This is a special retreat on the Holy Spirit, right?
If anyone come to you and say that he or she is an expert of the Holy Spirit,
please don't believe them.
That is the truth, that is the truth.
The Holy Spirit is perhaps one of the most elusive topics.
Martin Lloyd-Jones mentioned that this is perhaps also one of the most neglected topics in churches.
And you either overemphasize it and therefore leading in an unhelpful direction,
or you underemphasize it.
So there are two ways that we can make the error when it comes to the topic of the Holy Spirit.
It's probably important for us before we dive into the third member of the Trinity
to just have a quick overview of what the Trinity is all about.
Father, Son, Spirit.
Now, what does that mean?
I'm going to go to just two passages.
We're going to camp most of our time in Acts chapter 2 for this retreat.
But before that, let us go to a passage of Jesus' teaching in John chapter 14.
So I just want us to open our own Bible and take a look at these verses.
Now, this is what many Christians call the upper room discourse.
It's like a long chunk of teaching from Jesus, three chapters.
And if you are at the end of your life, you are about to go to the cross,
you are about to die,
the things that you say before you depart will be really important.
So this is the teaching of Jesus.
We're going to read chapter 14, John 14, from verse 15 onward.
I'm going to read for us.
Are we all there in John 14, verse 15?
Just give me a nod if you're there.
I really want you to look at this text and be confronted by this text.
As Kevin mentioned, let's look at the word of Jesus and not the word of a man.
Reading for us from ESV in verse 15.
If you love me, you will keep my commandment.
So one of the marks of being filled with Jesus, with the Holy Spirit,
is obedience, keeping the commandment of Christ.
And then verse 16,
And I will ask the Father,
Jesus referring to another person of training,
I will ask the Father and He will give you another helper
to be with you forever.
Now most of us know that the Holy Spirit is known as a helper to us.
But notice there's a word here, another.
Another.
What does that imply?
Another.
Someone who is similar to Himself.
Jesus has been there helping them,
walking with them.
And the Father will send them another helper.
Let's camp there for a while.
What does that mean?
Someone of equal status.
In fact, Jesus even implied later on,
that this is going to be a better gift for you.
That I will go,
and the Father will send the helper,
another helper to you.
And verse 17,
I'm going to just read the second part.
You know Him,
for He dwells with you,
and will be in you.
So this is the next level, right?
Christ dwells on earth with the disciples,
walking side by side.
As a person who is fully human,
fully God,
walking with the disciples.
And now you have the gift of another person of the Trinity,
who dwells not just with you,
but in you.
Now how does that work?
Dwelling with you,
and in you.
That really is the goal of this retreat.
We're going to see how the Spirit dwells among us,
with us,
and in us.
Now,
one observation.
Notice that whenever the Holy Spirit
is being mentioned in this text,
you have
He or Him being referred.
The Holy Spirit is a person.
The Holy Spirit
is not a thing.
The Holy Spirit
is a person.
It's a third person of the Trinity.
And
here's what is so complex
about this whole topic.
You have a person
who is equal
to Jesus,
who comes
from the Father.
Jesus is praying to the Father
to send
us
another helper.
And in verse 23,
in John 14,
if anyone loves me,
he will keep my word,
and my Father
will love him,
and we
will come to him
and make our home
with him.
Are you there with me
at verse 23?
Now,
this is mind-blowing.
So,
he is
leaving,
and he is sending
another
helper,
and now in verse 23,
we
will come to
him,
the person who
keeps the command
or the person
who is loved by God,
referring to Christians,
right?
And we
will make
our home
with him.
Wow.
So,
when you get
one person
of the Trinity,
you get all three.
Okay,
so how does that work?
He's leaving,
he's telling us
that we are going
to receive
another helper,
the Spirit
is going to come
to be with us
and in us,
and then through
the Spirit,
we are going to get
all three members
of the Trinity now,
because I only have
30 minutes,
and I want to make sure
that we have lunch
later on.
This is a complex
topic,
the Trinity,
but maybe
the best way
for me to put it
is this,
Christians
are those
who believe
in the God
that is bigger
than us,
right?
I love the way
we open
the retreat.
We have a picture
of the stars,
the galaxies,
a God
that is big,
a God
that is huge,
a God
that is transcendent,
and in our singing
earlier,
it's really God-centered.
I don't know
whether you know
this about
the lyrics
of those songs.
We're praising
a God,
a King,
who is big,
who is mighty,
and He is with us.
