Have You Received The Holy Spirit? (2013)
Acts 19:2
Today, we are going to talk about receiving the power of the Holy Spirit into our lives.
I realize there are some people in the room today, who have not made full commitments to Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Maybe you’re just “checking it out” and you know you need something, but maybe you haven’t gone “all-in.” Maybe you haven’t really surrendered your life to Christ. Number one, please do that, for your eternal good. And after you do that, what you’re about to hear today is the supernatural, transformational power that’s available to you if you fully surrender your life to Jesus Christ.
Number two thing, I can’t do both the “theology” of the Holy Spirit and tell you “HOW” you can begin to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit. It’s too much information. And so, I am going to tell you how to get the “facts and figures” about the Holy Spirit scripturally. I’m going to point you to where you can get the theology of the Holy Spirit, and today, I’m going to talk about how you can get the power; how you can begin to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit in your Christian life.
We’re going to focus on the “how,” because I want you to know the power of the Holy Spirit – this is critical – the power of the Holy Spirit is the difference between spiritual life and spiritual death in your walk with Christ. Let me tell you how serious that is. Without the Holy Spirit operating in your life the absolute best you can hope for is religion.
If you’re still under the misconception that just being religious is good, just study the Pharisees in the Gospels, and try to see. They were the most religious people; they were the church leaders. It didn’t really go so well for them. I want you to know that it’s the Holy Spirit that takes you out of religion and puts you into a supernatural, transformational relationship with Jesus Christ.
Acts 19:1-6 (NKJV)
1 And it happened, while Apollos was at Corinth, that Paul, having passed through the upper regions, came to Ephesus. And finding some disciples (note that – they were followers, they were believers)
2 He said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” So they said to him, “We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.”
We have to honestly ask ourselves this question, “Am I a follower of Jesus Christ, and have I fully understood who the Holy Spirit is?” The Greek word is GINOSKO. In what I believe is Paul’s life verse, Philippians 3:10 (NKJV) 10 that I may know Him… Greek word GINOSKO. It means “an ever-increasing, intimate, experiential knowledge.” That’s my question: do you know the power of the Holy Spirit that way? And, if not, maybe we would have to respond, at some level, like these believers, these disciples did in Ephesus when Paul asked them. They said, “We’re not really sure exactly what you’re talking about.”
Continuing in verse 3.
3 And he said to them, “Into what then were you baptized?” So they said, “Into John’s baptism.”
They had enough information to be believers but Paul needed them to know more, to go deeper, to enable them to really walk with Christ.
4 Then Paul said, “John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, (In other words, that’s good. It’s good what you’ve done) saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.”
5 When they heard this, (mark that because it’s a response. They were given new information that shook them up about God and they responded) they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
They recognized their need and they responded by saying, “Yes, Lord. We want to know Jesus better.”
6 And… (this is a continual growth, Acts almost always summarizes these types of events – especially with Paul) when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied.
Don’t be nervous. It’s a good thing. The power of the Holy Spirit is vital for your walk with Jesus Christ. Now, listen. We may have to accept (we may not want to), that to some extent that we would kind of fit with these believers in Ephesus, where we would say, “Yeah I know something. But I’m not sure about this whole Holy Spirit thing. I read my Bible. But GINOSKO? I don’t know if I would say I have that with the Person and the work of the Holy Spirit.”
Let me just say very carefully, with all respect, if you know Jesus, if you have that intimate, experiential relationship with Jesus, and you don’t know the Holy Spirit in that same way, Jesus has more for you. He left more for you. He gave you more, and I know you’re thinking, “Here we go. Second experience and all that stuff.” Listen, forget that stuff. That’s the stuff the enemy uses to get you to be hesitant and questioning and all that stuff.
Make a note of this. You have got to study John Chapters 14-16, all three chapters because the whole abide concept involves the Holy Spirit. When Jesus says, “Listen. It’s better if I leave. I’m here personally with you, and it’s better if I go away so the Father will send the Holy Spirit to you.” Understand that Jesus said, “I’ve got more for you” and don’t get all hung up in the wacky stuff that the enemy uses to scare you away from the power you need to live a transformed life.
Here’s the best definition of the Holy Spirit that I’ve personally found. The Holy Spirit is the primary member of the Godhead at work in the world today.
When you see a life transformed by Christ, when you see chains broken because of Jesus Christ in someone’s life, when you a marriage restored, or a relationship restored, addictions beat, when you’ve seen that done in Jesus Christ, I’m telling you the conduit of that is the Holy Spirit. The reason the Holy Spirit never gets credit is that that’s his role.
And so, let me just tell you, if you ever see a church service or TV service, or anything like that, where the Holy Spirit takes prominence above Jesus Christ, you know that’s of the flesh. BAAM! Know it because the Holy Spirit will never take the spotlight from Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit is the Helper. He is the power, he is the source, he is the conduit. If you don’t understand what he does, maybe you’re trying to serve Christ in your own strength. And if you still think that’s okay, just give it a few more years. At some point, you’re going to say, “I can’t do it. Because my own strength is fleshly and carnal. I need supernatural strength to have a supernatural relationship.”
