Tapin Part 5 y Gerald Van Horn
Text. Colossians 1:10
Introduction; This is the final series and I believe I have saved the best till last.
Today I want speak to you on the subject: When we surrender to the Holy Spirit.
When babies are born what does the doctor do? They give the baby a little tap on the bottom. This causes the baby to cry out and began to breath on it’s own. Is this healthy? Just as breathing, crying and size are all indicators of a newborn physical health; there are no vital signs that tells us how healthy a church is. However the most vital sign is love.
When we surrender to the Holy Spirit….
1. We love the unlovable. No wonder Jesus said, :By this shall know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:35. Notice the spiritual health of any congregation. It doesn’t say:
* By the size of your congregation will all men know that you are my disciples.
* By the square footage of you building that all men will know that you are my disciples.
* By how high the steeple is on the building that all men will know that you are my disciples
What really counts is love. But the Word of God goes even further:
Paul explains, “We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.” I Thessalonians 2:8. No wonder Paul’s message reached the hearts of people. His words were not just lip service but they were from the heart. What would make a person not only give his service to people but his very own life? It is love. He was willing to sacrifice his life because the people were so dear to him. We see a man motivated by the strongest force in the universe. God’s love replicated in and through him. Paul was a great apostle. He was a great minister. But that kind of love is not just reserved for ministers. It is God’s purpose for every one of us.
A life of love is the only way to please the Lord. Since God is an emotional being he experiences joy and sadness just as we do. Our love for people can cause him to rejoice over us with singing! What an amazing thought!
Paul makes it clear in Col.1:10 that we can please Him. “And we pray this is in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in knowledge of God.”
Although He is beyond our comprehension, omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient, his heart can still be touched by our loving actions.
When we surrender to the Holy Spirit: We love the unlovable.
2. We are drawn into fellowship. My wife and I do to dinner together. And we’re people watchers. Every once in while, we see a couple together, during the entire dinner, they do not say two words to each other. What’s up with that? These individuals have the legal documents. But do have fellowship with each other? How can a relationship exist if there is no intimacy with each other?
All Christians have a relationship with God. He is our Father. (Abba) But just because we have a relationship doesn’t mean we have the kind of fellowship God planned for us.
We have no better model for us than Jesus. He often withdrew to a lonely place and prayed. He needed direction from the Father. So he spent a great deal of time alone with God the Father. While communicating with the Father Jesus was directed to pick twelve men to be his followers. Mark3:3-15. “Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, they came to him. He appointed twelve, designating them Apostles, that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach and have authority to drive out demons.”
Isn’t that interesting that Jesus choose the 12 so that they might be with Him! When Jesus called someone, fellowship was part of the deal. Therefore fellowship with Jesus should be part of the deal. It’s easy to get too busy, jobs, fb, tv, ministry.
How many of you have grandkids? I love spending time with my grandkids. I love to see them come and I love to see them go. But when I’m with my grandkids I love on them. I so enjoy being with them. Loving them. It is wonderful fellowship.
In just the same way the Lord is that type of figure. He loves to spend time with children. He wants us to come into His presence because He loves us. Romans 8:15. “For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave to fear again but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by Him we cry “Abba” Father. The Spirit himself testifies with our spirits that we are God’s children.”
3. We overcome fear. Fear of rejection. Fear of opposition. Fear of suffering. Fear of failure. 2 Timothy 1:7 says it so well, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
When we surrender to the Holy Spirit, we love the unlovable, we are drown into fellowship and we overcome fear.
4. We can shake the kingdom with our prayers
It was just before down on a chilly day in Palestine about two thousand years ago. Jesus disciples were sound asleep. The disciples were very tired. After all, they had put in a hard days work. But while they enjoyed their rest, someone else was stirring. Although the sun had not yet risen, Jesus got up and walked out of the village where they were staying. He was heading to a deserted place nearby to pray. What an awesome scene! This scene was repeated time and time again during Jesus’ three-year ministry upon this earth. It was a habit for Jesus to get up early and pray. Sometimes with “fervent cries and tears.”
During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of His reverent submission.” Hebrews 5:7
To put it simply he cried out to God. His prayers enabled Him to make decisions. It allowed Him to face the demonic powers that were against Him every day. Now..if He felt He needed to talk with the Father how much more necessary it must be for us. Let’s pray for a relative or a friend who is facing eternity without a Savior. Let’s follow God’s directive and pray.
5. Since the Holy Spirit has come we are no longer spectators. When God’s Spirit moves, there’s a continual process of setting believers apart and sending them out to work for Christ. This is not reserved for just formal ministers. Sometimes we are asked to leave our house and go down the block and encourage a hurting neighbor. Or maybe join a ministry at the church. Or maybe to train our children. Maybe it’s getting involved in a missions project. Or to give ourselves to prayer that transforms lives. When the Spirit is moving life becomes exciting and filled with challenges only God can meet.
The contemporary church seems to leave everything to the professional clergy while everyone sits back and watches. But this goes against God’s plan that we’re all a part of the same body and that He has a specific purpose for each member. Oddly, God often chooses the most unlikely, untrained, and imperfect folks to accomplish amazing things. God choose Abraham, Moses, David and even Peter. These men were not qualified but God used them in mighty way.
This concludes our last message.
Thanks to Mark Van Horn pastor of River of Life HEB.
