Cadence

Oct 04, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: From Faucet to Rain: The Spirit’s Overflow in All Flesh

The Old Testament saw the Spirit’s presence like a faucet—temporary, selective, task-specific. But Pentecost unleashed a downpour. God’s promise in Joel wasn’t for spiritual elites but all who hunger. The Spirit’s rain soaks every cracked heart willing to stand in the storm. Transformation begins when we trade scarcity mindsets for the deluge of God’s nearness. [01:12:11]

“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.”
(Joel 2:28, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you been trying to ration God’s presence like a limited resource? What would it look like to let His Spirit drench that area like unending rain?

Day 2: Stapled Apples and the Illusion of Manufactured Faith

Fake fruit rots. No amount of stapling good behavior to dead religion produces lasting change. The Spirit doesn’t want polished performances but living connection. Like apples growing from a healthy tree, true holiness emerges from abiding—not striving. God targets roots, not just branches. [01:19:30]

“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”
(John 15:5, ESV)

Reflection: What “stapled fruit” have you been maintaining through effort alone? How might dependence on the Spirit look different in that area?

Day 3: Freedom from Corrupt Desires, Not Just Corrupt Actions

God isn’t after better rule-followers. He rewires appetites. The Spirit’s freedom isn’t permission to indulge but power to crave holiness. Like Jim Bob’s doctor targeting his diet over discipline, God goes deeper than behavior modification. Transformation starts when we want what He wants. [01:04:47]

“For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”
(Romans 8:13, ESV)

Reflection: What sinful desire feels impossible to shake? How might praying “Change what I want” instead of “Help me stop” shift your approach?

Day 4: Moses’ Exhaustion and the Gift of Shared Spirit

Leadership wasn’t meant to be a solo burden. When Moses collapsed under pressure, God distributed the Spirit’s weight across seventy others. The same Spirit that empowered prophets now dwells in every believer—no special title required. Your ordinary life carries extraordinary anointing. [01:06:56]

“Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!”
(Numbers 11:29, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you believed your role or past disqualifies you from Spirit-empowered purpose? How does His indwelling presence redefine your capacity?

Day 5: The New Appetite: When Rules Can’t Change Jim Bob’s Heart

External warnings can’t override internal cravings. Lists on refrigerators fail where transformed hungers succeed. The Spirit doesn’t chain us to duty but changes our delights. Holiness becomes natural when our deepest longings align with His. [01:05:16]

“I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.”
(Ezekiel 36:26, ESV)

Reflection: What rule-based struggle might dissolve if your heart genuinely desired God’s way? Ask Him to make His desires your cravings today.

Sermon Summary

God’s Spirit has been at work from the beginning. Genesis shows the Spirit hovering over the waters before anything was formed, and the Old Testament shows the Spirit coming upon people for particular moments, purposes, and prophetic assignments. Ezekiel, however, points to something greater than an occasional touch from God. God promises cleansing from idols, a new heart, and, most importantly, “I will put my Spirit in you.”

God’s answer to human failure is not a better plan, more rules, or greater effort. God’s answer is his own Spirit within his people. External religion can put instructions on the refrigerator door, but rules do not change Jim Bob’s appetite. The Spirit changes what people desire, so that obedience becomes more than performance and holiness becomes more than trying to look the part.

Ezekiel exposes the real problem in Israel: they had the law, the temple, the priesthood, and the prophets, yet their hearts failed to respond to God. Idolatry keeps reaching for something besides the God who is already enough. God’s promise comes not because his people deserve it, but for the sake of his holy name. His presence does what religious activity alone never can.

Moses in Numbers 11 longs for the day when all God’s people would receive the Spirit. Joel promises that God will pour out his Spirit on all flesh, and Peter announces in Acts 2 that Joel’s promise has arrived. The image shifts from a faucet, where people wait for a temporary touch, to rain falling on all flesh. The Spirit is not reserved for pastors, missionaries, leaders, or spiritual elites. God gives his Spirit to people who say, “God, do a work in me.”

Paul says that the Spirit brings transformation and freedom. This freedom is not permission to do whatever feels right. This freedom breaks the dominion of corrupt desires. The Spirit takes away spiritual blinders, turns hearts toward Christ, and changes people from one degree of glory to another.

