For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: (Romans 8:14-16)
I want to preach just for a little while this morning about being led by the Spirit of God. We’ve been going through Romans 8 for some time now. So there’s no doubt as to what this means to be led by the Spirit of God. And this is common to all that have been born of the Spirit. To be led is to journey and to walk after the Spirit. It means that God is taking us from point A to point B. As we journey with God, as we drive down this narrow road, there’s sights that we all must see along the way. As the Spirit of God takes us along this Roman Road, so to speak, there are some definite places to which we will cross or see.
In our context, being led by the Spirit of God means to be free from the bondage of sin and death, led from the condemnation of the law. “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:2) We should see Egypt in the rear-view mirror. We are led into liberty.
Being led by the Spirit of God means to be minding the things of the Spirit, the things of God. “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh, but they that are after the Spirit, the things of the Spirit” (Romans 8:5) There should be a conscienceness and desire in us to know the conscience and desire of God. There should be something inside of you that is not satisfied with only knowing the things of man or the things of this world; something inside you that desires and looks to heaven and yearns for something greater and more glorious that what the flesh offers.
Being led by the Spirit of God is to be quickened by the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead. (Romans 8:11) That means to be given life. If any man be in Christ, old things have passed away, BEHOLD all things are become new. There is a definite change in the life of someone who is led by the Spirit of God; a new life; a new purpose; a new outlook; a new hope.
Being led by the Spirit of God is mortify the deeds of the body. “If ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live” (Romans 8:13) There is something inside of us that leads us to want to do right and live right. Now you might not always get it right or do it right, but the desire and yearning to please God should be somewhere there in your soul if we are led by the Spirit of God.
Jesus said, “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.” (John 16:13) Let me read our text again: “For as many are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God…” So if you put these two together, we can say that the sons of God are guided into all truth; not some truth, but all truth. In other words, can I say this? God is honest with his children. He has kept nothing from us. Jesus said, “For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad. If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.” (Mark 4:22,23)
So I want to say these things before I get into the message. We have to stay in context. If we are led by the Spirit of God, these things we hold common. We should agree with some or all of the things I just mentioned. I’m not trying to drag anybody down a road that they don’t want to go. I’m just saying that we need a ruler to measure things. And that ruler is the Word of God. Our Christian life better line up with the word of God, or we don’t have a Christian life. We’re talking life or death. We’re talking heaven or hell. If nothing of what I’ve listed so far stirs a chord within your soul, there’s something wrong. You might think, “You’re always trying to make me feel uneasy!” Well, that’s exactly what I’m trying to do. The things of God will do that. They will either give you joy and peace, or they’ll give you dread, doubt, and trouble.
That’s just a little intro to get us thinking again about Romans Chapter 8. We’re talking about being led by the Spirit, walking after the Spirit, being filled with the Spirit, etc..
Horses…
Lately, what I’ve had on my mind these few weeks is horses and ranch work. It’s hard to do two things at one time. And I’ll be honest. My mind has been occupied with horses. I’m going through another horse phase. I’m looking to get back into these horses again, and that requires ranch work. So that is what I’ve been thinking about lately. I’ve also been thinking about this verse for several weeks, Romans 8:14, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” But everytime I think about it, I think of how horses are led around. When I think about being led by the Spirit of God, I think about the halter that goes around the horses head and face and I think about the lead line and the hook that attaches it to the halter.
There’s so many similarities of the Christian life to horses, it’s just unreal. You think about this for a second: When you are leading a horse around, there is a certain level of expectation to have at this. Nobody wants to be tugging around a 1500 lb animal. You ever notice sometimes when someone is leading a horse, they got them by the hook. They got them right under the chin. You know why they do that? Because that horse can’t keep it’s head still. The truth is that the owner doesn’t trust the horse enough to just leave it alone, and the horse doesn’t trust the owner enough to just be still. They got their hand there because that’s where they have to have it to maintain leverage and control. They can grab that head and turn it anywhere they want. You’ll notice that the horse is constantly tugging on the person that’s leading her. How would you feel if someone had you by the chin?
This is what I’m talking about regarding a certain level of expectation. You’re about to get a horse lesson. You want to lead the horse, not drag the horse, and tug on the horse, and fight with the horse. You should have about two feet of slack on the lead line, and that horse should know that when you move, she moves. When you go left, she goes left. When you go right, she goes right. When you go backwards, she goes backwards. You shouldn’t have to grab them by the clip or the hook and force them to go where you go.
