Spiritual Gifts part 78. Discernment is performed by the Holy Spirit using doctrine in the soul.

Pastor-Teacher
John Farley
Wednesday,
January 26, 2011

Spiritual Gifts Part 78: Discernment is performed by the Holy Spirit using doctrine in the soul.

The Doctrine of Adoption

God the Father has provided a down payment as proof of the certainty of our future inheritance, and that proof comes in the form of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

The believer in time lives in this tension between the “already” and the “not yet”; 1JO 3:2-3.

We are already truly adopted into God’s family, with all the benefits and privileges that come with it, and yet not yet recipients of the inheritance.

The Holy Spirit, who is the first fruits of the glory that awaits us, is the one who brings together the whole design of adoption.

The Spirit joins the two sides of the “already-not yet” tension. He provides the poise and stability that we need.

This means that we have to have a healthy balance in our spiritual life.

Mankind’s great enemy is a thought called arrogance.
Arrogance can inflate or deflate man’s opinion of himself. He thinks he is better or worse than he actually is.

GAL 6:3
For if anyone thinks he is something [arrogance] when he is nothing, he deceives himself .

The only way to keep our balance is to submit to the leadership of God the Holy Spirit and the authority of the Word of God.

The pattern of right thinking is the humanity of Jesus Christ, who constantly lived and functioned inside the PPOG for His life, PHI 2:5.

Our Lord’s mental attitude of humility was manifested by His total conformity and obedience to the plan of God the Father.

Humility, which is obedience to divine authority and orientation to God’s grace, should be the attitude of every member of the royal family of God.

Another name for finding the right balance is having discernment, HEB 5:14.

“senses trained” refers to the work of the Holy Spirit in guiding the believer to make the proper distinctions in applying Bible doctrine.

diakrisis = judicial estimation:
distinguishing, a clear discrimination, discerning, judging

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