He dwells with us.
Now,
that is meant
to blow
your mind.
That is meant
to lead us
into worship.
And therefore,
as Christians,
because we believe
in the God
that is bigger
than us,
that is transcendent.
Now,
what it means
is that we cannot
fully understand Him.
Are we okay
with that?
In some ways.
And yet,
at the same time,
His attention,
we cannot fully
understand Him,
but He has chosen
to make Himself
known to us,
you and I,
in a deeply
personal way.
and He has
given to us
His Word,
the Bible,
which is why
from the get-go,
we look at the
Word of Jesus
from the Scriptures.
So,
there are all
these things
that I'm mentioning
to you right now.
I'm actually
inviting you
to simply
take God's words
as it is
and believe it.
The Scripture
presents to us
a God
that is one,
one God.
that's the emphasis
of the entire Old Testament.
The Lord,
our God,
is one.
And one God,
three persons.
Three persons.
The Father sent the Son.
The Son went to the cross.
And now,
as the Son
is interceding for us
at the right hand
of the Father,
we have the Spirit
dwelling
with us
and in us.
One God,
three persons.
Now,
that's the unique feature
of the Christian faith.
Are you all okay with that?
I just want to make sure
that we are all
on the same page.
That is huge.
Now,
someone once said
that if the Christian faith
is a scam,
someone tried to make money
by creating,
inventing a religion,
this would not be
one of the features.
Because no matter
whoever tried
to explain it,
you are going
to make yourself
look a little bit foolish
and stupid
because you cannot
quite fully
explain how it works.
If you want
to invent a cow,
you want to make sure
that it's something
that you can share
with people
in a way
that they think
that you are smart.
But any pastors,
any theologians,
any preachers
who try to,
you know,
use our own intelligence
to make sense
of the Holy Spirit,
are going to come away
feeling like
that doesn't quite
fully satisfy
or answer all the questions.
And that is okay, guys.
That is okay
because we serve
and we believe
in a transcendent God.
So that is how
I want to begin
before we go
into
the person
of the Holy Spirit.
We are going to look
at Acts chapter 2
for a moment.
The Holy Spirit
is not a thing.
He is not just
feelings
and emotions,
a tingling sensation.
He is
a person,
the sovereign God
of the universe.
So let's turn
to Acts chapter 2.
This is how,
this is a famous passage.
I think many of us here
are familiar
with Acts chapter 2,
Pentecost.
Are we there
at Acts chapter 2?
Just want to make sure
we are there.
Let me read for us
as you follow me along
in your Bible.
Acts chapter 2.
When the day
of Pentecost arrived,
they were all together
in one place
and suddenly
there came
from heaven
a sound
like a mighty
rushing wind.
Now notice,
this wind
comes from
heaven.
It doesn't come
from earth.
So the wind
has arrived
from heaven
and it filled
the entire house
where they were sitting.
And divided tongues
of fire
appeared to them
and rested
on each one of them
and they were filled
with the Holy Spirit
and began to speak
in other tongues
as the Spirit
gave them
utterance.
We'll stop here
for a moment.
Pentecost
is a Jewish feast
seven weeks
after the Passover
to celebrate
the first fruit
of the wheat harvest.
And for today,
for many of us,
it is actually
seven weeks
after Easter Sunday
where we remember,
where we celebrate
the coming
of the Holy Spirit
upon the church.
Now Acts
is not an easy book
to read.
It's not easy at all.
It is descriptive.
It tells us
what happened.
It is not meant
to be prescriptive.
And when I put it
that way,
there are two ways
that we can
make error
in how we read
and apply
the book of Acts.
Not just this portion
but the whole book.
If we say
that this is
supposed to be
prescriptive,
that means
whatever happens here,
let's try to apply this
by copying
what's happening here.
I'm going to go
to places where
it's just going to feel
really, really odd
because these are
actually records
of what happened
and it's not
so straightforward
in terms of how
we apply it
in the here and now.
But if we say
that this is purely
descriptive
and let's not try
to emulate
what's going on here,
again,
we lose sight
of how valuable
this text is
in imparting to us
wisdom
and revealing to us
who God is.
So,
let's talk air
or leader extreme.
But what is this text
really saying,
let me just try
to lower down
my bar
by saying that
I'm not here
to teach you
techniques
but the first part,
the first 30 minutes,
if the takeaway
is that the Holy Spirit
is a person
and He is fully,
He is God,
that would be
a great outcome.
