craigmanderson

INTRODUCING THE HOLY SPIRIT

STORY ABOUT A HOLY SPIRIT ENCOUNTER

In the second year of being a Christian I was asked to take a leadership role in my church over the teenagers group. The change of leadership from the former leader to the new one (me) took place at a youth camp. The former leaders were called up and prayed for, hands were laid on and they commenced a new ministry role somewhere else. Other leaders were prayed for also and set apart for their new roles. Somehow I was overlooked and not prayed for. I could have chosen to be offended about that, but instead I went back to the meeting place (auditorium) after lights out, when everyone else was in bed and asleep and I spent some time waiting on God. As I stood in that place at the altar with hands raised up and saying, “God please equip me for this new ministry role.” I felt the power and life of the Holy Spirit flow down over me and experienced such a tangible touch of the supernatural power of God. I was unable to stand and lay in the presence of God for a couple of hours.

The result was renewed power and boldness to serve God. This boldness took place not only in the ministry to teenagers but also at the university where I was studying; I was emboldened to witness and lead a Christian group there and reach out to lost people at the uni.

Look at this verse with me… Act 1:8  But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends (the very bounds) of the earth.

Following the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, He asked His disciples to wait for the Promise of the Father before they went out to preach the gospel all over the world. His intention was that when He left to go back to heaven after the resurrection that He would leave behind countless thousands of followers all equipped to the same level as He was to go out and preach the gospel all over the world. They would need supernatural power to preach, heal the sick and cast out devils, as well as many other things. Today His church world wide is Holy Spirit filled and empowered. Its effectiveness is in proportion to how full the individual is with the Holy Spirit.

STORY 2 ABOUT WHERE YOU GET YOUR TRUTH FROM

Recently I was prescribed some medication to lower my cholesterol. As you get older the cholesterol levels creep up and if it’s high enough then it could be a present danger by clogging up your arteries.  After the prescription was filled, I was talking to a good friend of mine who warned me of the dangers of this particular medicine including side effects. So what did I do? I googled the drug name, and sure enough I came up with countless articles about how dangerous the drug is. So what did I do? I declined to take the medication.

How many know this decision was self medicating, and pure post–modern thinking? I decided that truth for me was what I could learn for myself from the internet. I decided that I know better than the professional with seven years university training and 15 years clinical experience. What I should be doing is sit down with the professional and ask for some perspective and take his advice, which is what I am doing.

In the same way, in the church, many people decide what they believe according to what they read on line, what their experience has been, and what has happened to other people. In this post modern world very few people take the word of the Man of God, compare it with the bible and act accordingly.

The result is the rise of the individual, countless thousands of Christians all with different opinions, instead of a united army marching to the sound of the one leader. That one leader is the Holy Spirit and He works through Godly appointed leadership people to lead His church.

This month, as we talk about the Holy Spirit, the baptism of the Holy Spirit, the gifts of the Spirit and the manifestations of the Holy Spirit, I wonder if you will be open to listen and be teachable and perhaps change what you believe; or will you be the post modern thinker and decide that truth for you is what you can find for yourself and what you have experienced.

Your pastors and leaders that minister the word of God to you here are trained and competent, and by their fruits you shall know them. They are ministers who know the word, have produced the fruit of souls saved, lives changed; and have the character that exemplifies Christlike values.

SO LET’S BEGIN OUR JOURNEY.

Who is the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit is a person, He is God and He is part of the trinity, an understanding that God is one God and has revealed Himself in three distinct personalities; the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Extra material for the blog:

The Holy Spirit is not a force or an impersonal energy but He has “personal” attributes:

• a mind – Romans 8:27
• a will – 1 Corinthians 12:11
• feeling – Ephesians 4:30;  Romans 15:30 (love)
• knowledge (including self-knowledge) – 1 Corinthians 2:11

He is able to do things that only a “person” can do:

• reveal things– 2 Peter 1:21
• teach – John 14:26; 16:14;  Luke 12:12; 1 Corinthians 2:13
• bear witness – John 15:26
• speaks, cries out – Galatians 4:6; Hebrews 10:15
• intercede – Romans 8:26
• search – 1 Corinthians 2:10
• speak – Acts 8:29;  10:19; 13:3; Revelation 2:7,11 (not about Himself – John 16:13)
• choose – Romans 8:27; 1 Corinthians 12:4-6; 11
• inspire – 2 Timothy 3:16
• lead – Acts 8:29;  Romans 8:14
• command – Acts 13:2, 4
• give permission – Acts11:12
• forbid – Acts16:6-7
• be jealous – James 4:5
• be grieved – Ephesians 4:30;  Isaiah 63:10 (or “vexed”)
• be insulted – Hebrews 10:29
• be lied to – Acts 5:3, 4
• be blasphemed – Matthew 12:31, 32
• give invitations – Revelation 22:17
• strive with people- Genesis 6:3
• be resisted – Acts 7:51
• be tested, tempted – Acts 5:9
• be described as “He/Him” – John 14:16, 17; 16:7-8, 13-14 (recorded 12 times in John 16 alone).

