Podcasts about holy spirit matt

What Is the Trinity?   Sometimes people use three different names when referring to God: God or Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. But these are more than simply different names for one person; they are, in fact, the names of three very distinct persons. But even though God the Father, God the Son (Jesus), and God the Holy Spirit have eternally existed as three distinct persons, there is only one God. This is called the doctrine of the Trinity. The idea of three persons and only one God is difficult to understand completely. Even so, it is one of the most important ideas of the Christian faith.   The Bible's View of the Trinity   The word “trinity” is never found in the Bible, but the idea represented by the word is affirmed in many places. For instance, in Genesis 1:26 God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” His use of “us” and “our” implies that more than one person was involved in creation. The only other beings that God could possibly be referring to are angels, but we are not made in the image of angels but “in the image of God” (Gen. 1:27), so this verse must imply that there is more than one person in God.   When Jesus was baptized, “the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and … a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased' ” (Matt. 3:16–17). At this moment, all three members of the Trinity were performing three distinct activities: God the Father was speaking, God the Son was being baptized, and God the Holy Spirit was resting on the Son.   Similarly, when Jesus sent his disciples out to do their work, he commanded them to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19). In saying this, Jesus is affirming that all three members of the Trinity are distinct in their personhood (the Father can't be the Son, for example). Jude 20–21 also affirms the three distinct persons in the Trinity: “Pray in the Holy Spirit; keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

This message was given by Pastor Dan Greenfield during Orwell Bible Church's morning service, June 23, 2024. The one true God perfectly and eternally exists in three persons who are each fully God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matt 28:19; 2 Cor 13:14).You can download this outline to follow along and take notes. 

Although the word church is not used in these verses, it is used throughout Ephesians. The Greek word for church is ekklesia and means, assembly, gathering, community, congregation, or as you know it church. That is its meaning on the surface but dive a little deeper into the meaning of ekklesia and you will discover that the word is made up of a prefix and a root. The prefix is ek and means out of, and the root is kaleō, which means, call or summon. All I want you to know and appreciate is that the word for church (ekklesia) literally means, the community of called out ones. If you are a Christian, then you belong to the ekklesia of Jesus Christ; you have been called out of the world: But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a Holy nation, a people for Gods own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light (1 Pet. 2:9). If you are a Christian, your identity is now in Jesus and is the reason why He prayed this for you: I am not asking on behalf of these alone, but also for those who believe in Me through their word, that they may all be one; just as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me (John 17:20-21). If you are a Christian, you belong to Him as His Church. Nine times the word ekklesia is used in Ephesians, but the Church is also referred to as the body (sōma) in Ephesians 4:4 and six more times throughout the epistle (see 1:23; 2:16; 4:12, 16; 5:23, 30). To be the body of Christ is to belong to Christ and to be in Christ. In and through Jesus we now belong as the ekklesia and our identity will forever be linked to Him as His Bride. So, dear Christian, is it any wonder that it is Jesus who assures His Church who is His Bride, who is His body: Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and Hades (Rev. 1:17b-18). We do not have the time to get into the significance of numbers this morning, but I do want to point out three significant numbers in these verses that are easy to miss if someone doesnt point them out to you. First, the number one signifies unity in the Bible. The number seven signifies perfection or completion in the Bible. Finally, the number three, for reasons that will soon become clear. Paul is emphasizing the need for unity in the opening verses of Ephesians 4, and urges the Church to be zealous, to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. This is why he emphasized that there is one body, one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God that we, as the Church of Jesus Christ, share. Now, notice how many ones the apostle lists in these verses; he lists seven ones symbolizing that what binds us together as the Bride of Christ is complete and perfectly as God intended it. Finally, and the neatest part of these verses in my opinion is the number three, and you can see it with each of these verses: We are, one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling this is due to the work of the Holy Spirit, as God the Spirit. We have one Lord, one faith, and one baptism because of the redeeming work of Jesus Christ, as God the Son. We worship, one Father of all who is over all and through all and in all who is God the Father. The significance of the number three is that it is symbolic of the God who we worship who is Three-in-One as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. There are two ways I can break down these verses in this sermon. I was tempted to create seven points for each of the reasons why we must, urgently keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (v. 3). I have chosen the second way I can break down these verses and it the outline Paul intentionally provided for us based on God as a Trinity. Notice that in Ephesians 1:3-14, Paul begins with the Father who has chosen us, then the Son who has Redeemed us, and then the Holy Spirit who has sealed us. Here in Ephesians 4:4-6, Paul begins from the ground up with the Holy Spirit who keeps us in power, the Son of God who walks with us in love, and the Father who is sovereignly for us. In light of all of the craziness in our nation and world, I cannot think of a more appropriate or more comforting passage in the Bible for this Sunday. The Holy Spirit Keeps His Church Powerfully (v. 4) There is only one body that is the Church, and that one body is defined by the Spirit of God: keeps all who have been redeemed through the blood of the Jesus (1:7) by sealing them as Gods inheritance that He promises to never lose (1:13-14). Listen, just as your physical body cannot live apart from your soul, it is equally true the Church is not really the Church apart from the Spirit of God in Her. If you are a Christian, it is because you heard the gospel of Jesus Christ and believed it. In the moment you believed the gospel, you were baptized by the Holy Spirit (Matt. 3:11; Luke 3:16; Rom. 6:1-7). When you were baptized by the Holy, you experienced what was promised in Ezekiel 36:26-27, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and bring it about that you walk in My statutes, and are careful and follow My ordinances. This is the promise Jesus said all who belong to Him would receive: I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, so that He may be with you forever; the Helper is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him; but you know Him because He remains with you and will be in you (John 14:15-17). If you are a Christian, then you who were once dead in your sins are now alive in Jesus and the evidence that you are alive in Jesus is the inward and outward work of the Holy Spirit who you were baptized in, sealed by, and are now experiencing His regenerative power in your life. What you experienced is the same thing that every other true born-again Christian has experienced; that miracle is described for us in 2 Corinthians 4:6, For God, who said, Light shall shine out of darkness, is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. The true body of Christ is sealed by the lifegiving Spirit of God, and the one hope that is shared by every true Christian who makes up the Church of Christ is a single and unified hope that is rooted in a Jesus who not only died for sinners and rose from the grave, but is coming again to make all things new and to reverse the curse of sin! The hope of the true Christian is the hope of the true Church: We long for the return of Jesus who is, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come (Eph. 1:20-21), and as the body of Christ, we echo the same desire the apostle John shared in his concluding prayer in the book of Revelation: Come, Lord Jesus (Rev. 22:20). If you are a Christian, you belong to one body because of one Spirit, evidenced by one hope of your calling. The Son of God Walks with His Church Lovingly (v. 5) Another reason why we ought to be zealous, to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace is because, as the body of Christ, we share one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. The one Lord is Jesus, the one faith is His gospel, and the one baptism is the public confession that He is both savior and Lord over our lives through the waters of baptism. So, lets briefly look at each of these three statements individually. Jesus is Lord. There can be no other lord or lords if you are a Christian! What this means is that the body of Christ and those who truly belong to His body accept, embrace, and follow the Jesus revealed in the Bible. Who is the Jesus revealed in the Bible? He is the One who claimed: I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me (John 14:6). He is the One who asserts Himself with the proclamation: I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and Hades (Rev. 1:17b-18). It is this Christ that every true believer celebrates as the One who is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He who is the head of the body, the church; and He who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything (Col. 1:17-18). It is to Him all authority belongs and it is before Him that every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:11). Jesus is Lord, and because He is Lord, those who truly belong to Him follow where He goes (Luke 14:26-27), and go where He sends (Matthew 28:19-20). Jesus is Lord because He is, the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end (Rev. 22:13). Jesus is He, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty (Rev. 1:8). Jesus is Lord and it is the recognition of and submission to His lordship that marks every true Christian who makes up His Church. The one faith we share as His Church is a confidence in Jesus as Lord. The Greek word for faith is pistis which is confidence in the thing that you believe is indeed true! The faith Paul is speaking of is so much more than the acknowledgment of certain facts about Jesus such as His life, death for sin, and resurrection. No, the faith that marks the true body of Christ is a confidence that He is all that He claimed to be and all that He did and all that He is is enough for our life, salvation, and our complete redemption. It is our one faith in Him that compels us to follow Him! Oh, dear friends, in light of His Lordship and the faith you claim to have in Him, consider the words of our dear Savior: Now why do you call Me, Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say (Luke 6:46)? It is because of Christs Lordship and our confidence in all that He did and all that He is that we share in one baptism. Now the baptism Paul is referring is in reference to water baptism, but it is so much more than water baptism, for it is the underlining reason why water baptism is not a way to complete your salvation but the next step of obedience to Jesus as a result of your salvation. One of the passages in the Bible I like to use during our baptism services is Romans 6:3-4, Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life. Water Baptism is the outward sign of a new identity that is rooted in Jesus death and resurrection which is the reason for the new life as His redeemed people. This is also the reason Jesus commanded His Church: Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age (Matt. 28:19-20). If you are a Christian, it is because of One Lord, one faith, and one baptism! God the Father is Sovereignly for His Church Eternally (v. 6) If you are a Christian, God is your Father! This ought to compel in us an urgency and zeal to, keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (v. 3). Surely it is because we share, one hope, one Holy Spirit, one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. However all of this is because of the sovereign will of God the Father who, according to Ephesians 5-6, In love predestined us to adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will. What unifies us across denominational lines as brothers and sisters who make up the body of Christ is the Holy Spirit who seals us as His own, the hope of the saving work of Jesus, the allegiance to the Lordship of Christ, a confidence that He is enough, and the evidence that we have gone from darkness to light and death to life. Because of this, we who were once sons of disobedience and children of wrath, now have been reconciled to God as his children; what unifies us now is that God is our Father! What unifies us is that we can celebrate with confidence the assurance of 1 John 3:1, See how great a love the Father has given us, that we would be called children of God; and in fact we are. For this reason the world does not know us: because it did not know Him. But dear brothers and sisters, we now know the God who we used to run from, and now we can call him Father! This is why the all Paul is referring to in verse 6 are all true Christians regardless of the secondary issues we disagree on. This final and important point serves as the climax of Ephesians 4:1-6, Our God and Father is, over all and through all and in all. Dont miss this! The three alls here are referring to the one body of Christ who is sealed by one Spirit, because we share one hope, have one Lord, share one faith, who are identified by one baptism, and belong to one God is now our Father. Because of this our Father is over all believers, through all believers, and in all believers. Let me say it another way: Our God and Father is lovingly and sovereignly over all His redeemed children. Our God and Father is lovingly working through all His redeemed children. Our God and Father is lovingly residing in all His redeemed children. So what are the hills we ought to be dying on? There are seven of them listed for us in these verses: There is one body and one Spirit, just as you also were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all (vv. 4-6). The question I leave you with is this: In light of what unifies us, how are you doing with Ephesians 4:1-3? How are you, walking in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, being zealous to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace? Amen.

