Mike Bickle emphasizes the importance of walking in the Spirit and fellowshipping with the Holy Spirit as a means to overcome the desires of the flesh. He explains that while we all struggle with various emotional and mental challenges, engaging in an ongoing dialogue with the Holy Spirit can help us resist these temptations and experience His power in our lives. Bickle encourages believers to actively communicate with the Holy Spirit, recognizing His presence within us, and to thank Him for His attributes, which can lead to transformation and renewal. He highlights that this practice is essential for maintaining freedom from the law of sin and death, and that it is through this relationship that we can partake in the divine nature and experience the fullness of God's grace and peace.

continue where we've been last couple sessions on fellowshipping with the Holy Spirit or walking in the Spirit is really the theme that I'm talking about walking with the Spirit and we're gonna focus on one aspect a very important aspect of that what Paul called fellowshipping with the Holy Spirit Roman number one how to engage with the Holy Spirit in Galatians chapter 5 verse 16 Paul said I say then walk in the Spirit that you will not fulfill the lusts or the desires of the flesh and so the exhortation to walk in the Spirit as the way to get free from the lust of the flesh as I mentioned last week the lust of the flesh are not just physical the lusts of the flesh are also mental and emotional anger defensiveness insecurity rejection all of these things that all of us have a measure of all of us do every human being has a little bit of all those those are part of of the lusts of the flesh they're part of our flesh operating anxiety and fear in our emotions it's not just our bodies being stirred up in wrong ways it's also our mind and our emotions and Paul told the Galatians if they would walk in the Spirit they would these lusts would not all disappear but they would not be manifest openly in their lives they wouldn't walk them out they wouldn't give in to them these lusts would not have dominion in their mind and in their heart they would still war with them they would still have to resist them but they would not have dominion inside of them paragraph a we're called to walk in the Spirit and we're called to fellowship with the Spirit as well one of the great benefits of the new covenant is that the Holy Spirit lives inside of us now this happened at the new birth however with the Holy Spirit living on the inside of us we're not going to experience very much of his power we're going to experience it most if we actively fellowship with him we said again the Spirit lives in us at the new birth we all know that the day you're born again the Holy Spirit lives in you but we will experience his power most if we actively fellowship with him there in 2nd Corinthians chapter 13 Paul talked about fellowshipping with the Spirit now the NAS is I hate you'll see on the bottom there the PowerPoint means the new American Standard it's a translation I read for about 20 years it's actually my favorite one and I use a lot of verses from that from the NAS but typically I use the New King James the other verses are in the New King James in the handout here paragraph B we focus our mind on God in two different ways there's two different ways of which we focus our mind in our relationship with God first the one that we're most familiar with we focus on God the Father who sits upon his throne of course that's what we're doing on Friday nights we're looking at the beauty of God the beauty realm of God in Revelation chapter 4 we're gazing on him who sits upon his throne and his son at his right hand and we're talking to God's heart the Father's heart Jesus said when you pray say our Father who art in heaven we address him on his throne in heaven we're told to we're told to address God the Father who who reigns and rules and lives in heaven and that's why we study Revelation 4 that's one of my favorite chapters in the Word of God all the various facets the 15 different dimensions of God's throne in Revelation chapter 4 fantastic but that's not the whole of our relationship with the Lord in that focus the second way we focus our mind is on God who lives in our spirit this is one of the most simple and yet neglected realities in the kingdom of God it's everybody knows God lives in us every born-again believer knows the Spirit of God lives in them there's so many Bible verses on it it's so simple yet in its simplicity we stumble over it and we neglect it it's so simple it's so easy to do and you know it's most common it's one of the most neglected things in the kingdom of God when I think of the Holy Spirit living in my spirit it says here in the King James that out of your heart or out of your belly the King James says out of your spirit man and it referenced the belly will flow rivers of living water speaking of the Holy Spirit this was speaking of the Holy Spirit it's what Jesus went on to say so we I think of the Holy Spirit as dwelling in my spirit right here like as the King James said in he said out of your belly flows rivers of living water I think of God as a consuming fire I think of this consuming flame dwelling in my spirit or sometimes I my the the closest thing I get to is like the brightness of the Sun shining out of my being or the verse here talks about rivers of living water as depicting the person of the Holy Spirit paragraph C one way in which we walk in the Spirit and I would go more than say one way it is the introductory way it is the most fundamental way we walk with the Spirit is by dialoguing by talking with the Holy Spirit I'll say that again most fundamental and introductory way this is this is fellowship with the Spirit walk in the Spirit 101 we walk in the Spirit the most fundamental and introductory way is actually by talking to the Spirit who lives in you talking to Him again it's so simple yet it's so neglected paragraph D here's the principle we walk in the Spirit by talking with the Spirit we walk in the Spirit by talking with the Spirit this ongoing conversation with the indwelling Spirit is a key to our renewal it's a key to our inward renewal is this ongoing conversation I'm not going to suggest it's unbroken someone might say it just you know unbroken communion I've never met anybody that has unbroken communion I find that my communion with the Lord is has all kinds of holes in it I find that I can strengthen that communion I can strengthen that dialogue that conversation that running dialogue that active running dialogue I can when I pray read the word when I read the word I pray over and turn it into conversation that strengthens my ability to dialogue with the Lord in a more