The Leading of the Spirit

The Leading of the Spirit

“Let no one defraud you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase which is from God.” Col. 2:18-19.

We are many members, but we are one body, and Christ is the Head. We are to serve each other as members of the same body, but only according to the leading of the Head. All the members must have contact with the Head. In the above-mentioned scripture, we read about those who do not hold fast to the Head but are engaged in angel worship. Our natural desire is that others serve us as we want. Some people are weak in this area and they give in, and so they gain our approval, but then they come out of the leading of the Spirit and lose their reward.

Jesus says that if anyone desires to come after Him, he has to take up his cross and deny himself. Some people want to be guides, and they give instructions how the others should deny themselves. However, it is not so sure that they understand it correctly, because not all denying is self-denial. This is where we need to be led by the Spirit, for there is much self-imposed religion that has the appearance of wisdom by false humility and neglect of the body, but it is only for the indulgence of the flesh. Col. 2:23. These people become “great” because of their “self-denial.”

Many people are in bondage to others. They worship man. They have a reputation for being humble by immediately obeying these instructions in self-denial, but the truth is that they seek the honor of man. They themselves sense that they are coming out of the leading of the Spirit—rest in God—but because so and so has said it, they do it right away. They lose their reward because they are not denying themselves; their actions result only in nourishment for their self-life. This is how many people observe fasts, certain seasons, times for prayer, certain charity works, etc., to have something with which to soothe their consciences. They compare themselves with the others, and they are vainly puffed up by their fleshly minds.

God’s commands and laws are clear. They say that we shall pray, give alms, visit the sick and fatherless, deny ourselves, etc. We do not need any special orders concerning these things, but we need the leading of the Spirit in doing them, because my “I” also wants to lead in these matters. Thus we find these high places which were so difficult to abolish in Israel and which are no less difficult to abolish among God’s people in our days. There was no lack of bringing sacrifices, but they did not sacrifice according to God’s will.

“Take heed to yourself that you do not offer your burnt offerings in every place that you see . . . .” Deut. 12:13. “You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations which you dispossess served their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree.” V. 2.

Unconverted and religious people also want to bring sacrifices if only they can do it on a high mountain or on a hill so that people can see it. They want to have a reputation that they are worshiping God. Because of his works the angel of the church in Sardis had the reputation that he was alive, but he was dead. God had to refine the sons of Levi and purge them as gold so that they might offer to the Lord an offering in righteousness. Mal. 3:3.

Many people are busy everywhere. They give their time, money, and strength, but they do not want to offer themselves in places that God points out—where no one can see them—where their self-life can be crushed. There can be situations at home or at a place of employment where they are required to prove that they are actually denying themselves. There were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s days, but Elijah was not sent to any of them except to the widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon. And there were many lepers in Israel in Elisha’s days, yet none of them were cleansed except Naaman the Syrian. Luke 4:24-27.

Let us consider one another so we encourage each other to love and good works, and let us hold fast to the Head so that we are in the leading of the Spirit and experience the rest of faith in these works.