The Holy Spirit must not be defended by Scripture; He must be DEFINED by it!

I. Movement 1 – The Holy Spirit Begins the Life of Christ in Us

1. Creation: The Holy Spirit creates a new life through a new birth.

John 3:5-6 – 5Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Core Purpose: To initiate divine life where none existed that is capable of

perceiving and participating in the Kingdom of God.

2. Sustaining: The Holy Spirit becomes your inner source.

John 4:14 – “But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”

Core purpose: To provide ongoing internal supply for spiritual vitality.

The Holy Spirit must not be defended by Scripture; He must be DEFINED by it!

I. Movement 1 – The Holy Spirit Begins the Life of Christ in Us

1. Creation: The Holy Spirit creates a new life through a new birth.

John 3:5-6 – 5Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Core Purpose: To initiate divine life where none existed that is capable of

perceiving and participating in the Kingdom of God.

2. Sustaining: The Holy Spirit becomes your inner source.

John 4:14 – “But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”

Core purpose: To provide ongoing internal supply for spiritual vitality.

Acts 17:28—“For in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’”

John 10:10—“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

I. The Holy Spirit Is Not an Addition to Life — He Is the Source of Life

• Life from God has always come through His Spirit.

John 6:63— “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.”

• The Pattern of Creation

Genesis 2:7—And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils “The Breath of Life;” and man became a living being.

I. Life with God as Your Center

• You live in the Conscious Awareness of God, others, and yourself.

Matthew 22:37-40 – 37Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the LORD your GOD with all

your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38This is the first and

great commandment. 39And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your NEIGHBOR

as yourself.’ 40On these two commandments hang ALL the Law and the

Prophets.”

• God is our Center.

• Others are our Mission.

• Self is Stewardship — not the center.

• You live in the Constant Awareness of the presence of God.

Psalm 16:8 – I have set the LORD ALWAYS BEFORE ME; because He is at my right hand

I shall not be moved.

• You live in the Clear Awareness of the true God.

Hebrews 11:6 – But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to

God MUST BELIEVE THAT HE IS, and that He is a REWARDER of those who

diligently seek Him.

• You live in the Captivating Awareness of the God ALL THINGS.

I. Life with God as Your Center

• You live in the Conscious Awareness of God, others, and yourself.

Matthew 22:37-40 – 37Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the LORD your GOD with all

your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38This is the first and

great commandment. 39And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your NEIGHBOR

as yourself.’ 40On these two commandments hang ALL the Law and the

Prophets.”

• God is our Center.

• Others are our Mission.

• Self is Stewardship — not the center.

• You live in the Constant Awareness of the presence of God.

Psalm 16:8 – I have set the LORD ALWAYS BEFORE ME; because He is at my right hand

I shall not be moved.

• You live in the Clear Awareness of the true God.

Hebrews 11:6 – But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to

God MUST BELIEVE THAT HE IS, and that He is a REWARDER of those who

diligently seek Him.

• You live in the Captivating Awareness of the God ALL THINGS.

I. Life Operates by Jurisdiction, Not Desire

Romans 7:1 – Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has DOMINION over a man as long as he lives?

• JURISDICTION – The invisible fence that determines what is legally possible in your life.

THE MARRIAGE LAW

Romans 7:2-3 – 2For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. 3So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man.

II. You Don’t Escape the Law — You Die to It

Romans 7:4 – Therefore, my brethren, you also have become DEAD TO THE LAW through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another— to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. (By Proxy = Jesus’ Body)

• Death is the intended outcome of God’s law.

Philippians 2:4-5 – 4Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. 5Let THIS MIND be in you which was also in Christ Jesus…

Proverbs 4:20-23 – 20My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. 21Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart; 22for they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh. 23

Keep your heart with all diligence, FOR OUT OF IT SPRING THE ISSUES OF LIFE.

I. We start with Honesty about the Journey – (Why only 10% do this)

Colossians 1:13 – He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.

Acts 17:5-7 – 5the Jews who were not persuaded, becoming envious, took some of the evil men from the marketplace, and gathering a mob, set all the city in an uproar and attacked the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people. 6 But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, “These who have TURNED THE WORLD UPSIDE DOWN have come here too. 7 Jason has harbored them, and these are all acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying there is another king—Jesus.”

Luke 9:23 – Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.”

II. The Simple Formula for Life: Input ➔ Process ➔ Harvest

Mark 4:28 – For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after

that the full grain in the head.

I. God’s Purpose for Fruit

Genesis 1:11 – Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields

seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in

itself, on the earth;” and it was so.

• Fruit was never designed to benefit the tree that produced it.

• Fruit is designed to Sustain Life.

Genesis 2:9a – And out of the ground the LORD God made every tree grow that is

pleasant to the sight and GOOD FOR FOOD.

Proverbs 11:30a – The FRUIT of the righteous is a tree of life.

• Fruit is designed to Reproduce Life –

“Whose SEED is in itself.”

Mark 4:26-29—26And He said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed

on the ground, 27and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should

sprout and grow, he himself does not know how. 28For the earth yields crops by

itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head. 29But

when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest

has come.”

TRUTH 1 — GOD ALWAYS STARTS WITH THE SEED.

• God never starts with behavior, circumstances, or outcomes; He always starts

with the seed.

