HOLY SPIRIT

As the Holy Spirit was assigned by Christ Jesus (The Word of God) to gather HIS CHURCH together; knowing about the Holy Spirit is extremely important for all Christians.

The Holy Spirit is possible the least understood of the Trinity of God.   Think of Water, H2O that can be solid (ice) liquid (water) vapor (steam)…   The same element but different purposes.  Trinity,  1 Jn.5:6-8

So the Holy Spirit as per the Bible can be sad, angry, insulted resisted, seal, confirm, empower, miss-represented and make people Holy.  Is.63:10, Mt.12:31, Acts 7:51, Eph.4:30, Heb.10:29..

He also loves, prays, teaches, testifies, communicates and heals as a person: Neh 9:20, Jn 15:26, Ac 13:2, Rom.8:26-27, 15:30, 1 Cor. 12:11.

But HE is also like a wind that can not be seen except for the results and can be everywhere at the same time and in contact with every soul that is truly seeking GOD’s LIGHT.

This is information that every Christian should seek to know.  Much of this can be found at:
https://www.biblestudytools.com/bible-study/topical-studies/who-is-the-holy-spirit-5-things-you-need-to-know.html

So in the ministry of Christ Jesus we have access to the Holy Spirit to help us on our way into the family of GOD.  This is and was the original vision of our Creator in the very beginning to make us into HIS IMAGE and LIKENESS and HE never changes HIS mind.

First, we are drawn to Christ Jesus by the Holy Spirit if we are seeking for TRUTH.  John 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.   The ministry of the Holy Spirit to help us gain truth and faith and become justified.  But unless we also learn to grow in faith we don’t make it.   Luke 8:6,   Heb.10:38  Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. 39 But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition (hell); but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

And we see here that growing in faith ultimately saves our soul to live with GOD.  So this is the primary ministry of the Holy Spirit.   The ministry to help us get saved from hell by trusting in the finished work of Jesus in dying for the sins of the whole world and becoming Christ Jesus the Word,   God made man for eternity.  The first born of many brethren.  The first of this new kind in the Image and Likeness of GOD as in the original vision of GOD.  So as Apostle Paul teaches us in Romans 10 9-10 when we trust Christ Jesus to be our LORD and truly submit to HIM in our heart and also from the heart believe in the resurrection we begin the walk of the WAY to live with God forever.  This act of faith from the heart to make Christ Jesus Lord and believe in HIS resurrection and victory over death, hell and the grave puts us on the Road of Truth for Eternal Life.  But we start by faith and we walk by faith and as Jesus taught, “He that endures to the end, shall be saved, Matt.10:22, & James 1:12  Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him..

So lets start back with Abraham.  “Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness, Rom. 4:3, James 2:23.  An so as per Heb.11, so when we make Christ Jesus LORD HE also becomes our Savior.  It is not the other way around.  It is not fire insurance, it is in submitting to Christ Jesus as LORD.

Then along came Moses who spent 40 years learning how to be king of Egypt, then 40 years learning how to tend sheep and goats and then 40 years as a prophet of God for the children of Abraham.   And in that last 40 years he was given the design for the Tabernacle in the Wilderness which was also prophetic for us, the Church.   The only door was in the East and had 4 posts and 3 entrances.  Jesus made mention in HIS teachings that HE was the only door to GOD.  So why the three entrances in the same door.  Jesus came as Savior, Priest and King, the 3 primary colors of the rainbow that give us white light.  So Jesus Saves, Seals and Empowers in HIS ministry to and for us.  We are saved, we get baptized to bury Adams bugs and then we are filled with the Holy Spirit for Power to do HIS work on earth.

So the third doorway is Jesus sending the Holy Spirit to empower us and this is what this paper is about.

POWER
We all love super heroes and victory.  So this is a paper on how to become a super hero and to have victory in your life and ministry.   Otherwise you may just be religious and eventually boring.

So as a Baptized, Born from above Christian what do we need to know.

First, as a Christian you can be born from above and still not yet be empowered.  That is why Paul in Acts 19:2 asked the disciples in Ephesus the question: “Have ye received the Holy Ghost (Spirit) since ye believed?”  Paul thought they were Christians but something was wrong?