So I’ve been watching this Colt Starting series during lunch. I’ve already seen it twice. This is the actually the third time watching it. The trainer goes through all this stuff to train a wild horse. And can I say this: This is what I mean by similarities to the Christian life. Do you realize that when you get saved, you get born again, you are literally a wild horse? You have just been taken off the range, and God has put you in the round pen with the Holy Ghost. I think alot of times, people think that they’re further along than they really are.
“Oh yeah, I’m already broke. I can move my head, my neck, my shoulders, my rib-cage, my hind-quarters at the touch of the Holy Ghost. He says move, I move. I can walk, trot, canter, gallop at a the touch of the master. Nothing spooks me. I’m safe. I’m halter broke. I can stay tied without freaking out. Yeah, I’m broke. I’m ready for the Holy Ghost to ride me where ever he wants to go.”
Yeah right. The truth is, you’re still a foal. All you can do is barely walk and drink milk. That’s about it. The bible speaks about not thinking ourselves more highly than we ought. I’ve been guilty of this and probably still am sometimes. But sometimes, we think that we’re further along in our training that we truly are.
I heard years ago, that the word meekness was actually a word used to describe a horse, a trained horse. It meant strength under control. When you first get saved, it doesn’t mean that you’re under control. It just means you got caught. It means you’ve been taken off the range of sin. And now the Holy Ghost has got you in the round pen, and you are now face to face with the master trainer.
Two eyes…
So I’ve been watching this Colt Starting series, and I got to say I noticed that from the very get go, from the beginning, the trainer is working on leading that horse. He does these round penning exercises that gets the horse to always give him two eyes. He’s got this saying, “Two eyes is always better than two feet.” You always want to have that horse looking at you. He never let’s it get away with no looking at him. It’s very possible that this may be one of the first lessons in leading that the Holy Ghost teaches us. Keep your eyes on Jesus. Don’t look to the left or to the right. Don’t wander off. Everytime the horse looked away of wandered off, the trainer would get him moving again. If the horse didn’t want to stay still and give him two eyes, then he set his feet moving again and then he’d give him another change to give him two eyes.
The trainer made the horse understand that the being still in front of him with two eyes looking at him was the easiest thing to do. It was the place of rest. It was the place of peace. It was the place with no pressure. Christian life: This is our place of rest before our Lord. We give him two eyes. The bible says, “I will keep thee in perfect peace, he who’s mind is stayed on thee…” See? When that wild horse, instead of running around and being reactive and tense and uneasy, he finally realized that just being still and waiting to see what the trainer is gonna do was easier and better. The horse actually was thinking now. His mind was stayed on the trainer. He finally learned not to move until the trainer said to move, and he’d sit there and wait and keep his eyes on the trainer. “I will keep thee in perfect peace, he who’s mind is stayed on thee…”
Now that was just the beginning. He did a series of things, it took about 3 hours. But the goal of the trainer was to get the close enough to the animal to touch him, and eventually put that halter on the horse. And once he got that halter on the horse, it was over for the horse. And I don’t want to sound like it’s bad. It’s good. That halter gave the trainer the necessary leverage on that horse to train it. It’s with that halter that the horse is taught to finally yield himself to the trainer.
One of the first things that the trainer teaches that horse once he gets the halter on is the end of the lead line. He teaches the horse that there is an end to that lead line. You can only go so far before you hit the end of that line. See, if you do the math, in a 50 foot round pen, if you do things right with a 23 foot lead line, the most that a horse can drag you is really only about what? If you’re in the middle then the wall of the pen will always be no more than 25 feet from you. The horses head usually stays 1 foot away from the wall. So if you’re arm is like 3 feet long, can the horse ever really pull the line out of your hands? Nope. Now it is possible with a 14 foot line, but with a wild horse, the trainer uses a 23 foot lead line. So horse is never able to escape the pressure of the lead line.
But that doesn’t mean that the horse isn’t going to try to get away. So the very first thing that the trainer teaches the horse is the end of that lead line. So the horse will try to get away, and the trainer will jerk that head back to the center and ask for two eyes. He’ll scare the horse off again and as soon as it’s far enough, he’ll jerk that line again. He’ll keep doing this until the horse finally realizes that it’s not worth it to run off again. It’s not worth it going out to end of the line. He did this until he couldn’t scare the horse off anymore. Do you see the significance of this?
