May 9, 2001

"And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom
and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of
knowledge and of the fear of the LORD."
Isaiah 11:2

This is the sevenfold spirit which rested upon the Lord Jesus Christ.
The plentitude of power is the sevenfold spirit: (1) of the Lord; (2) of
wisdom; (3) of understanding; (4) of counsel; (5) of might; (6) of
knowledge; and (7) of the fear of the Lord. The number seven in
Scripture does not necessarily mean perfection. The primary thought if
fullness, completeness. John 3:34 tells us, ". . . for God giveth not
the Spirit by measure unto him." In Ephesians 5:18 we are admonished, ".
. . be filled with the Spirit." Some of us just have a few drops at the
bottom, others are one-fourth filled, and some are half filled. Very few
Christians you meet are really "filled" with the Spirit. A little girl
once prayed, "Lord, fill me with the Spirit. I can't hold very much, but
I can run over a whole lot." Very few Christians are just brimming full,
running over on all sides. The Lord Jesus was the exception to that!
1. "The spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him."
    The Lord Jesus Christ in His humanity went
    forth in the power of the Spirit. When He
    comes again, He is going to rule in the power
    of the Spirit.
2. "The spirit of wisdom." He has been made
    unto us wisdom (1Corinthians 1:30). He is
    the only One who can lead and guide us
    through this life. We are no match for this
    world today! The Lord Jesus could say, ". . .
    for the prince of this world cometh, and hath
    nothing in me" (John 14:30). Satan cannot
    find anything in Christ, but he can always find
    something in us. We need the Spirit of
    wisdom, and the Lord Jesus Christ is that
    Spirit of wisdom!
3. "And understanding," which means spiritual
    discernment. It is distressing to find that so
    few Christians have any discernment at all.
    It's amazing the way some people will follow
    a certain person purely on a human basis.
    They like their looks, or the sound of their
    voice, and they never really comprehend
    what they are saying, or what they are saying
    is true to the Word of God. Christians need
    the Spirit of understanding! We need to be
    aware of who is for the Lord and who isn't.
4. "The spirit oc counsel." All of us need
    counsel. Did you ever notice that the Lord
    Jesus never asked anyone for advice? He
    never never asked for counsel ~ He gave it!
5. "Might" ~ that is, power. We need power.
    Paul says, "That I may know him, and the
    power of his resurrection. . ." We need that
    today!
6-7. "The spirit of knowledge" and "of the fear of     the LORD." These
come from the study of
    the Word of God!
God Bless you as you ask God to give you the understanding that you lack
in this sevenfold Spirit. Take up His cross daily!

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