Stronghold Beliefs Part 5
Scriptures: I John 4:1-3; 2 Peter 1:19-21; John 14:15-18, 26-27
During a prayer line the minister lays hands on a person and the person faints into the arms of the deacons/ushers standing behind them. This is referred to as being “slain in the Spirit.” People get emotional during a Church service and stands and starts dancing and shouting. This is referred to as being “full of the Spirit.” A person is preaching or singing and starts “speaking in tongues.” This is described as being under the “anointing of the Spirit.” A person prays in tongues. This is called “praying in the Spirit.” A person stands up during a worship service and speaks in tongues and then another person interprets what was spoken. This is known as “prophesying in the Spirit.” There are Churches (and ministers) who hold classes to teach people “how” to speak in tongues. I am not talking about a class to teach “about” speaking in tongues; I am talking a class to learn how to do it. People stand in line at the altar during Church services to receive “help” in receiving the Holy Spirit with the evidence of “speaking in tongues.” If you speak in tongues you have the Spirit, if you don’t “shame on you” as you have not received Him. And, if you don’t receive the Holy Spirit “with” the evidence of speaking in tongues, you are not really “born again.”
Most of us have seen some of these examples in Church services and all of us have seen these exaggerated in movies. If you have seen any of Tyler Perry’s Madea movies, you have seen over and over how his movies mock, ridicule and diminishes the true work of the Holy Spirit. And one of the saddest things for me is to hear Christians laughing when it is done. Don’t we understand he’s doing this to the third person of the Trinity? It’s amazing how people will walk into a Church where there is loud singing and people are jumping around and shouting and everyone claims the Spirit is there. However if they walk into a Church where the Word is being taught in truth and they are singing hymns, then that Church is said to be dead and the Spirit is not there. People want signs of the Spirit and when they do not “see it” they “create it” and this is very dangerous. The Spirit will always be witnessed to the truth of God’s word because He is truth!
So what is the truth? What is the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives today? How do you “receive” the Holy Spirit and if you never speak in tongues does that mean you are a lesser Christian than someone who does? This is the fifth message in my series about Stronghold Beliefs. Our focus this morning is on the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, and the role Jesus says He is to play in our lives. Let me rephrase that: Jesus tells us the role the Holy Spirit should play in our lives. In this message I will clarify some of the misrepresentations of the work of the Holy Spirit and address the question is salvation based on “speaking in tongues” as some people teach.
As I go into this message, I want you to keep this Scripture in the forefront of your mind. 1 John 4:1-3 says, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.” Remember what I said last week about what some religions and individuals are saying about Jesus? These verses do not mean that just because someone “confesses” that Jesus is the Son of God and came from Him that they are genuine. Those confessions are not mere words, but are made with a heartfelt reverence, conviction and ultimately their submission to God. So we need to examine (test) the life and works of the individual in order to “try the spirit” and we do this by comparing what is being said (and lived) to what has been written in the Bible. There are many people claiming to be filled with the Holy Spirit whose lifestyle speaks something different and we need to be aware lest we believe what is coming from their mouths. So we need to begin trying the spirits to ensure what we’re seeing displayed is the true Spirit.
As I was thinking about the message, I want to take another look at the teachings of the New Age Movement and Islam which I referenced in last week’s message. What do these two groups believe about the Holy Spirit? As I mentioned last week, Oprah and the New Age Movement believe that all paths – all religions – lead to God; that man is divine; that the mind creates reality; and that a person’s individual experiences validate truth. New Age followers are tolerant of almost any world religion and philosophy, but it opposes the “narrow-mindedness” of Christianity because it teaches Jesus is the only way to eternal salvation. Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 7:13 “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it.” That “narrow gate” is Him! He knew what we would be facing and prepared us for it. Now when it comes to the Holy Spirit, the New Age movement doesn’t even recognize His existence. I couldn’t find any mention of Him in the things I read. So, the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, and the third person of the Godhead is not real. Not only is He not God, but He is not real!
As it relates to Islam, they believe the same thing. I shared with you that Muhammad believed he was restoring the one true religion because it had been corrupted by the Jews and Christianity. He taught that the Godhead, the Trinity, was a myth and that there is no God the Father, no God the Son, and no God the Holy Spirit. They avoid the act of ascribing partners to God – whether they be sons, daughters, or other partners – is seen as a form of unbelief in Islam. The Qur’an repeatedly and firmly asserts God’s absolute oneness. For a Muslim, it is impossible for another being to share his sovereignty or nature. So, just like the New Age Movement, Islam believes the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, and the third person of the Godhead is not God.