Although the word church is not used in these verses, it is used throughout Ephesians. The Greek word for church is ekklesia and means, assembly, gathering, community, congregation, or as you know it church. That is its meaning on the surface but dive a little deeper into the meaning of ekklesia and you will discover that the word is made up of a prefix and a root. The prefix is ek and means out of, and the root is kaleō, which means, call or summon. All I want you to know and appreciate is that the word for church (ekklesia) literally means, the community of called out ones. If you are a Christian, then you belong to the ekklesia of Jesus Christ; you have been called out of the world: But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a Holy nation, a people for Gods own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light (1 Pet. 2:9). If you are a Christian, your identity is now in Jesus and is the reason why He prayed this for you: I am not asking on behalf of these alone, but also for those who believe in Me through their word, that they may all be one; just as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me (John 17:20-21). If you are a Christian, you belong to Him as His Church. Nine times the word ekklesia is used in Ephesians, but the Church is also referred to as the body (sōma) in Ephesians 4:4 and six more times throughout the epistle (see 1:23; 2:16; 4:12, 16; 5:23, 30). To be the body of Christ is to belong to Christ and to be in Christ. In and through Jesus we now belong as the ekklesia and our identity will forever be linked to Him as His Bride. So, dear Christian, is it any wonder that it is Jesus who assures His Church who is His Bride, who is His body: Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and Hades (Rev. 1:17b-18). We do not have the time to get into the significance of numbers this morning, but I do want to point out three significant numbers in these verses that are easy to miss if someone doesnt point them out to you. First, the number one signifies unity in the Bible. The number seven signifies perfection or completion in the Bible. Finally, the number three, for reasons that will soon become clear. Paul is emphasizing the need for unity in the opening verses of Ephesians 4, and urges the Church to be zealous, to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. This is why he emphasized that there is one body, one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God that we, as the Church of Jesus Christ, share. Now, notice how many ones the apostle lists in these verses; he lists seven ones symbolizing that what binds us together as the Bride of Christ is complete and perfectly as God intended it. Finally, and the neatest part of these verses in my opinion is the number three, and you can see it with each of these verses: We are, one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling this is due to the work of the Holy Spirit, as God the Spirit. We have one Lord, one faith, and one baptism because of the redeeming work of Jesus Christ, as God the Son. We worship, one Father of all who is over all and through all and in all who is God the Father. The significance of the number three is that it is symbolic of the God who we worship who is Three-in-One as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. There are two ways I can break down these verses in this sermon. I was tempted to create seven points for each of the reasons why we must, urgently keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (v. 3). I have chosen the second way I can break down these verses and it the outline Paul intentionally provided for us based on God as a Trinity. Notice that in Ephesians 1:3-14, Paul begins with the Father who has chosen us, then the Son who has Redeemed us, and then the Holy Spirit who has sealed us. Here in Ephesians 4:4-6, Paul begins from the ground up with the Holy Spirit who keeps us in power, the Son of God who walks with us in love, and the Father who is sovereignly for us. In light of all of the craziness in our nation and world, I cannot think of a more appropriate or more comforting passage in the Bible for this Sunday. The Holy Spirit Keeps His Church Powerfully (v. 4) There is only one body that is the Church, and that one body is defined by the Spirit of God: keeps all who have been redeemed through the blood of the Jesus (1:7) by sealing them as Gods inheritance that He promises to never lose (1:13-14). Listen, just as your physical body cannot live apart from your soul, it is equally true the Church is not really the Church apart from the Spirit of God in Her. If you are a Christian, it is because you heard the gospel of Jesus Christ and believed it. In the moment you believed the gospel, you were baptized by the Holy Spirit (Matt. 3:11; Luke 3:16; Rom. 6:1-7). When you were baptized by the Holy, you experienced what was promised in Ezekiel 36:26-27, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and bring it about that you walk in My statutes, and are careful and follow My ordinances. This is the promise Jesus said all who belong to Him would receive: I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, so that He may be with you forever; the Helper is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him; but you know Him because He remains with you and will be in you (John 14:15-17). If you are a Christian, then you who were once dead in your sins are now alive in Jesus and the evidence that you are alive in Jesus is the inward and outward work of the Holy Spirit who you were baptized in, sealed by, and are now experiencing His regenerative power in your life. What you experienced is the same thing that every other true born-again Christian has experienced; that miracle is described for us in 2 Corinthians 4:6, For God, who said, Light shall shine out of darkness, is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. The true body of Christ is sealed by the lifegiving Spirit of God, and the one hope that is shared by every true Christian who makes up the Church of Christ is a single and unified hope that is rooted in a Jesus who not only died for sinners and rose from the grave, but is coming again to make all things new and to reverse the curse of sin! The hope of the true Christian is the hope of the true Church: We long for the return of Jesus who is, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come (Eph. 1:20-21), and as the body of Christ, we echo the same desire the apostle John shared in his concluding prayer in the book of Revelation: Come, Lord Jesus (Rev. 22:20). If you are a Christian, you belong to one body because of one Spirit, evidenced by one hope of your calling. The Son of God Walks with His Church Lovingly (v. 5) Another reason why we ought to be zealous, to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace is because, as the body of Christ, we share one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. The one Lord is Jesus, the one faith is His gospel, and the one baptism is the public confession that He is both savior and Lord over our lives through the waters of baptism. So, lets briefly look at each of these three statements individually. Jesus is Lord. There can be no other lord or lords if you are a Christian! What this means is that the body of Christ and those who truly belong to His body accept, embrace, and follow the Jesus revealed in the Bible. Who is the Jesus revealed in the Bible? He is the One who claimed: I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me (John 14:6). He is the One who asserts Himself with the proclamation: I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and Hades (Rev. 1:17b-18). It is this Christ that every true believer celebrates as the One who is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He who is the head of the body, the church; and He who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything (Col. 1:17-18). It is to Him all authority belongs and it is before Him that every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:11). Jesus is Lord, and because He is Lord, those who truly belong to Him follow where He goes (Luke 14:26-27), and go where He sends (Matthew 28:19-20). Jesus is Lord because He is, the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end (Rev. 22:13). Jesus is He, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty (Rev. 1:8). Jesus is Lord and it is the recognition of and submission to His lordship that marks every true Christian who makes up His Church. The one faith we share as His Church is a confidence in Jesus as Lord. The Greek word for faith is pistis which is confidence in the thing that you believe is indeed true! The faith Paul is speaking of is so much more than the acknowledgment of certain facts about Jesus such as His life, death for sin, and resurrection. No, the faith that marks the true body of Christ is a confidence that He is all that He claimed to be and all that He did and all that He is is enough for our life, salvation, and our complete redemption. It is our one faith in Him that compels us to follow Him! Oh, dear friends, in light of His Lordship and the faith you claim to have in Him, consider the words of our dear Savior: Now why do you call Me, Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say (Luke 6:46)? It is because of Christs Lordship and our confidence in all that He did and all that He is that we share in one baptism. Now the baptism Paul is referring is in reference to water baptism, but it is so much more than water baptism, for it is the underlining reason why water baptism is not a way to complete your salvation but the next step of obedience to Jesus as a result of your salvation. One of the passages in the Bible I like to use during our baptism services is Romans 6:3-4, Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life. Water Baptism is the outward sign of a new identity that is rooted in Jesus death and resurrection which is the reason for the new life as His redeemed people. This is also the reason Jesus commanded His Church: Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age (Matt. 28:19-20). If you are a Christian, it is because of One Lord, one faith, and one baptism! God the Father is Sovereignly for His Church Eternally (v. 6) If you are a Christian, God is your Father! This ought to compel in us an urgency and zeal to, keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (v. 3). Surely it is because we share, one hope, one Holy Spirit, one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. However all of this is because of the sovereign will of God the Father who, according to Ephesians 5-6, In love predestined us to adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will. What unifies us across denominational lines as brothers and sisters who make up the body of Christ is the Holy Spirit who seals us as His own, the hope of the saving work of Jesus, the allegiance to the Lordship of Christ, a confidence that He is enough, and the evidence that we have gone from darkness to light and death to life. Because of this, we who were once sons of disobedience and children of wrath, now have been reconciled to God as his children; what unifies us now is that God is our Father! What unifies us is that we can celebrate with confidence the assurance of 1 John 3:1, See how great a love the Father has given us, that we would be called children of God; and in fact we are. For this reason the world does not know us: because it did not know Him. But dear brothers and sisters, we now know the God who we used to run from, and now we can call him Father! This is why the all Paul is referring to in verse 6 are all true Christians regardless of the secondary issues we disagree on. This final and important point serves as the climax of Ephesians 4:1-6, Our God and Father is, over all and through all and in all. Dont miss this! The three alls here are referring to the one body of Christ who is sealed by one Spirit, because we share one hope, have one Lord, share one faith, who are identified by one baptism, and belong to one God is now our Father. Because of this our Father is over all believers, through all believers, and in all believers. Let me say it another way: Our God and Father is lovingly and sovereignly over all His redeemed children. Our God and Father is lovingly working through all His redeemed children. Our God and Father is lovingly residing in all His redeemed children. So what are the hills we ought to be dying on? There are seven of them listed for us in these verses: There is one body and one Spirit, just as you also were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all (vv. 4-6). The question I leave you with is this: In light of what unifies us, how are you doing with Ephesians 4:1-3? How are you, walking in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, being zealous to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace? Amen.

Aspects of the Holy Spirit - Matt Hama, Rachel Sousa, Daniel Smith | May 26, 2024 The Way Church is a church in Vancouver joining Jesus in the restoration of all things. For more information, visit our website at http://thewaychurch.ca LINKS Connect Form: http://connect.thewaychurch.ca Kids: http://thewaychurch.ca/kids Youth: http://thewaychurch.ca/youth Alpha: http://thewaychurch.ca/alpha

The Holy Spirit loves reaching the world with the knowledge of Jesus, so we have everyday kairos opportunities to join with him in this work.  Pastor Matt shares about how much fun it is to join with the Holy Spirit in reaching your individual sphere of influence.

