Spirit-power is “living water” to satisfy our thirst

Please follow the BLOG Etiquette to stay on topic and pass the moderator’s check.  Bold, underlined text below = future links to the BLOG pages.

See Spirit-Baptism – BT12 for an excellent study on this!  The Holy Spirit is the “living water of zoe genuine-life” that was meant to “continually gush, spring, or well up (a) from our innermost being” (b).  In context, Jesus is addressing people who are entrenched in man’s outward religious service to God instead of God living within them by His Spirit.  Jeremiah 2:13 says the Jews had committed “two evils: 1) they have forsaken Me – the fountain of living waters (c) and instead hewn out cisterns for themselves – cisterns that are in fact, broken so they can hold no water.” Instead of looking to Yahweh as a “garden fountain, a well of living water, and flowing streams” (d), they had “dug out cisterns (e) for themselves,” and Yahweh says: “they are broken, holding no water.” Trying to store the physical rain water to live off of is smart water-harvesting, but not when that “rain water” is Yahweh. We weren’t meant to try to sustain ourselves off what God once said or did, but on what God is NOW saying and doing!  This is exactly what the prophecy of Zechariah 4:6 of the New Covenant is alluding to – God’s doesn’t want our “might and power” (f) but wants to do it ALL and take all the credit, “by My Spirit, says Yahweh.” <Notes> a) descriptions of an artesian or spring-fed well, b) John 4:11, 14, 7:38, c) cf. Jeremiah 17:13, d) Song of Solomon 4:15, e) storage pits or wells, f) chayil and koach:  man’s external resources: skills, talents, plans, programs, schedules, buildings, money, etc., and man’s internal abilities: IQ, imagination, knowledge, desires, emotions, will-power, etc.

The Holy Spirit isn’t sitting in a bible “well” for thousands of years to “drink” when we open our bibles, yet this is what I’ve heard churches preach. Some people even keep “an open bible” laying in their house, hoping this will act as some kind of charm or be invitation for miracles.  1 Corinthians 12:13 says Christians “have already been made to drink towards/at One Spirit just as by One Spirit we were all water-baptized into One Body just as the Jews in the wilderness “drank from the Spirit-kind-of (a) [massive] Bedrock” (b). This was a flowing stream through the desert that stretched for miles so that over 600,000 Jews could drink for days and weeks!  However, the “the water that I will give him [that] shall be in him a well of water” and will “routinely be springing up towards/at everlasting, zoe genuine-life” (c). That’s a lifestyle of drinking – that’s how to “never be thirsty again!”  The “eating and drinking” of Christ’s “flesh and blood” (d) for “everlasting, zoe genuine-life” are also present participles, thus a lifestyle or routine habit (e). “If anyone presently thirsts, let him presently/ongoingly come to Me and/coupled presently/ongoingly drink” (f).  Now we can see where the problem lies with many of us:  we don’t do the ongoingly part! <Notes> a) pneuma as possessive adjective, b) Christ, 1 Corinthians 10:4, c) John 4:11, d) symbols of Himself, e) John 6:54-56, f) John 7:37.

The Jews had the directly-spoken/heard “rain water” of God written down as scripture, which sat for hundreds of years, and they were STILL trying to zoe genuinely-live off of it. By definition, “living water” had to be “fresh and running from a spring or artesian well,” for the “fountain of Wisdom is a bubbling brook” (a), freshly supplied by “rains from the heavens for fruitful seasons” (b), freshly granted from God (c), even as “early and late rains” (d). But these “rains” are also symbolic of “showers of righteousness” (e), the arrival of God Himself (f), and especially the “directly-spoken/heard prophetic rhema words of God’s mouth, My teaching (g) dropping as rain, My directly-spoken/heard prophetic rhema words as dew, like gentle rain, like showers, proclaiming the name/authority of Yahweh” (h). There is no reference here to second-hand bible gnosis info-knowledge, taught from person-to-person!  <Notes> a) Proverbs 18:4, b) Acts 14:17; Isaiah 55:10, c) 1 Kings 8:36; 2 Chronicles 6:26-27; Jeremiah 14:22; Zechariah 10:1, d) Deuteronomy 11:14; James 5:7; Jeremiah 5:24; Hosea 6:3; Joel 2:23, , e) Isaiah 45:8; Hosea 10:12, f) Hosea 6:3, g) received mental instruction, h) Deuteronomy 32:1-3.

