The Responsible Creation

A few weeks ago when I was here, I spoke on the faithful Creator, because that's what He is. Totally faithful. The question today is, does the faithful Creator need anything? And if the faithful Creator needs something, what would be something that the faithful Creator needs? Now, first of all, just to tag in to two weeks ago with the faithful Creator, I will go quickly to three scriptures. In particular, 1 Peter 4.19, Philippians 1.6, and Philippians 2.13. But first, 1 Peter 4.19.

1 Peter 4.19. Again, the magnitude of the credibility of Peter who had lived his life and seen the faithfulness of God in his life personally, and who knows how many ways and situations which someday we'll know all the rest of that story, too, as far as the accounts were concerned. But in 1 Peter 4.19, wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to Him, in well-doing as unto a faithful Creator.

Okay, a faithful Creator. Philippians 1.6. He's faithful. Philippians 1.6. Peter says a faithful Creator. And, frankly, that also, and using different words, that's borne out with Paul to the Philippians when he says in chapter 1, verse 6, being confident of this very thing, that he which has begun a good work in you, he's a faithful Creator, Peter says, and he's begun a good work in you, he'll perform it.

He'll finish it. He'll complete it to the day of Jesus Christ. And as I said, God has never done a spiritual abortion, period. There never has been one that has been spiritual miscarriages, but there's never been a spiritual abortion. God has never aborted one of His children. But there can be spiritual miscarriages. But He's a faithful Creator, and He will stay with what He starts.

And, of course, it's also an inside job where He also gets into our mind and helps us with will. He helps us with motivation, with desire, with appetite. He helps us inside. Chapter 2, verse 13. As a faithful Creator who has started a good work in us, He also stimulates, and He inspires, and He uplifts, and He works with us. Second chapter 2, verse 13, for it is God which works in you, which obviously goes along with chapter 1, verse 6, obviously, which works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. So the faithful Creator needs something.

He needs something from you and me. And what He needs is for you and me, individually, each one of us, to be a responsible creation. Responsible creation. That's what He needs from us. That's one of the reasons that I do as I do with news commentary as well as sermons. Because that's part of my responsibility as a pastor, as a watchman. But being a responsible creation goes much more beyond that. For each and every one of us, we must be a responsible creation. See, look at verse 12 of chapter 2. Very familiar Scripture. We've used it so many times. And we must never forget this. Because the sojourmaine are intrinsic to our responsibility.

Wherefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence. And this statement right here, which carries so much meaning, of which prime is the issue of responsibility. Work out your own salvation. In other words, you have a personal responsibility in the matter. With fear and trembling, the faithful Creator needs a responsible creation. We each have a responsibility to shoulder.

Again, a Creator creates. We looked at 2 Corinthians 5.17. That if you're in Christ, you're a new creation. Whole things are passed away, new things will become new. That's 2 Corinthians 5.17. Each of us, when you have repented, when you have been baptized, when you have been forgiven and cleansed, when you have had a portion of God, the Father's very being, planted in you like a begettle and then fed, both by the Father and the Son, through their Spirit, you are a specific individual creation.

And each of us must be a responsible creation. So, in kind of a follow-up to the faithful Creator, what I'm talking about today, subject, title, subject and title, the responsible creation. That's what God expects of me.

I expect Him to be the faithful Creator. And it's not that I expect Him to be, I know He is. It's not like I'm hoping He will be, I know better, I know He is. There's no doubt in my mind that He is the faithful Creator.

If I ever needed convincing of that, I was convinced of that a long time ago. What I have to tend to is to make sure I am a responsible creation.

