Getting to know the Holy Spirit Part 3

Receiving Power

Acts 1:8 “⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

It’s a free gift

The thing about Christianity that’s different to any other religion is this- it’s all about receiving. Receiving mercy from God, grace from him, forgiveness for all your sin, a new start, a new nature.

But even Christians can get it wrong after that point.  Gal 3:3 ³ Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?

It makes impossible things possible

Luke 1   ³⁷ For nothing is impossible with God. It requires us to activate in order to see the fruit of it.  E.g. David and Goliath.    God wants to propel us into power.   Psalm 18 ²⁹ With your help I can advance against a troop; with my God I can scale a wall.

It Brings Personal Transformation

e.g. Gideon in Judges 6.   Our “personality” should never be constrained by character flaws!  We should believe the Spirit will give us power.

Powerlessness is poverty. An inability to effect change.    Whereas Christians are called to be changed themselves and to change the world

A vital Question:

Hence Paul’s question in Acts 19:2 Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?

We tend to answer that question defensively (“I  got it all at conversion” or “a day back in 1983”).  Actually Paul’s concern on that occasion was with the (lack of) fruit/ power he saw in them.

All Christians have the Holy Spirit from conversion (Romans 8:9) but in the new testament also were baptised in the Spirit as soon as possible after that event.  All Christians old or young are instructed to go on being filled:  Ephesians  5:18. Jesus encouraged us to ask to be Filled with the Spirit in Luke 11:13

Why do we need the power of the Spirit?

1) Because this is what we were made for.  Jesus who models perfect humanity is described as a man who was empowered by the Spirit.  E.g. Luke 3:22 Luke 4:1, 4:14 , 4:18, 10:21

2) To overcome our many weaknesses:

• Inhibition.  2 cor 3:16 where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom.  Free to be yourself.   Not squeezed into culture’s mould.
• Passion in prayer and worship.Rom 8²⁶ In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.
• Knowing God’s Fatherly love. We’re weak in relating to God as Father.  We’re unsure how he feels about us.  We hear scriptures that tell us he loves us which are reassuring, but we have no experience of that.   Rom 8 ¹⁴ because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. ¹⁵ For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, Abba, Father.    ¹⁶ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
• In gifting The Father gives gifts to you and me.  Supernatural gifts.  Healing, prophesy, tongues-  one day these will cease.   1 cor 14:26 What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.
• In character Gal 5 ¹⁹ The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery;    ²⁰ idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions    ²¹ and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.    ²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,    ²³ gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
• In longing for Christ’s Kingdom Rev 22:  ¹⁷The Spirit and the bride say, Come!

How much do we need the Spirit?

Lots.    God’s plan is for us to be baptised (immersed, dipped, drowned, drenched) in the Spirit.   Luke 3:16.  He gives the Spirit without Limit (John 3:34)

In the bible it looked different for each person and even different on each occasion!

The Spirit is frequently ministered through the laying on of hands (e.g. Acts 8:17), which was often a key to people receiving.

Spurgeon “Few of us have participated in the Spirit’s  operations as we might have:  we have sipped where we might have drunk; we have drunk where we might have bathed; we have bathed up to the ankles where we might have found rivers to swim in.”

Questions

It would be better to apply this teaching by talking about our need for the Spirit and then praying for one another (it’s something for everyone!).  So some simple discussion questions towards that might be:

1) Free gift.  Acts 1:8/ Gal 3:3 The Holy Spirit is something we receive as a gift, not earn as a reward.  Do you find it easy to believe that God wants to fill you with the Spirit regardless of your performance? Why do we battle with that?

2) Can you think of a recent time when you felt God helped you to do something that you couldn’t have done in your own strength?  Share around the group

3) Think through the list of weaknesses we can face (Dan mentioned some- there’s others too).  Which area(s) do you feel is your biggest battle?

4) Read Luke 11:9-13.  What encouragement does Jesus give to:

• Those who are unsure that God loves them enough to give them something good
• Those who have been asking/ praying for a while with no obvious result
• Those who feel they are in a different category to all other Christians when it comes to receiving.

5) Pray for one another, lay hands on and receive God’s power afresh.

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