Being filled with the Holy Spirit is the power to live for Christ.
Here is a list of what the Bible says the Holy Spirit is responsible for in your life.
The Holy Spirit is:
The Life of God in you – You are the Temple of the Holy Spirit
He Comforts, Instructs, and Guides you
He Empowers, Equips you with gifts, and Enables you to use those gifts
He is your Power to Witness for Jesus Christ
He is your Power to Crucify the flesh
He is the one who Convicts you of Sin and he is the one who Breaks the Chains of sin in your life (these are his roles)
It is through the Holy Spirit (Ephesians says) that you receive Adoption into the family of God
He enables your Communion, your Intimacy with God
He helps in your Weaknesses, Praying and Interceding for us because we don’t know what to pray
He brings you Life and Freedom and Hope
He makes you part of the Body of Christ
The Fruit of the Holy Spirit in your life is: Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control
Do you see anything in that list that you need more of in your Christian life? You need this.
My only job today is to get you leaving here saying, “I need the power of the Holy Spirit in my life. I need to be desperately dependent on the Holy Spirit.” I’m going to give you three needs regarding the Holy Spirit in your life. This is not a recipe. Why? Because the Holy Spirit doesn’t “do” recipes. These are not three “steps.” Why? Because the Holy Spirit doesn’t do “three steps.” The Holy Spirit doesn’t do “boxes.” And so, we cannot put the Holy Spirit in a box and say, “This is how he works.” We can’t do it.
But here are the three things that you need in your life regarding the Holy Spirit.
1). You need a Strong DESIRE for the Holy Spirit
That’s where I am going to spend most of my time today. Why? Because if you will develop a strong desire for the Holy Spirit, then God will make sure to finish the work.
You have to want him in your life. You need a strong desire for the Holy Spirit. My prayer is that you would become desperately dependent on him.
2). You need an Initial Receiving of the Holy Spirit
There needs to be an initial time where you say, “Yes, Lord. I receive the power of your Spirit in my life.” We see it all through Acts and really, through the remainder of the New Testament. There needs to be an initial receiving of the power of the Holy Spirit.
3). There needs to be a Continual Filling of the Holy Spirit
You must be continually filled. We need to be continually filled with the Holy Spirit.
When we look at the doctrine, or the theology, of the receiving of the Holy Spirit, here’s how we do it. Expositional Bible teachers take a text and then bring out the meaning in that text and they apply it to your life. That’s our job. Here’s the problem. When you want to draw out the meaning or the study, the theology of receiving the Holy Spirit, your text is the entire Book of Acts. We can’t do that here. Here’s what we do. We do not take one particular text and hang our hat on that and say, “This is what happens every time.” Instead, what we do, is we study the entire Book of Acts, we see all the ways the Holy Spirit is received into people’s lives, and then we take in general what he wants to do in our lives. Make note of the following texts because I want you to have a desire to learn about the Holy Spirit.
Here are four primary texts in the Book of Acts from which we get the doctrine (if you will), the study of the receiving, the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
Acts Chapters 1 and 2 are the first texts. Your second text is Acts Chapter 8. It’s so cool in Acts 1 and 2, it’s Jesus dealing with his initial Disciples. In Acts 8, it’s Phillip dealing with Samaritans who are “half-breeds” – half Jews, half Gentiles, they’re cast out. It’s a whole different people group. Our third text is Acts Chapter 10 and 11. Listen, first it was Jesus and his Disciples. Then it was Phillip and the Samaritans. In Acts 10 and 11 it’s Peter and the house of Cornelius (these are hardcore Gentiles). Do you see that we are getting our text from three different settings so far? The fourth one, I just read to you, is Acts Chapter 19. It’s Paul and the believers at Ephesus who probably were Jewish because Paul always started in the Synagogues.
And so, we take all four of those things and we say, “How does the Holy Spirit work? Because that’s how he wants to work in my life in general.” Let me just tell you right now, that I could show you in each one of those texts that there is a strong desire from the people to have the Holy Spirit. That there is an initial receiving of the Holy Spirit. And then later there is a continual filling of the Holy Spirit.
You should also, (along with the aforementioned Books in Acts), study John 14-16, 1 Corinthians Chapters 12-14, Romans Chapter 12, Ephesians Chapter 4, and some others.
1). You need a strong desire for the Holy Spirit
The word power is the Greek word DUNAMIS shown in Colossians 1:11. And it seemed Acts Chapter 1 was the place to go. Let’s look. Did Jesus implant desire in the Disciples before he sent the Holy Spirit? That’s the question.
