The Holy Spirit | Revolutionary

"This 'letter' is written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the Living

God. It is carved not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts." 

2 Corinthians 3:3 

The early church was in for a shock. Not only would Jesus come into the world but He would leave One in His place who would drastically change how they lived. 

   For the Jews, this meant freedom from slavery to the law. Outward sacrifices and continual atonement and rules were no more. "He (God) has enabled us to be ministers of His new covenant. This is a covenant not of written laws, but of the Spirit. The old written covenant ends in death, but under the new covenant, the Spirit gives life." (2 Cor.3:6) This was huge for the Jews! They no longer had to obey the law of Moses and that would have taken some getting used to. Everyone had access to God. There was no more Holy of Holies with a once a year entrance by one man behind the curtain. There was no more blood sacrifice. There was no more high priest or written law to follow. No more abstaining from certain food. It was done, abolished, kaput! The leaders of the church had to change the very fabric of their ministry to the sheep. "And the Holy Spirit also testifies that this is so. For He says, 'This is the new covenant I will make with my people on that day…I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds." (Heb.10:15,16) What a concept to grasp for the Jewish believers! Saved by faith and not by following the law! Many devout Jews were converted to Christianity at Pentecost after witnessing the move of the Holy Spirit and listening to Peter's words. "…then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. This promise is to you, and to your children and even to the Gentiles…" (Acts 2:38,39) One of the biggest shocks would have been that the Gentiles were now included and had the same inheritance as they did. The Jews had been "God's special possession" for all of time and for them to see a mighty move of God among the Gentiles would have been incredibly surprising. "The Jewish believers who came with Peter were amazed that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles too." (Acts 10:45) 

   For the Gentiles, this was literally life changing news! They most likely either had bitter feelings towards the Jews and all of their "special treatment" from God or they didn't care because they had so many gods of their own. But now things were different. "All who put their faith in Christ share the same blessing Abraham received because of his faith." (Gal.3:9) I love when the Jews say, "We can see that God has also given the Gentiles the privilege of repenting of their sins and receiving eternal life." (Acts 11:18) Privilege is right! What a beautiful attitude to have. The Gentiles were now saving Jews for the Kingdom. The tables had turned, in a sense. The Gentiles came out of pagan cultures and practices, worshiping multiple gods and sacrificing their children and committing all kinds of sin. They understood and came to faith in such a different way. Their situation was very unique from the Jews'. They came from a completely twisted view of religion. Jesus and the Holy Spirit revolutionized their lives, their worldview, their souls. A God who was always with them, who loved them no matter what and who came and put an end to atoning for sin was unheard of! "It is best for you that I go away, because if I don't, the Advocate won't come." (John 16:7) Jesus put so much emphasis on the coming of the Holy Spirit. The Gentiles were now adopted into that beautiful inheritance. "God knows people's hearts, and He confirmed that he accepts Gentiles by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did for us." (Acts 15:8) With the Holy Spirit came boldness in preaching the gospel and overwhelming joy. The Spirit came to dwell in believers, to convict and guide them. 

   As a whole, the church was given the authority to cast out demons, heal the sick, perform miracles and speak with boldness. There were roles given by the Spirit. "Then Judas and Silas, both being prophets, spoke at length to the believers, encouraging and strengthening their faith." (Acts 15:32) There were now prophets, teachers, preachers and gifts of the Spirit such as, interpretation of tongues, great faith, special knowledge and wisdom. The health and growth of the church would have been drastically increased with the presence of the Holy Spirit. The gifts of the Spirit affirmed and built up the church. "Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit." (1 Cor.12:13) The Spirit brought unity! 

   For me the person of the Holy Spirit is more new in my life. I didn't grow up in a Spirit filled church in terms of prophecy and tongues and visible manifestations of the Spirit. I was baptized at sixteen in "the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit," but I was never taught on the gifts of the Spirit. I was introduced to the gifts of the Holy Spirit when I went to YWAM in 2011. It was at a conference in Harrisburg and I was overwhelmed by the Spirit and His outworking there. I remember being so sad that I had only "discovered" the Holy Spirit then and not much earlier in my church. I received the gift of tongues on outreach in D.C. I remember it so clearly. I wanted it, I wanted a gift of the Spirit. When I received it I was filled with such joy! It was like discovering a hidden treasure that had been there all along and free for me to partake of. "But you have received the Holy Spirit, and He lives within you, so you don't need anyone to teach you what is true." (1John 2:27) 

In my life the fruit I see most clearly is peace, kindness, gentleness and joy. In terms of gifts I see great faith, tongues, wise advice and a developing gift of prophesying. The fruit I would like to see growth in is patience, self control and love. I want to be an unconditional lover, one who has incredible patience and self control in all areas of my life. Regarding gifts of the Spirit, I would love to grow in discernment and to be able to interpret tongues. 

   

   Because of the Spirit's presence in me, I have the authority and power to heal the sick, cast out demons and speak with boldness. The Spirit equips me to do those things and to do them with His strength. I tend to shy away from anything that makes me uncomfortable. Being bold as Peter was after he rejected Jesus three times, encourages me because He didn't have the Spirit before, but after he did and he was a powerful man of God. There is freedom in the Spirit and I am so thankful to God for giving Him to us. A comforter, encourager and strengthener inside of me. That is too precious for words. It is indescribable. "And we have received God's Spirit…so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us." (1 Cor.2:12) Freedom!!!