The Holy Spirit*

The Holy Spirit is a big part of my life. He counsels me, encourages me, edges me on to do what is right; He even helps me to not give into what is wrong. I am not perfect. I didn’t say I always obeyed Him. I wish I did, yet I strive to obey Him.

Thinking or hoping God didn’t just ask me to do something I don’t want to do; I tend to argue with Him. I always say, “but God...” and then I hear this voice in me that repeats what he wants me to do. I try to obey, but many times I fail the test. Please don’t take this the wrong way, now I am not saying I am hearing voices so please do not carry me away in a straight jacket...lol.. Let me make this clear; I hear ONE voice, the Voice of GOD...The Voice of the Holy Spirit prompting, nudging, and sometimes even pushing me to do what is right. Yes, I said "pushing" because I can be stubborn at times, or even scared, have too much pride, embarrassed, or just plain don't want to do what He asks. 

My precious cat: Buttons

Yet I notice that He always blesses me each time I obey Him. He doesn't give me a hundred bucks each time I obey Him, but He blesses me in different ways. Sometimes it is through a friend, a child's laughter, a beautiful sunset, or even helping me manage my bills, supplying my needs, helping me with good deals at the store, etc... There are even those times that I feel blessed through my cat Buttons. As I am typing this right now, he is scooping up water with his paw and bringing it to his mouth to drink. Aww, he is so cute, but let's get back to the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit also gives me the strength and power to help me overcome temptations. I hear this quiet voice, that tells me to not give in, and it is my choice to obey Him. I can’t blame it on the devil, an enemy or even a family member. If I don’t do what the Holy Spirit asks, then I am the one sinning. I believe it is very important to listen and obey the Holy Spirit’s voice, for it is the Voice of GOD.

The Holy Spirit is like a big brother without all the teasing, but yet He is greater than any big brother or person out there, for He is God. He is always watching out for me and He can do the same thing for you. Yet greater than all that, He is a part of the Trinity. The Trinity is God in three: The Father, the Son (Jesus), and The Holy Spirit.

 

THE HOLY SPIRIT IS PART OF THE TRINITY

The easiest way to describe it is the way one of my former pastors from 20 years ago taught me. The Holy Spirit is like a watch. If you look at a watch that you used to wear on your wrist, before they invented cell phones, you would notice that there are three hands. There is the second hand, the minute hand, and the hour hand. There are 3 different hands with 3 different functions, yet all three make up the watch. That’s how it is with God. There is the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit. There are three, yet they have different roles and they all make up God.

Read Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

 I have read and skimmed over the 1^st Chapter of Genesis many times, yet I didn’t think anything differently about verse 26 until I was in my late 20’s. It already says that God made the light, the animals, the sky, the stars, etc... He made everything...All those verses talk about what God did. Yet in verse 26, it says, let “US” make mankind in “OUR” image. So who are they talking about in this verse? I believe it is talking about God as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God always existed. Jesus has always been the son of God which is part of the trinity. He wasn’t created the day He was born on this earth thousands of years ago. He already existed, along with the Father and the Holy Spirit.

John 1:1-5  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word WAS GOD. ² He was with God in the beginning. ³ Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. ⁴ In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. ⁵ The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

The Word was Jesus. Jesus was in the beginning, Jesus was with God, and Jesus was God. It says all things were made through Him (Jesus). He was there even when God made all things.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IS OUR HELPER (COMFORTER) and is the SPIRIT OF TRUTH

John 14:16-18  NKJV   And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— ¹⁷ the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. ¹⁸ I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.

(If you look at the above verses, notice how The Father, the Son, and the Spirit work as a team. They are God, yet they all help each other out in helping us. They all have a different role. Also In verse 16, different translations of the Bible have different words for Helper, such as in the newer NIV version, for Helper, it says “advocate,” in the KJV: “Comforter.”

THE HOLY SPIRIT IS OUR COUNSELOR, TEACHER, and HE EVEN HELPS US REMEMBER THINGS

In verse John 14:25-26  “All this I have spoken while still with you. ²⁶ But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. "

The Holy Spirit will teach you all things and will remind you things. Yes, in these particular verses, Jesus is actually face to face with the disciples and is telling them to not worry, they won't be left alone. The Holy Spirit is coming to town!!! Can you imagine, what these disciples were thinking? I would be distraught or devastated too if I was walking with a form of God (Jesus came down as man) and then He is telling me He is leaving. Yet He told them to be comforted because another form of God is coming down to them who is the Holy Spirit. Now this verse applies to us as well. because the Holy Spirit is our counselor and teacher, and will bring to our memory what you have read or heard from the Bible. The Bible is the written word of God.

OUR FATHER GOD SENT DOWN A GIFT who is THE HOLY SPIRIT.

In Luke 24:49 Jesus is telling his disciples that His Father (God) has promised Him that He will send them a comforter.

Acts 1:4-5   On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. ⁵ For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

So not only will they be anticipating a gift, but this gift will give them a baptism of the Holy Spirit.

THE EVIDENCE OF THE BAPTISM OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IS SPEAKING IN TONGUES AND YOU WILL RECEIVE POWER FROM THE HOLY SPIRIT

Acts 1:5,8  For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit... 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 2:1-5  When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. ² Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. ⁴ All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

It says: all began to speak in tongues. It doesn’t say, some of them, or only the ones that God chose, it says all of them began to speak in tongues when the Holy Spirit was upon them. Also it does mention that they spoke in other tongues when they were enabled by the Spirit.

(NOTE: The day of Pentecost was a Jewish holiday called The Feast of Weeks. Many Jews came from all around to have a celebration).

