Many times people seek guidance from the Lord in ways He did not intend. An example is fleecing. It is scripturally incorrect for born-again believers to put out fleeces in order to determine God’s will. It’s always best for ‘new creation’ men to stay with God’s Word in these areas. In the pages of the Bible, the Lord Himself gave us clear instruction about how God leads New Testament children. In fact, He details for us the number one way God leads us in the affairs of life, the conscience.

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One Necessary Component You Need for Spiritual Growth in God

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You can view a basic transcript of this podcast at the bottom of this section.

Accept the Challenge

Each week’s podcast contains a call to action. The Word of God will not produce in your life unless you put into operation.
This week’s call is:

• Cowardice asks, “Is it safe?”
• Experience asks, “Is it proven?”
• Pride asks, “Is it popular?”
• Greed asks, “Is it profitable?”
• Doubt asks, “Is it practical?”
• But conscience asks, “Is it right?”

Applying the ‘conscience test’ above will help keep you safe. For if you feed continually upon God’s Word and exercise yourself in it, your conscience is a safe guide. This witness of the Spirit is the number one way God leads all of us.

Join the Conversation

Each week’s podcast also contains a question designed to encourage testimony. Testimony is vital to a believer’s life. We overcome by it (Rev. 12:11).
This week’s question is:

Question: How have you learned to follow the inward witness in your life? Please leave your thoughts in the comments section below.

Episode Resources

You can find more information on Spirit Living by visiting the following Page:

1. Spiritology (Life in the Holy Spirit)
2. What It Means to Wait on God

About Emery

Emery committed his life to the Lord Jesus Christ over 40 years ago and has served as both a full-time pastor and an itinerant minister. Both he and his wife Sharon of 35 years emphasize personal growth and development through the Word of God. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is both the focus and the hallmark of their mission. Read more about them here.

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If you enjoyed the podcast, please rate it on Stitcher Radio and leave a review. If you have a suggestion for a Bible topic you would like to see taught, or if you have a question, please e-mail me at emery@emeryhorvath.com

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Podcast Notes

How God Leads

Romans 8:14-16 (NKJV)
¹⁴ For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. ¹⁵ For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” ¹⁶ The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,

• NIV states – “the Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit”
• NLT states – “His Holy Spirit speaks to us deep in our hearts”
• NCV states – “the Spirit himself joins with our spirits”

• God is a God of variety and method.
• He was many varied methods whereby He can communicate with you.
• So do you.
• You speak directly.
• And, you drop hints.
• Write letters, send text messages and e-mails.
• You engage in social media.

Conscience: How God Leads You

• The inward witness is God’s number one way of letting you know you are His child.
• You can experience the witness of the Spirit in this most important area of your life, your salvation.

 Romans 8:14–16 (ESV)
¹⁴ For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. ¹⁵ For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” ¹⁶ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,

• Since the Lord uses this method in the most critical aspect of your faith, just know that He will use the same method in the other areas.
• The Lord will dole out more guidance this way than any other way.
• You may have heard the following terminology in church circles.
  • “My spirit bears witness.”
  • “There’s a check in my spirit.”
  • “My conscience bothers me.”
  • “I feel really good about this in my heart.”
  • “Man, I just knew that.”
  • “It’s like I had a premonition.”
• All of these are synonymous with the inward witness.

Conscience Is the Way Your Spirit Communicates

• Your conscience gets your spirit’s attention.
• It works like a light bulb.
• Light bulbs are either on or off.
• There is no in between.

Proverbs 20:27 (KJV)
²⁷ The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, Searching all the inward parts of the belly.

• If God’s will for a course of action is ‘Yes’, the light bulb goes on.
• You will sense a positively velvet like feeling in your spirit.
• Your insides feel great.
• If the Lord says ‘No’ to your course of action, you will sense a grungy kind of bad feeling inside.
• The light bulb is off.
• It’s a scratchy kind of, piercing kind of, guilty kind of, like you already sinned and ‘did wrong’ kind of, feeling.
• “Yes” and “No” are the traffic signals of your conscience.

