The Holy Spirit: The Game Changer, Pt. 2

Let us pick off from where we left off in the previous teaching, on the Holy Spirit. 

God wants you to have an intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit, such as the disciples had with Jesus. He is your key to living a victorious life, but you have to know Him, and fellowship with Him. He is not a “thing”, or an “it”, as some think. He is a person, with a mind (1 Cor. 2:11), love (Rom. 15:30), a will (1 Cor. 12:11), emotions which is why He can be grieved (Eph. 4:30), can speak (Acts 13:2) and is a Gentleman Who cannot force Himself on us, which is why we’re told not to quench Him (1 Thess. 5:19). We need to relate to Him as we relate to other human beings, actually just as we would relate to Jesus if He were present with us. The Holy Spirit was given to us to abide with us forever; He doesn’t leave when you sin, as some people think, and come back when you repent. He promised never to leave you nor forsake you (Heb. 13:5). You can only walk away from Him, when you renounce Jesus, but He will never leave you. He is a gift of God, as we have seen from Peter’s sermon (Acts 2:38), and God said that His gifts and callings are without repentance:

Romans 11:29 (AMP)

 For God's gifts and His call are irrevocable. [He never withdraws them when once they are given, and He does not change His mind about those to whom He gives His grace or to whom He sends His call.]

In the times of Jesus, the disciples depended on Him for the smallest things, even defending them when the Pharisees accused them (Matt. 12:1-8). He said that after He left, the Spirit would now defend them:

Matthew 10:19-20

"But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak; ²⁰ "for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.

As we have seen, Jesus Himself had depended on the Holy Spirit to speak (Acts 1:2). The Holy Spirit wants to help you in ALL you do. We may keep praying for God to help us, but as long as we keep ignoring His Spirit then we keep slapping God’s helping hand. We need to acknowledge and embrace the Holy Spirit, just as we would Jesus if He were to appear today and live with us. The Spirit is always by our side, and as the Amplified version calls Him, He is our Helper and Standby (Jn. 14:16). He is always on Standby, waiting for you to look up to Him for help. Let Him teach you how to speak, what to wear, how to work, study and do exams, treat others and see yourself, what to eat, how to live, what vehicles to board, when to speak etc. There is nothing that is “beneath” the Holy Spirit, that we should be afraid of consulting Him about. If we are consistent and faithful to look up to Him to do the “small things”, we will be consistent and faithful to look up to Him to do the “big things”, such as raising the dead, as we know He is faithful and is always with us. Let Him teach you the Word, remind you of Scriptures, show you things to come and lead you into all truth:

John 14:17

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.”

John 15:26-27

"But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. ²⁷ "And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning.”

John 16:13

“However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”

Again, we keep singing and praying to God to make us just like Jesus, and reveal Himself to us. This is the work of the Spirit, revealing to us that we are already like Jesus (1 Jn. 4:17), and revealing all things that have been given to us by the Father, that are of the Son:

John 16:13-14

He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. ¹⁵ "All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you.

1 Corinthians 12:9-12

But as it is written: Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him." ¹⁰ But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. ¹¹ For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. ¹² Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.

The Spirit is here to continue the work of Christ, and is the “another Helper” that Jesus promised. Jesus did not come to condemn the world, but save it (Jn. 3:17). Therefore, the work of the Spirit is not to condemn us and show us our sins, as some think. His work is to help us live the God-kind of life, reveal the Father to us and help us walk in intimacy with Him. It all starts with us desiring to know Him more, and deliberately fellowshiping with Him. Talk to Him when you wake up, as you walk, when you are at work/school etc. Keep asking Him questions and talking to Him as you would to a physical person. Never think anything is impossible for you, as long as you have the Holy Spirit with you. It is never by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of God (Zech. 4:6).

If you don’t have the baptism of the Holy Spirit, ask of the Father, and receive it:

Luke 11:13

“If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”

There is no age-limit or conditions to this promise by Jesus. He said that God is really willing to fill you with His Spirit, if only you ask. Cornelius was filled with the Spirit minutes after being saved, which dispels the notion that we have to wait for a while after getting saved for us to be filled with the Spirit (Acts 10). All you have to do to receive the Holy Spirit, regardless of how long you've been saved, is ask. When you ask, do so in faith, believing that whoever asks, according to the will of God, receives (Lk. 11:10, Mk. 11:24, 1 Jn. 5:14-15). Once you’ve asked, believe you’re filled and start speaking in tongues, as the Spirit gives you utterance. Don’t be afraid that you would say things that are wrong, for no one who speaks by the Spirit of God can insult God (1 Cor. 12:3). If you asked for the baptism and believe you’ve received, believe that whatever words you will speak at that moment when praying are from God, and speak them out. Fear hinders many from speaking in tongues. This is because the mind cannot understand what you are saying when speaking in tongues (1 Cor. 14:14). Ignore what your mind is saying and go on ahead to speak in tongues. After you’re filled, or if you are already filled, keep speaking in tongues, for this is how we build ourselves up (1 Cor. 14:4, Jude 20). To understand more about tongues and the baptism of the Spirit, click on this link.

In conclusion, if you admire the life that Jesus lived, then realize that you have the Ability to live it as He did, and the answer is the Holy Spirit. Embrace Him, know Him more, and let Him help you live a victorious life, the life that God intended for you to live. God has done His part, in teaching us about the Spirit through His Word, and giving Him to us. Receive Him and let Him be your Helper.

Grace and peace to you!

 
-- Sam Gitonga. 

28/04/15 Sunday Service Sermon, Teaching Transformation Ministry. 

Brother Sam is the Youth Leader at Teaching Transformation Ministry. We are located along the Thika-Ruai Flyover Junction (at the Thika Rd./ Bypass intersection), Next to Eastgate Restaurant.