The Holy Spirit
Listen Now
Message in Print
Scripture: Luk 11:13
Download PDF file by clicking link above. Disc 104 - The Holy Spirit - Luk 11:13
We're following the Discipleship Workbook
from Family Discipleship Ministries
(download that at WordByMail.COM)
We began with "Who is Jesus Christ?"
where we made clear - our need for salvation
Then we looked at what really is "The Abundant Life"
& found out it's all about Unbroken Fellowship with God
& last week - in "The Fatherhood of God" - we looked at how God
uses "tools" to mold & shape us into His Image,
& NOW - we need to look at the Power God has given us,
to both "Live The Abundant Life"
& "Be Transformed" into His Image
We've got to learn to live - in the POWER SOURCE
The Supernatural Power available to every Christian
to be Transformed OUT OF Destruction
& INTO the Abundant Life of Fellowship with God
That POWER SOURCE, in the Christian Life,
is the Person of the Holy Spirit
Let's Pray
We have at least 17 msgs available on the Holy Spirit
2 part - Holy Spirit overview
3 part - Under His Influence series
12 part - Holy Spirit series
Please - ask W-B-M for these series,
and really study them - please get to know the Holy Spirit
Also, Two KEY BOOKS I'd recommend are
1) Under His Influence - Lloyd Pulley
2) Living Water - Chuck Smith
Since I just referenced 17 different msg's
& 2 books on the Person of the Holy Spirit
Obviously we can’t do a complete study here today
& so our goal today is to simply do two things;
1) Understand WHO the Holy Spirit is
2) Understand the incredible WORK He desires to do in our lives
Unfortunately there is much confusion over WHO the Holy Spirit is
& I'm talking about INSIDE the church
Some Christians view Him as "THE FORCE"
like an intangible "Essence"
Some are confused by the term "Holy Ghost"
& they see Him kind of like "Casper the Friendly Ghost"
Some Christians associate the Holy Spirit
with Extreme Emotionalism
& "Swinging from the Chandeliers"
BUT - Please Remember this about the Holy Spirit
IF your spiritual enemy wanted to keep you from
the POWER SOURCE of true Life Transformation
Don’t you think one of his primary tactics would be
to sew confusion about WHO our POWER SOURCE is?
Guys - You can have the biggest, grandest, strictest
RELIGION there is - WITHOUT the Holy Spirit
& you can have big CHURCHES & big LITURGY (religious ceremony)
But you CANNOT HAVE a Life Transforming Relationship with God - WITHOUT the Person of the Holy Spirit
So - let's start with the basics
The Holy Spirit is
NOT "The Force" - as in "an Essence"
NOT a "Ghost" - in the sense that we think of
NOT just for Emotional Extreme's & Antics
HE IS GOD !!
The Holy Spirit is a PERSON
& He is the Person of GOD!
The Holy Spirit is equal in Quality & Nature
as The FATHER, & The SON
Here is a good definition of WHO the Holy Spirit is;
“The Holy Spirit is the primary member of the Godhead at work in the world today”
When we pray that GOD would WORK in our life
to TRANSFORM us
to HEAL us - to COMFORT us
The Specific Person of the Godhead Who does those things
is the Person of the Holy Spirit
“The Holy Spirit is the primary member of the Godhead at work in the world (& your life) today”
Our Emphasis thruout this series is
living in "Life Changing Fellowship with God"
& you CANNOT do that - without the Person of the Holy Spirit
living with Full Reign in your life
So - We've got to know WHO He is
& We've got to know WHAT He does
& a great place to start is in Jn CH 14
Jn 14 is part of the Last Supper Discourse
the critical final teachings before the Arrest & Crucifixion
& after Jesus washes the disciples feet in Ch 13
in Ch 14 He tells them He's going away
& after the disciples freak out - & Jesus calms them down
He tells them in Jn 14:15-18 - ESV
15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
There are so many great truths here - I could teach this for weeks
but let’s just look at the Key points
#1) (V.15) Obedience is the sign that you really love Jesus
But we'll have to save that one for later
#2) in V.16 we see the entire TRINITY working together
Jesus intercedes on our behalf to the Father
Who sends "Another Helper" (that's all three)
& then, especially notice - Jesus says in V.16
I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper,
to be with you forever,
& then He says in V.18
“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you
Clearly tying Himself - to US - in the Person of the Holy Spirit
But let's focus on the phrase "Another Helper"
it's the classic description of the Holy Spirit
In the GREEK it is "Allos Pa-RAK-lee-tos"
It means LITERALLY
"One of the same kind & quality, called alongside to help"
THIS is exactly WHO the Holy Spirit is
One who is equal in the Godhead in every way,
called to come alongside us to HELP
To BE Our POWER to Walk with God
To BE Our POWER to Live the Transformed Life
Then - the #3 truth in these vs's is in V.17
17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells WITH you and will be IN you.
