CHAPTER 9 THE HOLY SPIRIT

Jesus’ Instruction
The Holy Spirit upon you – power to preach
Filled with the Holy Spirit
Peter’s Message
The Life-Giving Spirit
Special Abilities from the Holy Spirit
Love is the greatest gift of the Holy Spirit
Abilities from the Holy Spirit
Special Abilities from the Holy Spirit –
Speaking in Tongues – Unknown Languages
Orderliness in the Church
Obey the Holy Spirit
Special Abilities of the Holy Spirit

Jesus’ Instruction
ACTS 1:4-5
In one of these meetings he (Jesus) told them not to leave Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit came upon them in fulfillment of the Father’s promise, a matter he had previously discussed with them.
“John baptized you with water (in water),” he reminded them, “but you shall be baptized with (in) the Holy Spirit in just a few days.”

The Holy Spirit upon you – power to preach
ACTS 1:6-11
Another time when he (Jesus) appeared to them, they asked him, “Lord, are you going to free Israel (from Rome) now and restore us as an independent nation?” “The Father sets those dates,” he replied, “and they are not for you to know. But when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, you will receive power to preach with great effect to the people in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth, about my death and resurrection.”
It was not long afterwards that he was lifted up and disappeared into a cloud, leaving them staring after him. As they were straining their eyes for another glimpse, suddenly two white-robed men were standing there among them, and said, “Men of Galilee, why are you standing here staring at the sky? Jesus has gone away to heaven, and some day, just as he went, he will return!”

Filled with the Holy Spirit
ACTS 2:1-4
Seven weeks had now gone by since Jesus’ death and resurrection, and the Day of Pentecost arrived. (This annual celebration came fifty days after the Passover ceremonies, when Christ was crucified.) As the believers met together that day, suddenly there was a sound like the roaring of a mighty gale in the skies above them and it filled the house where they were meeting. Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on their heads, and everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in languages he didn’t know, for the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.

Peter’s Message
ACTS 2:16-36
What you see this morning was predicted centuries ago by the prophet Joel – ‘In the last days,’ God said, ‘I will pour out my Holy Spirit upon all mankind, and your sons and daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions and your old men dream dreams. Yes, the Holy Spirit shall come upon all my servants, men and women alike, and they shall prophesy. And I will cause strange signs in the heavens and on the earth – blood and fire and clouds of smoke; the sun shall turn black and the moon blood-red before that awesome Day of the Lord arrives. But anyone who asks for mercy from the Lord shall have it and shall be saved.’
“O men of Israel, listen! God publicly endorsed Jesus of Nazareth by doing tremendous miracles through him, as you well know. But God, following his prearranged plan, let you use the Roman government to nail him to the cross and murder him. Then God released him from the horrors of death and brought him back to life again, for death could not keep this man within its grip.
“King David quoted Jesus as saying:
“ ‘I know the Lord is always with me. God’s mighty power supports me.
“ ‘No wonder my heart is filled with joy and my tongue shouts his praises! For I know all will be well with me in death –
“ ‘You will not leave my soul in hell or let the body of your Holy Son decay
“ ‘You will give me back my life, and give me wonderful joy in your presence.’
“Dear brothers, think! David wasn’t referring to himself when he spoke these words I have quoted, for he died and was buried, and his tomb is still here among us. But he was a prophet, and knew God had promised with an unbreakable oath that one of David’s own descendants would [be the Messiah and] sit on David’s throne. David was looking far into the future and predicting the Messiah’s resurrection, and saying that the Messiah’s soul would not be left in hell and his body would not decay. He was speaking of Jesus, and we all are witnesses that Jesus rose from the dead.
“And now he sits on the throne of highest honor in heaven, next to God. And just as promised, the Father has sent the Holy Spirit – with the results you are seeing and hearing today.
“[No, David was not speaking of himself in these words of his I have quoted], for he never ascended into the skies. Moreover, he further stated, ‘God spoke to my Lord, the Messiah, and said to him, sit here in honor beside me until I bring your enemies into complete subjection.’
“Therefore I clearly state to everyone in Israel that God has made this Jesus you crucified to be the Lord, the Messiah!”

