Baptism of the Holy Spirit - Part 1

We are going to begin tonight our series in the subject of the Holy Spirit. It is important that we lay strong doctrinal foundations because this subject is a subject that in many places has divided the church because in many places we find unscriptural phenomena that has brought a lot of questions and a lot of confusion. Now there are exciting aspects of the work of the Holy Spirit in the church, in the world, and in the believer. And we're going to be getting into the exciting work of the Holy Spirit, but it is important that we lay a strong doctrinal foundation. Now Paul tells us that in the last days there would be people who had itching ears who would not endure sound doctrine, but that is not the case here. And we're thankful for that. We desire to experience and to know the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We desire to experience the gifts of the Holy Spirit for we all need them. But it is extremely important that we have a solid scriptural doctrinal base for all that is said and all that is done. On the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit first came upon the church, exciting things were happening. There was a noise that sounded like a hurricane. The origin of the noise was probably the Holy Spirit, but the Bible doesn't say. Just a noise like a mighty rushing wind. There were cloven little tongues of fire that seemed to set above each of them. And they all began to speak in languages that they had never learned or studied. And declared in these foreign languages the marvelous works of God. Now in Jerusalem, because it was the feast day of Pentecost, there were people gathered from all over the world. And those that were gathered, when they heard this noise, came to see what the origin was. And they found these 120 people. And they heard them speaking in the various languages from where they had come. Medes, Parthians, Elamites, dwellers of Mesopotamia and all. And they heard them speaking in their own languages, the glorif- the glorif- the glorif- oh no, the the wonderful works of God. They were glorifying God and declaring his wonderful works. Got into that one I couldn't get out. And they said, what does this mean? Well there's always jokers in the crowd. And there were those saying, ha ha, they got hold of some new wine. And so Peter stood up. And he said, a minute brethren, listen to me a minute. First of all, these people aren't drunk as you suppose. Now he didn't deny that they weren't drunk, they just weren't drunk as they suppose they were drunk from new wine. But this is that which was spoken of by the prophet Joel. When he said, in the last days saith the Lord, I'm going to pour out my spirit upon all flesh. And your sons and daughters are going to prophesy. Now notice, Peter gave to the people a scriptural basis for the phenomena that they were observing. And I would like to emphasize the importance of keeping our experiences within a scriptural base. As long as we can give a scriptural basis for the phenomena that is taking place, we're in safe ground. But if phenomena begins to take place for which we do not have a scriptural base, and people come and say, hey, what does this mean? We're in big trouble. Because we cannot point to the word of God and say, well this is that. In all spiritual phenomena, make sure that you can point to the scriptures and give a solid scriptural basis for what is happening. Because any kind of supernatural phenomena will always bring an interested crowd, interested in phenomena. And if we can't give a solid scriptural basis, then we are in deep water over our heads. I am not really interested or looking for any new truth. But I do desire some new experiences in the old truths. And there is so much here that God has for us in the realm and in the subject of the Holy Spirit that you haven't touched this really beneath the surface at all. There's plenty within the scriptures and within scriptural bounds for us to experience of God's love and God's power that we do not need to go to extra scriptural experiences. God just help us to experience fully that which is in the word. And that's our prayer during this series that we might just really experience that fullness of God's Holy Spirit. But we need to lay the foundation for this study on the Holy Spirit before we get into the work of the Spirit in the life of the believer. First of all, just who is the Holy Spirit? Basic Christian doctrine declares that there is one God who has manifested himself in three persons. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. One God, yet manifested in three persons. You say, well, I don't understand that. You probably never will. You see, we are talking now of an infinite, eternal God. And we are trying to understand that infinite God with finite minds. One of Job's friends, Eliphaz, said to him, who by searching can understand God to perfection? And the answer is no one. If you could understand God completely, then you'd be God. But you're not, quite obvious. And so we won't be able to understand God completely. And it's just a lesson in futility to try. Paul the Apostle writing to Timothy said, great is the mystery of godliness or the Godhead. For God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, received into glory. But great is this mystery of the Godhead. For God was manifested in the flesh. Christ is God manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit. But we cannot comprehend fully. Now, you say, but if you have the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, one