consistent way I've never again I've never met a person who does it in an unbroken way and I've read you know a lot of books on this these types of subjects over the years and and you often hear the ideal raised up of the unbroken communion but I don't want to put the standard the bar so high it sounds really cool but nobody does it and so people quit because they go it's out of my reach it's not going to happen I'd rather present it in a more practical way for where we're living and if you would pause three or four or five minutes five times a day ten times a day more or less and actually talk to the Holy Spirit I'm talking about five or ten times a day two three four five minutes there's no actual number but I'm talking about a little bit it would radically change your life in six months it would radically change your life in six months now if I was to ask and I'm not my point isn't you know I trouble people or put anybody down it's just I just know how how this works if I was to ask the people in this room when was the last time you actually had an intentional conversation with the Holy Spirit dwelling in your spirit where you talked to that divine presence inside of you you talked to him as God you thanked him you focused your attention on him and talked to him I'm sure that many people would say the last time I don't know that I've done it the first time I understand that but then I'd ask a more a more searching question or no not searches that's not the right way a more troublesome question when the last time where you where you did it five or ten times a day for three straight days of course the vast majority of the people that I know in the body of Christ and I know a lot the vast majority would say I've never done it for three days in a row a whole bunch beloved God's called us to do this as a lifestyle not for one three-day period you know five or ten times for a few minutes at a shot for three days I'm just saying if you did it you begin to feel it it may take you a little while to get in sync with it paragraph D let's read it again we walk in the spirit by talking with the spirit that's not the only way but that is clearly the fundamental and the introductory that's the launching pad that's the foundation this ongoing conversation and again I'm not saying unbroken conversation with the indwelling spirit is the key it's not the only key it's not the only one there's reading the word there's a little spirit of obedience there there's other there's our interaction with one another we receive from we receive from God from one another there's all kinds of dimensions that lead to our transformation but this is a very very important one if we just talk to him he will talk back if we get into the conversation he will talk back and what I mean by he'll talk back he will give us impressions I don't mean we'll hear his voice externally like the audible voice of God you might a couple times in your life that's not what I mean by he'll talk back he'll leave subtle subtle but distinct impressions they're very subtle but they're distinct that's what I mean by he'll talk back but the the part about the spirit talking is that when he talks he releases power whenever he talks there's an impartation of power when those impressions come if the Holy Spirit gives an impression and we recognize it and receive it and the way we recognize receive it by saying thank you by saying it back to him I mean the simplest acts it is the simplest thing by simply saying thank you for the impression he gave not just thank you for but actually repeating the impression back to him paraphrase it state it back to him tell him what you think he's telling you as simple as that is thank him and then tell him what you think he told you to say it back to him there's power if we do that those impressions will leave an element of power on our soul now the power it's not a great measure but it's it's real but it's not a great measure it's a small measure God's way is to the normative way of the kingdom is to release very small but regular measures and deposits of the Spirit's power that's God's way now what we like I mean I'm in this thing too I like the giant steps the baby steps are well whatever I'll take them but what we normally aim for are the giant steps the great delusions of power you know we we say well we never had one yet but that's what we're holding out for and that's that's good to ask God for those great breaking into power but the way of the kingdom is for the Lord to give discernible but very small but it's real small increments small measure small portions of the release of his power on our emotions and upon our mind on our bodies as well and over time over time we get strengthened in a real way but we don't despise the way God's ordained to release this power in the small measure we don't despise it it is the way of the kingdom but you know it's the way of our natural life too the reason somebody can have strength when they're 70 is because they ate thousands of little meals their whole life they didn't eat like 10 pizzas at one setting you know every couple weeks to kind of catch up a whole bunch of little meals for decade after decade after decade and they drank a little bit of water every day not like 30 gallons at one setting that's how God runs the universe but when it comes to the spirit realm we think we agree with that natural thing that you know a few glasses of water a day whatever the amount is but it's not a hundred gallons a meal or two or three a day but I mean it's not you know eating you know a gig you know a year supply at one setting that's the point I'm making we agree with that in the natural but when it comes to the spirit we don't really like that concept but beloved it is the exact concept that's why so often we're told to eat the bread of heaven Jesus said in John 6 eat my flesh drink my blood drink from the river of life drink and eat is what constantly the Lord is is reflecting the principle of the small but consistent measures of the strengthening of the spirit it is substantial it is real it is real and the way this is released to us is when we fellowship or when we talk to the Holy Spirit it's not the only way but it is a powerful way you will feel his power on your mind you will feel his power on your emotions and you will even feel his power on your body that's all biblical now what does it mean to feel his power on your mind because remember we're talking baby steps but it's real it really builds over time when you receive just even the smallest amount of understanding our mind is illumined by the spirit a little bit but a lot of those over decades really changes us there's a lot of like a lot of drinks of water over 70 years really makes a difference