Galatians says that flesh and Spirit are in conflict, but the fruit of the Spirit grows in lives that stay connected to the living tree. Stapled apples may look real for a minute, but they rot because they are disconnected from life. Manufactured behavior, Christian vocabulary, and cleaned-up appearances cannot replace a life led, convicted, and directed by the Holy Spirit. God’s method is presence, not pressure. The Spirit does not make people failures; the Spirit makes disciples who find freedom and lead others to the cross.

Key Takeaways

1. God changes desires, not just behavior. God does not merely hand people a list and demand better results. The Spirit reaches beneath the action into the appetite, exposing what the heart loves and reshaping what the heart wants. Obedience grows deeper when the prayer changes from “help me not do this” to “help me desire what you desire.” [1:05:16]
2. The Spirit belongs to all flesh. God never intended his presence to be the possession of a religious elite. Moses longed for all God’s people to receive the Spirit, Joel foretold that outpouring, and Acts declares that promise fulfilled. The Spirit meets ordinary people who are willing to let God do a real work within them. [1:12:36]
3. Freedom defeats corrupt desires. The freedom of the Spirit is not freedom from obedience or freedom to justify anything. The Spirit frees people from desires that once ruled them, so that God’s commands become something they increasingly want to follow. Freedom is the breaking of an old dominion, not the removal of God’s authority. [1:17:28]
4. Fruit requires a living connection. Stapled apples can look convincing for a little while, but they cannot remain healthy because they have no life flowing into them. The fruit of the Spirit cannot be manufactured through image management, religious language, or human effort alone. The Spirit produces lasting fruit in people who remain connected to Christ. [1:20:52]
5. God’s method is presence, not pressure. Pressure says that people must never fail, never struggle, and never need help. God’s presence patiently transforms people as they keep turning their unveiled faces toward Christ. The Spirit works in the very area that keeps coming up, bringing real freedom over time. [1:18:34]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[56:35] - Living in Step With the Spirit
[57:47] - The Spirit From Genesis Forward
[59:35] - Ezekiel’s Promise of the Spirit Within
[1:02:23] - Cleansing, a New Heart, and God’s Spirit
[1:04:26] - Rules Do Not Change Appetites
[1:06:07] - The Spirit Is Not for Elites
[1:08:45] - Moses Longs for All God’s People
[1:11:08] - From the Faucet to the Rain
[1:13:10] - The Spirit Produces What Effort Cannot
[1:15:14] - Transformation and Freedom
[1:18:34] - Presence, Not Pressure
[1:19:30] - Stapled Apples and Living Fruit
[1:21:22] - Keeping in Step With the Spirit
[1:26:30] - Let the Spirit Work in That Area

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Ezekiel 36:26-27
“And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.” [01:02:23]

2 Corinthians 3:17-18
“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” [01:15:14]

Galatians 5:16-18
“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” [01:21:22]

Observation questions

In Ezekiel 36:26–27, what three gifts does God promise his people, and what result does God connect to putting his Spirit within them? [01:02:40]
In 2 Corinthians 3:17–18, what two results are named where the Spirit of the Lord is present, and how is transformation described?
According to Galatians 5:16–18, how are the desires of the flesh and the desires of the Spirit related to each other? [01:21:22]
What contrast is made between outward religious activity and a heart that responds to God? [01:03:15]

Interpretation questions

Ezekiel’s promise includes cleansing, a new heart, and God’s Spirit within his people. Why is a new heart necessary rather than simply clearer rules or stronger self-discipline? [01:04:39]
Paul says that the Spirit brings freedom. How does freedom from corrupt desires differ from permission to do whatever someone wants? [01:17:07]
Galatians describes a real conflict between flesh and Spirit. What might it look like for a believer to be led by the Spirit in the middle of a temptation rather than simply relying on willpower?
The image of stapled apples shows that behavior can look healthy for a while without real life underneath it. What are some signs that a person may be managing appearances rather than living from a real connection with Christ? [01:20:12]