But let me build
my case
from this text.
Now,
notice
in the first
few verses
of Acts chapter 2,
you have
reference of
mighty rushing
winds
from heaven.
Winds.
I know that
over the past few
weeks there were
typhoons in this city,
right?
One or two.
I am really glad
that I arrived
just after the typhoon.
But you guys
experience typhoon.
We don't get to
experience typhoon
in Singapore.
And my kids,
when they arrive,
they're like,
it would be exciting
if we can bump
into a typhoon.
I'm like,
no.
No,
you're a mighty
rushing wind.
We're talking about
really,
really unusual
kind of wind
that came down
from heaven,
that they knew
this is supernatural.
And what else
do we see here?
Fire.
Fire,
right in this text.
Prophetic
utterance.
Now,
do you know
that these are
all little,
little clues
images
from the Old Testament?
Let me give you
some examples.
Maybe let's
don't go back
to Old Testament first.
Let's look at
the book of Luke.
Because Acts
is written by
the same author,
Dr. Luke.
In Luke chapter 3,
you don't have to
turn to your Bible,
but let me read for us.
This is what Luke said.
I baptize you
in water,
but he who is
mightier than I
is coming.
The strap
of whose sandal
I'm not worthy
to untie.
He will baptize you
with the Holy Spirit
and with
fire.
Fire.
So,
this is a fulfillment
of what John the Baptist
said.
So,
and we see
further back
in the Old Testament,
2 Samuel.
Let me just read for us
one verse from 2 Samuel.
When the Lord appears,
this is how Samuel
describes,
the channels
of the seas
were seen.
Like the seas,
you can actually see
what's going on
under the sea.
The foundation
of the world
were laid bare
at the rebuke
of the Lord,
at the blast
of his breath.
Now,
Samuel described
to us
a God
that is majestic,
a God
that is huge.
Or what about
the psalmist
in Psalm 18?
The earth rocked
the foundations
of the mountains
tremble
and quits
because
he was angry.
Smokes
went up
from his nostrils
and devouring
fire from his
mouth.
Verse 13
of Psalm 18,
the Lord
thundered in the heavens
and the Most High
uttered his voice
and he flashed
forth lightnings
and routed them.
Now,
do you notice
the pattern?
Storms,
fire,
majestic signs
of great power,
all these,
they were
imageries
of the presence
of God.
Whenever God
arrived,
we go back
to Exodus
in Mount Sinai,
there was
smoke,
there was
fire,
thunder,
and the
descending
of God,
his very
presence
where Moses
came close.
He was beaming
with glory.
So that is
the presence
of God.
Now,
there's one more
thing in the book
of Numbers
which may give us
some clue
to Acts 2,
prophetic utterance.
In Numbers 11,
when the Lord
came down
in the cloud
and spoke
to Moses,
he took
some of his
spirit
and put it
on 70
elders.
Numbers 11,
verse 25,
I'm reading
from that.
And as soon
as the spirit
rested on them,
they prophesied.
They spoke.
So,
again,
Acts chapter 2
is helping us
to see a
continuation
of the whole
Bible.
That whenever
the presence
of God
arrived,
it is accompanied
by these signs.
fire,
storms,
things that
are frightening
and scary
because who
can tame
the Lord?
Who can tame
the Lord?
He's not
to be controlled
or summoned
by us.
He's sovereign.
He is God.
He's the spirit
of God.
And then,
we see here
utterance,
words,
that come
from the mouth
of man,
declaring who
he is,
declaring his
holiness.
Now,
what do you think
is my point
here?
In the first
four verses
of Acts
chapter 2.
Maybe I should
put it there.
What do you think
is the Bible's
point in those
first four verses
describing
Pentecost?
The Lord
has arrived.
The Lord
God,
Yahweh,
the Lord
who cannot
even be named,
he has
arrived.
he has
arrived.
He has
come,
he has
fulfilled
his promise
to dwell
among us.
Through Jesus,
through what
he has done,
his spirit
will now
be poured
out upon
all of us.
Now,
you know what
happened when we
read Acts chapter 2,
those four verses?
We tend to skip
past them really
quickly.
I don't know about you.
I tend to skip
past those four
verses very quickly
and go down
to the actions,
right?
Because right
after that,
you have tongues,
you have
an outstanding
sermon from Peter
and you have
things that
happen,
you have the
community coming
together,
and then you
have signs and
wonders that
follow after
this chapter.