can't drink a hundred gallons at one setting you just can't do it didn't work that way but our mind is illuminated a little bit beloved that's the power of God on your mind your heart is bolstered in resolve to obey like I get this new zeal to obey I I have a new boldness I have a new joy I'm going to obey even though it only lasts for a while it's like a meal a meal only strengthens you for a few hours but it's real and if we will talk to the spirit in our inner man will speak to him that glorious consuming fire God is called a consuming fire that glorious light that river that's in us we speak to him tenderly carefully regularly we will find strength touching our mind and strength will touch our emotions and strength will touch our body Romans chapter 8 I'll just quote it I got it on the notes maybe we'll look at in a few minutes but Paul talked about the spirit who dwells in us will will give life to our body it will give life to our body the new key I mean the King James Version says it will quicken our mortal body or quicken it which means it'll be a deposit of life there'll be a like a what's the word I want to say a little splurge there's got to be a better word than that but a little zip of life you know I'll get the word in a minute that God when when the spirit quickens our body there's a release of a small measure of life to our body and that verse is normally quoted in Romans 8 11 pertaining to physical healing he quickens our mortal body our physical body it's our mortal body not our supernatural body does that too but Paul's point is he actually in the flesh right now on this side he quickens or he gives life to our mortal body it does mean healing but it by no means only means healing nor does it mostly mean healing it doesn't mean healing though it means energy he gives energy to our mortal body in this age our tired warm mortal body but that's not mostly what it means but it does mean that mostly what it means it's right there in context is that he gives he releases righteousness to our mortal body our body has so many unrighteous cravings and desires the Holy Spirit actually subdues I don't mean removes I didn't say removes but he puts a check on these desires that have ran rampant in our body and he he releases he quickens he releases life in our mortal bodies and right there in the verse it talks about righteousness there's addictions legal and illegal ones from substance to alcohol to sexual to gluttony to food disorders on too much and too little all kinds of disorders related to the cravings and the appetites of our body you know what we need we need the spirit to quicken King James language but we've heard that through the years many of you you know it's just a famous verse you hear he'll give life he'll give a a release a supply of his spirit will touch our body it's just a small amount though it's like the way it the way physical food and water touches our body and strengthens us for several hours only but if we could if we eat regularly and drink regularly over the course of your lifetime you will have strength for decades if you will eat and drink of the spirit by talking with the spirit and there's no better way than getting the word in you as we talked about last week dialoguing with from the heart with God by turning the word into prayer I call it pray reading the word reading the Bible turning it into active dialogue with God's heart if you do that you will find your body is quickened your body is strengthened and its appetites strengthened in righteousness and the you know the five or ten categories depending on how you organize it and you're thinking of appetite physical appetites that's a fantastic promise this is absolutely awesome paragraph D we're gonna look at it again we walk in the spirit by talking with the spirit so I'm gonna ask you when's the last time don't answer but when's the last time you actually had an intentional conversation that lasted three minutes at least and I've done about five hours I'm done about three minutes was the last time you actually talked to the spirit as a real person who dwells in your inner man and then the next question is when's the last time you did it five or ten times a day for three straight days of course if you're you know a normal on fire Christian in our culture the answer is I don't do that that's what the normal on fire prophetic believer would say if they were truthful I don't do that then here's the problem with that even though it's it's common you don't talk to the spirit then you're not going to walk in the spirit you can't you can't walk in the spirit and there's a problem because if you don't walk in the spirit the flesh will be manifest not always in the physical arenas not all and just you know immorality or or eating disorders or drinking disorders or all those other categories that you could list there I don't mean just in the physical the flesh will be manifest in your emotions fear anxiety in your mind just an unending rambling mind that's called the mind of the flesh the only way we can keep from fulfilling the lusts of the flesh from walking them out in the mind the emotion or the body is by walking in the spirit and the only way we can walk in the spirit is by talking to the spirit so we're stuck we don't talk to the spirit we just manage our flesh in our own strength the rest of our life yeah that sounds horrible doesn't it our flesh is unrelenting our emotions our rambling minds our craving bodies are unrelenting they never ever stop they're not all hitting at full power all at the same time but when one of them is going strong our mind is filled with all these thoughts that we can't shut it off finally we get a little piece of that our heart has fear or rejection or defensiveness or anxiety or or oh and if not that our bodies going crazy you know and then our body gets under then our mind goes back to that just rambling thoughts all over the world no sense of connectedness to God in his Word it's called the flesh it's called the walking in the flesh we all do it very very well we come by it honestly paragraph DM we continue if we just talk to him he will talk back he will give us impressions if we just talk to him he will talk back to us he really will and what he'll do is he'll talk us out of sinning he'll talk us out of quitting that's not all he'll do he'll do other things as well he'll give his revelation to talk to us about God's heart he'll talk to us about other people's hearts that's called the prophetic ministry to help them he'll supply but remember when God talks even and I'm using this God talking meaning these impressions these impressions when received with a thank you and you say I'm back to him it leaves power on your soul a little bit it's just a