plus one plus one equals three. How can you say they are one? Well, maybe we're using the wrong kind of mathematics. Let's try one times one times one equals one. In the book of Genesis, the first verse of the Bible, we are introduced to the subject of the Bible. In the beginning, God. Now it is interesting that this Hebrew word, translated God, is the Hebrew word Elohim, which is plural. In the Hebrew, they have a singular tense, a dual tense, and a plural tense. El is God singular, Elah is God dual, and Elohim is God plural three or more. In the beginning, Elohim. Now, the Jews, because they are so insistent upon the fact that there is only one God, say that Elohim, rather than being plural, is Elohim for intensity. However, that is something that seems to be contrived to get around a problem that they face. But the fact that Elohim is a plural, because they don't say the same thing for seraphim or cherubim, that that's intensity. They say, well, that means there's more than one. That means there's three or several. In the beginning, God created the heaven, the earth, and the first person of the Godhead to be revealed is the Holy Spirit. And the Spirit of God moved on the face of the waters. Then as we go a little further down in Genesis, we get to verse 26 of chapter one, and God, Elohim, plural, said, let us make man in our image and after our likeness, plural. Who's God talking to? Or who is he talking with? Let us make man after our image and after our likeness. Now in Deuteronomy 6:4, we have really sort of the heart and cry of the whole Jewish faith. In fact, you remember that Jesus was talking with a lawyer one day, and he recognized that this lawyer was getting close to the truth. He had an earnest seeking heart, asking questions, but that's not bad. Asking questions is healthy. It's good. You shouldn't just accept everything you hear. Those in Berea were more noble than those in Thessalonica in that they went home and searched the scriptures to see if Paul was telling the truth. And that's always a wise thing. Go home and search the scriptures and find out if what you are listening to is really true. Questions are healthy. Honest questions are healthy. Now there are some questions that are just dishonest questions. That is, a person asks a question only because he wants an argument. He's really not looking for an answer. He's just trying to create an argument. And that's not worth spending your time with. But if a person is seriously questioning, that's healthy. That's good. And this lawyer was seriously questioning Jesus. And he said to him, what is the greatest commandment? And what did Jesus go to? Deuteronomy 6:4. Jesus said, Now, this Deuteronomy 6:4 is a cry that the Jews used to chant. And they would really get into it and chant it for hours. The Lord our God is one Lord. The Lord our God is one Lord. And man, they'd really get into it and get, you know, it'd be like a football game. They'd really go at it, you know, as they would be giving more or less a cheer for God and declaring that God was one. Now this was important because they were living and surrounded by pagan cultures that had multiplicity of gods. By pantheism. And of course, this one God concept was rather unique because all of the other nations had so many gods. And so the Lord our God is one Lord. And they would chant it over and over again. The interesting thing is the Hebrew structure here. For in the Hebrew, there are two words for one. One is echad and the other is yachid. Now, yachid in Hebrew is an absolute one. Singular, absolute one. Where echad is a compound unity. And there's a vast difference. We might say tonight that as we have gathered together here, we are all one. In that we are focusing our attention upon the word of God and the study of the Holy Spirit. And yet we are many. But we are echad. We are one in a compound sense. Unity among many. That's echad. Yachid, I would say I am one. Whatever that might mean. But I'm talking now about an absolute unity. A singular. In the Shema, if God inspired Moses to write the Lord our God is Yachid, Yehovah, then there could be no teaching whatsoever of the Trinity. But God inspired Moses to write the Lord our God is echad, Yehovah. A compound unity. The three in one. Now in the New Testament we find this manifested. Jesus spoke of his unity with the Father. In John he declared I and the Father are one. He said to his disciples he that hath seen me hath seen the Father. This was in response to Philip's declaration Lord show us the Father and we'll be satisfied. Jesus said have I been so long a time with you? Haven't you seen me Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father. How sayest thou then show us the Father? Don't you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? And the works that I do I do not of myself but the Father that dwells in me. He does the works. And so that unity and Jesus speaks of that unity that existed between the Father and himself. But then also we find the Holy Spirit brought him and when Jesus was baptized in water the Spirit of God descended as a dove and lighted upon him and the voice of God spake from heaven saying this is my beloved Son in whom I am well placed. So you have the three. Jesus being baptized in water the Holy Spirit descending upon him and the Father giving confirmation testifying or bearing witness this is my beloved Son in whom I am well placed. Jesus told his disciples in Matthew 28 go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. Go and teach all