In John 5, verse 17, it's interesting that there are some Sabbath keepers that would have you go in your house, Friday's sunset, turn off the air conditioning, leave all the lights off, not turn a stove on, not do anything, sit there in the dark throughout the Sabbath. Sadly, I have known some folks like that. And they don't worship God on the Holy Sabbath. They worship the Sabbath, which is the form of idolatry. That's another subject for another time. Obviously, they've lasted Christ for healing on the Sabbath. What does He say in John 5, verse 17? Jesus answered them, My Father works, hitherto, right up to here. And I work. We work. There are different works. There are some works you cannot do on the Sabbath. But where is there a prohibition against spiritual growth on the Sabbath? Where is the prohibition against healing? Where is the prohibition against freeing from a disease, or a sickness, or a handicap? There's no prohibition against that. But what Christ is also saying is, My Father works. And I work. We are productive. We produce. We are productive. We're doing a work. Do you know what the Father and the Son's prime work right now is? Their prime work right now is what God is doing in each one of us. Their prime work is not maintaining the stars. It's not maintaining the planet, except He's got to maintain the planet for us. But the prime work is what God is doing in each one of us. And the measure of that work is tied to something. How much work God can do in you and me, each of us individually, is tied to something. Here's what it's tied to. It's tied to our receptivity first. You can't give something to somebody they can't receive. You ever tried it? Most of us have tried to give people, let's say, points of truth. And you couldn't give it to them, because they couldn't receive it. They wouldn't receive it. You can't give what cannot be received. So the measure of that work with each of us as a responsible creation is tied to our receptivity, to receive and to respond. Receptivity and response. Is that God's responsibility? Does God have to do all the receiving for us? He has to do the repenting for us? He has to do the response for us? That's not his role. He provides opportunity and helps us to get to a point of receptivity. But he can't do it without us wanting to yield and be receptive. And we have to be willing to respond. Again, work after your own salvation, right before it talks about God working in us, shows that he has to work in conjunction with us. So receptivity and response is our responsibility. And frankly, to put it one way, receptivity and response is being responsible. It is responsibility. How many times this is emphasized time and time again? Well, I'll tell you how God can get you there. And we don't have to have any receptivity or response. He just gives us His Spirit and that gets us there. But then why do you have verses like 1 Thessalonians 5.19? It says, quench not the Spirit.

That's 1 Thessalonians 5 in verse 19. If all He needs to do is just give us His Spirit and give us enough of His Spirit that it will just automatically get us there, no matter what our input or lack thereof is. Then why are we told, don't quench the Spirit? Because it's quenchable. And of course, if you quench a fire, depending on the size of the fire, depending on what you're quenching it with, you might do an immediate quenching if you're quenching a fire, a physical fire, or it might take you a little while to get it put out.

But we all know what quench means. It is the process of quenching with the goal of getting it out. Quench not. In Ephesians 4.30. Ephesians 4. And verse 30.

Ok, again, God's Spirit given, and if just simply giving, and God says, Well, I've given my Spirit, and if not getting the results, I don't see a return of results like I need, so I'll just give more. I'm still not getting the results I need to see on return. I'll give more. Now, we do know that God does give us additional of His Spirit to help us when we are receptive and responsive.

But what I'm saying is that it does not override our lack of receptivity. It does not override our standing in the gap of us not responding. Grieve not. We can affect that. Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God. Why is this so important? That we don't grieve it. Well, grieving is not quite the same thing as quenching, but grieving is a blockage to a degree. It's thwarting. It's diminishing impact. It's beginning to block, and it would eventually lead, maybe in a slower process, but it would eventually lead to quenching.

But also, the fact that we're grieving God's Spirit, we're not going to be making the growth we should. And the main reason in one sense is because the outcome could eventually be that the steel is broken. That's just one way of putting it. Paul put it that way. Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby you are sealed until the day of redemption. It's got to be there sufficiently when Christ returns.

That steel has still got to be there. Don't break the seal. Well, how would you break the seal? Again, irresponsible use, misuse, lack of use. There was a church member years ago who was consorting with women in a way that he should not. And his excuse to some of the women was, it's okay, I'm like David, God will forgive me. That's not only grieving the Spirit, that's in the process of quenching it, and it's total irresponsible use and misuse and lack of it.

Go with me to Matthew 25, please. Matthew 25, you would grieve it by irresponsible use, by misuse or lack of use. You could definitely quench it by going down a road that you don't get off of, that you don't do a U-turn on and repent. I'll put it in this term or phrase, don't fail to use it. Matthew 25 is about the three individuals, and I'm not going through the account today, we've gone through it before, and I'll probably go through it again at a future time with another subject setting, but five talents, two talents, one talent.

And the guy, Matthew 25, the guy that says, I was afraid I went, I hid your talent in the earth. Obviously, when the talent was dug up to give back, it was exactly the same amount. He didn't lose anything. He gave back exactly what he'd been given. Of course, with inflation, if you had hidden a thousand dollars under your mattress a year ago, what it would have bought you a year ago, it won't buy that much, buy the same amount now.

