It was a statement made years ago that stopped me in my tracks and hit a nerve when I heard another preacher comment: “Jesus spent the first 30 years of His life…preparing for 3 years of ministry…and somewhere along the way we got smart and figured we could train a man in 3 years to go out and minister for 30 years.”

I’m just gonna leave that there and you can make what you want with it. I only share it because it speaks to this tendency we have to want to hurry up and rush new converts into 'ministry' so they can ‘fulfill their destiny in God’. I wonder if the real motive there is to hurry up and get people ‘plugged in’ to our local churches and keep them busy so they’ll keep coming back. That is, after all…how you ‘grow a church’ is it not?  And I don't say that to sound overly cynical or critical either.

Changing lanes here for a brief moment, but I have to wonder if the reason so many marriages fail out there is because we didn’t recognize what we ‘signed on for’ when we first said ‘I Do’. Now I don’t mean to throw that out like a wide-spread blanket of condemnation to imply that’s the only reason marriages fail…because I fully recognize that ‘stuff happens’ and many factors are involved that lead to marriage break ups. But you have to admit that might apply to many folks today who don’t truly enter in to a marriage covenant fully appreciating what they are committing to undertake.

The same could be said about many people who ‘walk an aisle’ in our churches today thinking they ought to ‘give Jesus a try’. There’s a reason Jesus advised us to ‘count the cost’ (Luke 14:28). When the Bible speaks about God’s ‘kindness leading us to repentance’ (Rom. 2:4)…how many people realize what it is they are ‘repenting from’, and what happens if they fail to…’repent’? Or how many sincere people follow protocol, repeat a prayer or two… but then are not adequately taught what it means to become a true ‘disciple’ or follower of Jesus? There really is more to it than just showing up weekly when the church doors are open and reading your Bible regularly.

I do think the real break-down can happen when people don’t experience a true ‘repentance’…which is then followed up by a divine encounter where God steps in and ‘lifts them up’ as they experience the ‘times of refreshing’ of the Holy Spirit. This is marked by the peace of God, and the joy of the Lord which then becomes our ‘guide’ as we are led into all truth. (James 4:7-10; Acts 3:19; John 16:13). So if you would, allow me to share a ‘metaphor’ of sorts, an illustration or analogy that I’ve been wanting to use that might help us all better understand what the work of the Holy Spirit looks like when we first come to Jesus. And it has to do with ‘house cleaning’, or perhaps a ‘clearing of the land’.

Imagine coming back from a long weekend vacation that you took recently; and to make this more relatable…let’s assume that you left out in a hurry from your home, meaning the house was a mess. The bed was not made, dirty dishes were left in the sink, half-opened mail was strewn across the table and dirty clothes were on the floor. In other words, there was no shortage of clutter that was awaiting you upon your return home. Then, when you did get back, your suitcase is opened and emptied which adds to the chaos of the house. This would describe the condition of our hearts/lives…when we first come to Jesus. We are a mess.

Now my wife might find it ironic that I of all people am about to teach a ‘lesson on housecleaning’…but just hang with me here, if you would please. This illustration will serve a purpose in helping us better understand what…and how…the Holy Spirit begins to work in our lives after we first come to Jesus. The Bible teaches that our physical bodies serve as a ‘house’ to which the Holy Spirit comes to dwell, or live in. We see this picture in multiple places, especially when we are studying where ‘spirits’ live or inhabit. (Matt. 12:43-45; 24: 42-44; 1 Cor. 6:19)

For the sake of this analogy, let’s call all this ‘clutter’ in the house…’sins of the flesh nature’, and it all needs to be ‘addressed and dealt with’. This is what Jesus comes to do in our lives as He begins to ‘clean up the mess’, but we need to learn to do it ‘His way’. I know everyone probably has their own way of ‘house cleaning’, in the natural realm, and what might seem to be a practical method is taking on one room at a time; but for the sake of this illustration…let’s deal with one mess at a time. You know…maybe gather up all the dirty laundry and clothes that might be strewn about the house first. Then we can work on cleaning up any and all dirty dishes and get the kitchen back in order. There’s also a bed that needs to be made, maybe even changing the sheets/linens. After that, let’s deal with the mail and papers that might have accumulated before taking out the trash and then putting away suitcases, etc. You get the idea here.

How many of you tend to be like me and get ‘distracted’ where you start on one thing, then drift into doing something else as you wander about before something else grabs your attention…and while you may truly be ‘busy cleaning’…it doesn’t seem as if you are accomplishing much. You do know we can get ‘busy…yet do little if anything at all’, and still find satisfaction in the fact that we were ‘sincere’ and staying busy. Do you think that might describe a lot of well meaning church members today? (This is the time when we whisper- ‘Lord, is it I?’ Mark 14:19)

Back in the OT, God was preparing His people to cross over into the land of Canaan and to take control of the land He had reserved for them where He planned to bless them. The people were first informed though...of some other groups of wicked inhabitants that were needing to be dealt with, as in ‘removing them from the land’. And God had a very specific plan to do this: ‘little by little’. (Ex. 23:29-30; Deut. 7:22). He also made it known that this job was to be ‘thorough and ‘completely done’…lest these nations become ‘thorns and irritants’ to them and their children. (Numbers 33:55; Deut. 7:2-5)

So whether we are talking about land clearing, cleaning house, or putting to death the deeds of the flesh nature…let us remember it is a ‘process’, but a process designed to be completed and not just some religious activity to keep us humble and busy. We seem to have acquired this mentality or mindset that while God certainly doesn’t want us out ‘murdering and stealing and raping’…He seems to be ‘understanding’ and turns a blind eye when His kids still battle with just a ‘little anger’ or a ‘smidgin of lust’ or maybe an occasional bout with pride.

“Those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” (Gal. 5:24). His words, not mine.

Join me tomorrow…so we can get a more practical look as to ‘how’ this is accomplished?