Dakota Community Church
November 2, 2008
Foundational Truth 3
(Week 4)
Introduction and review:
To date in this series we have covered:
Christians are to grow up spiritually.
Repentance from acts that lead to death.
Faith in God.
Water baptism
Let’s resume our study of foundational truth by reading Hebrews 5:11 – 6:3
Hebrews 5:11-14
We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.
Hebrews 6:1-3
Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And God permitting, we will do so.
This week we are going to focus on gaining a solid understanding of:
Baptism in the Holy Spirit
The infilling at salvation and the baptism are not the same thing.
Christians are supposed to be filled with the Spirit.
Galatians 5:22-25
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.
Trees do not work at producing fruit and a man cannot crucify himself. You keep in step with the Spirit by faith in Christ.
The fruit is not for the tree to enjoy, the fruit is for the benefit of others
I have always been puzzled by the fruit of self-control; it doesn’t make sense for it to be called fruit if it is a self issue.
I need more self control, I need to eat healthier, I need to exercise more; but these would be fruit that benefits me. The fruit of the Spirit of self control is for my neighbor… and I am not working at producing it. On the day when I stand before God I will find out when others benefitted from the fruit of the Spirit in my life.
Matthew 25:31-46
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
"Then the King will say to those on his right, ’Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
"Then the righteous will answer him, ’Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
"The King will reply, ’I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’
"Then he will say to those on his left, ’Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
"They also will answer, ’Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
"He will reply, ’I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
Good works never precede faith.
The sheep are called “the righteous”, the good works follow righteousness, fruit comes from being connected to the source.
What do sheep do to become sheep?
The works are not recognized by the doers.
The baptism is not a single “once for all" event.
Acts 4:29-31
Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus."
After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
This is why you will hear me pray for a fresh infilling almost every time we meet for Morning Prayer. I want the Holy Spirit to be a consuming fire within me.
The Holy Spirit empowers us to “be” witnesses.
Acts 1:8-11
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."
God is without doubt at work in each of us but we need to remember that the Holy Spirit is ever empowering us to reach others with the good news.
The Holy Spirit reveals truth.
John 14:16-18
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.
John 16:13-14
But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.
Does God speak to us?
Is there truth outside of God’s word?
Hebrews 11:3
Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
The Holy Spirit always glorifies Jesus.
John 15:26
"When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me.
I want to say again this week that Christianity is a religion that is about Jesus, not about us. The reason we call ourselves Christians rather than “Christ followers” is because one is about faith in what Jesus has done and the other is about works that men are doing.
The Holy Spirit glorifies Christ!
How do you receive the baptism? The same way you receive everything else – by faith.
Is there anyone here who has never been prayed for to receive the baptism and now you realize that you want to have me do that for you right now?
Come now if you want to receive.
PowerPoint available (Free of charge) on request dcormie@mts.net
