WEBVTT 00:00:27.920 --> 00:00:31.739 And now we pray that you are blessed by this 00:00:31.739 --> 00:00:37.939 week's sermon. Good morning. I should say, I 00:00:37.939 --> 00:00:41.219 do not know what is the right phrase for Pentecost, 00:00:41.299 --> 00:00:45.280 but I should say, Happy Pentecost Sunday. We 00:00:45.280 --> 00:00:49.119 say Merry Christmas, Happy Easter, Happy Pentecost 00:00:49.119 --> 00:00:53.500 Sunday. How about that? Today we celebrate something 00:00:53.500 --> 00:00:58.719 that is... part of what God was doing, sending 00:00:58.719 --> 00:01:01.219 Jesus to die for us, and then sending the Holy 00:01:01.219 --> 00:01:04.299 Spirit to continue the work he started. So for 00:01:04.299 --> 00:01:07.359 us as Christians, Pentecost is a very significant 00:01:07.359 --> 00:01:11.000 day. And at ECB, it's an important day because 00:01:11.000 --> 00:01:13.700 we say it's one of the things that matters to 00:01:13.700 --> 00:01:17.260 us, is to be led by the Spirit in everything 00:01:17.260 --> 00:01:20.689 we do. So if you happen to be visiting us today, 00:01:20.769 --> 00:01:23.010 we're so glad that you are here this morning. 00:01:23.469 --> 00:01:27.510 And we have a place downstairs we call the Connection 00:01:27.510 --> 00:01:31.090 Center that is there for you. If you have questions 00:01:31.090 --> 00:01:33.090 about our ministry, you want to learn more about 00:01:33.090 --> 00:01:35.670 what we're doing, you're looking for a home church, 00:01:35.810 --> 00:01:38.650 that place is designed for you. And I believe 00:01:38.650 --> 00:01:41.510 that if you go soon enough, you'll get a free 00:01:41.510 --> 00:01:44.560 cup of coffee or something like that. But I encourage 00:01:44.560 --> 00:01:48.640 you to stop by there. But for the rest of ECB 00:01:48.640 --> 00:01:51.260 family, this is a time in which people travel 00:01:51.260 --> 00:01:54.560 all over the world. So I know that some of you 00:01:54.560 --> 00:01:57.959 in our ECB family are watching us from wherever 00:01:57.959 --> 00:02:01.000 in the world. And we pray that this time of connecting 00:02:01.000 --> 00:02:03.700 online is something that is a blessing to you 00:02:03.700 --> 00:02:07.819 as well. Today we will take a break from the 00:02:07.819 --> 00:02:09.719 series that we've been doing in the book of Psalms. 00:02:09.719 --> 00:02:11.280 Actually, we're going to take a break from two 00:02:11.280 --> 00:02:14.409 Sundays, today and next week. And then we'll 00:02:14.409 --> 00:02:17.729 go back to the Psalms at the end of June. But 00:02:17.729 --> 00:02:20.389 today we're going to do a study specifically 00:02:20.389 --> 00:02:24.389 for Pentacle Sunday to help us understand who 00:02:24.389 --> 00:02:26.990 is the Holy Spirit and what is his work in our 00:02:26.990 --> 00:02:30.879 lives. There is so much misunderstanding about 00:02:30.879 --> 00:02:33.539 many of these things, so poor teaching as well 00:02:33.539 --> 00:02:35.580 about these things, and depending what background 00:02:35.580 --> 00:02:39.680 you come from or also how long you've been a 00:02:39.680 --> 00:02:42.319 Christian, there are certain things that I hope 00:02:42.319 --> 00:02:44.659 that the study today will give you so much more 00:02:44.659 --> 00:02:49.740 clarity because one thing that Jesus wants us 00:02:49.740 --> 00:02:53.439 as we follow him is that we have a close, intimate 00:02:53.439 --> 00:02:57.219 relationship with the Holy Spirit. And if anything 00:02:57.219 --> 00:02:59.860 is keeping you from having that intimate relationship 00:02:59.860 --> 00:03:02.379 with the Holy Spirit, I hope that this study 00:03:02.379 --> 00:03:06.460 today will remove it and help you just walk more 00:03:06.460 --> 00:03:10.639 in intimacy with God. So before we start, let 00:03:10.639 --> 00:03:15.300 me pray. Lord, I want to ask you in Jesus' name 00:03:15.300 --> 00:03:19.360 that you will empower us today through your word 00:03:19.360 --> 00:03:21.919 and that you will use me in your power and in 00:03:21.919 --> 00:03:25.419 your grace. Open our eyes so that we may see 00:03:25.419 --> 00:03:30.319 truth, truth that frees, so that we may follow 00:03:30.319 --> 00:03:37.080 you with more devotion and freedom. We love you, 00:03:37.120 --> 00:03:43.460 Lord, and I pray in Jesus' name. Amen. As we 00:03:43.460 --> 00:03:45.379 begin this study, I need to give you a little 00:03:45.379 --> 00:03:48.740 bit of background, because when we talk about 00:03:48.740 --> 00:03:52.219 Pentecost, Even many Christians don't understand 00:03:52.219 --> 00:03:54.240 what's Pentecost, I don't understand what is 00:03:54.240 --> 00:03:57.520 that, and why do we do anything? Well, let's 00:03:57.520 --> 00:03:59.939 start at the first part of the study by understanding 00:03:59.939 --> 00:04:03.520 why Pentecost is so important. And for that we 00:04:03.520 --> 00:04:06.300 need to understand a little bit of the Jewish 00:04:06.300 --> 00:04:09.759 background in the Old Testament. There were three 00:04:09.759 --> 00:04:12.360 different feasts that the nation of Israel was 00:04:12.360 --> 00:04:16.399 commanded to practice that will lead people to 00:04:16.399 --> 00:04:20.790 travel and go to Jerusalem. The Feast of Passover, 00:04:21.069 --> 00:04:25.069 the Feast of Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles. 00:04:25.290 --> 00:04:29.170 Those three. In the Feast of Passover is when 00:04:29.170 --> 00:04:33.029 they remember that God had led them out of Egypt, 00:04:33.110 --> 00:04:36.209 out of slavery, and they sacrificed the lamb 00:04:36.209 --> 00:04:41.009 as part of that celebration in Passover. But 00:04:41.009 --> 00:04:48.240 then, seven weeks later, which is 49 days, On 00:04:48.240 --> 00:04:51.720 the 50th day after Passover, there was a celebration 00:04:51.720 --> 00:04:57.100 of the weeks. And that celebration was to commemorate 00:04:57.100 --> 00:05:00.779 now the first fruits of the harvest, of the wheat 00:05:00.779 --> 00:05:04.500 harvest. And people came together, they brought 00:05:04.500 --> 00:05:06.800 offerings and different things during that time 00:05:06.800 --> 00:05:14.740 of celebration. And what happens is that Pentecost 00:05:14.740 --> 00:05:20.100 is the 50th day. After Passover. So in Greek, 00:05:20.120 --> 00:05:24.500 the word Pentecost means 50th. And that's why 00:05:24.500 --> 00:05:27.639 this became known as Pentecost. Even though it 00:05:27.639 --> 00:05:30.920 wasn't the Jewish name for it. Because the 50th 00:05:30.920 --> 00:05:33.579 day after Passover, they would come and celebrate 00:05:33.579 --> 00:05:41.180 the first fruits. Well, Jerusalem was just crowded 00:05:41.180 --> 00:05:45.459 with people during these seasons. And each one 00:05:45.459 --> 00:05:48.720 of these three festivities that they had brought 00:05:48.720 --> 00:05:50.959 people into Jerusalem from all over the Roman 00:05:50.959 --> 00:05:55.839 Empire. And the last time that the apostles had 00:05:55.839 --> 00:05:59.600 been with Jesus celebrating something together 00:05:59.600 --> 00:06:04.300 before Pentecost was Passover. And for Christians, 00:06:04.439 --> 00:06:07.879 Passover took a whole different meaning. Because 00:06:07.879 --> 00:06:10.319 that's the day now where Jesus, the perfect Lamb 00:06:10.319 --> 00:06:14.470 of God, died for the sins of the world. And Pentecost 00:06:14.470 --> 00:06:16.870 took a whole different meaning because that is 00:06:16.870 --> 00:06:19.310 the day when Jesus sent the Holy Spirit, the 00:06:19.310 --> 00:06:22.949 first fruits now of the new stage of salvation 00:06:22.949 --> 00:06:26.370 where now people were coming to know Christ and 00:06:26.370 --> 00:06:29.589 the indwelling of the Spirit began. And the movement 00:06:29.589 --> 00:06:32.990 of the church from that point on until today 00:06:32.990 --> 00:06:36.970 as we experience it began on that day of Pentecost. 00:06:37.649 --> 00:06:41.149 So this is the connection and the background. 00:06:41.959 --> 00:06:44.740 All these names and all these words that we use 00:06:44.740 --> 00:06:48.100 to talk about Pentecost Sunday, the 50th day 00:06:48.100 --> 00:06:54.740 after Passover. But when the apostles were with 00:06:54.740 --> 00:07:00.660 Jesus in celebrating Passover, they did not know 00:07:00.660 --> 00:07:02.959 that that was the last time that we're going 00:07:02.959 --> 00:07:05.819 to eat a meal with Jesus. They were just celebrating 00:07:05.819 --> 00:07:09.410 Passover with him. They had no idea that Jesus 00:07:09.410 --> 00:07:12.050 was going to be crucified the following days 00:07:12.050 --> 00:07:16.050 and everything that unfolded. At the moment of 00:07:16.050 --> 00:07:19.709 these conversations with the apostles, they were 00:07:19.709 --> 00:07:24.029 just listening from Jesus. And if you were to 00:07:24.029 --> 00:07:27.930 open your Bible in John chapter 14, 15, 16, all 00:07:27.930 --> 00:07:29.990 those chapters, you will notice something. If 00:07:29.990 --> 00:07:31.850 you have one of those Bibles that has the words 00:07:31.850 --> 00:07:35.079 of Jesus in red. You will notice that, wow, that's 00:07:35.079 --> 00:07:37.300 a lot of red there because Jesus is talking to 00:07:37.300 --> 00:07:40.220 the apostles about a lot of things during that 00:07:40.220 --> 00:07:42.860 last meal that they are spending together before 00:07:42.860 --> 00:07:48.519 his crucifixion. And it's during that meal that 00:07:48.519 --> 00:07:52.540 for the first time ever, he's going to start 00:07:52.540 --> 00:07:55.819 telling them about the Holy Spirit that is going 00:07:55.819 --> 00:07:58.899 to come. That is going to have a very specific 00:07:58.899 --> 00:08:02.519 role in this new season in the plan of salvation. 