People of the Spirit
Holy Spirit part 6
JCC 16.05.10 am
Acts 6 1-5
This came at a time when the church was growing rapidly
V2 the twelve summoned a multitude of believers
A dispute arose
Hellenists: Jews born in foreign lands and speaking Greek
Complaints about the distribution of alms
However menial the work they had to be filled with the HS
The twelve were too busy praying and studying the word
These were not the leaders of the church who had spiritual authority
Notice how they decided on their choice of workers
Men filled with the Holy Spirit and of good reputation
One of them was Stephen who became the first martyr for Jesus
Stephen was full of the Spirit
Sanctified to God
Sold out on God
Be shaped by the purposes of God, not by our human ambitions
Stephen didn’t complain and say, ‘I’m not going to serve the food out, I want to rule and have a high position
He knew what servant-hood was and happily carried out what the Apostles delegated him to do
He put down his carnal nature in favour of what the apostles had chosen him to do. Why?
Because he understood what being filled with the Spirit really meant
It wasn’t about doing miracles and dancing around singing and speaking in tongues in church
Although there is nothing wrong with that
But it was about fulfilling his call and purpose
Being filled with the Spirit causes us to know what we should be and we shouldn’t be doing
Understanding what it means to be filled with the Spirit, means to understand what God desires for us
Submitting to His Lordship
As I said last week, you can have Jesus as saviour, but not necessary as Lord
We need to submit to the Lordship of Jesus and walk in the Spirit
No matter where he leads and no matter what the task he has however menial you may think it is
Why do so many Christians shy away from this life of total surrender?
They want the highway to heaven, but not the path of the Spirit on earth
It is a mystery to me, the levels of people commitment
I don’t understand why we want to miss out on so much
Why do we settle for the crumbs when we can have the whole feast?
When we settle for a small diamond when we can have the treasure chest
God wants to give us the riches of heaven and the reveal the hidden treasures of darkness to us
Why have second best when the best is right in front of you?
Have you been to the beach?
You know if the tide is coming in or going out
It’s the same with knowing if the Spirit is moving in the church
And I’m not speaking about some of the fake manifestations we see so much of today
We should all desire to move out in God into the river of blessing
The tide is coming in people what are we going to do?
Ezek 47:1- Then he brought me back to the door of the temple; and there was water, flowing from under the threshold of the temple toward the east, for the front of the temple faced east; the water was flowing from under the right side of the temple, south of the altar.
NKJV
A prophetic picture of the pouring out of the Holy Spirit in the last days
The trouble with the church today is, people have heard this message and have become complacent
No one believes it any more
Yea, yea, the river is flowing
Yea, yea, the Spirit is coming
I’m sure the disciples when they waited were at times wondering if it would happen and what exactly it was they were expect
Whatever way the Spirit decides to come is His choice
We cannot limit Him to coming in a certain way
As I was driving through Lincoln Thursday I saw the biggest wind turbine
I love them; they are a passion of mine as I took one apart once and put it back together to see how it worked
But I heard the voice of the Holy Spirit say to me
‘Wind produces power’
‘Water produces power’
‘Oil produces power’
‘And fire, produces power’
All these are the symbols we understand for the Holy Spirit
We use these metaphors to try to comprehend Him
But, nothing really fits the true identity of who he is because he is God
He can come in whatever shape or form he chooses but the character will always be the same
The character of a Holy God who goes the extra mile to show us his love and affection
This river is flowing
Havasupai Indian Waterfall Relaxation Video on utube showing in the background
The gates of the temple were located in the east
Last week we looked at the tabernacle and how the gate was Jesus
Jesus is the only way and he said he was the gate in John 10
It is from here we see this river flow
God is sending out His Holy Spirit to people all over the world
Since 1900, we have seen a greater intensity of the Holy Spirit
Our experience with the Spirit depends on how much we want Him to control our lives
Back to the beach illustration
I love watching people as they play around near the edge of the sea
You know those who are not afraid to get wet or who are strong swimmers
They just run into the water without a care or thought
They overtake everyone else and jump in and take off into the deeper water
These are the people God is looking for today
This passage shows us 4 levels we can experience
a) Ankle depth – V3
“..he measured one thousand cubits, and he brought me through the waters; the water came up to my ankles.” V3
1000 cubic =1,500 ft
Ankles or the feet are what the whole body stands on
It speaks of our foundation
We cannot build upon another foundation but Jesus
Those who go straight in have a firm foundation and feel secure in who they are as a Christian
Feet also represent walking
Movement
We have to move towards the water or we will just watch from a distance and what use is that
Illustration: Ankles – Achilles tendon
Our Achilles tendon is located at our ankles
If our Achilles tendon is damaged, we cannot walk for almost 6 months
Similarly, we become very vulnerable to the Devil’s attacks when our foundation is weak
God wants us to walk with the Spirit
We cannot stand still in the Lord
Without our feet in the Lord’s work we become stagnant
Disabled
There are many who just look on and never move towards the water
There are also many who are in the river up to their ankles
They go so far, but no farther
Have you ever seen someone who stands in the sea at the seaside?