little bit but it does build up over time it really does just like eating and drinking a little bit of water every day a little bit of food 10 20 30 40 years you'll you'll keep going now God's my next statement the Holy Spirit is very good at talking to us once he gets in the conversation the Holy Spirit waits now every now and then he'll talk to us against our will no we're just going 100 miles an hour you better stop I warn you we're that impression of the word that noisy awful guilty conscience was that where that's the Holy Spirit talking whoa well we don't want all of our conversation with the Lord to be just only the ones that he initiated because we're about to hit a brick wall to ruin our life most of the conversation we have with the Holy Spirit in the way it's meant to be we are to initiate it we are to read the word and talk to him and if we start he has much to say but he will wait on us paragraph II we will not I'm gonna say whatever I said but to say it again we will not walk in the Spirit more than we talk to the Spirit I just want you to get that clear we won't walk in the Spirit more than we talk to him he will help us to the degree we talk to him beloved we won't obey him more than we talk to him I don't mean talk about him talk to him we can talk about the Spirit to other people all day long and that's good we can even talk to the Father that's really good but there's something about talking to the Spirit and communing with him or fellowshipping which other translation use that releases those impartation of life in our mind in our emotion and our body paragraph F we talk to the Spirit is the way to experience hit the release of his power in our inner man that's what I've said already we talk to him as the way to experience this small measure of release the moments what I mean moments 30 seconds to three minutes I've talked about little moments the moments we dialogue with him are the moments we're most aware of his power in our inner man now some of you again might disconnect because when you think of power you only think of giant steps you don't think of baby steps you think of power you think of being overwhelmed I've never felt over I've never felt his power anytime your mind is illumined a little bit which means the Holy Spirit revelation whenever your emotions have a new resolve to obey whenever your body is not under the dominion of just all kinds of appetites the Spirit's helping spirits helping when we talk to him but he'll be able cause you us to experience more of it talking to the Spirit it redirects our focus away from fantasy when we talk to the Spirit there's a practical thing because you can't talk to the Spirit and live in fantasy and fantasy is called the mind of the flesh in Romans 8 it's fantasy it's the fantasy of our anger of our pride of our pleasure it's not just immoral fantasy there's much fantasy that's related to anger and bitterness and pride and rejection there's a thousand conversations that we have in our minds that are unfruitful it's fantasy when we talk to the Spirit a whole lot of that while we're talking to him it goes into the background and when the Spirit we talk to him he talks back he really does he goes once you start the conversation we get into a conversation I'll talk to you now again he doesn't he's not limited to that because he'll break in here and there anyway but he would say I have so much more to say to you if you were in a conversational mode with me and we read the word and turn it into prayer so we can talk to the Father on the throne and talk to the Spirit inside of our inner man the indwelling Spirit paragraph G look at John 14 there in the PowerPoint says the Spirit Jesus is speaking here this is the Spirit whom the world cannot receive he's talking to the disciples the world can't receive it because it neither sees him it doesn't see him now the new American standard says it doesn't behold him I like that word that's that's why how I first learned that the world doesn't behold him doesn't see him and the world doesn't know him but he told the disciples but you know him because he will be inside of you you know him you know him you see him you behold him which is in what we're talking about in the language of the concept tonight we behold the Spirit we talk to the Spirit we know the Spirit as a real person we don't just know him as an idea he's a real person we talk to in our inner man now the next passage there in the PowerPoint is a well-known one it says that we all behold the glory of the Lord are being transformed by the Spirit we can behold God's glory when we put our attention on the throne and we can behold his glory by focusing on his glory in our spirit the only place God's glory is isn't just merely around the throne of course God's glory is without creation we can look at a sunset and behold his glory we can look at the the the works of God the way he leads his people and observe it in his glory we're beholding his glory in that way as well we behold his glory in a number of ways but Jesus used the word for in the New American Standard translation in John 17 the passage there it says the world doesn't behold him the world doesn't know how to behold the Spirit because the Spirit doesn't live in them they can't behold the Spirit they can't see him is what the King James says they can't see him I like the word behold him but it means the same can't gaze on him you can add the word gaze beloved when we quiet our spirit we focus on that consuming fire in us and we quiet our hearts we are gazing or beholding or looking at or seeing the Spirit we're seeing him I don't mean we see him in a figurative form right I picture that bright light like brighter than the Sun that Jasper light that brilliant light or the or the all-consuming fire and I talked to him Oh living flame of love is what the Saints would say you know through the church history that was a favorite that was a quarter by many of them Oh living flame of love touch me we talked to the Spirit 2nd Corinthians 3 I'm gonna read it again it says we all all all every believer the newest believer can do this this isn't just for the super Saints and just for the record there aren't any but this isn't just for that one guy all the newest believer you know what the newest believers have they have all the issues you know it's fresh out of the world just got rid of the demon yesterday they're just fresh you know tons of unsettled issues they can behold the glory of God in their inner man from day one you don't need a degree you don't need a lot I'm gonna go through 10 weeks of training beloved in seven minutes I've given you enough I mean I've talked longer seven minutes but seven minutes you get enough information literally in five minutes you