Category: Holy Spirit

I think in some ways God wants us all to have the same wonder that Mary had as she received good news. Why, of all people, would an angel appear to this Jewish girl in Nazareth? “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” The next revelation was even greater: “The Savior will be in you!” No wonder Gabriel declared: “For nothing is impossible with God.”

Mary was praised for believing what the Lord told her would be accomplished. Do I believe what the Lord tells me is being accomplished? “For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.” Why me? Why you? “How can it be Lord? How can I walk in holiness in this world? How can I be blameless in this generation?” Jesus promised he would not just be with us, but he would be in us. He is our hope. May we respond with faith as Mary did: “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be done to me as you have said.” (Luke 1:26-45)

“If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.” John 14:15-20

French filmmaker Pierre Rehov, while working on a documentary about Palestinian suicide killers, was intrigued by a common description surviving victims gave of their attackers: “Suicide bombers are all smiling one second before they blow themselves up.” If you’ve seen recent interviews with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the president of Iran, you might have noticed his frequent smile.

We were with my parents at my old church in Chattanooga this past weekend. I love going back home. Older people, who were probably the same age I am now when I was growing up, rush to me and share how much they’ve been praying for my health. They pat me on the back, squeeze my cheeks, and hug me. One precious lady in her eighties complimented me as being “unbelievable.” She then looked at my wife, Susan, and said, “And you’re undependable too!” She caught her mistake and apologized profusely.

I’ve always smiled a lot. Some think that a person who can smile while going through a trial is worthy of praise, but I’m not too unbelievable. I have peace, but the French filmmaker discovered that many religious martyrs have peace before they take their own life and the lives of others. They believe they are about to receive a great eternal reward. Some describe the expression on the face of Osama Bin Laden as peaceful. A person’s strong belief can bring a type of peace, but that does not mean he is right in what he believes.

Jesus says to look far beyond the exterior. He warns of false prophets dressed up as peaceful sheep. So how do you tell? Can someone who often talks about God really be a wolf? “By their fruit you will recognize them,” Jesus said. Can you tell good fruit from bad? Can you get beyond the words and discern whether something is true or false? The apostles spent much time warning of false teaching in the last days. Now, as when Jesus walked the earth, people must be able to determine what is from God and what is not. Jesus was constantly asking, “Do you recognize the Father? Forget what my accusers are saying about Me, do you hear God’s message in my teaching? Some say I am from the devil, but do you see the good fruit of my life? A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.”

If you’re like me, you might be thinking, “Man, I’m not too smart sometimes. What if I mistake a thief for a genius… or worse?” Jesus knew His followers would need help after He ascended to the right hand of God. “If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.” (John 14:15-17) The great blessing for the believer from Pentecost until the Second Coming is the Holy Spirit. We cannot make it without Him.

“The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (I Corinthians 2:10-14)

“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.” (John 16:12-15)

“Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:11-13)

What if my heart does not feel like an ark of the covenant? What if my body does not feel like a temple of the Holy Spirit? Our feelings often work against faith, so the great need is to simply believe what God says.

Living out the life God has given us often corresponds to what we truly believe. Is it just theory that God writes His law on the minds and hearts of His children or has He really done it? Is it just theory that my body is a temple of the Holy Spirit or does He really live in me?

Satan has no right to any part of God’s temple. We have been bought at a great price and our Master has all authority. Zeal for His house (us) still consumes Him!

“In the temple courts he found men selling cattle sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of chords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, ‘Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market.’ His disciples remembered that it is written: ‘Zeal for your house will consume me.’” John 2:14-17

May we be bold enough to give Him free reign over every part of us! Then we can honestly sing the old hymn by Adelaide Pollard:

Have Thine own way, Lord, Have Thine own way
Thou art the Potter, I am the clay
Mold me and make me after Thy will
While I am waiting, yielded and still.

Have Thine own way, Lord, have Thine own way
Hold o’er my being absolute sway!
Filled with Thy Spirit till all shall see
Christ, only, always, living in me!

The late Keith Green sang this prayer:

Rushing Wind blow through this temple, blowing out the dust within
Come and breathe your breath upon me, I’ve been born again.
Holy Spirit, I surrender, take me where you want to go
Plant me by your Living Waters, plant me deep so I will grow.