Before we can jump into Ephesians 1:13-14, I must address what or who it is that Paul is talking about in these verses. Until you understand what or who the apostle is talking about in these verses, you cannot understand or feel the gravity of Ephesians 1:13-14 upon your life. So, to feel the full weight of these verses, permit me to introduce you to the Holy Spirit. The first time we are introduced to the Holy Spirit is in Genesis 1:1-2 with these words: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was a formless and desolate emptiness, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word for Spirit is raḥ, which can also mean wind or breath, but when used in association with God, it often refers to the Holy Spirit, not as a thing or a characteristic like love or holiness, but a person. This same word is used in Ezekiel 36: And I will put My Spirit within you and bring it about that you walk in My statutes, and are careful and follow My ordinances (v. 27). So, when we read through the Bible what we discover about the Holy Spirit is exhaustive. Of the Holy Spirit, we discover that He is the giver of life (Gen. 1:2; Ps. 33:6; 104:27-30). As the giver of life, He raised Jesus from the grave on the third day and will give life to the body of every person who is joined to Him by faith, through a physical resurrection like the one Jesus experienced (see Rom. 8:11). As the giver of life, He caused Mary to conceive with the incarnation of Jesus (Luke 1:35, 41-42). The Holy Spirit anointed Jesus before He performed any miracle, after He was baptized by John, as a way of giving life and power to His earthly ministry; it is important to note that at Jesus baptism all three persons were present and witnessed: After He was baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and settling on Him, and behold, a voice from the heavens said, This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased (Matt. 3:16-17; see also Mark 1:10; Luke 3:22; John 1:32). Throughout the Bible, what we discover is that the Holy Spirit sustains and empowers the people of God to do the work of God. The Holy Spirit indwelled and led Israel out of the slavery of Egypt into the wilderness (Isa. 63:11-14), the Holy Spirit empowered Israels judges after they entered the promised land (i.e. Judges 6:34), and anointed Israels kings to lead the nation (i.e. 1 Sam. 9:27-10:1; 16:1, 13). From the beginning Gods plan was to do the same not just for a select few, but for all of His people as foretold in Joel 2:28-29, It will come about after this that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; and your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your old men will have dreams, your young men will see visions. And even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days (Joel 2:2829). Gods promise from the beginning was that a deliverer would come, and that deliver was God in the person of Jesus the Son; this is the great theme of the Bible. This is why the Bible declares: For the Son of God, Christ Jesus, who was preached among you was not yes and no, but has been yes in Him. For as many as the promises of God are, in Him they are yes; therefore through Him also is our Amen to the glory of God through us (2 Cor. 1:19-20). In other words, there is no pouring out of the Holy Spirit apart from the redemption that can only come through the shed blood of the Son of God for, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us (Eph. 1:7). Against the backdrop of all we have considered so far, I want you to listen to Ephesians 1:13-14, for it will help you feel the weight of these verses for your life today: In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvationhaving also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of the promise, who is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of Gods own possession, to the praise of His glory (Eph. 1:1314). But the question still must be answered: Who or what is the Holy Spirit? Not long before Jesus died to redeem lost sinners by going to the cross, He made a promise to His disciples, and that promise was the coming of the Holy Spirit. We find Jesus promise in John 14; Jesus told them He would be betrayed and would go to a place that they would not be able go (John 13:33). Jesus then consoled His disciples by telling them that He was going to prepare a place for them where they would one day live (14:1-6), but consider carefully what Jesus promised to His disciples that they would receive in His physical absence: I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, so that He may be with you forever; the Helper is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him; but you know Him because He remains with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you. After a little while, the world no longer is going to see Me, but you are going to see Me; because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I in you. (John 14:1620) How will Jesus not leave His disciples as orphans? He will ask the Father to send them the Helper who is the Holy Spirit. It is possible that verses 18-20 are referring to Jesus resurrection, but even after His resurrection, He ascended to heaven after He again promised to send them the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8). I think that when Jesus assured them, I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you that He was referring to the Helper because of what Jesus said in John 16:13, But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come (John 16:13). Who is the Holy Spirit? Well, when Ananias lied to the apostle Peter about what he and his wife had sold and given to the Church, Ananias was told: Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the proceeds of the land? You have not lied to men, but to God (see Acts 5:1-16). The Holy Spirit is not a power, a force, or a character trait of God; the Holy Spirit is a Person, and He is God. As God, the Holy Spirit can be everywhere at once (Ps. 104:30), He is all-knowing (1 Cor. 2:10-11). Jesus said that the one unforgivable sin was the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit which I believe is unbelief in the Jesus that the Holy Spirit anointed and affirmed to be the Christ (Matt. 12:31-32). And like the Father and the Son, the Holy Spirt can be grieved by the way we live our lives and how we treat one another (Eph. 4:3-32). The Holy Spirit is not an awkward member of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit is equal to the Father as He is equal to the Son because He is also fully God. In his book, Simply Trinity, Matthew Barrett put it this way: The Father does not exist without his Son, the Son does not exist without his Father, and the Spirit does not exist without the Father and the Son[1] The Trinity is not God divided into three parts as if 1/3 of God is the Father, 1/3 of God is the Son, and 1/3 of God is the Holy Spirit. What we see in Ephesians 1:1-14 is a Father who orchestrated our redemption, a Jesus sent from the Father to purchase our redemption, and the Spirit sent by both the Father and the Son to secure and preserve our redemption. How is the Holy Spirit Preserving Your Salvation? Look at verse 13 again: In Him (that is God), you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvationhaving also believed YOU WERE SEALED! What does that mean? To be sealed in the Holy Spirit simply means that I am secure in Jesus Christ and now I belong to God as His child and the only One who has the authority to remove the Holy Spirit from me is the God who chose me in Jesus (v. 4), and who purchased my redemption through the blood of Jesus (v. 7). I am sealed because the blood of Jesus secured for me the forgiveness of my wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on me (vv. 7-8). I am sealed because in Jesus, I have obtained an inheritance by Gods sovereign decree to make me His son before the foundation of the rest of creation was even laid (v. 11), and what is the guarantee that God has done all of that through the Son is the preserving power of His all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-pervasive Spirit. The moment you heard the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, you were baptized by the Holy Spirit (Matt. 3:11; Luke 3:16; Rom. 6:1-7). This is not a mystical event where you feel something strange, but it is a supernatural event where upon your belief in Jesus Christ, you experience what Deuteronomy 30:6 and Ezekiel 36:25-27 spoke of when the Holy Spirit regenerated your dead soul just as Jesus said had to happen for new birth to happen (John 3:1-15). The supernatural phenomenon that happens with the baptism of the Holy Spirit is that you are now able to respond to God in love and faith in a way you were unable to previously. Why the Holy Spirit Cannot be Manipulated. For about two weeks now, there has been one thought that has haunted me during the day and in the night hours that I believe that if I did not share it with you, I would be disobedient to my God. Because the Holy Spirit is not a force, and because He is God, you must understand that He cannot be manipulated by cheap tricks or recipes couched in religious language. He is God and nothing less! There is a passage that has overshadowed my thoughts as I prepared this sermon, and it is found in Isaiah 46:9-10; here is what it declares: I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, My plan will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure (Isa. 46:910). He declares the end from the beginning because He is infinitely sovereign, and what He is doing from beginning to end and beyond is that He is accomplishing all His good pleasure! His good pleasure includes sealing you with His Holy Spirit, which is a first instalment (down payment) of an inheritance that is guaranteed to all He has chosen and redeemed. If you are a Christian, the inheritance that we are sealed for includes the reality that today you are a son/daughter of the almighty God (v. 5), you are forgiven (v. 7), you are a new creation in Christ (vv. 9-10), and you have glorious inheritance waiting for you that will never fade with time, can never be destroyed, and will forever be untouched by sin (v. 11; see also 1 Pet. 1:3-5). If you are a Christian, the Holy Spirit guarantees that your inheritance includes all things made new (Rev. 21:1-5), all things for your good (Rom. 8:28-30), and all things for Gods glory! Think for a moment what that means in light of all that we have considered in Ephesians 1:1-14, Why has God blessed the Christian with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ? Because He is God, there is no one like Him, He will establish His plan, and will accomplish all His good pleasure. Why did God choose you before the foundation of the world? Because He is God, there is no one like Him, He will establish His plan, and will accomplish all His good pleasure. Why did God predestine you for redemption through His Son? Because He is God, there is no one like Him, He will establish His plan, and will accomplish all His good pleasure. Why did God seal you with His Holy Spirit as a guarantee for an inheritance we do not deserve? Because He is God, there is no one like Him, He will establish His plan, and will accomplish all His good pleasure. According to Ephesians 1:1-14, you have all of Gods love you will ever need, all of the redemption in Jesus that you will ever need, and all of Holy Spirit you will ever need. The question I have for you is threefold: How much of your heart does God have? How much of your loyalty does Jesus have? How much of your life does the Holy Spirit have? We will eventually get to Ephesians 4:30, but consider this verse in light of your identity in Christ: Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. In Ephesians 5, we are told: Be careful how you walk, not as unwise people but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil but be filled with the Spirit (vv. 15-21). When the Holy Spirit has all of you, then you will begin to experience the kind of manipulation that only He can do in your life by shaping you like clay, pruning the dead branches from your life, and applying His holy fire upon your life to remove the dross out from your life. Dear Christian, your sin and unbelief is robing you of the kind of life God intends for you now. How long will you hold back the sin that is sucking the joy out from the life God has purposed for you as His child? In closing, I want you to consider Isaiah 46:9-10 before each section of Ephesians 1:3-14; I want Isaiah 46:9-10 to settle upon your heart like it has for me this past week as I prepared this sermon. I would like you to see Ephesians 1:3-14 in light of Isaiah 46:9-10 before each statement about the Father (3-6), the Son (7-12), and the Holy Spirit (vv. 13-14) in his majestic sentences concerning Gods role in our salvation: God: I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, My plan will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure (Isa. 46:9-10) Paul: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Chris, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, with which He favored us in the Beloved. (Eph. 1:46) God: I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, My plan will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure (Isa. 46:9-10) Paul: In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He set forth in Him, regarding His plan of the fullness of the times, to bring all things together in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him we also have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things in accordance with the plan of His will, to the end that we who were the first to hope in the Christ would be to the praise of His glory. (Eph. 1:712) God: I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, My plan will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure (Isa. 46:9-10) Paul: In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvationhaving also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of the promise, who is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of Gods own possession, to the praise of His glory. (Eph. 1:1314) [1] Matthew Barrett, Simply Trinity (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books; 2021), p. 144.