00:08:03.310 --> 00:08:06.509 That he came to accomplish. Jesus first came 00:08:06.509 --> 00:08:09.310 to die for the sins of the world. To defeat death. 00:08:09.509 --> 00:08:13.290 To defeat the power of sin and Satan. And bring 00:08:13.290 --> 00:08:18.089 the forgiveness of sin available to humans. But 00:08:18.089 --> 00:08:20.550 then he ascended to heaven. And after that the 00:08:20.550 --> 00:08:22.569 Holy Spirit was going to start his ministry. 00:08:23.009 --> 00:08:26.730 Of bringing now the salvation of Jesus into people's 00:08:26.730 --> 00:08:31.540 lives. So we're going to take a look at John 00:08:31.540 --> 00:08:35.779 chapter 14, 15, 16 during that section. And we're 00:08:35.779 --> 00:08:37.960 going to highlight first a couple of things that 00:08:37.960 --> 00:08:40.799 he told them about the Holy Spirit. Because this 00:08:40.799 --> 00:08:44.059 shapes the way we understand who God is, who 00:08:44.059 --> 00:08:47.620 the Holy Spirit is. He tells them here in verse 00:08:47.620 --> 00:08:53.720 16. I will ask the Father. And he will give you 00:08:53.720 --> 00:08:58.559 another advocate to help you be with you forever. 00:08:59.659 --> 00:09:04.500 The spirit of truth. He calls him here the spirit 00:09:04.500 --> 00:09:08.320 of truth. And he was going to have a very specific 00:09:08.320 --> 00:09:10.539 function. He says he's going to be an advocate. 00:09:12.080 --> 00:09:15.659 The word advocate in Greek was the word parakletos. 00:09:15.720 --> 00:09:19.129 That's the word, the paraclete. It was a word 00:09:19.129 --> 00:09:22.750 that meant the helper, the advocate, the comforter. 00:09:23.049 --> 00:09:25.789 It was translated in lots of different ways, 00:09:25.830 --> 00:09:28.269 but basically it was one that came alongside 00:09:28.269 --> 00:09:32.929 you to help you. And Jesus not only says that 00:09:32.929 --> 00:09:36.110 this spirit of truth was going to have that function 00:09:36.110 --> 00:09:40.570 of helping those that follow him, but he tells 00:09:40.570 --> 00:09:43.250 us that the nature of this spirit was not going 00:09:43.250 --> 00:09:47.399 to be something different from him. He uses the 00:09:47.399 --> 00:09:51.000 word another advocate. And you can see that I 00:09:51.000 --> 00:09:53.600 underline the word another because this is important 00:09:53.600 --> 00:09:57.399 in our understanding. Now, you have to be in 00:09:57.399 --> 00:09:59.860 theology to only pay attention to these details. 00:10:00.080 --> 00:10:02.480 But this is where things matter a lot. It's like 00:10:02.480 --> 00:10:05.360 a lawyer reading a document. It's like that word 00:10:05.360 --> 00:10:09.120 makes a difference. And it does here. Because 00:10:09.120 --> 00:10:11.950 did you know? That in the language of Greek in 00:10:11.950 --> 00:10:14.049 which the New Testament was written. Now we are 00:10:14.049 --> 00:10:16.549 reading the English translation of that. But 00:10:16.549 --> 00:10:19.809 in Greek there are two words for another. Another 00:10:19.809 --> 00:10:23.850 of a different kind. Or another of the same kind. 00:10:24.309 --> 00:10:27.250 Two different words. Now you want to guess which 00:10:27.250 --> 00:10:30.769 word Jesus is using about the Holy Spirit? The 00:10:30.769 --> 00:10:33.669 first one or the second one? The second one. 00:10:34.549 --> 00:10:39.450 I'm going to send you someone like me. to now 00:10:39.450 --> 00:10:44.690 be a helper for you. And that starts helping 00:10:44.690 --> 00:10:50.129 us understand that this Holy Spirit is distinct 00:10:50.129 --> 00:10:53.870 from Jesus, but it has the same nature, and that's 00:10:53.870 --> 00:10:55.950 where the doctrine of Trinity starts developing, 00:10:56.289 --> 00:10:59.190 not just this verse, but many other things, that 00:10:59.190 --> 00:11:01.269 we believe that God is Father, Son, Holy Spirit. 00:11:01.929 --> 00:11:09.269 One being, one essence. Because the Holy Spirit 00:11:09.269 --> 00:11:14.649 was like the same as Jesus. And Jesus says, I'm 00:11:14.649 --> 00:11:17.549 going to send you another advocate to be with 00:11:17.549 --> 00:11:21.389 you. And for how long is he going to be with 00:11:21.389 --> 00:11:27.110 them? Forever. Jesus came temporarily, he left, 00:11:27.230 --> 00:11:29.370 but the Holy Spirit will come and he will be 00:11:29.370 --> 00:11:33.230 with you forever. And then he tells them, the 00:11:33.230 --> 00:11:36.419 world cannot accept him. Because he neither sees 00:11:36.419 --> 00:11:39.960 him nor knows him. But you, you are following 00:11:39.960 --> 00:11:45.360 me. You know him. He is with you. But he will 00:11:45.360 --> 00:11:50.940 be in you. And that's another important detail 00:11:50.940 --> 00:11:53.419 that Jesus tells them. It's like, look, you have 00:11:53.419 --> 00:11:57.220 not experienced the Holy Spirit yet in you. Only 00:11:57.220 --> 00:11:59.639 with you. But the time is going to come in which 00:11:59.639 --> 00:12:03.480 this spirit of truth is going to come and to 00:12:03.480 --> 00:12:08.299 be in you. And then he says one more thing in 00:12:08.299 --> 00:12:11.899 that dinner with them celebrating Passover. He 00:12:11.899 --> 00:12:17.000 tells them, very truly I tell you, it is for 00:12:17.000 --> 00:12:20.460 your good that I'm going away. Unless I go away, 00:12:21.279 --> 00:12:23.340 this advocate, this spirit of truth, the Holy 00:12:23.340 --> 00:12:26.940 Spirit I'm talking to you about, he will not 00:12:26.940 --> 00:12:30.799 come to you. But if I go, then I will send him 00:12:30.799 --> 00:12:36.370 to you. So he also tells us that there is a progression, 00:12:36.850 --> 00:12:40.809 there is a plan in place. The job of Jesus was 00:12:40.809 --> 00:12:44.149 won, but once he accomplishes his job, he has 00:12:44.149 --> 00:12:46.570 to go to heaven, and then the beginning of the 00:12:46.570 --> 00:12:51.429 new job begins of the Holy Spirit. And unless 00:12:51.429 --> 00:12:54.409 Jesus leaves, he cannot send the Holy Spirit. 00:12:55.830 --> 00:12:58.929 That's what we understand, that the work of the 00:12:58.929 --> 00:13:01.769 Holy Spirit... We already know the Holy Spirit 00:13:01.769 --> 00:13:03.929 was already at work during the time of Jesus. 00:13:04.409 --> 00:13:07.649 He's the one that caused the birth of Jesus. 00:13:07.730 --> 00:13:11.169 He was conceived by the Spirit. But we also know 00:13:11.169 --> 00:13:12.990 that in the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit was 00:13:12.990 --> 00:13:17.549 at work, but never in the functional role that 00:13:17.549 --> 00:13:21.009 he was going to have after Jesus ascended to 00:13:21.009 --> 00:13:26.610 heaven. He was going to now be in people, not 00:13:26.610 --> 00:13:33.220 just with people. And then the apostles listen 00:13:33.220 --> 00:13:37.659 to all of these things. Jesus dies for the sins 00:13:37.659 --> 00:13:40.379 of people. He resurrects, overcomes the power 00:13:40.379 --> 00:13:44.360 of sin and death and Satan. Now he has the key 00:13:44.360 --> 00:13:46.759 of the kingdom and all authority on heaven and 00:13:46.759 --> 00:13:50.059 on earth. And before he is going to ascend to 00:13:50.059 --> 00:13:52.919 heaven, he has appeared to the disciples at different 00:13:52.919 --> 00:13:55.740 times. But he has another conversation with them. 00:13:56.580 --> 00:14:00.360 Now the apostles understand so much more. Things 00:14:00.360 --> 00:14:03.679 that have happened. But here Jesus tells them. 00:14:04.000 --> 00:14:07.480 Do not leave Jerusalem. But wait for the gift 00:14:07.480 --> 00:14:10.960 my father promised. Which you have heard me speak 00:14:10.960 --> 00:14:14.860 about. Remember? The last supper together. For 00:14:14.860 --> 00:14:17.980 John baptized with water. But in a few days. 00:14:18.179 --> 00:14:23.570 You will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. Now 00:14:23.570 --> 00:14:26.490 he talks about this coming of the Holy Spirit 00:14:26.490 --> 00:14:29.529 to live in them as you will be baptized with 00:14:29.529 --> 00:14:32.529 the Holy Spirit. And that hadn't happened yet 00:14:32.529 --> 00:14:39.330 because Jesus hadn't ascended. So they wait in 00:14:39.330 --> 00:14:44.809 Jerusalem. And then Jesus also tells them, listen, 00:14:44.909 --> 00:14:47.590 when the Holy Spirit comes to you, something 00:14:47.590 --> 00:14:52.169 is going to happen. You will receive what? Power. 