nations. Baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you but the baptism was in the name of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. The three. Paul said now may the love of Christ and the peace of God and the blessed communion of the Holy Spirit rest and abide with you all. Giving you the three persons of the Godhead. In the book of Revelation we see the throne of God and God is sitting upon the throne and we see Jesus coming and taking the scroll out of the right hand of him who is sitting upon the throne and there by the throne of God is the spirit of God. So again you find the three. The Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit as they are coupled together. Now the Holy Spirit is a person and it's very important that we recognize the Holy Spirit as a person. He has a personality. He has all of the characteristics of a person and a personality. Because I emphasize this because there are some people who try to treat this mystery of the Godhead by saying well Jesus is not really God and the Holy Spirit is only an essence. So there's only one God, the Father Jehovah. He's the only God. Jesus is a created being. He is not really God and the Holy Spirit is just an essence. But that doesn't solve the problem of the mystery of the Godhead. It only compounds the problem because you've got to somehow explain away all of those scriptures that deal with the deity of Christ and then you have to somehow explain away how an essence can be grieved or can be quenched or can talk. I've never heard of an essence talking and yet we read and the Holy Spirit spake and said separate unto me Paul and Barnabas for the ministry where I have called them. Now let's translate that as some would and the essence spake and said separate unto me Paul and Barnabas. Doesn't make sense. The Holy Spirit has characteristics that are characteristics only of a person and thus we speak of the personal Holy Spirit and it is important that we look at the Holy Spirit and consider the Holy Spirit as a person because God wants you to have a personal relationship with the Holy Spirit. A personal intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit and it's hard to have a personal experience with an essence or with a force or with a power. To have a personal relationship with him he must be a person and that is exactly what God wants you to experience is this personal relationship with the Holy Spirit. Some of the characteristics that are attributed to the Holy Spirit. Paul in Romans 15 speaks about the love of the Spirit. Now that's an interesting statement because I've heard much about the love of God I've heard much about the love of Jesus Christ but I have never heard a sermon on the love of the Holy Spirit and yet the Holy Spirit loves you. And we usually don't think of the Holy Spirit in that term. Or with that characteristic of loving you. Paul speaks about the mind of the Holy Spirit and the knowledge of the Holy Spirit. In 1 Corinthians chapter 2 he talks there about how that no man understands the things of the Spirit for they are spiritually discerned but the Spirit searches all things and knows all things and knows what is the mind of the Father. So he speaks about the knowledge of the Holy Spirit. There in 1 Corinthians 2 he speaks about not quenching the Holy Spirit in 1 Thessalonians 5. Again we read grieve not the Holy Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit has feelings. He can be grieved. Man can resist the Holy Spirit. Man can do despite to the Spirit. We read in Hebrews of those who did despite to the Spirit of grace. All of these things presuppose a person for you cannot do these things to an essence or to just a force. So it all bears witness of the personality of the Holy Spirit. Paul speaks about his desire to go to Asia but the Holy Spirit forbid him. And then the Holy Spirit would not allow him to go to Bithynia. So the Holy Spirit was there forbidding and stopping him from going to certain places. The Holy Spirit can be lied against. We remember where Peter said to Ananias why have you plotted in your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit. Now again if he were just an essence this would be impossible. He is a person. He is God. He is the third person of the Godhead. And you can have and you should have a personal relationship with the Holy Spirit even as you have had a relationship with Jesus Christ and a relationship with the Father through Jesus Christ so we have this relationship with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is spoken of as being a teacher. Jesus said now when the Holy Spirit is come he will teach you all things and bring all things to your remembrance whatsoever I have commanded you. And then the Holy Spirit is referred to with personal pronouns. In John the 16th chapter beginning with verse 7 and going through to about verse 13 there are 10 times the Holy Spirit is referred to with the Greek personal pronoun which is correctly translated he. And so the Bible clearly teaches that the Holy Spirit is not an essence because you read these scriptures and insert essence or force or power and they cannot make any sense. It can only make sense as we recognize that the Holy Spirit is a person and then realize that we are to have a personal relationship with him. He loves us, he will teach us, he will empower us, he will guide us into all truth, he will help us in our inner session and he is one whom the Lord has sent to be a helper to you. And so his name Comforter the Greek word Paracletus and the word means one who comes alongside to