So there's loss. But notice what Christ says here, which gets down to some of the heart of the issue in verse 29. Verse 29, For unto every one that has shall be given, and he shall have abundance.

But from him that has not shall be taken away even that which he has. In other words, you must show a profit. You must show an increase. And folks, talents, pounds, using money as illustrations because there's these you'd understand about increase and all of that. It's not really talking about physical things. It's using the physical to make a spiritual analogy lesson. It's talking about spiritual growth, spiritual things. But there must be increase. And so the result is, verse 30, cast you what? The unprofitable servant into outer darkness. Unprofitable. The guy buried it, dug it up, gave it back. If there had been inflation, there was even loss.

But if there had been no inflation, there wasn't one percent, not even a tenth of one percent of increase. Because, see, God gives us His Spirit for growth and increase. Do we realize how few people there are on this planet today that have God's Spirit? It's such a tiny little number.

And I mean such a tiny little number that literally have God's Spirit. Christ will return. There will be a resurrection. There will be those that are in the grave that come forth. And there will be those of us on our feet who will ascend shortly behind them. And we will be spirit beings because of the profit, the increase, the growth, responding to the faithful Creator. And we will sit with Christ for a thousand years. And we will sit with Christ through that last great day. And we will forever be part of the ground floor of His Kingdom.

And all of that can be because the repentance, the baptism, the cleansing in Christ's blood, His sacrifice, and the giving of God's Spirit, which we are to exercise now. That's what God desires and that's what He intends. Every time that He does give His Spirit, that's what He desires. You know, in the words of Paul, why would Paul say in Galatians 4.19, and again, being a human being as we are, it's easy that if you hear something enough times, it loses its meaning. Maybe it doesn't lose its meaning, but it loses its impact.

Well, as soon as we hear it, we just kind of, yeah, yeah, I know that. Yeah, we know that. But do we really know that? Galatians 4.19 is where Paul says, My little children, I labor as though in childbirth, until Christ be formed in you.

Now, I don't know about you, but that's a pretty tall order and that's a pretty heavy challenge to me. But Christ has got to be formed in me because I'm well aware that I'm not just an empty space inside where He can come in and live in my life. My mother's side of the family were very stubborn. My father's side of the family were very fiery. And whether you know it, believe it, or not, I have genes from both sides. There's an old man, and boy, he's got to be crowded out.

And it takes time, doesn't it? But Paul meant what he said to Christ be formed in us. Christ has got to be formed in us. I mean, it's not like he as a being has to give up being at the right hand of God and just reside inside us. But they do reside in us through their spirit. But he's got to be formed in us. I mean, people are made up of concepts and perspectives and ideas and issues and drives and motivations and actions and reactions and personality and all this kind of stuff. But more and more in all these areas, we have to become more like Christ is in these areas.

And then he would also tell the Ephesians, and again, a very familiar Scripture, Ephesians 4.15, about growing up into Him in all things.

Okay, grow up into Him in all things, and all things become like God. I'm a husband. I'm a father. I'm a grandfather. I'm a brother in Christ. I'm a neighbor. You go right on down the line. The way I operate in every area of responsibility of my life, am I becoming more and more in my operation like Christ is, or am I not?

Peter, you know, I suppose he knew when he wrote 1st and 2nd Peter that that was going to be included in Scripture. And it's interesting that he was not the chief apostle. There was not a chief apostle, but he was a prime apostle. And he has two little books, two little books, very important books. They say an awful lot.

And he wrote them basically there at the end of his life, a short time before being murdered. And if you were Peter, how would you sign off? You write this in the first letter, then you write this in the second letter, and you sit there for a moment. And it's like, dear God, how do I conclude this book? What would be the best way to put the period at the end, not just of a sentence, but of these two books? Verse 18. 2nd Peter 3 verse 18. Again, read it many a time, but grow. Grow. Grow in grace. And also in what? The knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Grow.

Let us make man in our image. After our likeness, Genesis 1 verse 26, when God carried out His purpose, started carrying out His purpose of creating human beings, starting with Adam, and then Eve.

In our image, after our likeness, eventually, with each one of us, eventually God must be able to see enough of Himself in the person that He's working with. He's got to be able to see enough of Himself. He's got to be able to see enough of Himself reflected back. Otherwise, it's not going to be profitable to God to eternalize that person. It's not going to be profitable. It would be that person to be an unprofitable servant. How does the substance of God get there? How does Christ get for Him, Dennis?