Before we can jump into Ephesians 1:13-14, I must address what or who it is that Paul is talking about in these verses. Until you understand what or who the apostle is talking about in these verses, you cannot understand or feel the gravity of Ephesians 1:13-14 upon your life. So, to feel the full weight of these verses, permit me to introduce you to the Holy Spirit. The first time we are introduced to the Holy Spirit is in Genesis 1:1-2 with these words: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was a formless and desolate emptiness, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word for Spirit is raḥ, which can also mean wind or breath, but when used in association with God, it often refers to the Holy Spirit, not as a thing or a characteristic like love or holiness, but a person. This same word is used in Ezekiel 36: And I will put My Spirit within you and bring it about that you walk in My statutes, and are careful and follow My ordinances (v. 27). So, when we read through the Bible what we discover about the Holy Spirit is exhaustive. Of the Holy Spirit, we discover that He is the giver of life (Gen. 1:2; Ps. 33:6; 104:27-30). As the giver of life, He raised Jesus from the grave on the third day and will give life to the body of every person who is joined to Him by faith, through a physical resurrection like the one Jesus experienced (see Rom. 8:11). As the giver of life, He caused Mary to conceive with the incarnation of Jesus (Luke 1:35, 41-42). The Holy Spirit anointed Jesus before He performed any miracle, after He was baptized by John, as a way of giving life and power to His earthly ministry; it is important to note that at Jesus baptism all three persons were present and witnessed: After He was baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and settling on Him, and behold, a voice from the heavens said, This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased (Matt. 3:16-17; see also Mark 1:10; Luke 3:22; John 1:32). Throughout the Bible, what we discover is that the Holy Spirit sustains and empowers the people of God to do the work of God. The Holy Spirit indwelled and led Israel out of the slavery of Egypt into the wilderness (Isa. 63:11-14), the Holy Spirit empowered Israels judges after they entered the promised land (i.e. Judges 6:34), and anointed Israels kings to lead the nation (i.e. 1 Sam. 9:27-10:1; 16:1, 13). From the beginning Gods plan was to do the same not just for a select few, but for all of His people as foretold in Joel 2:28-29, It will come about after this that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; and your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your old men will have dreams, your young men will see visions. And even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days (Joel 2:2829). Gods promise from the beginning was that a deliverer would come, and that deliver was God in the person of Jesus the Son; this is the great theme of the Bible. This is why the Bible declares: For the Son of God, Christ Jesus, who was preached among you was not yes and no, but has been yes in Him. For as many as the promises of God are, in Him they are yes; therefore through Him also is our Amen to the glory of God through us (2 Cor. 1:19-20). In other words, there is no pouring out of the Holy Spirit apart from the redemption that can only come through the shed blood of the Son of God for, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us (Eph. 1:7). Against the backdrop of all we have considered so far, I want you to listen to Ephesians 1:13-14, for it will help you feel the weight of these verses for your life today: In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvationhaving also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of the promise, who is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of Gods own possession, to the praise of His glory (Eph. 1:1314). But the question still must be answered: Who or what is the Holy Spirit? Not long before Jesus died to redeem lost sinners by going to the cross, He made a promise to His disciples, and that promise was the coming of the Holy Spirit. We find Jesus promise in John 14; Jesus told them He would be betrayed and would go to a place that they would not be able go (John 13:33). Jesus then consoled His disciples by telling them that He was going to prepare a place for them where they would one day live (14:1-6), but consider carefully what Jesus promised to His disciples that they would receive in His physical absence: I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, so that He may be with you forever; the Helper is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him; but you know Him because He remains with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you. After a little while, the world no longer is going to see Me, but you are going to see Me; because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I in you. (John 14:1620) How will Jesus not leave His disciples as orphans? He will ask the Father to send them the Helper who is the Holy Spirit. It is possible that verses 18-20 are referring to Jesus resurrection, but even after His resurrection, He ascended to heaven after He again promised to send them the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8). I think that when Jesus assured them, I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you that He was referring to the Helper because of what Jesus said in John 16:13, But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come (John 16:13). Who is the Holy Spirit? Well, when Ananias lied to the apostle Peter about what he and his wife had sold and given to the Church, Ananias was told: Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the proceeds of the land? You have not lied to men, but to God (see Acts 5:1-16). The Holy Spirit is not a power, a force, or a character trait of God; the Holy Spirit is a Person, and He is God. As God, the Holy Spirit can be everywhere at once (Ps. 104:30), He is all-knowing (1 Cor. 2:10-11). Jesus said that the one unforgivable sin was the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit which I believe is unbelief in the Jesus that the Holy Spirit anointed and affirmed to be the Christ (Matt. 12:31-32). And like the Father and the Son, the Holy Spirt can be grieved by the way we live our lives and how we treat one another (Eph. 4:3-32). The Holy Spirit is not an awkward member of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit is equal to the Father as He is equal to the Son because He is also fully God. In his book, Simply Trinity, Matthew Barrett put it this way: The Father does not exist without his Son, the Son does not exist without his Father, and the Spirit does not exist without the Father and the Son[1] The Trinity is not God divided into three parts as if 1/3 of God is the Father, 1/3 of God is the Son, and 1/3 of God is the Holy Spirit. What we see in Ephesians 1:1-14 is a Father who orchestrated our redemption, a Jesus sent from the Father to purchase our redemption, and the Spirit sent by both the Father and the Son to secure and preserve our redemption. How is the Holy Spirit Preserving Your Salvation? Look at verse 13 again: In Him (that is God), you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvationhaving also believed YOU WERE SEALED! What does that mean? To be sealed in the Holy Spirit simply means that I am secure in Jesus Christ and now I belong to God as His child and the only One who has the authority to remove the Holy Spirit from me is the God who chose me in Jesus (v. 4), and who purchased my redemption through the blood of Jesus (v. 7). I am sealed because the blood of Jesus secured for me the forgiveness of my wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on me (vv. 7-8). I am sealed because in Jesus, I have obtained an inheritance by Gods sovereign decree to make me His son before the foundation of the rest of creation was even laid (v. 11), and what is the guarantee that God has done all of that through the Son is the preserving power of His all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-pervasive Spirit. The moment you heard the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, you were baptized by the Holy Spirit (Matt. 3:11; Luke 3:16; Rom. 6:1-7). This is not a mystical event where you feel something strange, but it is a supernatural event where upon your belief in Jesus Christ, you experience what Deuteronomy 30:6 and Ezekiel 36:25-27 spoke of when the Holy Spirit regenerated your dead soul just as Jesus said had to happen for new birth to happen (John 3:1-15). The supernatural phenomenon that happens with the baptism of the Holy Spirit is that you are now able to respond to God in love and faith in a way you were unable to previously. Why the Holy Spirit Cannot be Manipulated. For about two weeks now, there has been one thought that has haunted me during the day and in the night hours that I believe that if I did not share it with you, I would be disobedient to my God. Because the Holy Spirit is not a force, and because He is God, you must understand that He cannot be manipulated by cheap tricks or recipes couched in religious language. He is God and nothing less! There is a passage that has overshadowed my thoughts as I prepared this sermon, and it is found in Isaiah 46:9-10; here is what it declares: I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, My plan will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure (Isa. 46:910). He declares the end from the beginning because He is infinitely sovereign, and what He is doing from beginning to end and beyond is that He is accomplishing all His good pleasure! His good pleasure includes sealing you with His Holy Spirit, which is a first instalment (down payment) of an inheritance that is guaranteed to all He has chosen and redeemed. If you are a Christian, the inheritance that we are sealed for includes the reality that today you are a son/daughter of the almighty God (v. 5), you are forgiven (v. 7), you are a new creation in Christ (vv. 9-10), and you have glorious inheritance waiting for you that will never fade with time, can never be destroyed, and will forever be untouched by sin (v. 11; see also 1 Pet. 1:3-5). If you are a Christian, the Holy Spirit guarantees that your inheritance includes all things made new (Rev. 21:1-5), all things for your good (Rom. 8:28-30), and all things for Gods glory! Think for a moment what that means in light of all that we have considered in Ephesians 1:1-14, Why has God blessed the Christian with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ? Because He is God, there is no one like Him, He will establish His plan, and will accomplish all His good pleasure. Why did God choose you before the foundation of the world? Because He is God, there is no one like Him, He will establish His plan, and will accomplish all His good pleasure. Why did God predestine you for redemption through His Son? Because He is God, there is no one like Him, He will establish His plan, and will accomplish all His good pleasure. Why did God seal you with His Holy Spirit as a guarantee for an inheritance we do not deserve? Because He is God, there is no one like Him, He will establish His plan, and will accomplish all His good pleasure. According to Ephesians 1:1-14, you have all of Gods love you will ever need, all of the redemption in Jesus that you will ever need, and all of Holy Spirit you will ever need. The question I have for you is threefold: How much of your heart does God have? How much of your loyalty does Jesus have? How much of your life does the Holy Spirit have? We will eventually get to Ephesians 4:30, but consider this verse in light of your identity in Christ: Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. In Ephesians 5, we are told: Be careful how you walk, not as unwise people but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil but be filled with the Spirit (vv. 15-21). When the Holy Spirit has all of you, then you will begin to experience the kind of manipulation that only He can do in your life by shaping you like clay, pruning the dead branches from your life, and applying His holy fire upon your life to remove the dross out from your life. Dear Christian, your sin and unbelief is robing you of the kind of life God intends for you now. How long will you hold back the sin that is sucking the joy out from the life God has purposed for you as His child? In closing, I want you to consider Isaiah 46:9-10 before each section of Ephesians 1:3-14; I want Isaiah 46:9-10 to settle upon your heart like it has for me this past week as I prepared this sermon. I would like you to see Ephesians 1:3-14 in light of Isaiah 46:9-10 before each statement about the Father (3-6), the Son (7-12), and the Holy Spirit (vv. 13-14) in his majestic sentences concerning Gods role in our salvation: God: I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, My plan will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure (Isa. 46:9-10) Paul: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Chris, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, with which He favored us in the Beloved. (Eph. 1:46) God: I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, My plan will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure (Isa. 46:9-10) Paul: In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He set forth in Him, regarding His plan of the fullness of the times, to bring all things together in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him we also have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things in accordance with the plan of His will, to the end that we who were the first to hope in the Christ would be to the praise of His glory. (Eph. 1:712) God: I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, My plan will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure (Isa. 46:9-10) Paul: In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvationhaving also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of the promise, who is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of Gods own possession, to the praise of His glory. (Eph. 1:1314) [1] Matthew Barrett, Simply Trinity (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books; 2021), p. 144.

One of the most regular prayers we pray at CV is "come, Holy Spirit". It's an everyday cry of desperation for God to come and help us. We don't have to wait for Sunday when we're with our church family, we can ask for the Holy Spirit to come at any moment - and he does! In this message Matt explores how we can look to the Holy Spirit to help us in all of our lives.

The Gospel of John 14:15-30 (John 14:15, John 14:16, John 14:17, John 14:18, John 14:19, John 14:20, John 14:21, John 14:22, John 14:23, John 14:24, John 14:25, John 14:26, John 14:27, John 14:28, John 14:29, John 14:30)----------In addition to the CC Podcast: Daily Dose Devotions, which includes today's Bible overview devotion and many other Bible study texts, Christian Crusaders also publishes two other Christian podcasts: a weekly 30 minute worship service, The CC Broadcast, which is aired on secular and Christian radio stations around the world AND The CC Podcast: Conversations, where we feature inspiring stories from interesting Christians in an interview format.Along with thanking our Daily Dose Devotions sponsor, The FAMiLY LEADER, we want to highlight two other Christian ministries:(1) The Cedar Falls Bible Conference, which has gathered annually since 1922 in Cedar Falls, Iowa and features world-class, Bible-based, Gospel-centered preaching, as well as children's and student ministry programming ... all for FREE from the last Saturday in July through the first Saturday in August.(2) Power to Change Digital Strategies, which recruits and trains anonymous, online Christian mentors to help people who are searching for answers to life's problems on the internet. If you or anyone you know could benefit from an anonymous, online Christian mentor, please visit IssuesIFace.com, a website built and maintained for the purpose of connecting people searching online with Christian mentors willing to provide love, encouragement, and truth.Please subscribe to or follow this Christian podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or through our free mobile app (see below), leave a 5-star review, and prayerfully consider supporting us financially. All these steps will help us more effectively promote the Truth of God's Word and the Gospel of Jesus Christ! Thanks!Our regular Daily Dose Devotions contributor is Matt Reisetter, Executive Director for Christian Crusaders Radio and Internet Ministry. Other contributors include Steve Kramer and Tim Boettger, who are preachers for The CC Broadcast, as well as Andrew Nordstrom, Technical Director for Christian Crusaders.Special thanks to, Terri, our podcast announcer!Thank you for listening, and may God richly bless you!To listen or subscribe to our podcasts and free content on various platforms, click here:Apple Podcasts:Daily DoseConversationsBroadcastGoogle Podcasts:Daily Dose

Character. Does my character reflect the character of God.Today, Matt Massey continues the NEW message series "Produce: The Holy Spirit working in you & through you."Support the show

The Baptism of the Holy Spirit | Matt Hennighan by Nations Church

On Pentecost day 2,000 years ago, the Holy Spirit moved and brought radical life-transforming change in group of people. In this message, Matt talks from the heart about how the Holy Spirit is still moving and his desperation to see God move and see lives changed in our day.

Today, Matt kicks off a new series exploring the empowering work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

“We approach God imperfectly,” admitted Gretchen Ronnevik in Ragged: Spiritual Disciplines for the Spiritually Exhausted. “We approach him as sinners wearing the covering of Christ. There cannot be any pretense about it. Pretense is in opposition to intimacy. We are who we are, and God is who he is. Don’t flower it up or try to be impressive.” This is one reason we can and should pray for sinning brothers and sisters in Christ (vv. 16–17). We know where they’re coming from because we’ve probably been there. Our prayer is, of course, that they will confess, repent, and be forgiven (1 John 1:9). But what is the “sin that leads to death” for which no forgiveness is possible? Within the context of 1 John and the New Testament as a whole, this sin is unbelief in Christ, also called blaspheming the Holy Spirit (Matt. 12:31–32). The Spirit, after all, testifies to Christ’s redemption (see Feb. 21). To reject Christ and to reject the Spirit’s witness to redemption are practically the same thing. To call God a liar in this way is blasphemy. We can pray for our sinning brothers and sisters in Christ with confidence, because genuine believers don’t and can’t continue sinning (vv. 18–19). If they’re truly members of God’s family, they will return to Him. The new spiritual life inside them cannot be extinguished. Christ Himself “keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them.” Even though Satan has dominion over the world, he has no power over the kingdom of light. True believers “know him who is true,” the Father (v. 20). This knowledge and relationship cannot be lost, for it was given to us by the Son Himself. We are “in” both of them, for both are God. >> Spend some time today praying for any brothers and sisters in Christ you know who have sinned or who are living a sinful lifestyle. We can pray with confidence, knowing that repentance is God’s will.

From the series God's Empowering Presence

 “Possessing a Personal Pentecost”   Praise the Lord for PENTECOST!CD#1468 06/04/22 Sun. A.M. @ VWC   Pentecost (simply meaning 50) Sunday in the Church is the day on which the Holy Spirit descended upon the 120 followers of Jesus. With that being said we could say it is the birthday of the New Testament Church as those in the upper room were baptized and became believers in Jesus Christ that day, establishing the body of the church. The festival so named is first spoken of in Ex. 23:16 as "the feast of harvest," and again in Ex. 34:22 as "the day of the firstfruits". Passover and Pentecost marked the beginning and end of the grain harvest.*Text: Acts 1:1-11 – V.4 wait for the “PROMISE” (EP-ANG-EL-EE-AH') a divine announcement of good                                                                      #1 PROMISED     *2nd witness Read Luke 24:49 – note “ENDUED” = “PUT ON” literally TO CLOTHE ONESELF – more in P.M. sermon tonight. Read Acts 2:1-4 & 33 – God Promised and Jesus sent the Holy Spirit (Matt.3:11-12 & John 16:7)                                                 #2PERSONAL                          * Read Isa. 44:3 - Eze. 36:26-27 then Joel 2:28 – notice how it's a PERSONAL EXPERIENCE! See John 14:25-27 – note we can learn more now than the 12 because the COMFORTER lives in us 24/7 to guide us into all truth!                                                        #3 POWERFUL                            *RereadLuke 24:49 & Acts 1:8– ye shall receive “POWER” (DO0-NAM-IS') = FORCE spec. MIRACULOUS POWER to live and witness for the Lord to help build His church with unity! [a person's action are theirs and NOT the Holy Spirit's]Close with Gen. 11:5-9 & Acts 2:4-8 – unredeemed evil men God confounded their language BUT those born-again HE enabled them to all speak with understanding – if NOT we need to move forward like Acts 8 & Acts 19 going from saved to filled to an overflowing! (Eph. 4:1-15 - the Body built from Heaven to earth instead of earth to heaven!)

