CHANGING
OUR WALKS FROM "AFTER THE FLESH"
TO "AFTER THE SPIRIT"
August 19, 2012
MF Blume
Genesis 8:7-11 KJV And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to
and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth.
(8) Also he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were
abated from off the face of the ground; (9) But the dove
found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into
the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he
put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the
ark. (10) And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he
sent forth the dove out of the ark; (11) And the dove came
in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf
pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth.
Joshua 6:6-10 KJV And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests,
and said unto them, Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven
priests bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the
LORD. (7) And he said unto the people, Pass on, and compass
the city, and let him that is armed pass on before the ark of the
LORD. (8) And it came to pass, when Joshua had spoken unto
the people, that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams'
horns passed on before the LORD, and blew with the trumpets: and the
ark of the covenant of the LORD followed them. (9) And the
armed men went before the priests that blew with the trumpets, and the
rereward came after the ark, the priests going on, and blowing with the
trumpets. (10) And Joshua had commanded the people, saying,
Ye shall not shout, nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall
any word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I bid you shout; then
shall ye shout.
Both Noah and Israel were at the precipice of the entrance into a NEW
DESTINATION chosen by God for them.
· This point is a crisis point.
· It represents what Hebrews 4 called entrance
into the REST.
· In fact, Hebrews chapters 3 and 4 compare
entrance into Canaan in the Exodus with entrance into this rest.
Both Noah’s story and Joshua’s story involve passing
through water and dealing with walls.
· Noah’s flood waters were crossed as
Israel crossed the Jordan river that formed a barrier to the promised
land.
· Last week we showed that Song of Solomon 2
showed the Spirit of God like a dove calling through the window to His
lady, representing the church, to arise and come away because the rain
is over now and flowers appeared on earth.
· We read that the beloved was behind the
WALL, through which the lady must pas to be with Him.
Song of Solomon 2:9-10 KJV (9) My beloved is like a roe or
a young hart: behold, he standeth behind our wall, he looketh forth at
the windows, shewing himself through the lattice. (10) My
beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and
come away.
Numbers 13:28 KJV Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in
the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we
saw the children of Anak there.
· The significant thing that Israel both
FEARED AS FIRST and then saw FALL at Jericho were WALLS.
Noah’s story shows Noah following the direction indicated by the
dove instead of the raven.
Joshua’s story shows Israel following THE ARK of the covenant.
So we even have ARKS in both stories!
The Ark of the Covenant and the Dove both indicate that which we must
FOLLOW.
· The dove was the form in which the Holy
Spirit fell upon Jesus when He was baptized IN JORDAN.
· So the baptism of Jesus connects two
elements from the Story of Noah and the Story of Exodus by showing us
the DOVE that Noah followed in the form of the SPIRIT and the Jordan
river through which Israel passed in order to take down Jericho and
claim the promised land.
As Noah depended upon the evidence of the Dove, we must WALK AFTER THE
SPIRIT.
· As Israel walked behind the Ark of the
Covenant when they encompassed Jericho, we must WALK AFTER THE SPIRIT.
Picture the thronelike mercyseat on the Ark of the Covenant a KINGDOM
leading by the Spirit.
· It’s like marching behind the THRONE
OF GOD going before us, as we proceed in KINGDOM POWER of the leading
of the Spirit.
Romans 8:11-15 KJV But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus
from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead
shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in
you. (12) Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the
flesh, to live after the flesh. (13) For if ye live after
the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the
deeds of the body, ye shall live. (14) For as many as are
led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. (15)
For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye
have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
The quickening of our mortal bodies by the Spirit causes the deeds of
these bodies to be mortified.
· Let that thought sink into your spirit.
· It says that such quickening causes you to
not live after the flesh.
· It says it is mortifying the deeds of the
body by the Spirit.
· And that leading of the Spirit to mortify
the deeds and quicken the mortal body is what makes us mature HUIOS
sons of God.
· We’re not given the Spirit of bondage
as though we can never mortify these deeds successfully, but ever
remain bound to committing them.
Just as the ten doubting spies spread the disease of doubt amongst the
entire nation of Israel saying they were not able to go and take the
country because of the walls, people today look at the deeds of their
bodies like the stronghold of Jericho and think they cannot take it
down, so they give up.
· Jesus said this is impossible with men, but
all things are possible with the Lord.
· Joshua reminded them, GOD IS WITH US!
This is what the ark of the covenant stands for.
· GOD WITH US.
Numbers 14:9 KJV Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear
ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is
departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not.
The ark of the covenant was the focal point in the ATONEMENT ritual for
Israel every year.
· ATONEMENT is rooted in the words AT ONE.
· We become AT ONE with God by the sacrifice
of blood.
· Jesus is that atonement sacrifice.
· THE “AT ONE” WITH GOD SACRIFICE.
· The sacrifice that makes us ONE WITH GOD so
that we are not His enemies any more.
· Atonement sacrifice was made for SINS that
separated us from God.
· So when our sins that separated us are
removed, we are no longer separated but AT ONE WITH GOD!
