Weekly Scriptures | Sermon Notes
The banner is Spirit and Truth. The Spirit testifies; by the Spirit the grace of God changed your heart and made it pliable and receptive to the Gospel of Salvation. Then, also by the Spirit God’s grace is available to you, at your disposal, to animate your every choice from that day forward. Might we call those decisions Spirit matters or matters of the Spirit. The Spirit testifies; it moves people and people are what matter most. Relationships matter most. The Spirit testifies to the love of God. May we prefer and love one another and be grateful for one another; may we honor and acknowledge one another. And may we all be open to the truth.
The truth verifies; truth is reality and there is a prophetic reality for which God’s people are responsible. As people matter so does truth matter. They go hand-in-hand as the truth protects God’s people; it is critical for all, but especially for those who are still in the humble beginnings of their faith. They are young and simple, not mature enough to defend themselves against bad doctrine. And doctrine matters because good doctrine is truth and truth verifies the testimony. The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. Bad teaching and bad prophecy promote dangerous deceptive doctrines, and the most susceptible among us must be protected.
May this be the banner of Spirit and Truth over your life: in reality there are two overarching gospel messages; one cost Christ everything and cost you nothing; that’s the Gospel of Salvation. The Gospel of Salvation establishes your favorable permanent position with God for eternity. The other is not free; it’s the Gospel of the Kingdom and it will cost you everything, because that is the gospel of becoming like Christ. The Gospel of the Kingdom establishes your prophetic calling and ability to uncover the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven and to bring that message to the world. We are commanded to do so! Truth matters because truth is reality. You should know the truth, because it’s the truth that sets you free.
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