Well, and sometimes when we say these things, when we read these things, it's like, well, that's very simple, and with oversimplification, we miss the depth of it. We don't realize how what is being expressed so simply has such tremendous depth.

2 Corinthians 3.3 2 Corinthians 3.3 How does the substance of God get there? It is written there by the Spirit of God. For as much as you are manifestly or obviously declared to be the epistle, which is just simply a word for letter, the epistle or letter of Christ, ministered or served by us, written. You're like a letter, written, but not with ink. Okay, well then, what does the writing? But with the Spirit of the living God. Written by with the Spirit of the living God, not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart. What does God's Spirit write in us? Well, if you look at Galatians 5, verses 22 and 23. Galatians 5, verses 22 and 23.

What is written upon us by God's Spirit? When God gives us His Spirit at Begettle, through the laying on the hands, when a spiritual Begettle takes place. At that point, we're seated with the spiritual genetics of God's nature. We're seated with the spiritual genetics of God's nature. When a human baby is conceived, when a human life is conceived, at the moment of conception, when the two lifestyles come together and specifically create a brand new being being initiated. Right there, at that point, a brand new blueprint. The genetics of the parents are incorporated in that new life. You have the physical genetics incorporated. The same is true when you receive the Spirit of God in the Begettle way, the initial Begettle. You're seated with the spiritual genetics of God's nature, the inception of His life period. When you look at these genetics, the fruit of the Spirit, they start out as genetics. God's genetics in us, love, agape, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance, against such earth as no law, that's genetically seated. It may grow at different rates for different people. Some people may grow rapidly in peace, while others have more of a struggle growing in peace. Some people are more naturally patient by nature, and so they may grow more or appear to grow more in patience. That's a strong suit with others. Some people may say, I know that just the very patience, long suffering, patience, etc. is genetically seated in me, but boy, it's having a hard time sprouting. That kind of thing. But the point is, that is what is seated in us.

God will say to it that we have plenty of opportunities to exercise these things for growth. Verse 1, going and digging a hole and burying it, so to speak, or saying, well, I'll just sit on it and do nothing with it. If when Peter, and I'll go back to Peter for a moment, 2 Peter 1.4, these things all tie together. Like I said, there sometimes can be simple statements that because of the simplicity of the statement, the depth is overlooked. But Peter says in 2 Peter 1 and verse 4, he says, "... but by are given to us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these you might be what partakers of the divine nature." When you are given God's Spirit, that is the initial beginning, partaking, of the divine nature. The divine nature is seated in you. And that's when you begin to partake of it. And growth is necessary and required. You become a new creation of God. All things are new. All things are becoming new. The new things are the things of His nature being planted there. His nature. That's initially seeded in us, and it has to sprout and grow and develop right up to the day of Jesus Christ.

And it's not something that can be accomplished overnight. The little fellow that we had the blessing of the little children with, little Arlen, the parents aren't going to go into his bedroom in the morning and expect him to be the size of a 12-year-old, or walk into his bedroom later this week and he would be a grown person. How does he grow up? A day at a time. A day at a time he grows. And in due process of time, he will be a grown-up. But he's not right now. And we weren't a grown-up when we started. It's something that has to be accomplished on a daily basis. It's interesting, 2 Corinthians 4, 16. 2 Corinthians 4, verse 16. You know, here's another thing about patience, long suffering. The process, I won't ask for a show of hands, but how many of you have been involved five years in this whole process? How many of you have been involved 20 years? How many have been involved maybe 50 years? It's interesting, it's a long, slow process where we daily, with patience, stay with it. And God's growth in us occurs. But we do it on a daily basis.

2 Corinthians 4, 16. For which cause? We think not. But though our outward man perish, or is perishing. I'll have to excuse the young ones in here. They're not experiencing any of this yet. But how many of us who are older, and maybe could say old by the numbers, how many of us have reminders that the outward man or woman is perishing? Well, I got a reminder about one month ago. I woke up one morning, and just kind of kind of stretch and loosen up a little bit before I got out of bed. And you know, you sleep maybe with your fingers curled or whatever, and went to open my right thumb and dislocated. Just went out of the joint. Never has happened before. I got strong hands. I always had strong hands. Never had that happen. And I got to moving my thumb, and I could feel the joint just going in and out.

