The Good News series: Receive The Holy Spirit (Part one)

The Gospel

May 6

My friend received the Holy Spirit / the gift of tongues recently; and when I asked what her experience was, she said she felt peace and power. I don't think I have ever heard a better description of what experiencing the Holy Spirit feels like.

So many of us go about our days, with anxiety, fears, worries, despair, confusion - without peace, without power. Recently, I was about to go on a very prayerful fast and I wrote out these prayer points: (1) receiving God’s love (2) having a self sacrificial love for the body of Jesus (3) having compassion for the lost (4) having a desire and love for God (5) freedom from hurt, fear of rejection and persecution (6) more intentionality and discipline. I was so burdened in my heart, and geared up to pray until the answers to these prayers manifested some how. Just as I am about to start, I was reminded (by the Holy Spirit) of 2 Timothy 1:7 -

"For God did not give us a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of sound judgment and personal discipline [abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control]" 2 Timothy 1:7 [AMP]

I realised in that moment that I already had what I was praying for. Everything. Right there. Inside me. In the person of the Holy Spirit. The question was - had I taken Paul's advice to Timothy in the previous verse and 'fanned into flames' the 'gift' of God which was in me? [2 Timothy 1:6].

In this series on the Good News, I have been able to share with you the Bad News - that we are all sinners, on a one way road to hell and in need of a saviour. I hope I have been able to show: (1) that in order to save us from this Bad News, God in his mercy gave us a way out in the person of Jesus; (2) that, to enter into the provided salvation from sin and death, we must repent of the sin in our lives and pass through death, burial and resurrection (just like Jesus did) in the water of baptism; (3) that baptism is more than religion has made it; it is not a symbol but a powerful spiritual reality where your old spirit is buried and you are born again spiritually; and (4) that every account of a believer that came to faith Jesus (post resurrection of Jesus) was baptised in water.

In this post in the series, I will be sharing about the Holy Spirit. The beautiful gift of the spirit of God that all believers are entitled to receive based on the promises of God.

So let’s dive right in.

Who is the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God

In the beginning God [plural] created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. -Genesis 1:1-2

Right on the very first page of the bible we meet the Spirit of God - separate from God but also part of God [plural]. The Hebrew word used in the old testament for the Spirit is 'Ruakh' - which also means 'breath' 'wind' or 'energy'. This word reveals to us a way to start to understand who the Holy Spirit is. Like wind, He is invisible - yet powerful; like ‘breath’ He sustains life here on earth; like 'energy' - He empowers.

God in the bible is plural from day one. Father, Son [see John 1] and Spirit.

Something interesting you’ll find in the Old Testament is that the Holy Spirit is never referred to on His own - without reference to God. He is always referred to as the (personal) Spirit of God or the Holy Spirit of God or the Spirit of the Holy God, or - when God speaks - as “My Spirit” / or in prayer to God as “your Spirit”.

If you are like me a few years ago, you probably imagine the Holy Spirit as this abstract force - the Holy 'ghost’ - a floating presence that moves around in the atmosphere. This picture is really inaccurate. The bible tells us that in the same way we humans have spirits - so also God is / has a Spirit. The Holy Spirit is a personal spirit, a 'He' not 'it'.

“For what person knows the thoughts and motives of a man except the man’s spirit within him? So also no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.” ‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭2:11‬ ‭AMP‬‬

The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Jesus Christ

Something mind-bending that you'll also see in the bible is that the Holy Spirit is also called the 'Spirit of Jesus' or 'Spirit of God's son':

“for I know that through your prayers and God’s provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance.” - ‭Philippians‬ ‭1:19‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“And because you [really] are [His] sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying out, “Abba! Father!” - Galatians‬ ‭4:6‬ ‭AMP‬‬

Speaking about the Holy Spirit, Jesus also said to His disciples the night before his arrest: " I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you" [John 14:18] He continues to explain: "...on that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you...". John 14 gives us a glimpse into one of the greatest mysteries in the bible; how God is three and also one. Jesus was comforting His disciples by showing them that, in receiving the Holy Spirit, they would not only have Him but God the Father too.

The Holy Spirit & the good news

So far, we have seen that the Holy Spirit is the spirit of God and Jesus in one spiritual person. So what does that mean as a part of this 'good news' - that God has saved us from sin and death?

