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Having Begun in the Spirit

5/30/2021

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I would like to begin our study today by looking at Galatians 3:3. In fact,  let's begin in verse two; "among you as crucified? This only I want to learn  from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the  hearing of faith?—Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you  now being made perfect by the flesh?" 
 When we talk about spiritual growth in our walk with Jesus, we are forced  to admit that it is often a weak and sinful mess, and we find ourselves  crying out: "Lord, help me! I am not what I should be!" If we honestly look  at our church we also see many shortcomings and failures, and we are  tempted to ask: Why is this? How can a community of people who claim  to be crucified with Jesus be so self-centered and fall so short of the  example He has given us? Shouldn't we as God's people be living  continually in the strength and joy of our Lord? 
I feel confident that I'm not the only one who believes in my heart that it is  possible for everyone of us to enjoy that joy and crucified life in Jesus. 
Then comes the haunting question: then why is God's Church as a whole  so feeble, and why are most of us not living up to the great and wonderful  privileges that our generous Father wants to give us? Hasn't God given us  
His Almighty Son to live in our lives as an ever-present reality? Where we  can say; "it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me;" God has given  us His Son, and His Spirit, so why do we not live up to our privileges?
We find our answer in the writings of Paul. Like first Thessalonians where  he encourages them to "grow and abound, to increase more and more."  These were young Christians with many lacking in faith, but they were growing and they brought him great joy. In a number of places he writes "I  pray to God that you may abound more and more; I write to you to  increase more and more." But there are other places, like his writings to  the Corinthians and the Galatians that he takes a very different tone. He  tells these churches in several different ways that they are not living as  children of God should live; that they are under the power of the flesh.  Back to Galatians 3:3; "Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are  you now being made perfect by the flesh?" 
Paul reminds them that by the preaching of faith they have received the  Holy Spirit. They had accepted Jesus and received the Holy Spirit with  power. But then something happened? Having begun in the Spirit, they  tried to perfect the work that the Spirit had begun themselves, by their  own effort. 
In these verses we discover; as people who have been with Jesus for  some time, what our great need is. God has called you and me to live in  the power of the Holy Spirit, and most of us are living in the power of our  human flesh. We put out great effort and energy trying to look and feel  good about ourselves, but we are doing it apart from the Holy Spirit. 
As your pastor, if I could give just one message, it would be this: If we as a  church, and as individuals will recognize that the Holy Spirit is our strength  and help, and we will put away any barriers and surrender everything, and  wait for God to fill us with the Holy Spirit. We will be filled with  unimaginable love, joy and peace and we will see the glory of God shine  out of our lives! This is my one message if I could have no other: Nothing  will help our lives unless we come to understand that we must live every  single day under the power of the Holy Spirit. 
God wants to live in each of our lives, so that every hour of every moment  of every day the Holy Spirit is in control of our lives! In short my friends,  the beginning of the Christian life starts with receiving the Holy Spirit. We  must never forget that we are to live by the Spirit, and not the flesh. Next  week we will look at Receiving the Holy Spirit.

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    Pastor Brad

    Pastor Brad Traxler is the pastor of the Wrangell SDA Church. Brad Traxler is the husband of forty years to Cheryl, father to Kimberly and Ryan, and grandfather to Brad, Kevin, William, Eamon, Zairhen, Seraphina, and Zeelyah. He holds a BA in Theology and has been pastoring churches for twenty years. The greatest passion of His life has been to share Jesus. 

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