get enough information to do this a brand-new believer you don't need ten weeks of training on it it's for everybody everybody beholds the glory of the Lord in several different ways paragraph G I'm gonna read it says we are to behold and we are to know the spirit you could add the word gaze on the spirit or see the spirit and we know him behold him gaze on him and see him as the indwelling spirit inside of us as a consuming fire as the living waters we do we do this as we focus on his present inside of our his presence on the inside of our spirit when beholding or gazing on the spirit in our inner man here's simple it's real simple say something like this thank you Holy Spirit the way that we recognize his presence as it was thank you quietly calmly thank you Holy Spirit for your leadership thank you Holy Spirit for your leadership in my life pause pause groan pause lots of groans and sighs you'll do a lot of groans and sighs you really will you don't have to you don't do like put them on your to-do list and make sure you get one in that you'll just that you will groan and sigh and Romans 8 is very I mean the very main chapter Romans 8 would if there was one chapter in the Bible on fellowship with the Spirit it would be Romans chapter 8 it may not appear that when you first read it but it's all about fellowship in the Spirit that's not the only thing it's about but that is the theme that appears over and over and over you just look one inch under the surface it's there constantly Romans 8 is the grand chapter and it's right there in Romans 8 verse 26 it says that when you're engaging with the Spirit you will groan or you'll have sighs the Spirit praying through you and they're subtle groans they're subtle sighs but it's the Spirit praying through you this is you don't even know what you're praying but but the Spirit's is is causing your heart to connect with God you want to do that it's good this is good to do this it feels good it's right or you pause and you say Holy Spirit I honor I honor your leadership and just stare into that consuming fire that consuming light I thank you for your leadership you know we talked about being led by the Spirit that's how that's how it works talk to him about his leadership his leadership is the same ideas being led by the Spirit paragraph H now this will this paragraph here the point of it not my terminologies but the point of it will change your life forever if you get a hold of this paragraph H fantastic the emotional resource of the Spirit has nine different facets to it the emotional resource God who lives in us has verse 22 he has an infinite amount of love joy peace patience long-suffering to same kindness goodness faithfulness gentleness self-control nine different facets of emotional resource he says I live in you I have all that you would ever need of any of those subjects or any of those character traits don't only ask God to give them to you look at the Spirit into that consuming fire and say thank you Holy Spirit for your patience he's in you like a flaming fire filled with patience filled with patience he's there and the simple recognition that he's there by saying thank you the same thank you recognize it thank you you're connecting it's that simple the absolute newest believer could do this in the first hour of their conversion thank you thank you so I've done this over the years I know means perfectly but I'll be in a dialogue and I'll feel my emotions stirring up in a wrong way and when I do it bad you know I try to get a hold of them and then more times than not I'll say something that I have to repent of but when I do it the right way I've done it the right way a lot of times as well just being straightforward I feel my emotions well up and I don't make a big sign but I direct my mind to that flaming fire my emotions are stirring and I say thank you Holy Spirit thank you for I don't ask for patience I thank him that he's there and that connects your heart to him and I don't know why I just know it does it's something about faith or he's honored I don't fully get all the mechanics I just know it absolutely connects you to him and I feel like the steam just I go I love this I've done that 10,000 times haven't counted but I mean without that element over the last years I would I just would hate to think what I would have done without that element in my life I wish I would do it more I don't do it enough but I've done it thousands of times where there's a pressure coming and I thank him I don't ask him for joy it's biblical to do that and you know Romans 15 we pray for the Father to release joy in the church but in my own life I think of the Holy Spirit joy thank you for your joy and all of a sudden some of the pressure not all of it begins to just live just a little bit but you do that a bunch of times that little bit adds up that pressure just begins to go away on the inside joy begins to touch you I found that you could have a happy spirit even with pressure around you if you will go to the one who dwells inside of you that has infinite joy and peace and the simple recognition of his presence by saying thank you and then stating it back to him maybe in just a simple phrase just thank you just what he tells you state it back he wants to get in a dialogue there's nine different resources here I mean there's it's fantastic gentleness has to do with your tone has to do with your tone so we're stirred up and we know you know we got to get it done or whatever got to get the issue settled and our spirit gets stirred it's not necessarily angry but it's stirred thank you for pay for gentleness and a different tone the tone of God will touch your spirit a little bit just a little bit but I tell you doing this thousands of times will change your character and it's power even though it's a little small measure it is real power it's not imitation power it is not psychosomatic power it is real power on the human heart it really is just a small measure just like the drink or the meal is a small one I mean you can't eat you know 500 pounds of food at one setting and drink a hundred gallons of water you can't do that it's a small measure but I tell you over the years that measure really sustains you and makes you strong so look at paragraph I top of page two let's read the passage first the second Peter this is a great one this is fantastic grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God I'll read the whole thing and then we'll go back as his divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of him by which have been given to us exceeding great and precious promises that through these we may be partakers of the divine nature now so many important phrases to reading it just like whoa I can tell that was great but