Have you ever made a slice of toast with the toaster unplugged, driven your car without turning it on, or listened to the radio without tuning it to a station? Probably not. Suppose a friend introduced you to someone really nice-would you ignore them or speak with them? What if you needed help & a wise person had all the tools to help you and stood waiting to do just that? Would you be too fearful, ignorant, or stubborn and insist on doing it alone? Finally, would you refer to your parent as "it"? Most likely the answer to all those questions would be no.
How many mysteries do you know? Perhaps you think of unsolved weather mysteries or wonder why on earth some folks do what they do or ponder the meaning behind medical miracles. You probably don't think these things are necessarily "spooky" even though you don't understand them. Sometimes these things are misunderstood & revelation becomes impossible with limited knowledge or risk to learn the truth.
Have you ever known anyone with what we call a flat affect? They are simply unresponsive in the normal way to common circumstances. Some believers are like that-they really don't know how to respond to God or they never get excited about what he does. They may see God in a completely unrealistic light as "judge" or some mysterious person in the sky. Some who believe there is a God are not actually believers in the Christian sense as they have no personal relationship with him, just a passing understanding that he exists...even the demons believe in his existence the Bible says. Man-made religion has turned genuine spirituality into a very watered down semblance of it's former meaning as evidenced in scripture. Those who have accepted Christ as their personal savior in a very real born again experience of revelation of who God is often spend most of their time focused on Christ, forgetting about the Father in the equation unless they are reading the Old Testament. Nevertheless, the word says the Father & the Son are one & when we begin to see Christ in the Old Testament it is like a light bulb goes on! Old Testament prophecy points decisively to the Christ of the New Testament.
What about the pillar of fire that went before the Israelites, Elohim in Genesis, and the mighty rushing wind at Pentecost? Who is that? God? Absolutely God. Elohim is plural for him in Hebrew. In our head we know the Father, Son, & Holy Spirit make up the trinity which is a mystery to us to some degree. One of the key points of the death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ is who he sent to help us until he returns and yet we often fear the Father, plead with the Son to care for us, and fail to know, understand, or embrace the Holy Spirit who is a person left to help us! Ever hear him referred to as "it"? Yikes! God is an it? I do not think so. Many fear the Holy Spirit's work as some of it seems to be a mystery but if they think it is "spooky" they are far from right! Oh, some "religions" may have made it seem that way and shame on them. That pillar of fire in the desert was the Holy Spirit, that person healed was the work of the Holy Spirit, that sense of conviction when you sin is the Holy Spirit, and the fire appearing at Pentecost was the Holy Spirit-the person Jesus sent to us to help us at all times.
In the Apostle's Creed we say the words "I believe in the Holy Spirit..." but what is it that we believe? We may pray in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit but what does that mean really if we do not interact with the Holy Spirit? Just as we receive Christ of our own volition, not because we go to church or someone tells us to, but because we personally reach out to him, we can can access the power of God through His Holy Spirit. If we don't we might as well consider ourselves unarmed and unable to overcome the things of the world for he is the counselor sent by Jesus to empower us to do all the things the apostles did. It is the spirit of God that witnesses to us & refines us and is waiting for us to tap into the power of God that we are entitled to and were told to use. Many folks just don't get it but I can tell you from many personal experiences that the spirit of God is the most powerful person in this world today-he has healed me, spoke to me, spoke through me, brought me to tears and to my knees, upheld me when others failed me, persecuted me, and lied to me. He has embraced me with his love, shown me miracles and mysteries, guided me in my decisions, and made me excited to be a child of God. Until we are saved we are not children of God-we are merely creations of God waiting to be indwelt with the Holy Spirit. Many never see the need to be "filled" with God's spirit or are afraid to be but they miss huge chunks of God's blessings.