The “luo bathing/washing (a) of the rhema-word” that “sanctifies/consecrates/sets apart or makes holy, ‘clean’ or pure” the Church in Ephesians 5:26 isn’t referring to even the preached logos gospel message about the Living Logos as Jesus, and certainly not referring to OT graphe scripture of the sacred gramma letters of God.  That’s because the Greek word for “word” is rhema, which is the “directly-spoken/heard prophetic words of God’s mouth” that “mentally instruct” us, that “proclaim the authority of Yahweh.”  This is what will “bath/wash” us to “make us holy” – not any logos messages that were ever written down in gramma letters or logos communicated second-hand, passed down from person-to-person.  It must be first-hand, direct communication to be rhema words.  Jesus hasn’t guided us to more scripture as written logos communication content to be read or analyzed, “for the Lamb . . . will be their shepherd, and/coupled He will guide them to springs of living water.” Jesus guides us to the “One Teacher” of the Holy Spirit!

Yes, this is what Moses and the prophets enjoyed with God LONG ago and had even written down as the “gramma letters of graphe scripture,” but the people were STILL trying to zoe genuinely-live from this second-hand, sitting “water.”  They were STILL trying to live from very old, even paleo ancient, stale water of the old covenant and OT.  However, man wasn’t meant to drink a few sips from a glass and then let the glass sit for days or weeks, trying to live off of such little water, and certainly not by the time they get back to the glass to find the water is full of dust, algae, and bacteria from the world around them, finding it has gone stale, just like in ponds/pools of sitting water (a) or “hewn-out cisterns for themselves, even broken” (b). This is actually quite dangerous! And we certainly can’t live much on water that’s frozen solid through so many winters – unless you are an Emperor Penguin in the Antarctic! <Notes> a) Psalms 84:6, b) Jeremiah 2:13.

What is this “thirst for righteousness” for which “we shall actually by satisfied” (a) – “to never be thirsty again, because this water I will give him will become in him a spring of water, welling up [like an artesian well] towards/at eternal, zoe genuine-life” (b)?  Jesus said, “Whoever has trusting-relying-faith in Me shall absolutely not in possibility or in fact thirst at-any-time/ever” (c) and “If anyone thirsts, let him Come To Me and drink.  Whoever has trusting-relying-faith in Me, . . . Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” (d).  Jesus says in Revelation 21:6, “I AM . . . the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of zoe genuine-life as a free grace-gift [given by a sovereign].” Aren’t you thirsty to drink this living water?  I sure am! <Notes> a) Matthew 5:6, b) John 4:14, c) John 6:35, d) John 7:3-38.

As Christian musicians, are we satisfied playing what once was anointed, prophetic, and spontaneous – our hoping it was once?  But now the music feels lifeless and worse, we are having to play it without the “living water” bubbling up within us?  All because there is a schedule to follow and we are expected to play our part for the church?  Isn’t this exactly what the Jews did year after year?  Do you think this is any more pleasing to God now?  Are we also living in a desert?  Are we trying to cross it without drinking from the stream of “living water?”  Or did we once “drink” long ago, or reading about others doing so in an ancient book, and are just living off personal or impersonal memories of it, like running on gas fumes?  Are we still confused by the radical difference between direct, prophetic, rhema communication and second-hand logos communication?  Per John 6:61, only Jesus, the living Logos directly-speaking to us His rhema words that are Spirit and zoe genuine-life, will be washed and made holy!  Only ongoingly drinking from this “river of living water” will our thirst ongoingly be met.  Only ongoingly eating this bread of life will our hunger be ongoingly met.

Click on Pic

Spirit-power is how we are ongoingly renewed

Please follow the BLOG Etiquette to stay on topic and pass the moderator’s check.  Bold, underlined text below = future links to the BLOG pages.

