God so Loved the World that He Gave His Son: The greatest Spiritual battle ever fought – part seven!
Okay, Okay, Okay Mike… I have tracked with you on this Elijah and Elisha stuff, but now you are going off the rails! All this talk about the Holy Spirit and miracles is just plain spooky! Are you telling me that the kinds of miracles that Elijah and Elisha performed are available to us? My answer to that question is, “what does the Holy Bible have to say?” Stick with me and we’ll discover the TRUTH together!
John 16:12-15 (NIV)
12 “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. 13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 14 He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.
So Scripture tells us that the Holy Spirit would come. Did He actually come? Let’s find out.
Acts 2:1-4 (NIV)
1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
After Peter and John were arrested and then released, they experienced the awesome power of the Holy Spirit themselves.
Acts 4:23-31 (NIV)
23 On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them. 24 When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. 25 You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David: “‘Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? 26 The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One. 27 Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. 28 They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen. 29 Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. 30 Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” 31 After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
We hear a lot today that says, “we are living in a different time now and the experiences of Peter and John are just not valid for today. Yes we know that when we receive Jesus Christ as our personal savior we have the Holy Spirit in residence with our spirit. But (there it is again “the but”) the miracles of that time were for the building of the New Testament Church and they ceased centuries ago!” Is that true? Let’s find out.
Acts 2:17-18 (NIV)
17 In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters
will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. 18 Even on
my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.
Sounds to me like it’s for today and it’s quite powerful! I guarantee there’s a lot more coming
up about the Holy Spirit… we are just scratching the surface. So stay tuned and hold on!
Praise the Lord!