Sunday, June 23, 2013

What do you know about the Holy Spirit?


  "For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.  2 Corinthians 5:21".
 
 Therefore, if any one is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, behold, the new has come. 2 Corinthians 5:17".
                                                                                                       
Brethren are you living in righteousness and in His  nature.
 
(Isa 29:13 KJV) Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:
                                                                                                         
Or  Are you   still living in the old sinful nature and in your old deeds?   So repent , Be filled with the Holy Spirit,  for without the HOLY SPIRIT you cannot attain HOLLINESS.  2 Corinthians 4:7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.   It was the same Holy Spirit that raised Christ from the dead will raise your dead bodies now   too
 
 But also daily pray, read the Bible, and practise it too. I have often said spend more time in getting to know God’s words directly, read the Bible more.. and do not rather read what the still mostly liars do say about the Bible, and anything else they say. Men’s opinions are useless to God’s real, whole truth still too! Let God interpret, teach you his word and not the mostly mere, useless men and women. Stop praising mere men and women, praise God and worship him alone.. and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.
 
(Isa 66:2 KJV) For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.
 
 James 1:19 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:20 For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.21 Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.26 If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain.27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
 
Matthew 12:43 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. 44 Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished.45 Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.
(Rom 8:13 KJV)  For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live
A personal life in the Holy Spirit next is what it is all thus also about for each one of us
 
(John 6:63 KJV)  It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
 
(Rom 8:14 KJV)  For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
 
(1 Cor 12:8 KJV)  For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;
 
(2 Cor 3:18 KJV)  But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
 
(Gal 5:24 KJV)  And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
 
(Gal 6:8 KJV)  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
 
Once a person has been personally now accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior, note both, they will next be baptized with the Holy Spirit, and clearly he or she will start becoming a different person. This generally will happen in two different ways:
 
-The Holy Spirit will continually empower the believer with new abilities, called “The Gifts of the Holy Spirit.” These gifts enable the believer to do the Lord’s work in new and sometimes miraculous ways. Think of them as “birthday gifts” in honor of their new birth but they are also gifts to equip one to service Christ and the body of Christ much better . The gift of the Holy spirit themselves are never an adequate substitute for having the fruit of the Holy spirit now too
 
- As the believer next also makes daily conscious choices to submit to the gentle leading of the indwelling Holy Spirit, the believer’s character is changed. The resulting visible new character traits are called “The Fruit of the Spirit” – . The fruit of the Holy spirit themselves are never an adequate substitute for having the gifts of the Holy spirit now too

 The Work of the Holy Spirit as God, in the Trinity:
 
The Bible teaches that everything done by God was done by the power of the Holy Spirit, from the roses to the stars, from the butterflies to the ants… Everything done by Jesus was done by the power of the Holy Spirit, his Incarnation, his miracles, even His Crucifixion ((Luke 1:13 KJV) But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.14 And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. 15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb.  16 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. 17 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.
 
 (Luke 1:30 KJV) And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. 31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. 32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: 33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. 34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? 35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. (Luke 1:41 KJV) And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost:
 
(Luke 1:67 KJV) And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying, 68 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people, 69 And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David;
 
(Acts 10:38 KJV) How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him. 
 
Acts 1:7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. 8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
 
 (Heb 9:14 KJV) How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? )…
 
Yes under the New Covenant, the Holy Spirit filling scenario is different from the Old Testament. Of course, submission to God, yielding to the working and guidance of the Holy Spirit are important issues in our lives, but being baptized with the Spirit or having the fullness of the Spirit is not merely yielding to the Holy Spirit already dwelling in the heart of the believer.
 
It is the Holy Spirit coming upon the believer and filling him, empowering him, changing him. It is God’s intention for all His children to be indwelt by the Holy Spirit, continually filled with the Holy Spirit, and be led, taught and empowered by the Spirit in every aspect of their lives. Sadly, many of God’s children are not filled with the Holy Spirit. This has significant implications on their spiritual growth and their contribution to the advancement of God’s kingdom. If you have it you would know for sure, it would have changed your own personal Christian life dramatically.
 
There are various reasons for their neglect of the ministry of the Holy Spirit, such as being ignorant of this area of truth and being over-reliant on personal capabilities, unrepentant sins,  and effort to work out their faith  and the excesses of those who over-emphasize of their inflated egos still.
 
To be a Christian is based on the Greek word anointed one, Christos, a person in whom  we can see the anointing of the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ.. do we see yours easily? or do you like bullying others too much still? doing your own thing?
 
(Acts 10:38 KJV)  How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.
 
