The Spirit and Our Emotions, Part 2

Were talking about the spirit in our emotions rejoice with those who rejoice with those who we you tell me how you do either one without emotion. And these are command commands us to.

We commands us to laugh at all our brothers and sisters heard we heard that motion feeling coming from the spirit of God, but our emotions fluctuate like crazy. So how do we make a prudent decision when the facts don't align with our emotions and what our personal instincts seem to defy common sense other occasions when our feelings take priority over the facts today on Insight for living. Chuck Swindoll continues the message that started last time. It's message number in our 14 part series on the Holy Spirit called flying closer to the flame.

So if you're having trouble discerning whether God made in trying to get your attention for your feelings. There is help man was given a mind to know God. Man was given a heart he was given emotions to love God. God is a will. God is pollution God acts God besides God moves God directs. These are all activities of the will and so when God created Adam in his own image. He gave Adam something you did not give animal plant, fish, or foul life. He gave pollution the ability to make decisions. The ability to overpay to carry out God's plan. See chapter 2 verse 16 the Lord God commanded the man up there had not been a will, within man. The command would've fallen flat would've been a futile statement, but he commanded the man, he addressed his intellect called upon his will and he said from any tree of the garden you may eat freely, but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you show not eat for the day that you eat from it you shall surely die. God appeals Adams will in giving this command. Do not eat of this tree you got an entire garden to enjoy enjoy all of it when you come to this particular growing tree. Do not eat from it.

Ultimately, Adam was to use his will to obey his God man is been given a mind to know God emotions to love God and a will to obey God, my client, I think, is now obvious.

We are not whole in the sense of complete and God in our God-given personality unless all three are present and at work in us and in our walk with Christ. We are people with intellect.

People with wills and people with emotion, all of which are part of being a whole person. I am certainly not the first to recognize the value of one's emotion.

All of us have known these things we just perhaps having given ourselves permission to see them or to think them for the spirit of God is obviously present for he is doing his work of cleansing and convicting where he is bringing joy and delight and praise.

We know firsthand the experiences of revival and there cannot be revival without emotions cannot be until somehow. Your will attaches itself to the feelings of your being.

Nothing will be changed in your heart.

Nothing deep, nothing lasting say the same for myself. All this leads us to some examples in of God's creative work within us, what he made us liken to himself and provides us with the reason to go into some of these God-given emotions now turn next to second Corinthians chapter 4 you do that second Corinthians chapter 4 when you get there. Hold your place and also observe first Corinthians chapter 2 on a look at at two verses side-by-side.

First Corinthians 2 and second Corinthians 4 to 9 and 46.

I want to show you that God's work in salvation is directed to the heart, not just the mind that when the Lord does a saving work in the life of the center.

He addresses the heart of an individual. Second Corinthians 464 God who said light shall shine out of darkness, is the one who has shone in our there it is in our emotions and our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ, God's work of salvation is directed to the heart. As stated here.

Christianity is not just a cold calculating decision of the mind, the heart is touched in facts. First Corinthians to nine states things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love him. Interesting isn't entering into the heart into the emotions into the feeling of our being. These things the God has for for us of those things haven't entered into the heart of a lost person, the one who is not redeemed, one who is still walking about this earth as a sinner distant from God.

Now you understand why so much is said in the Scriptures regarding a hard hard cold hard calloused heart Pharaoh had a hard heart.

In spite of all that happened God never got to Pharaoh not deeply, not in the realm of his deepest being, Pharaoh remained hard of heart, all related to those to that seat of the emotion just so much part of our being.

If you are saved a part of the reason the God got into your got your attention and came into your life is that he touched your heart. He softened your feeling toward him. It affected your emotions, but what about that list that God-given list of emotions. I'll tell you started a list and and I got to about 17 emotions set forth in Scripture and I love that will never get through that we will have to have a midnight meal for us to get through this. This Alyssa let me just if I may just hit the high points but let me leave you with the challenge. You do a study on the emotions in the New Testament, you will be amazed at the number of emotions.

