The Overwhelming Importance of the Holy Spirit in the Lives of Believers!

John 16:13a.        Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth:

Ah mih people, Monday has come, and gone and Tuesday is here, just like the Lord designed it. (smile) Let’s hope that your Monday was good, and that your Tuesday will be even better, since we’ve now gotten into the swing of things of this new work week. And if you’re not feeling comfortable with this new week as yet, then simply turn to the Holy Spirit and ask for help, because that’s what He’s there for; to help and guide and comfort us in our trying times. 

Yes friends, it’s just like Jesus said to the disciples. ‘These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. But the Comforter (Helper), which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’ (John 14:25-27) What a wonderful gift Jesus gave us when He returned to heaven! And since He could not be with us in person, He gave us the next best thing, His Spirit, to act just as He would, were He in the flesh with us. 

Now, to show how very important the Holy Spirit was in Christ’s eyes, listen again to what He tells the disciples about it. ‘But when the Comforter is come, whom I shall send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me: and ye shall also bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning.’ (John 15:26-27) 

And the scholars offer an interesting explanation of that passage. They say: ‘The action of the word translated “proceedeth” is “in the process – “continually proceeds.” The eternal procession of the Spirit means that He continually proceeds from beside, not out of, the Father. If the Holy Spirit came out of God, He would be less than God. To be more specific, the Holy Spirit not only proceeds from the Father, but also from the Son. This means the Father and the Son continually send the Holy Spirit. 

This in no way suggests that the Spirit is less in deity than are the Father or Son. Instead it explains the relationship among the three eternal persons of the Trinity. Illustration: Just as Jesus came to do the will of His Father, so the Holy Spirit is sent to speak not of Himself, but of Jesus. (John 16:13) Application: In this sense the Holy Spirit is the Promise of the Father who has been given to every Christian. (Acts 1:4; 2:39).’ 

And I do hope that explanation clears up whatever misgivings we had about the relationships between the three figures of our Godhead. Sometimes I think about it with the Father as the General who gives the orders, then Christ comes and does the dirty work and the heavy lifting, and the Holy Spirit comes to clean up after Him. They all have their roles, but are separate persons. 

And Jesus continues talking to the disciples about the Holy Spirit, when He warns them of what would happen to them for His names’ sake. ‘I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself (on his own authority); but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine (what is mine), and shall shew (declare) it unto you. 

All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you. A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me, because I go to the Father.’ (John 16:12-16)  Ah friends, Jesus’ “little while” is certainly a long one, for it’s been some two thousand years, and we still haven’t seen Him come again. I guess it’s like Peter says: ‘one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.’ (2 Pet. 3:8) 

And even right before Jesus returned to heaven, He again mentioned the importance of the Holy Spirit to the disciples. They wanted to know when he would restore the kingdom again to Israel. ‘And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power (authority). But ye shall receive power, after that (when) the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto then uttermost parts of the earth.’ (Acts. 1:7-8) 

And we all know that that happened on the Pentecost Day after Jesus’ departure. The Bible tells us: ‘And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord (purpose, mind) in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven (divided) tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.’ (Acts. 2:1-4) 

And from that day to this one, every believer is filled with the Holy Spirit when they receive Christ as Lord and Saviour. So the Holy Spirit is no joke; He is the One who acts on behalf of Jesus in our lives, and we ought to listen to His guidance very carefully if we want to live for Jesus. Now, let’s go home declaring our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know to whom we belong, lock, stock and barrel. 

As one strong and sincere voice: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with my immediate neighbours, as well as with the whole wide world! Glory be!’ 

And having said that, it now behooves us to go out and share the amazing LOVE and friendship of Christ with others, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!

…three in one…and one in three…that’s our Godhead…the Trinity…

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Today’s Scrip-Bit   25 June 2022 Acts 1:7.

Acts 1:7.       It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power (authority).

Oh friends, our lazy day Saturday is here! And I suppose some of us are so lazy right now that we don’t even have the energy to celebrate it, since we’re just right into the laziness mode. But that’s okay, for it’s a day to do exactly as we want without any constraints or restraints whatsoever. However, that doesn’t give us leeway to be sinful. We can do whatever is right and comely in God’s eyes, according to His marvellous word. On Saturdays though, we do have to check out the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow, and see how they fit into our Christian milieu or environment. 

