May 25, 2014 | Sunday Service Report

Welcome to the Nathan report!
I would like to start today's report with a beautiful photo-verse... 

Okay, as usual we started with powerful praise and worship. Here is the list of today's songs:


1) Trading my sorrows - Darrell Evans

2) Look what the Lord has done - Bill & Gloria Gaither

3) 10,000 Reasons - Matt Redman

 

4) Jesus is the Lord - Antioch Community Church

5) Holy Holy Holy (Hosanna) - Hosanna Music

It was an awesome session. Church came to their knees while on the last number. As we move to the offerings, we have an announcement. Brother Clement is getting married and this was the third announcement.  

We move to the main sermon and as you all know, today is the last installment of this month's theme, "Holy Spirit". Pastor opened with a beautiful short story of a woman who thought her wristwatch is broken. She goes to the watchmaker who fixes within blink of few minutes. She gets surprised and asks what was the problem, on which the watchmaker responded "Batteries". She replied saying, "I always thought that I need to wind my watch every morning, but today I am surprised to know that my watch was working on battery."

Well, the point of this story is simple, many times we think we are the one who can take care of ourselves or have taken care so far. Well, the batteries give power to the watch to make it work. Without that power inside the watch just doesn’t work. Even though batteries are not a living person, batteries still remind us of the power of the Holy Spirit. In the same way a battery gives power to make a wristwatch show current time, the Holy Spirit gives power to believers to shine the light of Jesus and share the message of the future. The bible says that by ourselves we can’t love people very well and we can’t live the life that God has for us. By ourselves we are like this drained wrist watches that has no power. But Jesus said he, would send us the Holy Spirit who would give us power to live for God and to shine the light of Christ. Let’s ask God to fill us with his Holy Spirit. that we would have the power to live for Jesus and let his light shine in our lives.

Baptism of Holy Spirit

The baptism of the Holy Spirit: When we accept Christ as our savior, God takes up residence in our lives at that very moment.

The Holy Spirit comes into our lives and makes an immediate transformation within us;

as the Bible says, 2 Cor. 5:17 “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come” (NIV)

On the other hand, being filled with the Spirit or baptized in the Spirit is more than just He living within us.

As per the Scriptures that there is a subsequent spiritual experience called the “baptism in the Holy Spirit” or also referred as “being filled with the Spirit.” (Both mean the same.)

This filling of the Holy Spirit in any individual’s life is evidenced by “speaking in other tongues.”

For example see the scriptures:
Acts 2:4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. (NIV)
Acts 10:45-46 . . . the Holy Spirit [was] poured out even on the Gentiles. 46For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God. (NIV)
Acts 19:6 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. (NIV)

First Corinthians 12:12-13 is the central passage in the Bible regarding the baptism of the Holy Spirit: “For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink” (1 Corinthians 12:13).Romans 6:1-4 describe the believer’s position before God in language similar to the 1 Corinthians passage: “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” 

It is a vital experience of the Christian life. It is a special work of the Spirit beyond salvation. On the Day of Pentecost, disciples who had already made a decision to follow Jesus and Holy spirit was residing in them, "were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues" (Acts 2:4). Paul asked the Ephesians disciples if they had received the Holy Spirit, after which "the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues" (Acts 19:2). New Testament believers were constantly challenged to be filled with the Spirit (Acts 1:4,5; Ephesians 5:18).

This baptism of Holy Spirit does three things:
Title: what does he do?

1. He empowers us to share our testimony (1 Cor. 2:1-5)
“When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.”

a. The Holy Spirit empowers us to share our testimony (V1-5)

b. The Holy Spirit helps to bring us to Christian Maturity (V6-16)
- Romans 8:26, "Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.", ""

- Ephesians 2:18, "For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father."

Only the Holy Spirit knows the mind of Christ (V11)

The mind of Christ is a secret wisdom
The mind of Christ is a hidden wisdom

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him- but he has revealed it to us by his Spirit.

2. He empowers to serve.(Acts 1:8)
"But you will be my witnesses..."
The baptism in the Holy spirit is power to witness.

It is the ability to witness in several ways.
It is power to serve God anywhere.
" in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."(v8)
- Acts 1:8, "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."

- Zechariah 4:4-7, "4 And I said to the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?” 5 Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.” 6 Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. 7 Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he shall bring forward the top stone amid shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’”"

3. He empowers to speak.(Acts 1:2)
"after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen"(v2)

- Isaiah 61:1, "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,

    because the Lord has anointed me

to bring good news to the poor;[a]

    he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim liberty to the captives,

    and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;[b]"

Footnotes:

Isaiah 61:1 Or afflicted.

Isaiah 61:1 Or the opening [of the eyes] to those who are blind; Septuagint and recovery of sight to the blind.

Nothing can take the place of the Holy Spirit's work in the life of the believer. Through Him we are "heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ" (Romans 8:17), infinitely richer than all the billionaires of the world put together, because what we possess is not a passing thing, ours is an eternal inheritance.

Paul, quoting Isaiah, wrote, "Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him" (1 Corinthians 2:9). Christians are rich beyond imagination. And the greatest resource of all, "The Holy Spirit", dwells in us and is with us forever. 

Do you want to live with real peace, contentment, and joy in life? Do you want to have the power to overcome temptation and persevere through adversity? This kind of victorious living is found only through total surrender and obedience to the Holy Spirit. Set your mind on the things of God, and trust the indwelling Spirit to guide, enable, and empower you to obey His voice. When we remain sensitive to the Spirit’s guidance, depend upon Him totally, and obey, we experience life at its very best. Jesus said, "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water" (John 7:38). It is our prayer that you all will experience the amazing life giving power of the Holy Spirit in your life and ministry. 

Before closing, we had a special prayer for the church members in need. While this powerful prayer session, we had three songs in the background, here they are:

Holy Spirit Rain Down - Hillsong United

More Love, More Power - Jeremy Riddle

Miracle Maker - Delirious?

We come down to the closing after this powerful prayer followed by a meet and greet session. I hope you enjoyed today service. How was yours, please comment below!