Acts 1:4 (NKJV)
4 And being assembled together with them, He (Jesus) commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait (don’t move, just wait) for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said,“ you have heard from Me;
And then Jesus tells them that baptism of the Holy Spirit that you heard since I was baptized, by John, (in all four Gospels) deal with the baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire. Jesus has been telling them about the baptism of the Holy Spirit for three years. In verse 5 Jesus reminds them,
Acts 1:5 (NKJV)
5 for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
He is building desire. Why? Because not long ago in the Upper Room at the Last Supper, Jesus told them, “I’m going away, but I’m going to send the Holy Spirit.” ALLOS PARAKLETOS “another one just like me.” Another one of the same kind and quality. And now he tells them, go sit in a room because he’s coming.
Acts 1:8 (NKJV)
8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon (Greek word - EPI) you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
You know I could teach for six weeks on these two chapters. All I can tell you today is to look at the desire Jesus put in their hearts. He sends a hundred and twenty believers into an upper room with no air conditioning and all they have to do is roll dice and pick a new Apostle (they chose Matthias). That’s what they did for ten days. And they were praying in one accord. Waiting. Anticipating. And you know what happens (read Acts Chapter 2).
My question to you today is, why is it so important that we develop this earnest desire for the Holy Spirit? Why is it that we need to become desperately dependent? Why did Jesus make his Disciples desperately dependent on the Holy Spirit? Because if we’re not desperately dependent our pride runs our relationship with Christ. We are not dependent people; we are independent people. We are not dependent people; we are self-dependent people. We mistakenly think in our carnal nature that the Holy Spirit was created to help “us” with “our plans” and “our purposes.” And so, we have to be broken.
The first thing the military does in boot camp is to break you. You have to be broken, or you’re worthless to the military. Jesus says you have to be broken or you’re worthless to me. Because if you try to follow me in your own strength, if you try to do stuff for me in your own strength, you’re just going to mess it up and become a bad witness. Be dependent – be looking, longing for the Holy Spirit to come.
Here is my big point. I want you to get this point.
Luke Chapter 11 is phenomenal. It starts with the “Lord’s Prayer,” Jesus’ teaching on prayer. The context is prayer, but you have to see how the context ends. In the middle, after the “Lord’s Prayer,” Jesus tells this story of this obnoxious friend. Listen, this obnoxious friend has a deep need, and he’s banging on his buddy’s door in the middle of the night. “I need bread!” Banging, and banging on the door. Here’s what Jesus says in Luke 11 verse 8.
Luke 11:8 (NKJV)
8 I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.
What’s the point? Right after that is the famous “Ask, Seek, Knock” verse.
Luke 11:9 (NLT)
9 “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.
That’s the structure of the Greek – it’s called parsing these verbs. You must ask and keep on asking, be asking, and always be asking. You have to seek and be seeking, and always be seeking. You’ve got to always be desiring.
What’s the context, Jesus? Jesus is building in us a conviction to be persistently, always dependent in our prayer. What does he mean? Where’s he going?
Luke 11:13 (NKJV)
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!”
What’s the context? Persistent, unending, dependent asking. We need to be there. We’re made to be strong, self-dependent (especially men). Instead, Jesus is your example. We need to be (for us, not for Jesus), we need to be broken and dependent and God will give us the Holy Spirit.
Jim Hesterly taught me so much about the Holy Spirit. I have read everything he’s written; I have listened to every message on his website. His ministry is Acts 1:8 Ministries. Listen, this guy is the premiere Holy Spirit teacher in the Calvary Chapel Movement. I encourage you to read what he’s written and listen to his messages.
1). You have to have a strong desire for the Holy Spirit
2). You have to have an Initial Receiving
The words “baptized” and “received” are used somewhat interchangeably in Acts. The word “baptized” is used primarily in the first two chapters. After that, used much more, (six times) is the word “received.” Have you “received” the Holy Spirit?
I'll just tell you really quickly about “baptism.” BAPTIZO is the Greek word for baptism. It means “to be so immersed in something that a permanent change occurs in your life.” However, we’re going to talk about “receive” because that is the majority of Acts.
What does it mean to “receive”? Receive means to make something your own, to take it upon yourself. If I were to give you a gift, you would reach out and receive it and it would become yours. But here’s what’s more important. When the word “received” is used of a person, (this is critical), it means “to give them full access to your life”.
John 1:12 (ESV)
12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
It’s the same thing with the Holy Spirit. In Acts, it’s about “have you received the Holy Spirit?” Have you given him access to your life?
Here’s what you need to receive the Holy Spirit. It’s the word that you were taught to never do. Surrender. When you worship and raise your hands, what are you saying to the Lord? I surrender. Surrender is the keyword for receiving the Holy Spirit.
Romans 12:1 (NKJV)
1. . . present your bodies a living sacrifice, . . .
That means the totality of yourself.
Here is a paraphrase using the definitions of the original Greek.
Romans 12:1 (The Message)
1 . . . Take your everyday, ordinary life – your sleeping, eating, going-to-work and walking-around life – and place it before God as an offering . . .
