Titus 3:4-7
But when the kindness and love
of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things
we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing
of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously
through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified
by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. (NIV)
From these scriptures there is no doubt
that the Holy Spirit plays a part in our spiritual birth. But the question
that rages is "Does it begin with God or does it begin with me?"
It is important to keep in mind that Jesus
said that the Spirit is like the wind, " . . . you cannot tell where it
comes from or where it is going." (John 3:8) I may not understand the forces
of nature but I can see the result in the latest tornadoes in Oklahoma.
So it is with the Holy Spirit; I can tell where the Spirit has been by
the results of his presence.
Spirit's Confirmation of the Apostles Message
On Pentecost I see the results of the
Holy Spirit. The Spirit's initial coming on the disciples on Pentecost
was involuntary. It was something over which they had no control.
Acts 2:2-6
Suddenly a sound like the blowing
of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they
were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated
and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy
Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation
under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment,
because each one heard them speaking in his own language. (NIV)
The Holy Spirit's work on Pentecost was
to convince the hearers that God was with those who were speaking. The
hears proclaimed " -- we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our
own tongues!" (Acts 2:11 NIV)
There was an occasion where the Holy Spirit
came upon Cornelius and his household that had not yet baptized.
Acts 10:44-48
While Peter was still speaking
these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The circumcised
believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the
Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. For they heard them
speaking in tongues and praising God. Then Peter said, "Can anyone keep
these people from being baptized with water? They have received the Holy
Spirit just as we have." So he ordered that they be baptized in the name
of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.
(NIV)
The Holy Spirit coming upon the Gentiles
was God's proof to Peter that God was with Cornelius and his household.
Peter understood that the Holy Spirit's presence was a sign from God.
Acts 11:15-18
"As I began to speak, the Holy
Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning. Then I remembered
what the Lord had said: 'John baptized with water, but you will be baptized
with the Holy Spirit.' So if God gave them the same gift as he gave us,
who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could
oppose God?" When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised
God, saying, "So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto
life." (NIV)
On Pentecost I also see the promise
of the gift of the Holy Spirit. The gift of the Holy Spirit was
promised to those told to repent and be baptized. The gift of the Holy
Spirit was conditioned upon a voluntary response from those who believed
Peter's message. Whereas in the beginning of the chapter the coming of
the Holy Spirit was involuntary.
Acts 2:37-39
When the people heard this,
they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers,
what shall we do?" Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every
one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.
And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is
for you and your children and for all who are far off-- for all whom the
Lord our God will call." (NIV)
In Acts 2 the Holy Spirit came to confirm
that the men speaking the gospel for the first time had God's approval.
The Holy Spirit confirmed the guidance they were receiving from God. Yet,
the people on Pentecost were obedient to the message proclaimed by the
disciples. They were not empowered as the apostles were. They were not
overwhelmed by the Spirit.
When the Holy Spirit came upon Cornelius'
household he was not exempt from baptism. The Holy Spirit's presence was
only a sign of God's approval but the Spirit's presence in no way exempted
Cornelius' household from obeying the words Peter spoke. It was absolutely
essential that Cornelius' household receive the gospel as preached by Peter.
The presence of the Holy Spirit did not confirm that they had been saved,
but only confirmed they were candidates for salvation. They had the choice
to accept or reject the message; obedience was a totally voluntary response.
The Spirit's agent in saving the lost
was the Word of God spoken by men. We get a glimpse of how the
Spirit directs Philip to preach to the eunuch. There is not anything in
the passage that says that the eunuch was aware of the Holy Spirit giving
Philip specific directions to find him.
Acts 8:26-39
Now an angel of the Lord said
to Philip, "Go south to the road-- the desert road-- that goes down from
Jerusalem to Gaza." So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian
eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace,
queen of the Ethiopians. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, and
on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the book of Isaiah the
prophet. The Spirit told Philip, "Go to that chariot and stay near
it." Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading
Isaiah the prophet. "Do you understand what you are reading?" Philip asked.
"How can I," he said, "unless someone explains it to me?" So he invited
Philip to come up and sit with him. The eunuch was reading this passage
of Scripture: "He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb
before the shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. In his humiliation
he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life
was taken from the earth." The eunuch asked Philip, "Tell me, please, who
is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?"
Then Philip
began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about
Jesus. As they traveled along the road, they came to some
water and the eunuch said, "Look, here is water. Why shouldn't I be baptized?"
And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch
went down into the water and Philip baptized him. When they came up out
of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the
eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. (NIV)
Initially the Spirit directs Philip to
go to the chariot. Yet, Philip preaches Jesus from the Old Testament that
the eunuch is reading. After being taught, the eunuch asks, "Here is water
what hinders me to be baptized . . . " he makes a voluntary response through
a desire to obey what Philip has preached from Scripture.
Holy Spirit Gives Life through the Word
of God
The Spirit gives life through the Word
of God. In all the instances above we see the disciples and those
seeking God following the directions of the Holy Spirit. Each person is
begotten through the gospel preached on each occasion.