Thank you to our 2022 Daily Dose Devotions sponsor, https://www.thefamilyleader.com/ (The Family Leader)! Here are a few other ministries we are proud to highlight and partner with: Christian Crusaders, where you can find weekly 30 minute worship services at https://christiancrusaders.org/ (ChristianCrusaders.org) AND where you can hear engaging interviews and other content on https://christiancrusaders.org/ccpod-conversations (The CC Podcast: Conversations). Cedar Falls Bible Conference, whose conference videos are available at https://cedarfallsbibleconference.com/ (CedarFallsBibleConference.com). And please consider joining us for our 101st annual conference: Saturday, July 30 – Saturday, August 6, 2022. https://p2cdigital.com/ (Power to Change Digital Strategies): If you or someone you know could benefit from an anonymous online Christian mentor, please visit https://issuesiface.com/ (IssuesIFace.com). Please subscribe to or follow this podcast, leave a 5 star review, and prayerfully consider financially supporting one of our partnering ministries. Thank you for listening, and may God richly bless you! Contributors to The Daily Dose include: Tim Boettger - Director of Spiritual Care at Western Home Communities and Associate Radio Preacher for Christian Crusaders Radio & Internet Ministry Pastor Steve Kramer - Radio Preacher for Christian Crusaders Radio & Internet Ministry Andrew Nordstrom - Technical Director of Christian Crusaders Radio & Internet Ministry Matt Reisetter - Director of Christian Crusaders Radio & Internet Ministry and Director of the Cedar Falls Bible Conference Special thanks to, Terri, our podcast announcer!

Acts: Transformed by the Holy Spirit // Matt Metzger | 10.17.2021 by Blackhawk Church

Lesson Seven: New Testament examples of God's Grace Intro: Our subject is the wonderful grace of Jesus and the New Testament is the revelation of His amazing grace. Just as Jesus is full of grace and truth, John 1:14, so is the stories of the lives of those He touched. Because there are too many to mention we will discuss them in three following categories: 1. Jesus' amazing grace to sinners. A. Example of four wicked women now trophies of God's grace.  - The Samaritan woman with the shameful past. John 4:10,16-18,39  - The woman “caught” in adultery. John 8:10-11  - Mary Magdalene who was possessed by demons. Luke 8:2; Mark 16:9  - The “prostitute” who kissed Jesus feet. Luke 7:37-39, 47 B. Example of four sinful men: undeserving of grace but met the One full of grace!  - The thief on the cross. Luke 23:39-43  - Saul who would become the Apostle Paul. Acts 26:13-16  - The Philippian jailer. Acts 16:28-33  - A man named Michael. - Blasphemed the Holy Spirit Matt.12:31; - lived for the devil Rom. 6:20-22; - found by Jesus Luke 19:10 Praise God! 2. Jesus' amazing grace to His servants = the saints.  - The example of the apostle Peter. Matt. 26:34-35; 73-75; John 21:14-15  - The example of the other ten apostles. Matt. 26:56; Acts 4:33  - The example of the Apostle Paul. Eph. 3:7  - The example of the church = you and I 1 Tim 1:9; Titus 3;5-7 3. Jesus' amazing grace to those who suffer.  - Example of His compassion for the lost multitude. Matt. 9:36-38  - Example of His healing the sick. Matt. 10:8; Matt.15:13; Matt. 20:34  - Example of His sufficient grace to endure our suffering. 2 Cor. 12:8-10 Conclusion: Thank God for the New Testament examples of the wonderful grace of Jesus!

We should not ignore the obvious: in this passage (Matt. 11:2–19) John the Baptist is discouraged.He is discouraged because Jesus is failing to meet his expectations. John has announced someone who would not only baptize people with the Holy Spirit (Matt. 3:11), but who would come in stern judgment, separating wheat and chaff and burning up the latter (Matt. 3:12). Yet here is Jesus, preaching to vast crowds, training his own followers, performing miracles—but not obviously imposing judgment on the wicked. John the Baptist languishes in prison for the fiery way he denounced Herod's illicit marriage. Why hasn't Jesus denounced Herod and then, utilizing his astonishing power, imposed judgment?Jesus answers (Matt. 11:4–6) by describing his ministry in terms of two crucial passages from Isaiah—Isaiah 35:5–6 and Isaiah 61:1–2. But John the Baptist certainly knew the Isaiah scroll very well. Elsewhere he himself quotes from it (Matt. 3:3, quoting Isa. 40:3). So if Jesus is going to refer to these passages (John might well ask himself), why doesn't he also mention the judgment theme in the same contexts? After all, Isaiah 35:5–6 mentions not only the lame leaping and the like, but “divine retribution” as well. Isaiah 61 talks about preaching good news to the poor, but it also anticipates “the day of vengeance of our God” (Isa. 61:2; see meditation for June 29). Why does Jesus mention the blessings without the judgments?It is as if Jesus is saying, in effect, “John, look closely: the promised blessings of the kingdom are dawning. What I am doing fulfills Scripture exactly. If the judgment has not yet dawned, it will come, but not yet. Right now, focus on the good that is being done, and let it confirm that I am who I say I am.”Jesus takes three more steps to defend John, of which I briefly mention two. (a) He warns those who were listening in on this conversation not to suppose for a moment that John is really some fickle reed, swayed by the winds of harsh circumstances, and still less someone interested in feathering his nest (Matt. 11:7–8). Far from it: (b) John's role in redemptive history makes him the one who announces the coming of the Sovereign, pointing him out, in fulfillment of a Malachi prophecy (Matt. 11:10). That is what makes John the Baptist the greatest man born of woman up to that point—greater than Abraham or David or Isaiah—for he actually announces Christ and points him out explicitly. That is why the least in the kingdom, this side of the cross, is greater still (Matt. 11:11): you and I point out who the Messiah is with even more immediacy and explicitness. That is where our greatness lies. This podcast is designed to be used alongside TGC's Read The Bible initiative (TGC.org/readthebible). The podcast features devotional commentaries from D.A. Carson's book For the Love of God (vol. 2) that follow the M'Cheyne Bible reading plan.

This is Pentecost Sunday's exhortation on gratitude by Matt Carpenter.  If you liked the podcast, check out some of our others, wherever you get your podcast. Trinity Reformed Church is a CREC mission church in Huntsville, AL. seeking to extend and unite the Kingdom in the Huntsville area. Check out our website, Facebook or YouTube!

As a psalmist uniquely inspired by the Holy Spirit (Matt 22:43), King David's prayers were often prophetic; describing poetically/figuratively what will ultimately be literal in the future through the Son of David, the Messiah (the Christ). For example, we see this regarding Jesus's crucifixion and resurrection in Psalm 22. And I think we see this in Psalm 30 regarding the resurrected future of Christ's redeemed. Which of course included David. David is praying figuratively and poetically God's redemptive realities in his life. And what he presently prays poetically will also be true literally for all those redeemed in Christ. When we see that future, it empowers us in the now. Let's use our poetic imagination to see that life-giving story and that future together in this episode.  Psalm 30 ESV A Psalm of David. A song at the dedication of the temple. 1 I will extol you, O LORD, for you have drawn me up and have not let my foes rejoice over me. 2 O LORD my God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed me.  3 O LORD, you have brought up my soul from Sheol; you restored me to life from among those who go down to the pit.  4 Sing praises to the LORD, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name.  5 For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning. 10 Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me! O LORD, be my helper!”  11 You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,  12 that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever! Follow Dave Cover on Twitter @davecover.  This podcast is a ministry of The Crossing, a church in Columbia, Missouri, a college town where the flagship campus of the University of Missouri is located.  Like this content? Make sure to share it with others and leave us a rating, so others can find it too.   To learn more, visit ourhttps://www.thecrossingchurch.com/ ( website) and follow us onhttps://www.facebook.com/TheCrossingCOMO ( Facebook),https://www.instagram.com/thecrossingcomo/ ( Instagram), andhttps://twitter.com/thecrossingcomo ( Twitter) @TheCrossingCOMO.   Social Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/TheCrossingCOMO ( https://www.facebook.com/TheCrossingCOMO) Instagram:https://www.facebook.com/TheCrossingCOMO ( )https://www.instagram.com/thecrossingcomo/ (https://www.instagram.com/thecrossingcomo/) Twitter:https://twitter.com/thecrossingcomo ( https://twitter.com/thecrossingcomo)  

As a psalmist uniquely inspired by the Holy Spirit (Matt 22:43), King David's prayers were often prophetic; describing poetically/figuratively what will ultimately be literal in the future through the Son of David, the Messiah (the Christ). For example, we see this regarding Jesus's crucifixion and resurrection in Psalm 22. And I think we see this in Psalm 30 regarding the resurrected future of Christ's redeemed. Which of course included David. David is praying figuratively and poetically God's redemptive realities in his life. And what he presently prays poetically will also be true literally for all those redeemed in Christ. When we see that future, it empowers us in the now. Let's use our poetic imagination to see that life-giving story and that future together in this episode.  Psalm 30 ESV A Psalm of David. A song at the dedication of the temple. 1 I will extol you, O LORD, for you have drawn me up and have not let my foes rejoice over me. 2 O LORD my God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed me.  3 O LORD, you have brought up my soul from Sheol; you restored me to life from among those who go down to the pit.  4 Sing praises to the LORD, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name.  5 For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning. 10 Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me! O LORD, be my helper!”  11 You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,  12 that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever! Follow Dave Cover on Twitter @davecover.  This podcast is a ministry of The Crossing, a church in Columbia, Missouri, a college town where the flagship campus of the University of Missouri is located.  Like this content? Make sure to share it with others and leave us a rating, so others can find it too.   To learn more, visit ourhttps://www.thecrossingchurch.com/ ( website) and follow us onhttps://www.facebook.com/TheCrossingCOMO ( Facebook),https://www.instagram.com/thecrossingcomo/ ( Instagram), andhttps://twitter.com/thecrossingcomo ( Twitter) @TheCrossingCOMO.   Social Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/TheCrossingCOMO ( https://www.facebook.com/TheCrossingCOMO) Instagram:https://www.facebook.com/TheCrossingCOMO ( )https://www.instagram.com/thecrossingcomo/ (https://www.instagram.com/thecrossingcomo/) Twitter:https://twitter.com/thecrossingcomo ( https://twitter.com/thecrossingcomo)  

4th October 2020

In response to the Corona Virus and the government’s recommendations, we did not meet publicly on Sunday. Instead, we met in the homes of our community groups and the sermon was streamed live on YouTube, which you can watch at youtu.be/VAs9P_e9Fu4

Speak: “Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 1:18). Light the fourth candle for love. Let us see love in the Lord! Read: Isaiah 7:10-16 and Matthew 1:18-25 Reflect: Read and reflect on Psalm 80:19. Remember that salvation is a gift of love from the Lord. What other gifts has God given you today? Engage: Show an act of kindness to a child with a parent who is ill or incarcerated, or take dinner to the medical team at your local emergency room or urgent-care clinic. Pray: Gracious God, we seek you everywhere with expectant eyes that invite us to see love in the world today. Amen.

