island of Padmos.

And the land of Egypt. This Bible has 2,930 individuals mentioned. It makes references and mentions 2,930 individuals.

If you lived in that time, some of you might have made it in. Either for good or for bad. Individuals were mentioned. Spanning almost 1,200 chapters.

Over 31,000 verses. Using 700,000 ways. 3.5 million individual letters. This book is unique.

However, why am I giving you all these statistics? With such diversity, you should think there should be contradiction. It looks like there was a master superintendent who was overseeing every bit of it across the generations, across the continents, across the languages, across the persons who wrote this.

And supervised it and supervised it and made sure that nothing was written which was in his plan. The Bible is a product of the Spirit of God. That's what I'm trying to say.

It's a product of the Spirit of God. How can I think I'll get it out of the Spirit of God? And not just that. When you look in Scripture, the Spirit of God has been very active. Moses, when God called Moses, at the other time, he said, Okay, I'm going to give you other people to work with you.

Elders. And God told Moses in numbers. He said, Bring the people to me and I'll take the Spirit that is upon you and I'll put it on them as well. And so Moses brought the people and God said that, Okay, stand aside.

I'll take the Spirit that is upon you and I'll put it upon them so that they can do the work with you. Praise the Lord. Numbers chapter 11, verse 25.

And then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him and took the Spirit. See, that's the difference from human spirit. This is the Spirit of God. That's what was causing Moses to do what he was doing.

He took the Spirit that was upon Moses and put it upon the 72 so that they can also do it. But what was interesting in the next verse, that there are some two guys who didn't make it to the camp. The name of one was Eldar and the name of the other one was Medad.

And the Spirit of the Lord rested on them because they were part of the team. So they rested on them. So one of the servants of Moses went and saw and said, They are not in the meeting, but they also prophesied.

The Spirit has come upon them. And Moses prophesied. He said, Listen, don't stop them. You think it's only us. My desire is that all God's people will be filled with the Spirit of God.

Now, that was the prophecy, what Joel was about, what was going to happen when Jesus comes. Moses spoke about it because you cannot work for God without the Spirit. That's what I'm trying to say.

When it came to building of the tabernacle, even the artisans, in Exodus chapter 31, verse, look at the text there. I think that will be, it will be of interest to somebody.

Verse 1 to 3, Exodus chapter 31, verse 1 to 3 said, Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Ur, of the tribe of Judah.

And I have filled him with the Spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, in all manner of workmanship. All manner of workmanship.

I have filled him with the Spirit for that. Chapter 35, look at chapter 35. Let's start from verse 30. It says that, And Moses said to the children of Judah, See, the Lord has called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, and the son of Ur, of the tribe of Judah.

The next verse. And he has filled him with the Spirit of God in wisdom and in understanding, in knowledge, in all manner of workmanship. Look at the next verse.

We are going to verse 35. To design artistic work. To work in gold and silver and bronze, in cutting jewels for settings, in carving wood, and to work in all manner of artistic workmanship.

And he has put in his heart, in him and Aholiam, the son of Ahishamach, of the tribe of Dan.

Verse 35. He has filled them with skill to do all manner of work of the engraver and the designer and the tapestry maker.

In blue, purple, and in scarlet thread, and fine linen, and of the weaver, those who do every work, and those who design artistic work.

Do you need a Spirit for this? Yes, when it comes to God's work. I know you are a professor in mathematics, but for it to be used for God's work, the Spirit of God must come upon you.

I know you are a great politician, but for you to be able to speak for God's agenda consistently, the Spirit of God must come upon you. So, what I'm trying to say is, when we say let the Bible live, we are not just talking about things just happening because you obey rules.

But we are also talking about, as you are studying the Bible, your Spirit is open to God's Spirit. You learn how to not to grieve the Holy Spirit. You are more interested in the Spirit of God.

You are interested in what the Spirit of God will do with your life. Check throughout Scripture. And the Spirit of God came upon this. And the Spirit of God came upon this. To the extent that even Jesus could not start His work until the Holy Spirit came upon you.

Mary conceived Jesus by the Spirit. Hallelujah. Matthew chapter 1 verse 18. She was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit. It's the Holy Spirit who was the main person behind that miracle.