That becomes
something that
the apostles
experience and
do as they
preach and
proclaim the
gospel.
And we
often read the
book of Acts,
particularly Acts
chapter 2,
asking,
what is this
about us?
What does this
passage tell us
about what we
must do to
experience this
power?
Can I just
lovingly encourage
you,
Wondermark Church,
and I say the
same to
Redemption 2
Church as
well,
whenever we
come to a
text,
let's first ask
the question,
what does this
reveal about
God?
How big,
how marvelous,
how praiseworthy
He is?
This is a
declaration of
the Lord's
arrival.
And this
must cause to
my and
obvious question,
how can the
big,
transcendent
God dwells
in you and
I?
Thank you for
your prayer
earlier,
Kevin.
I appreciate
the part when
you mentioned
that this is
a fellow
sinner,
this is just
a man used
by God,
filled by
His Spirit,
here,
wanting to
serve you
and love
you,
not because
of me,
but because
of God.
And I
often find
myself
wondering,
how can
God use
an unworthy
man like
me?
And the
only way
I can make
sense of
it is to
look to
the cross.
Jesus,
Jesus is
the only
reason.
Let me
just,
before I
continue,
let me
just share
a little
bit of
my
testimony.
This is
the church
that I
met for
the first
time.
I think
it's
helpful,
just a
bit of
an
introduction.
I came
to faith,
I mean,
there's actually
a few
parts where
I felt
that I
was born
again.
I don't
know whether
it's
theologically
correct to
put it
that way.
I was born
again once,
born again a
second time,
and there
were like
three occasions
when I felt
I had this
born again
experience.
The first
time was
when I was
a teenager
in my late
teens,
standing a
mega church
environment.
A friend
invited me
to their
church,
and the
pastors was
talking about
hell,
and I was
terrified,
and I rushed
forward to
receive the
salvation,
say the
sinner's
prayer,
and the
idea that I
had was I
go to hell,
and this
church
focused a
lot on
love,
and how
God will
help me
in my
studies,
and my
career,
so I
want to
have a
good life
now,
through the
help of
this God,
Jesus,
his name,
and after
that,
I got a
free ticket
out from
hell into
heaven,
so that's
quite a
good deal,
so I
signed up
for that
by raising
my hand
and said
a prayer,
and I
was at
age 19.
At
age 24,
it was
about 20
years ago,
my life was
falling apart,
I was
really,
really
downcast,
things were
so bad
that I
missed an
exam
paper,
because I
felt so,
I think back
then,
20 years ago,
the word
depression wasn't
quite commonly
used,
right,
I think now,
in the past
five to
seven years
or so,
mental health
awareness has
become a
thing,
20 years ago,
if you feel
depressed,
and you tell
your parents
that you feel
depressed,
what do you
think they
would tell
you to do?
don't be
depressed,
right,
just get out
of bed,
and do
something about
it,
but that was
the first
time I
felt that
whatever
confidence I
had as a
young man,
everything was
falling apart,
and I
experienced
God's grace
and goodness
in my life,
I fell on my
knee,
and I
confessed to
him that
God,
all this while
I've been
using you,
I've been
using you
to get
what I
want,
and now
I realize
that going
on my
way is
bad for
me,
I want
to trust
in a
better way,
help me,
so I
don't know
which is the
exact conversion
experience,
but at age
34 that was
very profound,
in my late
20s I had
another profound
experience,
where I
literally was
shivering in
the presence
of God,
I was
terrified,
there would
be a workshop
later on about
reform and
charismatic,
right,
that was the
time when I
understood the
reform theology
for the first
time,
that God
is sovereign,
and as I
look at his
word,
as I realize
that this
cannot be
written by
mere human
beings,
there was a
sense of
fear that
filled me,
that God
is real,
that God
is meek,
and when I
think about
my sin,
even as a
Christian,
there were
many moments
where I
will call
that I
fall into
sins,
or I
fall into
temptations,
but you
want to
know the
truth?