-A Name Above all Names--Exodus 20-7--Introduction-what is a name----I. Ways the LORD's Name is taken in Vain- -You shall not lift up the name of the LORD your God for nothingness-emptiness.--- -Jer. 23-10- --- -Eph. 5-4---- -Lev. 19-12, Mt 7-22, Isa. 29-13, Eccl. 5-1,2---- -2 Sam 12-14- Rom 2-24- Titus 1-16--Both cursing and common swearing are sins for which a land must mourn in true repentance or it will be made to mourn under the judgments of God.-M. Henry--When men's tongues and lives are contrary to one another, when, under a mask of profession, they lie and are unclean, they make use of God's name to abuse him, and take it in vain. Pretended holiness is merely double wickedness. Rom 2-24 'The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you.' When the heathen saw the Jews, who professed to be God's people, to be scandalous, it made them speak evil of God, and hate the true religion.-Thomas Watson--II. A Sober Warning - A Blessed Privilege--- Warning--- for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.- ----- Privilege--- the name of the LORD your God -- --Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit ---Matt. 28-19--- in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.-Acts 11-26--Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads.-Rev. 14-1

Part 1 - Who is the Holy Spirit and what does He do?

Article written and read by Matt Robertson, pastor at Highland View Baptist Church in St. Charles, MO.

John 16.7 // Who is The Holy Spirit? // Matt Simmonds by Liberty Church Amsterdam

If the crucifixion and resurrection serve as the message of the good news about Jesus Christ, and the power of the Holy Spirit when He comes at Pentecost is the power that enables the believer to effectively share that message (John 16:7; Acts 2), then a methodology is needed for seeing this happen day in and day out. Thankfully, God has provided our marching orders in what is commonly known as the Great Commission.Before diving in, we must consider the word “commission” since it has been almost unanimously attached to this section of Matthew’s Gospel. Looking for a definition, we find:1. the act of committing or entrusting a person, group, etc., with supervisory power or authority.2. an authoritative order, charge, or direction.3. authority granted for a particular action or function.4. a document granting such authority.[1]To be commissioned, or to receive a commissioning, is to be entrusted with something, supplied with orders about what one has been entrusted with, and having a greater authority that now accompanies you because of the commissioning received. Every believer in Christ has been entrusted with a task that always lies before us, along with Divine orders which accompany that task, and the Divine authority placed upon us for the successful execution of that task. This is complete and without exception. So, what is this task?Matthew 28:16-17.This scene is centered on the rendezvous point previously set forth in Galilee as was told to Mary Magdalene (Matt 26:32; 28:7, 10; Mark 14:28; 16:7). When we remember the Apostle Paul’s comments regarding Jesus’ appearance to “more than five hundred brethren at one time” from 1 Corinthians 15:6a, it would seem that he is alluding to this meeting in Galilee. We know that Jesus’ appearance to Paul (1 Cor 15:8; Acts 9:3-5) did not occur until well after the ascension of Christ, and the other two instances mentioned after the appearance to “more than five hundred brethren” in 1 Corinthians 15 are appearances to James and then to the eleven (1 Cor 15:7). This sequence allows for the mountain appearance in Galilee to include not just the eleven as mentioned in Matthew 28:16a, but also many more disciples totaling over five hundred in all. This understanding is significant because it bolsters the commissioning of Jesus Christ to believers beyond the apostles. One could read this verse and wrongly conclude that such a command was meant for only that place and time and that the eleven were “special people,” being unlike us today, therefore they alone have received this special commissioning. But any attempts at exemption would be unfounded. To be frank, and to also say this in love, the excuses that we often use to justify our disobedience to the written Word of God are nothing short of abhorrent before our holy God and Creator. Such inferior reasonings are put forth to assuageour consciences, putting out of our minds that we are rejecting the conviction and leading of the Holy Spirit. When this myriad of disciples came to the mountain and the Lord Jesus appeared to them, many worshiped Him (meaning “to prostrate oneself, to have adoration”) while others doubted (Matt 28:16-17). The word for “doubtful” here is distazōmeaning “to have doubts concerning something, doubt, waver” and “to be uncertain about taking a particular course of action, hesitate,”[2]and is used only one other time in Matthew 14:31 when speaking about Peter doubting the Lord once he was out on the water. It would seem that both definitions could be applied in this situation, with some of the brethren doubting that the Lord Jesus had been resurrected (which corresponds with the first definition), and this leading to a subsequent doubting of His commissioning to follow (corresponding with the second definition), though the first definition would be best suited as the intended meaning of the author.Matthew 28:18-20.Every phrase that Jesus speaks is of the utmost importance and deserves our careful attention and complete understanding. Let us consider Jesus’ words.“All authority has been given to Me in heaven and one earth,”(Matt 28:18b). Our first observation would be the emphatic entrusting of authority to Jesus Christ. “All” speaks to the totality and completeness of a thing. “All” is a key word in this passage, with four occurrences, with every one of them instilling confidence for the task being commissioned. In having “all authority,” we understand that there is no bit of authority that has not been granted to Him in regards to the heavenly or earthly sphere.The heavenly is that in which demons and angels war. As seen before, “Satan is the prince of the power of the air” (Eph 2:2), and the ruler of this world (John 14:30). The earthly realm is where we live now, and where Satan “prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Pet 5:8b). The demonic influence, the world system that Satan has orchestrated (Acts 26:18), and the lust and pride that exude from our fallen nature (1 John 2:16) would all be included. The first grand truth of this commissioning is Jesus’ place in the midst of all of this. It is one of “authority.” “He spoke as one already in heaven with a world-wide outlook and with the resources of heaven at his command.”[3]This authority stands as the promised power of the Lord Jesus Christ, being mentioned first in order to correctly set the stage for the commissioning that would follow. Had Jesus not said this (meaning that He did not have this authority), His Great Commission would be one that would only have the flesh serving as its power, and the power of the flesh is only toward sin (Jas 1:14-15), having no real power at all (John 6:63; Rom 8:8). Charles Stanley writes, “We can confidently bring the truth of Jesus to the world because we have Jesus’ divine authority to back it up. Our job is to be His faithful messengers; His job is to prosper His Word.”[4]“Go therefore…”(Matt 28:19a). The word “go” is a passive aorist participle which is typically explained as conveying “not a command to go, but the assumption that the listener will automatically be going. In other words, the idea expressed is ‘as you are going.’”[5]Some may say, “As we are going about throughout life,” or, as the marginal note of the NASB reads, “having gone…” “Going” is commonly explained as the first of three participles (along with “baptizing” and “teaching”) used that constitutes what it is to “make disciples.”[6]However, Greek grammarian Robert H. Mounce has considered this argument and disagrees. While the word “go” in Matthew 28:19a is, in fact, a participle, its function should not be interpreted as a noun, as would be a possibility in English grammar (commonly known as a gerund). He writes that the participle is “picking up the mood of the main verb. Since matheusate(“make disciples”) is an aorist active imperative, poreuthentesshould be translated ‘Go.’ Jesus’ instructions are proactive; we are to move out into the world, not simple [sic]make disciples when we happen to be there.”He goes on to state that he “found that in the New Testament there are twenty-seven occasions where poreuthentesis followed by a main verb in the imperative mood. The result? In every case the participle should be translated as an imperative.”[7]From this, we can conclude that “make disciples” (as will be discussed in the next section) stands as the main imperative verb, but the participles of “go,” “baptize,” and “teaching” are all to be considered as imperatives that stem from the main verb.Why does this matter? This understanding shows us the importance of each facet being listed. “Go,” “baptizing,” and “teaching” are all carrying the mood of the imperative to “make disciples.” Each piece should be considered as a command with the same weight as “make disciples.” We ARE to “go,” we ARE to “baptize,” and we ARE to “teach,” because our lives, from the moment that we trusted in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior, are to be lived in obedience to the task of making disciples that has been placed before us. This means that we are to be a people who have been called to intentional living. We are to do this by the power granted in the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, and we are to confidently move forward because the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ is never apart from us (Matt 28:20b).The use of “therefore” points us back to the fact of “all authority” being given to Jesus. Jesus alone has been given all authority by the Father. No church, creed, theological system, or denomination has any power whatsoever. All of the power/authority necessary is that of the Lord Jesus, and only by His authority is there power to accomplish the task.“make disciples of all nations…”(Matt 28:19b). With the phrase “make disciples” we have the main verb and plain imperative listed. To be clear, an imperative is a command, and this command is being issued in light of the authority given to Jesus. The word “disciple” is pathēteuō in the Greek which means “to cause one to be a pupil, teach,”[8]with the idea of giving many convincing proofs while also beseeching or begging people to follow Christ in greater understanding so that their lives are changed. For those who are unregenerate (lost), this, of necessity, implies that we are actively telling others about Jesus Christ as the Son of God and the Savior of the world. Again, this is the importance of intentional living.As we move forward in this passage we will examine the “what” of making disciples, but the question that always overwhelms the believer’s mind is “how.” How do I make disciples? This is a legitimate question that is partially answered in the “what” of baptizing them in the name of the Trinity and teaching them what Jesus has commanded (Matt 28:19c-20a). But to give a larger view that answers the “how” question, we must always look to the sufficiency of the Word of God. We would do well to pay attention to verses like 2 Timothy 3:16-17, which says, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”The Word of God equips the disciple so that “every good work” can be handled adequately.We also find in 2 Peter 1:3 that, “…His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.”While the Holy Spirit is the power, the “true knowledge of Him” would be gained through the Word of God. These two passages alone give us the textbook from which the believer in Christ is to be discipled. While sound supplementary materials are helpful, they are no replacement for the Word of God, for it is the Word of God that is used by its Author, the Spirit of God, to enact change in the believer from the inside out, conforming each one of us to the image of Christ (Rom 8:29). A good summary verse for discipleship can be seen in Colossians 1:28 which says,“We proclaim Him (Jesus Christ), admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ.”“Teaching every man” would have its basis in God’s Word, for Christ is the subject of written revelation, being the One that we are proclaiming. Any admonishment that one would receive must come from a source greater than ourselves because we are in need of discipling as well. The goal of educating believer’s in God’s Word and calling upon the Holy Spirit to enact such truth in their lives is for thepurpose of presenting them as mature (“complete”) in Christ. We want God’s people to be walking with Him daily, depending upon Him everyday, because that is what God wants. We were not designed to be apart from Him. With “make disciples” we also see the second of four “all” statements with “all nations,” being the boundaries to which we are to “go” in making disciples. There is something to be said for local discipleship, and it should most certainly be occurring amongst every saint within the local church body. “All nations” calls for us to branch out to every people group. One cannot deny that the thrust of this passage calls for this process of making disciples to be stretched beyond comfortable walls. Every nation on Earth should have the opportunity to be discipled by the truths of God’s Word. “All nations” includes every nation, and every nation should be led to, and educated in, the Truth which is the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ.With “make disciples” being the imperative in this passage, the direction of the Christian is clear. “Any activity unrelated to or inconsistent with this assignment is, in terms of Jesus’ commission, a failure to carry it out.”