Paul strongly urges Christians who have “already learned (a) Christ . . . and were already taught by the means of Him, . . . to be ongoingly renewed (b) by the means of the Spirit belonging to your mind (c) and/so to put on the new self [as fresh clothes] . . . in true righteousness and holiness” (d).  This is likely the same as: “Ongoingly do not be conformed to this world, but ongoingly be [metamorphically] transformed by the completely different-in-kind inward renewal (e) of your mind (c) in order to discern/scrutinize (f) what is the will of God” per Romans 12:2 – see New Covenant Ways – BT16.  This is the same kind of inward renewal (e) “by the means of the Spirit” that is coupled with “the luo bathing/washing of regeneration” in Titus 3:5.  Colossians 3:10 similarly says, “the new self, which is ongoingly being completely different-in-kind inward renewed (e) toward/at genuine, experiential, relational epignosis knowledge down-from/according-to the image (Christ) of its Creator (God).”  This also corresponds to 2 Corinthians 4:16, where Paul says, “even though our physical body is wearing away, our inner man is being ongoingly being completely different-in-kind inward renewed (e) day by day.” Clearly, the Holy Spirit is the agent of this radical ongoing renewal in every case!  <Notes> a) been informed by, b) ananeoo: renovated, refreshed, c) The Spirit dwells in this part of man – see Identity.  Just as the Hebrew OT does [cf. Hebrews 8:10, 10:16 citing Jeremiah 31:33; also Hebrews 4:12], Paul uses “mind or thinking” interchangeably with “innermost being/man” [Ephesians 3:16; Romans 2:29, 7:22, 8:23; 2 Corinthians 4:16] and interchangeably with “heart” [Romans 2:29, 5:5, 10:8-10], though sometimes he distinguishes them as Greeks would [Philippians 4:7; cf. Revelation 2:23], d) Ephesians 4:20-23, e) ana + kainosis, f) dokimazo: test, examine, or discern to demonstrate or prove something is acceptable, genuine, approved, good, and approved.

As a Christian musicians, can you see that the Spirit of Christ is now our “One Teacher” per Matthew 23:8 (see Teach One Another – BT10) of our new inner man/being/mind/heart, and this alone is the means/instrument by which we can be ongoingly refreshed and radically renovated within in order to be metamorphically transformed by the genuine, experiential, relational epignosis knowledge of Christ, and this alone is how we will discern or scrutinize what the will of God really is and actually have the enabling-power to put on the fresh clothes (behaviors) of the new self? Again, there is nothing here about reading, studying, memorizing scripture and then being determined to do it!

Click on Pic

Spirit-power causes/makes-to-do His good pleasure

Please follow the BLOG Etiquette to stay on topic and pass the moderator’s check.  Bold, underlined text below = future links to the BLOG pages.

Sure, we were “created in Christ Jesus for good ergon works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” per Ephesians 2:10, but these aren’t simply marching orders to set out to do as soon as we become Christians, regardless of what churches preach to justify their own “cherry-picked” rules of holiness or OT commandments to keep. They conveniently leave out the 2 verses before it: “By unconditional-favor-of-grace you have already been saved, with ongoing results, thru-the-realizing-channel-of trusting-relying-faith – and THIS (neuter) is absolutely not your own doing; [THIS is] the grace-gift of God, absolutely not [coming] out from ergon works, so that no one may boast, for we are His (God’s) workmanship, having already been ¹²created by the means of Christ Jesus for good ergon works . . .  .” It is just terrible how many churches torture this verse!  The neuter pronoun “THIS” doesn’t have any individual nouns to refer back to, because charis unconditional-favor-of-grace and pistis trusting-relying-faith are both feminine.  That’s because Paul is referring to the whole phrase “you having been saved …. trusting-relying-faith” as THIS neuter “thing” that is “the grace-gift of God.”

There are entire denominations that believe “trusting-relying-faith” is a grace-gift of God also.  If that’s the case substituting “trusting-relying-faith” or even “unconditional-favor-of-grace” into the pronoun “THIS” translates to this:  “by charis grace you’ve be saved through the charismati grace-gift of pistis faith,” which is justs as redundant as: “by charis grace you’ve be saved through pistis faith – this charis grace is a charismati grace-gift!”  This just doesn’t make sense!