The truth
is I
disobey,
and calling
that falling
into sin
often makes
it sound
like I'm
just a
victim of
temptations,
of unmet
needs,
of circumstances,
I start to
use the
language of
God,
I disobey
you,
and I
need to
repent
before you,
and I
need to
have the
fear of
you put
in me,
and I
need to
take my
walk
seriously,
and I
need to
know that
I am a
temple of
the Holy
Spirit,
I'm
called to
be holy
as you
are holy,
that was
my turn,
I don't know
whether it's
quite a
born again
experience,
but it was
very,
very profound,
it was very
profound,
so those
three points
made me
realize how
big,
how good
God is
to a
sinner
like myself,
and here's
how I've
grown in
experiencing
the Holy
Spirit,
when I
was young,
when I
think about
the experience
of the Holy
Spirit,
it is always
something that
comforts me,
it is always
something that
makes me feel
delightful,
and love,
and as I
grow older,
I begin to
realize that
the Holy
Spirit,
if God
is to be
God,
and I
am to be
a worshiper
of God,
often the
Holy Spirit
comes in
the form of
disagreement,
comes in
the form of
telling me
that,
hey,
you are
walking the
wrong way,
turn back,
hey,
your heart,
though your
actions may
seem right,
there are
areas in
your hearts
that are
not right
before God,
even for
the right
things that
you do
with the
wrong
motive,
the Holy
Spirit often
convict me
towards
repentance,
we come
from a
church,
Redemption
Hill
church,
how should
I describe,
we are
big on
gospel,
we are
big on
theology,
and we
are also
a church
that
believe in
vibrant
community,
so we
want to
make sure
everyone
is plugged
into the
community
and serving
the city,
we are a
church who
also believe
highly in
experiential
faith,
that the
faith is
not just
something that
we know
intellectually,
but it is
to be applied
in everyday's
life,
so I've
grown from
how in my
younger days
that the
experience of
the Holy
Spirit is
maybe the
worship service,
maybe in the
way certain
elements in
the services
is being
designed,
to a
constant
daily
fellowship
with God
that often
moved me
to tears,
I got
sent a
press
period,
man,
by the
name of
Tim Keller,
and I
just,
in the past
few years,
he's the
guy that
made me
tear up
the most,
that's
listening to
his podcast
as I'm
driving and
I'm just
fascinated by
how often
when I'm
pointing to
the bigness
of Jesus,
the Spirit
just convict
my heart,
this is
Jesus,
this is what
he has
done for
you,
and the
Spirit
convict and
moved my
heart towards
repentance and
faith in
Jesus.
Now,
we are
going to be
praying
later on
for each
other,
on that,
for the
Spirit to
fill us,
but not
just in,
sometimes,
some of us,
when we
experience someone
praying over
you,
you may not
even experience
anything,
but you know
what faith
look like?
Faith is
living not
by sight,
and not by
our own
emotions,
even when I
don't feel
it,
I trust that
God is at
work,
and that is
the mark of
the Holy Spirit.
There is,
whenever we
talk about
the topic
of the
Holy Spirit,
there is
something that
we can
often fall
into,
the language
of being
filled by
the Holy
Spirit,
being filled
by the Holy
Spirit,
and you know
what,
you and I
are most
prone to
respond to
words like
that,
filled by the
Holy Spirit,
we can
sometimes think
in terms of
this way,
I have
three units
of the Holy
Spirit right
now,
I want
more,
Kevin,
can you
pray for
me so
that I
can receive
six units
of the
Holy Spirit,
that there
is a sense
that we
begin to
reduce the
Holy Spirit
to things,
he's a
thing,
or we
begin to
reduce any
kind of
teachings of
the Holy
Spirit to
techniques,
how can
we summon
the Holy
Spirit?
Now,
let's consider
for a moment,
the wind
came from
heaven,
the signs
of fires
and storms
point to the
bigness of
God.
Who can
say that we
can summon
the Holy
Spirit with
a prayer?
Now,
those who
abide most
deeply in the
Holy Spirit
understand the
Spirit bigness,
and therefore,
coming before
the Spirit
means surrender,
surrender and
repentance.
Another aspect
of what it
means to be a
Spirit-filled
church is that
you and I,
we are siblings.
I'm going to
talk about that
more in
session 3,
what it
means to be
brothers and
sisters in
Christ,
equal.
There is a
culture in
our church,
in Redemption
Youth Church
that we often
take for
granted,
because we
are in an
Asian city,
similar to
you,
Asian city,
and in a
lot of
Asian
churches
and contexts,
it's quite
hierarchical,
right?
The guy who
leads the
church,
the guy who
pastors,
the guy who
stands in
front to
preach and
teach,
is often
deemed with
a great
sense of
respect,
which is
good and
healthy,
but at
some point
often it
tip over
to become
unhealthy.
