In Your Bible Read This
Acts 2
Here Is Your Memory Verse
For we were all baptised 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
Afterwards Talk About
This
Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you first believed?
Or afterwards? Have you been filled with him since then?
Something To Do Before
Next Time
Get together for prayer and go through the steps of welcoming
and receiving Holy Spirit, praying for each other until you are
all filled.
Written Diploma Work
Look at those words pletho and pleres.
Write a page to describe what that could mean today
Meditate Word By Word On
This Verse
Galatians 5.5.
- Spend
a Minute to Change the World
- Pray For Latvia - 3,000,000
Baltic & Slav peoples
- In Northern Europe,
former USSR, Ethnic tension, economic problems
- 20% Protestant, 20% RC,
15% Orthodox
-
Be sure to
teach this lesson to others.
-
Always pray and
prepare well adding
-
your own
verses and stories to bring it to life.
To successfully respond to the call of God
everybody needs the power of God's Spirit within and although
Christians may have different opinions as to when and how we
receive Holy Spirit no-one ever doubts that we need him. Always
listen courteously to alternative views and learn and share
without arguing or showing superior attitudes. Here is one very
popular understanding.
1. The Promise Of Another Baptism
In Acts 1, 4-8, the word baptism is baptizo,
which means immersion or soaked. It is not baptisma
of Ephesians 4.5, which is the act of baptism, and it is not
baptismos of Hebrews 6.2, which is a cleansing.
2. The Promise Was
Prophesied
-
Read Isaiah 32.15 and see the result.
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See Ezekiel 36.27-28 and find five
consequences.
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See Joel 2.28 and eagerly desire the
consequences.
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Read John's words in Luke 3.16, and
the testimony of his birth. Luke 1.15
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Elizabeth was filled and so was
Zechariah, Jesus, and the disciples. Luke 1.41;1.67; 4.1;
Acts 2.4.
One word for filled is pletho
which means to be like a sponge, saturated and dripping streams
of water everywhere. Another Bible word is pleres
which means a breadbasket, full to the top, over-flowing and
dropping food everywhere.
3. Holy Spirit Is Father’s Promise
In Old Testament days the Spirit was
usually on but not in God's people, Num. 11.25. There
were some special except-ions like Bezalel and Joshua See the
consequences in Exodus 31.3, Deut. 34.9.
4. Holy Spirit Is Jesus’ Promise
-
Jesus said that the Holy Spirit is
coming, John 7.37-39, 14.16, 16.7
He will live with you and be in you,
John 14,17
He will clothe you with power. Luke 24.49
Jesus commanded his disciples to receive
Holy Spirit, in other words to make him welcome. John 20.22, Acts
1.5-7.
5. Jesus Promised Us Power
In Acts 1.8 the word is dunamis, the
ability to perform anything, or to do miracles, Mat. 25.15, Gal.
3.5, Acts 8.13, Mark 6.5. Another Bible word for power is exousia,
which means authority. Luke 10.19.
Exousia gives us the right, but we need
dunamis power to enforce the exousia. An official
might have authority to take a farmer's field but he needs power
to drive out the bull that lives in there! You have authority
over demons but you need God's power to make them leave
6. The Promise Begins
In Acts 2.1-11, Holy Spirit comes with
power and 120 believers speak in languages they have never
learned. See 1 Cor 14.5,18. Men from many nations come running
and hear the wonders of God in their own language. Thats
still Gods purpose in filling us today. Peter said that the
coming of the Spirit showed that the last days had begun, Joel 2.28-32,
Acts 2.16-21.
7. The Promise Moves Outwards
The Jewish believers soon found that Holy
Spirit filled them again and again. Then the nearby Samaritans
decided to follow Jesus and also received the Holy Spirit. Acts 8.4-8,
14-17.
Peter visited Cornelius, who was a
Roman, a European and a soldier and as he spoke about Jesus,
the Holy Spirit fell on all his family and friends. Acts 10.
44-46.
Later we find people in Turkey being
filled as well. Acts 13.52, 19,1-7.
Paul wrote that we should all 'be being
filled - continually' with the
Spirit:
Ephesians 5.18; see also Acts 4.31.
8. The Promise Is For You Today
Acts 2.38-39 has no time limit even to we
who are far off. You can see a picture of how to receive the
promise in Mary's experience in Luke 1.35. The Holy Spirit can
also come upon you and the power of God can also overshadow you,
to allow another holy child of God to be born.
-
Did you receive the Holy Spirit when
you first believed? Acts 19.2
Are you full of the Holy Spirit now?
Are you dripping the blessing of God
like the sponge, or overflowing with the bread of life
like the basket?
Do you want 'dunamis' in your life?
Do you really want Holy Spirit in you?
He is a person who convicts of sin, promotes a holy
lifestyle and may even call you to the ends of the earth.
9. Welcome Holy Spirit Now
-
Be thirsty for God John 7.37
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Clean up your temple by
asking God to forgive you. 1 Cor. 6.19, 2 Cor 6.14 to 7.1,
1 John 1.9
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Renounce every other spirit you may
have received, in Jesus name.
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Ask the Father for his gift of Holy
Spirit for you, Luke 11.9-13.
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Welcome him by a prayer of faith.
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Give him freedom to go anywhere in
your body, soul, mind and spirit, and into your past,
present and future.
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Now relax and receive the gift, drink
him in deeply, John 7.37, 1 Cor 12.13.
Overcome all timidity and pride, thank him
for coming, surrender to him and expect either peace, joy,
laughter or tears or all four. Maybe you will speak in tongues or
burst into praise, worship or prophecy immediately or soon
afterwards. You will soon notice his presence in every part of
your life. Acts 2.4,10.46, 19.6.
Taken from the
Joshua Project Unreached Peoples List
these people have no church and as yet
no cell, church or mission has committed themselves
to prayer, adoption or church planting among this people.