00:14:53.769 --> 00:14:56.330 When the Holy Spirit comes on you and you will 00:14:56.330 --> 00:15:00.950 be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, 00:15:00.990 --> 00:15:04.070 and to the ends of the earth. One of the roles 00:15:04.070 --> 00:15:06.370 the Holy Spirit is going to have in your life 00:15:06.370 --> 00:15:09.909 is to empower you so that you can be a witness 00:15:09.909 --> 00:15:16.509 and point people to Jesus so that they can know 00:15:16.509 --> 00:15:18.909 that there's a Savior that came to die for their 00:15:18.909 --> 00:15:23.220 sins and they can be forgiven. So the relationship 00:15:23.220 --> 00:15:25.259 with the Holy Spirit that we have, it's not just 00:15:25.259 --> 00:15:29.059 about us, but it's about the empowerment that 00:15:29.059 --> 00:15:32.580 comes from that in order to have bigger impact 00:15:32.580 --> 00:15:35.679 for the kingdom of Jesus. And that's why the 00:15:35.679 --> 00:15:39.679 intimacy with the Holy Spirit matters. It's because 00:15:39.679 --> 00:15:44.559 it dictates the level of power and impact that 00:15:44.559 --> 00:15:49.519 we can have as we follow Jesus. The apostles 00:15:49.519 --> 00:15:57.460 state, And here, the Lord had told them, stay, 00:15:57.700 --> 00:16:01.700 wait for the gift of the Holy Spirit. Did you 00:16:01.700 --> 00:16:07.480 notice that? He called him a gift. This is something 00:16:07.480 --> 00:16:11.200 that I am giving you. It's not based on your 00:16:11.200 --> 00:16:15.039 merits. I am giving it to you out of my love 00:16:15.039 --> 00:16:18.759 for you. And it's going to come. And it did come. 00:16:18.840 --> 00:16:25.289 The 50th day. After Passover. The 50th day. After 00:16:25.289 --> 00:16:27.809 they had the first conversation. That the Holy 00:16:27.809 --> 00:16:32.509 Spirit was going to come. The advocate. The 50th 00:16:32.509 --> 00:16:36.450 day. The Holy Spirit comes. And fulfills everything 00:16:36.450 --> 00:16:40.409 that Jesus has said. And one of the experiences. 00:16:40.490 --> 00:16:42.750 That the book of Acts tells us. That the apostles 00:16:42.750 --> 00:16:45.450 had at the beginning. Is that when they experienced 00:16:45.450 --> 00:16:47.769 the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. At this moment. 00:16:48.590 --> 00:16:53.169 It came with. certain manifestations of gifts, 00:16:53.350 --> 00:16:56.950 of tongues, that is described as tongues of fire. 00:16:57.950 --> 00:17:01.809 And what these things were, languages that they 00:17:01.809 --> 00:17:04.410 were able to speak that they did not know beforehand, 00:17:04.569 --> 00:17:08.009 in which they were able to express the mysteries 00:17:08.009 --> 00:17:11.529 of God to the audience that was there in Jerusalem. 00:17:12.589 --> 00:17:14.849 Remember what I told you earlier? Each one of 00:17:14.849 --> 00:17:19.420 these feasts. Jerusalem became full with crowds 00:17:19.420 --> 00:17:23.160 of people and tourists and people that didn't 00:17:23.160 --> 00:17:26.960 live there. And they came. So the apostles, when 00:17:26.960 --> 00:17:30.799 this happened on that 50th day, the Feast of 00:17:30.799 --> 00:17:35.039 the Weeks or Pentecost, they're surrounded by 00:17:35.039 --> 00:17:37.460 all these people from all these different languages 00:17:37.460 --> 00:17:39.960 and backgrounds. And the apostle Peter, for the 00:17:39.960 --> 00:17:44.759 first time ever in history, will preach. The 00:17:44.759 --> 00:17:48.819 gospel. And proclaim it into the world. That 00:17:48.819 --> 00:17:51.460 Jesus is the son of God. Who came to die for 00:17:51.460 --> 00:17:55.160 the sins of the world. And that he overcame the 00:17:55.160 --> 00:17:58.380 power of sin. Death. Satan. He resurrected. He 00:17:58.380 --> 00:18:00.619 ascended to heaven. And one day he will return 00:18:00.619 --> 00:18:03.940 to judge the world. And that anyone that repents 00:18:03.940 --> 00:18:07.319 of their sins. And follows him. Will receive 00:18:07.319 --> 00:18:12.019 the gift of the Holy Spirit. And he proclaims 00:18:12.019 --> 00:18:15.579 this gospel. And we have the words that he spoke 00:18:15.579 --> 00:18:19.039 right there. Peter replied to the crowd. Repent. 00:18:19.440 --> 00:18:22.359 And be baptized. Every one of you in the name 00:18:22.359 --> 00:18:24.519 of Jesus Christ. For the forgiveness of your 00:18:24.519 --> 00:18:28.960 sins. And you will receive. The gift of the Holy 00:18:28.960 --> 00:18:31.000 Spirit. Did you notice how he calls him a gift 00:18:31.000 --> 00:18:33.660 again? Using the words that Jesus said before. 00:18:34.539 --> 00:18:38.160 The Holy Spirit was going to be a gift. For you. 00:18:39.119 --> 00:18:42.380 If you repented of your sins. And decided to 00:18:42.380 --> 00:18:45.160 follow Jesus. It's not that you were perfect. 00:18:47.680 --> 00:18:51.700 But you started following Jesus. And Jesus said. 00:18:51.759 --> 00:18:53.839 For those that follow me. I'm going to give them. 00:18:54.839 --> 00:19:02.619 Another advocate. To be in them. Forever. And 00:19:02.619 --> 00:19:06.500 this is how this began. Now the apostles preached 00:19:06.500 --> 00:19:10.089 the gospel. And from that point on. Until today, 00:19:10.329 --> 00:19:15.029 the movement of Jesus on earth has expanded throughout 00:19:15.029 --> 00:19:17.630 the nations, throughout the languages, because 00:19:17.630 --> 00:19:22.150 of the work of the Holy Spirit. That's why at 00:19:22.150 --> 00:19:24.970 the end of this section, the apostle Peter tells 00:19:24.970 --> 00:19:28.990 the crowd, the promise is for you and your children, 00:19:29.130 --> 00:19:34.529 but also for all who are far off. For all whom 00:19:34.529 --> 00:19:38.089 the Lord God will call. And praise God. That 00:19:38.089 --> 00:19:42.549 that includes you and me. This is what we know. 00:19:43.289 --> 00:19:47.670 The background of this important day and how 00:19:47.670 --> 00:19:51.809 the Holy Spirit came to begin this work in the 00:19:51.809 --> 00:19:55.349 lives of people. Following what Jesus had begun. 00:19:56.170 --> 00:19:58.609 But the role of the Holy Spirit was going to 00:19:58.609 --> 00:20:01.029 now apply the work of Jesus into the life of 00:20:01.029 --> 00:20:04.289 the person. That's why the second part of this 00:20:04.289 --> 00:20:07.859 study is how it works. How does this work? Because 00:20:07.859 --> 00:20:12.279 when we understand how this works, it gives us 00:20:12.279 --> 00:20:15.759 so much more clarity and freedom to pursue this 00:20:15.759 --> 00:20:18.039 relationship of intimacy with the Holy Spirit. 00:20:19.500 --> 00:20:23.299 Now, I have to be honest, we have no idea how 00:20:23.299 --> 00:20:27.960 it works. It's like if I were to ask you, do 00:20:27.960 --> 00:20:29.940 you have Wi -Fi in your phone? And you say, yeah, 00:20:30.000 --> 00:20:32.480 it's a smartphone. Do you know how it works? 00:20:33.309 --> 00:20:35.930 Oh, there's a Wi -Fi, something, signal somewhere. 00:20:36.130 --> 00:20:39.609 But do you know how it works? Do you know the 00:20:39.609 --> 00:20:45.210 physics of it? No, I have no idea. Yeah, welcome 00:20:45.210 --> 00:20:49.009 to the world of theology. We know how this works, 00:20:49.130 --> 00:20:52.930 but we don't really know how this works. And 00:20:52.930 --> 00:20:57.390 what we know is this. Because the Apostle Paul 00:20:57.390 --> 00:21:01.730 tells us, In the book of Ephesians, something 00:21:01.730 --> 00:21:05.109 that is very clear. Now I love when I'm studying 00:21:05.109 --> 00:21:09.529 the scriptures. That making these distinctions 00:21:09.529 --> 00:21:12.630 as you're trying to connect dots. Because when 00:21:12.630 --> 00:21:14.390 you read the gospel, when you read the book of 00:21:14.390 --> 00:21:16.329 Acts, you're reading narrative. It's history. 00:21:16.609 --> 00:21:18.549 It's telling you, hey, this happened and then 00:21:18.549 --> 00:21:20.349 that happened and that person said that. And 00:21:20.349 --> 00:21:22.529 you're reading and you say, but why? How does 00:21:22.529 --> 00:21:25.690 that work? And it doesn't tell you. It's descriptive. 00:21:25.869 --> 00:21:27.509 It's just telling you what happened. That's it. 00:21:28.759 --> 00:21:31.079 But you go to other parts of the Bible, especially 00:21:31.079 --> 00:21:33.980 the letters of the apostles, and that's not narrative. 00:21:34.720 --> 00:21:36.900 It's not describing something that happened. 