1 John 5:7 -"For there are three bearing witness in heaven: the Father, the Word (Jesus), and the Holy Spirit, and these Three are One."
The Holy Spirit is one person of the Godhead. We should honor, respect and speak to Him as we would our Father and Jesus. Our relationship with Him can grow as we communicate with Him.
Who qualifies to receive the Holy Spirit?
The moment you repent of your lifestyle of sin and rejection of the Lord and receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you receive the Holy Spirit.
When Jesus was on earth, this is what He taught:
- The Holy Spirit will live with you forever
John 14:16 "And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper (the Holy Spirit), that He may abide (live) with you forever."
- The Holy Spirit will live in you.
John 14:17 "... the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him, but you know Him (the Holy Spirit), for He dwells (lives) with you and will be with you."
The Result is found in verse 18 "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you." We are not alone in the world, but are now children of God.
- The Holy Spirit will be your Primary Teacher
He will remind you of the teachings of Jesus when faced with decisions to be made in your life. This is a tremendous privilege, to have the Holy Spirit speak to you regarding the issues of life.
John 14:26 "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, who the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all things that I have said to you."
We still of course, have human teachers, yet should honor the Holy Spirit as our Primary Teacher.
- The Holy Spirit's primary objective is to admonish people to look at Jesus.
John 15:26 "But when the Helper comes, who I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of Truth who proceeds from the Father, He will TESTIFY OF ME. "
Now, if the Holy Spirit lives in you, surely He is speaking to you to tell people about Jesus. He longs to testify to the lost about Jesus, yet uses you as His mouthpiece to preach the gospel.
- The Holy Spirit only came to earth to live with believers when Jesus finally ascended to Heaven and then sent Him. Note that Jesus sent Him.
Jesus taught that in order for the Holy Spirit to come and live in the hearts and lives of the believers, He would have to ascend to Heaven after His resurrection. He returned to earth for 40 days, and when He ascended to heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit for all who believe in Him.
John 16:7 "Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you."
- The Holy Spirit will
- Guide you through life and decision-making.
- Show you things to come. I.e. foresight.
- Speak to you.
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 of things to come."
- The Holy Spirit lives to glorify Jesus and make His ways known to you personally.
John 16:14 "He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you."
The Empowerment / Baptism of the Holy Spirit
Note: All Christians have the Holy Spirit living in them and with them.
This empowerment will take you to a new level in your relationship with the Lord and of your witness of Jesus.
Jesus knew of the obstacles that would face us in our lives. These include temptations, trials and obstacles attempting to derail you of your faith. This is why Jesus said:
Acts 1:8 "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. "OR whatever nation in the world you are from.
The power of the Holy Spirit is to be a Christian witness, but it is also power to witness for Jesus.
Luke 24:49 "Behold I send the Promise of my Father upon you, but tarry in the city of Jerusalem, until you are endued with the power from on high."
- Jesus promised that a special event would happen in their lives. Let's see what happened!
What happened?
Jesus said:
Acts 1:5 "For John (the Baptist) truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized (empowered) with the Holy Spirit not many days from now."
Acts 2:1 "When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each one of them.
4 And they were ALL FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT and BEGAN TO SPEAK with OTHER TONGUES, as the SPIRIT gave them utterance."
Note:
In verse 3 the Holy Spirit came upon each of them.
In verse 4 they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. As a result of being filled with the Holy Spirit:
- They began to speak with other tongues or in a heavenly language.
- The Holy Spirit helps a believer to speak in this heavenly language.
- You need to move your lips and speak, and the Holy Spirit will help you to speak in this heavenly language.
What does speaking in tongues mean?
It is a divine prayer language whereby you can communicate with the Lord.
The Day of Pentecost has come, and now all believers can be ''filled with the Holy Spirit'' if they desire it.
How do I receive this empowerment?
Ask Jesus to fill you with the Holy Spirit, Jesus will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. John the Baptist said in
Matthew 3:11 "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."
Luke 11:13 "... how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"
What are the benefits of being filled with the Holy Spirit?
- 1 Corinthians 14:2 "For he who speaks in a tongue (heavenly language) does not speak to men, but to God, for no one understands him; however in the spirit he speaks mysteries ."
- Your relationship with the Lord becomes more intimate.
- 1 Corinthians 14:4 "For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful."
- Your spiritual life is edified.
- Romans 8:26 "Likewise, the Spirit also helps us in our weaknesses, for we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered."
- Praying in the Spirit helps you to pray according to the perfect will of God.
- Jude 20 "... building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit."
- Praying in the Spirit builds up your faith.
- Acts 1:8 "...you will receive power..."
- You will receive the extra power of boldness to witness for the Lord.
Come to Him in Faith:
Hebrews 11:6 "...he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."
If you would like to receive this empowerment of the Holy Spirit, you may pray this prayer:
"Thank you Jesus for baptizing Me with the Holy Spirit, that I may be a witness for you. Holy Spirit, come now and fill me with your presence and power. I will move my lips and speak to God, right now in the name of Jesus. Amen.''
Now! Begin to move your lips and the Lord will help you to speak in this heavenly language.
Keep thanking Jesus for this empowerment and you will speak in this heavenly language.
