Tag: holy-spirit

Time for a fresh infilling with the Holy Spirit? Acts 2:38.

~ Robert Spiller ~ 3 Comments

Pause for thought

After His baptism in the Jordan river by His cousin John, the Spirit descended upon Jesus in the form of a dove, then God the Father spoke from heaven saying, “this is my beloved Son, and I Am fully pleased with Him”. Jesus said in John 5:19 that He only did what He saw His Father doing! Jesus always worked in cooperation with His Father and the Holy Spirit. Jesus ministry on Earth was a partnership with the other members of the Holy Trinity. After His baptism he was led forth by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After which, Jesus went forth in the power of the Spirit.

If this was so with Jesus how much more important for you and me? I believe the Bible teaches that God has a plan and purpose for every Christian and therefore every local congregation. This depends on our relationship with the Holy Spirit, it started when we confessed our sins and believed in Jesus as our saviour, at that point the Holy Spirit came and made His home in us, it is because of His indwelling that we became “new creatures in Christ” and it is the Holy Spirit who baptised “incorporated” us into the body of Christ 1 Corinthians 12:13.

The Holy Spirit has always been around, in the Old Testament the Spirit descended on individuals equipping and filling them but not remaining on them continuously. Jesus has promised us that the Spirit would come to stay dwelling with us forever. On the day of Pentecost, Peter reminded the crowds of Gods promise through Joel the prophet, God had promised to pour out My Spirit on all flesh. Pentecost at Jerusalem was the beginning, I love Peter’s statement “This promise is to you and your children, even the Gentiles, all who have been called by the Lord our God” Acts 2:39.

Every Christian needs their own Pentecost, we all need to experience the Baptism with the Holy Spirit and with fire, and to “ go on being filled” Many have sung this today. O God of burning cleansing flame send the fire, look down and see this waiting host and send the promised Holy Ghost, we need another Pentecost, send the fire today! May our hearts truly reflect what our mouths recite.

Some verses to remember

The name of Jesus has healed this man- and you know how lame he was before, Faith in Jesus name has caused this healing before your very eyes Acts 3:16.

After this prayer, the building where they we’re meeting shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they preached God’s message with boldness Acts 4:31
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The power of the Lord was upon them, and large numbers of the Gentiles believed and turned to the Lord Acts 11:21

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Holy Spirit Boldness. From Iconium To Lystra And Derby. Acts 14:1-20.

~ Robert Spiller ~ Leave a comment

Pause for thought

Wherever Paul and Barnabas went they caused a stir. Their Gospel was either loved and accepted or hated and rejected. The true gospel will always cause division. In Lystra because of the miracles they were even mistaken for gods, and then at the instigation of some jealous Jews Paul was stoned and dragged outside the town and left for dead. When Paul and Barnabas visited a place the Holy Spirit working through them always stirred things up. In fact whenever God is at work in the lives of his disciples today it is always by the Holy Spirit. The opposition to Paul and Barnabas seemed no doubt quite reasonable to those who opposed them. However the Jews from Antioch and Iconium were not only resisting Paul’s testimony, it was God the Holy Spirit they were resisting. As in Paul’s day the devil will always try to make opposing the work of the Spirit seem reasonable. It seems that when the Holy Spirit is working the flesh displays itself as it did when some in Lystra tried to make gods of Barnabas and Paul. The Jews from Antioch probably felt they were proved right by this spectacle. When the Holy Spirit is at work there are often fleshly excesses, but we must not throw out the baby with the bath water or call Spirit flesh or flesh Spirit 14: 19-20

I think sometimes one of the reasons that we have limited success in our churches is because we play it too safe, I wonder if some of the early church leaders considered Paul well balanced? I’m certain he was, but perhaps what they considered balanced “being full of the Holy Spirit” some would struggle with in 2024.

A verse to think about

This man heard Paul speaking. Paul, observing him intently and seeing he had faith to be healed, said with a loud voice, “Stand up strait on your feet” And he leaped and walked. Acts 14:9-10, N.K.J.V.

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Peter defends God’s Grace. Acts 11:1-23.

~ Robert Spiller ~ Leave a comment

Pause for thought

This incidence is of such importance that it must never be overlooked, which is why the Holy Spirit led Luke to record it twice first in Acts 10 and again in Acts 11 about what happened when Peter preached at Caesarea. Jesus Himself showed his message was for all people as recorded by the Holy Spirit in -John 4:1-42 for Samaritans, Mark 5:1-20 for Greeks, Luke 7::1-10 for Romans.