00:21:37.019 --> 00:21:39.859 It's telling you how it happens and how it should 00:21:39.859 --> 00:21:44.180 work and why it's this way. That is much more 00:21:44.180 --> 00:21:46.859 what I call prescriptive. And when you engage 00:21:46.859 --> 00:21:49.059 with those passages, oh, it helps you understand, 00:21:49.279 --> 00:21:52.140 ah, okay, now I get it. So it works this way. 00:21:52.420 --> 00:21:55.140 And when you go to Ephesians, it tells us how 00:21:55.140 --> 00:21:58.440 this works. The Apostle Paul writes to these 00:21:58.440 --> 00:22:00.880 Christians in the city of Ephesus, which was 00:22:00.880 --> 00:22:04.880 a famous city, because people worshipped there 00:22:04.880 --> 00:22:07.720 the goddess Artemis. And today we still have 00:22:07.720 --> 00:22:11.059 the ruins of ancient Ephesus. In fact, some of 00:22:11.059 --> 00:22:13.799 you have already visited, perhaps, that area. 00:22:15.279 --> 00:22:18.359 But for the first Christians in that city, when 00:22:18.359 --> 00:22:20.140 the Apostle Paul is trying to help them understand 00:22:20.140 --> 00:22:22.799 how this whole thing works, he tells them this. 00:22:23.240 --> 00:22:27.380 Will you read it with me? And you also were included 00:22:27.380 --> 00:22:31.339 in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the 00:22:31.339 --> 00:22:34.259 gospel of your salvation, and having believed, 00:22:34.460 --> 00:22:38.359 you were marked in him with a seal, the promised 00:22:38.359 --> 00:22:42.579 Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our 00:22:42.579 --> 00:22:46.319 inheritance until the redemption of those who 00:22:46.319 --> 00:22:50.079 are God's possession to the praise of his glory. 00:22:52.039 --> 00:22:56.319 He tells us, look, Christians from Ephesus, you 00:22:56.319 --> 00:22:58.880 are confused about how the Holy Spirit works 00:22:58.880 --> 00:23:02.299 and all these things. Let me tell you. Do you 00:23:02.299 --> 00:23:06.920 remember when you heard the word of truth? What 00:23:06.920 --> 00:23:08.940 word of truth are you talking about? The gospel 00:23:08.940 --> 00:23:10.799 of your salvation. Oh yeah, the gospel. Yeah, 00:23:10.839 --> 00:23:12.880 I remember when I heard the gospel. Well, do 00:23:12.880 --> 00:23:14.920 you remember when you believed in it? Yeah, I 00:23:14.920 --> 00:23:17.299 remember when I believed in the gospel. Well, 00:23:17.400 --> 00:23:19.839 on that moment, when you heard the gospel and 00:23:19.839 --> 00:23:22.420 you believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit. 00:23:23.849 --> 00:23:26.509 At that moment, the Holy Spirit came to live 00:23:26.509 --> 00:23:29.109 in you, like Jesus said, will be in you, not 00:23:29.109 --> 00:23:33.369 just with you anymore. And at that moment, he 00:23:33.369 --> 00:23:37.890 came to be like a seal that is guaranteeing something. 00:23:38.309 --> 00:23:42.349 What is it guaranteeing? It's guaranteeing that 00:23:42.349 --> 00:23:45.250 you will experience the fullness of your salvation 00:23:45.250 --> 00:23:48.809 all the way until the day of redemption when 00:23:48.809 --> 00:23:53.390 Jesus comes back. Because on that day, when you 00:23:53.390 --> 00:23:55.589 said yes to Jesus, I want to follow you, and 00:23:55.589 --> 00:23:58.529 you repented of your sins, like Peter said, you 00:23:58.529 --> 00:24:01.730 will be given the gift of the Holy Spirit. It 00:24:01.730 --> 00:24:05.869 was a gift that Jesus gave you that day that 00:24:05.869 --> 00:24:10.589 you asked Jesus to save you. And on that day 00:24:10.589 --> 00:24:14.869 on, the Holy Spirit is going to be in you forever, 00:24:15.130 --> 00:24:18.849 until the day of redemption. He's there to stay. 00:24:20.240 --> 00:24:22.420 And who's going to receive all the glory and 00:24:22.420 --> 00:24:29.799 the praise because of this? Oh, God. I find that 00:24:29.799 --> 00:24:35.839 revealing and freeing so much. Because it means 00:24:35.839 --> 00:24:40.059 that if you believed in Jesus Christ and you 00:24:40.059 --> 00:24:43.519 are following him, if you truly, truly believed 00:24:43.519 --> 00:24:46.799 in Jesus Christ and you're following him, then 00:24:46.799 --> 00:24:50.170 you have the Holy Spirit in you. Because the 00:24:50.170 --> 00:24:52.089 day you heard and you believed, you were sealed 00:24:52.089 --> 00:24:54.890 with the Holy Spirit. And that is something that 00:24:54.890 --> 00:24:58.690 we have to understand. Why do I say that? Because 00:24:58.690 --> 00:25:02.109 throughout the many years I met Christians that 00:25:02.109 --> 00:25:04.750 are following Jesus, but they are wondering... 00:25:05.230 --> 00:25:06.990 Pastor Paulo, I do not know if I have the Holy 00:25:06.990 --> 00:25:08.750 Spirit. How do I not have the Holy Spirit? Maybe 00:25:08.750 --> 00:25:11.269 I don't have the Holy Spirit. Do I need to do 00:25:11.269 --> 00:25:13.470 something to have the Holy Spirit? And they go 00:25:13.470 --> 00:25:15.450 to a church and the church tells them, oh well, 00:25:15.549 --> 00:25:17.230 if you don't fall on the floor and start having 00:25:17.230 --> 00:25:19.650 some kind of shaking or something, you don't 00:25:19.650 --> 00:25:23.289 have the Holy Spirit. And they try, but it doesn't 00:25:23.289 --> 00:25:27.529 work. And that creates so much fear and anxiety. 00:25:29.309 --> 00:25:31.349 That's why Paul writes this to the Ephesians. 00:25:33.579 --> 00:25:37.720 Don't worry about any of that stuff. If you believe 00:25:37.720 --> 00:25:41.160 in Jesus as your Savior, the moment you heard 00:25:41.160 --> 00:25:43.319 and believe, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit. 00:25:43.480 --> 00:25:47.180 The second thing is that sometimes people say, 00:25:47.279 --> 00:25:49.039 yeah, but I do not know if the Holy Spirit is 00:25:49.039 --> 00:25:51.839 going to get tired of me because sometimes I'm 00:25:51.839 --> 00:25:54.240 not obedient, I don't pray as much, I don't read 00:25:54.240 --> 00:25:58.000 my Bible, and sometimes I'm mean, and I do things 00:25:58.000 --> 00:26:01.039 I shouldn't. So maybe the Holy Spirit is going 00:26:01.039 --> 00:26:05.119 to get tired of me. And then the person says, 00:26:05.180 --> 00:26:09.880 you know, I'm afraid that I have committed the 00:26:09.880 --> 00:26:14.000 unpardonable sin. So maybe the Holy Spirit left 00:26:14.000 --> 00:26:18.660 me. And they are stuck in that place of uncertainty. 00:26:20.059 --> 00:26:24.160 And here what Jesus said and what Paul says repeats 00:26:24.160 --> 00:26:28.079 the same thing. Look, the day you believe in 00:26:28.079 --> 00:26:31.079 Jesus, if you truly believe in Jesus, Jesus gave 00:26:31.079 --> 00:26:36.119 you a gift. Called the Holy Spirit. And that 00:26:36.119 --> 00:26:40.119 gift is to stay with you until the day of redemption. 00:26:40.380 --> 00:26:42.519 He's not going to leave you because he got tired 00:26:42.519 --> 00:26:47.240 of you. Have you ever been in a dating relationship 00:26:47.240 --> 00:26:49.599 where the guy keeps breaking up with you? He 00:26:49.599 --> 00:26:51.420 doesn't like you anymore. He comes back. He says, 00:26:51.480 --> 00:26:53.380 actually, I changed my mind. I like you. You 00:26:53.380 --> 00:26:56.960 take him back. And then he says, I don't like 00:26:56.960 --> 00:26:58.839 you anymore. You break up again. And then he 00:26:58.839 --> 00:27:03.089 comes back a third time. By the fourth time, 00:27:03.190 --> 00:27:04.789 what you already knew the first time is confirmed. 00:27:04.869 --> 00:27:08.490 This guy doesn't really love me, does he? So 00:27:08.490 --> 00:27:11.670 then you break up for sure. You cannot have an 00:27:11.670 --> 00:27:14.470 intimate relationship with someone that keeps 00:27:14.470 --> 00:27:17.849 dropping you like that. The Holy Spirit is not 00:27:17.849 --> 00:27:20.849 like that boyfriend. Well, I'm tired of you. 00:27:20.849 --> 00:27:22.910 I don't like you anymore. Look, you are such 00:27:22.910 --> 00:27:26.890 a sinner. No, I think I'm out. Hey, wait, I want 00:27:26.890 --> 00:27:29.890 to come back in. No, it doesn't work that way. 00:27:31.529 --> 00:27:35.490 The moment you believe, it's a gift to stay with 00:27:35.490 --> 00:27:42.529 you. Really? You see how that changes everything? 00:27:43.630 --> 00:27:48.470 Because now I can have freedom just to seek a 00:27:48.470 --> 00:27:52.130 relationship with the Holy Spirit without the 00:27:52.130 --> 00:27:55.730 fear that He's not going to be happy and leave 00:27:55.730 --> 00:28:03.940 me. The Holy Spirit comes to be with you. And 00:28:03.940 --> 00:28:08.240 what He does is amazing. It's really amazing. 00:28:10.380 --> 00:28:12.720 What is He going to do all of this time forever? 