Your everyday life. Everything that you are – place it before God as an offering, and say, “Lord, use me in my everyday life. Holy Spirit I give you access to my everyday life. My every thought, my every action, my every reaction, my every response, my every decision, all that’s in me, may it be an offering to you.”
Why don’t we see more Christians walking in the real, transformational power of the Holy Spirit? Because of this. Because we are made to not surrender. We are made to stand on our own two feet and make our own decisions, and make our way. And if you want the power of the Holy Spirit, you must crucify the flesh. As Paul says – the life I live now is not even mine. I live it by faith in the Son of God. I’ve been crucified with Christ. I don’t have a life anymore. Every part of me has been offered to God.
That’s what the word “received” means!
1). Strong desire
2). Initial receiving – a time when you say, “Yes, Lord. This is the time I receive you.”
3). You’ve got to be Continually Filled with the Holy Spirit
Is it enough to want him? No. Is it enough to say in an emotional situation, “I receive you”? No. The time you have to be filled with the Holy Spirit is Monday morning. And Tuesday morning. And Friday night. You have to be continually filled with the Holy Spirit.
In Acts Chapter 4 verses 8 and 31, we see after Peter was baptized in the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 that he was filled with the Holy Spirit in Acts 4:8. And then, all of the believers who were baptized in Acts 2 were filled with the Holy Spirit in verse 31.
Ephesians 5:18 (NKJV)
18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,
The Greek structure for this verse is “always be being filled.” Don’t be drunk with wine, but always be being filled. Be constantly being filled with the Holy Spirit.
Paul, it’s a little “edgy” of you to compare being filled with the Spirit to being “drunk.” Why? If, and this is not what we called “prescriptive teaching” – God is not telling you to do this – you wanted to always be drunk, if you made a commitment from this day forward to always be drunk, what would you have to do? You have to always be drinking. You would always have to be ingesting alcohol if you wanted to stay drunk.
If you want to be filled with the Holy Spirit, what must you always be doing? You must always be ingesting, you must always be taking in the Holy Spirit, always.
Here’s one more contrast. When you are that drunk, as if you’ve always been drinking, how much percentage-wise of your faculties does the alcohol affect? One hundred percent. And so that’s why Paul contrasts it because if you’re taking in the Holy Spirit, he will affect one hundred percent of your faculties. The way you think, the way you act, the way you respond, what you do will be impacted by him.
So let me tell you how to do it.
1). You’ve got to learn to meet God under the power of the Holy Spirit in his Living Word
You have to meet God in the Word. Don’t read it like a newspaper. Don’t just do your devotions where you read three chapters, check it off and you’re done. What you need is to meet God. When you leave your time with the Lord, you need to say, “Whoa! I just met God. God just spoke to me right here in his Living Word, he just pierced my heart.” Because that is the Holy Spirit who does that. The Bible is the Holy Spirit’s book. He wrote it. He is the life in it. And so, when you leave the Word, you need to leave saying, “Okay, okay God. I will. I’ll apologize. I’ll ask for forgiveness. I’ll make it right. I’ll quit that sin. I’ll delete that file from my computer. I heard you, God. I’m going do something about it.” THAT’S allowing the Holy Spirit to be poured into your life.
You need to do that at least once a day. Meet God in his Word.
2). You need to meet God in prayer through the power of the Holy Spirit
(Notice I am not saying, “You need to meet the Holy Spirit.” Do you hear me? Because the Holy Spirit doesn’t want the prominence or the spotlight.) You meet Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit. You meet God in his Word through the power of the Holy Spirit. You pray in the power of the Holy Spirit. He intercedes for you. You start your prayer saying, “God, I don’t even know what to pray. I don’t even know. Holy Spirit, I need you to pray for me. Lord, I need your Spirit to intercede, to lead me, to guide me.”
3). You need to meet God in worship
It’s in worship. It’s in worship. It’s in worship. This is critical. I cannot begin to tell you the power that worship has in your life. It is not a “warm-up.” It is not a “time-filler.” It is what you’re going to be doing for eternity if you’re saved. Look at the beginning of Revelation 19, worship is just “off the chart” in heaven.
You have to meet God in his Word, and in prayer, and in worship.
What does it take? It takes a “discipler.” You need to find someone and say, “Hey can you teach me how you really meet God?” Women, find a woman who’s full of the Spirit, who meets God in the Word and say, “Can you teach me?” Men, it’s the same for you. Find a man to teach you. That’s called discipleship. We help one another follow Jesus. It requires discipleship.
What have we learned today?
1). We need to earnestly desire the Holy Spirit
2). There must be an initial receiving of the Holy Spirit
3). We must be continually filled with the Holy Spirit
Let me remind you that receiving the Holy Spirit, walking in his power is the difference between spiritual life and spiritual death. That’s how serious it is. Don’t settle for “religion.” Don’t settle for church being a compartment of your life. Allow the Living God to take control. He’ll transform your life.
