Character Is Developed by Doctrine; Edification Complex of the Soul: Foundation: Filling of the Holy Spirit; 1st Floor: Objectivity; 2d Floor: Humility & Teachability
 
	20.		The Edification Complex of the Soul:
1.	The Greek word that forms the genesis of this doctrine is the noun o„kodom», oikodomē which is translated into the English King James Version as “edify,” and “edification.”  Some examples:
Romans 14:19 -		Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another.
2 Corinthians 13:10 -	Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the authority which the Lord has given me for edification and not for destruction.
Ephesians 4:29 -		Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.
2.	The word is a compound taken from two words: o„k…a, oikia, “house,” and dšmw, demō, “to build.”  The literal idea is to build a house within the soul but the concept is personal edification from the Word of God that builds an arsenal of thought for the believer’s advance, promotion, and protection.
3.	This structure has several stories or “floors” and therefore it will need a foundation to support them.  All these stories will reflect the transformation of the soul that is mandated by Paul in Romans 12:1-3 and taken together they represent the Divine Power System provide by God to every believer in the Church Age.
4.	The Foundation of the Edification Complex:
(1)	The Filling of the Holy Spirit: this is the power source for the Christian way of life and is accessed by confession of personal sins to God.
(2)	His energizing of the believer is prophesied by our Lord in: 
John 14:26 -	“When the Helper [ par£klhtoj, paraklētos: someone called to aid another; a legal term for a courtroom advocate ] comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, He will bear witness of Me.”
(3)	In the absence of the ascended Christ, the Holy Spirit is provided to all believers to assist them in executing the Christian way of life.
(4)	Those who assist, help, give aid, or encouragement are those who provide additional strength and energy to the one who is overly burdened by the exigencies of the devil’s world.
(5)	Thus it is the Holy Spirit that energizes the spiritual life of the Church Age in the transformation of the believer’s soul.
(6)	This power is accessed through confession alone to God alone followed by the filling of the Holy Spirit.
5.	1st Floor: Objective thinking from Bible doctrine: This constitutes spiritual momentum which is acquired by means of perception and application of biblical principles—the thinking of God.
(1)	One’s attitude toward the study of the Bible determines his attitude toward God.
(2)	Pursuit of truth through the consistency of spiritual growth is the expression of reciprocal love for God.
(3)	Passive interest that is only intensified in times of trial, personal problems, or difficulties is actually an insult to God.
(4)	The Bible is the revelation to mankind of divine viewpoint from the righteous standards of divine essence.  The Bible is said to be the Word of God in Hebrews 4:12, the mind of Christ in 1 Corinthians 2:16, and the voice of the Holy Spirit in Hebrews 3:7.
(5)	In the Church Age the rise and fall of client nations is determined by the inventory of divine thought in the souls of believers as Jesus Christ controls history with reference to this inventory.
Revelation 2:23b -	I am He Who constantly inventories the emotions and the stream of consciousness, and I will impose punishment to each one of you according to your production.
(6)	The Scripture commands us to grow in grace and to apply the things we learn to life and circumstances.  For example:
Ephesians 4:14 -		In order that we are no longer in spiritual childhood trapped in a reversionistic lifestyle: tossed here and there by waves, driven to and fro by every wind of doctrine by the verbal and visual prestidigitation of false teachers who carry out their crafty methods of propaganda and deception;
v. 15 -	but by the teaching of doctrine in the sphere of love may you be caused to grow up in all things in Christ who is the Head of the church,
v. 16 -	from the source of Whom the body being joined together in union with Christ and taught through the joint of supply—the pastor-teacher—according to his effectively doing his part, causes spiritual growth of the body of Christ resulting in its edification in love.
(7)	Jesus Christ was the Pioneer of the spiritual life of the Church Age.  Our inculcation and application of the Word of God gives us the momentum to emulate His example by executing His plan through the power delegated to us in this system.
(8)	This system is only operational when we are filled with the Holy Spirit which is the foundation on which the edification complex is constructed beginning with objective thinking developed from Bible study.
(9)	As spiritual growth continues the Holy Spirit uses doctrine to increase our capacity to learn more doctrine: doctrine is built on doctrine.
(10)	The Shulammite Woman and the Shepherd Lover had both acquired maximum understanding of biblical principles related to right man-right woman and therefore they each possessed a relaxed mental attitude with reference to their relationship.
(11)	Both had sexual passion and desire for each other but they maintain their integrity until the relationship can be properly consummated.
(12)	In the meantime, they both used doctrine in their souls to maintain objectivity with regard to sexual relations while remaining unaffected by the advances Solomon made toward the Shulammite.
6.	2nd Floor: Humility and Teachability: Humility is an internal virtue that is free from subjectivity.  All believers come into the Christian way of life through salvation but continue to possess the same inventory of ideas built up during their period of unbelief.  If they are to become teachable under the mentorship of the Holy Spirit and the instruction of a pastor-teacher then they must have humility.
(1)	Those who are subjective are arrogant and are constantly involved in an over-emphasis on self.  Arrogant self-centered people are handicapped in their spiritual growth by a desire to have the Bible agree with them and when it doesn’t to assume such instruction does not apply to them.
(2)	Arrogant people are divorced from reality whereas the characteristics of humility are hunger and thirst for truth.
(3)	The humble person realizes that his obligation once saved is to learn more about God and His plan.  As this occurs through spiritual growth this believer comes to realize that his obligation is to serve God.