I don't have a clue what it means let's break it down a little bit peace and grace are multiplied to you multiplied what means there's a small measure that's released to you in the present tense I don't mean just in when you die peace and grace touches your heart in your mind grace means power the grace of God is his power so the power of God and the peace of God was it takes it that's power got to but they're multiplied they touch your mind in your heart but how do they touch your mind your heart in the knowledge of God when you encounter God when you encounter the knowledge or the reality of God now we can again the two directions we can we talk a lot about the knowledge of God and we need to this is very important I don't want to minimize this at all the knowledge of him who sits on the throne again we're teaching every Friday night for a while just to go there for a while but beloved peace and grace is multiplied when you encounter the knowledge of God in your spirit because the the fully God lives in your spirit the one who is fully God God the Holy Spirit he is God just like he's as much God as the Father and the Son of God and we can know him we can see him we could behold him as his divine power look at this look at the tense its past tense his divine power has given to us all things pertaining to godliness you have already received all things pertaining to godliness of you to bring your emotions in mind in your body under the government of the spirit it's all given to you and the what's been given to you is the indwelling spirit in the in the presence of the indwelling spirit everything you need all the nine facets love joys peace patience kindness all the facets of our all the dimensions of emotional resource you need dwell in your spirit and you but we don't we don't activate it that's a kind of a kind of not the best way to say because he's a real person he's not a substance or a thing we don't engage it if we don't talk to him about it if when we need peace patience gentleness self-control when we need it if we go right into trying to like guard our mind and I'm not gonna do it this time beloved go inward don't go outward go inward engage this person don't beg him please please please please don't do that thank him that he's present in you and that will connect your emotions to him just a little bit but it's real it's real it really is real supernatural you have everything you need for godliness dwelling inside your spirit but you only experience it through the knowledge of him and put the word encounter through experiencing him through talking to him to the knowledge of him is not just dogma it's not just doctrine through the knowledge of him is encountering him this all the things of godliness that are in you they won't be released in your experience except through the knowledge to the encounter the little small seemingly no big deal encounters and dialogues they release power in your mind and emotions they do verse 4 you've been given already the exceeding great precious promises that through these promises you will become partakers of the divine nature your heart your heart your nature will be transformed over time through this whole process your nature will be supernaturally changed from darkness which from sin and darkness dominating our mind and emotions in our body to divine characteristics dominating our mind in our heart that's where we're going of course we get it the full measure in the resurrection but beloved we can walk in some divine character now instead of the word nature you could put character that helps you understand it better you become partakers of divine characteristics now through this dialogue with the spirit paragraph I let's let's read that the paragraph there we need to focus on the presence of the indwelling spirit and in our war against sin we recognize his presence by thanking him for it that's how we recognize by thanking him we thank the indwelling spirit we say something like thank you Holy Spirit for your presence in me that is mighty in love again don't beg him for it don't ask you for thank him that it's in you mighty love and it's not psychosomatic it's in you the power is because a person is in you and when you talk to the person you can feel a little bit a little bit of his power touching you if you'll do it but if you don't talk to him if you don't talk to the spirit you won't walk in the spirit you won't and if you don't walk in the spirit you're on your own to resist the lust of the flesh and don't think that you've resisted them successfully because you're not an alcoholic or involved in immorality because your mind and emotion can still be a red just just rapidly fleshly the way your emotions are stewarded the way your mind is where we steward it so don't think no I'm not exhibit you know walking in the flesh I don't need to do this walk in the spirit talk to the spirit thing I'm doing okay because I'm not an alcoholic and I'm not you know I'm not a addicted to immorality somehow I'm doing pretty good I don't smoke that often beloved what about your mind and your emotions well I have a fit on the inside a lot well okay maybe you are one of those guys that need to walk in the spirit by talking to him that's the only way that we can keep from fulfilling the lust of the flesh Roman numeral 2 Paul described a fierce war in his members we looked at this last week look at it again the fierce war in his members let's read this but here's the important part of this passage is that you notice that we're at the end of Romans 7 and we go right into Romans 8 and there's a chapter break after Romans 7 25 and Romans 8 1 don't don't let that chapter break disconnect you it's one thought Romans 8 1 and 2 is the same subject as Romans 7 verse 21 to 25 Paul's in the city Paul's in well it beyond Romans 8 2 it goes on for all throughout Romans 8 he's talking about getting free on the inside look at this verse 21 I find a law here's what Paul's saying I find a law that evil is present in me and me the one who wills to do good for I delight in the law of God now he's using the word law of God in a different way he means I delight in the Word of God I delight in God's Word I delight in God's precepts God's ways but I see another law in my members this is a negative one verse 23 it's the law of sin it's warring against the law of my mind because in Paul's mind Paul had made a determined decision in his mind to obey God the law of the mind this is a good thing the law of the mind he's talking about his sincere and resolve his resolve to obey but he goes when I have this resolve to obey verse 23 there's a law in my members warring against this decision it's warring against me I'm saying I'm obeying and saying no you're not he goes oh