00:28:13.160 --> 00:28:16.599 You know, it's like, with me? Yes, with you. 00:28:17.019 --> 00:28:19.740 I'll tell you what He's going to do. First thing, 00:28:20.000 --> 00:28:22.980 He's going to indulge you. He comes to live in 00:28:22.980 --> 00:28:26.019 you. Which means that no matter where you go 00:28:26.019 --> 00:28:28.779 or where you are, you have God's presence in 00:28:28.779 --> 00:28:33.099 you. So the next time you decide to go places 00:28:33.099 --> 00:28:37.140 you shouldn't, remember who is in you. You cannot 00:28:37.140 --> 00:28:41.220 leave him at the door or at church, at ECB. He's 00:28:41.220 --> 00:28:45.859 in you to stay. And now that he's indwelling 00:28:45.859 --> 00:28:49.740 you, he justifies you. He starts making the salvation 00:28:49.740 --> 00:28:54.640 of Jesus apply to you. To be justified means... 00:28:55.630 --> 00:28:58.390 That he has forgiven all of your sins, washed 00:28:58.390 --> 00:29:02.509 away all the guilt and the shame from you. And 00:29:02.509 --> 00:29:05.029 in addition, he has given you the fullness of 00:29:05.029 --> 00:29:07.430 the righteousness and perfection of Jesus in 00:29:07.430 --> 00:29:11.930 you, in your account. Now, God does not see you 00:29:11.930 --> 00:29:15.430 for your imperfections. Like, oh, he's not good 00:29:15.430 --> 00:29:18.849 enough. No, he sees you with the righteousness 00:29:18.849 --> 00:29:22.329 of Jesus in you. You are in Christ. Christ is 00:29:22.329 --> 00:29:28.029 in you. He justifies. But now that he's in you 00:29:28.029 --> 00:29:31.369 and you are free from condemnation and guilt 00:29:31.369 --> 00:29:34.170 and shame, because he's not going to shame you, 00:29:34.329 --> 00:29:37.150 you're already forgiven for all of your sins. 00:29:38.369 --> 00:29:42.430 Then he's going to sanctify you. He wants you 00:29:42.430 --> 00:29:45.650 to experience his life in you because before 00:29:45.650 --> 00:29:47.930 you came to know Christ, the only thing you could 00:29:47.930 --> 00:29:51.289 experience was your sinfulness. And it wounded 00:29:51.289 --> 00:29:55.119 you, didn't it? It hurt you. I hurt others. Well 00:29:55.119 --> 00:30:00.380 now he comes to try to help you. So that you 00:30:00.380 --> 00:30:07.559 can experience his life. Love. Joy. Peace. Faith. 00:30:07.960 --> 00:30:12.619 Faithfulness. Self -control. All these things. 00:30:12.960 --> 00:30:17.480 The nature of who he is. Now you experiencing 00:30:17.480 --> 00:30:23.849 it. That's why. As you start following Jesus 00:30:23.849 --> 00:30:26.170 and time passes, you notice, well, I'm not the 00:30:26.170 --> 00:30:29.049 same person I was before. There are desires that 00:30:29.049 --> 00:30:33.990 have changed. And I have just a new nature in 00:30:33.990 --> 00:30:37.230 me. That's the Holy Spirit. It's sanctifying 00:30:37.230 --> 00:30:42.430 you. And then, that He has saved you, He wants 00:30:42.430 --> 00:30:45.750 you to fulfill the purposes and plans He has 00:30:45.750 --> 00:30:50.690 for you. So He's going to guide you. He directs 00:30:50.690 --> 00:30:54.549 you. And then on top of that, he's going to empower 00:30:54.549 --> 00:30:58.210 you so that everything that he's calling you 00:30:58.210 --> 00:31:00.569 to do, you will have the giftedness you require, 00:31:00.970 --> 00:31:03.990 the discernment, the wisdom you require, the 00:31:03.990 --> 00:31:07.250 resources you require to fulfill his purposes. 00:31:07.329 --> 00:31:13.490 He's going to empower you. And if you die before 00:31:13.490 --> 00:31:17.269 Jesus comes back, the same Holy Spirit that resurrected 00:31:17.269 --> 00:31:20.450 Jesus from the dead, guess what he's going to 00:31:20.450 --> 00:31:23.900 do with you? He's going to resurrect you from 00:31:23.900 --> 00:31:28.779 the dead. And you will become immortal. And you 00:31:28.779 --> 00:31:31.559 will become sinless. And that is what we call 00:31:31.559 --> 00:31:36.180 glorification. And if you happen to still be 00:31:36.180 --> 00:31:38.279 alive when Jesus comes back. You're going to 00:31:38.279 --> 00:31:41.839 be changed in an instant. And who is going to 00:31:41.839 --> 00:31:45.859 do that transformation in you? The Holy Spirit. 00:31:47.240 --> 00:31:50.660 The advocate that Jesus promised to send the 00:31:50.660 --> 00:31:54.369 gift. That he gave you the moment you believed 00:31:54.369 --> 00:32:00.890 in him. This is what the Holy Spirit does. And 00:32:00.890 --> 00:32:06.150 that's why this gift is so amazing. And the more 00:32:06.150 --> 00:32:10.009 you understand it. The more you want more of 00:32:10.009 --> 00:32:13.130 it. More of you Holy Spirit. In my understanding 00:32:13.130 --> 00:32:16.029 of you. In my intimacy of you. In my experience 00:32:16.029 --> 00:32:22.500 of you. I want to know you more deeply. I understand 00:32:22.500 --> 00:32:24.900 that if you are not a Christian, some of this 00:32:24.900 --> 00:32:30.420 stuff may sound like cuckoo, like weird. I also 00:32:30.420 --> 00:32:32.799 understand that if you are a new believer, many 00:32:32.799 --> 00:32:37.480 of these things are new to you. But this is part 00:32:37.480 --> 00:32:40.579 of our growth and our understanding in following 00:32:40.579 --> 00:32:45.099 Jesus. Because Jesus wants you to have an intimate 00:32:45.099 --> 00:32:47.299 relationship with the Holy Spirit in your life. 00:32:48.940 --> 00:32:52.299 That's why I love listening to stories, testimonies 00:32:52.299 --> 00:32:54.880 of people that came from so many different backgrounds 00:32:54.880 --> 00:32:58.480 and they tell the story of how is it that they 00:32:58.480 --> 00:33:00.359 came to know Jesus and then they start telling 00:33:00.359 --> 00:33:02.259 you this story and you have so many things in 00:33:02.259 --> 00:33:05.240 common and you feel so much joy because you realize 00:33:05.240 --> 00:33:07.440 that your experience is also somebody else's 00:33:07.440 --> 00:33:13.700 experience. There's a guy, his name is Beckett 00:33:13.700 --> 00:33:16.609 Cook. I enjoy reading his life story. I enjoy 00:33:16.609 --> 00:33:20.069 watching some of the interviews he does and videos 00:33:20.069 --> 00:33:24.349 that he has produced. But Beckett was born in 00:33:24.349 --> 00:33:26.609 Texas, the same state where we were serving before 00:33:26.609 --> 00:33:29.710 in the U .S. before we came here. And from there, 00:33:29.730 --> 00:33:31.829 he moved to California to pursue his career. 00:33:33.259 --> 00:33:36.079 He pursued his career in the creative arts and 00:33:36.079 --> 00:33:40.500 fashion and stage creation. So he started working 00:33:40.500 --> 00:33:43.359 with lots of artists and famous people. And he 00:33:43.359 --> 00:33:47.599 really grew a lot in his career. He was at the 00:33:47.599 --> 00:33:50.099 peak of his career, visiting lots of different 00:33:50.099 --> 00:33:53.660 countries. And just like the world, he was living 00:33:53.660 --> 00:33:58.650 the life. And one day, as he's in this dinner 00:33:58.650 --> 00:34:02.190 with the famous people and drinking and talking 00:34:02.190 --> 00:34:06.470 about different things, he perceives the emptiness 00:34:06.470 --> 00:34:10.389 of it all. And he remembers asking, is this all 00:34:10.389 --> 00:34:15.889 there is? Is there more to life than just this? 00:34:17.170 --> 00:34:22.210 Oh, and he had pursued everything available to 00:34:22.210 --> 00:34:25.599 him. The world had told him, hey, Beckett, if 00:34:25.599 --> 00:34:27.619 you have same -sex attraction, you pursue that. 00:34:27.840 --> 00:34:29.539 It's going to make you happy. It's going to fulfill 00:34:29.539 --> 00:34:34.380 you. So he pursued it. And he had lots of relationships 00:34:34.380 --> 00:34:37.579 throughout the years. He had experienced the 00:34:37.579 --> 00:34:41.639 money, the success, and the sex. And yet he's 00:34:41.639 --> 00:34:45.199 there sitting in that place, wondering, feeling 00:34:45.199 --> 00:34:52.969 empty. Is there more to life? You see, He has 00:34:52.969 --> 00:34:57.969 not yet experienced at that moment what the Apostle 00:34:57.969 --> 00:35:03.150 Paul simply says, the love of God in you. Because 00:35:03.150 --> 00:35:05.849 when the Holy Spirit comes to you when you believe 00:35:05.849 --> 00:35:10.510 Jesus, the Apostle Paul simply puts it in these 00:35:10.510 --> 00:35:15.349 words, God's love has been poured out into our 00:35:15.349 --> 00:35:18.809 hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given 00:35:18.809 --> 00:35:24.260 to us. God's love, the presence of the Holy Spirit 00:35:24.260 --> 00:35:27.440 in you after believing in Jesus, that is what 00:35:27.440 --> 00:35:31.320 is missing. That is why you feel there's more 00:35:31.320 --> 00:35:34.300 to life that you are not experiencing. There's 00:35:34.300 --> 00:35:36.619 something that is missing that you do not know 00:35:36.619 --> 00:35:39.820 what it is. And Beckett had to discover what 00:35:39.820 --> 00:35:44.179 that was from his own experience. So he writes 00:35:44.179 --> 00:35:47.760 his biography in this book, A Change of Affection. 