I realize there are some people in the room today, who have not made full commitments to Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Maybe you’re just “checking it out” and you know you need something, but maybe you haven’t gone “all-in.” Maybe you haven’t really surrendered your life to Christ. Number one, please do that, for your eternal good. And after you do that, what you’re about to hear today is the supernatural, transformational power that’s available to you if you fully surrender your life to Jesus Christ.
Number two thing, I can’t do both the “theology” of the Holy Spirit and tell you “HOW” you can begin to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit. It’s too much information. And so, I am going to tell you how to get the “facts and figures” about the Holy Spirit scripturally. I’m going to point you to where you can get the theology of the Holy Spirit, and today, I’m going to talk about how you can get the power; how you can begin to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit in your Christian life.
We’re going to focus on the “how,” because I want you to know the power of the Holy Spirit – this is critical – the power of the Holy Spirit is the difference between spiritual life and spiritual death in your walk with Christ. Let me tell you how serious that is. Without the Holy Spirit operating in your life the absolute best you can hope for is religion.
If you’re still under the misconception that just being religious is good, just study the Pharisees in the Gospels, and try to see. They were the most religious people; they were the church leaders. It didn’t really go so well for them. I want you to know that it’s the Holy Spirit that takes you out of religion and puts you into a supernatural, transformational relationship with Jesus Christ.
Acts 19:1-6 (NKJV)
1 And it happened, while Apollos was at Corinth, that Paul, having passed through the upper regions, came to Ephesus. And finding some disciples (note that – they were followers, they were believers)
2 He said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” So they said to him, “We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.”
We have to honestly ask ourselves this question, “Am I a follower of Jesus Christ, and have I fully understood who the Holy Spirit is?” The Greek word is GINOSKO. In what I believe is Paul’s life verse, Philippians 3:10 (NKJV) 10 that I may know Him… Greek word GINOSKO. It means “an ever-increasing, intimate, experiential knowledge.” That’s my question: do you know the power of the Holy Spirit that way? And, if not, maybe we would have to respond, at some level, like these believers, these disciples did in Ephesus when Paul asked them. They said, “We’re not really sure exactly what you’re talking about.”
Continuing in verse 3.
3 And he said to them, “Into what then were you baptized?” So they said, “Into John’s baptism.”
They had enough information to be believers but Paul needed them to know more, to go deeper, to enable them to really walk with Christ.
4 Then Paul said, “John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, (In other words, that’s good. It’s good what you’ve done) saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.”
5 When they heard this, (mark that because it’s a response. They were given new information that shook them up about God and they responded) they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
They recognized their need and they responded by saying, “Yes, Lord. We want to know Jesus better.”
6 And… (this is a continual growth, Acts almost always summarizes these types of events – especially with Paul) when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied.
Don’t be nervous. It’s a good thing. The power of the Holy Spirit is vital for your walk with Jesus Christ. Now, listen. We may have to accept (we may not want to), that to some extent that we would kind of fit with these believers in Ephesus, where we would say, “Yeah I know something. But I’m not sure about this whole Holy Spirit thing. I read my Bible. But GINOSKO? I don’t know if I would say I have that with the Person and the work of the Holy Spirit.”
Let me just say very carefully, with all respect, if you know Jesus, if you have that intimate, experiential relationship with Jesus, and you don’t know the Holy Spirit in that same way, Jesus has more for you. He left more for you. He gave you more, and I know you’re thinking, “Here we go. Second experience and all that stuff.” Listen, forget that stuff. That’s the stuff the enemy uses to get you to be hesitant and questioning and all that stuff.
Make a note of this. You have got to study John Chapters 14-16, all three chapters because the whole abide concept involves the Holy Spirit. When Jesus says, “Listen. It’s better if I leave. I’m here personally with you, and it’s better if I go away so the Father will send the Holy Spirit to you.” Understand that Jesus said, “I’ve got more for you” and don’t get all hung up in the wacky stuff that the enemy uses to scare you away from the power you need to live a transformed life.
Here’s the best definition of the Holy Spirit that I’ve personally found. The Holy Spirit is the primary member of the Godhead at work in the world today.
When you see a life transformed by Christ, when you see chains broken because of Jesus Christ in someone’s life, when you a marriage restored, or a relationship restored, addictions beat, when you’ve seen that done in Jesus Christ, I’m telling you the conduit of that is the Holy Spirit. The reason the Holy Spirit never gets credit is that that’s his role.
And so, let me just tell you, if you ever see a church service or TV service, or anything like that, where the Holy Spirit takes prominence above Jesus Christ, you know that’s of the flesh. BAAM! Know it because the Holy Spirit will never take the spotlight from Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit is the Helper. He is the power, he is the source, he is the conduit. If you don’t understand what he does, maybe you’re trying to serve Christ in your own strength. And if you still think that’s okay, just give it a few more years. At some point, you’re going to say, “I can’t do it. Because my own strength is fleshly and carnal. I need supernatural strength to have a supernatural relationship.”