Some want to put their feet in the water
It’s quite refreshing
You haven’t been to the beach if you haven’t paddled in the sea
Some standing there are content standing there
Then there are those who want to go in further
But what stops them?
With some people it can be that paddling is enough for them
They do not wish to go any further
Perhaps the water is too cold, too deep or just too wet!
There are many who don’t like getting wet
Many cannot swim so fear stops them venturing further
Then you get those who will go that extra step
b) Knee depth – V4
“Again he measured one thousand and brought me through the waters; the water came up to my knees” – V4
2000cubic = 3000 ft
Now you are getting a little braver if you enter to the knees
This is the point where you experience the water
Knees are the joints that cause us to run
If you damage your knees, you will have very little movement in your legs
You can develop a limp
How many Christians are walking with a spiritual limp?
Hurt or upset and carrying problems around with them
Not wanting to go any further because someone hurt them
Someone offended them
Why let that stop you having the best God has got
Or the limp can be your own making
Damage through abuse of your body
You are the temple of the Holy Spirit; is it being defiled?
The Lord won’t stay where sin is present
c) Waist depth – V4
“ And he measured one thousand and brought me through; the water came up to my waist” V4
3000 cubic =4,500 ft
At the waist level in a flowing river, we are beginning to lose control of our movement in the water
We cannot run anymore we just wade through the water
God wants us to let go of our strength and the control of our lives
We are at a place where we are neither swimming nor paddling
An in-between stage
It’s like people who experience of the Spirit but are still afraid to let go fully
They enjoy wading and jumping up and down in the water
Perhaps they can’t swim
But I want you to notice that in these verses, each stage says that ‘he brought me through’
When you walk through the waters you shall not drown
God knows if you can swim or not
If you’ve never been this far with him before, trust him to keep you secure
He is not going to allow anything bad to happen to you
He is not going to embarrass you and cause you to look stupid
Keep going on further with him
Then when we get to verse 5 we see someone who knows that God has taken them through these waters and they were safe
This verse doesn’t mention him bringing them through anymore because they have learnt to swim for themselves
d) Swimming depth – v5
“And again, he measured one thousand, and it was a river that I could not crossed; for the river was too deep, water in which one must swim, a river that could not be crossed” – v5
4000 cubic = 6,000 ft
That’s over a mile which 5, 280 ft
The ‘must’ indicates how there is now no choice
It’s sink or swim time
You have experienced God there for you over many situations and he’s never let you down
At the swimming depth, our feet cannot touch the ground
There are fast currents in the river that carry us along
When the wave hits you ride it out
You go with the flow
You ride the waves
God wants full control and navigation rights of our life
You may be swimming but the tide and currents determine your direction
The river is at its deepest and the current is fastest in the centre
We need to be in the centre of God’s will before we can experience the fullness of the river of God
Some people do not want to surrender fully to God’s will for their lives
They still fear that God will not provide for them
If you are like this, you will never experience the fullness of the Holy Spirit in your life
In turn we as a church will never experience the fullness of what God has for us
At the swimming depth, the river takes us wherever the river flows
The river current should carry us
We do not control the Holy Spirit
It is a picture of a Christian yielded to the Lord
Are you at ankle depth, knee depth , waist depth or are you swimming in the river of God ?
You can live above the ordinary level of life
The Spirit opens our eyes to a new way of living
Jesus is the opposite of everything we are
The devil gets restless when you get filled
He will stir up unrest in church
Your home life etc
Do not resist the HS
Resist the devil
When the HS is in control movement will be there
Before any outward evidence there is an inward flow of divine life
People don’t want a dry formal dead church
Pentecost came to set people free
They want reality
People filled with power to make a difference
We cannot show God in theory only
Our trouble is that we start with what we know and where we are instead of starting with God
Where are we involved with the work of the HS?
Or where are we involved unknowingly in grieving him?
How can we function more effectively in the new covenant?
Not of the letter but of the Spirit
The resurrection power must flow through us and out of us
People don’t expect to see signs and wonders today
Why?
Has God changed in his old age?
He never changes!
His power is still the same today has when he created everything
As when he parted the red sea
As when he fed them in the wilderness
As when he crumbled the walls of Jericho
And stopped the rains
And when fire came down on the altar
Etc etc....
It’s written in this book!
The message must go out
The truth needs to be proclaimed
We are wishy washy people with nothing to offer
We have nothing because we expect nothing and ask for nothing
May God forgive our complacency
Rom 4:17 God gives life to the dead and calls things to which don’t exist as though they do
You must shout in the face of the devil and unbelief ‘it is finished!’ ‘it is done!’
Acts 4:24 they raised their voice to God.....
If you are filled you will have abounding faith and rivers of water should be flowing
Dare to believe God?
Dare to take what’s rightfully yours?
Dare to stand on the word
No one can win any victory in themselves, but through Christ all things are possible
