The Work of the Holy Spirit
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We have learned already that the Holy Spirit ministers to us through Conviction, and teaches us as we read the Word, and we learned that the Holy Spirit helps us glorify Christ.
We learned that the Holy Spirit speaks to us through preaching, through witnessing and even is involved in adding to the church.
We have learned that the Holy Spirit is involved in the ministering through the Bible.
First through inspiration, then by preserving the Word of God, but also through illumination, bringing conviction to the unsaved, and help to the saved.
But we also learned that we can sin against the Holy Spirit.
The unsaved man can reject the Holy Spirits leading him to Christ, and Blaspheme the Holy Spirit.
But the saved can Grieve and quench the Holy Spirit in our lives.
And then last week we talked about the Spiritual Rebirth that the Holy Spirit is involved in, we cannot change ourselves, but He gives us new life.
We learned that He seals us at salvation, and that he continually sanctifies us, causing us to be more like Christ!
Today, in our last sermon in this series, I want to look at three sometimes misunderstood ideas regarding the Holy Spirit.
No shortage of denominations, and they all have their own flavor, some dealing with this very issue.
Preaching the Kindergarten Graduation in Washington
The first issue I want to look at is:
I. Baptism of the Holy Spirit
I. Baptism of the Holy Spirit
The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is what happens to us at the moment of Salvation.
Pentecostal/Apostolic friends have asked:
Have you been baptized with the Holy Spirit?
Yes, the moment I got saved!
It’s true we are baptised by God’s Holy Spirit the moment we accept Christ as Savior.
I don’t doubt my friends sincerity!
I just have to look at scripture for my doctrine, not experience, nor any other man’s experience.
There is no evidence of repeated baptism.
Just as we are baptized in water once, we are baptised into one Spirit once.
13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
This is something that has been done to us.
The word baptized in the Greek is in the aorist tense, this refers to a past completed action.
It cannot be something that happens later.
This is what some have termed a collective operation - we are all baptized
It includes every believer - Jew/Greek; Bond/free; we are one!
I like what Dr. Scroggie said about this verse:
Observe to whom the Apostle is writing this to: He uses the word “all” - It is not to the Spiritual Thessalonians, or the generous Philippians, or the spiritual Ephesians, but to the carnal Corinthians spiritual Ephesians. The clear indication is that baptism with the Spirit is connected to our standing before God, not our current fluctuating state (relationship), It is with our position not our experience.
There are many different understandings:
Some believe spiritual baptism comes sometime after being saved
some believe it is necessary to be fully used by God
Some believe it must be accompanied by gifts and sings.
But there is only one baptism of the Holy Spirit, that is when we are baptised into the body of Christ at salvation.
There is no command in all of scripture to be baptized with the Holy Spirit.
You may be and should be filled by the Holy Spirit, but as is often said, “one baptism, many fillings.”
We walk away from the Holy Spirits control over our lives, but we cannot walk away from being baptised into the Body of Christ.
Baptism by water is being immersed in the water as a symbol of dying with Christ, being buried with Him and being raised again to walk in newness of life.
Int he same way Baptism in the Spirit is an immersion of the Spirit.
We receive the power to over come sin in our life.
Illustration of baptism of the Holy spirit - clothes representing sins - take off layers of clothes all at once.
II. Filling
II. Filling
Bill Bright, who started Campus Crusade for Christ, said that if he had the choice between sharing the gospel with a massive group of people who weren’t Christians or teaching the concept of the Spirit-filled life to a small group of people who were Christians he’d teach the small group of Christians, because the impact of that group of Christians filled with the Spirit would be far greater than his sharing with one large group.
I believe there are two sides to this issue of being Filled with the Spirit:
A. Control - His Side
A. Control - His Side
18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
Contrast - filled with alcohol/filled with the spirit.
Controlled by alcohol/controlled by the Holy Spirit.
Often described as “under the influence” of alcohol.
We are to be under the influence of the Spirit.
Every Christian, that is anyone who has accepted Christ as their Savior, have been baptised by the Spirit.
They are going to Heaven!
But far too few are filled, controlled, under the influence of the Holy Spirit everyday!
The word be filled, not only means to be controlled, but it actually has the idea of continuously being filled
We are not filled once and for all, like a bucket.
We are to be filled constantly.
Be Being filled
Kitchen sink in Cedar Lake, It had a pump on it. You could fill the sink, but you had to keep pumping for it to stay full.
38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
We have a promise to continually have this strength, this filling in our lives.
Illustration: Glove
Just as the hand controls the glove, the Holy Spirit of God controls the Christian.
So on the one side the Holy Spirit controls us, but there is our part:
B. Yielding - Our Side
B. Yielding - Our Side
We cannot do anything to get the filling of the Holy Spirit.
We cannot pray anything, do anything, say anything.
The only thing on our part is to submit.
This comes in two steps:
1. Confession and Repentance
1. Confession and Repentance
In order to be under the control of the Holy Spirit, we must not grieve or quench the Holy Spirit.
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Sin blocks the Holy Spirit from working in our lives.
We are looking at Ephesians 5 where we are given the command to be filled.
But just before this in chapter 4 and earlier in chapter 5, Paul warns the Christians that the sins of they were committing were blocking what the Holy Spirit wanted to do in their church.
He comes down to
30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
Then he challenges them to put away those sins, and
Be Kind, forgiving, followers of God, walk in love, giving thanks,
And then he comes to this command to be filled with Spirit.
Rust prevents the cutting torch from doing its work properly
We need to confess our sin, and then...
2. Yield Ourselves to God’s Will
2. Yield Ourselves to God’s Will
13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.
Paul continues in Romans to tell us we have been set free from slavery to sin.
We now can yield ourselves to God.
Yield - Put yourself at the disposal of someone
That means we yield:
our desires
our plans
our decisions
our everything
to Christ’s disposal.
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
This is what Paul is asking us to do.
Yield, present our bodies a living sacrifice.
Give to God your life.
I’m not talking about getting saved, I’m talking about rededicating your life to Christ!
And this has to be done daily
All day long, hourly
All hour long, Minute by minute, second by second, consciously yielding our life to the Holy Spirit’s control.
The third term that is often misused is:
III. Power
III. Power
God has promised us power!
When we allow God to control us, we are able to see His Power in our life!
We will see the Power show itself in our lives through:
A. Witnessing
A. Witnessing
8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
The reason Jesus gave here in this verse for the power of the Holy Spirit was so that we could have boldness to share the Gospel.
B. Leading
B. Leading
The Holy Spirit will lead us and guide us in this life.
14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
The Holy Spirit leads us to do the Will of God for our life, just as He led Jesus while He was here on earth:
1 And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,
C. Spiritual Gifts
C. Spiritual Gifts
We spent 13 weeks on the Spiritual gifts, so I’m not going to completely rehash that
But As we yield ourselves to the Holy Spirit, His power enables us to use our gifts in our church.
The Prophet - points others back to Christ and away from sin
The Servant - ministers to the needs of the body
The Teacher - thoroughly studies the Word to best share the truth.
The Exhorter - comes along side and is the “how to” person, counselling and teaching.
The Giver - gives of themselves to help the church, and it’s members.
The Organizer, or Administrator - Leads and organizes people and assets to their fullest potential.
The Mercy - empathizes with those around them, and comes along side and helps them.
I don’t know about you, but I am eager to see this church work like that!
But it will only happen if each of us first baptised by the Spirit, then are filled with (yielded to) the Holy Spirit.
Only then can we see the Power of the Holy Spirit displayed in our lives and in the lives of those around us.