Power of the Spirit July 2nd, 2023
God of wisdom, open our minds to your truth, our hearts to your love, and our hands to do your will as we listen to the Scriptures. Bring us forgiveness of our sins and hope as we grow in our faith. With your Holy Spirit, equip us to follow Jesus, who is your Living Word. Amen.
‘‘’Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?’” This was the Apostle Paul’s question to a group of believers he met in the city of Ephesus, and what an important question it was. Paul was at the start of his third missionary journey and was travelling through the towns and villages of what is now modern day eastern Turkey. And when he entered Ephesus, he met a group of men who were followers of the teachings of John the Baptist. When he asked them if they had received the Holy Spirit, this was their reply “’No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.’” And that leads us into our question for today, who is the Holy Spirit, and how does he affect our lives as followers of Christ? Do we live our lives aware of, open to, filled with, and guided by the Spirit of God?
And to answer that question we first need to understand just who the Holy Spirit is. Living Faith, which is the Presbyterian Church in Canada’s statement of Christian beliefs defines the Holy Spirit in these terms, “The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the triune God and is One with the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit is the Lord and Giver of Life, the Renewer and Helper of God's people. By the Spirit, God is present in the world, the source of all goodness and justice. By the Spirit, God convinces the world of sin and testifies to the truth of Christ. By the Spirit, Christ is with his church.”
So, the Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity, along with God, the Father, and Jesus Christ, the Son. He is the presence of God in the world. When Jesus was preparing his disciples for the time when he would no longer be with them this is what he told them, “‘I have said these things to you while I am still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you.’”
Once again, we can turn to Living Faith to better understand what the Holy Spirit does in our lives, “The Spirit enables people to receive the good news of Christ, to repent of their sins, and to be adopted as children of God. As we hear and respond to the Gospel we freely turn to Christ. When we have turned and repented, we recognize that the Spirit enabled us to believe.” So, the Holy Spirit is there guiding us when we repent of our sins and come to accept Jesus as our Saviour. It is through the work of the Spirit that we receive salvation, that is, eternal life with God.
In this morning’s reading from Acts, we heard that when the Apostle Paul met some disciples of Jesus in Ephesus, the first thing he asked them was, “‘Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?’” They replied, “‘No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.’” So, although they had come to faith in Christ, they were not aware of the presence of the Spirit in their lives. And, as Paul talks to them, it begins to be clear that they are not living the same life with God as Paul has experienced since he had that encounter with Jesus on the Damascus Road, and which changed his life in such a profound way that he risked all to share this with others.
Upon further questioning Paul came to discover that they were followers of John the Baptist and through his teachings had come to accept Jesus as the Messiah. Thus, they would have known these words which John spoke when he first encountered Jesus, “‘… Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, “After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.” … ‘And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.’” (John 1:29-30,37) Although they knew and believed in Jesus, they didn’t understand that Jesus, after the resurrection, changed those who came to believe in him and gave them the power and the presence of God by the work of the Holy Spirit living within them.
Paul told them “‘John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, in Jesus.’” And this was their reaction, “On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. When Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them.”
Now we need to be careful not to think that the Holy Spirit enters us at the moment of our Baptism, especially in infancy. Although it is the intention of the baby’s parents and families that they become children of God, there is more to it than just the baptism. Certainly, those of us who were baptised as infants weren’t old enough to have any knowledge of the Saving Grace of Jesus. Living Faith tells us “Baptism is also an act of discipleship that requires commitment and looks towards growth in Christ. Those baptized in infancy are called in later years to make personal profession of Christ.” It is the beginning of our spiritual growth. Throughout the New Testament we can read of a variety of ways that the Spirit enters people, such as coming upon, descending upon, and being filled with. The important thing is that it enters us when we repent of our sins and come to accept Jesus as the Son of God and the Saviour of the world.
The Apostle Paul clearly taught that we receive the Holy Spirit the moment we receive Jesus Christ as our Saviour. In one of his letters which he later wrote to those believers in Ephesus he told them, “In Christ you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit.” (Ephesians 1:13) And when we accept the Holy Spirit, we experience a change in our lives. This profound change helps us to be no more concerned by things of the body, but rather concerned with the things of the mind. We are concerned with all things that lead us and others to God. Paul tells us that from now on we are walking in the Spirit, rather than walking in the flesh. God has given us, as believers, a new heart, a new mind, and a new spirit. We walk now in the Spirit, not in the flesh, and we walk as God’s people.