How God Led in the Old Testament: Urim And Thummim

• The high priest wore the breastplate of judgment on the front of the ephod, the breastplate was so made as to form a pouch (Ex. 28:16) and in it were placed Urim and Thummim (Ex. 28:30).
• From Ex 28:30, Lev 8:8, Num 27:21, Deut 33:8, 1 Sam 28:6, Ezra 2:63, Neh 7:65, it is clear that they were used for discovering God’s will ¹.

What Josephus Said about Urim and Thummim

• Josephus indicated the stones would light.

Ant-3-22
“These answers by the oracle of Urim and Thummim, which words signify, light and perfection, or, as the Septuagint render them, revelation and truth, and denote nothing further, that I see, but the shining stones themselves, which were used, in this method of illumination, in revealing the will of God, after a perfect and true manner, to his people Israel:

• Josephus also indicates Joshua was tricked by the Gideonites because he didn’t consult Urim and Thummim.

God Provided a Method for Old Testament Guidance

• It deserves to be remarked, that Saul very rarely, and David very frequently, consulted God by Urim; and that David aimed always to depend, not on his own prudence or abilities but on the Divine direction, contrary to Saul’s practice.
• The point is that God provided a method by which the children of Israel could know God’s will in Old Testament days by consulting the Urim and Thummim worn by the high priest.
• But, it wasn’t the best thing to receive guidance.
• There were millions of Israelites and only one high priest.
• If you as an individual wanted to know God’s will, you had to travel to where he was and wait in line.
• In this New Covenant, a better covenant established on better promises, God improved the method of knowing His will by putting Urim and Thummim inside of you.
• It’s no longer in the high priest’s pouch.
• It is in you and it is called the witness of the Spirit.
• You no longer have to wait in line to have the Spirit’s direction.
• It’s available all the time because He lives in your heart.

To Be Led, Ask the Right Question

• Since conscience is how God leads you, and since Urim and Thummim are now within, steer what you are wanting to know into a YES or NO question.
• Doing so will allow you to receive better and more frequent direction.
• You can formulate your question in such a way you can sense your conscience bearing witness.

Pay Attention

• A portion of a successful life is just paying attention.
• You can develop spiritually in such a way that even in the smallest area, you can know God’s will.

Keep a Tender Conscience

Acts 24:16 (NKJV)
16 This being so, I myself always strive to have a conscience without offense toward God and men.

• Your conscience is the referee of your life.

Learn to Develop Conscience in Two Areas

Toward God

• Don’t override your conscience.
• Overriding your conscience is like a pool of water that begins to freeze as the temperature drops.
• A pool of water does not freeze or get hard instantly.
• It’s a gradual process.
• Overriding your conscience causes it to harden over time.
• It can become so hard you don’t sense anything.
• The opposite is also true.
• Regaining sensitivity in your conscience comes by reversing the hardening process.
• It doesn’t get sensitive all at once.
• Your conscience thaws out as you obey it.
• Repentance does not make your conscience super sensitive.
• Continual obedience does.
• If your conscience is hardened, you won’t sense that Yes or No.
• And, it is not a safe guide.
• If your conscience is tender like Paul’s, you can safely follow it in every area.

Toward Others

• Walk in love and forgiveness.

Ephesians 4:30-32 (NKJV)
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. 32             And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ forgave you.

• Notice, what this says, ‘Do not grieve the Holy Spirit.’
• What is grieving the Holy Spirit?
• It’s offending Him.
• The other part you should notice in these Ephesian verses are the words ‘Be kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving.’
• Forgiveness is not a feeling.
  • It’s just like love.
  • Love is not a feeling.
  • It’s a commitment to act a certain way toward a person.
• Forgiveness is not an emotion.
• It is a decision.
• When people wrong us, we should pray something like this for them.
  • Dear Father God in Jesus name, I pray for so and so, what they did was not right – you see that – but I forgive them in Jesus name. Lord, when I messed up, you forgave me – so I forgive them. I release them from any restitution that they owe me. They don’t owe.  I pray for them that they might increase and that they might prosper. (If they are not saved), that they might come to know you. Send a laborer by their way. Let great blessings come upon them in Jesus name.
• Praying like this keeps your heart tender.
• Walking in love and forgiveness does the same.

#S4-040: Why You Need to Know the Story of John Alexander Dowie [Podcast]

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