What does Thinking Out of the Box have to do with the Holy Spirit—R Fritz
There are plenty of people who might think that choosing Jesus Christ was just all they had to do. That was the start of thinking out of the box. It is your choice to change. Choosing from the sin life to choosing to follow Jesus. It was giving our old life up and saying to Jesus I am yours and I am here to serve you whatever you want me to do. We were thankful Jesus loved us so much our life would change. That was just the start down a road of change, one I did not like either and did not expect all the change required. We need to remember we were going down the wrong road. Doing things that did not fit with a righteous God. That did not mean everything we were doing was wrong. Jesus does not even make us change before we choose him, it was not a requirement at least for me. It was us who choose to be schooled about Jesus Christ. In my case, my old life was not working for me. I saw an opportunity to change my life. We all were in a place to look at something else. This was looking, thinking, and acting out of the box. This was not the norm where my life was.
Looking around at people and seeing what some people are doing was they forgot the words they spoke in their time of need. It was an agreement or covenant with God. I know we did not have lawyers present to those who think we need that. That is what the Pharisees in the Old Testament were good at keeping the letter of the law of Moses. It was just doing what met legal standards in their mind and not doing the spirit of the law. This is why Jesus had a problem with the Pharisees. Matthew 5:20 says and this is Jesus speaking “For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Our righteousness has to be better than the Pharisees and doing what we think is right or good enough to enter into heaven will not cut it. Let me be blunt, you are not going to make it.
This is not me telling you to want I think, it is Jesus telling you the way it is. Your words you spoke in choosing Jesus were not just words, they were you making a covenant (pledge or promise) to Jesus. It was between Jesus and you. I have also made covenants with Jesus. I was serious when I spoke to Jesus and meant what I said. What we might not know is Jesus looks at the heart. It shows how we are really feeling about somebody or if our words match our heart. The Pharisees thought they could show what they thought was the truth. They could not “trick” Jesus and neither can we. The Pharisees tried to spar with Jesus not knowing who he was. The stupidity of them. This was the thinking that doing the same they always did was right. Jesus was looking for righteousness, that being right was man’s interpretation and not even close. Some people might say close enough.
They do not know God. 1 John 2:29, 3:1 says “If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of him. Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.” Those that do righteousness are those that have the Holy Spirit because that Spirit teaches those that ask, listen and obey the true meaning of righteousness.
Looking at myself and asking the Holy Spirit what God’s words meant was an eye-opener for me. This is thinking and acting out of the box. This is not the norm. We want to use our knowledge or go to the dictionary to get what man says God’s words mean. I did the same until I started to see definitions did not line up with the Bible. The next thing I did was start asking questions first from people then from God. This is what the Holy Spirit wanted me to do. This is what God wants us to do. It is to ask the questions we want to know about him or his kingdom. Sometimes when you ask questions of God he tells you, sometimes he wants you to look but helps you in looking for the answers in the Bible. The things I say are not what I think or believe, they are what the Holy Spirit has shown me.
We have taken the Holy Spirit and God for granted (treated in a careless manner). Remember we are supposed to have a relationship with him. He is “God” but if we choose him, we are called sons of God and he is our Father in heaven. Let’s treat him like a Father and let’s act like sons and daughters. Romans 8:14 says “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.”
For many years, I did not know how to address God or the Holy Spirit because we are not taught that. When we think and act out of the box, we start asking questions of God to have nature like him and to be true sons of God. The “norm” is not to question people and be afraid to speak with God to get his answers. We have let people who do not really know God give us their opinion instead of the truth from the Holy Spirit. That is on us. He is showing me now because I have asked a lot of questions about his nature even though I have known God for over 20 years.
It is now in your hands for your relationship with the Holy Spirit to change. I have given you some insight into my relationship. Whether we have just chosen him or known him for 20 years it is time to work on our relationship with the Holy Spirit. God Bless.