One of the points I will return to over and over again in this series is this: everything that you will hear is based on what the Bible says. The Bible is the foundation, the standard, for what this church believes and on what this church was founded. Psalm 119:89 says “Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven.” Psalm 138:1-2 says “…..I will give You thanks with all my heart; I will sing praises to You before the gods. I will bow down toward Your holy temple and give thanks to Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your truth; for You have magnified Your word according to all Your name.” The King James Bible renders the last part of verse 2 as “for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.” I also like the way the Amplified Bible says this: “for You have exalted above all else Your name and Your word and You have magnified Your word above all Your name!” Now, if God honors, esteems, magnifies, and places in the highest position His Word and if we say we are followers of Christ and if we are going to be about the Father’s business, then we must see the Bible the exact way our Father sees the Bible. There can be no difference. (We will deal with the authority of the Bible and what Christian’s should believe about it in part 6 of this series next week.)
With this background, let’s look first at what the epistles say about the Holy Spirit. But by far, most of our time will be spent looking at what Jesus has to say about Him. Turn with me to 2 Peter 1:19-21. It reads, “So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” Peter tells us that the Bible’s that we hold in our hands did not come from the minds of men. Peter says men wrote what the Holy Spirit told them to write. The Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, is solely responsible for what’s written in the Bible. No one else. Remember the old movies where the President of the company would call his secretary in and say “I want you to take a memo for so and so.” That’s the image I have of men like Peter and the Apostle Paul. They sat and waited for the Holy Spirit and then wrote what He said. Now turn to 2 Timothy 3:16-17. It says “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” I want you to remember what the Bible is profitable for because we’re going to see these again – teaching, reproof and correction. The word “correction” is also the word “conviction.” I want you to remember that. Second Peter and Second Timothy tell us the Holy Spirit is the voice the writers heard when they sat down and put ink to paper.
Now with these two passages in mind, we’re going to look at who Jesus says the Holy Spirit is and what Jesus says is to be His role in our lives today. In John 14, Jesus is taking the Last Supper with His disciples and He’s talking with them about what He will suffer and how it will impact them. (Let me make a suggestion. This Last Supper was Jesus’ last time of extended teaching to the disciples and it covers five chapters: John 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17. I believe it’s more than worth our time to spend some time reading these chapters together all at once – more than once. Don’t you?) What Jesus says in John 14 is also a message to the Church today. We’re going to read verses 15 through 18 first and then jump to verse 26. “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” (John 14:15-18) Here is what Jesus said about the Holy Spirit:
• The Holy Spirit is “another Helper.” In the Greek the word “helper” means “interpreter,” “comforter,” or “advocate.” The Helper is the person Jesus says we are to call to our side to help us in battle or to plead our cause in a court of law. In other words, Jesus is saying “Remember all of the things I did for you while I was with you? The Holy Spirit is now the One who will do it when I am gone.” Are you battling things in your life right now? The Holy Spirit is your Helper. Battling health issues? The Holy Spirit is your Helper. Having financial issues? The Holy Spirit is your Helper. Have a lack of peace? The Holy Spirit is your Helper. Stress on the job? The Holy Spirit is your Helper. Tension in your marriage? The Holy Spirit is your Helper. Jesus says the Holy Spirit is our Helper and He is the one who can help us get through whatever we are facing! Jesus says the “Helper will be with us forever.” Once we have the Holy Spirit, He will never leave us! As Jesus was with the disciples, the Helper is with us!
• The Holy Spirit is “the Spirit of truth.” This is who He is. Truth. Remember Jesus described Himself as the way, the truth, and the life? This helps us understand why Jesus says the Holy Spirit is another Helper. He only teaches truth and He helps us see teachings that are not true.
• The Holy Spirit “abides with you and will be in you.” When we have the Holy Spirit, everywhere we go, He goes. When we have the Holy Spirit, every battle we face, He faces. And I don’t have to tell you that He has never, ever lost a battle! Can I get an Amen? The Holy Spirit is with us in the bad times and He’s with us in the good times. And we know that He only speaks truth so that is what He will speak to us as we go through the bad times and the good time.
• Jesus tells the disciples, and us, that “I will not leave you as orphans.” The word “orphans” comes from the same Greek word as “Helper.” Now follow me here. Jesus says that when the Holy Spirit comes, when the Helper comes, He will not leave us “helpless.” That’s a promise from Jesus! Jesus says that whatever situation we may find ourselves in, even if it’s our own doing, He promises that we will not be without our Helper to help us. The Helper who is with us and in us will not stand around and watch us struggle. No. He is going to help us! Praise God!