So, here’s the first one. ‘The power for creating a better future is contained in the present moment: You create a good future by creating a good present.’ And that’s the truth in spades my brethren, since the future is based on the present which we learn to handle by studying the past. In other words, the present is the building block, the foundation of the future, and whatever you sow today is what you will reap in the future. So, if you desire to have a good future, then you must begin by creating a solid foundation for it today. And the best foundation for anything in this universe is Jesus! 

Yes friends, it’s like Jesus said of the man who built his house on the rock, that’s Him, and the rains and the floods and the winds and everything came, but they couldn’t wash away that house that was built on the solid rock that is Jesus. Glory Hallelujah! However, the house that was built on a porous foundation, one that was not Jesus, like sand, chaff, sin, or some such weak material, was immediately swept away. Yes, ‘great was the fall of it.’ 

And that’s what happens to those lives that are not built on the solid rock that’s Jesus Christ; their futures are sad and gloomy and filled with destruction. And if you don’t know the story, then you can find it all in Matthew 7:24-29. So, please read it asap, and if you haven’t yet built your house on Jesus, you better had do that right now yes, because yuh see how that major storm called Covid suddenly came upon us two years ago, and how many houses fell down because they weren’t built on Jesus Christ? As they say a word to the wise is sufficient. 

And the next quote advises: ‘The less you respond to negative people, the more positive your life will become.’ Now that’s a true statement to a certain extent, because not listening to negative people doesn’t automatically make your life positive, it just makes it less negative. Why is that, you ask? Because to have a positive life you must do positive things, not just restrain from negative ones. That’s why this next quote is so important. ‘I believe that you should gravitate to people who are doing productive and positive things with their lives.’ 

And that’s the awesome truth my people! As much as possible we ought to surround ourselves, or get involved with positive and productive people, for in that way some of their positive productivity will surely rub off on us, making our lives even better. And yes, it’s best if we can get around positive, productive Christians, but that doesn’t mean we have to shun positive, productive unbelievers for even they have useful stuff to teach us. We just have to be careful not to allow them to lessen our witness for Christ. In fact, we ought to use that witness to let them know about the wonderful benefits of living for Jesus, and hopefully when they see our faithful witness, they will want to give their lives to Him. 

Yes mih people, there’s nothing as exciting and incentivizing as seeing someone walk their talk. For, as we all know, actions speak more forcefully than words. And that’s why Christianity is not more pervasive throughout the world – not enough incentivizing witness from us, supposed believers. And maybe that’s why Christ’s return is taking so long, as Matt. 24:14 implies. ‘And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.’  

But Christ also told the disciples: ‘It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power (authority). But ye shall receive power after that (when) the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.’ (Acts 1:7-8) The long and short of the story friends, is that we are not to concern ourselves with the when of Jesus’ second Coming, which only the Father knows. Our job is to be ready for whenever He comes and keep being good witnesses wherever we are. And how do we do that? 

The next quote intimates one way of doing it, by saying: ‘Change your thoughts and you change your world.’ And that’s no lie. Especially if you’re coming to Jesus as new believer, or intending to become more mature in the faith. That’s why Bruh Paul writes thus to the church at Corinth. ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold all things are become new.’ (2 Cor. 5:17) Yes my brethren, if we want to change our world, the first place we have to consider is our minds, because that’s where all the activity in our life begins and ends. 

Our minds are the battlefield on which we fight life. Therefore, whatever we think is basically what controls our life. If we think evil or wicked thoughts then our actions will most likely be wicked and evil, and the same goes for good and positive thoughts. That’s why Bruh Paul says we need to change our thinking, change our thought patterns when we come to Christ. Our old way of thinking must be put away and be replaced by the new thinking that permeates Christ’s kingdom. And when we make that change in thinking, our lives change for the better, not necessarily for the easier (smile) because then tests are involved to find out if we are truly committed to Christ. 

But there’s no need to worry about that, because with each test, the Lord also gives us the wherewithal to pass it. And then, we are at last in a position to do what the last quote tells us: ‘Dwell on the beauty of life. Watch the stars, and see yourself running with them.’ Now isn’t that a wonderful way to live this life? It surely is! What can beat looking up to heaven, with Jesus in your life, and seeing the myriad of heavenly bodies up there, shining brightly with God’s omnipotent help, and imagining yourself as one of those bright lights shining a heavenly light down here on this fallen earth? Nothing my fellow saints! 

Remember Christ died so that we could have abundant life down here on earth; that means a good and enjoyable life, heaven right here on earth, but it doesn’t just fall into our laps, we have to work towards it through living sincerely and diligently for Him. Much LOVE!

…oh, how sweet the name of Jesus sounds…in a believer’s ear…because it drives away…each and every fear… 

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