I worked with the thumb, got it warmed up, got it to where it stayed in place, and it worked. And then the next morning, same thing. Then again, it began to be kind of painful. So I have learned to sleep with my thumb curled, and when I wake up in the mornings, I don't straighten that thumb until I have worked with it a little bit, get it warmed up, and if I do that, then it's fine.

Could that be age? Oh, no, we get reminders, don't we? But though our outward man perished, here's the bright side. Yet the inward man is renewed, day by day. Renewed, refreshed, recharged, yes. And there's a cumulative effect. I have a big glass jug at the house in a certain corner, kind of out of sight. And every day when I empty my pockets, if there's any change in my pockets, I just drop the change in the jug. I've been doing that ever since I moved to Rome, which will be five years ago next month. And that's solid metal in there, so the jug's already got more in it than I care to try to pick up. It's quite heavy. But it's a cumulative effect, a little bit every day, and it adds up until finally one day, wow, I can't even pick that up anymore. So maybe someday I'll go throw that change and see if I get any valuable coins in there and cash it in. I'm cashing the change. Well, even change is still usable. Anyway, that's another subject. But the cumulative effect. See, the things of God are written day by day a little at a time. A little here, a line here, a line there on us, until it adds up to sentences you might say and paragraphs you might say and pages you might say and books you might say until there is a spiritual record. A spiritual record of God's image, where God can look at us and He can see a spiritual record of Himself, His image in us. Until they can see enough of Himself, the Father and the Son, enough of themselves in us, that they know this is a wise and safe choice and decision to make them eternal. His offer to give us freely of eternal life is based upon His faith and belief that we will let Him build His nature in us. You know, God just take a human being and turn him into a spirit being? Sure. There's nothing about His power that would prevent Him doing that. He could take just a human being. He could take somebody on the street out here and turn him immediately into a spirit being as far as power is concerned. But His mind won't let Him do that. His character won't let Him do that. His wisdom, His responsibility, His faithfulness won't let Him do that. Long ago, He didn't turn physical beings into eternal beings. He created some eternal beings that were eternal from the beginning with, called angels.

And of course, we know the account with one-third of them. God will know that there's enough of Himself in us before He ever makes us His spirit being. But He wants us to be spirit beings, and He wants us with Him. So, at this time, God is so diligent, He goes about working with us, and He has the faith in Himself that He can get it done as long as we stay with Him.

What does God need? He needs... He needed, in the past tense, He needed my corporation initially to get the ball rolling. What did He need all along the way? My continued corporation. What will He need of me tomorrow? Next week, next month, next year? My continued corporation. Go back to the beginning of your repentance and baptism.

What did God receive from you at that time that was part of the process that led to you being able to have the seeds or germs of eternal life planted in you? Your initial corporation. You were receptive. He may have had to help you come to receptivity, but He could not be your receptivity for you.

You came to a point where you were receptive. And because you were receptive, which by being receptive, you also, in a sense, added the action of that, of response, then the whole process was able to get rolling. And as long as that stays in place, that receptivity and response, the project will continue on until it does come to completion.

In Psalm 66 and verse 18, Psalm 66 and verse 18, Psalm 66 and verse 18, David knew that a person must be receptive to God and responsive, to receive that which should be received from God and then to respond in obedience to that.

And David acknowledged in chapter 66 and verse 18, If I regard iniquity in my heart, if I've got it in my heart, I'm playing around with it, if I incorporate iniquity in my playing, in my planning, in my operation, and especially if I know I'm doing it, God's not going to hear me.

Now, if a person's got some involved and they really don't realize they have it, God has ways to bring it to your attention so you can do something about it.

But David is expressing that if you know you're doing wrong, in your playing, your planning, your operating the way you do, you're not going to be able to have an active relationship with God.

Remember the man that was healed of blindness? And that's in John 9. I won't turn there.

But the Pharisees just couldn't leave him alone. Who healed you? Blah blah blah.

And they did not want to accept that Christ healed him and that it had to be of God.

And they finally wound up even kicking the poor fellow out of the synagogue. That's in John 9.

But in part of his exasperation with him, frustration with him, he told him in verse 31 there in John 9 verse 31, he says, we know God here is not sinners. Now God is aware of every sinner. He's aware of every person on earth. God is aware of everything.

There's nothing that can be said, fought, or done that God's not aware of. But He doesn't carry a relationship.

There's no personal relationship carried with sinners.