Acts 2:18-19, 21 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. ¹⁹ I will show wonders in the heaven above...²¹ And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

The Holy Spirit is for you and I.

RECEIVING THE HOLY SPIRIT IS FOR ANYONE WHO REPENTS OF THEIR SINS (AND is BAPTIZED) AND RECEIVES JESUS CHRIST AS THEIR SAVIOR.

Acts 2:36-40   “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” ³⁷ When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” ³⁸ Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹ The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off —for all whom the Lord our God will call.” ⁴⁰ With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” ⁴¹ Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

Peter is the one speaking in the scripture above. (refer to Acts 2:14).
So Peter is telling them, this Jesus you crucified, the one you killed, He is the one that is God; He is the Christ. Can you imagine that moment; thinking that you just killed God? Thankfully He rose again, but can you imagine hearing those words; You crucified the Christ, God. If I was there with Peter, I think my heart would have sank into my big toe and my head would have been spinning so much i would have thrown up. I would have those words in my memory forever and probably would have played them like a broken record. "God had made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."
Thankfully Peter also says that there is a way to overcome this. He says: Repent and be baptized, in the name of Jesus Christ... for the forgiveness of your sins.  Webster's New World dictionary defines the word "repent" as to feel such great regret over as to change one's mind.  Jesus Christ saves our souls...Wow, have you really thought about that lately? Christ forgives us of the sins we do. What sin have you done recently? Each time we are sinning, it's as though we are nailing Jesus to the cross again....

Matthew 28:16-20     Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. ¹⁷ When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. ¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Jesus has authority!!! He is always with us!!!

Titus 3:3-8     At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. ⁴ But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, ⁵ he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, ⁶ whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, ⁷ so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. ⁸ This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.

God saved us, cleansed us, and renewed us through the Holy Spirit and Jesus.

THE WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

John 16:5-15 but now I (Jesus) am going to him who sent me. None of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ ⁶ Rather, you are filled with grief because I have said these things. ⁷ But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. ⁸ When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: ⁹ about sin, because people do not believe in me; ¹⁰ about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; ¹¹ and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. ¹² “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. ¹³ But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. ¹⁴ He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. ¹⁵ All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”

 The Holy Spirit guides you... He will talk to you... He may whisper in your ear, speak to you through a person, be real to you in a sermon or song, or just speak to your heart, mind, soul, or spirit. The Holy Spirit is a vital part to your relationship with God. He is our counselor, comforter, friend, teacher, guidance counselor; He is so much more than you can ever imagine.

LIFE THROUGH THE HOLY SPIRIT

 

Romans 8:1-17  Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, ² because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. ³ For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, ⁴ in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.  

(Note: I believe in previous times, people had to follow the law; they had to do all those burnt offerings and sacrifices so that God would forgive them. It was an act of repentance. We don't need to follow those laws anymore, because Jesus was the ultimate sin offering. When Jesus Christ  died for our sins, he was OUR sin offering. He died for us to be set free. JESUS was the ULTIMATE SIN OFFERING.)

⁵ Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. ⁶ The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. ⁷ The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. ⁸ Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.


(Note: Usually what your flesh wants, is totally different than what your spirit wants. Seek what the Holy Spirit wants for you; die to your flesh. For example, try thinking about turning off the tv when your favorite program is on, and it's the season finale, better yet, it's the last, final show they will have. Now, think about praying instead. Do you think your flesh wants to turn off the tv. No Way, it wants to sit and watch that tv program. Dying to your flesh, is turning off the tv, and praying. What does the Holy Spirit want in your life? How can you seek Him more? What is your spirit crying out to do for God? Has God put something on your heart that He wants you to do?)


⁹ You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. ¹⁰ But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. ¹¹ And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.

¹² Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. ¹³ For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.

¹⁴ For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. ¹⁵ The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” ¹⁶ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. ¹⁷ Now if we are children, then we are heirs —heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.


The Spirit gives life.
Children of God are lead by the Spirit of God. They are heirs of God, and Co-heirs of Christ. Think of yourself as a co-heir in Christ. I don't know about you, but that just totally excites me. I am an heir of God; my destiny is heaven. I will live with God for eternity...wow, how exciting. It just gives me holy goose bumps.
Now just think, you get rewarded with this too. No, I am not talking about receiving Holy goose bumps; I am talking about living in Heaven for eternity. This destination is for believers in the true God. Just take a moment to think how glorious that day will be when you will see the face of God without any filters.

I like to think of myself as God's princess. He is God, the Lord of my life, the King of kings, the Prince of Peace...He is Royalty!!!
If I am His child and have an inheritance to Heaven, then I am His princess for He is Royalty.





We serve a God who is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient...Thank you GOD!!!

You are a child of God, when you accept Christ as your personal saviour.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

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Psalms 103:12 As far as the East is from the West, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.

All you have to do is believe that He is God and confess your sins...He will forgive you of your sins...and then clean you up to make you brand new... Once God forgives you of your sins, He doesn't condemn you; He removes them...that's it...


I am enclosing a prayer for each of you.

Dear God,
For all those who have read this blog, I pray you bless them and give them a sweet anointing on their lives. May they feel your presence in a strong way. May they sense you are so much greater than our minds can comprehend. Please bless them, strengthen them, and may they just feel you tugging and hugging on their soul and spirit. May you be their source of strength and peace. 

For those who do not know Christ as their savior, I pray that they feel your sweet, unconditional love and they will acknowledge you as their savior. May they know that you are the Ultimate God, and all they have to do is confess you as Lord and savior and repent of their sins.  In Jesus name, Amen






note: all pictures and paintings are by Expressive Praise, unless otherwise noted.