John 20:19 please noticed that the Disciples of Jesus became “Christians” for the very first time in verse 22 when they received the Holy Ghost (Spirit) but it was another 50 days before they receive the Holy Spirit for Power at Pentecost.  So we see that the Holy Spirit brings us to salvation, seals us as we bury, by faith, the carnal man from Adam in Baptism.  And then the Holy Spirit empowers us for the work that HE would have us do in helping build the Church of Christ Jesus.  By the way, there is but one Church of Christ Jesus and all who LOVE and OBEY HIM are members.

Acts 8:16, Notice that the Samaritan people who were saved under Philip did not receive the Holy Spirit until Peter and John came up to Samaria.

Now let’s turn to the Story of Saul’s conversion to Paul on the road to Damascus.  My feeling is that Saul (the persecutor of Christians) was still deeply moved by what happened to Stephen in his martyrdom of being stoned to death, Acts 7 and was still trying to clear his mind of hypocrisy on the way to Damascus to persecute the Christians that were there..  But along the Road Saul met Jesus and became Paul the Christian.  He confessed Jesus as LORD and believed in the resurrection so at that point in time he became a Christian.  But blinded he was told to find Ananias to be filled with the Holy Ghost (Spirit) Acts.9:17.   So we see three examples of where folks were saved but still trying to do GOD work in their own strength.  And this is why there is such little power of God in the Church today.   Apostle Paul gave this Prophesy in 2 Tim.3:5 that in the later days the church would have a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.

FIRE:
OK where do we go from here.   WE are in a rain storm and cold and wet…  We need fire.  Now this is interesting as in Ezek 28:18 the prophet Ezekiel looks into the future in the Holy Spirit and makes this prophesy:…”I (GOD) will bring forth a fire from the midst of thee (lucifer) and it shall devour (destroy) thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold the.”   

So we follow the fire along and come to Jesus as recorded by Mattr. 3:11 and Luke 3:16 that Jesus wold baptize (saturate) with the Holy Ghost (Spirit) and with fire.   Luke 12:49 quotes Jesus as saying: “ I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled?”  And following along we come to the beginning of the Church in Acts 2:3 where Luke again records: “And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of the,.  And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost (Spirit) and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.  And Peter reminded them of the prophesy of Joel 2:28 concerning the power that would be released to help save the lost.

Again in Hebrews 1, Apostle Paul mentions us a Ministers of Fire in verse 7….  So we have a full on precedent to be and become together a fire in the LORD.   But you can not build a fire out of wet stuff and in the open in a rain storm.  And it is very difficult to set on fire a soggy church membership.   Better to find a dry spot out in the middle of no where.  gather as much dry stuff together as is available and start from scratch.  If the fire gets really hot then those cold and wet will come to get warm and dried out.  But don’t be kicking out the spokes of the other guys stuff as our LORD taught, “They that gather with us are not against us.”  There are many factors needed in the building of an Acts 29 Church.  Love of course is the core…  Not enough love and you can not resolve the divisions.  And to agree to disagree will not work at all for a John 17 Unity.  And after Love comes GOD’s TRUTH to set us free.  It is Unity in God’s Truth in obedience and humility that allows us to build a basket.  And when the basket is ready then the gifts of the Holy Spirit will saturate the ministry and turn that whole ministry into a very hot fire.  

It is possible to infiltrate an old line denominational church and catch in on fire.  I watched Dennis Bennet do that in Houston Texas with the Holy Spirit to a really old Episcopal Church in the heart of the city that was nearly dried up.  But it is very difficult.  Personally, for me, I have had better results in starting from ground zero in the middle of no where in the Early type of a House Church.  Search the word “house” from Acts to Rev.  it is an interesting study.  Starting from Acts 2:2, 5:42, 10:22, 12:12, 16:34, 16:40, 17:5, 18:7, 18:18, 20:20, 21:8, 28:30….  Not one mention of a building called a church any where in the New Testament.  The CHURCH was always the people and they were gathering in personal homes.  And it seems to me that the ministers and elders were always self supporting.  So gifts and offerings were given to help the poor and to support evangelism .  Study for next Friday so please check it all out real good….

Yours, in HIS great love and wonderful Grace and Mercy,   Ken<><    www.Trinity-Aloha.org

(PS…  Our TrueVine  mini-farm is starting to blossom,  my wife was delighted today with the papayas and green beans that were picked and the corn has been scrumptious… best ever tasted.  Hapu is now planted.  Next is the grapefruit tree.  We are so delighted with our little 1/2 acre of God’s Hawaii…  But could use a handyman/carpenter to help finish the barn?  Could bring family and also have a vacation?)