James 1:18, 21
He chose to give us birth
through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits
of all he created . . . Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil
that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which
can save you. (NIV)
1 Corinthians 4:15
For though ye have ten thousand
instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus
I have begotten you through the gospel. (KJV)
1 Thessalonians 1:4-6
For we know, brothers loved
by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply
with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction.
You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of
us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the
message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. (NIV)
John 6:63
The Spirit gives life;
the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are
spirit and they are life. (NIV)
The Word of God is Living and Active
I would like for you to recall how we
discussed in the first lesson that the Holy Spirit is the life giving force
in creation. It is He that made it possible for the seed of a fruit to
reproduce life. It is also the Holy Spirit that gives life-producing power
to the Word of God as it is implanted into our hearts.
The Word of God is the sword of the
Spirit that God uses to penetrate our hearts.
Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living
and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to
dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and
attitudes of the heart. (NIV)
Ephesians 6:17-18
Take the helmet of salvation
and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And
pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.
With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
(NIV)
The Holy Spirit is Given to the Obedient
Peter states that the Holy Spirit is
given to the obedient. When we are convicted of our sin and turn to God
in obedience God gives us his Holy Spirit.
Acts 5:32
We are witnesses of these things,
and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him." (NIV)
God sends his Holy Spirit into the
hearts of those who believe to give them life and to order their lives.
Galatians 4:6
Because you are sons, God sent
the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, "Abba,
(NIV)
We must have the Holy Spirit to
be Christ.
Romans 8:9
You, however, are controlled
not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives
in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong
to Christ. (NIV)
God promised the gift of the Holy Spirit
on Pentecost through repentance and baptism. "Peter replied, 'Repent
and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the
forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy
Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who
are far off-- for all whom the Lord our God will call.'" (Acts 2:38-39
NIV)
The Word of God is the Sword the Holy Spirit
uses to open a person's heart to receive the life-giving Spirit. When one
surrenders his/her life to God at baptism God sends his Holy Spirit into
that persons heart to give that person spiritual life. (Galatians 4:6)
John 7:38-39
He that believeth on me, as
the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
(But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him
should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that
Jesus was not yet glorified.) (KJV)
Titus 3:4-7
But when the kindness and love
of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things
we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing
of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously
through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified
by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. (NIV)
The gift of the Holy Spirit at baptism
is nothing less than the gift of a spiritual rebirth. It is the gift of
life.
God will give his Spirit to anyone who
asks him.
Luke 11:13
If ye then, being evil, know
how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your
heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? (KJV)
It is our choice to be filled by
the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit can only dwell in the child of
God to the degree to which the child of God chooses to surrender. We may
choose to be filled with the power of the Spirit or we may choose to quench
the Spirit's work.
Ephesians 5:18-20
Do not get drunk on wine,
which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
Speak
to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music
in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything,
in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. (NIV)
We can quench the Spirit's work
by resisting his leading and thereby grieve the Holy Spirit.
Acts 7:51
"You stiff-necked people, with
uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always
resist the Holy Spirit! (NIV)
1 Thessalonians 5:19
Quench not the Spirit. (KJV)
Ephesians 4:30
And grieve not the holy Spirit
of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. (KJV)
God can take his Holy Spirit from you.
Psalms 51:11
Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me. (NIV)
Isaiah 63:10
Yet they rebelled and grieved
his Holy Spirit. So he turned and became their enemy and he himself fought
against them. (NIV)
We blaspheme the Holy Spirit when
we refuse his direction for our lives. If we refuse the Holy Spirit's message
for our lives given through the gospel, there will not be another message.
The message of the Holy Spirit as given in the Bible is the last
message given by God. To reject it is to blaspheme the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 12:32
Anyone who speaks a word against
the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy
Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
(NIV)
Mark 3:28-29
I tell you the truth, all the
sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes
against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal
sin." (NIV)
The fruition of the Word of God
in our lives is proof of the Spirit's presence. No person can produce
this fruit without the power of the life giving Spirit. It can only be
produced through the life giving power of the Spirit as one desires to
be obedient to the Word. The Spirit fills us as we seek to know God's will
for our lives. It is then that He bears fruit in our lives.
Galatians 5:22-26
But the fruit of the Spirit
is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness
and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong
to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and
desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.
Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other. (NIV)
There is no way that we can make
the Word of God bear fruit. It would be like trying to make a grain
of corn grow by your own power. We can only cultivate our hearts to receive
the implanted word. It is our desire to obey the Word that cultivates our
hearts for the Spirit's work through the Word. When we separate the Word
of God from the power of the Spirit of God the Bible becomes a letter that
kills for we are powerless to make it bear fruit in our lives.
2 Corinthians 3:6
He has made us competent as
ministers of a new covenant-- not of the letter but of the Spirit; for
the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. (NIV)
Conclusion:
Surrender to the Spirit's power for
your life through seeking his power to obey his commands.
2 Thessalonians 2:13-14
But we ought always to thank
God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God
chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit
and through belief in the truth. He called you to this through our gospel,
that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. (NIV)
