By Dan Franklin, Pastor of Teaching
I once heard someone comment that the Trinity of evangelical Christianity is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Scripture. Their point was that, while we may have correct beliefs concerning a number of things from God’s Word, we tend to forget about a very
important person: The Holy Spirit. If we’re honest, many of us would admit that He scares us a little. He seems unpredictable, and people who emphasize the Holy Spirit sometimes have practices that seem strange to us. It seems easier just to acknowledge the existence of the Holy Spirit, but to leave it at that.
As we have walked through Galatians, however, ignoring the Holy Spirit has seemed like less and less of an option.
Paul says that it is the Holy Spirit who leads us to freedom and victory when it comes to our battle against our destructive impulses. We are told to “walk by the Spirit” (5:16), to be “led by the Spirit” (5:18), to “live by the Spirit” (5:24), to “keep in step with the Spirit” (5:25), and to “sow to please the Spirit” (6:8). When Paul gets
practical about freedom, the Holy Spirit takes center stage.
According to Paul, if we walk by the Spirit then we will stop gratifying our destructive and deceitful impulses. Most of us want to take Paul up on this offer, but the command to walk by the Spirit seems vague and unattainable. In order to help with this, I want to talk briefly about three practical ways that we can walk by the Spirit.
The Sword of the Spirit. In Ephesians 6:17 the Apostle Paul calls the Word of God the “sword of the Spirit.” The Holy Spirit is seen as the voice behind all of Scripture and all prophecies
(2 Peter 1:20-21). There is a strong connection between the Spirit of God and the Word of God. If we want to hear the voice of the Spirit, we should pay close attention to what the Spirit has said through Scripture.
Reading the Bible is a vital part of the life of believers. When you read, don’t do so simply to say that you did. Read to listen to the voice of God. Scripture
exposes us to God and the world as God has presented it. It brings us teaching, reproof, correction, and instruction. Read, learn, listen, reflect. If you want to hear the voice of the Spirit, dive into God’s Word.
Pray in the Spirit. In Ephesians 6:18 Paul says, “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.” If we want to sow to the Spirit, we must pray. We must be engaged. We must bring our hearts to Him and allow Him to lead us. We must confess our sins and weaknesses, and plead with Him to bring us power and victory. We must ask Him to
remind us of Jesus’ words and help
us to understand them.
When we approach the Spirit, it is for the purpose of being empowered and led. In order to be led, we must humble ourselves. There is no activity that is more humbling than prayer. It is our conscious admission of absolute dependence. We open ourselves up to the leading of the Spirit when we yield to Him and pray.
Be Faithful with the Little. Jesus said in Luke 16:10, “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.” When we think of the Spirit empowering us, we often mistakenly think of the big things in life. We think of the Spirit leading us to the mission field or empowering us to perform a miracle or emboldening us to evangelize an entire campus. It is wonderful if we want to see the Spirit work through us in such big ways.
But walking by the Spirit is not simply made up of following His lead in the big decisions. It is made up of following His lead in the “little” decisions of life. If we are faithful to follow the lead of the Holy Spirit in the little decisions of life, we will be faithful to follow His lead in the big decisions of life. We must follow the lead of the Spirit when we sense Him calling us to pause and
pray with someone, when He calls us to turn off the television and pick up our Bible, when He calls us to say a kind and encouraging word (or a bold word of reproof) to someone, or when He calls us to give some of our money to someone in need. If we listen in the “little” decisions of life, we are likely to be more attuned to the voice and leading of the Spirit, and we will be entrusted with greater tasks in the
work of God.
The Holy Spirit is an amazing gift from God. He is God’s very presence living within us. He endows us with power and boldness in order that we can be free to follow Christ in new and powerful ways. The Spirit is leading believers forward. Let’s keep in step with Him and follow His lead.
Check out the video from our Deeper event on August 4, 2013 that talked more in-depth about the Holy Spirit. You can download the notes and bonus Spiritual Gifts resource here as well.
Showing posts with label Holy Spirit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Holy Spirit. Show all posts
Thursday, August 29, 2013
Thursday, October 28, 2010
In the Name of the Father, Son...and Holy Spirit
By Phil Shahbaz, Pastor of Community Life
As a child, I would watch my father preach. I always looked upon him with hopeful eyes as he preached God’s word to God’s people. His church was a real life snapshot of Middle America, placed right at the center of a sleepy town called Turlock, California. The church had been built in the early 1920s. There was a never-ending staircase that unfolded as you made your way toward its solid oak doors. There was no steeple, but there was a tower that seemed to slice the church in half, ascend into the sky, and proudly display a white cross for all to see. On the inside, its hardwood floors echoed as you walked. The round, stained glass window beyond the pulpit functioned as the centerpiece. It was a representation of Jesus Christ, praying in earnest in the Garden of Gethsemane. The glass sparkled brilliantly and illuminated the church when the sun touched it just right. Then sometimes my father would end his sermon with these words:
“In the name of the Father, in the name of the Son, in the name of the Holy Spirit, Amen.”
His words often prompted me to look at the stained glass. There was something about that glass that seemed holy and reverent. In my young mind, I saw in that glass all three parts of God: Jesus praying to His Father and the Holy Spirit illuminating them as we quietly worshiped.