00:35:48.389 --> 00:35:51.070 And he says, you know, I was in California wondering 00:35:51.070 --> 00:35:53.789 about all these things in my mind. I made these 00:35:53.789 --> 00:35:56.670 Christians in a restaurant. I did not know them. 00:35:56.690 --> 00:35:58.849 They invited me to their church. So I decided, 00:35:58.929 --> 00:36:02.510 okay, you know, couldn't hurt. I'll just go and 00:36:02.510 --> 00:36:06.949 see. So he went to their church. And he is there. 00:36:07.030 --> 00:36:09.710 And guess what is the topic of the message on 00:36:09.710 --> 00:36:14.280 that day? The gospel. The person is preaching 00:36:14.280 --> 00:36:17.159 the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ, that 00:36:17.159 --> 00:36:19.480 you are a sinner, but Jesus came to die for you. 00:36:19.539 --> 00:36:21.980 What's missing in your life is the love of God. 00:36:22.000 --> 00:36:25.260 He wants to fill you with that and all of that. 00:36:25.360 --> 00:36:28.059 And the more he was listening to it, Beckett 00:36:28.059 --> 00:36:33.150 was like realizing this is what it is. This is 00:36:33.150 --> 00:36:35.989 what's been missing. But he was wrestling. Because 00:36:35.989 --> 00:36:39.090 previous to stepping into that church that day, 00:36:39.170 --> 00:36:41.409 he thought Christians are weird. They're ignorant. 00:36:41.809 --> 00:36:43.409 You know, they have no idea what they're talking 00:36:43.409 --> 00:36:48.250 about. And he had all these preconceptions. So 00:36:48.250 --> 00:36:51.429 he decided that at the end of the service, he 00:36:51.429 --> 00:36:56.090 went to the front to be prayed for. But he tells 00:36:56.090 --> 00:36:58.570 the person, he says, you know, I'm not a Christian. 00:36:59.050 --> 00:37:01.510 I don't really know what to believe. But I'm 00:37:01.510 --> 00:37:04.460 here. So the person says, fine, I'll pray for 00:37:04.460 --> 00:37:07.280 you. The person prayed for him. He went and sat 00:37:07.280 --> 00:37:11.780 down. As he was sitting down, suddenly, he says, 00:37:11.880 --> 00:37:15.119 I became overwhelmed by this need to start crying 00:37:15.119 --> 00:37:19.199 and weeping and sobbing. And it would not leave 00:37:19.199 --> 00:37:22.679 him. He was just sobbing and sobbing for a while. 00:37:23.800 --> 00:37:27.280 But that sobbing, what was happening in his life, 00:37:27.340 --> 00:37:31.170 was like something was washing away. He didn't 00:37:31.170 --> 00:37:33.389 understand. He hadn't heard the sermon yet. He 00:37:33.389 --> 00:37:37.550 was being justified. The washing of his sins, 00:37:37.849 --> 00:37:41.429 the righteousness of Jesus, he was experiencing 00:37:41.429 --> 00:37:44.889 this at the moment. And he tells us in his book 00:37:44.889 --> 00:37:49.289 what happened. In that moment, everything became 00:37:49.289 --> 00:37:54.559 clear. God was real. Jesus was real. The Bible 00:37:54.559 --> 00:37:58.599 was real. The resurrection was real. Heaven was 00:37:58.599 --> 00:38:02.340 real. Hell was real. It was all real. Everything 00:38:02.340 --> 00:38:06.519 that I had dismissed as a fairy tale was all 00:38:06.519 --> 00:38:11.679 true. Like Paul, it was as if the scales fell 00:38:11.679 --> 00:38:16.320 from my eyes and I was able to see. It was as 00:38:16.320 --> 00:38:20.360 if a curtain had parted and I could finally see 00:38:20.360 --> 00:38:25.059 the truth. When you read these words, you can 00:38:25.059 --> 00:38:27.360 identify with them as well if you have come to 00:38:27.360 --> 00:38:30.780 know Jesus. Now you understand. Now you see. 00:38:31.960 --> 00:38:34.900 And it's not because you became smarter. No, 00:38:34.980 --> 00:38:36.760 it's because you have the Holy Spirit in you 00:38:36.760 --> 00:38:40.539 that is justifying you, sanctifying you, working 00:38:40.539 --> 00:38:43.340 in you. And that's what continued in his life. 00:38:43.940 --> 00:38:46.639 He tells us many things. He says, when I was 00:38:46.639 --> 00:38:50.260 fully immersed in that lifestyle I lived before, 00:38:50.730 --> 00:38:54.090 My entire identity was wrapped in my sexual orientation. 00:38:55.210 --> 00:38:58.269 The only thing that changed that identity for 00:38:58.269 --> 00:39:01.590 me was the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 00:39:02.010 --> 00:39:04.829 It required nothing less than a supernatural 00:39:04.829 --> 00:39:08.769 encounter with the living God. I don't believe 00:39:08.769 --> 00:39:11.789 that lasting change of behavior is possible without 00:39:11.789 --> 00:39:16.070 Holy Spirit transformation. Sanctification that 00:39:16.070 --> 00:39:19.750 he's talking about. And then he says, after my 00:39:19.750 --> 00:39:24.630 stunning encounter with God, I knew I could no 00:39:24.630 --> 00:39:27.590 longer pursue romantic relationships with men. 00:39:28.010 --> 00:39:32.269 I had finally come to the realization that homosexual 00:39:32.269 --> 00:39:35.590 behavior was a distortion of God's perfect design 00:39:35.590 --> 00:39:39.789 for human sexuality and flourishing. Surprisingly, 00:39:40.070 --> 00:39:44.889 I was perfectly fine with that realization. The 00:39:44.889 --> 00:39:48.050 complete reversal of my opinions and pursuits 00:39:48.050 --> 00:39:52.449 in this area worked like this. I had just met 00:39:52.449 --> 00:39:55.530 the king of the universe. The last thing in my 00:39:55.530 --> 00:40:02.710 mind was men. My identity is no longer in my 00:40:02.710 --> 00:40:07.289 sexuality, but in Christ. And to be honest, I 00:40:07.289 --> 00:40:11.050 still struggle with sexual desire for men. That 00:40:11.050 --> 00:40:15.130 didn't go away. But I have to say that after 00:40:15.130 --> 00:40:17.489 my encounter with Jesus, by the grace of God, 00:40:17.769 --> 00:40:21.429 that desire has greatly diminished. I am more 00:40:21.429 --> 00:40:25.489 than willing to deny myself, take up my cross, 00:40:25.730 --> 00:40:31.210 and follow Him because He is worth it. To say 00:40:31.210 --> 00:40:34.369 that every other relationship paled in comparison 00:40:34.369 --> 00:40:37.429 with my new relationship with Christ would be 00:40:37.429 --> 00:40:42.190 a massive understatement. How could I hold on 00:40:42.190 --> 00:40:46.869 to anything that didn't bring me closer to him? 00:40:47.329 --> 00:40:50.630 My relationship with Christ was the real deal. 00:40:51.369 --> 00:40:56.510 I knew in my bones that it was what I had been 00:40:56.510 --> 00:40:59.849 longing for my whole life. It was what I was 00:40:59.849 --> 00:41:04.829 made for. My faith in Christ compels me to pursue 00:41:04.829 --> 00:41:08.329 a life of obedience. The thought of being disobedient 00:41:08.329 --> 00:41:11.630 to the one who took on himself the penalty of 00:41:11.630 --> 00:41:15.710 my sin makes me sick. The fleeting pleasures 00:41:15.710 --> 00:41:19.769 of sin are not worth the agony of grieving the 00:41:19.769 --> 00:41:23.110 person I love the most. It is said that there 00:41:23.110 --> 00:41:26.630 is no one more miserable than a Christian living 00:41:26.630 --> 00:41:33.949 in sin. I couldn't agree more. He had his identity 00:41:33.949 --> 00:41:38.210 on something that was not God. And any one of 00:41:38.210 --> 00:41:40.590 us, before we came to know Christ, we had our 00:41:40.590 --> 00:41:44.150 identity on something. And whatever that something 00:41:44.150 --> 00:41:49.130 was, was a distortion. Because when we come to 00:41:49.130 --> 00:41:51.610 know Jesus, now we realize who we truly are. 00:41:52.190 --> 00:41:57.590 A loved son and daughter of the Most High One. 00:41:58.210 --> 00:42:01.869 And the gift of the Holy Spirit in you. reveals 00:42:01.869 --> 00:42:04.210 that to you, and now you're able to see yourself 00:42:04.210 --> 00:42:07.550 for the first time through the eyes of truth. 00:42:07.730 --> 00:42:10.550 Why truth? Because it is the spirit of truth 00:42:10.550 --> 00:42:16.510 that is in you now. With time, Beckett not only 00:42:16.510 --> 00:42:19.389 became a Christian, but he decided to go... To 00:42:19.389 --> 00:42:21.829 seminary, he wanted to serve God with his life. 00:42:21.849 --> 00:42:24.489 He did not know exactly how. And one of the things 00:42:24.489 --> 00:42:27.090 that God led him to start was the Beckett Cook 00:42:27.090 --> 00:42:30.710 Show, a program that he has on YouTube. You can 00:42:30.710 --> 00:42:35.190 see his videos, lots of interviews, lots of people 00:42:35.190 --> 00:42:36.829 with different backgrounds. And the Christian's 00:42:36.829 --> 00:42:41.869 testimony is fascinating. But this is how this 00:42:41.869 --> 00:42:46.079 works. This is what the Apostle Paul was writing 00:42:46.079 --> 00:42:48.800 to the Ephesians. This is what Jesus was telling 00:42:48.800 --> 00:42:50.840 the Apostles was going to happen. This is what 00:42:50.840 --> 00:42:54.380 Peter was preaching for the first time. It's 00:42:54.380 --> 00:42:57.639 the invitation to encounter God because the Holy 00:42:57.639 --> 00:43:05.239 Spirit can live in you. And therefore, for us, 00:43:05.320 --> 00:43:10.480 the focus of our walk with God is one about alignment. 