I'm talking of course, about the Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Trinity. The current situation in our society, especially Evangelical Christianity appears to be ignoring the Power and Purpose of God's Spirit to help us accomplish the task of world evangelization. I'm a Pentecostal. I was raised as a Pentecostal, and now I'm ordained in a Pentecostal Church, the Assemblies of God. I'm not just a Pentecostal because of my heritage, as important as that is, I'm not just a Pentecostal because of my vocation although being Pentecostal is required for my chosen profession. I'm Pentecostal because I understand the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Church is shown throughout Scripture and is necessary to do the ministry. So, to the previous question: What exactly does the Holy Spirit do to help. Romans 8:1-39 is a great chapter in God's word that describes the wonderful way the Spirit helps us. But the Spirit helps us in many other ways. I came across a chart in "The Holy Spirit: A Pentecostal Introduction" by Thomas Holdcroft, (one of the textbooks for "Person and Work of the Holy Spirit" I took as a student at SAGU in the 80s. Holdcroft captures in these simple phrases a fantastic overview of all the benefits that the Spirit provides for us. I wanted to share this with you:
The Spirit's Ministry and Work in the Believer
Regenerates or Makes Spiritually Alive
Indwells
Grants Assurance
Sanctifies or Achieves Holiness
Empowers Spiritually
Leads and Guides
Assists in Worship and Prayer
Implements Adoption
Communes and Fellowships
Anoints
Seals
Teaches and Reminds
This is why I believe that the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is a necessity for any believer who wants to do something for God for a lifetime of ministry. The Apostles saw the importance of it or they wouldn't have asked the Gentiles about it in Acts 10:44-46; Paul must have understood it's purpose and use for churches all across the world or he wouldn't have specified regulations for public worship as in 1 Corinthians 14:1-40.
In our day of floods of information, good and bad...we need a HELPER who can stand beside us and help us make decisions. Christians believe and understand the Holy Spirit to be that Helper. Jesus spoke that he would be the "Other Counselor" who would be with us forever. Truly...it doesn't matter what your label is: Assembly of God, Baptist, Episcopalian, Lutheran, Church of Christ, Christian, Discontented....we all need the Power of the Holy Spirit to live a successful Christian life.
Maybe you should consider today opening your heart up to God and allowing Him to direct you. Start first with Romans 8:1-39 and be encouraged that the same ONE who made the heavens is now present to work in and through us.
No comments:
Post a Comment