The Life-Giving Spirit
(Paul)
ROMANS 8:1-17
So there is now no condemnation awaiting those who belong to Christ Jesus. For the power of the life-giving Spirit – and this power is mine through Christ Jesus – has freed me from the vicious circle of sin and death. We aren’t saved from sin’s grasp by knowing the commandments of God, because we can’t and don’t keep them, but God put into effect a different plan to save us. He sent his own Son in a human body like ours – except that ours are sinful – and destroyed sin’s control over us by giving himself as a sacrifice for our sins. So now we can obey God’s laws if we are led by the Holy Spirit and no longer obey the old evil nature within us.
Those who let themselves be controlled by their lower natures live only to please themselves, but those who follow after the Holy Spirit find themselves doing those things that please God. Following after the Holy Spirit leads to life and peace, but following after the old nature leads to death because the old sinful nature within us is against God. It never did obey God’s laws and it never will. That’s why those who are still under the control of their own sinful selves, bent on following their own evil desires, can never please God.
But you are not like that. You are controlled by your new nature if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that if anyone doesn’t have the Spirit of Christ living in him, he is not a Christian at all.) Yet even though Christ lives within you, your body will die because of sin; but your spirit will live, for Christ has pardoned it.
And if the Spirit of God, who raised up Jesus from the dead, lives in you, he will make your dying bodies live again after you die, by means of this same Holy Spirit living within you.
So, dear brothers, you have no obligations whatever to your old sinful nature to do what it begs you do. For if you keep on following it you are lost and will perish, but if through the power of the Holy Spirit you crush it and its evil deeds, you shall live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
And so we should not be like cringing, fearful slaves, but we should behave like God’s very own children, adopted into the bosom of his family, and calling to him, “Father, Father.” For his Holy Spirit speaks to us deep in our hearts, and tells us that we really are God’s children. And since we are his children, we will share his treasures – for all God gives to his Son Jesus is now ours too. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.

Special Abilities from the Holy Spirit
(Paul)
1 CORINTHIANS 12:1-11
And now, brothers, I want to write about the special abilities the Holy Spirit gives to each of you, for I don’t want any misunderstanding about them. You will remember that before you became Christians you went around from one idol to another, not one of which could speak a single word. But now you are meeting people who claim to speak messages from the Spirit of God. How can you know whether they are really inspired by God or whether they are fakes? Here is the test: no one speaking by the power of the
Spirit of God can curse Jesus, and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” and really mean it, unless the Holy Spirit is helping him.
Now God gives us many kinds of special abilities, but it is the same Holy Spirit who is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service to God, but it is the same Lord we are serving. There are many ways in which God works in our lives, but it is the same God who does the work in and through all of us who are his. The Holy Spirit displays God’s power through each of us as a means of helping the entire church.
To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another is given the ability to speak with knowledge, and this comes from the same Spirit. He gives special faith to another and to someone else the power to heal the sick. He gives power for doing miracles to some, and to others power to prophesy and preach with inspiration. He gives someone else the power to know whether evil spirits are speaking through those who claim to be giving God’s messages – or whether it is really the Spirit of God who is speaking. Still another person is able to speak in languages he never learned; and others, who do not know the language either, are given power to understand what he is saying. It is the same and only Holy Spirit who gives all these gifts and powers, deciding which each one of us should have.