I don't like this and it brings me into captivity now he identifies the law he calls it the law of sin that's in my members he identifies it here he goes this law of sin it wars against my decision to obey God I'm gonna give myself to God my time and my money and my passions and my future my fears I'm gonna give them to God I'm gonna give myself to him and all of a sudden the law of sin that's in our members our members that are mind emotion in our body it screams back you are not going to follow through and obey you're not going to verse 24 Paul says Oh wretched man that I am who will deliver me from this body of death beloved our body in this age is a body of death I just want you to know that so it doesn't surprise you people are surprised when their body brings death to them what I mean a body of death our body I'll start you know soft our body is tired because it has death working in it then our body gets sick it's death working in it then our body has sinful desires our body opens the door for demons to attack us because of the impulses that we yield to that are in our body our body is called a body of death it's a it's glorious that the physical body is glorious but in this age because of the law of sin it brings deaths it brings tired fatigue and and sickness and weariness and it brings depression a lot of depression not all depression by any means but a bit of it is related to tiredness and fatigue and stress it's the body of sin I mean it's the body of death working against us he goes oh who will deliver me from this fatigue sickness oppression sinful desires addictions I don't like all of this Oh wretched man in verse 25 he says I thank God he goes I got the answer and that's what Romans 8 is about is the answer it's it's to me it's I wish they would not have put the break after verse 25 I wish that verse 25 had verse 26 7 28 29 31 2 which is Romans 8 because that's the answer to who's gonna deliver me which is Romans 8 it's not the only subject but the premier subject that weaves in and out of Romans 8 is fellowshipping with the Holy Spirit though you might not grasp that at a at a casual reading it's interacting with the Spirit in the inner man call it that way all through that chapter 8 which is the way to get free from the body of death he goes verse 25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord now beloved it's not through a one-time experience of being born again that were delivered I mean in the ultimate since the resurrection we are well you get born again and have you know 10 20 30 40 50 years to go and it just constantly be subject to the law of sin that has dominion but when he says through Jesus he means an ongoing encounter which means by the Holy Spirit he doesn't just mean the fact I'm forgiven I'm gonna wait till the resurrection to get free he's talking about no I can find liberty from the dominion of this power now today but beloved today's freedom does not guarantee you even tomorrow's freedom sometimes some people get into a week or two in a good flow and I think I've got it the breakthrough no no forget this breakthrough theology and that point what I mean by that when it comes to the issues of the soul this idea and what I mean by this breakthrough theology I'm gonna get a breakthrough in my heart and therefore I will never go backwards that absolutely not true you get a breakthrough today tomorrow the next day and you will only keep it if you contain after you maintain your fellowship with the Spirit the day after in the day after the day after today's victory will not be there emotionally one week from today if we don't maintain our fellowship with the Spirit no I got the breakthrough the guy says I'm free from the issue I know I'm free no you're just biblically naive you're not free you're in a good week there's that thing called the law of sin and the body of death it's screaming at you and your only chance is an active dialogue with the Spirit that's your only possible chance to stay free then he goes on chapter 8 verse 2 I love this for the law of the Spirit of life in Jesus has made me free from this law of sin and death now in paragraph a I describe a little bit what I already said about our members paragraph B Paul spoke of a law of sin operating in his members mentioned it a couple times there's a law of sin operating in me a law I said this last week but I just wanted to put it in print a law is an activity that happens in a consistent way with the same results that's what a law is it is a principle that's proven to be true that's what a law is like the law of gravity is the one that a illustration I'm using and have it functions the same way every time if you drop 10 pounds in Kansas City it falls on the ground drop it from 10 feet 10 pounds it falls on the ground you go up 100 feet it'll still fall on the ground you go to London the 10 pounds will still fall and hit the ground 10 feet and 100 feet same thing you go to South Africa same thing you drop it it hits the ground say well look at that it happens the same way here that's called a law it functions the same way every single time and there's laws in science there's laws in math there's laws in nature there's laws in our physical body for example the law of gravity works a hundred percent of the time and unless that's the key word a greater law is introduced a law that's more powerful than the law of gravity when the engine of an airplane has fuel in it and it's turned on it overpowers the law of gravity by activating the law of aerodynamics it is a law it's called the law of aerodynamics because it happens every time the same way it functions totally consistently that's what's going on now what Paul has said he's talking about in Romans 8 2 he says the law of the spirit of life there is a consistent law operating me called the spirit of life it will work every single time you you engage with it and you engage with the law the spirit of life by engaging with the person of the Holy Spirit and it's not just I love you Holy Spirit that's good you can't do enough of that I mean you can't do too much of that I love you Holy Spirit that's good but it's more than that it's it's I thank you that what you said is true is in essence when you say I thank you for peace and patience you're saying in essence you don't go through all this language but in your mind you understand it I thank you that peace is in me because you're in me and you said you're full of peace I thank you and when you recognize and thank him for that it honors him and the lull is activated even a little bit again it doesn't the war is not over but you can get you can feel his presence in that 20 30 40 minute period like a drink you're gonna have to go back over and over and again like meals you will