Servant
Leadership School
January 12, 2003
Building the Church God’s Way (ch. 4)
Break into groups of 3-4 people.
Q. How did you come to our church?
(take two minutes each)
Q. How did you come to know Jesus as
your Savior? Share briefly. (two minutes each)
Q. What was the highlight of this
chapter of the book for you? (5 minutes)
Empowered by the Spirit (ch. 3)
With, In, and Upon
There are certainly a lot of different views when it comes to the things of
the Holy Spirit. There are also a lot of
abuses as well.
Illustration
Come Down Holy Spirit
A traveling evangelist always put on a grand finale at his revival
meetings. When he was to preach at a church, he would secretly hire a small boy
to sit in the ceiling rafters with a dove in a cage. Toward the end of his
sermon, the preacher would shout for the Holy Spirit to come down, and the boy
in the rafters would dutifully release the dove. At one revival meeting,
however, nothing happened when the preacher called for the Holy Spirit to
descend. He again raised his arms and exclaimed: “Come down, Holy Spirit!” Still no sign of the dove. The preacher then heard the
anxious voice of the small boy call down from the rafters: “Sir, a yellow cat
just ate the Holy Spirit. Shall I throw down the yellow cat?”
We want to make sure that our beliefs about the Holy Spirit aren’t based
upon our feelings or our experience. We
want to form our doctrine from the Scriptures and then make sure our experience
conforms to what the Scripture teaches.
The Bible seems to indicate that for the New Testament believer, the Holy
Spirit relates to us in three different ways, as pictured by three Greek
prepositions that can be translated “with” (para), “in” (en), and “upon” (epi)
He is “with” us
(John
14:16-17 KJV) And I will pray the
Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for
ever; {17} Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth
him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
When the Holy Spirit is “with” us, He is along side of us to encourage us,
comfort us, and to convict us.
The Holy Spirit may be doing these things in anybody’s life, whether or not
they are a believer.
He dwells “in” us
His indwelling is a promise of God’s “New Covenant” with man:
(Ezek 36:26-27 KJV) A new heart also will I give you, and a new
spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your
flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. {27} And I will put my spirit within you,
and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do
them.
Under the Mosaic Law, the “Old Covenant”, the Holy Spirit could be in a
person (as He was in Moses, Joshua, Ezekiel, and others, Num. 11:17; 27:18; Eze. 2:2), but it seems that the work of the Holy Spirit in
a person was limited to just certain special people, primarily leaders,
priests, or prophets. Under the “New
Covenant”, the Holy Spirit is promised to all who believe.
Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would be “in” the disciples:
(John
14:17b KJV) …but
ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be
in you.
We believe this took place for the disciples after the resurrection:
(John 20:22 KJV) And
when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the
Holy Ghost:
Paul wrote of the Holy Spirit being in him, writing to Timothy:
(2 Tim 1:14 KJV) That
good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the
Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us.
John called the Holy Spirit the “anointing”:
1 John
2:27 But the anointing which ye have
received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same
anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth,
and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.
When the Holy Spirit dwells in us, we become His temple:
1
Corinthians 6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of
the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye
are not your own?
The Holy Spirit dwells in us from the moment that we accepted Jesus as our
Savior. We cannot belong to Jesus if we
do not have the Holy Spirit:
Romans
8:9 But ye are
not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in
you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he
is none of his.
He comes “upon” us
There was a third type of relationship that Jesus said the Holy Spirit
would have with us. This takes place
after He has already “breathed” upon the disciples in the upper room to “receive”
the Holy Spirit.
(Acts 1:4-5 KJV) And, being
assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for
the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. {5} For John
truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not
many days hence.
He calls this the “promise of the Father” and the “baptism” of the Holy
Spirit.
(Acts 1:7-8 KJV) And he said
unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father
hath put in his own power. {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.
He says that the disciples would have power to be witnesses when the Holy
Spirit has “come upon” them.
This event first took place in Acts 2
(Acts 2:1-4 KJV) And when
the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one
place. {2} And suddenly there came a sound from heaven
as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were
sitting. {3} And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and
it sat upon each of them. {4} And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and
began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
This is the event that Jesus told the disciples to wait for. Here it is described as the being “filled
with the Holy Ghost”.
Through the book of Acts we see this experience being called many different
names:
1.
“the promise of the Father”
Ac 1:4 …wait for the promise of the Father,
which, [saith he], ye have heard of me.
2.
“baptized with the Holy Ghost”
Ac 1:5 For John truly
baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized
with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.
Here in Acts 1:5; 11:16, also in Mat. 3:11; Mar. 1:8; Luk. 3:16.
3.
“filled” with the Holy Ghost
(Acts
2:4 KJV) And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began
to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
The phrase occurs 6 times in Acts (2:4; 4:8; 4:31;
9:17; 13:9; 13:52)
4. The “upon” phrases (Greek “epi”, seven occurrences in Acts)
The preposition "upon" is used with several other words to
describe either the Acts 2 event, or the baptism that took place at Cornelius'
house.
“fell upon”, “came upon”, and “poured out upon”
(Acts 10:44 KJV)
While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which
heard the word. (Also Acts 11:15)
(Acts
1:8 KJV) But ye shall receive power,
after that the Holy Ghost is come upon (epi) you: (Also in Acts
19:6)
(Acts 2:17 KJV)
And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God,
I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh …
Also 2:18; 10:45
5.
“the gift of the Holy Ghost”
Same Bible Study with Peter, different
phrase.
(Acts 10:45 KJV)
And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as
came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of
the Holy Ghost. (Also
in Acts 2:38)
Is the “baptism of the Holy Spirit” what happens when you get saved?
Some would say that the “baptism of the
Holy Spirit” occurs when a person is saved and the Holy Spirit comes into their
life, and is a different thing from being “filled” with the Holy Spirit.