Paul said whether you obeyed the Torah Law of conditional-favor or not, it counts (a) for absolutely in fact nothing (b) because the circumcised Jew or uncircumcised Gentile (c) are both made/declared righteous by pistis trusting-relying-faith alone (d) by “God’s charis unconditional-favor-of-grace as a charismati grace-gift through the redemption…in Christ” (e), having been resurrected into a new creation by trusting-relying-faith (f), and “the promised Spirit is received by trusting-relying-faith” (g). The “free grace-gift of God” is “zoe genuine-life everlasting in Christ” (h) when we are “made/declared righteous by trusting-relying-faith…by His blood …. saved by His zoe genuine-life….a free grace-gift …the unconditional-favor-of-grace of God …the free grace-gift by that unconditional-favor-of-grace of the one man Jesus . . . receiving the abundance of unconditional-favor-of-grace and the free grace-gift of righteousness . . . through one man Jesus (i). The “promise relies on trusting-relying-faith that it may rest on unconditional-favor-of-grace” (j), having “obtained access by trusting-relying-faith into this unconditional-favor-of-grace” (k). That’s why we are “God’s workmanship and none of us can boast!”  <Notes> a) is strong, forceful, robust, sound, able, serviceable, b) Galatians 5:6, c) circumcision is the identifying seal of the Law for a Jew, d) Romans 3:30, e) Romans 3:24, f) Colossians 2:12, g) Galatians 3:14, h) Romans 6:23, i) Romans 5:1-17, j) Romans 4:16, k) Romans 5:2.

Churches are quick to quote Philippians 2:12 to be “ongoingly working out down-from/according-to (a) our own salvation with fear and trembling,” but they don’t tell you that “fear and trembling” was a common Greek idiom for “reverential awe.” And they often don’t tell you about v. 13, “For (b) it is ongoingly God who routinely works (c) IN you both (d) to ongoingly will/desire and/coupled to ongoingly work (c) His good pleasure.” The reason we can be in reverential awe of God is precisely because God effectively works His own desires INSIDE of us!  The one “working” is God, not us!  The Hebrew 13:21 writer blesses Christians that “God may . . . equip you with all good to do His will, [Him] working IN us through Jesus Christ [to do] that which is pleasing in His sight.”  This is exactly what was promised for the New Covenant in Ezekiel 36:27 that made it unique from the old covenant way our own “might and power” – “And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes and be careful to obey My rules.” <Notes> a) katergazomai, b) gar introduces a reason, c) energeo: energetically, effectively does, d) with copulative emphasis.

Then why are we strongly urged with the imperative by Paul to “work out what comes down-from/according-to our salvation” in Philippians 2:12?  God showed me that it’s like going to a gym. It’s arrogant to think we actually build muscle!  We can only pump them up with blood and actually tear the muscle tissue. It’s God who rebuilds them when we are resting between workouts!  God told me the same thing about physical healing:  Sure, it’s good to workout hard to rebuild your body, but He told me that He rebuilds me as I’m resting, so I need to rest more!  Our salvation is a free grace-gift, but we still need to exercise our salvation “muscles” by living for the Lord out of reverential awe! We aren’t “debtors-obligated to the flesh to live down-from/according-to the flesh” (a) . . . but by the Spirit . . . led by the Spirit of God, not receiving the spirit of slavery (a) to fall back into fear [of punishment] but . . . the Spirit of adoption as sons” (b). <Notes> a) in context, living by the “Torah Law of conditional-favor that brought sin and death” that relies on the obedience of our flesh through our own “might and power,” b) Romans 8:1-15.

It shouldn’t be the Torah Law of conditional-favor that motivates us to work!  Paul says, “For the unconditional-favor-of-grace of God has appeared, . . . training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives . . . waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for Himself a people . . . zealous for good works” (a).  Certainly, “God’s kindness is meant to lead us to repentance” (b). Paul calls this the process of “sanctification” or practical “holiness,” which is living “separately” from a condemned “unclean” world (c). <Notes> a) Titus 2:11-15, b) Romans 2:4, c) Romans 6:19, 22; 1 Thessalonians 4:3; Hebrews 10:14.