Now,
Christians
believe in
the priesthood
of all
believers,
because you
and I,
we all have
the person
of the
Holy Spirit
dwelling in
us.
So,
if we ever
use language
such as,
your name is
Leo,
right?
John,
sorry,
Leo was another
guy that I spoke
to earlier,
John,
so if
John come
up and
he claims
to be more
sensitive in
the Holy
Spirit than
Kevin,
we have a
problem there,
in some ways
you can
almost,
if you look
at it in
the best
possible way,
you could be
referring to
maturity,
you could be
referring to
someone who
understands and
who walks
with them,
so there are
those categories,
but if we
use the
category of
Asian religion
to talk about
the Holy
Spirit,
where one
person is
a shifu in
the Holy
Spirit,
more than
the other
person,
and has the
power to
summon the
Holy Spirit
in a more
evident,
experiential way
than others,
friends,
Watermark Church,
can I gently,
lovingly,
encourage you
to steer away
from that,
to steer away
from that.
The great
equalizer of
the cross is
that you and
I, as
believers,
we all have
the Holy
Spirit.
I need you
to pray for
me.
I need you.
I'm standing
up here
preaching this
word, I
believe,
because of
the prayers
of all of
you guys
for this
retreat,
and that
makes me
feel empowered
to do
this work.
By my own
strength,
I am very,
very weak.
That's the
truth.
So this is
not an expert
of the Holy
Spirit coming
to lead this
retreat so
that you can
learn from
me.
Let's learn
from each
other.
Let's point
each other
to who
Jesus is.
Just one
more thing
before I
close this
portion.
One of the
other signs
of being
dwelt by
the Holy
Spirit is
that your
life will
start to
feel uncomfortable.
I don't
know whether
you experience
that.
It's like,
have you
ever prayed
prayers like,
God, I
just want to
experience you,
know you,
love you,
walk according
to your
ways,
just do
whatever you
want in
my life.
Have you
prayed that
prayer before?
And then you
start to
experience real
afflictions and
sufferings and
things don't go
your way.
And if you
look back,
hey, I
actually prayed
that prayer and
God is answering
my prayer,
right?
I love this
quote by C.S.
Lewis.
Let me pray
for us and
then we'll pray
for each other
in a moment.
Imagine yourself
as a living
house.
This is from
C.S.
Lewis.
I did not
come up with
that.
God comes
in to rebuild
the house.
At first,
perhaps you
understand what
he's doing.
He's getting
the drain right
and stopping
the leaks
in the roof
and so on.
You knew that
those jobs
needed to be
done, so you
are not surprised.
You need a new
drain, you need a
roof to be fixed.
But presently,
he starts knocking
the house about
in a way that
hurts and does
not seem to
make sense.
What on earth
is he up to?
The explanation
is that he is
building quite a
different house
from the one
that you
thought of.
He's throwing
out a new
wing here,
putting on an
extra floor
here, running
up the towers,
making courtyard
and it hurts.
You thought
that you were
being made
into a decent
little cottage.
But friends,
he is building
a palace.
He is building
a palace.
He intends
to come and
live in it
by himself.
So that is
the implication
of what it
means to be
filled by the
Holy Spirit.
God intends
to live in
you.
And it's no
minor renovation
and it could
mean tearing
down the
entire building
and rebuilding
it all over
again.
When the
Holy Spirit
comes into
your life,
you are now
partaker of
divine nature.
I'm quoting
2 Peter 1
verse 4.
Partaker of
divine nature.
In some
ways, the
triune God,
all three
persons of
the Trinity,
is now
dwelling in
you in
some ways
through the
Holy Spirit.
Have you
been awestruck?
Let me pause
for a moment.
Have you
been awestruck
by the
fact that
God can
dwell in
you?
Have you
been awestruck
by how much
it costs
Jesus so
that your
sins may be
forgiven,
that you
can be
justified in
order for
His Spirit
to come
and dwell
in you?
Have you
come to a
place where
God, this
is too
awesome for
words?
This is
beyond
comprehension.
Me, the
temple for
your Holy
Spirit.
God can
pray.
And if
you have
not, I
think some
of us,
maybe you
have not
yet considered
that today
could be a
good day for
you to pray
and ask God
to help you
to understand
that.
when we
did a
series on
the Holy
Spirit
about years
ago, and
this is why
I'm camping
quite long
here on the
person of
the Holy
Spirit, just
to make
sure that we
are clear
before we
move to
other things.