Application questions

Is there an area where the focus has mostly been, “God, help me stop doing this,” rather than, “God, change what I desire”? What might it look like to begin praying for a changed appetite in that area? [01:05:16]
When do pressure, shame, or fear tend to become the main motivation for change? What could help a person return to God’s presence instead of trying to become perfect through pressure? [01:18:34]
What is one ongoing struggle, habit, attitude, or relationship pattern where freedom is needed? How might the group encourage honest dependence on the Spirit without treating anyone as a failure? [01:26:30]
Where is it easiest to “look the part” spiritually through church attendance, Christian language, or outward behavior while avoiding what God wants to address in the heart? [01:20:23]
What practical rhythm could help someone stay in step with the Spirit this week—such as a specific prayer, time in Scripture, confession to a trusted believer, or pausing before a difficult conversation? [01:22:55]
God’s Spirit is given to all God’s people, not only to leaders or spiritual “experts.” What false belief or insecurity might keep someone from asking God to do a deeper work in them? [01:10:31]

Sermon Clips

32s

#HolySpiritWithin

“So, let me just share this one with you right off the bat here is that God's answer to our failure is not a better plan for us. It is his own spirit within us. So he he he's not calling us to try harder. He's not calling us to do more. He's not calling... Like, it is... Are you allowing my holy spirit to be within you, to change you, to bring you to what I've called you to to do and to be. And so,”

48s

#AuthenticSpiritualLife

“you can manufacture behavior. Okay? You can clean yourself up. You can... I know some people who are really good about... Christianese, Christian vocabulary. Man, they're real good. Man, they seem to say all the right things. You can look the part, but you cannot manufacture being led and directed and convicted of the Holy Spirit. We just can't. Eventually, it's going to be found out. We can't manufacture this spiritual life because fruit grows because the tree is alive.”

52s

#SpiritPouring

“all through the old testament, there's a faucet going that people just had to wait for the water, wait for the spirit to reach them. But in Acts chapter two, we move from the faucet to the rain, to the rain of the Holy Spirit. Now, it comes down and it covers everyone who wants to be used by God. God's promise is not, I will pour out my spirit on the impressive. The promise is I will pour out my spirit on all flesh. I'll pour out my spirit on all flesh, not just those who pray good, not just those who preach good, not just those who who make sure that they read their bible every single day, not just those people. Think all that stuff is important to build the kingdom of God. But he says, I'll pour it out on all flesh.”

48s

#GodsTransformingPower

“I think if we can understand that, if we can understand the difference of the old testament and the new testament and how holy spirit works, Then I think that we have to say, okay, so if we move from Old Testament spirit being on us to New Testament spirit being in us, what exactly does the indwelling of Holy Spirit actually do in us? That's a great question. I'm so glad that you asked that. I'm gonna let you know. The spirit produces what human effort cannot. You can try and try and try again, but you'll fall short unless God does something miraculous and amazing within you through the work of the Holy Spirit.”

40s

#DesireGodsHeart

“Why do I believe that? It's because God is not just interested in changing what we do, he wants to change what we desire. Yeah. So hear me in this. Maybe you need to shift your prayer from God help me to not do this, to God help me to desire what you want me to desire. Watch what happens in your life. Watch what happens in your prayer life whenever it becomes no more about following a bunch of rules, following his heart. Say, God, what is it that you desire of me”

55s

#AbideInTheVine

“I thought about what Jesus said about staying connected to the vine. And I was like, imagine if we took some apples that have already been picked, we went and we stapled those apples to a fence somewhere. And then, it might like an apple at first, but what happens over time? That apple's gonna rotten. Okay? The apple's going to go bad. Sure, I don't know, you could even build what looks to be an apple tree and staple your apples on that, but it's not going to be that because the apples will not grow, they will not last because fruit is what a living tree produces.”

42s

#GodsLifeWithin

“So again, you can't manufacture a true spiritual life. We can't. What I mean is, we can't through the eyes of God. Other people might think that we are. Other people might think that we've got it all figured out when behind the scenes, what's happening? When we're away from church, what's happening? Going back to what I wanted to share earlier, God did not give us the Holy Spirit because his people needed more religion. He gave us the Holy Spirit because his people needed God's life within them.”

47s

#FreedomFromDesire

“And let me just balance this in the Greek. This word freedom does not mean, permission to do anything. Doesn't mean that we have the freedom to do anything, that we can do whatever we want, however we want. What this is is if we dig into it, it's it's the freedom from the dominion of corrupt desires. Let me go back to the refrigerator. God wants to change the desires of our heart. This word here tells us that this freedom is the freedom from corrupt desires.”

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