The content of this post is my reflection based on a recent sermon I heard and my own deep convictions that to be victorious in this world we must be walking in the spirit, not just in the shadow of him. We must be a functioning believer, not one who has failed to "connect", failed to accept the offer of help, or feared to be open to the person and work of the Holy Spirit in a real valid tangible way. As you reflect on the death & resurrection of the Son, soak up the beauty of the creation of the Father, and realize the trinity is three persons in one God...give the Holy Spirit permission to invade your life and show his power. In the process you may recognize the gift(s) he has given you to live your life as a victorious servant! 1Thess. 5:19, 20 tells us not to quench the spirit or despise prophecy yet may believers do just that. Eph. 4:30 says to not grieve the Holy Spirit and Isa. 63:10 says they grieved the Holy Spirit (he was around then too). Understanding the trinity isn't really too difficult when you think of it like this...the Father walked on this earth, the Son walked on this earth, and the Son sent the Holy Spirit to be on this earth. They are all God...different manifestations of God. Jesus came in the flesh, the Father appeared to Adam and Eve in the garden and to Moses on the mountain, and we are told the Holy Spirit is recognized by signs and wonders. Just as we must be open to believing in a creator and accepting a savior we must be open to the work of the spirit in our lives or we will never experience God in his entirety or benefit fully from his power. I have actually had believers tell me they don't believe in "that stuff" referring to the works of the Holy Spirit. I'm always a bit curious why not. I wonder if they have really searched the word and soaked it up or if they read it like the newspaper? Maybe no one has explained it well.
When I was saved I had gone to church all my life but when I was told Jesus was waiting for my acceptance, witnessed the Holy Spirit in reality, and read all these things in the Bible for the first time with unblinded eyes...that was when it all came together and made perfect sense. Many small children come to Christ on pure faith and he told us..."suffer not the little children but let them come to me" and they do! As a parent it is our responsibility to teach our children these truths God has given us, to show them how to worship the Lord by example, and as a grandparent I can say it is exciting to hear the stories of grandchildren accepting Christ! It was also a transforming experience to walk near the sea of Galilee, stand on Mt. Nebo where Moses looked into the promised land, and to walk the streets of Jerusalem. Somehow it made it all the more real in a humbling sort of awe. If this little blog spot will help anyone understand afresh who God is please point them to it. I write it for just that reason.
Have a blessed Easter!
How many mysteries do you know? Perhaps you think of unsolved weather mysteries or wonder why on earth some folks do what they do or ponder the meaning behind medical miracles. You probably don't think these things are necessarily "spooky" even though you don't understand them. Sometimes these things are misunderstood & revelation becomes impossible with limited knowledge or risk to learn the truth.
Have you ever known anyone with what we call a flat affect? They are simply unresponsive in the normal way to common circumstances. Some believers are like that-they really don't know how to respond to God or they never get excited about what he does. They may see God in a completely unrealistic light as "judge" or some mysterious person in the sky. Some who believe there is a God are not actually believers in the Christian sense as they have no personal relationship with him, just a passing understanding that he exists...even the demons believe in his existence the Bible says. Man-made religion has turned genuine spirituality into a very watered down semblance of it's former meaning as evidenced in scripture. Those who have accepted Christ as their personal savior in a very real born again experience of revelation of who God is often spend most of their time focused on Christ, forgetting about the Father in the equation unless they are reading the Old Testament. Nevertheless, the word says the Father & the Son are one & when we begin to see Christ in the Old Testament it is like a light bulb goes on! Old Testament prophecy points decisively to the Christ of the New Testament.
What about the pillar of fire that went before the Israelites, Elohim in Genesis, and the mighty rushing wind at Pentecost? Who is that? God? Absolutely God. Elohim is plural for him in Hebrew. In our head we know the Father, Son, & Holy Spirit make up the trinity which is a mystery to us to some degree. One of the key points of the death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ is who he sent to help us until he returns and yet we often fear the Father, plead with the Son to care for us, and fail to know, understand, or embrace the Holy Spirit who is a person left to help us! Ever hear him referred to as "it"? Yikes! God is an it? I do not think so. Many fear the Holy Spirit's work as some of it seems to be a mystery but if they think it is "spooky" they are far from right! Oh, some "religions" may have made it seem that way and shame on them. That pillar of fire in the desert was the Holy Spirit, that person healed was the work of the Holy Spirit, that sense of conviction when you sin is the Holy Spirit, and the fire appearing at Pentecost was the Holy Spirit-the person Jesus sent to us to help us at all times.