[9]Thinking through what we understand of the Judgment Seat of Christ, it is no doubt that whether or not we were using our time to “make disciples” while on Earth will be a primary consideration for the Lord Jesus Christ. “…baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit…”(Matt 28:19c).In this passage we have Jesus advocating the authority of the Godhead, also known as the Trinity. All three are included, with Jesus considering Himself equal with the Father and the Holy Spirit. All three are God, being three in Persons, but One in essence. “The order is that they have first become disciples through personal faith in Him, followed by baptism as their personal confession of their faith, and a pledge of discipleship as acknowledged members of the body of believers.”[10]This ordinance is the identification of the believer with Christ in His death and resurrection. Just as Jesus has died for sins, so the believer is publicly expressing that he or she has died to sin, and just as Christ was raised from the dead to a new life, a resurrected life, so too is the believer raised to a “newness of life” (Rom 6:4b). This identification is crucial, being an outward expression of what has already taken place in Christ. One can easily see the importance of this ordinance being explained to the believer so that they are mindful of all that Christ has done in giving them “new life” and their full accepted place as now being “in Him” because of Him and His sufficient work.These are beautiful and necessary blessings for the disciple to understand and embrace! “teaching them to observe all that I commanded you”(Matt 28:20a). The third participle (which, again, takes on the mood of the imperative verb of “make disciples”) is the necessity of teaching. It should be noted that this teaching is unto a particular point: that the one being taught would become a regular observer of the things being taught to them. This helps us to understand that the idea of teaching goes beyond that of simply relaying information and then expecting them to “get to work.” If we follow the section on to the end, we would see that what is being taught to them are all the things which Jesus commanded. This holds the key! Jesus’ commands are meant to be followed, not simply understood. From this we can conclude that the one teaching Jesus’ commands to another must be “observing” those commands as well. This encourages the one beingdiscipled and creates an atmosphere of mutual edification between believers. It must be quickly noted that this is the third “all” statement. All that Jesus commanded must be taught. This command is clearly stated, and while we will momentarily see that some things are not applicable to the Church Age, it does not change the fact that those things should be taught, for all Scripture is God-breathed.The word “observe” is tēreōmeaning “to retain in custody, keep watch over, guard,” “to cause a state, condition, or activity to continue, keep, hold, reserve, preserve,” “to persist in obedience, keep, observe, fulfill, pay attention to.”[11]Observing all that Christ has commanded is for the disciples to persistently retain, uphold, and obey what Christ has set forth as His orders to the disciples. From what we can understand about the Gospels, we know that there was a turning point in Jesus’ ministry when He no longer offered the kingdom to Israel and began looking forward to His death and resurrection (Matt 12). Thus, we would conclude that what Jesus has taught His disciples that does not relate to the message of the Gospel of the Kingdom as being presented to Israel in the first century should be consider as applicable teaching that has carried over into the Church Age. For instance, we know that Jesus’ teaching in John 13-16, with its emphasis on love and obedience, should be considered as valid commandments that hold for the church today. While there would certainly be a need to consider the progressive revelation of this section and the fact that the Holy Spirit would be indwelling them in Acts 2, we can certainly see that the coming of the Holy Spirit and the beginning of a new dispensation does not negate the commands that Jesus is giving them. They would be the bedrock of the Church at itsbirth in Acts 2 at Pentecost in Jerusalem. These foundational commands would serve as the core of the teaching that would be threaded through every believer. It is Jesus’ teachings that should be considered as the main content (along with the Old Testament) when we are reading that “they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching” (Acts 2:42a). Another vital observation here is that we must understand that discipleship is relational. It involves being with other believers in Christ. If we were to define discipleship, we would say that it is life invested into life in order to cultivate Life in the here and now. It is one believer meeting with one (or more) believers for the purpose of encouraging the Abundant Life that Christ has provided to be the “hope and stay” of each of our lives. Earl Radmacher once wrote, “one of the greatest problems of evangelicalism today is that many Christians who are saved are not beingsaved, that is, they are not growing in Christ and dealing with sin in their lives. Many American Christians are in the spiritual nursery feeding on milk. We desperately need to get believers out of infancy and into the infantry.”[12]Discipleship combats the impoverished state of personal holiness that is saturating the fabric of today’s Christianity, saving us from the power of sin in our daily lives. Believers are to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet 3:18). This is the pursuit of holiness. Our lives have been redeemed, and we are declared righteous by God, but this does not mean that our conduct has become righteous. Any Christian that has been saved for five minutes can attest to this. The “renewing of your mind” (Rom 12:2) happens through regular time in the Word of God, prayer, and mutual periods of fellowship, all of which take place in making disciples. For the sake of holiness, it is our responsibility to disciple and to be discipled so that we are“speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspectsinto Him who is the head, evenChrist, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love” (Eph 4:15-16). Christ is our Life and He wants to live His life through each one of us. Only that which He produces in our lives is pleasing to the Father. This can be seen clearly in a basic observation from a well-known verse regarding the fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-23 says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” Notice that this is not your fruit. It is the Spirit’s fruit in your life. We have nothing to do with it. We simply set aside ourselves because of the acceptance of God’s Word as the only Truth in existence, and move forward trusting what God has said rather than what man has said, or how we feel. Yielding to God’s Word and allowing Christ to be our All in All is what brings about the Spirit’s fruit. This is living a life that we could not otherwise live because it is Christ living His life through us. These are the types of results that we should see in ongoing discipleship. For some of us, we know that we are supposed to make disciples, but many of us do not because we have believed that we don’t know how. No doubt that this is an honest reply, but it stems from a deceptive line of thinking. Many believe that they must be a well-seasoned teacher of the Bible, a rugged missionary with years of experience, or a seminary student on the brink of graduation. One’s personal specialization or gifting is not under consideration with this imperative to “make disciples.” This line of thinking has placed the question of obedience on whether or not one feels that they are qualified for the task rather than paying attention to what Jesus has commanded. This type of well-intentioned reply has SELF at the center, not Jesus Christ. This leads us to Jesus’ closing comments. “…I am with you always, even to the end of the age”(Matt 28:20b).Tony Evans notes that beyond the eleven disciples, and the “more than five hundred brethren at one time” (1 Cor 15:6a), that there was a third group that met with the Lord Jesus on the mountain in Galilee, who were meeting there in spirit. “This includes all believers from that day until Jesus comes again. How do I know we are part of the Great Commission meeting? Because Jesus said His commission to make disciples is in effect ‘even to the end of the age’ (Matthew 28:20), which hasn’t come yet. So the Lord’s instructions are for us too.”[13]Jesus’ encouragement of being with us until the end of the age means that He is ever-present during the Church Age. This is the second bookend in contrast to the power that His authority promises to the believer in Christ.Read verse 18-20 again. Notice that the believer has two promises that bookend his or her four responsibilities.A. ALL AUHTORITY HAS BEEN GIVEN TO JESUS IN HEAVEN AND ON EARTH- v.18b; This is the promise of His power.1. GO- v.19a2. MAKE DISCIPLES- v.19b3. BAPTIZING THEM IN THE NAME OF THE TRINITY- v.19c4. TEACHING THEM PERSISTENTLY TO RETAIN, UPHOLD, AND OBEY WHAT CHRIST HAS SET FORTH- v.20aA’. HE IS WITH US ALWAYS, TO THE END OF THE AGE- v.20b; This is the promise of His presence.Do we believe this? Jesus is with us. Now. And will be until the Church is raptured. He is here, always available, and ever-welcoming our reliance on Him to make the difference in our lives as we disciple one another. This section contains the last “all” statement, being thatJesus is “always” with the believer. This is more than His attribute of being omnipresent. This speaks to the necessity of His presence in accomplishing the task of making disciples. All that we do is to be done in faith (Rom 14:23). This includes making disciples. Followers of Christ are not made in the power of the flesh. Only the power that Jesus supplies can complete this task so that it is approved by the Father. Fleshly methods are the devil’s tools. We must heed the Lord’s promises and be quick to hold them fast!Are we making disciples?If not, why not?Jesus has commanded it, giving the promise of both His power and His presence in the process.Personal inadequacy is an unacceptable excuse because leaves Jesus’ command undone, and makes the decision to obey based on us and not Him.If you are not in a discipleship relationship, ask a dear beloved brother or sister today. Unite together for mutual encouragement and edification, reproof and correction, as only the Word of God can administer it. Look for the Holy Spirit to be your Guide and to “lead you into all truth” (John 16:13b).Let us GO, and MAKE DISCIPLES, BAPTIZING them in the name of the Trinity, and TEACHING them to persistently retain, uphold, and obey what Christ has set forth in His Holy Word.[1]“Commission,” Dictionary.com, [online], Accessed on 24 April 2019.[2]BDAG, p. 252.[3]A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament(Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1933), Mt 28:18.[4]Charles F. Stanley, The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible: New King James Version(Nashville, TN: Nelson Bibles, 2005), Mt 28:18–19.[5]Edward E. Hindson and Woodrow Michael Kroll, eds., KJV Bible Commentary(Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1994), p. 1963.[6]See D. A. Carson, “Matthew,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), p. 595.[7]Robert H. Mounce, “The Participle as Imperative (Monday with Mounce 12),” Zondervan Academic, [online] at https://zondervanacademic.com/blog/the-participle-as-imperative, Accessed on 24 April 2019.[8]BDAG, p. 609. “It is important to avoid the implication of duress or force, that is to say, one should not translate ‘force them to be my disciples’ or ‘compel them to be my disciples.’ This might very well be implied in a literal translation of a causative such as ‘to make.’ In order to avoid a wrong implication of a causative, it may be important to use some such expression as ‘convince them to become my disciples’ or ‘urge them to be my disciples.’” -Louw and Nida, Greek-English Lexicon, p. 470.[9]D. Edmond Hiebert, “An Expository Study of Matthew 28:16–20,” Bibliotheca Sacra149 (1992): 348.[10]Hiebert, “An Expository Study of Matthew 28:16–20,”: 350.[11]BDAG, p. 1002.[12]Earl D. Radmacher, Understanding Christian Theology, ed. Charles R. Swindoll and Roy B. Zuck (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2003), p. 883–884.[13]Tony Evans, Theology You Can Count On (Chicago: Moody Press, 2008), p. 901.