These are the first TWO - of THREE levels of Relationship
we have with the Holy Spirit
Just as we have an "Increasing Relationship" with Jesus Christ,
as we know Him better
So we have an "Increasing Relationship" with the Holy Spirit,
as we know HIM better
By way of comparison - I think of my son-in-law - JOSH
if a person comes to this church,
they know me in a certain way
if they become a friend of our family
they know me in an increasing way
if they MARRY my daughter,
they know me in an even greater increasing way
& it's the same in our relationship w/ Jesus Christ
As we go from casual knowledge about Him to a real intimate daily relationship with Him,
we know Him better & better
& so it is with the Person of the Holy Spirit
Again Jn 14:17 says FIRST, the Holy Spirit is WITH YOU
Do you know that unless the Holy Spirit is with you,
you wouldn’t even be in church this morning
Our SIN NATURE (left alone) does NOT seek God
It takes the person of the Holy Spirit WITH US,
for us to even begin to seek God
& SECOND - V.17 says the Holy Spirit will be IN YOU
which means He will DWELL (live) in your life
Jesus says to His disciples - He WILL BE in you
because Jesus had not yet finished His work yet
so that the Holy Spirit could rightly DWELL In Us
But - AFTER the resurrection - over in Jn CH 20
when the disciples were scared & hiding behind locked doors
Jn 20:19 says - . . . Jesus came & stood among them and said to them, "Peace be with you"
& then we read in Jn 20:21-22 - ESV
21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.”22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
This is the "IN" Relationship
when the disciples were able to RECEIVE the Holy Spirit
& now - ALL of Jesus' disciples RECEIVE the Holy Spirit
when the Receive Jesus as their Savior & Lord
That's why Paul says in 1Cor 3:16 - ESV
16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?
& again in 1Cor 6:19 - ESV
19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,
WAIT A MINUTE !!!
(if you are a believer) - The Almighty God of the Universe
in the Person of the Holy Spirit - LIVES in YOU!
That should absolutely BLOW YOUR MIND !!!
God DWELLS in YOU - in the Person of the Holy Spirit
In fact - your body is His Temple
Watchman Nee - Whose writings I DON'T recommend in General
but who did have a Great Understand
of the Indwelling PERSON of the Holy Spirit
Watchman Nee
Do you know my friends, that the Spirit within you is very God? Oh that our eyes were opened to see the greatness of God's gift! Oh that we might realize the vastness of the resources secreted in our own hearts! I could shout with joy as I think, the Spirit who dwells within me is no mere influence, but a living Person; He is very God. The infinite God is within my heart!
THAT is the Supernatural POWER of GOD
that Every Christian Receives
when they are BORN AGAIN
In fact - in Jn Ch 3 Jesus describes being BORN AGAIN
as being BORN of the SPIRIT
& we know, from many other scriptures, that the Holy Spirit
comes to DWELL in every Christian when they receive Christ
HOWEVER - is there an Additional Relationship Level,
that we can have with the Holy Spirit ??
YES !!
& we see it by continuing to follow the relationship
the Disciples had with the Holy Spirit
Again - back in Jn 14:17 Jesus said
. . . You know him (the Holy Spirit), for he dwells with you and will be in you.
& we've seen BOTH the WITH YOU Relationship
& the IN YOU relationship
But then - we find the THIRD level of Relationship with the Holy Spirit
in the Beginning of ACTS
Acts 1:4-5 - ESV
4 And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me;5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
The same Disciples - who already had the WITH & IN relationships
Were told by Jesus to WAIT in Jerusalem
to BE BAPTISED with the Holy Spirit
& then - a few Vs's later - in Acts 1:8
Just a MOMENT before Jesus ascended into heaven
He said to His disciples
Acts 1:8 - ESV
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Here's our THIRD Relationship
You will receive POWER when the Holy Spirit has Come Upon you
& Man, THAT is what we need
We need the POWER, that comes
from the Holy Spirit coming UPON US
So - There are the 3 relationship levels we have with the Holy Spirit
FIRST - He is WITH us, leading us to salvation
SECOND - He is IN us, when we are Born Again
THIRD - He comes UPON us, for POWER to live for Him
& I sincerely PRAY that EACH ONE of you
would experience EACH ONE of these three relationships
Because we need EACH of these LEVELS of Relationship
in order to be Truly TRANSFORMED,
& in order to Truly Live the Abundant Life
& when we begin to WALK
in this 3-Fold relationship with the Holy Spirit
We begin to see the Transformation in our lives that the Bible calls "Walking in the Spirit" - & "The Fruit of the Spirit"
The Supernatural Transformation of our Christian lives
is called "WALKING in the Spirit"
& The Evidence of the Christian Life
is called "The FRUIT of the Spirit"
& WHY are BOTH the Transformation & the Evidence of our lives
so tied to the Holy Spirit ??