Now that we have a clearer picture of the Holy Spirit and how we come to receive it, we need to look at the role he plays in our lives. We’re not told much about the believers in Ephesus who received the Spirit, only, “When Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.”, but a church was established in Ephesus and no doubt they were the founding members of it and they lived their lives with the power of Holy Spirit guiding them.
And for us, it’s necessary to remember these words of Paul which he wrote to the members of the Corinthian church, “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you were bought with a price; therefore, glorify God in your body.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) We must remember that we’re walking in the power of the Spirit, and that he changes our character and behavior to be more Christlike. All those who know us should be able to see evidence of the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives. We need to make sure that we have trusted in Christ by faith, and we need to make it our priority to walk daily in the Spirit’s power.
And that’s what the Holy Spirit does – he revitalises, renews, and refreshes. He comforts and guides the Church, those in the church, and also those whom he touches outside the church. The Spirit speaks to us the truth about God and shows us the love of the Father and of the Son. He testifies to the truth that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that he was born in Bethlehem, became a human to save us through his death on the cross and his resurrection from the grave. He guarantees the promises of God in the Bible.
The Spirit gives us the power to live as children of God. Through the Spirit working in and with us, God is no longer distant and remote; the cross and resurrection of Christ become more than just historical events, they are now part of our being. The Holy Spirit makes us realise that God is intimately connected to our daily lives. The Spirit helps us feel God’s presence; we’re reminded that Jesus is our Saviour who died and rose for us and we are given faith. And that faith relies on God; trusts God to help us in our deepest needs. That Spirit-given-faith moves us to be God's holy and chosen people in everything we say and do.
The Holy Spirit changes us by opening our eyes to the truth. He gives us the ability to see, know, and understand God’s truth. The Apostle Paul said, “the wisdom of God is foolishness to those who are perishing” (1 Corinthians 1:18). So, without the Holy Spirit, the wisdom of God seems like foolishness. But when we are given the Holy Spirit, the message of the cross begins to make sense. He opens our eyes and minds to God’s word, his eternal truth, and our salvation.
The Holy Spirit also helps us with our prayers. The Spirit teaches us many things, but one of the most important things it teaches us is how to pray. In our busy world, prayer sometimes can get pushed aside, but the Spirit can open our minds to Scriptures and prayer so we better understand what God wants and what he can accomplish through us. The Holy Spirit also works through our prayers and even intercedes for us in ways that our words could never express to God. Paul, in his Letter to the Romans tells us, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words.” (Romans 8:26) The Spirit is there for us, guiding us as we pray and helping us in our times of weakness when we forget to pray. Do you ever get that feeling that you are being reminded to be faithful or to pray? That’s the Spirit at work.
Before we had the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, we had no desire to learn the word of God, to be still and feel God’s presence, to bend our knees in prayer, or to attend church with other believers. Our lives were often tied up in much foolishness. But the Holy Spirit changes all that. Sure, we still battle the flesh and worldly ways. But now, through the Spirit, we not only have changed behavior, we also have changed motives and changed desires. We desire to be close to God and to understand his purpose for us and those around us.
It’s important for us to understand that the ministry of the Holy Spirit is in teaching the followers of Christ and that this continues today by helping us better understand Jesus' teachings as we read the Bible. In this sense, the Spirit is the true teacher of every Christian. We come to church to better understand, we pray and read Scriptures and we take quiet time to feel the Holy Spirit and his work in and through us. Through him and the work of Jesus, we come to know God and feel his support and love in our daily lives.
In summary, once we accept Christ as our Saviour and receive the Holy Spirit, we are changed people. The way we see the world changes and despite of all the hurt, disappointment and pain that still exists in our lives, we become filled with hope. A hope that comforts us in the deepest sorrows and the most challenging times. A hope that brings us peace in the loving spirit of God, our eternal Father.
Without the Holy Spirit there would be no hope and no Christians and no Church. The gospel message would be unknown. The world would be lost. There would be no promise of eternal life.
So, in closing, let’s look for the power of the Holy Spirit at work in our lives this week and remember these words of the Apostle Paul, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” (Romans 15:13)
Let us Pray:
Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in us the fire of your love. O God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, opened the hearts of the faithful throughout the centuries, do the same for us today, so that we may lead lives which give glory to your name. Amen