Life can get really busy, can’t it? I think that with every passing year, the pace of life increases, and we have quickly found ourselves in a culture where being busy is normal.
A young doctor had just opened office and felt really excited. His secretary told him a man was here to see him. The young doctor told her to send him in.
Pretending to be a busy doctor, he picked up the phone just as the man came in. ‘Yes, that’s right. The fee is $200. Yes, I’ll expect you at ten past two. Alright. No later, I’m a very busy man.’
He hung up and turned to the man waiting. ‘May I help you?’
‘No’, said the man. ‘I just came in to install the phone.’
Being busy is good, it means we get more done, and for many that gives them a sense of achievement. But I think there are some difficulties with being busy. Sometimes you get so busy, that every now and then you find yourself needing to be in more place than one. It happens to me from time to time, and when I mention that it would be good if they could clone me, my wife quickly reassures me that one of me is more than enough trouble.
Have you ever stopped to think to yourself, why was Jesus only on earth for 33 years? Why was he only in the Middle East? Why didn’t he travel wider, to heal more people, to teach more people, to guide more people, and to help more people?
I mean, out of all the known world at the time, his area of outreach was pretty limited.
We need to sometimes put ourselves in his shoes. He, like us, was only one man. Yes, he was the Son of God, fully divine and fully human, but he was only one man. We ourselves may, in all the best intentions, want to help the world, but we are limited because of what one person can do.
Can you imagine yourself being one of Jesus’ disciples 2,000 years ago. You have spent three years with this man Jesus, the Son of God, the one who claims to be the prophesied saviour of the world. You have travelled with Jesus for three years, listened to his marvelous teachings, seen him heal people with all sorts of illnesses. I mean, you had seen him heal leprosy. You had seen him give sight to someone who was born blind. You had seen him raise Lazarus from the dead days after he died. You had seen him cast our demons, in one case it was more than 2,000 demons in one man. You had witnessed him feed 4,000 people and then 5,000 people with just a few fish and a few loaves of bread.
Can you imagine that today? I’m sure you would be thinking that finally, there is an end to illness and disease. Finally, there is an end to world famine and hunger. Finally, the troubles and problems of this world are about to end.
But then, Jesus says, ‘Very truly, I tell you, it is for your own good that I am going away.’
What? After all that, Jesus is saying that it is for our own good that he is going away?
But Jesus continued, ‘Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.’
I think that the word that we have here as Advocate is an unfortunate translation. The original Greek word that John used here is Parakl?tos, is more accurately translated as a lawyer, specifically a legal advocate who makes the right judgement call because they are close enough to the situation. The picture portrayed here is a lawyer giving evidence on our behalf in the court of law.
You see, Jesus was only one man. Yes, he was fully divine, but being in human flesh he could only be in one place at a time. The issues of every person in the world was too much – he was confined to Israel and the surrounding nations. If you feel the pressure of needing to be in more than one place at a time, imagine how Jesus must have felt. He couldn’t possibly help everyone, not in his human form.
And that is why it was for our own good that he went away. Because in Jesus ascending into heaven, he was then able to send the Advocate, and the Advocate is the Holy Spirit, who is able to be with every one of us, in every nation, and to dwell in us if we allow him to.
Now, when talking about the Trinity, we know a lot about God the Father. He appears all throughout the Old and New Testaments. He was there at creation. And he is there, in the last chapter of the book of Revelation.
And we know a lot about Jesus. He is the focus of the New Testament, particularly the Gospels. And it may surprise you that Jesus is all through the Old Testament as well.
But we seem to know only a little about the Holy Spirit. And when we think of the Holy Spirit, we tend also to think of the New Testament. But did you know that the Holy Spirit was also at creation? Genesis 1:1-2 reads:
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. – Genesis 1:1-2.
The Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. He is right there, in the second verse of the Bible. And if we consider that the Hebrew word for God here is Elohim, a plural, then we can also see Jesus right here in the first verse of the Bible.
The readings we have heard this morning all offer important clues as to the role of the Holy Spirit. In Isaiah 11:1-3, we read of the Spirit brings us wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, and knowledge.
Sounds good, doesn’t it?
What about John 16? We learn that the Spirit is the Spirit of truth that testifies about Jesus. The Spirit is our guide, and he guides us in truth. And he speaks to us! He tells us what is yet to come!
What about Acts 1:8:
‘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.’ – Acts 1:8.
We receive power from the Holy Spirit!
This is exciting. The Holy Spirit brings us wisdom. He brings us understanding. He brings us counsel. He brings us wisdom. He brings us knowledge. He brings us truth. He talks to us, he guides us, and we receive power and might from the Holy Spirit!
But only if we receive him.
And the Holy Spirit unifies. Let’s take a look at what happened at Babel in Genesis 11.
