These are my mere notes from Sunday February 18, 2024.
There is no formula. (Filled in Luke 3x)
◦ Luke 1:15 John the Baptist in Elizabeth’s womb leaps with joy as he recognizes the way the truth the life.
◦ Luke 1:39 Elizabeth second person filled with the HS and in a loud voice exclaims, “Blessed are you among women…and bless is the child you will bear”.
◦ Luke 1:67 Zechariah third person to be filled and he prophesies (testifies about Jesus).
◦ The HS empowers them to show us that Jesus is the Christ.
Submission/Yielding
#1. Do Not Grieve
Ephesians 4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
◦ Do not sadden, make unhappy, cause grief or sorrow.
Read context, When you look before and after Ephesians 4:30 Ephesians 4:29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.
REFLECT:
◦ Backbiting, impatience, unkindness, uncontrolled temper, unclean thoughts, road rage…abusing a gift He’s giving us, desiring a gift for the wrong reason, desiring someone else’s gifting.
1. Truth (John 14:17); so anything false, deceitful, or hypocritical grieves Him.
2. Faith (2 Cor. 4:13); so doubt, distrust, anxiety, and worry grieve Him.
3. Grace (Heb. 10:29); so whatever in us is hard, bitter, malicious, ungracious, unforgiving, or unloving grieves Him.
4. Holiness (Rom. 1:4); so anything unclean, defiling, or degrading grieves Him.
Who rules your life – self or Christ?
Instead of asking to be filled, ask for God to take total control of every aspect of our lives.
#2. Do Not Quench
1 Thess 5:19 Do not quench the Spirit (stifle, extinguish, put out, restrain, or stop the work).
◦ Think of the HS as fire; we don’t want to put out the fire! We want to fuel it. Pray. Read. Serve. Gather. Build up. Listen. Believe. Obey.
◦ Read context of 1 Thess 5:19: give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies, 21 but test everything; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil.
◦ don’t miss this = use of time, use of $$, our lifestyle, our lack of using a gift He has given us.
Your filling/gifts (good thing you didn’t quench Him):
◦ Justin leading worship
◦ Gina giving to feed hungry.
◦ Izzy turning around to visit Amber in hospital.
◦ Scott engaging clients in Gospel.
◦ Andrea sharing a dream.
◦ Dee Dee inviting neighbor to Christmas Eve.
◦ Gio confessing to friend and asking for forgiveness.
◦ Stout leaving his construction job.
◦ Some of you following when called to come here for church.
Recap: Billy Graham quote:
“Resist not His incoming; grieve not His indwelling; quench not His outgoing. Open to Him as the Incomer; please Him as the Indweller; obey Him as the Outgoer in His testimony of the things concerning Christ, whether through yourself or others.
Being Filled ain’t always about a rosey-filled life.
◦ Stephen was full of the Spirit and also the first Christian martyr stoned to death at the end of His life.
◦ Jesus was full of the Spirit and also Crucified at the end of His life.
◦ Paul was full of the Spirit and also beaten, jailed, and beheaded at the end of his life.
Jesus does not necessarily fill us with His spirit to make our lives easier or better in the physical realm.
Up Next: Filled in Acts (5x)
◦ Acts 2:4 “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
◦ Acts 4:8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders…
◦ Acts 4:31 “And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.”
◦ Acts 9:17 “So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”
◦ Acts 13:9 “But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord?”