Being filled with the Holy Spirit is the power to live for Christ.
Here is a list of what the Bible says the Holy Spirit is responsible for in your life.
The Holy Spirit is:
The Life of God in you – You are the Temple of the Holy Spirit
He Comforts, Instructs, and Guides you
He Empowers, Equips you with gifts, and Enables you to use those gifts
He is your Power to Witness for Jesus Christ
He is your Power to Crucify the flesh
He is the one who Convicts you of Sin and he is the one who Breaks the Chains of sin in your life (these are his roles)
It is through the Holy Spirit (Ephesians says) that you receive Adoption into the family of God
He enables your Communion, your Intimacy with God
He helps in your Weaknesses, Praying and Interceding for us because we don’t know what to pray
He brings you Life and Freedom and Hope
He makes you part of the Body of Christ
The Fruit of the Holy Spirit in your life is: Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control
Do you see anything in that list that you need more of in your Christian life? You need this.
My only job today is to get you leaving here saying, “I need the power of the Holy Spirit in my life. I need to be desperately dependent on the Holy Spirit.” I’m going to give you three needs regarding the Holy Spirit in your life. This is not a recipe. Why? Because the Holy Spirit doesn’t “do” recipes. These are not three “steps.” Why? Because the Holy Spirit doesn’t do “three steps.” The Holy Spirit doesn’t do “boxes.” And so, we cannot put the Holy Spirit in a box and say, “This is how he works.” We can’t do it.
But here are the three things that you need in your life regarding the Holy Spirit.
1). You need a Strong DESIRE for the Holy Spirit
That’s where I am going to spend most of my time today. Why? Because if you will develop a strong desire for the Holy Spirit, then God will make sure to finish the work.
You have to want him in your life. You need a strong desire for the Holy Spirit. My prayer is that you would become desperately dependent on him.
2). You need an Initial Receiving of the Holy Spirit
There needs to be an initial time where you say, “Yes, Lord. I receive the power of your Spirit in my life.” We see it all through Acts and really, through the remainder of the New Testament. There needs to be an initial receiving of the power of the Holy Spirit.
3). There needs to be a Continual Filling of the Holy Spirit
You must be continually filled. We need to be continually filled with the Holy Spirit.
When we look at the doctrine, or the theology, of the receiving of the Holy Spirit, here’s how we do it. Expositional Bible teachers take a text and then bring out the meaning in that text and they apply it to your life. That’s our job. Here’s the problem. When you want to draw out the meaning or the study, the theology of receiving the Holy Spirit, your text is the entire Book of Acts. We can’t do that here. Here’s what we do. We do not take one particular text and hang our hat on that and say, “This is what happens every time.” Instead, what we do, is we study the entire Book of Acts, we see all the ways the Holy Spirit is received into people’s lives, and then we take in general what he wants to do in our lives. Make note of the following texts because I want you to have a desire to learn about the Holy Spirit.
Here are four primary texts in the Book of Acts from which we get the doctrine (if you will), the study of the receiving, the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
Acts Chapters 1 and 2 are the first texts. Your second text is Acts Chapter 8. It’s so cool in Acts 1 and 2, it’s Jesus dealing with his initial Disciples. In Acts 8, it’s Phillip dealing with Samaritans who are “half-breeds” – half Jews, half Gentiles, they’re cast out. It’s a whole different people group. Our third text is Acts Chapter 10 and 11. Listen, first it was Jesus and his Disciples. Then it was Phillip and the Samaritans. In Acts 10 and 11 it’s Peter and the house of Cornelius (these are hardcore Gentiles). Do you see that we are getting our text from three different settings so far? The fourth one, I just read to you, is Acts Chapter 19. It’s Paul and the believers at Ephesus who probably were Jewish because Paul always started in the Synagogues.
And so, we take all four of those things and we say, “How does the Holy Spirit work? Because that’s how he wants to work in my life in general.” Let me just tell you right now, that I could show you in each one of those texts that there is a strong desire from the people to have the Holy Spirit. That there is an initial receiving of the Holy Spirit. And then later there is a continual filling of the Holy Spirit.
You should also, (along with the aforementioned Books in Acts), study John 14-16, 1 Corinthians Chapters 12-14, Romans Chapter 12, Ephesians Chapter 4, and some others.
1). You need a strong desire for the Holy Spirit
The word power is the Greek word DUNAMIS shown in Colossians 1:11. And it seemed Acts Chapter 1 was the place to go. Let’s look. Did Jesus implant desire in the Disciples before he sent the Holy Spirit? That’s the question.