(1 John 3:21 KJV) I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: 2 Whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.The word “Christ” is a transliteration of the Greek word christos, meaning “the Anointed One,    Jesus was the anointed one. Jesus is the Messiah and  the transliteration of the Old Testament Hebrew word pronounced maw-shakh, meaning Anointed One, which when translated into the New Testament Greek is Christos. Matt. 3:11, “As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”
 
Peter told his convicted hearers, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”
 
The Scriptures still clearly exhorts all believers to be Baptized now and to be personally  filled with the Holy Spirit. 
 
 Ephesians 5:18: “Be filled with the Spirit”. Why would there even be a need to be filled if you had it already now? 
 
Jesus promises us that he will Baptize us with the Holy Spirit and Paul’s exhortation in Ephesians 5:18 makes it clear that even though it is also still God’s intention for all to be filled with the Spirit, not all are filled nor Baptized, and Paul’s exhortation implies that we can do  now something about it.
 
So have you personally now you been Baptized with the Holy Spirit and even filled with the Holy Spirit again?
 
Beyond the show of a doubt the devil himself firstly really hates any references to the Holy Spirit, the anointed ones, the idea that Christians do have now empowering to overcome the devil too…
 
 and so now the devil uses any of his followers, those many still  in the fundamental religious circles too now, to now lie, twist, distort the truths.
 
And everything good done by any human being since the beginning of times, has been done by the power of the Holy Spirit; all your good deeds were done with the power of the Spirit of God, even if you never heard about Him!… the Holy Spirit is the person who moves the universe and your life… if you let him. and as we look at other passages in the Book of Acts that describe how believers were filled with the Holy Spirit. For example, when Peter preached to Cornelius and those who were with him, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message and they received the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:44-45).
 
Still by the power of the Holy Spirit only are we doing the will of the Father… It is the Father who gives the order, who wants it. It is the Son who becomes man. And it is the Holy Spirit the one who does the job (Lk.1:26-38). 
 
((Heb 9:14 KJV) How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? ).
 
- Jesus was born by the power of the Holy Spirit ((Luke 1:35 KJV) And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. ).
 
- He went about doing good and healing all the oppressed by the devil, by the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38 KJV) How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him. ).
 
- All his ministry was done anointed by the Holy Spirit ((Luke 4:18 KJV) The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, ).
 
- He was crucified moved by the eternal Spirit ((Heb 9:14 KJV) How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? ).
 
- The Spirit raised Jesus from the death ((Rom 8:11 KJV) But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. ).
 
- And actually, the Holy Spirit is the one who leads the Church and your life and mine  ((John 14:15 KJV) If ye love me, keep my commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.
 
 (John 14:26 KJV) But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
 
(John 15:26 KJV) But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:
 
(John 16:7 KJV) Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. 8 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9 Of sin, because they believe not on me;10 Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more;11 Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. 12 I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. 13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come. 14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you. ).
 
- All the Bible was inspired by the Holy Spirit, and that’s why it is the Word of God, to guide and help in the sanctification of all of us ((Heb 4:12 KJV) For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (2 Pet 1:21 KJV) For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. ).
 
The Holy Spirit is usually mentioned last in the Trinity, and some people wonder if this doesn’t imply inferiority: Not at all!. The usual placement of the three persons of the Trinity has nothing to do with their importance, but with the order or chronology in their functions: The Father created us, the Son redeemed us, and now the Holy Spirit does his work in this age of the Spirit ((1 Pet 1:2 KJV) Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied. ). Thus we pray to the Father through the Son and in the power of the Holy Spirit.
 
The New Testament scriptural presentation is that there two events, the baptism with the Holy Spirit and being filled with the Holy Spirit. Those who are baptised with the Holy Spirit experience being empowered, equipped by the Holy Spirit. .  Thus the “Baptism with the Holy Spirit”  is a reference to the experience when Christ baptizes us with the Holy Spirit whereas “being filled with the Spirit” describes  the holy Spirit’s prescence in our lives.. And so, when we are baptized with the Spirit, we are also filled with the Spirit but we also do have to be refilled but this is not so  with the baptism with the Holy Spirit .
 
This understanding of the two expressions is consistent with the scriptural presentation of the experience of the fullness of the Spirit when one is baptised with the Spirit and Paul’s injunction in Ephesians 5:18 to be filled and continue to be filled with the Holy Spirit. The injunction implies that a believer may or may not have experienced the gifts, empowerment, equipping  of the Spirit and there are those who have must take care that they continue to be filled. The original text of Ephesians 5:18 has the sense “be filled and continue to be filled”. It is meant to be a continuing reality, not just an experience at a moment in time.The fullness of the Spirit is a reality that we need to maintain if we have already been Baptized personality by the Holy Spirit. 
 

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