In Luke chapter 1 verse 35. The Holy Spirit shall come upon you, and the power of the higher shall overshadow you. Therefore, that Holy child that will be born of you will be called the Holy Child of God, will be called the Son of God.

Why? Because the Spirit of God is working. When she went to Elizabeth and greeted Elizabeth, the baby in her womb left for joy. And she was filled with the Holy Spirit. Hallelujah. That was the working of God.

You can't work for God without the Spirit of God. Even creation, the Spirit of God must be involved. Even the arrival of Jesus, the Spirit of God was involved. And before Jesus did his ministry, in Luke chapter 4 verse 18, he shows up and he said, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me.

How? When he was being baptized, in Luke chapter 3 verse 21, he was praying, the heavens was opened, and the Spirit of God descended upon him in a bodily shape like a dove. In John chapter 1 verse 31, John said, I don't know him, but he who sent me to baptize.

The same told me that upon him you see the Spirit coming. He is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit. So he said, I saw the Spirit descending upon him, and I testify, this is the Son of God.

How? By the Spirit. We are not really just interested in your natural ability. It cannot build the work of God. It will actually really damage the work of God.

Or it will taint and stain the work of God. The work of God is damaged and stained by flesh. By flesh. So for God to use us in times like this, it's time for someone to begin to be considerate, how much do I open myself to the Spirit?

How much do I open myself? We must desire to be exposed, to be open to the Spirit. Now, listen to what I am not saying. I am not saying it starts looking spooky. Jumping all around right there.

No, no, no, no, no, no. That's not necessarily a sign of the Spirit. We must be open to the Spirit and allow the Spirit to do his work in our lives.

I like the way Paul puts it. He was talking about how we preach Christ. Colossians chapter 1 verse 28 and 29. He said, Him we preach. Hallelujah. Him we preach.

Someone say, Him we preach. Him we preach. He said, Him we preach. Warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.

Look at the next verse. It said, to this end, I labor. Striving. That's Agonizomaya. Striving according to the working. Did you see that?

How am I striving? There is something that is working mightily in me. It's what we are able to produce for God, to be acceptable for God in his work.

It's a function of the Spirit. If we are talking about revival, God is using us for revival. Please. Your dreams to think God will use you. He will use you without his Spirit.

So when Jesus was about to send them, he said, wait. Don't rush out of Jerusalem. Wait. Tarry ye. Tarry ye in Jerusalem. In Luke chapter 24 verse 49. Tarry ye in Jerusalem.

Wait until you are endued with power from on high. In Acts chapter 1 verse 4, they ask him. It says that, don't worry about the distribution of gifts or all those other things.

It says that, for John truly baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. No many things. So tarry ye until you are endued with power. For you shall receive power after the Holy Spirit.

Acts chapter 1 verse 8. After the Holy Spirit has come upon you. And you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in Judea, in Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the world. So it's a function of the Spirit. The apostles, the disciples of Jesus, could not move out.

So when Jesus left in Acts chapter 1 verse 11, they went into the upper room, verse 14, and continued praying, praying, praying, praying, until the day of Pentecost came in Acts chapter 2 verse 1.

And suddenly there came a sound from heaven. And they were all filled with their spirit. And they began to speak, verse 4, they began to speak with tongues and prophesy. And when people were misinterpreting it, Peter said, this is what was said by the prophets.

So you could see that the Holy Spirit, even for them to work, it took the Holy Spirit coming upon them. For Scripture to be produced. There are times you read the Scripture, you hear, it says, Acts chapter 1 verse 6, Peter said, the Holy Spirit spoke by the mouth of David.

He's quoting Scripture, but it says it was the Holy Spirit. It was the Holy Spirit. In Hebrews chapter 3, they were quoting verse 7. The Spirit says, if you hear his voice, don't harden your heart.

And it was quoting from Psalm 95, but he said, as the Spirit said. Because Scripture is breathed out by the Spirit. Do you understand that?