Love is the greatest Gift of the Holy Spirit
(Paul)
1 CORINTHIANS 12:31b and 13:1-13
First, however, let me tell you about something else that is better than any of them!
If I had the gift of being able to speak in other languages without learning them, and could speak in every language there is in all of heaven and earth, but didn’t love others, I would simply be making a noise. If I had the gift of prophecy and knew all about what is going to happen in the future, knew everything about everything, but didn’t love others, what good would it do? Even if I had the gift of faith so that I could speak to a mountain and make it move, I would still be worth nothing at all without love. If I gave everything I have to poor people, and if I were burned alive for preaching the Gospel, but didn’t love others, it would be of no value whatever.
Love is very patient and kind, never jealous or envious, never boastful or proud, never haughty or selfish or rude. Love does not demand its own way, It is not irritable or touchy. It does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice when others do it wrong. It is never glad about injustice, but rejoices whenever truth wins its way. If you love someone you will be loyal to him no matter what the cost. You will always believe in him, always expect the best of him, and always stand your ground in defending him.
All the special gifts and powers from God will some day come to an end, but love goes on for ever. Some day prophecy, and speaking in unknown languages, and special knowledge – these gifts will disappear. Now we know so little, even with our special gifts, and the inspired preaching of those most gifted is still so poor. But when we have been made perfect and complete, then the need for these inadequate special gifts will come to an end, and they will disappear.
It’s like this: when I was a child I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child does. But when I became a man my thoughts grew far beyond those of my childhood, and now I have put away the childish things. In the same way, we can see and understand only a little about God now, as if we were peering at his reflection in a poor mirror; but some day we are going to see him in his completeness, face to face. Now all that I know is hazy and blurred, but then I will see everything clearly, just as clearly as God sees into my heart right now.
There are three things that remain – faith, hope and love – and the greatest of these is love.

Abilities from the Holy Spirit
(Paul)
COLOSSIANS 1:8 (adapted)
The Holy Spirit gives us the great love for other people.

Special Abilities from the Holy Spirit –
Speaking in Tongues – Unknown Languages
(Paul)
1 CORINTHIANS 14:1-40
Let love be your greatest aim: nevertheless, (for all that), ask also for the special abilities the Holy Spirit gives, and especially the gift of prophecy, being able to preach the messages of God.
But if your gift is that of being able to “speak in tongues,” that is, to speak in languages you haven’t learned, you will be talking to God but not to others, since they won’t be able to understand you. You will be speaking by the power of the Spirit but it will all be a secret. But one, who prophesies, preaching the messages of God, is helping others grow in the Lord, encouraging and comforting them. So a person “speaking in tongues” helps himself grow spiritually, but one who prophesies, preaching messages from God, helps the entire church grow in holiness (godliness and moral purity) and happiness.
I wish you all had the gift of “speaking in tongues” but, even more, I wish you were all able to prophesy, preaching God’s messages, for that is a greater and more useful power than to speak in unknown languages – unless, of course, you can tell everyone afterwards what you are saying, so that they can get some good out of it too.
Dear friends, even if I myself should come to you talking in some language you don’t understand, how would that help you? But if I speak plainly what God has revealed to me, and tell you the things I know, and what is going to happen, and the great truths of God’s Word – that is what you need; that is what will help you.
Even musical instruments –the flute, for instance, or the harp – are examples of the need for speaking in plain, simple English rather than in unknown languages. For no one will recognize the tune the flute is playing unless each note is sounded clearly. And if the army bugler doesn’t play the right notes, how will the soldiers know that they are being called to battle? In the same way, if you talk to a person in some language he doesn’t understand, how will he know what you mean? You might as well be talking to an empty room.
I suppose that there are hundreds of different languages in the world, and all are excellent for those who understand them, but to me they mean nothing. A person talking to me in one of these languages will be a stranger to me and I will be a stranger to him. Since you are so anxious to have special gifts from the Holy Spirit, ask him for the very best, for those that will be of real help to the whole church.
If someone is given the gift of speaking in unknown tongues (unknown languages), he should pray also for the gift of knowing what he has said, so that he can tell people afterwards, plainly. For if I pray in a language I don’t understand, my spirit is praying but I don’t know what I am saying. Well, then, what shall I do? I will do both. I will pray in unknown tongues (unknown languages) and also in ordinary language that everyone understands. I will sing in unknown tongues and also in ordinary language, so that I can understand the praise I am giving. For if you praise and thank God with the spirit alone, speaking in another language, how can those who don’t understand you be praising God along with you? How can they join you in giving thanks when they don’t know what you are saying? You will be giving thanks very nicely, no doubt, but the other people present won’t be helped.
I thank God that I “speak in tongues” privately more than any of the rest of you. But in public worship I would much rather speak five words that people can understand and be helped by, than ten thousand words while “speaking in tongues” in an unknown language.
Dear brothers, don’t be childish in your understanding of these things. Be innocent babies when it comes to planning evil, but be men of intelligence in understanding matters of this kind. We are told in the ancient Scriptures that God would send men from other lands to speak in foreign languages to his people, but even then they would not listen.
So you see that being able to “speak in tongues” is not a help to God’s children, but is to interest the unbeliever. However, prophecy (preaching the deep truths of God) is what the Christians need, and unbelievers aren’t yet ready for it. Even so, if an unbeliever, or someone who doesn’t have these gifts, comes to church and hears you all talking in other languages, he is likely to think you are crazy. But if you all prophesy, preaching God’s word, [even though such preaching is mostly for believers] and an unbeliever or a new Christian comes in who does not understand these things, all these sermons will convince him of the fact that he is a sinner, and his conscience will be pricked by everything he hears. As he listens, his secret thoughts will be laid bare and he will fall down on his knees and worship God, declaring that God is really there among you.