I did a
short survey
in a couple
of CGs
that I
attended, just
to ask
folks, hey,
after our
series on
the Holy
Spirit, what's
your most
significant
takeaway?
And about
half of
them say
that the
most important
takeaway is
that they
realize that
the Spirit
is a
person and
not a
thing.
The Spirit
is a
person and
not a
thing.
I'm
talking about
church-going
believers who
have been
coming to
church for
years, telling
me that
that's the
biggest
takeaway.
I think
one way
that we
can apply
this today
is to
pray.
It's to
pray for
each other,
to be
filled by
the Holy
Spirit in
the right
way.
Not
referring to
more of
Him in
terms of
reducing Him
to units,
but the
fullness of
God.
And when
God moves
into you,
to live
in you,
He's going
to make
some really
significant
changes.
So let's
pray for
each other.
There are
some of
us here,
so there
are two
categories of
people here.
Is it okay
if we end
this time by
some prayer
for each
other?
I thought
it would
be good
for us to
look out
for two
groups of
people here.
I'm sure
we will
fall into
either of
those categories
or even
both categories.
We'll just
be spending
time to pray
for each
other.
Romans 5,
verse 5,
talks about
the Holy
Spirit being
poured,
sorry,
God's love
being poured
into our
hearts through
the Holy
Spirit.
Some of
us here,
you know
the love
of God
intellectually.
You really
do.
You really,
really study
your Bible
and you
have attended
church for a
long time.
Jesus
love you.
Jesus
loves me
this,
I know,
for the
Bible tells
me so,
right?
You believe
in that.
You have
sung that
many times.
But you
know that
deep down
there are
many
insecurities
in your
life.
And the
answers to
those
insecurities
and need
of approval
from men,
the answers
to all those
things is
really coming
to a deep
appreciation and
conviction that
God really
loves you.
And who
can help
you to do
that?
So one
of the
spirit's
work in
the believer's
life is to
take whatever
that we know
in our
knowledge and
apply that
to our
hearts.
So if we
can pray for
each other on
that,
things that
you already
know.
Most of us
say we
don't need
new knowledge.
We need
knowledge
applied.
Let's ask
the Holy
Spirit to
help us
to do
that.
And then
there's also
a second
category of
people,
those who
feel stuck
in sin.
Those who
feel stuck
in cycles
of sins
where
you know
that you
are
a temple
of the
Holy
Spirit,
but those
areas that
you are
struggling
with often
have been
used by
the evil
one to
cast down.
You know
the evil
one often
are,
so let me
just use
this analogy,
I don't
do boxing,
but I heard
that in boxing
there's something
called the
two-step
punch or
something like
that,
so there's
two ways
that the
devil can
actually attack
us.
One is
by telling
you that
your sins
don't
matter.
Your sins
don't
matter.
Because of
what Christ
has done
for you,
go ahead
and sin
and do
whatever you
want.
Satisfied
your flesh
in the
moment,
because your
sin isn't
really such
a big deal.
Jesus has
died for
your sins,
so just
go ahead
and sin.
Now once
you commit
those sins,
you know what
he's going
to do?
He's going
to tell you
the opposite.
Your sin
is a
great deal
that has
disqualified
you from
being a
child of
God.
If that's
you,
you find
yourself
falling into
that kind
of attack,
falling into
that kind
of cycle
where you
fall into
sin and you
feel discouraged,
disqualified.
Can I tell you
there's another
role of Holy
Spirit in the
scripture?
He applies
to what
many theologians
call
sonship into
our hearts.
I was
over there
just now
when we
were worshipping
with my
two older
boys.
They were
having a
fight while
the worship
leaders were
leading songs.
I was
feeling a
little bit
embarrassed
here.
Look,
we are
here to
lead a
retreat to
speak to
you guys
and my
kids are
standing in
front having
a fight.
I'm trying
to keep
it low-key
and I'm
trying to
control them.
There was
a moment
that I
decided to
hug the
two of
them and
they calmed
down.
I was
reminding
them,
you know
what,
I really
love you
guys.
Come,
we can
do this
together.
We can
focus on
God,
the one
who loves
us.
Let's
worship him
when you
come down
and we
will focus
on God.
I think
often the
love of
God calms
our soul.
So let's
pray for
each other
that we
remember
this
sonship
that's
been given
to us.
It cannot
be taken
away from
anything
that we've
done.
That
can
be
heard.
Thank you.