The event of Babel happened a few generations after the great flood. And if we recall God’s commandment to Noah and his family after the flood, they were told to be fruitful and multiply, to spread out and fill the earth (Gen 9:7).
But instead, here we find that they are unified. They had one language. And in their unity, they tried to build a tower to the heavens. And notice their motivation in 11:4 – they wanted to make a name for themselves, else they would have been scattered over the face of the whole earth.
But the Lord comes down and sees their city and their tower, and said, ‘If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.’ (11:6)
So the Lord scattered them, and confused their languages.
Now if we skip forward to Acts 2, we read how there were people from every nation under heaven. Every nation. So every one of the nations caused by the scattering at Babel were present here on the day of Pentecost. And when they were filled with the Holy Spirit, they began to speak in different tongues, and they each could hear their own language spoken.
So one of the things that God did at Pentecost was to reverse what he did at Babel. The people were unified, and their language barrier was broken. And instead of the people trying to make a name for themselves, God made a way for the people to make a name for God.
Now, there are a few key points you can take away this morning:
1. You are never alone.
You know, there are all sorts of people out there. Some people can’t stand being alone. They need to constantly be around people, and talking to people, and socialising with people. When they are alone, they feel really lonely and isolated.
But you know, I’m not one of those people. I’m a person who is quite happy with my own company. There are times when I crave being by myself, because for me I think it creates an opportunity to sort through all the stuff that goes on in my head. For me, it is a time to just process what is happening in my life.
And I just want to say that there is a big difference between isolation and solitude. Isolation is where you completely withdraw yourself, and when we completely withdraw ourselves, we actually create an opportunity for the enemy to come in and tempt us into sin.
Solitude is different. Solitude is when you just take that time out, to sit, to read God’s Word and meditate on its message, and allow the Holy Spirit to just minister to you.
If you are someone who always needs to be around people, then take comfort in the knowledge that you are never alone. When there is no-one around, then the Holy Spirit is still there with you. You are never alone. Just imagine it for a moment. All those times you are alone in the car, God is still with you. All those times you go to the beach by yourself, God is with you. God’s ever present presence is a great opportunity to us. We can take these opportunities to talk to God, and let him talk to you and to minister to you. There is a great advantage to solitude when you have the Holy Spirit of God with you.
2. You don’t have to do things in your own strength.
I am a bad one for trying to do things in my own strength. I know what my calling is in life, I know the gifts that the Spirit has given me for his glory, but I constantly try and do things in my own strength.
But you ask Annette, and she will tell you that often I try to just push my way through life in my own strength. And that’s not good. We were never meant to do things in our own strength, but in God’s strength. One part of Acts 2 that I absolutely love, is verses 46-47. After the people at Pentecost received the power of the Holy Spirit, the spiritual and physical changes are well written. Luke wrote:
They devoted themselves to the apostle’s teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of the bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone in need. Everyday they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. – Acts 2:42-47a.
And look at what happened next:
And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. – Acts 2:47b.
The power comes from the Holy Spirit! Their unity came from the Holy Spirit. All of a sudden, they had much in common. All of a sudden, they enjoyed each other’s company. All of a sudden, they loved one another.
And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Each person was using their gifts. Each person was contributing. Each person was serving the Lord and each other. And it was all in God’s strength.
The key to a church growing, and leading people to salvation in Christ and eternal life, and making an impact for the kingdom of God, is the power of the Holy Spirit. This is the message of the book of Acts. The Holy Spirit was with the apostles every step of the way, taking the message of the gospel to where it needed to go.
Can you imagine if our churches all had the great power of the Holy Spirit propelling them forward and blessing them as they go. Can you imagine every pew in this church being filled with people every Sunday morning. Can you imagine how much better our community would be?
This is all possible by the power of the Holy Spirit.
3. You can receive the power of the Holy Spirit.
You can receive the power of the Holy Spirit. Like receiving the gift of salvation, it just takes a honest prayer of the heart to receive the gift of the Spirit.
God wants us to prosper. God’s plans for us are hope and a future. And one of the greatest gifts he has given us is that Holy Spirit. By receiving the Holy Spirit, you can be taught, guided, and counselled. We can receive his wisdom, his knowledge. Al you have to do is invite him into your life.
And I would love to pray that prayer with you right now. So let us all close our eyes and bow our heads.
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, at this moment I come to You. I thank You that Jesus saved me. I pray that the Holy Spirit might come upon me. Lord Jesus, fill me now with the Holy Spirit. I receive the Holy Spirit right now by faith in Your Word. May the anointing, the glory, and the power of God come upon me and into my life right now. May I be empowered for your service from this day forward. Thank You, Lord Jesus, for filling me with Your Holy Spirit.
Amen.