Now let’s go to verse 26. Jesus tells us a little more about the Holy Spirit, a little more about our Helper. “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” (John 14:26) Jesus says the Holy Spirit will “teach you all things.” Does this mean we don’t have to read our Bibles because whatever we need to know the Holy Spirit is going to teach us? That is not what Jesus is saying. Well, how do you know that Pastor? Let’s read the last part of the verse again – “and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” Jesus says the Holy Spirit will remind you, and remind us, of what He had taught. The Holy Spirit is not going to teach anything that Jesus has not already taught. Jesus’ teachings are the foundation for everything we read in the New Testament. You have to read your Bible if you want to know what Jesus taught because what the Holy Spirit teaches will build on, explain and give a deeper understanding of that foundation. But He can only do that when we have the foundation! And we get the foundation when we read the Bible. We have to give Him something to work with! If you don’t read your Bible the Holy Spirit has nothing to work with or remind you of!!! Our Helper can’t give us a deeper understanding of something if we don’t know anything about it. Now I want you to see verse 27. When Jesus talks about the work of the Holy Spirit, He relates what He will do in our lives to something He knew we would need – peace. “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.” (John 14:27) Why does Jesus tell us not to be troubled or fearful? It’s because the Holy Spirit, our Helper, is with us and in us and that we will never be helpless! When we truly understand this, our lives will change. We won’t worry about anything. And when that happens, our health will improve as will our mental outlook on things.
Jesus also talks about the Holy Spirit in John 15:26-27. “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me, and you will testify also, because you have been with Me from the beginning.” What would be the disciples’ testimony about Jesus? We see one of the disciples’ testimonies in Acts 4. Peter and John are being confronted by the religious leaders because they taught Jesus had risen from the dead. We’re going to read their response in verses 19 and 20. “But Peter and John answered and said to them, ‘Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4:19-20) New Light, this should be our testimony! When the Bible speaks on a subject that is what we speak.
In John 16:7-15 Jesus shares a little more about the Holy Spirit. It reads, “But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you.” Jesus said the Holy Spirit will bring conviction in three areas. He will convict the world of sin because it did not believe in Jesus. He will convict the world of righteousness because it doesn’t’ believe Jesus rose from the dead and is now seated with the Father in Heaven. And, the Holy Spirit will convict the world of judgment because its ruler, Satan, has been judged.
Now why is this important? Remember we read earlier that the Holy Spirit will lead and guide us into all truth; will only speak what He hears from Jesus; and will show us things to come? And remember that He inspired the doctrine, reproof and correction (conviction) that we see in the Bible? When Christians reject what they read in the Bible, they are rejecting the work of the Holy Spirit, which means they are rejecting the third person of the Trinity, the third person of the Godhead. Turn to Matthew 12. Keep all of this in mind as we read verses 30 through 32. “He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters. Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.” (Matthew 12:30-32) There is a lot of confusion in the Church about what it means to blaspheme against the Holy Spirit. The word “blaspheme” means “to speak evil of or slander a person’s good name.” How do Christians blaspheme the Holy Spirit? In the context of this passage, the meaning is clear. We read earlier that the Holy Spirit is to be our guide into learning more of the truths that Jesus taught. We learned that He will only speak what He hears from Jesus. And we learned that He will help us as we face future situations. But we also learned that He brings conviction in three areas: sin, righteousness and judgment. Do you think the Holy Spirit ignores what God’s children are doing? The word “convict” means “to shame, disgrace, reprove, or prove one is in the wrong.” It’s also a courtroom term describing the finely detailed cross examination of a witness to determine the strength or weakness of the person’s argument. When the Holy Spirit brings guidance, when the Holy Spirit brings to mind the words that Jesus spoke, when the Holy Spirit convicts and reproves Christians and they refuse to accept it, when they say “Holy Spirit, I don’t agree with you, I believe you are wrong – I’m going to hold on to My truth,” then they are committing blasphemy. When they do this, they are calling the Holy Spirit a liar. They are telling the Holy Spirit they don’t trust Him. In other words, they are speaking evil of Him and slandering His good name. Likewise, when people are doing things and claiming they are doing it or saying something by the Spirit and they are not, they are blaspheming His name by lying. This is not something that we should make light of. Remember what Jesus said about those who blaspheme against the Holy Spirit? “It shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or the age to come.” The words “not” and “either” are the same Greek word, and it’s not a good one. It means nothing can be done to change the outcome. Let me be plain: Christians who disagree with the Holy Spirit, argue with the Spirit, and ignore what He says without repenting, he will spend an eternity in the lake of fire. They will miss Heaven. I pray that you see this.