God underscores that he affects that he touches that he moves through the ignites that he changes you're in second Corinthians. So locate chapter 9 verses six and seven second Corinthians 96. Now I say he who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly, he who sows bountifully shall reap bountifully is using a illustration from the from the field from the planting in and reaping world he saying if you so lightly you will have all alike harvest you so abundantly, you will have a bountiful harvest in any turns it to the issue of giving just that.

He says let each one of you do, just as he has purposed in his heart.

Interesting, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver cheer joy.

God loves that when the heart is full of joy and generosity pores for he loves it when when there is an inner joy at the thought and the opportunity of releasing one's treasure.

The feeling of joy look at second Timothy chapter 1 verse seven for God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but in the implication is God has given us a spirit of power, and love and and discipline that these are emotions given by God when he when he ignites our hearts turns us from darkness to light, takes us from our reprobate lost estate and brings us into a relationship with him having a position that is in Christ meeting we will never be out of Christ while in Christ. He gives us a love for himself. He is pleased in the emotion of love, the affection of love you. You can write it down turn. If you wish, but I'll give you a list of these first John 419 we love him because he first loved us. Proverbs 17 the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom of the beginning of knowledge, there's fear and God honors that feeling of fear that awesome respect with a hatred for sin. That's the kind of fear, not a fright of God but an awesome respect for God that is so great. Sin has no place in my life deserves no green light Psalms the last five Psalms begin with the same word. 146 4748 4950. Praise the Lord.

This is not an intellectual act based on facts. It is an emotional praising extolling the living God.

That's a feeling of adoration and worship. It's a feeling that God honors and he in fact commands us to praise him. If you will look at Romans chapter 12 you'll see a whole list of of emotions turn their Romans 12 nine down through about 17 or 1818.

Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good look at this one verse 10 in case you think love is. It is just an academic agape just a seeking the highest good of another person. Look at the affection of verse 10 devoted to one another in brotherly love for loss love be devoted to one another in affection give preference to one another in honor not lagging behind in diligently at the next fervent in spirit, passionate. That's a feeling serving the Lord, rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, contributing to the needs of the same, practicing hospitality. Bless those who persecute you, bless and curse not. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep when you tell me how you do either one without a motion and these are commands he commands us to wait commands us to laugh and applaud when our brothers and sisters hurriedly hurt.

That's an emotion that's a feeling coming from the spirit of God, he breaks us. I hope she won't mind my wife and I were in Australia together and and we got word that a couple of her closest friends had been cut down one was on her last fight with cancer and the other had had a massive stroke and I watched my wife as she read this and she broke with tears a piece of paper coming all the way to Australia.

The told a brief account of two good friends and she just cried and took her in my arms and held her is the spirit of God hovered over her emotions while her heart was broken miles away, unable to be there to touch to talk to stroke the hair of to embrace her friends.

She was weeping with those who we, that is from the spirit of God were in Romans I can't get can go to the next until I just deal directly with 17 and 18 because it's so pertinent today.

Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. If you have a license plate that reads I don't get mad I get even take it off, take off the border and throw it away. More importantly, get rid get rid of that attitude. It is not of God getting even is not of God. Even though we all have in common the same thing someone we can blame for wrongdoing. The response is not getting evil and getting even respect what is right in the sight of all. Look at verse 18. I love this. If possible, so far as it depends on you, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men and what pieces and emotion. Do you know that that's one of the ways you know the will of God's your heart is flooded with peace you're struggling with God's will.

You can rest you can't sleep you stare at the ceiling.

Finally in exhaustion. You drop off in your sleep for an hour hour and 1/2 and you wake up. Suddenly the spirit of God in his mysterious and miraculous way floods you with an answer that is as clear as a bell. You don't hear voices. You don't see ceiling writing you don't see sky writing you don't see cloud formations just since in your heart that you ought to do this and not that I've had that experience unmemorable to of times and it was a clear statement of God's directing. Of course I'd sought his word. Of course I'd sought the counsel of people I respect, but nothing settled. It until there came that blood of assurance and when I had it.

I never look back. But did it and I never regretted on those number of occasions not here. He's talking about a a sense of peace that is brought about by reconciliation as much as depends on you. Do your best to get along with each other to be at peace.