They point to:
1Co 12:13 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.
The Greek here is similar, at least on
the outset. The “by one Spirit” could be
translated “in one Spirit”, and is the same Greek phrase as in Acts 1:5, except
here, the translation works differently, because the context (1Cor. 12:7-11)
shows us that it’s the Spirit that’s doing all the work, baptizing, immersing
us into the Body of Christ. This does
occur at salvation.
The “baptism of the Holy Spirit”
mentioned in Acts 1,2 on the other hand is a “baptism”
done by Jesus (Mat. 3:11, Luk 3:16), and is immersing us in the Holy Spirit. It’s purpose is a
little different, being that of giving us power in ministry.
The ironic thing is that people who
hold this view often go on to say that though a person is “baptized in the Holy
Spirit” only once, a person can be “filled” over and over again, quoting -
Eph 5:18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess;
but be filled with the Spirit;
But hopefully you’ve notice by now,
that Luke makes no distinction between the “baptism” and the “filling”, but
they’re both the same.
We'll see in our study of Acts that the
baptism of the Holy Spirit may occur when a person is saved, or later, and many
times after that.
Caution:
I know I’ve made a big deal trying to
show you how the “baptism” is the same as the “filling”, but I do think that we
need to be careful that we don’t make such a big deal with people that we turn
them off.
If they’re more comfortable talking
about the “filling” of the Holy Spirit, hey, let’s use that word.
The baptism of the Holy Spirit is separate from salvation.
We see a couple of times in the Book of Acts how the baptism of the Holy
Spirit is related to salvation.
Acts 2 – the disciples are filled with the Holy
Spirit.
Acts 4:31 – the same people who
were filled with the Holy Spirit in chapter two are filled again.
Acts 8 – Philip goes to Samaria
and many believe and are baptized.
(Acts 8:14-17 KJV) Now when
the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word
of God, they sent unto them Peter and John: {15} Who, when they were come down,
prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost: {16} (For as yet he
was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord
Jesus.) {17} Then laid they their hands on them, and
they received the Holy Ghost.
Believing came first, then the filling of the Holy Spirit came later.
Acts 10 – At Cornelius’ house – the first Gentile
converts – the group is listening to Peter give a Bible Study and suddenly …
(Acts 10:44-45 KJV) While
Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the
word. {45} And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many
as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift
of the Holy Ghost.
These folks were saved and
baptized in the Holy Ghost all at the same time.
Acts 19 – Paul comes across disciples in Ephesus
and realizes that they’re missing something.
(Acts 19:2 KJV) He said unto
them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto
him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any
Holy Ghost.
(Acts 19:6 KJV) And when
Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake
with tongues, and prophesied.
They are baptized in the Holy Spirit after having believed.
The point: You can be saved but not be filled with
the Spirit. You may go to heaven, but
you are not experiencing the power in your life that God has for you.
How can I be filled with the Holy Spirit?
That’s the real point of this whole study.
Don’t be too worried about what it’s called. Just be worried about whether you have it?
(John 7:37-39 KJV) In the last day, that great day of the feast,
Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and
drink. {38} He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his
belly shall flow rivers of living water. {39} (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.)
Jesus was talking about this baptism of the Holy Spirit. It’s the thing that took place after Jesus
was glorified.
Jesus gave four qualifications to receiving the filling of the Holy Spirit.
1.
Thirst
There must be a strong sense of need in our life.
We need to come to the point where we realize just how much we need God's
help.
If we're complacent about it, and don't really care one way or another,
then don't expect anything!
Illustration:
I think of when I'm doing yardwork
on a hot summer day, how I'll come into the house about every fifteen minutes
and drink another huge glass of ice tea.
When you get too dehydrated, you get to feeling that if
you were to fall into a swimming pool, that your body would just soak it all
up!
2.
Come to Jesus
He is the one who baptizes you with the Holy Spirit.
John the Baptist said,
Matthew 3:11 I
indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is
mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with
the Holy Ghost, and with fire:
You have to realize that to be filled with the Holy Spirit, you're going to
have to come to Jesus.
Going to Mohammed just won't do. Nor Buddha.
Going to "another Jesus" won't do, whether it's
the Mormon one who is the half-brother of Lucifer, or whether it's the Jehovah
Witness one who is supposedly the angel Michael.
It’s got to be Jesus.
It’s only through Jesus that you’ll have your deepest inner needs met:
John 6:35 And
Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never
hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.
3. Drink
To drink a glass of water, you first have to open up your mouth.
Imagine drinking a glass of water with your mouth closed.
You would certainly have a "drinking problem"!
To receive the Holy Spirit, you have to open up your heart.
Just open up and receive!
You might feel something.
You might not.
Wait a second here, is the Holy Spirit going to make me weird?
There have been so many abuses of the Holy Spirit over the
years, that it’s easy for us to think that being
filled with the Holy Spirit must be a weird or strange thing.
We’re afraid He might make us roll around on the floor or
bark like a dog.
I’m afraid that this isn’t the Holy Spirit. This may be a person’s response to the work
of the Spirit on their life, the Bible says that one
of the “fruits” of the Holy Spirit is “self-control”. No barking.
4. Believe
Jesus didn’t say, “He who feels this tingle down his back will have rivers
of living water ...”.
He said, “He that believeth ...”
Being filled with the Holy Spirit is based on trust, on faith, not on
feelings.
We have a very strong promise to trust in:
1John 5:14-15 And this is the confidence that we have in
him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: 15 And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we
ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
Is it God’s will for you to be filled with the Holy
Spirit?
Eph. 5:18 says
it is.
Then does God hear you when you ask Him to fill you?
John says yes.
Then does God give us what you’ve asked for?
Yes!
Receive it!