be many meals in the next 25 years you're gonna have to drink and eat many times at the hand of the Spirit many many many many many many times for this law to stay active in your members Paul said that I thank God that through Jesus beloved it's not just loving him and in a sincere way it's through encountering Jesus in the inner man a paragraph G setting our mind on the Spirit Paul told us set your mind on the Spirit this is what it means to be spiritually minded to set your mind on the Spirit as simple as that is that's really simple it says set your mind on the things of the Spirit and the New American Standard says it different it says in Romans 8 6 you read a little bit later it's it's the next passage let's let's go ahead and look at the passage yeah there you go it's kind of a big one there so we're not going to go through it all you can look at it later but in verse 6 it says to be spiritually minded is what King James says new King James but I like the New American again it says to set your mind on the Spirit it's synonymous to set your mind on the person how do you set your mind on the Spirit where is the Spirit floating no where is the Spirit all the seven spirits around the throne of God in Revelation 4 that's true but the Spirit lives in you set your mind on him I mean look at him look at that blazing fire dwelling in you and talk to him with with simple short phrases don't do rapid-fire communion with the Holy Spirit he'll wait he didn't mind at all he has so much patience but the minute you take a breath he'll speak to you this is I have a lot more patience than you have so just go for it you know and I when I begin to do this in some years back I I did most I did way too much talking way too much talking and as time went on I did way less talking or more groaning and I mean you know groaning I'm just gentle sighs and groans and I'm staring into that bonfire at that Jasper glory I'm talking to him beloved that's what it means to put your mind on the Spirit it's very practical or the New King James says it differently and you can miss it it says to be spiritually minded well to be spiritually minded and to set your mind of the Spirit it is the same thing or to be mindful of the Spirit or mind filled fill your mind with dialoguing with the Spirit it's verse 26 at the very end I have that underlining see it groanings it's all the same subject the Spirit prays he makes intercession for us now you know what we think what we think that verse says that the Spirit makes intercession through us and I and that is true he does make intercession through us that's not what it says he makes intercession for us the person the Spirit's praying for is you he's not using you to pray for someone else he does that too that's a subunit there he will pray for us by helping us pray for others but that's not that's not the ultimate thing going on there he's actually praying for your deliverance with precision and it sighs and groans when you're when you're locking in and your attention to him he's praying for you what's he praying for that body of death the members that will all send waging war against your members your mind your motion will that you hate he says I'm helping you if you will talk to me I will begin to activate my prayer through you well why don't I not talk to you and the Holy Spirit you just go ahead and pray for me and I'll get back to you later the Holy Spirit says no I will do this when you talk to me you what will happen when you start the conversation and again he starts some of them but more times than not he says I will wait I won't force this love relationship on you but when you want to talk to me then he'll move in and the groanings this gentle sighs of groanings he will start he's praying for your deliverance from fears and anxieties of the mind the emotions from sin and our body fatigue sickness he wants to quicken our mortal flesh with righteousness in the spirit and health and healing and all kinds of things we're just gonna take one more minute here and we'll finish H the spirit in us is greater than the devil you know greater see that is in you than he that's in the world we all know the passage well greater he who is in you is greater than he that's in the world who who is the one in you it's the spirit well beloved this only works that you only experience the power of it if you talk to the spirit in you you can you can tell me the spirit in you is greater than the flesh but it's not gonna activate it in your life you have to talk to him you cannot walk with the spirit more than you talk to the spirit you will not walk with the spirit more than you talk with him again if I ask the question when's the last time you had a definitive three-minute conversation that was intentional with the spirit in you most people would not give an answer that they're happy with if I asked you when's the last time you did it at least five or ten times for three days say well maybe that's why I'm having so much war and gun so much I'm yielding to in the war I'm losing the wars what I mean the war is gonna be there till we get a new body but we can win this war this war is winnable if we will engage the spirit last verse we'll look at paragraph I the riches of the glory of this mystery Paul's talking about the riches of the glory of the gospel to give the mysteries of the gospel what is the riches what's the wealth of the glory I love the word riches the wealth the storehouse of the glory what is it it's Jesus living in you the hope of glory the wealth the riches the storehouse is Jesus in you now that's the Holy Spirit Christ in you is the Holy Spirit that is your hope of glory instead of the word hope put the word confidence because hope and confidence are almost always synonymous in the New Testament not always but almost always confidence the storehouse the wealth of the glory of the gospel in the place of the word mystery put gospel the wealth of the glory is here he goes it's you interacting with Christ who lives in you this is your confidence that you will experience the glory when it says the hope of glory right although I got it written in the notes there it's the confidence that you will experience it in this age not just in the age to come beloved you think this this sounds too good to be true that's why it's called the good news this wretched man we can have dominion and win the battle with the wretched man whether it's mental emotional or physical wretchedness that we're facing or all three in different combinations and those combinations very you know different all the time you can have confidence that's the hope of that you can have confidence you will experience the glory if you will engage with Christ in you which is the Holy Spirit amen let's stand