And David knew that he couldn't play around with sin.

And David, when he did sin and he realized the magnitude, his repentance measured to the magnitude, or even superseded the magnitude of his sin in his deep and bitter repentance.

God doesn't hear sinners. He doesn't relate to them. He doesn't carry a relationship with them.

You think about this verse here in chapter 66 verse 18 about iniquity.

When I was pastoring Moultrie, Georgia, in Tallahassee, Florida, years ago as a young man, of course, over in Douglas, Georgia, there was an old gentleman that lived there, a fine old gentleman, a church member.

He was there at services over in Moultrie, every Sabbath.

And I would go from time to time over and visit with him.

I went over to visit him one time and I got up with him and we were going to go down to the local McDonald's.

He said, now I'm going to warn you. He said, there's an old conjure in there and he just wants to debate religion, and he'll tie you up. And I was going over there to see this guy. Gust is his name.

I was going to go spend some time with him. We were going to have an hour or two, just have some good fellowship time together.

He said, but I just warned you. He said, he hangs out down there and he'll try to get something started.

So we walked in to McDonald's. Sure enough, there was the guy.

He saw Gust. He saw me as we were walking back to the table and he piped up with something. Don't you remember what he piped up with?

And I just smiled at him and quoted 2 Timothy 2.19.

I said, yep. As they know, like the Scripture says in 2 Timothy 2.19, let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

I don't know what his iniquities were, but boy, his mouth shut just like that.

He didn't say another word to me or Gust. We went back to the table and we had a nice time fellowshiping.

Let everyone who names the name of Christ, which he professed to do, depart from iniquity.

And again, I don't know what his iniquities were, but evidently I had a nerve.

And I had a nice visit with Gust.

In the relating with us, in the daily relating with us, God builds in us.

He plants in us. He performs in us. He engenders in us. He develops in us.

And relating with us, He rubs off on us.

That Scripture in 2 Corinthians 3.3, written, not with ink, but with the Spirit of God, written with the Spirit of God.

Paul wrote in Philippians 1.19, and I think about this in regards to written with the Spirit of God, when he makes the statement in this letter.

He says, For I know that this shall turn a result to or in my salvation, through your prayer, intercessory prayer is so important.

And the supply of the Spirit of God.

God handles the sending. We don't produce it. We don't originate it.

And from one standpoint, we can't crank it up, although that's different from the issue of taking what we're giving and stirring it up, and using it. The only power by which we can become a spiritual success comes only from.

I said, the only power, the only power by which we can be a spiritual success comes only from and must be sent by God.

There's nothing that is self-generated in each of us that in and of itself can make us a spiritual success.

This is one reason why, as Paul wrote to Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 1, 29, this is why no flesh is going to glory in his sight.

God, it's because of my greatness that I'm here with you now.

That's one of the reasons why we will not glory, no flesh will glory, because we realize that the only power by which we can be a spiritual success comes only from or must be sent by God.

But we have to have a desire to ask and to use, and God does give to us when we do.

1 John 3, 24, it is in the relating that God is able to build His nature in us.

It's in the flow of that relationship that we begin to take on His ways.

It's in that relating which is done through His Spirit.

So, in 1 John 3, 24, we read, and He that keeps His commandments dwells in Him, that's operation, keeping them, living by them, guiding your life by them.

You're in Him and He in Him, and here by we know that He abides in us by the Spirit which He has given us.

The analogy, those who have known me for a long time know that it has been standard practice for me to always have a memo pad in my shirt pocket.

I have always told Angela and my children, if you buy me a shirt for a gift, do not buy me a shirt with no pocket.

I must have a shirt with a pocket because it is standard that I've always had a memo pad, little book, and a pen or pencil with it.

And by the way, if you can tell from that distance, this is not a little black book. That is Navy. That is Navy.

But if I were to say, brethren, excuse me a moment, I'm going to lay this up here and I'm going to write something right quick.

And you're watching, you can see the pad and you can see my hand and you can see the pen.

I'm not writing anything. It's not moving. What's got to happen for me to be writing something? It's got to be moving.

God's Spirit to write in us has got to be moving. It's got to be moving. If it's not moving and flowing, see, it's in the flow.

It's in the movement of that Spirit. It's God that's in that flow and that moving. It's His nature. It's His mind. It's His ways. It's His righteousness.