Psalm 139:13-16—13For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s

womb. 14I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous

are Your works, and that my soul knows very well. 15My frame was not hidden

from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts

of the earth. 16Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your

book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were

none of them.

TRUTH #2 — GOD GROWS ROOTS BEFORE HE PRODUCES RESULTS.

• What God designs in the seed requires development in the soil.

John 12:24—Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the

ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.

TRUTH #3 — GOD ALLOWS EMERGENCE BEFORE FULL MATURITY.

John 8:32 – “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

I. Life Feels Out of Control When the Cause Seems Invisible

• You cannot govern what you think is accidental.

Hosea 4:6 – My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

II. God Built All Human Life on the Law of Connection

• Your outcomes are attached to your actions by design.

Galatians 6:7-8 – 7Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. 8For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.

I. You Have to Clear the Launchpad

• Nothing launches until something is removed.

Hebrews 12:1 – Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.

WHAT IS STILL BOLTED TO YOUR LIFE THAT GOD ALREADY TOLD YOU TO REMOVE?

Remember: Launch is not about effort—it’s about release.

II. You Need Thrust, and Thrust Has a Cost

• Nothing lifts without force, and force is never comfortable.

Acts 1:8 – “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and tothe end of the earth.”

I. Every successful future is built on an honest assessment of the present

Luke 14:28–32 . . . For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, 30 saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’ 31 Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace.

II. You never inherit what you’re unwilling to prepare for

Joshua 1:9–11 . . . Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous; do not be

frightened or dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” 10

Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, 11 “Pass through the camp and

command the people: ‘Prepare your provisions, for in three days you are to cross over the Jordan, to go in to take possession of the land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess.’”

III. Faith that refuses Self-Examination eventually becomes Self-Deception

2 Corinthians 13:5 . . . Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.

QUESTION 1 - “How much of your Responsibility had to be covered by someone else this year?”

John 8:44 – You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want

to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth,

because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own

resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.

Genesis 3:4-5 – 4Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5For

God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will

be like God, knowing good and evil.”

I. The Consequence of the Lie – Shame, Fear, and Hiding

Genesis 3:8-10 – 8And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in

the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of

the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9Then the LORD God called to

Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” 10So he said, “I heard Your voice in the

garden, and I was AFRAID because I was NAKED; and I HID MYSELF.”

• God’s presence did not change; Man’s condition did.

• The Two Shackles of the Fall – They direct and determine our thinking and life.

- Shame – “Something is wrong with me, I am unaccepted.”

- Fear –“I am no longer safe.”

Mark 4:28 –

“For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after

that the full grain in the head.”

Matthew 5:13-16 – 13“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how

shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and

trampled underfoot by men. 14You are the light of the world. A city that is set on

a hill cannot be hidden. 15Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but

on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16Let your light so

shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in

heaven.”

Genesis 3:1 – Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which

the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You

shall not EAT of every tree of the garden?’”

Luke 4:1-4 – 1Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan

and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, 2being tempted for forty days by

the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had

ended, HE WAS HUNGRY. 3And the devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God,

command this stone to become bread.” 4But Jesus answered him, saying, “It is

written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’”

8 ESSENTIAL TRUTHS ABOUT APPETITE

1. The Body Has Only Four Appetites – Everything else is biological and autonomic.

I. Thanksgiving began with a Church, not a Country.

II. Thanksgiving was born out of Suffering, not Abundance.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 – In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

III. Thanksgiving was a display of God’s Providence.

Isaiah 65:24 – “It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear.”

I. REPRESENTATION – Your Body displays God “TO” His Creation

• God has Dominion over His Creation – Displayed by Us

Genesis 1:26–27 . . . Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have DOMINION over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. (We are higher than the animals)

• God seeks to Redeem everyone – Displayed by Us

2 Corinthians 5:20 . . . Now then, we are Ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, “BE RECONCILED” to God.

1. They Represent the King, Not Themselves

2. They Carry the Culture of Their Kingdom

3. They Establish Their Kingdom’s Interests in Foreign Territory

4. They Are Not Controlled by the Culture They Are Sent Into

5. Their Provision Comes From Their Kingdom, Not Their Environment

• God seeks to do Good to everyone– Displayed by Us

I. Emotion – God’s design and Satan’s distortion - God has a Divine Order

Mark 4:28 . . . For the earth yields crops by itself: FIRST the blade, THEN the head,

AFTER THAT the full grain in the head.

Genesis 3:6 . . . So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was

pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and

ate.

• Emotion was created to serve truth, not shape it

- The SPIRIT received truth from God.

- The MIND translated that truth into understanding.

- The EMOTIONS gave that understanding energy and expression.

- And the BODY carries it out in the world.

Romans 12:2 – And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

I. Your thoughts are not the problem. Your thinking is.

• Thoughts are the fruit; Thinking is the root.

Ephesians 4:23c – and be renewed in the spirit of your mind.

• You interpret truth through the lens of your mindset.

Mark 4:28 – For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.

I. God's Order Requires Structure Before Substance

Genesis 1:1-3—In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was WITHOUT FORM, AND VOID; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

Genesis 2:7 – And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

• Building Structure Is Slow Work

Mark 4:28 – For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.

I. God's Order Requires Structure Before Substance

Genesis 1:1-3—In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was WITHOUT FORM, AND VOID; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

Genesis 2:7 – And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

• Building Structure Is Slow Work