As a child, it was that glass that made me wonder and question the role of the Holy Spirit. Not able to fully understand, I imagined the Holy Spirit as a force that God used to keep me safe. As an adult, I learned that the role of the Holy Spirit was much grander. The Holy Spirit was, and is, the living God. The Holy Spirit is always with me. The Holy Spirit is always shining down on me; no stained glass was required.
The Holy Spirit’s role within the church begins with the individual believer. Once a person has accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, they are baptized by the Holy Spirit, and as a result, indwelt by the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9). How the Holy Spirit moves through that person is then a result of the individual’s willingness to give themselves over to the Spirit’s influence.
The Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity of God that Christians believe in. We believe in a Triune God that is one in essence but eternally existing in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The LBF doctrinal statement states that “each part of God exists coequally in attributes, power, glory, and equally worthy of all obedience, worship, praise, and adoration” (Matthew 28:19; Deuteronomy 6:4; John 14:6,7; John 5:23; Acts 5:3-4).
In the Old Testament, God the Father chose to communicate directly with the prophets – guiding them, advising them, and communicating the law. For 33 years, God the Son communicated with us directly – teaching, healing, bringing a new message for both Jew and Gentile, and finally, dying on the cross and defeating sin through His resurrection. After Christ’s ascension, God the Holy Spirit now communicates with us directly. The Holy Spirit functions as the portion of God that intercedes on our behalf, communicates for us, and communicates through us as individual Christians and as the Body of Christ.
For each of us, the Holy Spirit’s work in our life is different. Some Christians place a high value on miraculous signs, the speaking of tongues, healing, and prophecy as evidence of the Spirit’s influence in our lives. These attributes are real and they are in fact the work of the Holy Spirit, to be used any time by the Spirit within the church. But make no mistake, the Holy Spirit’s presence in a person’s life is evidenced by the Christ-like character that they portray (Galatians 5: 22-25).
It has been years since I have seen that beautiful stained glass in my father’s church. Instead, I carry a vivid but meaningful memory with me. More importantly, the Holy Spirit that spoke to me as a child is still speaking to me as an adult, and always will.
As a child, I would watch my father preach. I always looked upon him with hopeful eyes as he preached God’s word to God’s people. His church was a real life snapshot of Middle America, placed right at the center of a sleepy town called Turlock, California. The church had been built in the early 1920s. There was a never-ending staircase that unfolded as you made your way toward its solid oak doors. There was no steeple, but there was a tower that seemed to slice the church in half, ascend into the sky, and proudly display a white cross for all to see. On the inside, its hardwood floors echoed as you walked. The round, stained glass window beyond the pulpit functioned as the centerpiece. It was a representation of Jesus Christ, praying in earnest in the Garden of Gethsemane. The glass sparkled brilliantly and illuminated the church when the sun touched it just right. Then sometimes my father would end his sermon with these words:
“In the name of the Father, in the name of the Son, in the name of the Holy Spirit, Amen.”
His words often prompted me to look at the stained glass. There was something about that glass that seemed holy and reverent. In my young mind, I saw in that glass all three parts of God: Jesus praying to His Father and the Holy Spirit illuminating them as we quietly worshiped.
As a child, it was that glass that made me wonder and question the role of the Holy Spirit. Not able to fully understand, I imagined the Holy Spirit as a force that God used to keep me safe. As an adult, I learned that the role of the Holy Spirit was much grander. The Holy Spirit was, and is, the living God. The Holy Spirit is always with me. The Holy Spirit is always shining down on me; no stained glass was required.
The Holy Spirit’s role within the church begins with the individual believer. Once a person has accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, they are baptized by the Holy Spirit, and as a result, indwelt by the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9). How the Holy Spirit moves through that person is then a result of the individual’s willingness to give themselves over to the Spirit’s influence.
The Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity of God that Christians believe in. We believe in a Triune God that is one in essence but eternally existing in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The LBF doctrinal statement states that “each part of God exists coequally in attributes, power, glory, and equally worthy of all obedience, worship, praise, and adoration” (Matthew 28:19; Deuteronomy 6:4; John 14:6,7; John 5:23; Acts 5:3-4).
In the Old Testament, God the Father chose to communicate directly with the prophets – guiding them, advising them, and communicating the law. For 33 years, God the Son communicated with us directly – teaching, healing, bringing a new message for both Jew and Gentile, and finally, dying on the cross and defeating sin through His resurrection. After Christ’s ascension, God the Holy Spirit now communicates with us directly. The Holy Spirit functions as the portion of God that intercedes on our behalf, communicates for us, and communicates through us as individual Christians and as the Body of Christ.
For each of us, the Holy Spirit’s work in our life is different. Some Christians place a high value on miraculous signs, the speaking of tongues, healing, and prophecy as evidence of the Spirit’s influence in our lives. These attributes are real and they are in fact the work of the Holy Spirit, to be used any time by the Spirit within the church. But make no mistake, the Holy Spirit’s presence in a person’s life is evidenced by the Christ-like character that they portray (Galatians 5: 22-25).
It has been years since I have seen that beautiful stained glass in my father’s church. Instead, I carry a vivid but meaningful memory with me. More importantly, the Holy Spirit that spoke to me as a child is still speaking to me as an adult, and always will.
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