00:43:12.000 --> 00:43:14.579 When you are misaligned with the Holy Spirit, 00:43:14.699 --> 00:43:17.219 you'll know it. And therefore, your job is to 00:43:17.219 --> 00:43:19.920 become misaligned with the Holy Spirit. For those 00:43:19.920 --> 00:43:21.699 of you who are married, you can understand what 00:43:21.699 --> 00:43:25.039 I mean. If you are not good with your spouse, 00:43:25.239 --> 00:43:27.340 things are not great. You walk in, it's quiet, 00:43:27.559 --> 00:43:30.019 and you may ask, is everything okay? I say, no, 00:43:30.059 --> 00:43:33.079 I'm fine. Everything's fine. It's like, it's 00:43:33.079 --> 00:43:37.780 not fine. You know. And until you sit down and 00:43:37.780 --> 00:43:39.920 you talk and you align things, okay, now things 00:43:39.920 --> 00:43:42.710 are good. And with the Holy Spirit, it's like 00:43:42.710 --> 00:43:44.530 that. If you're not aligned with him, you will 00:43:44.530 --> 00:43:49.210 know you are not aligned with him. And it is 00:43:49.210 --> 00:43:51.630 very important that we align ourselves with the 00:43:51.630 --> 00:43:54.190 Holy Spirit. And I'll tell you why. To understand 00:43:54.190 --> 00:43:57.769 this, we have to read. I want to go quickly through 00:43:57.769 --> 00:44:00.329 this story because it's just a point of illustration. 00:44:01.750 --> 00:44:04.070 But the Apostle Paul was preaching his second 00:44:04.070 --> 00:44:06.349 missionary journey. He went from Corinth all 00:44:06.349 --> 00:44:09.110 the way to Ephesus. And that's how he encountered 00:44:09.110 --> 00:44:13.010 the Ephesians for the first time. When he goes 00:44:13.010 --> 00:44:16.909 to Ephesus, he discovers something that stopped 00:44:16.909 --> 00:44:21.489 happening. It was a pagan area, lots of worship 00:44:21.489 --> 00:44:24.849 of idols and things. There was a Jewish community 00:44:24.849 --> 00:44:27.449 there as well. But we are told in the book of 00:44:27.449 --> 00:44:30.429 Acts that this happened. Some Jews who went around 00:44:30.429 --> 00:44:33.369 driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the 00:44:33.369 --> 00:44:36.170 name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon 00:44:36.170 --> 00:44:39.699 -possessed. They would say, In the name of the 00:44:39.699 --> 00:44:42.860 Jesus, whom Paul preaches, I command you to come 00:44:42.860 --> 00:44:47.659 out. They thought that it was a magic formula 00:44:47.659 --> 00:44:50.840 of some sort. And it wasn't. You cannot fake 00:44:50.840 --> 00:44:53.559 the power of the Spirit. If He's not in you, 00:44:53.619 --> 00:44:58.599 He's not in you. So they learned the hard way. 00:44:59.300 --> 00:45:02.739 Seven sons of Jehovah, a Jewish chief priest, 00:45:02.960 --> 00:45:05.900 were doing this. One day the evil spirit answered 00:45:05.900 --> 00:45:09.769 them, Jesus I know. Paul, I know about, but who 00:45:09.769 --> 00:45:13.789 are you? Then the man who had the evil spirit 00:45:13.789 --> 00:45:17.269 jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave 00:45:17.269 --> 00:45:19.829 them such a beating that they ran out of the 00:45:19.829 --> 00:45:24.610 house naked and bleeding. When this became known 00:45:24.610 --> 00:45:27.409 to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they 00:45:27.409 --> 00:45:29.730 were all seized with fear and the name of the 00:45:29.730 --> 00:45:33.369 Lord Jesus was held in high honor. You can imagine, 00:45:33.489 --> 00:45:36.769 they were realizing, oh, this Christian thing 00:45:36.769 --> 00:45:40.579 is real power. We cannot fake it. By the way, 00:45:40.619 --> 00:45:42.800 just as a parenthesis, if this whole thing about 00:45:42.800 --> 00:45:45.440 demon and evil spirits, all of that is new to 00:45:45.440 --> 00:45:47.960 you, you don't understand it, you want to learn 00:45:47.960 --> 00:45:51.980 more about those things. In my own journey of 00:45:51.980 --> 00:45:55.079 studying these things, apart from my experience, 00:45:55.639 --> 00:45:58.320 these three books were very insightful in different 00:45:58.320 --> 00:46:01.760 ways. Demonic Falls, written by a psychiatrist. 00:46:02.920 --> 00:46:05.539 He was writing it from the perspective of a psychiatrist 00:46:05.539 --> 00:46:08.280 that had to work with many cases like this. Fascinating. 00:46:08.780 --> 00:46:11.519 The other one is They Shall Expel Demons, written 00:46:11.519 --> 00:46:14.900 by a pastor who served for more than 30 years. 00:46:15.119 --> 00:46:17.380 And he had to deal with these experiences that 00:46:17.380 --> 00:46:19.559 he was not planning for and all the things he 00:46:19.559 --> 00:46:23.219 learned from it. And the other work from a theologian 00:46:23.219 --> 00:46:25.559 that is trying to figure out where do demons 00:46:25.559 --> 00:46:28.300 come from and what does that do? And so he goes 00:46:28.300 --> 00:46:31.309 into the Greek. Into the history, into all this 00:46:31.309 --> 00:46:33.489 stuff. So all these different books talk about 00:46:33.489 --> 00:46:35.110 it. But end of the parenthesis, let's go back 00:46:35.110 --> 00:46:38.849 to the text. Many of those who believe now came 00:46:38.849 --> 00:46:42.909 and openly confessed what they had done. A number 00:46:42.909 --> 00:46:46.110 who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls 00:46:46.110 --> 00:46:48.889 together and burned them publicly. When they 00:46:48.889 --> 00:46:51.230 calculated the value of the scrolls, the total 00:46:51.230 --> 00:46:56.090 came to 50 ,000 drachmas. Now, one drachma was 00:46:56.090 --> 00:46:59.449 the salary of a day. So 50 ,000 days of salary. 00:47:00.630 --> 00:47:05.690 Imagine that. A lot of money. In this way, the 00:47:05.690 --> 00:47:08.750 word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power. 00:47:10.130 --> 00:47:13.190 These people came to believe. And what happened 00:47:13.190 --> 00:47:14.670 the moment they heard the gospel and believed? 00:47:14.769 --> 00:47:16.809 The apostle Paul wrote to them later in Ephesians. 00:47:17.090 --> 00:47:21.050 What happened at that moment? Ah, the Holy Spirit 00:47:21.050 --> 00:47:24.039 came to live in them. They were sealed. And why 00:47:24.039 --> 00:47:26.340 did they start feeling convicted after they started 00:47:26.340 --> 00:47:28.820 following Jesus? You have a book in your house 00:47:28.820 --> 00:47:30.900 you need to get rid of. Oh yeah, but I spent 00:47:30.900 --> 00:47:34.280 a lot of money on that book. Yes, but that witchcraft 00:47:34.280 --> 00:47:36.239 is not what I saved you for. You need to get 00:47:36.239 --> 00:47:39.559 rid of it. Where was that conviction coming from? 00:47:39.980 --> 00:47:43.119 Ah, the Holy Spirit. And they went, took all 00:47:43.119 --> 00:47:45.880 that stuff, and they were willing to do that 00:47:45.880 --> 00:47:49.219 which was hard. Come in the open and remove it. 00:47:51.019 --> 00:47:54.679 The Holy Spirit wants to transform you. And he 00:47:54.679 --> 00:47:57.980 will require that you respond to him in the right 00:47:57.980 --> 00:48:01.920 way. Because what is at stake is not just your 00:48:01.920 --> 00:48:05.280 transformation. But would you read again, but 00:48:05.280 --> 00:48:07.539 this time with me out loud, what was the outcome 00:48:07.539 --> 00:48:12.079 of this work? In this way, the word of the Lord 00:48:12.079 --> 00:48:18.440 spread widely and grew in power. When God's people, 00:48:18.619 --> 00:48:21.019 followers of Jesus, became aligned with the work 00:48:21.019 --> 00:48:24.219 of the Holy Spirit in their lives, the witnessing 00:48:24.219 --> 00:48:30.139 got much more impactful. The word of the Lord 00:48:30.139 --> 00:48:34.559 spread widely and also there was more power as 00:48:34.559 --> 00:48:37.739 a result. Why? Because the power of the Holy 00:48:37.739 --> 00:48:41.900 Spirit now could flow through them towards others. 00:48:44.480 --> 00:48:49.000 That It's how this works. And that is why it's 00:48:49.000 --> 00:48:52.719 so important that you and I take this call of 00:48:52.719 --> 00:48:56.920 intimacy with the Holy Spirit seriously. That's 00:48:56.920 --> 00:49:00.340 why I want to finish this study with three clear 00:49:00.340 --> 00:49:02.780 commands that the Apostle Paul writes about our 00:49:02.780 --> 00:49:05.440 relationship with the Holy Spirit. Very precise 00:49:05.440 --> 00:49:08.679 verses, but very clear commands. The first one 00:49:08.679 --> 00:49:12.360 is this. Since we live by the Spirit, let us 00:49:12.360 --> 00:49:16.320 keep in step with the Spirit. If the Holy Spirit 00:49:16.320 --> 00:49:19.119 is in you, he wants to guide you now. There's 00:49:19.119 --> 00:49:21.900 a direction that he wants you to pursue. And 00:49:21.900 --> 00:49:25.500 now that he is guiding you, he needs you to follow 00:49:25.500 --> 00:49:30.800 him. I remember sometimes when we would go to 00:49:30.800 --> 00:49:34.000 the supermarket with our kids when they were 00:49:34.000 --> 00:49:37.440 younger toddlers. You know, whenever we got to 00:49:37.440 --> 00:49:40.059 the section where there was candy. Sometimes 00:49:40.059 --> 00:49:42.739 next to the cashier, you know. It's like, oh, 00:49:42.760 --> 00:49:44.619 you want that. Or you are walking by and you 00:49:44.619 --> 00:49:47.800 pass the aisle that has all the Legos. And it's 00:49:47.800 --> 00:49:50.199 like, oh, they want to go there. So if you're 00:49:50.199 --> 00:49:52.300 walking with them with hand, you know, holding 00:49:52.300 --> 00:49:54.639 their hand, it's like we're going there to buy 00:49:54.639 --> 00:49:56.619 medicine, you know. And it's like, oh, Legos. 