It is impossible to try and consider how Church was meant to be without considering the role of the Holy Spirit. Some times the book of Acts is called the “Acts of the Holy Spirit.” The following references reveal that the activities of the Holy Spirit are pivotal to how Church was meant to be.
• Jesus instructs the apostles "through the Holy Spirit" (1:2).
• The first disciples are "baptized with the Holy Spirit" at Pentecost (1:5, 8; 2:1-; 11:15-16).
• The apostles are "full of" or "filled with" the Holy Spirit, esp. when they preach (1:8; 2:4; 4:8, 31; 11:24; 13:9, 52).
• Similarly, the Holy Spirit spoke through King David and the prophets in ancient Israel (1:16; 4:25; 28:25).
• God "will pour out" his Spirit on all people and all nations in the last days (2:17-18, 33; 10:45).
• Believers, including Gentiles, receive the Holy Spirit when they repent and are baptized (2:38; 15:8; 19:5-6).
• Sometimes the reception of the Holy Spirit even precedes baptism (10:44-48).
• Some people "test" or "lie to" or "oppose" the Holy Spirit, with dire consequences (5:1-11; 7:51).
• Deacons and other ministers must also be "full of the Spirit" (6:1-6), esp. when they prophesy (6:10; 7:55-59; 11:28; 21:4).
• The Spirit is conferred through the "laying on of hands" (8:17-19; 9:17; 19:6).
• The Spirit "speaks to" the apostles and prophets (8:29; 10:19; 11:12; 13:1-4; 21:11).
• The Spirit leads and guides the decisions and actions of the Christian leaders (15:28; 16:6-7; 19:21; 20:22-23).
As we considered last week, it is possible for us to impose cultural, denominational and personal influences upon the how Church is meant to be and I believe it is also possible for those same influences to be imposed upon how the Holy Spirit is meant to function in the Church.
• Some claim it’s the Holy Spirit telling them what to do when it is really themselves wanting their own way.
• Some have claimed God has spoken to them and have brought false prophecy, given bad advice and led people astray.
• Some people just want the Holy Spirit to do everything for them & make their every decision. This is immaturity. God expects us to grow up. If you are making a bad decision the Holy Spirit will tell you.
• Some times people are so fearful of getting it wrong that they don’t do anything the Spirit says. Better to have a go, get it wrong and experience God’s grace to allow you to have another go.
• Some just don’t allow the Holy Spirit to be active in their church. As I said last week, a church without the Holy Spirit is like a car without an engine. You’ll get somewhere in it but it will be very slow and you’ll have to do all the pushing.
Church as it was meant to be is a Holy Spirit-welcoming community of Saints. If I can put it as simply as possible, when the church is as it was meant to be, ‘the Holy Spirit filled them and they followed Him.’ So my challenge and question for us at ECC today is, ‘are we filled and are we following?’
Moody was to have a campaign in England. An elderly pastor protested, "Why do we need this ’Mr. Moody’? He’s uneducated, inexperienced, etc. Who does he think he is anyway? Does he think he has a monopoly on the Holy Spirit?" A younger, wiser pastor rose and responded, "No, but the Holy Spirit has a monopoly on Mr. Moody."
ARE YOU FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT?
Jesus often reminded His followers that the Holy Spirit was coming; something fuller or something greater of His Holy Spirit’s presence was still to come. "But I tell you it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away the Helper shall not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you." [see Jn 16:5-7] We must never forget that, because Jesus went via the cross, the promises of God are "Yes and Amen" in Christ Jesus. In other words, they are there for us to receive by faith. 2 Cor 1:20
Jesus didn’t say that He would only send the Holy Spirit to some believers, nor did He say it was only for those who belong to a particular denomination or who are in a higher scale of spirituality. Jesus has simply said, “If I go I will send Him to you." Jn 16:5-7
Jesus keeps His promises and on the Day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit came not only to the apostles but to every disciple of Jesus, including all the women that were waiting in the upper room. [see Act 1-2]
Before the Day of Pentecost Jesus told His disciples to "ASK." Luke 11:13
After His resurrection, He told them to "WAIT." Acts 1:4
After the Day of Pentecost the emphasis was on "RECEIVING." Acts 2:38
God sent his Holy Spirit because he meant His Church to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
Are you Filled with the Holy Spirit?