Jesus, You’re the One who set my spirit free
Use me, Lord, glorify Your Holy Name through me

Separate me from this world, Lord, sanctify my life for You
Daily change me to Your image, help me bear good fruit.
Every day You’re drawing closer, trials come to test my faith
But when all is said and done, Lord, its been worth the wait.

Jesus, You’re the One who set my spirit free
Use me, Lord, glorify, Your Holy Name through me.

“And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.” Acts 2:2

“Have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them. Make this tabernacle and all its furnishings exactly like the pattern I will show you…” “Have them make a chest of acacia wood… There, above the cover between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the Testimony, I will meet with you…” Exodus 25

The Ark of the Covenant was housed in the mobile tent Moses was commanded to build. People knew God was there. Those that did not treat the ark or the tabernacle with great respect perished in dramatic ways.

For nearly five hundred years the tabernacle was the dwelling place of God. Then King David proposed a more permanent structure. Though God did not permit David to be the builder, his son, Solomon, erected a magnificent Temple in Jerusalem.

Once a year, the high priest went into the presence of God, behind the curtain in the inner sanctuary called the Most Holy Place. There, at the Ark, atonement was made for the sins of the people. Year after year the priestly duties were performed. After about five hundred years, Someone walked by the temple and made a startling prediction: “I tell you the truth, not one stone will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.” Earlier, this same Jew had made an even more outrageous statement: “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will build it back.”

The One who said these things knew a radical change was at hand. No longer would the Presence of God be in the Most Holy Place of a building built by men – the Presence of God was in Jesus! He knew He was to be the perfect Sacrifice offered once for all men. He knew that when He died the thick curtain that protected the Ark of the Covenant would be “torn in two from top to bottom”. He knew He was providing the way for all men to have access to His Heavenly Father. Jesus also knew His body was the Temple that would not stay in a tomb.

We know these things, but do we keep in mind God’s ongoing story? Today the new covenant established by God is not contained in a holy chest of wood – it is written on human hearts! “I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they all will know me, from the least of them to the greatest.”

For centuries archeologists have searched for the Ark of the Covenant. Yearly, thousands of tourists visit the Temple Mount in Jerusalem only imagining how beautiful that building must have been. But arks exist today! The arks are the hearts of those who believe in the Son. And temples live today! Each member of the Body of Christ is the dwelling place of God. Let us thank and worship this One who has given us so much.

“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.” I Corinthians 6:19-20

Just outside the gates of Jerusalem, my friend, Harm, told me to park the rental van while he ran into the old city to get my family. If you think Atlanta traffic is bad, you ought to drive in Jerusalem! I tried to back into the only open place I saw and of all things… I hit a car! Just remembering that moment makes me break out into a cold sweat. The driver of the car was an Arab man, who spoke no English. Of course, I was an American man who spoke no Arabic. Thinking back on it, our efforts to communicate were quite comical, but I did not laugh at the time. My only thought was, “Where is Harm?” Since he lived there, he knew the laws of Jerusalem. Harm also spoke both languages. Harm could intercede for me. How I needed my friend!

Since I am here and not in a Jerusalem prison, you know the Lord delivered me from my poor driving, but I gained a fresh understanding of the need for an advocate. I have a friend from another country who is in great need of a lawyer. He can’t defend himself. He needs someone who understands our court system and the laws of our land. He needs someone to argue his case and bring out the truth before a fair judge. He really needs a friend.

One of the words Jesus used to describe the Holy Spirit is a Greek word that carries the meaning of “coming along side” in the same way an attorney helps his client in a court of law. In some versions of the Bible this word is translated “Counselor”. Jesus promised a perfect Counselor to be with those who put their trust in Him. This Counselor is the Spirit of Truth who will constantly remind us of the things Jesus says. He knows us perfectly; He also knows the Judge. Jesus promised this Helper will be with us forever. Whether we are sick, or imprisoned, or jobless, or in an accident in Jerusalem, we need not fear… a Friend is there.

“If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you… All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” John 14:15-27