Orderliness in the Church
(Paul)
1 CORINTHIANS 14:26-33
Well my brothers, let’s sum up what I am saying. When you meet together some will sing, another will teach, or tell some special information God has given him, or speak in an unknown language, or tell what someone else is saying who is speaking in the unknown language, but everything that is done must be useful to all, and build them up in the Lord. No more than two or three should speak in an unknown language, and they must speak one at a time, and someone must be ready to interpret what they are saying. But if no one is present who can interpret, they must not speak out loud. They may talk silently to themselves and to God in the unknown language, but not publicly.
Two or three may prophesy, one at a time, if they have the gift, while all the others listen. But if, while someone is prophesying, someone else receives a message or idea from the Lord, he must not interrupt.
The one who is speaking should be allowed to finish before another begins. In this way all who have the gift of prophecy can speak, one after the other, and everyone will learn and be encouraged and helped. Remember that a person who has a message from God has the power to stop himself or wait his turn. God is not one who likes things to be disorderly and upset. He likes harmony, and he finds it in all the other churches.

Obey the Holy Spirit
(Paul)
GALATIANS 5:16-26
I advise you to obey only the Holy Spirit’s instructions. He will tell you where to go and what to do, and then you won’t always be doing the wrong things your evil nature wants you to. For we naturally love to do evil things that are just the opposite of the things that the Holy Spirit tells us to do; and the good things we want to do when the Spirit has his way with us are just the opposite of our natural desires. These two forces within us are constantly fighting each other to win control over us and our wishes are never free from their pressures. When you are guided by the Holy Spirit you need no longer force yourself to obey Jewish laws.
But when you follow your own wrong inclinations your lives will produce these evil results: impure thoughts, eagerness for lustful pleasure, idolatry, spiritism (that is, encouraging the activity of demons), hatred and fighting, jealousy and anger, constant effort to get the best for yourself, complaints and criticisms, the feeling that everyone else is wrong except those in your own little group – and there will be wrong doctrine, envy, murder, drunkenness, wild parties, and all that sort of thing. Let me tell you again as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control; and here there is no conflict with Jewish laws.
Those who belong to Christ have nailed their natural evil desires to his cross and crucified them there. If we are living now by the Holy Spirit’s power let us follow the Holy Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. Then we won’t need to look for honors and popularity, which lead to jealousy and hard feelings.

Special Abilities of the Holy Spirit
1 PETER 4:7-11
The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore be earnest, thoughtful men of prayer. Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love makes up for many of your faults. Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay for the night.
God has given each of you some special abilities; be sure to use them to help each other, passing on to others God’s many kinds of blessings. Are you called to preach? Then preach as though God himself were speaking through you. Are you called to help others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies, so that God will be glorified (honored) through Jesus Christ – to him be glory and power for ever and ever. Amen.