In the Apostle's Creed we say the words "I believe in the Holy Spirit..." but what is it that we believe? We may pray in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit but what does that mean really if we do not interact with the Holy Spirit? Just as we receive Christ of our own volition, not because we go to church or someone tells us to, but because we personally reach out to him, we can can access the power of God through His Holy Spirit. If we don't we might as well consider ourselves unarmed and unable to overcome the things of the world for he is the counselor sent by Jesus to empower us to do all the things the apostles did. It is the spirit of God that witnesses to us & refines us and is waiting for us to tap into the power of God that we are entitled to and were told to use. Many folks just don't get it but I can tell you from many personal experiences that the spirit of God is the most powerful person in this world today-he has healed me, spoke to me, spoke through me, brought me to tears and to my knees, upheld me when others failed me, persecuted me, and lied to me. He has embraced me with his love, shown me miracles and mysteries, guided me in my decisions, and made me excited to be a child of God. Until we are saved we are not children of God-we are merely creations of God waiting to be indwelt with the Holy Spirit. Many never see the need to be "filled" with God's spirit or are afraid to be but they miss huge chunks of God's blessings.
The content of this post is my reflection based on a recent sermon I heard and my own deep convictions that to be victorious in this world we must be walking in the spirit, not just in the shadow of him. We must be a functioning believer, not one who has failed to "connect", failed to accept the offer of help, or feared to be open to the person and work of the Holy Spirit in a real valid tangible way. As you reflect on the death & resurrection of the Son, soak up the beauty of the creation of the Father, and realize the trinity is three persons in one God...give the Holy Spirit permission to invade your life and show his power. In the process you may recognize the gift(s) he has given you to live your life as a victorious servant! 1Thess. 5:19, 20 tells us not to quench the spirit or despise prophecy yet may believers do just that. Eph. 4:30 says to not grieve the Holy Spirit and Isa. 63:10 says they grieved the Holy Spirit (he was around then too). Understanding the trinity isn't really too difficult when you think of it like this...the Father walked on this earth, the Son walked on this earth, and the Son sent the Holy Spirit to be on this earth. They are all God...different manifestations of God. Jesus came in the flesh, the Father appeared to Adam and Eve in the garden and to Moses on the mountain, and we are told the Holy Spirit is recognized by signs and wonders. Just as we must be open to believing in a creator and accepting a savior we must be open to the work of the spirit in our lives or we will never experience God in his entirety or benefit fully from his power. I have actually had believers tell me they don't believe in "that stuff" referring to the works of the Holy Spirit. I'm always a bit curious why not. I wonder if they have really searched the word and soaked it up or if they read it like the newspaper? Maybe no one has explained it well.
When I was saved I had gone to church all my life but when I was told Jesus was waiting for my acceptance, witnessed the Holy Spirit in reality, and read all these things in the Bible for the first time with unblinded eyes...that was when it all came together and made perfect sense. Many small children come to Christ on pure faith and he told us..."suffer not the little children but let them come to me" and they do! As a parent it is our responsibility to teach our children these truths God has given us, to show them how to worship the Lord by example, and as a grandparent I can say it is exciting to hear the stories of grandchildren accepting Christ! It was also a transforming experience to walk near the sea of Galilee, stand on Mt. Nebo where Moses looked into the promised land, and to walk the streets of Jerusalem. Somehow it made it all the more real in a humbling sort of awe. If this little blog spot will help anyone understand afresh who God is please point them to it. I write it for just that reason.
Have a blessed Easter!