Now, when Jesus wrote his own letter, he came down and he dictated the letter for John to write on the Isle of Patmos in the book of Revelation. In Revelation chapter 2 verse 7, when he finished writing, he said, he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

So, Jesus is speaking, but when he finished speaking, he speaks as the Spirit. Now, that's very important to understand. Because look at chapter 2 verse 1. Now, he's going to introduce himself. He said, to the angel of the church of Ephesus writes.

Then he says, these things say he who holds the seven stars in its right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven. So, he's talking about Jesus. Who is so walking?

Then he says, then look at the next verse, verse 2. He said, this is what I want you to tell them. I know your works. I know that. I know that. When he finished talking, he said, he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says.

Then the next verse, he writes to the church, the next church, the church of Smyna. Then he says that this is he, this is what he describes himself based on the revelation of himself that he has given. But when he finishes in the verse 11, he said, he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit, it takes the Spirit to speak to the church.

In the verse 17, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. Verse 29, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. Chapter 3, verse 6, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Chapter 3, verse 13, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. Chapter 3, verse 22, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. So it's about hearing what the Spirit says. It's the Spirit that speaks to the churches.

In Revelation chapter 14 verse 13, it says that they that die in the Lord, they are blessed. Those who die in the Lord is a blessing to die in the Lord. Then I heard the voice from heaven saying to me, right, blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.

Yes, says the Spirit. The Spirit is the speaking Spirit. When you go to the Scriptures, if your heart is not open to the Spirit, you won't find what God is saying to you.

And for that matter, you will miss God easily. So it's important we open our hearts to the Spirit. We must be open to the Spirit. Without the Spirit, the Word of God cannot live in our lives.

We must be people of the Spirit. But there's a problem. There's a problem. If we are going to, all right, the one who is the master of the Scripture, the Holy Spirit, you put him on the side and do your own thing to read your Bible and get it.

That's how we have dry theologians. We have theologians who are working against God, speaking against God. They are lecturers, but they are actually agents against God.

You don't have to be ill-meaning. You don't have to be bad. The problem is the flesh. In Galatians chapter 5, it says, for the flesh lasts against the Spirit, and the Spirit is against the flesh.

Now, so that tells us that one of the biggest problems of anyone who wants the Bible to live is the problem of flesh. Because flesh lasts against the Spirit.

Flesh will push back the advancement of the Spirit, the intentions, the desires of the Spirit. Your flesh, in fact, all of us were born with the special giftings, abilities, and talents to effectively fight against the Spirit.

Every one of us, naturally, by nature, we are opposers of the Spirit. So, when you say, ask for me, ask for me, ask for me, by nature, ask for me, aha, the thing is coming.

The opposition is coming to the Spirit. That, ask for me, is where the problem is. Ask for me. Ask for me. Ask for me. Ask for me. You should have said, ask for the Spirit. Ask for the Spirit.

Ask for the Spirit. Or, my desire is, ask for me. Jesus even said, ask for me. If it's possible, let this thing never come to the world. However, not me.

Let your will be done. So, one of the things that will make it very hard to let the Bible live is carnality, fleshliness, or, watch this. This is a scary one. Your naturalness.

The more natural you are, the more you are left with your personal temperaments, your personal emotions.

You know, I get really crossed when people talk to me like that. God is going to allow the devil to step on that. You're giving the devil tool to work with.

The more you focus on my personal issues. By the time you realize, because we live in a generation that have become excessively humanized.

We are so conscious about me. It's me. I am at the center of the universe. It's all about me. That's why God can't use you.

Watch this. He said in Ephesians chapter 4, verse 13. He says, let's all read the first line together. One more time.

That's scary. You can't grieve him. You cannot grieve AI. Your God doesn't have emotions. He's not a person. The Holy Spirit is a person.

To grieve is to make him withdraw. Oh, and it's easy to grieve the Holy Spirit. How do you do it? You don't have to do what is wrong. Just do what is natural. Just stay in your naturalness.

And the flesh naturally opposes the Spirit. So, what you are saying is reasonable. It sounds right. You have a justification not to like it. But you are likely to sidestep the Holy Spirit.

Because you are fixated on the way you are. And the way things must be for you. And the way you are expecting things to be. So, if you are not sensitive. I'm talking about sensitivity to the Holy Spirit.