help. Now Jesus had been with his disciples and he had been the Paracletus and he said I will not leave you comfortless, I will come to you yet a little while and I will pray the Father and he will send you another Comforter Paracletus that he may abide with you forever even the spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive. One who comes alongside of you to help you in your walk and in your relationship with God. So we trust that through this series of studies on Monday night that God is going to bring you into a deep personal relationship with that third person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit whom God has sent into the world and who is the medium by which we have fellowship with God and relate to God for God's spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are the sons of God and your relationship with God is a spiritual relationship for God is a spirit and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth and the spirit of God is that medium whereby man touches God and comes into a relationship with God and thus it is important that you know the Holy Spirit and that you come into this personal relationship with him that through the spirit you might relate to God and that will be really the direction towards which we are moving as we study together this important subject of the Holy Spirit in the church today now it is our desire on Monday nights to spend time in just opening our hearts and lives to the spirit of God and to the work of God's spirit within our lives one unfortunate thing in the church and in church history is that the church has endeavored to take up and to do the work of the spirit and this is really one of the great weaknesses of the church today is endeavoring to do the work of the spirit with the ability the genius and the energy of the flesh and this is why the church is failing so miserably today God needs to support his program alright let's have a bazaar and let's raise support for God so he can do his work and we're trying with the abilities of the flesh and the genius of the flesh to do the work of the spirit it's the work of the spirit to bring men to Christ it's the work of the spirit to empower the believer it's the work of the spirit to convict people of sin it's the work of the spirit to provide for the church and when we take over the job or try to take over the job of the spirit we're always failing so we want to wait upon the spirit we want to open our lives to the spirit we want to receive that empowering that Jesus promised when the Holy Spirit comes upon us in order that we might be an effective body a powerful body in order that God might have the opportunity to do his work in our lives and in the lives of the people what a difference when God by his spirit really begins to work it would be well for you to do a little research in church history and read of some of the revivals that Finney held here in the United States how the power of the spirit worked in such a powerful way that in communities where he went to hold meetings when he left that town all of the bars were closed because they had no patrons and people just walking down the street would be convicted by the Holy Spirit and fall on their knees and cry out to God for forgiveness without even a sermon or anything God's spirit come on he was preaching one night and 30 miles away in a bar the spirit of conviction came upon the people sitting there in the bar and they all began to just weep before God and repent that's what the Holy Spirit can do and that's what we need that's what this area and community needs is just a powerful work of the Holy Spirit and I look at the potential here tonight if God's spirit would only come upon each of our lives and we would go forth emboldened and empowered by the spirit of God and his working through us the effect that it could have upon this whole area I look at the early church with just 120 spirit filled disciples and what happened as a result of those 120 and you multiply and look what we have here and think of what could happen and I'm trusting God that it's going to happen as we just wait upon God and open our hearts to the spirit and just realize as David said it's time for thee oh Lord to work man has done his thing and it just hasn't happened God it's time for you to work and we just wait upon God and for the spirit to just empower us and to work in our community in such a marvelous way let's just open our hearts to God right now Father we thank you for the Holy Spirit and we honor him we glorify him tonight and we look now to the spirit of God to come upon our lives and to anoint us with power to fill us with love to do for us what we can't do for ourselves oh God send forth thy Holy Spirit upon this body of believers in a very powerful way Lord that he might just do his work unrestricted unhindered freely oh Lord we want to see thy work in the lives of the people in this community and we thank you Lord that you've promised that in the last days you would pour out your spirit upon all flesh come upon our sons and daughters come upon these young people Lord with the new infusion of power and anointing come upon we older people Lord we yield our lives now we open our hearts now may we be emptied of self that we might be filled with thee in Jesus name Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me melt me mold me fill me reuse me Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me melt me mold me fill me use me Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me music music music music music music