“What must we ongoingly make/do, in order to ongoingly be energeo working the ergon works of God?” That’s what the Jews asked of Jesus in John 6:28, and Jesus answered: “This is the ergon work of God: that you ongoingly have trusting-relying-faith towards/at Him (Christ) whom He (God) has sent (a).”  This is “the ergon work . . . that [does not] perish, the [work] for the food that endures [unto] zoe genuine-life everlasting, which the Son of Man will give to you” in John 6:27.  This must also be consistent with Christ’s other words:  “I eido mentally ‘see’ to perceive/know the ergon works of you:  The unconditional-love [of you] and the trusting-relying-faith [of you] and [respectively] the service [from the unconditional-love of you] and the patient endurance [from the trusting-relying-faith] of you . . . The one who routinely conquers victoriously (b) and/coupled routinely carefully tereo watches/guards/attends-to-maintain My ergon works to the end, to him I will give authority over the nations . . . even as I myself have received authority from My Father” (c). This must also be consistent with Paul’s “the ergon work of/belonging to the Lord [Jesus], knowing that in the Lord [Jesus] your extreme weariness/fatigue from labor (d) is not in vain” (e), just as with Paul’s “ergon work of trusting-relying-faith” and “extreme weariness/fatigue from labor (d) of unconditional-love” are the distinguishing marks of the Christian (f).  It’s no wonder that 1 John 3:23 integrates “definitively/wholly have trusting-relying-faith in the name/authority of God’s Son Jesus Christ and/coupled ongoingly unconditionally-love one another” as the only 2 NT commandments.  This is certainly the “works” of a true Christian!  Much of this has already been said above in the section about a Christian’s “good works.” <Notes> a) officially, authoritatively, set apart on a mission as an apostle, b) nike: “hold fast trusting-relying-faith unto death”, c) Revelation 2:19, 26-27, d) kopos:  deep fatigure or extreme weariness from toiling labor, even as if struck by blows, e) 1 Corinthians 15:58, f) 1 Thessalonians 1:3; 2 Thessalonians 1:3, 11; Colossians 1:4; 1 Timothy 1:14.

Paul makes it clear in 1 Corinthians 12:6-7 that the grace-gifts of the Holy Spirit are not given because we merited them from our work, for “there are many varieties of activities/operations (a) but it is the same God who routinely energeo works (b) [them] ALL IN every [person in the Body-of-Christ] – to each [person] is given the manifestation/exhibition/expression of the Spirit for the common good. Then Paul lists in verse 11:  logos messages of wisdom and logos messages of gnosis info-knowledge . . .  prophecy, discernment of spirits, tongues and their interpretation and says, “ALL these are ongoingly energeo worked by the means of one and the same Spirit, who routinely divides/distributes to each one individually as He wills.”  This has nothing to do with putting our natural talents to work for God, as so many churches teach and practice, but about having trusting-relying-faith in God to supernaturally do this work IN and through us by the Holy Spirit!  The “various services/ministries” of 1 Corinthians 12:5-6 are not supposed to be our own natural “might and power” now dedicated to God – that’s religion – but given from “the same Lord” Jesus Christ (c), just as the “various grace-gifts” by “the same Spirit” and “various activities/operations” are from “the same God” – but that takes trusting and relying fellowship, doesn’t it? <Notes> a) energema from ergon:  active, operating, efficient and effectual, works within, b) energeo, verb of energema, c) cf. Ephesians 4:7-11.

As Christians musicians, will we continue to perpetuate the old covenant demands of obedience to God by using our own natural “might and power” abilities for God or embrace the New Covenant distinctive to trust God to work IN us His good pleasure to cause us to walk in His ways?  Are we going to trust and depend on the power of the Holy Spirit to make us holy or strive to do it ourselves?  Do we still think that the Old Testament Law counts for anything, when Paul declare it counts for nothing?  A gift by grace is the opposite of what is earned by work!  But we are God’s workmanship and our part is to exercise our faith in God and then rest.  Any “good works” are those of faith in Christ and loving others just as Jesus loves us.   Let’s us behold with reverential awe God’s grace and then watch Him work IN our lives!  Let us ask for more of the Holy Spirit’s enabling power to do God’s will, because the ability sure won’t be ours!

Click on Pic