Acts 1:4 (NKJV)
4 And being assembled together with them, He (Jesus) commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait (don’t move, just wait) for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said,“ you have heard from Me;
And then Jesus tells them that baptism of the Holy Spirit that you heard since I was baptized, by John, (in all four Gospels) deal with the baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire. Jesus has been telling them about the baptism of the Holy Spirit for three years. In verse 5 Jesus reminds them,
Acts 1:5 (NKJV)
5 for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
He is building desire. Why? Because not long ago in the Upper Room at the Last Supper, Jesus told them, “I’m going away, but I’m going to send the Holy Spirit.” ALLOS PARAKLETOS “another one just like me.” Another one of the same kind and quality. And now he tells them, go sit in a room because he’s coming.
Acts 1:8 (NKJV)
8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon (Greek word - EPI) you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
You know I could teach for six weeks on these two chapters. All I can tell you today is to look at the desire Jesus put in their hearts. He sends a hundred and twenty believers into an upper room with no air conditioning and all they have to do is roll dice and pick a new Apostle (they chose Matthias). That’s what they did for ten days. And they were praying in one accord. Waiting. Anticipating. And you know what happens (read Acts Chapter 2).
My question to you today is, why is it so important that we develop this earnest desire for the Holy Spirit? Why is it that we need to become desperately dependent? Why did Jesus make his Disciples desperately dependent on the Holy Spirit? Because if we’re not desperately dependent our pride runs our relationship with Christ. We are not dependent people; we are independent people. We are not dependent people; we are self-dependent people. We mistakenly think in our carnal nature that the Holy Spirit was created to help “us” with “our plans” and “our purposes.” And so, we have to be broken.
The first thing the military does in boot camp is to break you. You have to be broken, or you’re worthless to the military. Jesus says you have to be broken or you’re worthless to me. Because if you try to follow me in your own strength, if you try to do stuff for me in your own strength, you’re just going to mess it up and become a bad witness. Be dependent – be looking, longing for the Holy Spirit to come.
Here is my big point. I want you to get this point.
Luke Chapter 11 is phenomenal. It starts with the “Lord’s Prayer,” Jesus’ teaching on prayer. The context is prayer, but you have to see how the context ends. In the middle, after the “Lord’s Prayer,” Jesus tells this story of this obnoxious friend. Listen, this obnoxious friend has a deep need, and he’s banging on his buddy’s door in the middle of the night. “I need bread!” Banging, and banging on the door. Here’s what Jesus says in Luke 11 verse 8.
Luke 11:8 (NKJV)
8 I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.
What’s the point? Right after that is the famous “Ask, Seek, Knock” verse.
Luke 11:9 (NLT)
9 “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.
That’s the structure of the Greek – it’s called parsing these verbs. You must ask and keep on asking, be asking, and always be asking. You have to seek and be seeking, and always be seeking. You’ve got to always be desiring.
What’s the context, Jesus? Jesus is building in us a conviction to be persistently, always dependent in our prayer. What does he mean? Where’s he going?
Luke 11:13 (NKJV)
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!”
What’s the context? Persistent, unending, dependent asking. We need to be there. We’re made to be strong, self-dependent (especially men). Instead, Jesus is your example. We need to be (for us, not for Jesus), we need to be broken and dependent and God will give us the Holy Spirit.
Jim Hesterly taught me so much about the Holy Spirit. I have read everything he’s written; I have listened to every message on his website. His ministry is Acts 1:8 Ministries. Listen, this guy is the premiere Holy Spirit teacher in the Calvary Chapel Movement. I encourage you to read what he’s written and listen to his messages.
1). You have to have a strong desire for the Holy Spirit
2). You have to have an Initial Receiving
The words “baptized” and “received” are used somewhat interchangeably in Acts. The word “baptized” is used primarily in the first two chapters. After that, used much more, (six times) is the word “received.” Have you “received” the Holy Spirit?
I'll just tell you really quickly about “baptism.” BAPTIZO is the Greek word for baptism. It means “to be so immersed in something that a permanent change occurs in your life.” However, we’re going to talk about “receive” because that is the majority of Acts.
What does it mean to “receive”? Receive means to make something your own, to take it upon yourself. If I were to give you a gift, you would reach out and receive it and it would become yours. But here’s what’s more important. When the word “received” is used of a person, (this is critical), it means “to give them full access to your life”.
John 1:12 (ESV)
12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
It’s the same thing with the Holy Spirit. In Acts, it’s about “have you received the Holy Spirit?” Have you given him access to your life?
Here’s what you need to receive the Holy Spirit. It’s the word that you were taught to never do. Surrender. When you worship and raise your hands, what are you saying to the Lord? I surrender. Surrender is the keyword for receiving the Holy Spirit.
Romans 12:1 (NKJV)
1. . . present your bodies a living sacrifice, . . .
That means the totality of yourself.
Here is a paraphrase using the definitions of the original Greek.
Romans 12:1 (The Message)
1 . . . Take your everyday, ordinary life – your sleeping, eating, going-to-work and walking-around life – and place it before God as an offering . . .
