Study Notes

I.      Being led of the Holy Spirit is marvelous

A.    If you were led by the Holy Spirit 100% of the time you’d never make a bad decision, you’d never say the wrong thing, be at the wrong place

1.      He’s not going to lead you into something wrong

2.      Don’t try to make decisions unassisted by the Holy Spirit

3.      He’ll lead you in the little things and big things

B.     It’s possible to learn principles of the word and be a failure if you don’t put those principles with being led by the Holy Spirit

1.      No matter what the principle is, you have to be led by the spirit

2.      EX: Engagement ring

II.     Jesus told you that you could live the spirit-led life-John 16:12-15

A.    He WILL lead you-Who will? The Holy Spirit will lead you

1.      Jesus has deemed Him responsible for direction concerning your life

2.      Jesus gave him the position and title of your “Lead”

B.     He will lead you into TRUTH

1.      John 8:32-The more led by the Holy Spirit you are the more free you will be

2.      John 17:17-The more led by the Holy Spirit you are the more sanctified you will be

3.      John 8:44-The more led by the Holy Spirit you are the further away you get from Satan’s plan’s and desires for your life

a.    He is leading you away from Satan and his plan for your life

III.   Romans 8:14-Sons of God are supposed to be led by the Spirit of God

A.    A key characteristic of people who are mature in the Lord is that they are led by the Spirit (and not by other things)

1.      The more led you are by things other than the HS the more immature you are

2.      The more immature you are spiritually the less of your inheritance you can get-Gal 4

B.     The Holy Spirit will lead you not drive you

1.      Led by the Spirit, not pulled around by the Spirit; He gives you direction

a.    A cattle herder drives the cattle a shepherd leads the sheep

b.    A red light won’t make you stop, it just suggests that you do

2.      He’ll be your own personal attendant; if you didn’t need help God wouldn’t send it

a.    Some people are struggling so much because they’re not using their help

3.      He’s your conductor (the orchestra doesn’t move until the conductor does)

a.    The orchestra wouldn’t follow me because I’m not their conductor

b.    When things other than the HS try to conduct your life, you don’t follow them because they’re not the conductor; Jesus gave the HS that place

c.     He is the only thing that moves you-Acts 20:22-24

IV.   We are to be led by the spirit of God and nothing else-Being led by things other than the Spirit of God will lead you into bondages of all kinds

A.    We are to be led internally not externally-Romans 8:16

1.      The Holy Spirit talks to our spirit and let’s us know that we are the sons of God

a.    You have no physical evidence, it’s just a sense, a knowing on the inside

2.      We are not to put out fleeces; Jesus didn’t a fleece will lead you

a.    A fleece asks God to do something in the natural to communicate something spiritual

1)       Gideon did it, but he wasn’t born again; he wasn’t a son of God

b.    The enemy is in this physical realm and he can do external things

1)       Carnal immature people gravitate towards natural things b/c they don’t recognize or trust what they’re getting inside

3.      When you look to other things, external things for leading it is irreverent to the HS

a.    You’re telling Him that He’s not capable of doing what Jesus told you He would

b.    Looking to other things to be your leading is like to an unsaved person looking to somebody other than Jesus to save them

c.     We need to look learn to look inward for direction not outward

B.     We are not to be led by feelings or feeling-led---Ephesians 4:26

1.      Don’t allow the emotion of anger to lead you into sin

a.    When you’re led by your feelings you give place to the devil

2.      “I don’t feel like it” or “I feel like it” is not the leading of the spirit

a.    EX: A person doesn’t feel like they love their spouse anymore

b.    EX: A person doesn’t feel like the Word is working so their feelings lead them out of diligence in the Word

c.     EX: I’m not going to church down there I just don’t feel like I’m getting anything

d.    EX: I broke the printer

e.    EX: I didn’t feel like going to Jay’s

3.      If you’re being led by your feelings, you are not being led by the Spirit

a.    Feelings are not designed to lead you into truth

b.    There’s nothing wrong with having feelings, just don’t follow them

4.      We’re not to be led by our bellies-Philippians 3:19

a.    A lot of people are being led by their belly and that’s why they end up sick

C.    We are not to be led by our head or head-led---Proverbs 3:5

1.      You cannot know enough or be smart enough to just make the best decisions

a.    In the natural you can’t know or see the future and unless you can you can’t make the best decisions

b.    The Holy Spirit knows and if you’ll trust him you can make the best decisions

2.      Get natural knowledge, but don’t make decisions based on it alone

a.    It might not make sense or it might make perfect sense, but don’t follow your head, look inside

b.    When it comes down to it if everything in the natural is saying do it, but the Holy Spirit is saying no, then you say no

c.     We have to do it, don’t we? No we have to be led by the Spirit

3.      If you’re being led by your head, you’re not being led by the Spirit

a.    Don’t summons the advice of your head

D.    We are not to be led by opportunities

1.      Just b/c an opportunity arises & it’s good doesn’t mean you’re supposed to take it

2.      You don’t know whether it’s God based on the door being opened or closed; That’s being led externally and not internally

3.      EX: 100 meetings for me is an opportunity, but it might not be the Lord

E.     We are not to be money led-Matthew 6:24

1.      Whoever you are serving and whoever your master is you yielding to and following

2.      If you’re being led by money or making the decisions based solely on money you’re not being led by the Spirit

a.    This job pays more, this one costs less, we can’t sow that much what will we do

b.    If you give based on what you have, then you’re not giving based on the leading of the Spirit

F.     We’re not to be led by circumstances-2 Corinthians 5:7

1.      The conduct of our lives is based on our faith in what God has said to us through His written Word and through the leading of the Spirit

a.    I trust God enough to know that what His spirit tells me to do is best for me so I conduct my life based on what He says

2.      I don’t conduct my life base on what I see with my eyes or perceive with my senses

a.    If the circumstances move you into discouragement and worry, then you’re being led by them and not by the Spirit

b.    I’m not up and down with the circumstances because they’re not my leading

G.   We’re not to be led by likes or dislikes-Matthew 26:39, Psalm 40:8

1.      Just because you don’t like to do it doesn’t mean that you’re not led to do it

a.    EX: I just don’t like it down there at children’s nursery

b.    EX: I don’t like to come into a meeting and listen to the Word of an hour

c.     EX: I don’t like that church, it’s not my style

2.      Why are you consulting your likes?

a.    Ignore your likes and dislikes and follow the leading of the Spirit

b.    I delight to do thy will O God; If God likes it I like it, if He doesn’t like it I don’t like it

H.    We are not to be led by other people’s prophecies

1.      Just because somebody stands up and says thus says the Lord doesn’t mean you believe it and do it

2.      All prophecies must be judged by: 1) The Word 2) The witness you have inside