He is distinct from God the Father & Jesus Christ the Son – Matthew 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14; 1 Peter 1:2;  Acts 10:38; 15:28.

THE TRINITY EXPLAINED:

Nicene Creed – This creed formed in 381AD by the church fathers explains the relationship of the Godhead, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, light from light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father; through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven, was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became truly human.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father [and the Son], who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. (Catholic here means universal)
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE

Global Expansion – http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2006/april/7.30.html

With more than 580 million adherents (growing by 19 million per year and 54,000 per day), the Pentecostal/charismatic movement has become, in just 100 years, the fastest growing and most globally diverse expression of worldwide Christianity. At the current rate of growth, some researchers predict there will be 1 billion Pentecostals by 2025, most located in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

The Role of the Holy Spirit.

The role of the Holy Spirit is simple: He is to empower the church for the task of reaching the whole world with the gospel.

Here is the main verse: Act 1:8  But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends (the very bounds) of the earth. (AMP)

Before the disciples went out to preach the gospel all over the known world they waited in the upper room as Jesus commanded them.

Luk 24:49  And behold, I will send forth upon you what My Father has promised; but remain in the city [Jerusalem] until you are clothed with power from on high. (AMP)

Have you been clothed with power from on high? This is what we need in order to become His witnesses. We need the power of the Holy Spirit living within us to help us preach with power, heal the sick, cast out devils, raise the dead. It’s a big challenge in this rational post modern world to be called to this, but the power of the Holy Spirit is far greater then the power of unbelief.

Didn’t I receive the Holy Spirit when I got saved?

Yes, that was being born of the Spirit, regeneration, but we are talking about the being clothed with power from on high.

The disciples received the Holy Spirit while Jesus was still with them:

Joh 20:19  Then on that same first day of the week, when it was evening, though the disciples were behind closed doors for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace to you!

Joh 20:20  So saying, He showed them His hands and His side. And when the disciples saw the Lord, they were filled with joy (delight, exultation, ecstasy, rapture).

Joh 20:21  Then Jesus said to them again, Peace to you! [Just] as the Father has sent Me forth, so I am sending you.

Joh 20:22  And having said this, He breathed on them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit! (AMP)

For the disciples this was their born again experience. Up until now they had been believers and followers of Jesus, but now that Jesus has died on the cross and atoned for their sin by the offering of His blood, now they can be born of the Spirit.

Yet He says wait here in Jerusalem for power. Luk 24:49  And behold, I will send forth upon you what My Father has promised; but remain in the city [Jerusalem] until you are clothed with power from on high. (AMP) Right after this He ascends up into heaven, so it was the last thing Jesus said on earth.

It was after he ascended into heaven then 10 days later they received the baptism of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost.

Act 2:1  AND WHEN the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all assembled together in one place,

Act 2:2  When suddenly there came a sound from heaven like the rushing of a violent tempest blast, and it filled the whole house in which they were sitting.

Act 2:3  And there appeared to them tongues resembling fire, which were separated and distributed and which settled on each one of them.

Act 2:4  And they were all filled (diffused throughout their souls) with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other (different, foreign) languages (tongues), as the Spirit kept giving them clear and loud expression [in each tongue in appropriate words]. (AMP)

This experience is so vital and so important for every believer. It is what empowers each one to be a witness for Jesus. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is far more than just the gift of speaking in tongues. It is the power of God. It is to be clothed with power from on high. To be completely filled and flooded with the Power of the Holy Spirit for this great purpose – TO BE A WITNESS!

Testimony from Reinhard Bonnke

In one of his earliest evangelistic campaigns he went to a church of 40 members and hired a ten thousand seat stadium. It was God’s doing!

Next week we will speak about what actually happens to a person when he is born again. This experience of regeneration is monumental, life changing and if understood will revolutionise your life. We will speak later about tongues and what it’s for and who can receive it as well as the other gifts of the Holy Spirit.

The only question you must ask yourself every day of your life is “How thirsty am I?”

Joh 7:37  Now on the final and most important day of the Feast, Jesus stood, and He cried in a loud voice, If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink!

Joh 7:38  He who believes in Me [who cleaves to and trusts in and relies on Me] as the Scripture has said, From his innermost being shall flow [continuously] springs and rivers of living water.

Joh 7:39  But He was speaking here of the Spirit, Whom those who believed (trusted, had faith) in Him were afterward to receive. For the [Holy] Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified (raised to honor).

Are you thirsty for God to fill you with His supernatural power?

Are you so glad of your salvation that you want to be of service to Him every day of your life? Are you bored with the passing fantasies of this shallow worldly life and seeking a more eternal and significant encounter with heaven.

Would you stay on for a few minutes and worship God with us this morning and simply ask the Holy Spirit to fill you and equip you.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Can anyone share about a time when they felt the power of the Holy Spirit upon their life?

2. What was Pastor Craig’s point about whether we should decide truth for ourselves by reading the internet, going by experience, or some other way?

3. Where do we get truth from?

4. What is the main reason God fills us with the Holy Spirit? (Acts 1:8)

5. If you are thirsty for the Holy Spirit – what might that look like?