If you are not sensitive. You will be triggered. You will be triggered by what is natural to you. Away from what is supernatural. So, for the Bible to live.

You will need the Spirit. But the problem is. The flesh lasts against the Spirit. The things that block the Holy Spirit. That grieve the Holy Spirit. Is carnality. Fleshliness.

1 Corinthians 2 verse 14. He said the natural man. It's there in your Bible. 1 Corinthians 2. He said that. But the natural. See, it's not an ungodly man. He's not a fetish priest. He didn't say a fetish priest.

He didn't say a bad person. He said the natural man does not receive. The things of the Spirit of God. For they are foolishness. No. If you have to. No one can fool me. No one can fool me here.

No one can. You will miss God. Trust the Spirit. And the Spirit of God gives wisdom. To know what is not of God. Even in the openness of your heart.

When we learn how to yield to the Spirit. Somebody might be taking advantage for you. But that will be red carpet for God. Into your destiny. Sometimes. You have to stick with what is God.

And what is sent out to God. Loyalty is important. The Bible says. The faithful man shall abound with blessings. So sometimes. In my faithfulness to you. You can betray me.

Because I am thinking I am being faithful. But you taking advantage of me. No problem. I might seem to lose now. But the Bible says that. A faithful man will abound with blessings. So before you could say Jack.

I have overtaken you. The blessing comes naturally to me. By virtue. You understand what I am saying? By virtue of faithfulness. So when it comes to doing God's work. I choose to do it faithfully.

By the Spirit. Let anyone who does it faithfully. Do it. So. Even in a pastoral way. Let's say. I meet you. And I am sharing the word of God with you. And you say.

Oh thank you. But I mean while you are lying. Oh thank you. Oh pastor. I have been praying all night. You are lying. And I believe you. I believe you. It looks like you have fooled me. But you can't fool the Spirit. So if I do it depending on the Spirit.

How long can you keep fooling the Spirit? How long can you be laughing with me. And writing negative letters to me? How long can you keep doing it? I just have to choose. With time. It will catch up with you.

With time. If your heart is not genuine. And what you are doing is wrong. With time. If what I am doing as a pastor is wrong. With time. It doesn't have to go to heaven. On earth. On earth.

On earth. God must act when he wants to act. If he chooses not to act. Let's leave him not to act. Don't be praying that God strikes my enemies. It's not necessary. It's not necessary.

If he wants to do it. Just be in line with him. He will do it. And sometimes you be in line with him. And those who kill Jesus never got. First justice. Charles Spurgeon.

Was brutally maltreated. By journalists. And the people of the day. Brutally. That's why. He died out of stress. Just too much. Just too much.

Negative campaign. Attack. But look at what he did. Most of all his nays. Yes. Where are they? Today. Charles Spurgeon. Is still being remembered. Is still being celebrated. So.

My message here is that. Let's be sensitive to the Holy Spirit. Even in times like this. Because any of us at all. Any of us. Not only a certain type of us. Any of us can miss God. Yes. Yes. Yes.

I can get God yesterday. And miss him today. He said. Grieve not the Holy Spirit. Then he goes on to say. Quench not. In 1 Thessalonians chapter 5. Verse 19. That's even scary.

Holy Spirit is moving. You can pour water on him. And we can do it. And we can do it. Is it possible that he wants to do things. He's meant to do things in your life. And we quench him. Or we grieve him.

And yet we said. Let the Bible live. It can happen outside of the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit likes when we rely on him. When we depend on him. When we leave it in his hands. And trust him. I pray that God will help us all.

To learn how not to grieve him. And walk with him. Grieve not the Spirit. For us to be effective tools in the hands of God. It will take not just knowing the Bible.

But it takes the Spirit of God. So we need the Word. And the Spirit. We need in Spirit. And in truth. The time is coming. And now is. When the true worshippers.

Shall worship the Father. In Spirit. And in truth. Did you receive something? We're so glad you joined us.

For this message by David Entry. We pray the Word has inspired. And strengthened you. You can connect to David Entry. On Instagram. LinkedIn. And other social platforms. And.

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Thank you.