Empowered With the Holy Spirit
Scripture calls all of us to be “filled with the Spirit”
(Ephesians 5: 17 – 20 (NIV)).
17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the
Lord’s will is. 18Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead,
be filled with the Spirit, 19speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and
songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord,
20always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our
Lord Jesus Christ.
With the Holy Spirit we become empowered to carry out the
work for which God has pre-ordained for us.
God wants to put within each of us a fire or a focus so that we can
complete His will on earth. The Holy
Spirit is at work in the lives of all believers to make them more like Jesus
(Bicket, 2010). The message of the Holy Spirit is not for a few select believers. The empowerment gift of the Holy Spirit is
for all people.
Christ’s church was born from the coming of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was sent by God to His Church
following the ascension of Jesus during the time of Pentecost (Acts 2: 1 – 5 (NIV)).
1When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in
one place. 2Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from
heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3They saw what
seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.
4All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other
tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
The early Church was a Spirit led Church. The baptism in the Holy Spirit was an
important aspect of the early church. As
the apostles traveled and spread the Gospel they expected all who had been
baptized and believed the Gospel to also have a baptism of the Holy Spirit
(Herbeck, 2003). It was expected that
all believers would experience the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Many contemporary Christian easily understand God the Father
and God the Son, but struggle with God the Holy Spirit. God consists of three Persons: the Father,
the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The
accounts of the Baptism of Jesus found in Matthew 3:13–17; Mark 1:9–11; or Luke
3:21–22 show all three members of the Trinity present at the same time: Jesus
being baptized, the Holy Spirit descending like a dove, and the voice of the
Father expressing approval from heaven.
Matthew 3: 13 – 17 (NIV)
13Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized
by John. 14But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you,
and do you come to me?” 15Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us
to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented. 16As soon as
Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was
opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on
him. 17And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I
am well pleased.”
Mark 1 9 – 11 (NIV)
9At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was
baptized by John in the Jordan. 10Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water,
he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.
11And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am
well pleased.”
Luke 3: 21 – 22 (NIV)
21When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was
baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened 22and the Holy Spirit
descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You
are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
Jesus wants to manifest His presence on our hearts, mind,
and emotions. He does this as we engage with Holy Spirit (IHOP). “Knowing God through a conscious, personal
encounter through Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit is Christianity”
(Herbeck, 2003, p. 59). The baptism in
the Holy Spirit completes baptism and is a release of the empowering gifts of
baptism.
The
promise of the coming of the Holy Spirit is recorded throughout Scripture both
in the Old and New Testaments.
Joel
2:28–29 describes the coming of the Holy Spirit. 28“And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit
on all people. Your sons and daughters
will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. 29Even on my servants, both men and women, I
will pour out my Spirit in those days. (NIV).
In John
14:15–17 Jesus promises that God the Father will send the Holy Spirit to be in
the apostles. 15 “If you love me, keep
my commands. 16And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate
to help you and be with you forever— 17the 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. (NIV).
“The Holy
Spirit is described in Scripture as having characteristics we all have: a mind
(Romans 8:27), a will (1 Corinthians 12:11), and feelings (Ephesians 4:30)”
(Bicket, 2010, p.73). Different name
such as counselor, teacher, helper, intercessor are used to describe the Holy Spirit.
Living
in the Holy Spirit was an important part of the early Christian life. Instances of infilling by the Holy Spirit can
be found in Acts 2; 8; 9; 10; and 19.
Acts
2:4 (NIV): 4All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in
other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Acts
8: 17 (NIV): 17Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they
received the Holy Spirit.
Acts
9: 17 – 19 (NIV): 17Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his
hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on
the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be
filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18Immediately, something like scales fell from
Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19and after
taking some food, he regained his strength.
Acts
10: 44-47 (NIV): 44While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit
came on all who heard the message. 45The circumcised believers who had come
with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out
even on Gentiles. 46For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.
Then Peter said, 47“Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized
with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.”
Acts
19: 6 (NIV): 6When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them,
and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.
In Acts 5:32 God has given the Holy Spirit to those who obey
him. The Holy Spirit is called the Helper
by Jesus. He helps us to trust, love, and obey Jesus as we trust and talk to
Him.
“It’s important to
see that the willingness to let ‘oneself be acted upon’ by God is fundamental
aspect of coming to a genuine or fuller knowledge of him” (Herbeck, 2003, p.
50). When it come to the Holy Spirit, with
or on is good but in is far better. When
filled with the Holy Spirit you become empowered for your mission.
Engaging with the Holy Spirit is the way we bear much fruit
to God in the Kingdom. (IHOP). You can
overcome every obstacle, as long as you refuse to give up, because you have the
Spirit of God inside of you (Joyce Meyer).
With the Holy Spirit we can become transformative leaders that become
world changers. The Holy Spirit is a
power source that will empower, guide, lead, and direct us.
The Spirit desires to manifest His power through people who
will not use it to draw attention to themselves. (John. 3:29-30). Meekness is power under restraint. We are meek
as we use our resources under the direction the Holy Spirit. “The baptism in the Holy Spirit also disposes
‘the believer to be ever more docile to the action of the Holy Spirit’”
(Herbeck, 2003, p. 68). When we are
docile we are teachable and able to be led by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit reveals Jesus' heart and will by
teaching us the Word and inspiring us to obey (IHOP).
We need to cooperate with and call upon the Holy Spirit. In Romans 8:26 we see how the Spirit enables God’s will.
26In the same way,
the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for,
but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27And he who
searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes
for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. 28And we know that in all
things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called
according to his purpose. (NIV).
Although not a formula or a process outline, there are some
key common aspects to building and deepening an infilling of the Holy Spirit. For some it comes in an instant and others
recognize the baptism in a more subtle way. The baptism in the Holy Spirit is available to
all believers. However, “The Spirit does
not fill persons who do not plan to use the Spirit empowerment for the purposes
God intended” (Bicket, 2010, p. 82). First
is to turn away from sin. Be obedient to
God’s will. Surrender yourself to God
and do His will. Don’t put any limits on
God. Love is everything. Clothe yourself in love. Draw a line in the sand and live a life free
from sin. Feeding our fleshly live is
the surest way to kill the work of the Spirit (6The mind governed by the flesh
is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. [Romans 8:6
(NIV)]). Be unified and set your focus
on God’s Kingdom. (33But seek first his
kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as
well. [Matthew 6:33 (NIV)]). Desire the
gift of the Spirit. (1Follow the way of
love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy. 2For anyone
who speaks in a tongue does not speak to people but to God. Indeed, no one
understands them; they utter mysteries by the Spirit. [1 Corinthians 14:1-2
(NIV)]). Pray for the baptism. Prayer is central to the life of the Church
(Wood, 2010). Listen for God’s voice. Finally, believers desiring the baptism in
the Holy Spirit need to study and apply the Scriptures (Wood, 2010). (16All
Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and
training in righteousness, 17so that the servant of God may be thoroughly
equipped for every good work. [2 Timothy 3:16 – 17 (NIV)]).
When we have the Holy Spirit within us, we are charged,
transformed, and empowered to carry out God’s will. We must desire and be attentive to the action
and will of the Holy Spirit. We must welcome the Holy Spirit into our life and let His work flow through our lives.
References
Bicket, Z. (2010).
Introduction to Pentecostal doctrine, 3rd Ed. Gospel Publishing House. Springfield, MO.
Herbeck, P. (2003) When the Spirit comes in power:
Rediscovering the charismatic dimension of the Christian life. Servant Books. Cincinnati, OH.
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Joyce Meyer Ministries