It’s high time to get rid of a Scarcity Script and start improvising with the Holy Spirit! Everything about God is abundant. Many have an under-resourced mindset ... but "This Is Our Father's World." And he is a more-than-enough Father! The Son has come to give us overflowing life! So do a personal audit: how are you doing with your vision and goals? Special guests: Matt Raines and Jason Howard. CLICK! >> See the show notes page for this episode at JesusSmart.com Get the Jesus Smart eLetter and keep current with podcast episode releases

FOUNDATIONAL FRAMEWORK. PART 61 Jesus’ earthly ministry was undeniably blessed by the Holy Spirit, being clearly seen in His birth (Matt 1:18, 20), to His appearance at Jesus’ baptism (Matt 3:16), to being the One who was granting Him the power to work miracles before the people (Matt 12:28). It is Jesus’ earthly life that sets forth the model for what it is for one to walk in the Spirit, abiding in the Father (John14:10b), with the intimate fellowship-relationship with the Father being cultivated through obedience to His commandments (John 14:21).In what is commonly known as the Upper Room Discourse, we find five mentions of the Holy Spirit in Jesus’ teaching which provides clarity about His Person and ministry.John 14:16-18. Chapters 13-16 and Jesus’ prayer in chapter 17 serve in preparing His disciples for His betrayal, arrest, and crucifixion. Having commissioned them with a “new commandment” that called them to “love one another even as I have loved you” (John 13:34), Jesus then exhorted His disciples to “believe” in Him. We should not take this to mean that they needed to be saved so that they would go to heaven when they died, but that they needed to keep their confidence in who He is as the Messiah of God (Matt 16:16). With the events that would soon transpire, this was not the time for unbelief! His oneness with the Father is one aspect that is put forward to ground them in right thinking (John 14:7-11), but even if this wasn’t something that they had convincingly understood, at least His works testified to His Person as the Christ (John 14:11), which are actually the works of the Father (John 16:10b), which were also the evidence of the power of the Holy Spirit (Matt 12:28). In v.16, Jesus turns the conversation to the importance of the Holy Spirit, Who would be sent because the Son will ask the Father to do so (John 14:16a). The Spirit is presented to the disciples as “another Helper,” seeing that Jesus would qualify as the first “Helper.” It is with this particular word that our greatest understanding of the role of the Holy Spirit takes place.The term “Helper” is the Greek word “Paraclete,” which means “one who pleads another’s cause before a judge,” or “one who pleads another’s cause with one.” This word can also be understood as “a helper, succorer, aider, assistant.”[1] This compound word is made up of para which is a preposition of proximity that means “to come alongside” (as we have seen in “parable”), and kletos meaning “to be invited or called.”[2] This would give us the understanding of “one who is called alongside.” Explaining this, Torrey writes “The word so translated is Parakleetos, the same word that is translated ‘advocate’ in 1 John 2:1; but ‘advocate’ does not give the full force and significance of the word etymologically. Advocate means about the same as Parakleetos, but the word in usage has obtained restricted sense. ‘Advocate’ is Latin; Parakleetos is Greek. The exact Latin word is ‘advocatus,’ which means one called to another. (That is, to help him or take his part or represent him.) Parakleetos means one called alongside, that is, one who constantly stands by your side as your helper, counsellor, comforter, friend. It is very nearly the thought expressed in the familiar hymn, ‘Ever present, truest friend.’ Up to the time that Jesus had uttered these words, He Himself had been the Parakleetos to the disciples, the Friend at hand, the Friend who stood by their side.”[3]The various English translations have sought to capture all that this word encompasses: “Helper”- NASB95, ESV, NKJV, “Counselor”- HCSB, NIV84, CSB, “Advocate”- NET, NLT, NRSV, and “Comforter”- KJV, ASV, Darby, Young’s. Regarding the secular usage, Derickson and Radmacher write, “As a legal term it referred more to the friend who goes to court with the defendant than to a professional advisor or attorney.”[4] Such analytical information paints the picture of an inseparable relationship that is God Himself, standing beside the believer at all times (all the while residing in the believer at the moment of faith starting in Acts 2), aiding, guiding, consoling, and uplifting, just as Christ did when He was physically present with His disciples. The idea that Jesus conveys as “another Helper” shows that the Spirit will be much like Himself, yet closer, and according to the end of verse 16, eternally present with the believer always.This pertinent point must not go unnoticed. The Holy Spirit is ALWAYS with the believer in Christ. Never is he or she without help, comfort, guidance, or care. We are never alone! He is always present, active, and available. At the time that this was spoken this was not the present reality, but it is something that is a reality now. Turning to John 7:37-39 helps in understanding this.John 7:37-39. It seems odd that Jesus would suddenly stand up in the middle of a meal and begin yelling out profound and lofty statements, which could have very well been perceived as narcissistic utterances by the mass of people. However, the details of v. 37 unfold the significance of this action. Hart writes, “According to the Talmud, (Sukk 4.9), each day during the Feast of Booths… a priest would carry water from the spring-fed Pool of Siloam to the temple and pour it out on the altar in expectation of the coming Messiah.”[5] Being the last day of the Feast of Booths, Jesus used the symbolism of the priest’s actions to proclaim Himself as the long-awaited Messiah, the very Giver of Life.In v.38 Jesus clarifies the metaphor of what He means by coming to Him to “drink,” stating that it is the one who “believes” in Him. The result of belief would be “living water” that would flow out from the innermost part of the person. The imagery is simple but profound. Not only was Jesus speaking of being the Messiah of Israel and the Giver of Life, but He is also speaking of something that is satisfying, quelling all wants or needs, being abundant in quantity and quality. One of the things that is extremely helpful in the Gospel of John is that John will occasionally provide a verse or two of commentary in order to clarify Jesus’ comments. This is a blessing to us as readers because John’s comments were recorded, as with all Scripture, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, so we know that his remarks are in perfect alignment to provide us with better understanding.In v.39, John tells us that the “living water” that will flow out from the one who believes is in reference to the Holy Spirit “whom those who believed in Him were to receive,” indicating a future tense “receiving,” speaking to the definite indwelling of the Spirit that would take place at Pentecost in Acts 2. Finishing out the verse, we also learn why this glorious privilege had not been bestowed upon believers during Jesus’ earthly ministry. John writes, “for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified” (7:39b). The Lord’s timetable is precise. Jesus must first be glorified, which according to John’s Gospel, seems to be in relation to His death and the results of it for God’s glory (John 12:16, 23, 28; 13:31, 32; 17:1, 5; & 21:19- concerning Peter). This corresponds remained perfectly with the arrival of the Holy Spirit occurring after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension. Moving back to John 14:16-17, Jesus refers to the Holy Spirit as “the Spirit of Truth” (John 14:17a), and then makes the comment that the world cannot receive Him because it does not “see” nor “know” Him (14:17b). This statement resonates with Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 2:14, stating that the “natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.” Those who are dead, being separated from a relationship with the Creator, cannot see, know, or receive the things of the Spirit. The very idea of the Spirit of God is considered a foreign intrusion into a methodically-designed, God-hating world system. Our present age operates by a mindset that all exists within the natural and physical realm, esteeming this is all that there is, and rejecting any notion of a greater reality in that of the supernatural. This is often labeled as “naturalism.” The Spirit of God is quickly labeled as an apparition of the “delusional religious fanatic” so that He can promptly be dismissed from being a legitimate entity with which the world must contend. The natural man would not dare entertain the idea that He is God.The advantage of the disciples is that the Spirit has been “abiding” with them, and Jesus quickly notes that the Spirit “will be” in them referring to the Pentecost event, just as we saw as referenced in John 7:39a. The word “abide” is a favorite of Jesus and John, as recorded by the latter, being used throughout his Gospel and Epistles (John 3:36; 5:38; 6:56; 15:4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10; 1 John 2:6, 10, 14, 27, 28; 3:6, 9, 14, 15, 17, 24; 4:12, 13, 15, 16; 2 John 2, 9). This is the Greek word menō, which means to “remain, stay…” being understood as “a person or thing remains where he, she, or it is.”[6] So the Spirit has with the disciples, but a greater assimilation will occur when He resides “in” them.Jesus finishes this section reassuring these men that He will not leave them without guidance, described by the term “orphans” in the NASB (John 14:18). Other translations use “comfortless” (KJV, AV) and “desolate” (RSV). It is clear by this point that Jesus is leaving them, yet He is not leaving them in the sense that they will be without His presence, guidance, and care. The emphasis is still upon the Spirit being “another Helper,” which will replace Jesus in a physical sense, but will only enhance Jesus’ message and ministry to them in another sense. This is a profound paradox, but one that every believer should find comforting with sufficient grounds to elicit praise! Our Savior is always taking care of us in extraordinary ways whether acknowledged by us or not.John 14:26. Two things are obvious from considering Jesus’ words to His disciples in John 14:19-25. First, obedience to Jesus’ commands are a demonstration of our love for the Savior. This is a countercultural message in the world today. We hear of “free love” and that “we should love everyone,” and even the Beatles pressed the issue, stating that “love is all you need.” Yet, Jesus explains that for one who is in a relationship with Him to actually embrace His words in such a way as to where their life is transformed, their choices are different, and their thinking has been altered, is to demonstrate love for the Lord Jesus Christ. While the Savior freely loves us (Gal 2:20), this love is demonstrated by the selfless sacrifice seen chiefly in the giving of Himself to redeem sinners. This is truly a “greater love” (John 15:13). Jesus tells His disciples plainly what it is to love Him (John 14:15, 21 [x2], 23, 24, 28). Here we find the second observation, with John 14:21 and 23 showing that a love for the Savior by keeping the commandments leads to a greater intimacy with the Father. Jesus states that the one who obeys Him is the one who “loves” Him, and the one who loves Him is loved by the Father, to which Jesus will then love with the expressed end being that He will “disclose” Himself to them (John 14:21). Jesus “disclosing” Himself to the obedient saint is emphanizō meaning “to cause something to be fully known by revealing clearly and in some detail—‘to make known, to make plain, to reveal, to bring to the light, to disclose, revelation.’”[7] The footnote that accompanies this definition gives even greater clarity about what transpires when love for the Savior has motivated one’s obedience. It states that “all of these meanings involve a shift from the sensory domain of seeing, causing to see, or giving light to, to the cognitive domain of making something fully known, evident, and clear.”[8] Plainly put, obedience leads to a greater intimacy with the Father and the Son (See also Col 1:9-10).Jesus’ teachings on what it is to love the Savior, and the guaranteed growth in one’s intimacy with the Father and Son, are what surround His referencing the “Helper” again in John 14:26. Here, Jesus again qualifies what He had previously stated in v.16-17: that the “Helper” is the Holy Spirit, and that the Father will send Him. The remark is also made that the Spirit would come “in My name” (John 14:26b), which harkens back to the “another Helper” designation (John 14:16b). At this point, Jesus reveals two additional details about the capability of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. First, the Spirit will “teach you all things” (John 14:26b). “All things” speaks solely to God’s truth. The Spirit, being perfectly God, cannot teach the believer that which is not true. No, He is “the Spirit of truth” (John 14:17a) and all that He affirms corresponds perfectly with who He is without contradiction. What we understand about God in general, concerning His impeccable character and His divine attributes, are all positioned upon the fact that He IS truth. Therefore, He defines what truth is because only He is true. One cannot forget that the Holy Spirit is perfectly God, therefore all that is true of God is equally true of the Holy Spirit.This is further understood when reading 1 John 2:26-27 which states “These things I have written to you concerning those who are trying to deceive you. As for you, the anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing teaches you about all things, and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you abide in Him” (emphasis added). The correlation between “all things” and truth is perfectly consistent with the Spirit’s very being and is positioned in this passage against the idea of “those who are trying to deceive you.” The second detail revealed is that the Spirit will bring to remembrance all of the things that were said to them by Jesus. No doubt that Jesus taught His disciples many wonderous things (John 21:25), both in word and in deed. The Spirit would be necessary to bring about the proper truth at the proper time for the opportunity of maximum obedience for their lives. This would speak to His present ministry of illumination in the disciples’ (and in the believer’s) life. With a command like “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you” (Matt 28:18-19a), the Spirit would be necessary in relating this wealth of information as disciples were being made.The Spirit bringing about remembrance would also be necessary in the documentation of the Scriptures, which found men being “carried along” by the Spirit of God (2 Pet 1:21). The Spirit’s ministry of remembrance is why we have the Old and New Testaments today.Finally, many men of God have been called upon to witness in various situations (whether threatening or not), and to testify of Christ Jesus with their lives hanging in the balance. Even Jesus told His disciples “when they arrest you and hand you over, don’t worry beforehand what you will say. On the contrary, whatever is given to you in that hour—say it. For it isn’t you speaking, but the Holy Spirit” (Mark 13:11). There will be times in our lives when the conversation will turn to spiritual matters, and no doubt there will be many who will quickly speak emphatically about things that they are truly ignorant of because they do not know God. These opportunities find the Spirit giving us boldness, love, tact, and the words that are necessary to provide sound reasoning from God’s Word to an otherwise fruitless conversation. The Spirit will bring forth passage after passage and verse after verse, showing the truth of God’s Word to be undeniable and irrefutable.The Holy Spirit is truly a remarkable blessing from our glorious Father. His mercy in sending the Spirit to us for our help, comfort, and aid continues eternity’s theme of a gracious Sovereign who desires for His children to be well-kept in Divine arms. Packer describes this beautiful gesture, writing, “we can only appreciate all that our Lord meant when He spoke of ‘another Comforter’ as we look back over all that He Himself had done in the way of love, and care, and patient instruction, and provision for the disciple’s well-being, during His own three years of personal ministry to them. He will care for you, Christ was saying in effect, in the way that I have cared for you. Truly a remarkable person!”[9] Such grace deserves our greatest praise![1] Thayer, Greek-English Lexicon, p. 483.[2] BDAG, p. 549.[3] R. A. Torrey, The Fundamentals: A Testimony to the Truth, vol. 2 (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2005), p. 332.[4] Gary Derickson and Earl Radmacher, The Disciplemaker: What Matters Most to Jesus (Salem, OR: Charis Press, 2001), p. 123.[5] John F. Hart, The Moody Bible Commentary (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2014), p. 1629. [6] BDAG, p. 630.[7] Louw and Nida, p. 337–338.[8] Ibid., p. 338, footnote 9.[9] J.I. Packer, Knowing God (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1979), p. 58.

Acts 13:1-12 - The Fuel of Missions: The Holy Spirit (Matt Moorehead - June 28th, 2009) by MVC Church