Three hours ago, the wild horse was scared and running and bucking and acting crazy and running away from the trainer. But all of a sudden, after he finally got that halter on him, now he couldn’t scare that horse away if he tried. He’d wave his arms around and say Pshhhhh and wave stick with a plastic bag, and the wild horse would just turn away, keep his head cocked toward the trainer. He was no longer afraid of the trainer.
“For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, where by we cry, Abba, Father.” We have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear. So then the trainer proceeded to back to desensitizing it to his touch. Within the next hour the trainer was able to walk up to the horse rub his face, put the halter on and off, throw his lead line all over the horses body and the wild horse would stand still and give him two eyes.
Why? Because he was no longer afraid. The fear was gone. I want to ask this? What does the Holy Ghost have to do to train us to be still and keep our eyes on God and let him touch us? Fear does not necessarily mean fright. What it does mean is a lack of familiarity? That horse no longer feared because he got familiar with the trainer, his tools, and his touch. That’s what we need to do with God. We need to be more familiar with him. We don’t ever walk off on our own. We always give God two eyes, our attention. Some people spend year after year running around that round pen. They don’t want to turn in unto God and give him your attention.
Yielding…
Now, the horse let’s the trainer come up to it, but that’s just a starting point. Remember, we’re talking about leading. “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” Leading. Does the Spirit of God lead you? So you may be now familiar with God. In other words, God can approach you and touch you, but that doesn’t mean he’s leading you.
So when that trainer pulls on that halter, that wild horse does not know yet how to yield to that pressure. His natural reaction is to pull back. And I’m going to say now that is what the flesh does. It pulls back from God. When the Spirit of God begins to pull on you and tries to lead you down that narrow road, the flesh says, “NO!” The flesh pulls back! Why? Because that is was is natural. The bible talks about the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit. Look, I’m not giving people a pass on being carnal and in the flesh. But we must understand that we’ve been carnal and in the flesh all our lives. Walking after the Spirit is not natural or normal. The flesh is going to resist. The flesh is going to fight.
That horse knows not to go out to the end of that lead line and get his head jerked back. But he doesn’t know yet how to yield to a constant stead pressure of the lead line. Eventually, he won’t even need pressure. He’ll just go where the trainer goes. So, how does the trainer get the horse to finally yield. Now, here’s some more horsology. The power in the horse is in his hind legs. Those hinds legs is what is pulling that horse back. When he pulls on the lead line and the horse pulls back, that power is coming from the hind quarters. So instead of trying to get the horse to yield his head, the trainer will get him to yeild his hind quarters.
Okay, so when that horse legs are square they can do whatever the horse wants to do. He can lunge forward, backward, left, right, whatever because the power is engaged. The moment that horse crosses his hind legs, he loses his power. He can’t go anywhere with his legs crossed. Try walking with your legs crossed. You can’t. Also, when a horses legs are crossed, they’re easily thrown off of balance.
So the first step in trying to get that horse to yield to the pressure of the lead line is to disengage his hind-quarters. To shut the power off. When you pull he pulls back and even steps back. Well you’re trying to get him to step forward and he’s stepping back. So it makes sense that if we can just get him to quit stepping back, we’re half-way there. So the trainer, as he pull on that line and the horse pulls back and steps back, he applies pressure by looking at and swinging that stick and string toward the horses hind quarters. And of course the horse doesn’t want his hind to get hit so he begins to move it. He begins to step across his legs and cross them. He disengages those hind quarters.
What happens now is that the trainer and the horse now kinda start going in circles. Can I ask you this? Do you ever feel like you’re just going in circles with God? Do you ever feel like maybe you’re not really getting anywhere with God or in your spiritual journey and just going in circles. See what that trainer does is he’ll get the horse yield his hind-quarters and then try pulling on the horse to see if he’ll yeild. And he’ll do this over and over and in circles and in circles, yielding the hind-quarters, then pulling on the lead line, waiting for the horse to go the other way, toward him instead of backwards.
He’ll pull, the horse will draw back, he’ll go after the hind-quarters, the horse will disengage, the pressure will let up, and he’ll try it again. And they’ll go in circles over and over and over until, the horse finally takes one step forward. Maybe, that’s what God is doing with you. Maybe you’re just doing what’s natural and God is trying to train you to take that step forward to yield to the Him. Paul said, “But yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.”
