Monday, November 4, 2013

What It Means to be Filled with the Holy Spirit # 20

"Out of his Belly Shall Flow Rivers of Living Water" (continued)

However, John 7:37-39 tells us that when Christ spoke these Words on the last day of the feast, Christ was not yet glorified. The Lord Jesus Christ was the glory of God, but He Himself was to be glorified by God. We shall see that this glorification of Christ is one intricate whole that includes His Cross, His Resurrection, His Ascension. Out of His Cross, out of His suffering and death came His triumph over death, His resurrection. Out of His Resurrection came His Ascension, His Victory over principalities and powers as He ascended far above all the Heavens and was seated at the Right Hand of God, which is the Realm of the Throne - THE REALM OF ABSOLUTE SOVEREIGNTY, THE REALM OF ALL POWER AND AUTHORITY. Out of this Realm the Lord Jesus poured forth the Holy Spirit - out of His Belly, out of His Innermost Being, flowed rivers of Living Waters unto and into and out of those who believe.

Now we want to examine this closely because John 7:37-39 tells us that the Glorification of Christ, through His Cross, His Resurrection, His Ascension, is the ground upon which we who believe receive the Spirit. The Glorification of Christ is the ground on which we, the Church His Body, receive the power, the enabling "Power from on High," to become the Fullness of Christ.

In the Gospel of John, the Word of God declares:

The Father Glorifies Christ (John 8:54)
and Christ Glorifies the Father (John 17:4): 
and The Holy Spirit Glorifies Christ:

"for He [he Holy Spirit shall glorify Me; for He shall take of Mine [of ALL That Christ is], and shall disclose it to you [to all who believe]" (John 16:14).

In John 8:54, we are told that it is the Father Who glorified Christ: "Jesus answered, 'If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father Who glorifies Me' ". It is My Father Who Extols, Who Exalts, Who Honors, Who Magnifies All that I AM. Hence, in John 12:23, we find Jesus saying, "The hour is come, that the Son of Man should be glorified." And it is clear from the context of these Scriptures, that this "Hour," that this Eternal Hour in God's Purpose, includes the Cross, the Resurrection, and the Ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ, for Jesus said: "I lay down My Life, that I might take it again ... I have power (authority) to lay it down, and I have power (authority) to take it again ..." (John 10:17, 18). "Verily, verily, I say unto you, 'Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit' " (John 12:24).

Beloved, even the betrayal of Judas speaks of the sacrifice, and the power, and the authority of the Cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. For after "satan entered into him (into Judas)," the Lord commanded Judas, which means that He commanded satan, "That thou doest, do quickly" (John 13:27-31). It was the Lord Jesus Who was in command of the situation, not satan. It was the Lord Jesus Who had power to lay down His Life, and power to take it again. Therefore, when Judas "was gone out" to betray Him, Jesus said, "Now is the Son of Man Glorified, and God is Glorified in Him."

It had always been the Father's plan that His Son would be glorified through His Cross, His Resurrection, His Ascension: - Life out of death had always been God's Way of Reaching His End. In John, chapter eleven, this Divine Principle of Life out of death is especially brought to our attention when the Lord Jesus Christ raised Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha, from the dead. The Word tells us that Jesus loved (agape) Martha, and her sister Mary, and their brother Lazarus very much. It also indicates that He had a special brother to brother love (phileo) for Lazarus (John 11:3-5). So why, even He heard that Lazarus was sick, did He not go to them at once instead of waiting two days? The Lord Jesus Himself answers our question. "Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany ... but when Jesus heard of it, He said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified by it' " (John 11:1-4). The Lord Jesus was saying, "This sickness is not unto death, death will not be victorious here, for I AM the Resurrection and the Life." We know that Lazarus died, but we also know that death could not hold Lazarus because Christ raised Lazarus from the dead.

~T.Austin-Sparks~

(continued with # 21)

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