Let’s look at one more passage about the Holy Spirit. In Luke 24:49 Jesus says “And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” That promise was the Holy Spirit, our Helper. When we receive the Holy Spirit, He brings with Him power. Remember when Jesus was baptized and the Holy Spirit came upon Him? Acts 10:38 says God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power and Jesus went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. New Light, when we receive the Holy Spirit, we too receive power to do the works that Jesus did! We have the ability to produce miracle working power in the lives of people! When we receive the Holy Spirit, we have the ability to always do good! When we receive the Holy Spirit, we have the power to deliver those who are being oppressed by the devil! Oh, somebody needs to give the Lord some praise up in here!
I want to make one point clear about “receiving” the Holy Spirit. This is separate from when we all got saved. When we got saved the Holy Spirit immediately began to help us because we were now children of God. But that help came from the outside. You see, the Spirit of God can help us externally or the Spirit of God can dwell within us and help us internally, and there is a difference. When the Holy Spirit is helping us internally it is because we have invited Him in and we are yielding to Him. Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit but the disciples had to “receive” Him. Receiving the Holy Spirit comes after we are saved and after we invite Him in. Please understand, the Holy Spirits helps all of us, but to fully walk in His power, we must invite Him in. John 20:22 reads, “And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” Also remember in Acts when the disciples were filled in the upper room they received power. Previously they had been afraid but after receiving the Holy Spirit they were empowered. When Paul was ministering in Ephesus (Acts 19:2-6) he asks some believers if they had received the Holy Spirit when they “believed.” This indicates that this is a separate experience that happens after we are saved. My point is, the Holy Spirit helps all the Children of God, but if we want to be empowered to do more, we must invite Him in.
So where do we start? It starts with a simple request – just ask the Holy Spirit to infill you and then accept Him. Remember, this is about yielding to His power and authority in your life. He is already working with you, walking alongside of you and helping you externally. However, wouldn’t it be great to invite Him in to fill you? Wouldn’t it be great to know and be able to recognize the work of the Holy Spirit? We cannot try a spirit without having the Spirit operating within us because the Spirit will always recognize a counterfeit. He will always recognize truth. I want to leave you with this mental picture. Imagine I am walking down the street with you going towards your home and we are talking and sharing stories and having a good time. Imagine us walking up the stairs to your front door and you open the door to enter. Now imagine you stepping through the door and leaving me on the porch outside to wait patiently on the porch for you to come back out and we can begin fellowshipping again. That is what most Christians are doing. Jesus has held up His promised and sent the Holy Spirit. He is ever present with us. But it is totally up to us to invite Him in and allow Him to fill us. Just as we had to invite Jesus into our hearts, we have to invite the Holy Spirit in. There is so much more He wants to do through us from the inside versus just helping us from the outside. All you need to do is sincerely say, “Dear Lord Jesus, I thank you for filling me with the Holy Spirit, for filling me with my Helper, and for filling me with Your power from on high. And Jesus, I thank you that I receive all the spiritual gifts that I need to follow your example. My life will be a witness for you Jesus, both in word and in deed. I pray this in your name. Amen.” That’s all it takes. And when that’s done we can fulfill what is written in Galatians 5:22-25, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.” Remember what I said about trying the spirit? If anyone claims to be empowered by the Spirit of God and they have no love and are selfish; no joy but are angry all the time; no peace and constantly troubled; no patience, kindness or goodness; not faithful, gentle or self-controlled, then you need to question what they are trying to sell you about their holiness and fullness of the Spirit. We will continue next week.
Until next time, “The Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord lift up His countenance on you and give you peace.” (Numbers 6:24-26)
(If you are ever in the Kansas City, KS area, please come and worship with us at New Light Christian Fellowship, 15 N. 14th Street, Kansas City, KS 66102. Our service Sunday worship starts at 9 a.m. and Thursday night Bible study at 7 p.m. Also, for use of our social media, you can find us at newlightchristianfellowship on FB. To get our live stream services, please make sure you “like” and turn on notifications for our page so you can be notified when we are live streaming. We also have a church website and New Light Christian Fellowship YouTube channel for more of our content. We are developing more social media streams so please stand by and we will notify you once those channels are up and running. We look forward to you worshipping with us. May God bless and keep you.)