And as that Spirit moves in us and flows in us and through us, it writes. It writes the things of God upon us.

It has to move. And again, we can stir it up. Yes, we can definitely stir it up.

It is energy. It's an energy you can't get anywhere but from God. It is energy. It's a very special energy and power. It's active.

And again, it can't be bottled up. It has to be utilized. You can't just sit on it. You can't just bury it.

If you do, then you start quenching it and you start grieving it.

And that's what the main lesson is in Matthew 25 about the one talent guy who buried it in the ground.

He was quenching it. He was grieving it. It wasn't flowing. It was just bottled up and sitting there.

This is why when we do the things that we know that are good and right to do, we are automatically exercising.

Whether it's as a husband or a father or a child, a daughter, a son, a brother, a sister, a coworker, an employee, whatever.

We're exercising those good things. It's flowing.

I want you to notice something though as we wrap this up. Go with me to John 7 and let's notice something in verse 38.

John 7 and verse 38. I'm talking about the flow.

Now we know we go to God and pray to Him for it. We ask for it. We know we study His Word.

We know we think on the things of God.

We also know that we do our best to operate in our actions and activities according to God's ways and to increase in those ways.

But how much we talk about the flow of God's Spirit, that it flows from Him to us, does something in us.

And by being exercised, it's flowing out of us to others in the format of fruits and good efforts and evidences and benefits to others.

Notice here in John 7 and verse 38.

And as it is drawing night to sunset or it's just a little past sunset, it doesn't really matter.

It takes nothing away from what this Scripture says.

But right here, around the conclusion of the seventh day, the beginning of the eighth day, the feast of tyranacles concluding, the eighth day beginning, right along in that point, Christ makes this statement, which again, the timing itself doesn't change this reality. He that believes on Me.

I don't want to look around the room and call everybody's name and say, do you believe on Christ or are you in Christ?

I mean, I know what the case is with obviously pretty much the situation here in the congregation.

Yes, but if you can include yourself in this, I certainly can conclude myself in it.

Notice what it says.

What is that saying? That that which comes from God, the living water, the Holy Spirit, that which comes from God and is pooled in us up to a point to be utilized by us and to perform certain things in us will also flow forth from us.

How do we go forth to anybody?

We think about them in our thoughts, but we primarily go forth through our words and through our actions, what we say and what we do.

But the whole thing is they flow.

And by the flow of God's Spirit, we become more and more like God.

Because of what He's giving us, what it's accomplishing at us, and the exercising of it and flowing out to others.

Rivers of living water.

Spiritual life starts with desire.

If God had not brought us to the point of desire, He could not have given us His Spirit.

He could not have started spiritual life in us. We're not a spirit being yet, and we shall not be until the resurrection. But spiritual life starts when we're in Christ, and as a result we're given God's Spirit.

And that desire that God helped us to come to is so important and will never change.

Just a couple of scriptures more as we conclude this. John, we're here at John. John 1.

Desire.

It never changes as a requirement, as a necessity. John 1, verses 10 through 12. He was in the world, the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not. He came to His own, and His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, again, when God gives the opportunity, there has to be receptivity. Why does it say many are called and few are chosen? One of the reasons for the disparity of many are called, few are chosen, is because the vast number are not receptive, and their time will have to come at a later time. They are forfeiting opportunity for the first resurrection. Many of them don't take hold at a point when it is so initial that they don't even know what they're letting go of, necessarily. But many are not that are called, but only few chosen, but there's not receptivity with the majority of those who are called. It doesn't get to a point of receptivity. But as many as received Him, receptive and responsive, to them gave Him power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name. That won't change. That won't change in the millennium. What will growth and development in the millennium be based on? What will growth and development be based on in the last great day, when all these billions of this age come up, to be given truly opportunity at that time? Be based on the same thing it is with you and me, receptivity. Now, yes, I know the circumstances will be different. Understand all of that. But receptivity will be required in response. Revelation 22, verse 17, that never changes. Revelation 22, verse 17, And the Spirit and the bride say, Come, and let Him that hears they come, and let Him that is thirsty, come, and whomsoever will. Again, receptivity and response. Let Him take the water of life freely. There has to be desire. There has to be reception. There has to be response. We have the desire. You and I, we have the reception. And with continued response, the work of God will be completed in us. Desire, reception, response, that is the responsibility of the creation. And that makes us a part of the responsible creation.