NOTES FROM THE PASTOR
In His conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well in John, chapter 4, Jesus says, “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in Spirit and truth.” As we have just celebrated Pentecost, as we have just seen our denomination’s presbyteries vote (albeit by a narrow margin) to uphold Biblical authority and fidelity (and seen the California Supreme Court uphold the recently passed ban on same-sex marriage), and as we continue to struggle in a society that is becoming more and more alienated from God and antagonistic toward His standards for living, I thought about this passage and what it means for us as we seek to be faithful followers of Jesus.
Good news! We have the Spirit, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, to be our counselor and guide. It is through the Spirit that we are led to Christ. It is through the Spirit that we are called to service. And it is the Spirit who leads us to understand the Scripture as God’s revealed written Word. The Spirit is our motivator.
Good news! We also have the truth. In Jesus prayer to God in chapter 15 of John, He says, “Your Word is truth.” It is in the truth that we find direction and meaning for our lives. It is through the truth that we seek to understand the depth and breadth of God’s spiritual blessings. And it is on the truth that we must stand fast. The truth is both our sword and our shield in our ongoing battle with falsehood and sin, both in our own lives and in society at large.
As the Spirit and the truth (the Word of God) work together we must understand that the Spirit of God will never contradict the Word of God. It is by the Spirit that we understand the truth, that is the Scriptures, but that understanding can never be contrary to what God’s Word actually says. For example, if someone feels that the Spirit is revealing to them that God is not the creator of the heavens and the earth, when the Bible clearly states that He is, then it is obvious that that person is listening to the wrong spirit!
The Spirit and the truth are our best witnesses to the reality of God’s love and purpose in Jesus. They are our best defense against the world, the flesh, and the devil. And they are our greatest weapon in the spiritual warfare that is going to be part of every Christian’s life. Receive God’s Holy Spirit and learn God’s truth. These are essential to our life as disciples of Jesus.
~ Pastor Michel