Because (again) “The Holy Spirit is the primary member of the Godhead at work in the world (&your life) today”
The Holy Spirit is GOD at work IN you & UPON you
for Radical Transformation of your life
Gal 5:16 - ESV
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
It is WALKING "by" (or in) the Holy Spirit that CONQUERS
the destructive nature of your FLESH
AND - it is Walking "by" (or in) the Holy Spirit that PRODUCES
the miraculous FRUIT of the Spirit in your life
& that Fruit is listed just a few Vs's down in
Gal 5:22-23 - ESV
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control . . .
THIS is what the Holy Spirit does in you
He CONQUERS the destructive nature of your FLESH
He PRODUCES the miraculous fruit of the SPIRIT
& not only for your benefit - but for the benefit of
ALL those around you (starting with those closest to you)
Because the Holy Spirit is NOT living in you - just for YOU
He's also living in you
to make you an EDIFYING PART of the Body of Christ
Not only does the Holy Spirit CONQUER your flesh
& produce miraculous FRUIT in your life
But He also gives you Specific GIFTS for you to use
as you fulfill your ROLE in the Body of Christ
In Rom Ch12, 1Cor Ch12, & Eph Ch4
are the three Primary lists of the GIFTS of the Spirit
& no list is complete or "All-Inclusive" because,
as 1Cor 12:4-7 says
1Cor 12:4-7 - ESV
4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit;5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord;6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone.7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
Varieties of GIFTS
Varieties of SERVICE
Varieties of ACTIVITIES - ALL for the common good of the Body
& notice again - here we have
our Three Common Names for the Trinity
Same SPIRIT
Same LORD
Same GOD - Who empowers them all in everyone !!
There are MANY Gifts of the Holy Spirit
given for the common good of all
And EVERY Christian has been given gifts
to be used in the Body of Christ
& it's a wonderful study to learn about the gifts
& especially wonderful to learn what your SPECIFIC gifts are
& it's even MORE WONDERFUL
to begin to USE your Gifts in the Body of Christ
I promise you - THAT is a very KEY Part
of Living the Abundant Life
There is SO MUCH that the Holy Spirit
is Responsible for in the Christian's Life
It just can’t be ALL taught in one msg
We can give you a total of 17 msgs on the Holy Spirit
back on the W-B-M table
& we can recommend a number of GREAT BOOKS
two I've mentioned here
Under His Influence - Lloyd Pulley
Living Water - Chuck Smith
But pls hear me when I say
The PERSON & The ROLE of the Holy Spirit
is often Misunderstood, & even Ignored in the Christian church
PLEASE - DON'T DO THAT
You CAN'T Live for Christ in your own power
GET to KNOW the Holy Spirit
STUDY the Scriptures to Know Him (ask us for direction)
ASK God to (1st) Give you the Holy Spirit in Abundance
Then continually ask Him for more & more of His Holy Spirit
to continually CONQUER your FLESH, &
to continually PRODUCE His NEW LIFE in you
The 4 foundational truths we've reviewed today
1) The Holy Spirit is not a "force", He's a Person, He is God
2) The Holy Spirit dwells in every believer
for Transformation & New Life,
3) the Holy Spirit comes UPON believers
for POWER to Live for Christ
4) The Holy Spirit produces Miraculous FRUIT
& imparts Supernatural GIFTS to us - as we Walk in Him
You CAN NOT live the Christian Life without the Holy Spirit
You can be Religious - Very Religious
BUT GOD FORBID that you would
We've got to Cry Out to God for the Power of the Holy Spirit
to Transform us, & to Produce New Life in Us
& that's just what Jesus tells us to do in Luk Ch 11
Luk 11:9-13 - ESV
9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent;12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
ASK God for the Power of the Holy Spirit
to live a Radically Transformed life for Christ
ASK - In Faith (Jas 1:6) & Keep Asking
& you WILL Receive POWER from on HIGH
To close today
I want to give you a pattern to follow
as you pray for the POWER of the Holy Spirit in your life
This pattern comes from the early days of this ministry
even before Sunday Services began
God gave us a FORMULA for Spiritual High Output
& it came from those 3 letters - S - H - O
Surrender Control - Get off the throne
Humble Yourself - Empty yourself of ALL SELF
Obey God - Choose to do what God says
Here's a sample prayer
Heavenly Father, I SURRENDER to your will,
I surrender control of my life to your Lordship.
I empty myself of ALL SELF,
I HUMBLE myself before you.
I choose to OBEY you, as my Lord.
Please fill me with your Holy Spirit.
Please come UPON me for power to live for you.
Lead me and guide me in Jesus' Name, Amen.