There are three simple steps to being baptized with the Holy Spirit. Acknowledgement of the Gift, Asking for the Gift and Accepting the Gift.
A man called Simon, in Acts chapter eight, wanted to buy the Gift of the Holy Spirit. As you can imagine, this is impossible because like any gift, baptism with the Holy Spirit is FREE, out of love and the only profit to be made from being baptized with the Holy Spirit is that God is honored and praised.
1. Before you can receive any gift you must acknowledge that it is there. It is the same with the Gift of the Holy Spirit; you must ACKNOWLEDGE that on the Day of Pentecost God has given the Gift of the Holy Spirit to His Church, because He loves His children. This means, if you are a member of the family of God, His Church, then the Gift of the Holy Spirit that God has given is for you.
2. Having acknowledged the Gift is there for you, you now need to begin ASKING to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit into your own life. You can ask God to baptize you with the Holy Spirit at any time and in any place. You can be on your own, or you can ask another Christian to lay hands on you and pray that you will receive God’s Gift into you life.
3. The most important step to being baptized with the Holy Spirit is ACCEPTING God’s Gift into your life. You can only accept by faith, believing and not doubting that God is going to baptize you with His Holy Spirit. It is only by faith that you can be baptized with the Holy Spirit because you cannot see or touch the Holy Spirit. However, you will most certainly see the difference that baptism with the Holy Spirit makes to your life.
Romans 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
How Can You Be Sure You Have Been Baptized with the Holy Spirit?
The Christians at Ephesus knew they had not been baptized with the Holy Spirit. Paul, however, knew he had been baptized with the Holy Spirit. So there must have been a notable difference between Paul and the Christians at Ephesus Acts 19:1-7
There are two clear signs that a person has been baptized with the Holy Spirit.
Firstly, what the Bible calls "Tongues" and secondly, your life will have a new courage to serve God.
The very first thing to happen to you after you have been baptized with the Holy Spirit will be the Holy Spirit enabling you to speak with new "Tongues" Acts 2:4 Acts 19:6
What most people find difficult about being baptized with the Holy Spirit is being released in new tongues. They sometimes think they are making the tongues up in their mind or copying what they have heard others say. We all know the wise saying, “it is best to think before you speak.” But when it comes to baptism with the Holy Spirit, it is best to speak, however strange the words or sounds, before you think. You must simply trust the Holy Spirit to give you the new tongues to pray, to praise and to build yourself up spiritually. 1 Cor. 14:4
Baptism with the Holy Spirit is not a matter of feelings but it is about receiving by faith what your heavenly Father desires to put into you life.
The boldness that the Holy Spirit brings to our lives, to witness the Gospel of Christ, is clearly seen in the difference between the actions of the disciples before and after the Day of Pentecost. No longer were they hiding and denying their faith in Christ but declaring it to all {see Acts 1:8}.
ARE YOU FOLLOWING THE HOLY SPIRIT?
If the pouring out of the Holy is pivotal to how church was meant to be then it is vital that we keep following the Holy Spirit.
I don’t want to talk about methods for hearing and doing the will of the Holy Spirit as that is for another time. I want to keep it simple: to keep following the Holy Spirit you must keep being filled with the Holy Spirit.
Baptism in the Holy Spirit was not a one off event in Acts 2. It was still happening in Acts 19.
As time went on in the church, the message to Spirit-Filled Saints was, “Be being Filled with the Holy Spirit.” “Keep the fire of the Spirit burning.” 2 Timothy 1:6
Being filled with the holy spirit does not mean you will be free from troubles. The early church faced many hardships and heartaches, as do people here. But the early Church spread and stayed the course because they had the courage, boldness, power, love and joy of the Holy Spirit in their lives.