Peter’s defence was not an argument ; it was a statement of facts. The Holy Spirit had been poured upon these Gentiles in the same way as had been given to the Jewish Christians at Pentecost. What Peter related could be attested to by the six brothers who traveled with him and who witnessed the Gentiles being filled with the Holy Spirit. This was God’s doing therefore there could be no argument 11:17.

Before Acts 10:44-46 the gospel was preached to Jews only, afterwards it was deliberately preached to Gentiles. Peter teaches us that we must work with God not against Him 11:17. I well remember Dick Bells words to me in the mid seventies “find out what God is doing and get in on it!” Here are three thoughts that come to me, 1 good ideas are not always from God, 2 Talent is not the same as Holy Spirit anointing, 3 Wait on the Lord for His timing. Remember Jesus only did what He saw His Father doing John 5:19.

The Holy Spirit led Peter to preach in places where if he had held on to his prejudices he would never of gone!

A verse to remember

And since God gave these Gentiles the same gift He gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to argue? Acts 11:17 N.L.B.

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The Heart Of The Gospel Acts 10:34-48.

~ Robert Spiller ~ Leave a comment

Pause for thought

God made it clear to Peter and through Peter to us that the Gospel, the good news about Jesus Christ is for everyone! There is no barrier outside of ourselves that can stop us hearing or telling others about Jesus 10:34-35.

Peter preaches the gospel as recorded in verses 34-43 it is a concise statement of all that Jesus did starting at His baptism and anointing with the Holy Spirit. He showed His Father was a good God who loves people by healing many and delivering them from the devil’s oppression. He was taken and crucified showing what man’s sin can do. He rose again to life, showing that Gods power can not be defeated. Peter witnessed to the truth of what he was telling to those assembled, he was a witness to the truth of all these events. The result of all this is the redemption of everyone who believe and forgiveness of sins through the name of Jesus.

I love it ! The Spirit fell upon all who heard Peters message, this description of the Holy Spirits interaction with these new believers is so similar to the parable Jesus told and how the Father of the prodigal showed his heart of love to his returning son by falling upon his son in love 10: 44 ,Luke 15:20.

Just as the Jewish believers had received the gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, now the Jewish believers who had accompanied Peter to Caesarea witnessed the Holy Spirit falling upon these gentile believers in an identical way, for they. heard them speak with tongues and magnify God in the same way as they had. The filling of the Holy Spirit is the same for these gentile Christians here in Caesarea, as it had been in in Jerusalem for the Jewish Christian’s 10: 44-48

Please note believers baptism immediately followed conversion as was always the case in Acts, a very good example that we should strive to follow. Peter was asked to stay for a few days no doubt he did some teaching but this was not to prepare these converts for baptism, that first step in discipleship was behind them!

A verse to remember

He is the one all the prophets testified about, saying that everyone who believes in him will have their sins forgiven through his name. Acts 10:43 N.L.B.

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Peter is given an object lesson, What Jesus did on the Cross was for the whole Gentile world, as well as the Jewish world. Acts 10:1-23.

~ Robert Spiller ~ Leave a comment

Pause for thought

Despite his devotion and his prayers to the one true God, and his charitable giving to the poor, Cornelius was an unsaved man who needed to hear the gospel. He believed in God but this did not make him a Christian! Sadly there are many today who attend church and believe in God who deceive themselves and others because association with Christian’s doesn’t make you one. Happily for Cornelius his prayers and actions were noticed by the Lord, who prepared Peter so that Cornelius and his household could hear and respond to the Gospel 10:1-2.

Peter while praying falls into a trance, it was while Peter was in this state of mind that God spoke to him through a vision of ritually unclean animals, and a voice from heaven insisting he should kill and eat. This was against his Jewish convictions and must of been extremely hard for Peter to understand 10:14

The Holy Spirit breaks into Peters musings and tells Peter not to doubt but go with Cornelius’s servants, “because I have sent them” Sometimes we can spend too much time before obeying God. With a few notable exceptions, most of those called by God to specific tasks responded quickly 10:19.

God answers the sincere prayers of those who seek Him, often by sending the right person and answer at the right time 10:4

We must always be open to letting the Holy Spirit change our long held wrong views !

A verse to remember

The voice spoke again, “ If God says something is acceptable, don’t say it isn’t “ Acts 10:15 N.L.T.

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