00:49:56.639 --> 00:49:58.619 It's like, no, no, no, no, no. Let's move over. 00:49:58.780 --> 00:50:02.199 Oh, Legos. It's like, look, I'm trying to guide 00:50:02.199 --> 00:50:06.980 you. You need to keep in step with me. And that's 00:50:06.980 --> 00:50:09.599 you and I. The Holy Spirit says, that's the future 00:50:09.599 --> 00:50:12.039 I have for you. Follow me. No, no, I want this. 00:50:12.139 --> 00:50:15.880 Come here. If you live by the Spirit, keep in 00:50:15.880 --> 00:50:19.420 step with the Spirit. If He's guiding you, follow 00:50:19.420 --> 00:50:25.900 Him. The second command is this. Do not grieve 00:50:25.900 --> 00:50:28.360 the Holy Spirit of God with whom you were sealed 00:50:28.360 --> 00:50:31.760 for the day of redemption. You were sealed with 00:50:31.760 --> 00:50:36.219 Him until which day? Ah, sealed. No one can open 00:50:36.219 --> 00:50:43.000 that. And because he's with you and in you, whatever 00:50:43.000 --> 00:50:45.559 you do, wherever you go, you cannot keep the 00:50:45.559 --> 00:50:49.760 secret from him. That's why when you say, well, 00:50:49.780 --> 00:50:51.920 nobody knows. That's not true. The Holy Spirit 00:50:51.920 --> 00:50:57.559 knows and he is somebody. And that's why you 00:50:57.559 --> 00:51:00.909 have no peace. It's because you are engaged in 00:51:00.909 --> 00:51:03.150 behaviors and practices that the Holy Spirit 00:51:03.150 --> 00:51:06.130 wants you to be free from so that you can experience 00:51:06.130 --> 00:51:09.650 His life. And as long as you decide to keep the 00:51:09.650 --> 00:51:13.590 secrets, as long as you decide to engage in ungodliness, 00:51:13.710 --> 00:51:16.550 as long as you decide to go to the wrong places 00:51:16.550 --> 00:51:20.610 or see the wrong things, the Holy Spirit is going 00:51:20.610 --> 00:51:25.579 to be grieved. Because that is not. What he envisions 00:51:25.579 --> 00:51:28.699 for you. That's not the potential he sees in 00:51:28.699 --> 00:51:32.199 you. That's not the plans he has for you. But 00:51:32.199 --> 00:51:38.739 he has to wait for you. To get it. Do not grieve 00:51:38.739 --> 00:51:41.340 the Holy Spirit. If you are walking in shameful 00:51:41.340 --> 00:51:45.099 ways. Come clean. He's not going to leave you. 00:51:45.639 --> 00:51:49.320 He wants to love you. But he also wants you to 00:51:49.320 --> 00:51:54.829 love him back. And the third command. is do not 00:51:54.829 --> 00:51:58.769 quench the Spirit. What does that mean? Do not 00:51:58.769 --> 00:52:01.010 put out the fire of the Spirit. What does that 00:52:01.010 --> 00:52:04.869 mean? Sometimes the Holy Spirit is going to prompt 00:52:04.869 --> 00:52:07.710 you to do certain things. You say, where does 00:52:07.710 --> 00:52:09.630 that come from? It's like, I wasn't thinking 00:52:09.630 --> 00:52:11.550 about it. Out of the blue, you know, I thought 00:52:11.550 --> 00:52:16.130 of this. And you start feeling something that 00:52:16.130 --> 00:52:22.349 you resist. That's the first response. It's like, 00:52:22.909 --> 00:52:24.809 As if the Holy Spirit is saying, look at that. 00:52:24.989 --> 00:52:29.710 No. Yes, look at that. No, not now. Yes, I want 00:52:29.710 --> 00:52:32.110 you to look at that. And typically these things 00:52:32.110 --> 00:52:35.610 happen a lot when God is leading you into a calling, 00:52:35.809 --> 00:52:39.989 into a change of direction. And now you start 00:52:39.989 --> 00:52:45.530 feeling this struggle within because it's like 00:52:45.530 --> 00:52:49.230 you experience something that I call holy dissatisfaction. 00:52:50.079 --> 00:52:52.059 You are not satisfied with where you are now. 00:52:52.159 --> 00:52:54.920 God is asking you to walk into the unknown. But 00:52:54.920 --> 00:52:57.679 the unknown makes you uncomfortable. But this 00:52:57.679 --> 00:53:01.480 thing is not going away. You have the option 00:53:01.480 --> 00:53:04.019 to put out the fire and say, no, I'm not going 00:53:04.019 --> 00:53:05.760 to do it. I'm not going to do it. Please stop 00:53:05.760 --> 00:53:13.639 insisting. Holy Spirit, not a good idea. Or you 00:53:13.639 --> 00:53:17.579 say, Holy Spirit, if this is you, I'm willing. 00:53:18.039 --> 00:53:24.719 Let's go for it. Do not quench the Spirit. You 00:53:24.719 --> 00:53:28.820 see, all these three commands are simply commands 00:53:28.820 --> 00:53:33.539 to help you embrace the reality of who we are 00:53:33.539 --> 00:53:37.500 in Jesus. Now that we are His followers, now 00:53:37.500 --> 00:53:42.300 that He saved us. Because as we embrace this 00:53:42.300 --> 00:53:46.070 intimacy with the Holy Spirit, We keep in step 00:53:46.070 --> 00:53:49.489 with him. When he convicts us, we confess. When 00:53:49.489 --> 00:53:53.650 he prompts us, we follow. When we do this, we 00:53:53.650 --> 00:53:55.710 grow in intimacy with the Holy Spirit. And you 00:53:55.710 --> 00:54:00.050 know who will benefit? You. And the kingdom. 00:54:01.469 --> 00:54:05.269 Because now the power of God can flow through 00:54:05.269 --> 00:54:09.150 you to the next level. And you will live for 00:54:09.150 --> 00:54:12.880 increased kingdom impact. So I conclude this 00:54:12.880 --> 00:54:16.460 study with a simple question. Are you seeking 00:54:16.460 --> 00:54:20.980 intimacy with the Holy Spirit? Because if you 00:54:20.980 --> 00:54:25.300 are not, I want to encourage you today, take 00:54:25.300 --> 00:54:28.099 this relationship to the next level. Take it 00:54:28.099 --> 00:54:32.480 seriously. Pursue it. First, If you're not a 00:54:32.480 --> 00:54:35.119 follower of Jesus, if you don't understand these 00:54:35.119 --> 00:54:37.380 things, and for the first time you've been hearing 00:54:37.380 --> 00:54:39.719 about God loving you and Jesus dying for your 00:54:39.719 --> 00:54:43.239 sins, offering forgiveness, I want to invite 00:54:43.239 --> 00:54:46.940 you. Could it be today, the day you're feeling 00:54:46.940 --> 00:54:51.860 this desire that you need to follow Jesus? And 00:54:51.860 --> 00:54:54.780 if so, during this time of worship, would you 00:54:54.780 --> 00:54:58.500 invite the Holy Spirit and say, please come in 00:54:58.500 --> 00:55:02.019 my life. I want to follow Jesus. I may not understand 00:55:02.019 --> 00:55:05.260 everything. But today I gave my life to you. 00:55:06.519 --> 00:55:09.440 If that is you. Do that during this time of worship. 00:55:11.079 --> 00:55:13.119 If you are a follower of Jesus. And you have 00:55:13.119 --> 00:55:19.239 the Holy Spirit in you. I want to invite you. 00:55:21.099 --> 00:55:25.800 To ask the Holy Spirit. To grow in an intimate 00:55:25.800 --> 00:55:29.960 relationship with you. That you can experience 00:55:29.960 --> 00:55:35.840 him. That you can know him more and more. So 00:55:35.840 --> 00:55:38.780 that the things that he has for you, you will 00:55:38.780 --> 00:55:43.280 be able to experience. If this is your desire 00:55:43.280 --> 00:55:46.340 during this time of worship, please join us. 00:55:46.559 --> 00:55:55.699 Lord, we stand in your presence. In awe. In awe 00:55:55.699 --> 00:56:02.869 of what you have done. This is huge. The fact 00:56:02.869 --> 00:56:07.650 that you would love us so much to give us the 00:56:07.650 --> 00:56:14.789 advocate. To be with us forever. And Holy Spirit, 00:56:14.909 --> 00:56:18.210 for you to stay in us, to love us, to sanctify 00:56:18.210 --> 00:56:21.449 us, to justify us, to transform us, to guide 00:56:21.449 --> 00:56:27.230 us. We need you desperately. So we ask you, Lord, 00:56:27.329 --> 00:56:30.889 guide us. If there's anything that is holding 00:56:30.889 --> 00:56:33.610 us back from pursuing this relationship with 00:56:33.610 --> 00:56:36.269 you. We are asking you right now in Jesus name. 00:56:36.349 --> 00:56:40.630 Break that. So that nothing and no one will hold 00:56:40.630 --> 00:56:44.570 us from pursuing you with everything we are. 00:56:46.210 --> 00:57:13.559 In the powerful name of Jesus. Amen. If God is 00:57:13.559 --> 00:57:16.199 calling you to support our ministries, you will 00:57:16.199 --> 00:57:19.980 find giving options on our website. And remember 00:57:19.980 --> 00:57:22.760 to join us next week. God bless you.