Never take your own revenge, but leave room for the wrath of God. I heard a radio preacher years ago what I just a teenager I was driving across South Texas and I in this radio station came in. He is apparently being really attack by his critics and and so he was talking to him on the radio is let nobody else listening and he said I just want you to know I'm not going try to get even. But I am go to tell God on you. I don't I got an fact is I just go say God sick and in his country Manor that was his way of saying it's God's concern more than it is mine.

I'm going to tell God on by the way, being annoyed with someone else show you how that can be from the spirit of God, look at acts 17 suddenly your your grabbing your Bible marches acts chapter 17. Look at acts 1716 is another feeling Paul is in Athens.

He is just been busy about the work of evangelism in Europe and when he comes down into Greece.

He's waiting for his friends. Silas and Timothy at Athens and please observe in verse 16. While he was waiting for them.

His spirit was being provoked within him as he was beholding the city full of idols. It was said in those days there were more idols in Athens than there were people imagine that and it provoked him. That's an emotion deep within his soul.

He was burdened about the condition of that city God gave the feeling to it. Look at chapter 19 verse 70.

Another example of God-given feeling. This became known to all, both Jews and Greeks who lived in Ephesus in 1917, and fear fell upon them all. That's from God because the name of the Lord Jesus was being magnified many of those who had believed Coming in. Please observe the fruit of fear they were confessing and disclosing their practices. Many of those who practice magic brought their books together and began burning them in the sight of all. And they counted up the price of them, and founded 50,000 pieces of silver. So the word of the Lord was growing mightily and prevailing here is a feeling of fear directed from God. So much so that their secret lives were being confessed their practices were being exposed to been a revival like that I've seen that happen. I've seen people unable to keep it to themselves. I've seen groups where the spirit of God is igniting the presence of his cleansing work and the people just come out with their secret sins. It is from the work of the Spirit in the emotions of a person, so that here fear brings about that that sense of confession how helpful such emotions can be, by the way, if you have ever been around a person who is suffered an accident or stroke or some kind of disease that has use the amateur term because I'm not medically train that has deadened the emotional part of the brain.

You know what I'm talking about that person becomes flat. He has an ability or she has an ability to recognize to talk about events, dates, even with memory, but there aren't feelings. One young man that I'm thinking of lives not far away from us told me one afternoon of the death of his father and he told me without any feelings because the brain damage that suffered that he is suffered from this horrible car accident that his that is stolen from his brain. His emotions have left him with the ability to talk, but the inability to feel in his comment to me was my dad today and I was I was working in my in my driveway and I stopped and looked at him what what did you say my dad now today my dad died my dad out this afternoon by deadline and I put my arms around him and hit his arms read this at his side, and I'm sure he must wondered why would do that. In fact become stiff and we known each other since is a little boy to play with our son Kurt and when he talked about the death of his father.

I thought is something there. My eye, I got tears in my eyes and thought of the death's father, but he had no valuable household. It makes us to have feeling to express feeling my heart groans for you who have been in such constraint with your feeling you have been raised not to let them out not to let them show and I can guarantee you it's taken a toll on your home and family.

Certainly on the rearing of children. Feelings are so much a part of this there not everything but they're a part justice. Just as facts aren't everything but there's certainly a part midway through a message from Chuck Swindoll about the spirit in our emotions and please keep listening because there's much more that Chuck wants to address on this important topic you're listening to the daily program known as Insight for living. To learn more about this ministry, we invite you to visit us online@insideworld.org the free resources we offer, along with his daily program are made possible through the voluntary contributions of people like you when you give your gift is channeled directly toward providing Chuck's Bible teaching for others so they can benefit just as you have. For example, I thought should be encouraged to hear these following comments. One person said Insight for living is a calling oasis. Thank you for allowing me to better see myself in God's word. He still has affection for me and I'm overwhelmed with gratitude another note said this, I'm a Puerto Rican living in Albania. Your ministry is my main source of Bible study daily. I'm reading the word and digging deeper.

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When Chuck Swindoll continues his message about the spirit in our emotions Thursday on insight for living. The preceding message the spirit and our emotions was copyrighted in 1993 and 2003 and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2003 by Charles R. Swindoll. All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited