The Day That Changed Everything part 2

00:01 I want to greet you this morning in the name of Jesus and invite you to turn in your copies of the Scriptures to the book of Acts. Continuing our message from two weeks ago on the baptism of the Holy Spirit as recorded in the book of Acts Chapter 2. 00:18 And in preparation for this second part of this message, I ran across a survey. Of course, I love surveys. I love to kind of be a sociologist of sorts studying society and human behavior and cultures and those types of things. 00:39 But I enjoy surveys. And there was a survey that was done in 2022, which is just about three years ago. And it was a follow-up survey to one that had been done in 2014. So within eight years, there were some changes. 00:56 One of the changes that took place in America was that people moved away from Orthodox understandings of God and His Word year by year. 01:08 One of the survey questions was, "Do you believe that the Scripture is literally true?" And 53% said of Americans said they do not believe that the Scriptures are literally true, or 53% now believe it is not literally true, 01:27 up from 41% when the biannual survey began in 2014. So in just eight years, it went from up 8% of those who do not believe the Bible is literally true. And then there's some other surveys, some other parts of the survey that pertain to evangelical Christians. 01:45 And those would be people like us who believe in the Word of God, the Bible being the Word of God. I won't give to you all the details. 01:52 But the one that pertains to our message this morning is the fourth detail here that 60% of the evangelical surveyed believe that the Holy Spirit is a force and not a personal being. That's six out of ten Christians, 02:12 professing Christians, folks, six out of ten. Well, we know that from studying Scripture that the Holy Spirit is a person and He wants to indwell within us. And something changed. 02:25 We called this title of this message two weeks ago, "The Day That Changed Everything." And something changed on the day of Pentecost as they were celebrating the giving of the law and as they were celebrating the first fruits of the wheat harvest. And something changed. 02:46 And that change was that the Holy Spirit was given. And it was the fulfillment of what Acts Chapter 1, verse 5 says, "For John truly baptized with water." This is Jesus Himself saying, repeating what John the Baptist said in the Gospels, that "John truly baptized with water. 03:04 But you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." And of course, they were told to go into Jerusalem and abide in the upper room until that great event took place. And studying this passage of Scripture, I ran across some Greek scholars who say that Acts Chapter 1, 03:24 verse 5, the Greek tense here means a one particular time, that this would be a one-time event in the church that was kind of duplicated a couple of times or added, got some added traction or dimension. 03:44 After this, it happened to the Samaritans and it happens to Cornelius' house, the Gentiles. And then it happened in Samaria of those who said they had only heard, they hadn't even heard about the Holy Spirit and had only been baptized in the baptism of John. 04:03 But verse 5 there of Chapter 1 is the passive voice and not told to look for this or ask for it or beg for it or plead for it. He just said, "It will be given." The Holy Spirit was given as a sovereign act of God upon the church and specifically focused upon those who were in that upper room. 04:26 And one of the things I want you to see in that upper room is they didn't stay in the upper room. Now, it's not specifically stated in the text where it actually says, "And they went out from that room and preached in the streets." But it had to be that way because to reach 3,000 people in that one message, they had to be out in the marketplace. 04:46 They had to be out on the streets. They were not confined to the upper room. And what happens is when the Holy Spirit comes upon a group of people in power and in filling, that we are sent out. We are sent out to do evangelism. We are sent out to represent Christ in the marketplace. 05:06 We are sent out to represent Christ in the workplace. We are sent out to represent Christ wherever God calls us to go. They moved to the population centers, which at that time was the streets of Jerusalem. 05:21 There were people there celebrating the day of Pentecost, the feast of Pentecost from all over the world because that was one of the mandatory feasts that men would be required to attend in the Jewish faith. And so this is a picture for us. We come together to worship and we depart to serve. 05:42 Been in a lot of churches through the years of ministry. And I always am intrigued. So often I'll go into a church that says on the outside of the sanctuary, it says, "Enter to worship." And then on the back of the exit, when they leave the church, it says, "Depart to serve." So you enter to worship, 06:03 you exit to serve. And shall we say evangelize? We have been in some times in history such as the great revivals. People came together into the church and were evangelized. But we're not in that day anymore. We are called to go out into the streets, 06:22 out in the highways and byways and tell the people about Jesus Christ. We are to evangelize out there and to worship in here. Now, when we rent souls out there, then we bring them in here for discipleship. And not that they're not welcome to come and hear the Word of God. 06:44 But church is primarily about the believers in Christ being energized, functioning as the body of Christ, being coming together for corporate worship and communion and fellowship, and then taking that Word to the streets and to the culture out around us. And that's exactly what happened on the day of Pentecost. 07:04 Now, there are some people that think, "Well, if we don't have evangelistic meetings, then how will people be saved?" Well, we do have evangelistic meetings. We have revival services for those that are growing up in the church who need opportunity for the soul stirring of the saints. And so we do do evangelism in the church. 07:25 But that's not what we expect. We don't expect the lost to come worship because the lost can't worship. The only thing they can do in worship is to bow their knee in repentance and humble themselves before the demands of God, which is that they need a Savior and to recognize that need. 07:45 And so one of the things that we as a leadership team are talking about is how do we impact our community? Now, there are different ways of impacting the community. One way is to have church-sponsored events that go out and try to reach the community. 08:01 Another way to impact our community is to have individual Christians who go out into their workplace and out into the highways and out into the byways and get involved in different ministries and different outreaches personally. And that also is an extension of the work of the church of evangelism and mission. 08:20 And so when someone goes out into the workplace and they pray with someone or they represent Christ or they give a word of testimony or they, like Brother Leon said this morning, a variety of ways that that happens, that's evangelism. That's evangelism. 08:38 In fact, I think we also need to be aware that in our community, it is possible, almost possible to do all of our interaction with Anabaptists and with Christians. But I think sometimes we need to just go out of our way to do business with the unbeliever. And in that way, 09:00 testify and build relationships with unbelievers whom can be impacted by our faith and by the Word of God in testimony and in prayer and in lifestyle, holy living and so on. And so we have here in Chapter 2, we have the Holy Spirit descending. 09:20 Now, whereas I said just a moment ago, I want to reemphasize this, that Chapter 1, verse 5, speaking of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, was a one-time event that changed the world, that changed things forever. But then there are many, many, many fillings. 09:40 And so when I talk about being filled with the Spirit today, we want to think not so much about the being baptized in the Spirit, which happens, I believe. Now, we don't want to get shook up over terminology and semantics. 09:54 But I believe that the actual baptism of the Holy Spirit takes place in the heart of every true believer when they are converted. In fact, First Corinthians 12, verse 13 says, "By one Spirit, you were all baptized into one body, Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, 10:14 and were all made to drink of one Spirit." The Greek terminology there, the Greek tense again, has the idea of something that is a historical fact. When you come to Christ, you have the Holy Spirit. You may not be aware of it. You may not understand it. 10:33 You may not be walking in it. You may not be completely under His influence. But you have the Spirit of God or you don't belong to Him. Now, this is quite troubling to some people because I remember as a young person growing up into my faith in the '70s, mid-'70s, late '70s, 10:52 early '80s, and meeting people who were rather intense about, "Do you have the Holy Spirit?" And that shook me. Well, do I? Do I really? And I'll be honest with you, I wasn't sure if I did or not. But I'm sure there's something out there I'm missing. 11:14 And you know what? I was right on both counts. I did have the Holy Spirit. And there was something I was missing. And that is to learn how to walk in the Spirit. And the unfolding of the filling of the Spirit as recorded in Ephesians Chapter 5, where it says, "Be not drunk with wine, but be filled with the Spirit." The Greek tense again of that is an ongoing, 11:35 continuous filling, a repeated action. In other words, it literally means be being filled with the Spirit. And so why do we need to be filled with the Spirit repeatedly? It's because we leak. We leak. We don't retain very well. Not that the Holy Spirit is vacating us, 11:56 but we don't walk very well sometimes. We don't listen very well. We don't hear very well. We don't keep in step with the Spirit. The Bible says in the book of Galatians, "If you live in the Spirit, let us walk in the Spirit." So we live in the Spirit as Christians. But then we need to learn how to walk in the Spirit, 12:15 under the control of the Holy Spirit, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, under the surrender to the Holy Spirit as we don't get more of Him, but as He is offered more of us so that He can fill various areas of our lives that need to be filled and need to be brought under His control. And so I assure you today, 12:37 if you have been converted in the name of Jesus Christ and trusting Him for your salvation, you have the Holy Spirit. But there is also a degree that we have not yet attained all that we can have in Jesus Christ. Now, you can say amen or you don't have to. But that's the way I understand the Scripture. 12:57 Having said what I've said about the Holy Spirit, there is more, far more than what we probably any of us have ever experienced. Even the ones who have the most extreme experiences with God, there are more depths. There are more heights. There are deeper understandings. 13:18 And God has a desire to connect with us in a very passionate way and a real way and a holy way. Let me remind you that we're talking about the Holy Spirit. And what does the Holy Spirit generate? He generates holiness. 13:37 So the Holy Spirit is not a license to give us liberty to live a life of sin. He is a resource. He is a power to produce holiness within. And that comes out in our lifestyle. 13:57 He is the one who takes the riches of Christ and applies them to our hearts so that out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth can speak. Out of the change that happens in a life, the tongue can be controlled. And I don't mean to be cute by this. But I remember hearing J. 14:16 Sidlo Baxter in a tape series years ago, tape series, yeah, it was years ago, when he said many people get excited and get worked up about the Holy Spirit helping them to speak in other tongues. 14:29 And he said, "For once in our lifetime, when we have the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit will empower us to control the one tongue we have." Amen? 14:41 So whether or not He gives us the ability to speak in unknown tongues, He gives us the power and the ability to control our speech, to control our appetites, to say no to sin, to live holy and above reproach in Christ. And so we have here in Chapter 2, 15:02 we have the outline was the Holy Spirit descends in verse 1 through 6. The crowd reacts in verse 7 through 13. The Scripture is explained in verses 14 to 21. And Christ is proclaimed in 22 through 36. Now, 15:22 one thing I want to point out here that we missed in the other message was in verse 23. Verse 23, "Him," that is Jesus, "being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God." Let's put this in context with verse 22. 15:42 "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs, which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know, Him being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, 16:00 you have taken by lawless hands and have crucified and put to death." One of the phrases I want to have you look at there is that He was delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, 16:16 that the essence of Christ's sacrifice was not something that we did to Him. Yes, we did. But that was not all. It was something He did and allowed to have happen to Himself. Of course, we're acquainted with the Scripture that says, "No man taketh my life from me, 16:36 but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again." This, He was given that authority by His Father. But where did the plan of redemption, where was it conceived? Where was it initiated? Where was it? I don't like the term hatched. But where was the idea? 16:57 Where did it come from? It came by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God. In other words, God appointed Jesus to be crucified. And we have to be careful lest we think that the Jews did it. Yes, they had a part. We also need to understand that we did it. 17:17 We had a part as Gentiles. I had a part as a fallen man who needed a Savior. And God had a part in ordaining that His Son should be sent to die. And Jesus had a part in volunteering to be the Savior of the world. Now, some people look at this as a case of divine child abuse, 17:39 that God was pouring out upon His Son all of His wrath. And God was abusing His Son. I don't believe that's what it was. 17:52 It was a case of a man, the Son of God as a man volunteering to take upon Himself the sins of the world and experiencing the temporary separation from God, whatever that looked like, bearing the wrath of God, whatever that looked like. 18:07 But it was the Father and the Son agreeing together and the Spirit coming together and all participating in the work of redemption so that what you have is the laying down of the life of the Son of God. We didn't take it from Him. He gave it. But at the same time then, 18:27 our part in it makes us responsible and culpable for His death. Some people blame the Jews. The Jews are to be blamed. But then others of us blame the Gentiles. The Gentiles are to be blamed. Satan is to be blamed. He had a part in it all. 18:44 But God is to be credited, and Christ is to be glorified in it because they arranged this long time from eternity past before the foundation of the world that Christ would be delivered up and then raised up by God, 19:02 having loosed the pains of death because it was not possible that He should be held by it. What a joy we'll anticipate in a couple of weeks to once again celebrate together the season of resurrection, the primary pillar of our faith and of our trust in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. 19:24 So then we have Christ proclaimed, Christ proclaimed in verse 29, "Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David." He refers to a couple of prophetic scriptures, one by David that speaks about the resurrection, "Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, 19:45 neither wilt thou suffer thy holy one to see corruption." And he's speaking there about the corruption of the grave. Christ, of course, was in the grave for three days and three nights in the heart of the earth, in the grave, the place of the departed dead. But His body didn't even begin to decay much in that time. 20:06 And so "Thou wilt not suffer thy holy one to see corruption," the corruption of decay. Now, was David talking about himself? No. David was talking about Christ. Verse 29, he says, "Men and brethren, the patriarch David, and he's dead and buried. 20:24 And his tomb is with us to this day." You can go to Israel in the city of Jerusalem, those of you that were there with us several years ago, remember seeing the tomb of David. Now, it's probably not the real tomb of David. But it may be. It may not be. I don't think if you open it up, there's probably David's bones in there. 20:42 But it's a monument to the prophet and King David having died. His burial place is right there. So David was not speaking of himself. 20:53 He was speaking of the Christ who would come, the Christ who was anointed by God to be forever King of David's lineage, verse 30, "Therefore, being a prophet and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body according to the flesh, 21:13 he would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne. If you're going to have an eternal throne, you must have an eternal Christ. And if you're going to have an eternal Christ that dies for the sins of the world, you must have a resurrection to get an eternal Christ to sit on the throne of David, his father. He," verse 31, "foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of Christ, 21:33 that His soul was not left in Hades or the place of the departed dead, nor did His flesh see corruption. This is Jesus, God raised up, of which we are all witnesses." Every one of those people there that were in the upper room, they were witnesses of the resurrected Christ. 21:53 500 people at one time witnessed the resurrected Christ. And Peter said, "We were witnesses." And they were witnesses. The crowd were witnesses that they had indeed crucified Him, hung Him on a tree. They had shook their fists in His face. They had spit on Him. 22:11 They had reviled Him. And they saw Him and watched Him die as a community. 22:20 And yet, here He was being raised with irrefutable proofs from the dead, verse 33, "Therefore, being exalted to the right hand of God and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear." One of the reasons that the church, the Mennonite church, 22:39 has oftentimes emphasized the baptism by pouring is based on this scripture right here. When we're talking about the baptism of the Holy Spirit, of which water baptism is a picture, the Holy Spirit was poured out, is poured out, verse 33, of what you see and hear now. 23:01 And so some of our early founders felt it important to use pouring as a picture of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. There's another picture that I've heard many of you heard me say this before. There's another picture in Romans chapter 6 about going down into the water, being buried, resurrected to newness of life. 23:21 So that's another picture. So here, at Living Water, what we've become accustomed to do is go down into the water as a picture of going down into the death of Christ and coming back up into the water and kneeling there and being poured upon. I think it's a good way to express both pictures, 23:43 the water going down, the water coming out, and the death and burial and resurrection of Christ, as well as the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. 23:51 But we don't make a test of membership or a doctrinal, divisive doctrinal position on this, but just to point it out that this is where we come up with the idea that the Holy Spirit was poured out. For David did not ascend into heaven. 24:10 But he says himself, "The Lord, Jehovah" in the Hebrew, "said to my Lord or Adon or Adonai, Adon. Jehovah said to Adon, sit here at my right hand." Was he talking to David? No. He was talking about Christ. 24:29 What we have there in Psalms 110, verse 1, "The Lord said to my Lord, sit here until I make thine enemies thy footstool." Peter's making the point that this is speaking of Christ, Jesus Christ. And then he gets ready to sink the sword into the heart. 24:53 "Therefore, let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus whom you crucified both Lord and Christ." And they were cut to the heart. Why? 25:10 Because they knew they were all guilty in some form or other of crucifying the Son of God. That ought to cut us to the heart as well because we're all guilty just as they were. Oh, you say, "Well, I would never have done that to Jesus." Oh, yes, you would have. Oh, yes, you would have. 25:30 Look at His closest disciples who loved Him the most fleeing, allowing the crucifixion to go forth. Now, there were some women there that didn't participate, but they were helpless to do anything about it. 25:48 And so we're either guilty by overtly crucifying Him or we are guilty by passively watching. We crucified Him. That should cut us to the heart and cause us to respond. To Peter and the rest of the disciples, 26:08 "Men and brethren, what shall we do? Repent. Every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. And you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For this promise is to you and to your children and to all who are afar off as many as the Lord our God will call." Aren't you thankful for that? 26:29 Aren't you thankful for that, that the promise is to them and their children and to all who were afar off, wouldn't you say, several thousand miles from where it happened and several millennia later? We're afar off. And the promise is to us as many as the Lord our God will call. 26:50 Praise God. Now, we talked in the other message about baptism. We talked about repentance. We see now that the church emerges in verses 42 through 47. That will be our next message, verses 42 through 47, as an evidence of the and a result of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. 27:12 Now, as application, by application, we need the power of the Spirit. Trying to live the Christian life in our own strength just simply doesn't work. It just simply doesn't work. Trying to pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps doesn't work. Trying to minister in the power of the flesh does not produce fruit. 27:34 Trying to create holiness without the spirit of holiness within does not produce fruit. 27:41 We need the Spirit of God within us to empower us, to strengthen us, to cleanse us, to transform us, to renew us, to regenerate us, like Isaiah 58, verse 11, "And the Lord shall guide thee continually." That's another ministry of the Holy Spirit, is to guide us. 28:00 We need the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We need to hear Him say through the pages of scripture as well as to our minds and our hearts, "This is the way. Walk in it. 28:12 The Lord shall guide thee continually and satisfy thy soul in drought." That's a ministry of the Holy Spirit, to satisfy our soul in drought and make fat thy bones. 28:25 "Thou shalt be like a watered garden and like a spring of water whose waters fail not." What a beautiful picture Isaiah paints there, to be like a well-watered garden in a time of drought. There's a place in central to eastern Oregon, a little place along the road on Highway 20, 28:47 same Highway 20 that goes from here all the way out to the Oregon coast. Highway 20 goes through eastern Oregon. And there's a place there called Gentura, Gentura. Now, if you've ever driven into Oregon from the east, you know that it is not at all like people describe Oregon when they're in the west, western part of the state. 29:07 I remember taking some people out there, going with them the first time they hit the eastern part of Oregon, and they saw a desert and said, "What in the world is this?" We thought Oregon was a beautiful place. This is nothing but sagebrush and sand and hills. Well, just wait. The best is yet to come. So as we get further, and then they saw the mountains, 29:26 and then they went through the mountains, and then they saw the lush valleys of the Willamette Valley and the lush valley or the coastal range of the coastal mountains. Beautiful place. But there's a place when you're driving out through all that wilderness, there's so much wilderness, there's a town called Brothers. I think the population is two. 29:47 Must have been two brothers, I guess. And then you finally follow the river, go down along the river. I forget. I think it might be the Snake River. I'm not sure. But you come along the river, and all of a sudden, you see off in the distance this oasis, trees. They're cottonwood trees. 30:09 But they're trees out in the middle of nothing, out in the middle of nowhere. 30:13 And that's the picture I get as a spirit-filled Christian that we can be an oasis in the wilderness and desert of our community, and our hearts can be filled with the water and nourishment of the Spirit where they had been dry and desert. I love the song, 30:34 "I thirsted in the barren lands of sin and shame, and nothing satisfying there I found. But to the blessed cross of Christ one day I came where springs of living water did abound. Drinking at the springs of living water, happy now am I, my soul they satisfy. Drinking at the springs of living water, oh, 30:53 beautiful and bountiful supply." It talks about how sweet the living water from the hills of God. "It makes me glad and happy all the way. Now, glory, grace, and blessing mark the paths I'm trod." I'm shouting Hallelujah every day, drinking at the springs of living water. "Oh, sinner, won't you come today to Calvary? 31:15 A fountain there is flowing deep and wide. 31:17 The Master now invites you to the waters free where thankful spirits can be satisfied." I think something like that. And the imagery there and the beautiful picture that our lives are parched and desert and barren and dry until the Spirit of God brings the things of Christ, 31:38 and Christ comes in and waters that parched desert ground, and trees and flowers and nourishment and vegetation grow. It's like Jesus said in John chapter 4, "Who whatsoever drinks of this water shall thirst again. But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst again. 31:59 But the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life." What is that water? 32:07 Jesus referred to it in our scripture reading this morning in John chapter 7, "The last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood up and cried, saying, 'If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.'" That invitation has not been rescinded. 32:24 It's still open to every single one who will recognize their need and come to faith in Christ and humble themselves before Him. For He says, "The one who is if anyone is thirsty, let him come and drink. 32:39 The one who believes in me, as the scripture said, from his innermost being will flow rivers of living water." But this He said in reference to the Spirit whom those who believed in Him were to receive. For the Spirit was not yet given because Christ was not yet glorified. The good news is, 32:59 according to Acts 2, the Spirit has now been given because Christ has been glorified. So the deal is done. 33:09 So then the question is, why do we keep veering off into sin when God has given the indwelling presence of Himself within to create righteousness and holiness? 33:31 Not something that's intrinsic with us, not something that naturally comes from us. Righteousness and holiness do not flow out of us without a Savior, without the Spirit. But with the Spirit, when we walk in the Spirit and not according to the flesh, 33:53 holiness is produced. So why do we keep veering off? Why do we keep struggling with the same sins over and over and over again? Why is our prayer life boring and mundane? Why do the scriptures feel dry and lifeless? Why do we lack power for witnessing? 34:16 Why do we seem to be stuck and not growing? And why do we feel disconnected from God? It may be that we need a fresh and filling. 34:32 It may be that we need to get along with God and tarry in our Jerusalem until we understand and walk in the newness of the Spirit. It may be because we haven't fully surrendered to Christ. There is that potential and probability in each one of us that we have not fully surrendered. 34:53 And the Spirit can only be activated to fully fill and perform His work in us and through us when we surrender to the Lord Jesus Christ, when we surrender to Him, when we yield to Him, yield it to the control of the Spirit, 35:16 and not walk in the reality of ongoing sin, but in the reality of the regular fresh and filling of the Spirit of God which comes by faith, by action, and by request. 35:32 Now, I said a moment ago that the baptism of the Spirit doesn't come upon seeking it, but the filling of the Spirit does. And so as we seek the Lord, the Bible says, "And Jesus said, 'How much more if you then being evil know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more does the Father know how to give the Holy Spirit to them that what? 35:55 Oh, to them that ask Him.'" So we can ask. Oh, brother or sister, is your walk mundane? Is your heart dry? 36:08 Is your path filled with pitfalls that you keep falling in over and over and over? Ask Christ, the great baptizer, the great filler, to fill you anew with His presence. 36:28 We're not to seek after a sign or after an experience that looks like someone else's experience. But we are asked to seek God, to seek the heart of God, the presence of God, and the person of Christ. I'm not talking about seeking tongues or healing or a sign or a miracle, 36:48 but rather a person, Jesus Christ by His Spirit, living and abiding within us, directing us, calling us, guiding us. Get along with God, fast and pray, and walk in obedience to Christ and His word. 37:10 This is the fulfillment of Galatians 3:13 and 14, where Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us, as it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree," that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, 37:28 that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. We get it just like they did. Just like the Jews did, we all by one Spirit are baptized into one body. 37:45 Let us remember that Christ is the focus of the entire New Testament and Old Testament. That scripture is the focus, Old Testament scripture, and is the focus of the ministry of the Holy Spirit. "Christ, Christ, He shall glorify me," Jesus said, 38:04 "of the Spirit." Anything that diminishes the reality and preeminence of Christ must be addressed and corrected. Oh, believer, do we understand the impact that Pentecost has made, the power of the indwelling Christ, 38:23 the fullness of joy in His presence, the love of God which is poured out, and the transformation that results? Let's pray. Father, thank You for the great gift of Your Spirit. Spirit of the living God, 38:44 fall afresh on me. Melt me, mold me, fill me, use me. Spirit of the living God, fall afresh. Oh, Lord, how we long for and need a greater filling, 39:07 a greater enablement, a greater empowerment. 39:12 Lord, I pray that we will just simply surrender to You and that we would allow You to do Your great work in us, sanctifying us, empowering us, strengthening us, 39:32 transforming us, forming Christ in us, enabling us to serve and to live and to witness and to exercise the gifts that You give by Your Spirit. 39:46 To just simply said, "Whatever it is You do to a person, Lord, do it to me." Maybe there's someone here this morning who would say, "I fit the description of one who's dry, prone to sin, 40:05 struggling with the same thing over and over. 40:09 And this morning, I have a glimpse of hope that maybe there is hope for me, that maybe the Holy Spirit would help me to overcome sin." If that's you, be assured that Your good Father in heaven will give Him to those who ask. So do not hesitate to ask. 40:32 Do not have some preconceived idea of what that would look like when He answers. For He answers that request in a variety of ways. Sometimes it's emotional. Sometimes it's not. Sometimes it's an incredible experience. 40:50 Other times, it's one we just walk in by faith and go out and do the work that He's called us to do. But if you find yourself this morning in a particular place of need and you would say, "I need prayer this morning. 41:07 I want to pray for you 41:12 as a congregation and as individuals." And if you would say, "Please pray for me in this area," would you just slip your hand up and back down again? We'll pray for you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless. Are there others? 41:32 God bless you. God bless you. Father, You see our hands. You see our hearts. We are like little eaglets or sparrows or robins that open our mouths to You and ask You to fill it, 41:52 that we might eat and drink of the spiritual blessings from our great baptizer and infiller, the Lord Jesus. By Your Spirit, Lord, we ask for greater anointing, ask for greater empowerment, ask for greater understanding, 42:14 and ask for greater practical transformation in our lives. And we do that for the glory of God. In Jesus' name, Amen. God bless you. Good.