As horse has got 5 parts of the body that move. 5 members: The head, the neck, the shoulders, the rib-cage, and the hind-quarters. And every member, if the horse is properly broke, he will yield at the touch of the trainer. No wild horse can do this right off the bat. They must be trained. I believe that God’s people are no different. We must learn how to yield ourselves unto God. We must learn to yield our members as instruments of righteousness unto God. God maybe going around in circles with you right now. All he’s waiting for right now is for you to take that first step. That trainer doesn’t just keep pulling on the horse while he’s got his hind legs planted. He goes after the hind-quarters and gets that to yield first. Maybe God’s going after something else. Maybe god is trying to get something else disengaged, that way he can teach you to let him lead. He’s waiting for you to take that step.
Release…
Now, here’s one of the most interesting things that the trainer does once that horse takes a step. He’ll go in circles over and over and over. He’ll pull, disengage, pull, disengage, pull, disengage, over and over to get that first step. And when the horse finally gives it, you know what he does? He releases. He lets the pressure on the line go. The horse natural response is to pull back. I don’t like to go. I don’t like the pressure. Quit pulling on me. Quit pulling on me. Quit pulling on me. Pull pull pull. I want to get out of this. Pull pull pull. Quit pulling on me… Let me try going forward… RELEASE. It’s gone. The pressure is gone. Something snaps in that horse’s head. He says, “Hmmm… if I go forward instead of what’s natural and go backward, the pressure goes away.”
So the trainer tries again. And the horse pulls back again, but this time he thinks, let me try that going forward thing again and see if it works. So he yields to the pressure and takes a step and RELEASE, the pressure is gone. So the trainer does that again and again until the horse realizes that it’s easier to just take a step than to pull back pull back and fight and pull back and fight and go around and around and around it circles. He’s rewarded by yielding. There peace in yielding. There’s rest in yielding. “There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.” (Hebrews 4:9-11)
Jesus said “My yoke is easy and my burden light!” You don’t have to pull against God. If you feel any pulling from God, it’s probably because you’re pulling the other way. David said, “He leadeth me beside the still waters…” When that horse goes forward, it’s RELEASE! Your reward for yeiding to me is that I’m not going to pull and tug on you. So the trainer will then try for two steps, then three steps, and before you know it, that horse has figured out that it’s better, it’s easier, it’s less stressfull, to just go where that trainer guy goes instead of having that thing tugging on my face. But he doesn’t learn that because he’s tugging. He learns it because of the RELEASE.
Ease and peace is what that horse is looking for. Isn’t that what we’re looking for? Isn’t that really what you want? He said to his disciples, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.” (John 14:27) See, a wild horse naturally finds peace in running away. Whenever it’s afraid or troubled, it runs and if it can’t run, it’ll fight. See, but the trainer also offers the horse peace, but he’s got to learn it. Sometimes, we just got to learn that. Peace only comes when we walk after God. Peace only comes when we’re led of the Spirit. Paul said, if ye live in the Spirit, then walk in the Spirit. Peace only comes when we yield ourselves to God.
Herd mentality…
“Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.”
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: (Romans 8:14-16)
I want to give you a little more horsology. The herd mentality… Explain
So essentially what the trainer is doing is taking the place of the alpha mare. He’s number one and the horse is number two or three or four. And this is what that animal understands. This is what the horse respects. With chickens, we call it the pecking order. What the trainer is establishing really is a herd, a horse family. And he’s essentially adopting that horse into his family. And this is where the respect comes from and the fear is overcome. That horse is no longer afraid of the human but instead familiar with him. That word familiar comes from the word family. And because the trainer can move it’s feet and “dominate” her, she respects him as the leader. That’s how a horse family works.
Well, when we get born again, we’re put into the family of God. We’re no children of God. And in this family, the Spirit of God leads. And God wants us to be familiar with him. There shouldn’t be anything strange to us about God. There shouldn’t be anything about God that spooks us or makes us nervous or makes us want to run away. The Spirit of God leads in this relationship. When the Spirit of God says let’s go, and we kick, scream, and fight, that’s not leading. He shouldn’t have to drag us around from place to place. There ought to be some slack in the line. Can I say this. Horse that are trained really well, they don’t even need a line. You can do everything off the line that you typically need a line.
That’s no broke…
Explain:
Leave a Reply