Your everyday life. Everything that you are – place it before God as an offering, and say, “Lord, use me in my everyday life. Holy Spirit I give you access to my everyday life. My every thought, my every action, my every reaction, my every response, my every decision, all that’s in me, may it be an offering to you.”
Why don’t we see more Christians walking in the real, transformational power of the Holy Spirit? Because of this. Because we are made to not surrender. We are made to stand on our own two feet and make our own decisions, and make our way. And if you want the power of the Holy Spirit, you must crucify the flesh. As Paul says – the life I live now is not even mine. I live it by faith in the Son of God. I’ve been crucified with Christ. I don’t have a life anymore. Every part of me has been offered to God.
That’s what the word “received” means!
1). Strong desire
2). Initial receiving – a time when you say, “Yes, Lord. This is the time I receive you.”
3). You’ve got to be Continually Filled with the Holy Spirit
Is it enough to want him? No. Is it enough to say in an emotional situation, “I receive you”? No. The time you have to be filled with the Holy Spirit is Monday morning. And Tuesday morning. And Friday night. You have to be continually filled with the Holy Spirit.
In Acts Chapter 4 verses 8 and 31, we see after Peter was baptized in the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 that he was filled with the Holy Spirit in Acts 4:8. And then, all of the believers who were baptized in Acts 2 were filled with the Holy Spirit in verse 31.
Ephesians 5:18 (NKJV)
18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,
The Greek structure for this verse is “always be being filled.” Don’t be drunk with wine, but always be being filled. Be constantly being filled with the Holy Spirit.
Paul, it’s a little “edgy” of you to compare being filled with the Spirit to being “drunk.” Why? If, and this is not what we called “prescriptive teaching” – God is not telling you to do this – you wanted to always be drunk, if you made a commitment from this day forward to always be drunk, what would you have to do? You have to always be drinking. You would always have to be ingesting alcohol if you wanted to stay drunk.
If you want to be filled with the Holy Spirit, what must you always be doing? You must always be ingesting, you must always be taking in the Holy Spirit, always.
Here’s one more contrast. When you are that drunk, as if you’ve always been drinking, how much percentage-wise of your faculties does the alcohol affect? One hundred percent. And so that’s why Paul contrasts it because if you’re taking in the Holy Spirit, he will affect one hundred percent of your faculties. The way you think, the way you act, the way you respond, what you do will be impacted by him.
So let me tell you how to do it.
1). You’ve got to learn to meet God under the power of the Holy Spirit in his Living Word
You have to meet God in the Word. Don’t read it like a newspaper. Don’t just do your devotions where you read three chapters, check it off and you’re done. What you need is to meet God. When you leave your time with the Lord, you need to say, “Whoa! I just met God. God just spoke to me right here in his Living Word, he just pierced my heart.” Because that is the Holy Spirit who does that. The Bible is the Holy Spirit’s book. He wrote it. He is the life in it. And so, when you leave the Word, you need to leave saying, “Okay, okay God. I will. I’ll apologize. I’ll ask for forgiveness. I’ll make it right. I’ll quit that sin. I’ll delete that file from my computer. I heard you, God. I’m going do something about it.” THAT’S allowing the Holy Spirit to be poured into your life.
You need to do that at least once a day. Meet God in his Word.
2). You need to meet God in prayer through the power of the Holy Spirit
(Notice I am not saying, “You need to meet the Holy Spirit.” Do you hear me? Because the Holy Spirit doesn’t want the prominence or the spotlight.) You meet Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit. You meet God in his Word through the power of the Holy Spirit. You pray in the power of the Holy Spirit. He intercedes for you. You start your prayer saying, “God, I don’t even know what to pray. I don’t even know. Holy Spirit, I need you to pray for me. Lord, I need your Spirit to intercede, to lead me, to guide me.”
3). You need to meet God in worship
It’s in worship. It’s in worship. It’s in worship. This is critical. I cannot begin to tell you the power that worship has in your life. It is not a “warm-up.” It is not a “time-filler.” It is what you’re going to be doing for eternity if you’re saved. Look at the beginning of Revelation 19, worship is just “off the chart” in heaven.
You have to meet God in his Word, and in prayer, and in worship.
What does it take? It takes a “discipler.” You need to find someone and say, “Hey can you teach me how you really meet God?” Women, find a woman who’s full of the Spirit, who meets God in the Word and say, “Can you teach me?” Men, it’s the same for you. Find a man to teach you. That’s called discipleship. We help one another follow Jesus. It requires discipleship.
What have we learned today?
1). We need to earnestly desire the Holy Spirit
2). There must be an initial receiving of the Holy Spirit
3). We must be continually filled with the Holy Spirit
Let me remind you that receiving the Holy Spirit, walking in his power is the difference between spiritual life and spiritual death. That’s how serious it is. Don’t settle for “religion.” Don’t settle for church being a compartment of your life. Allow the Living God to take control. He’ll transform your life.