In prophesying about the future salvation of God’s people from sin and death, Ezekiel said (speaking on God's behalf):

“I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws." - Ezekiel‬ ‭36:26-27‬ ‭NIV‬‬

In the process of repentance and baptism in water we experience a cleansing from all sin [Acts 2:38]; God gives us a new heart and we receive and new spirit (to replace our dead spiritual nature). Our spiritual truth is that we are 'born again' in the spirit- new born babies in God's family.

Like any new baby, there is a whole new life to live - as a child of God, as a citizen of God's kingdom. From reading the bible - and from my own experiences - I believe that there is no way to live a life that is pleasing to God as His child in His kingdom, without receiving the promised Holy Spirit.

Like Ezekiel says above, the Holy Spirit resides in us and gives us the ability to obey Gods laws.

Hold up: laws? I thought the whole point of salvation was the 'old testament laws' were done - that believers no longer have laws to keep? that we were no longer condemned and burdened by laws?

Stay with me.

Scripture says:

"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, [most people stop here but keep reading] because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit." Romans 8: 1 - 4

So what does this mean?

The bible makes it clear that, on our own, we can never keep God’s laws and be right before God (righteous). What Jesus did was to be righteous for us; so that when we are born again, we inherit His right standing (righteousness) before God.

He made Christ who knew no sin to [judicially] be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we would become the righteousness of God [that is, we would be made acceptable to Him and placed in a right relationship with Him by His gracious lovingkindness]. 2 Corinthians 5:21 AMP

The good news doesn’t stop there. That would be like stopping a story just after the main character was born. The point of the gospel is not that we that we are now ‘off the hook’, free to live to please ourselves. The point of the gospel is that God knew that we were spiritually dead - incapable of being in relationship with Him and walking with Him - a holy and righteous God. So God made a way for us to restart - to be reborn as a new type of people that have His righteousness and are freely able able to walk with him and please Him - just like Jesus did.

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbour as yourself.” Galatians 5:13-14

So what does this have to do with the Holy Spirit?

Well - everything. Like we discussed above, when we receive the Holy Spirit, the entirety of God actually lives in us. That means we can hear God, speak with God and receive direction and instruction, directly from God. The bible tells us all the amazing things the Holy Spirit does for those that receive Him.

1: When we receive the Holy Spirit, He reminds us about Jesus’ commands:

[Jesus to His disciples] “But the Advocate, 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.” - John 14:26

2: The Holy Spirit also gives us the power and ability to not live sinful lives but to actually keep God’s laws. (Ezekiel 36:27)

So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.... The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. - Galatians 5:16; 19-21

3: He empowers Jesus’ followers to be His witnesses and keep His command to make disciples of all nations.

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” - Acts 1:8 NIV

4: The Holy Spirit helps us to pray our heart in line with God’s will

In 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 and 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 - Roman 8:26 - 27

5: The Holy Spirit helps us in all things, comforts us, advocates for us, strengthens us

But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor — Counselor, Strengthener, Standby) will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him (the Holy Spirit) to you [to be in close fellowship with you] - John 16: 7

6: The Holy Spirit works in our hearts and the hearts of people we preach to, to convince us about things we cannot see: like sin, God’s righteousness and the coming judgement.

And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. John 16: 8-11

7: The Holy Spirit empowers us to be hopeful, even in the midst of such a crazy and evil world

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Romans 15:13

8: The Holy Spirit gives us the ability to have the character of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23

9: The Holy Spirit gives supernatural gifts that help all those in the body of Jesus, grow and become more and more like Jesus

Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues.All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines. 1 Corinthians 12: 7-11

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Ephesians 4:1-14

10. He is a guarantee of our adoption as children of God

Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. 2 Corinthians 1:21-22

Basically - the Holy Spirit is amazing. I’ll park here for now and in my next post (the last one in this Good News Series) I will share how we can actually receive the Holy Spirit.

What about you?

Through this series, I hope I have shown you that while we are all born in sin - separated from God - God has made a way for us to be reconciled to Him. Now, because of Jesus we can repent (change our minds), and decide to stop living to please our selves and live to please God. We can have our sins washed away, and bury our old, dead spiritual natural - being born again by God’s Spirit in the water of baptism. We can now receive God’s very own Spirit, to be with us always, lead us, direct us, empower us to boldly proclaim the truth, and help us live a life pleasing to God.

Now that’s what I call good news.

If you want any part of this good news (or have questions)- please please please reach out to me here.

Till next time, Stay Blessed x