Revival Times

http://www.revivaltimes.org/index.php?aid=1822

Saturday 15th December, 2012

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Vol 14 | Issue 6 | Jun 2012

Articles in this issue:

You Shall Receive Power from on High

Colin Dye

First Word Transformed by the Renewing of the Mind Faithfulness Matters Taming the Tiger You Shall Receive Power from on High A Creative Mission in Marseille NewsWatch The year of Jubilee

As we celebrate Pentecost, Colin Dye explains what it means to be filled with the Holy Spirit and how you can receive the power from on high to be a witness for Christ. Receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit is necessary because as believers we are taking up a life of service and ministry in the Body of Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free - and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:13)

The Promise of the Spirit

In the Old Testament the Holy Spirit was present, acting upon believers (influencing behaviour) and acting within believers (shaping character). But the gift of the Holy Spirit was promised as a specific manifestation for the New Testament era. And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions and also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days. (Joel 2:28-29)

The Indwelling of the Spirit

Jesus explains the significance of the coming of the Spirit in John 14:16-20, And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. The key role of the Spirit in the New Covenant is to bring the presence and activity of Jesus Christ into the life of a believer. Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord (2 Corinthians 4:1718). Christ dwells in every believer and therefore everyone who receives Christ receives the Holy Spirit. This is the automatic and unconscious reception of the Spirit. He dwells within every believer.

The Promise of Power

Being a Christian, however, involves more than being indwelt by the Holy Spirit, it includes being empowered for the ministry of Christ. We have been called to do the same works that Jesus and this is made possible because Jesus has ascended to the Father and has sent his Spirit to empower us to do his works (John 14:12) Jesus Christ is continuing his works through the church by the Holy Spirit. In Acts 1:1, Luke explains that his first book (the Gospel of Luke) had to do with what Jesus began to do and to teach, indicating that his second work (the book of Acts) is about the continuing ministry of Jesus Christ through his church. The works of Jesus Christ through his Body, the Church, are made possible by the coming of the Holy Spirit. This means that the gift of the Holy Spirit includes the promise of power for believers to do the works of Jesus Christ and to witness for him.

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http://www.revivaltimes.org/index.php?aid=1822

This empowering of the Holy Spirit is not automatic, but is additional to the Spirits work of regeneration and indwelling. It is also a definite, conscious experience that is accompanied by spiritual phenomena. The gift of the Spirit therefore involves both an unconscious reception of the Holy Spirit, that takes place when we believe, and a conscious reception of the Holy Spirit that follows faith. The Holy Spirit who indwells us also comes upon us to empower us for service.

How can you receive the baptism in the Spirit and step into full life in the Spirit?
It is helpful for anyone seeking to be baptised in the Holy Spirit to understand certain basic facts. Stepping into the fullness of the Holy Spirit usually begins by recognising the following New Testament truths:

1.The gift of the spirit has been given to the church and is freely available to all believers
Jesus promised to send us the Holy Spirit after his death and resurrection. The Holy Spirit has been poured out at Pentecost and is therefore now freely available to all. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear (Acts 2:33). Once we have fulfilled the condition of repentance and faith there is no need to wait any longer. The Holy Spirit is a gift from God and is given to us freely and not on the basis of our righteousness and holiness. Jesus received the promise of the Father on our behalf through his death and exaltation. We can receive the Holy Spirit, because Jesus has paid the price.

2.The purpose of the spirits presence in our lives

Jesus fulfilled his promise and he sent the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. But before that day, he gave some specific instructions to his disciples so that they would know exactly why the Spirit was going to come upon them (Acts 2:1-5). Being baptised in the Holy Spirit means we are filled as we are immersed into Gods presence. Just as water baptism initiated us into the life of the Church, so Holy Spirit baptism is Gods way of initiating us into the life of the Spirit. But the big difference is this: in water baptism we get out of the water, but through Spirit baptism we stay in the presence of God. We continue to be filled with the Holy Spirit as a lifestyle. Jesus made it clear that the primary purpose of Spirit baptism is that we might receive power to witness to him, But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth (Acts 1:8) When we become filled with the Holy Spirit, he naturally overflows out of our life and this means we are equipped to reach out to others with the power and enabling of the Spirit.

3. We must ask God for the gift of the Spirit

While the Holy Spirit does sometimes come upon believers suddenly and unexpectedly, without specifically asking God for this to happen (Acts 10:44), usually we have to ask the Lord Jesus to baptise us (Luke 11:9-13). God will also use others to pray and lay hands on us to receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:14-17 & Acts 19:6).

4. We should expect to speak with new tongues when the Spirit comes upon us
In every place where the book of Acts records people receiving the Holy Spirit there are many different evidences of the Spirits presence. But one thing occurs most frequently. Every time the Spirit comes, people speak with tongues and prophesy. Jesus said, Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks (Matthew 12:34). When you are full of the Holy Spirit, spiritual words - words belonging to the Spirit, - overflow from your mouth. All this shows that the gift of tongues is a sign that God gives people as an evidence that they are baptised in the Spirit.

5. We should seek to be continually filled

Being filled with the Spirit is not a once-for-all experience. It is true that we should be able to point to an experience with God when we were initially baptised into the Holy Spirit. But the baptism is meant to be an on-going experience. We must remain in the flow of the Holy Spirit. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but [keep on being] filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18) This means that we are to constantly yield our lives to more of him and his influences in our lives. The Holy Spirit wants to take over and direct the whole of our lives. He wants to lead us closer

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and closer to Jesus, to reveal more and more of Christs word to us and to make us more like him every day. The coming of the Holy Spirit in our lives is like opening a deep river on the inside. That river bursts its banks and begins to flow out of your life into the barren world of human hurt and need. He who believes in me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water (John 7:38). All of the KT Ministry Team and Cell leaders are trained to pray for people to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit. If you would like prayer to receive the Holy Spirit ask your cell leader or talk to a Ministry Team member during the ministry time at the 7pm service.

Revival Times is a monthly magazine published by Kensington Temple London City Church.

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