· And because we are AT ONE WITH GOD, we are
not left with our frail and natural human power to overcome
supernatural forces like sin and the devil.
· GOD IS WITH US.
When Christians look at things in their lives that are unpleasing to
God and cannot see how they can stop these things, they are FORGETTING
THEY ARE AT ONE WITH GOD.
· And they are WALKING AFTER THE FLESH.
· But when we realize GOD IS WITH US, and we
look to His power and depend upon his strengthening to deal with what
we know we cannot overcome in our fleshly power, WE WALK AFTER THE
SPIRIT!
· THAT IS WHAT WALKING BEHIND THE ARK OF THE
COVENANT represents.
That ark went before them, having been sprinkled with the blood of
atonement sacrifice for years already, depicting God’s Kingdom
throne in front of them, representing the fact that they were at one
with God because of that sacrifice.
· Putting THAT ARK in front of them as they
marched, symbolized walking after the Spirit to mortify the deeds of
the body that scared the life out of us previously.
· It represents understanding that YOU CANNOT
overcome in your fleshly power, but YOU KNOW THAT IF YOU DEPEND ON HIS
KINGDOM POWER, YOU WILL SEE THOSE DEEDS OF THE BODY MORTIFIED.
They had to walk around the city ONCE for six days.
· They had to be SILENT during that walk in
those 6 days.
Joshua 6:10 KJV And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, Ye
shall not shout, nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall any
word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I bid you shout; then
shall ye shout.
The problem 39 years earlier was that the ten spies DOUBTED AND SPOKE
THEIR DOUBTS TO THE REST OF THE NATION.
· So this time NO WORD FROM THEIR MOUTHS!
· You need to learn to STOP SPEAKING DOUBT if
you want to walk after the Spirit.
They were not totally silent.
· THE PRIEST BLEW TRUMPETS!
Joshua 6:11-14 KJV So the ark of the LORD compassed the city,
going about it once: and they came into the camp, and lodged in the
camp. (12) And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the
priests took up the ark of the LORD. (13) And seven priests
bearing seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the LORD went
on continually, and blew with the trumpets: and the armed men went
before them; but the rereward came after the ark of the LORD, the
priests going on, and blowing with the trumpets. (14) And
the second day they compassed the city once, and returned into the
camp: so they did six days.
The WORD OF GOD is likened to a TRUMPET in the Bible.
Revelation 1:10-11 KJV I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and
heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, (11)
Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: …
Isaiah 58:1 KJV Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a
trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob
their sins.
Exodus 19:16 KJV And it came to pass on the third day in the
morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud
upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that
all the people that was in the camp trembled.
LIKE THEE OLIVE LEAF IN THE MOUTH OF THE DOVE, the Voice of the TRUMPET
stands for the VOICE OF THE SPIRIT.
· The PEOPLE make their voices silent, but the
VOICE OF THE TRUMPET alone sounds forth.
· Walking after the Spirit is HEARING THE
VOICE OF THE SPIRIT as Noah knew the leaf int eh dove’s mouth
informed him of WHEN TO MOVE.
Joshua 6:5 KJV And it shall come to pass, that when they make a
long blast with the ram's horn, and when ye hear the sound of the
trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of
the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall ascend up every man
straight before him.
The seventh day had not only SEVEN WALKS around the city, instead of
one like the previous days, BUT A SOUND OF THE TRUMPET THE OTHER DAYS
DID NOT HAVE.
· A LONG BLAST.
· When they heard that long blast they had to
SHOUT FOR VICTORY BEFORE ONE STONE WAS SEEN TO FALL FROM THE WALLS!
· The other days saw trumpets sound SHORT
blasts.
· This was a different trumpet sound!
This shows not only do they NOT SPEAK in doubt like the ten spies did
39 years earlier, but when they DO SPEAK they SHOUT when they hear the
trumpet, NOT WHEN THEY SEE THE WALLS START TO CRUMBLE.
· That means when they DO SPEAK, it is
SPEAKING IN FAITH and NOT BY SIGHT!
· NOT SPEAKING BECAUSE OF WHAT THEY SEE!
· They spoke about what they saw years before
and DOUBTED!
· But now they are learning to SPEAK by what
they DO NOT SEE!
The number 7 implies COMPLETION AND PERFECTION!
· Seven days brought the day of rest.
· Think of it.
· For 6 DAYS THEY CANNOT SPEAK.
· Six days are for work and the seventh is for
rest.
· So they cannot supply one ounce of human
work to solve the problem so much as by even SPEAKING!
· When it comes to this stronghold HUAMN WORK
IS NOT ALLOWED!
· And on the seventh day when they DID shout,
that was the day of REST.
· So the emphasis is upon time when they can
work they are not allowed to so much as SPEAK, but when they should
rest and not work, THEY SHOUT THEN before they even see reason to do
so, all emphasizing it is not THEIR WORK BUT THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT!
This shows how we mortify the deeds of the body BY THE SPIRIT!
The SPIRIT’S KINGDOM POWER!