WEBVTT 00:00:33.610 --> 00:00:38.789 Good morning. Smile, please, smile. Thank you. 00:00:39.439 --> 00:00:46.159 Well, like what you've heard, this is the last 00:00:46.159 --> 00:00:51.159 of the series on the presence, living life with 00:00:51.159 --> 00:00:57.679 the Holy Spirit. And the topic I'd like to share 00:00:57.679 --> 00:01:02.219 with you is quite familiar, but at the same time 00:01:02.219 --> 00:01:05.000 quite challenging when you are asked to explain. 00:01:08.700 --> 00:01:11.859 The comforting presence, which is, of course, 00:01:11.879 --> 00:01:14.200 referring to the Holy Spirit. But I would be 00:01:14.200 --> 00:01:17.280 talking specifically about being empowered to 00:01:17.280 --> 00:01:21.540 endure sufferings. Being empowered to endure 00:01:21.540 --> 00:01:25.200 sufferings. So I have two questions for you, 00:01:25.219 --> 00:01:27.579 and help me answer these questions. Number one, 00:01:28.480 --> 00:01:32.079 does the Holy Spirit help us in our time of suffering? 00:01:32.920 --> 00:01:35.180 Of course, many of you will say yes. Please say 00:01:35.180 --> 00:01:40.709 yes. Yes, okay. You will say yes. And then the 00:01:40.709 --> 00:01:43.650 other question is, does the Holy Spirit help 00:01:43.650 --> 00:01:46.349 us endure suffering? And of course, many of us 00:01:46.349 --> 00:01:50.250 will say yes. The first one to me is, I mean, 00:01:50.250 --> 00:01:52.590 it's easy for me to say yes, but it's challenging 00:01:52.590 --> 00:01:55.650 for me to define because, number one, at least 00:01:55.650 --> 00:01:58.549 this is how I look at it. Probably you have a 00:01:58.549 --> 00:02:01.530 different way of understanding the question number 00:02:01.530 --> 00:02:06.239 one. How does the Holy Spirit help? How am I 00:02:06.239 --> 00:02:08.800 going to describe how the Holy Spirit helped 00:02:08.800 --> 00:02:14.139 me? Do I feel His awesome presence when I need 00:02:14.139 --> 00:02:19.000 His help? So probably all of this may be very 00:02:19.000 --> 00:02:23.659 subjective, and we will explain this in our own 00:02:23.659 --> 00:02:26.120 different ways. And then the other question is, 00:02:26.240 --> 00:02:31.360 how do you define suffering? How do you define 00:02:31.360 --> 00:02:34.710 suffering? That's another challenge for me because 00:02:34.710 --> 00:02:39.650 it's too broad. It's too broad. So one time, 00:02:39.789 --> 00:02:44.550 one brother came to me. He said, oh, let me explain 00:02:44.550 --> 00:02:47.550 it to you. He said, the Holy Spirit comforts 00:02:47.550 --> 00:02:50.710 us in times of pain and loneliness. That's good. 00:02:50.789 --> 00:02:54.550 At least he has narrowed down the definition 00:02:54.550 --> 00:02:58.030 or the word suffering. For him, suffering is 00:02:58.030 --> 00:03:03.009 pain in times of pain and loneliness. Still, 00:03:03.189 --> 00:03:06.050 to me, that's a bit broad in one sense, because 00:03:06.050 --> 00:03:10.550 how do you define pain? Is stomach ache a pain 00:03:10.550 --> 00:03:12.889 in that you need the help of the Holy Spirit? 00:03:14.169 --> 00:03:16.949 Or, I mean, I was sharing this morning, I have 00:03:16.949 --> 00:03:23.860 an allergy. That allergy is triggered by... the 00:03:23.860 --> 00:03:26.860 sudden change of weather from hot to cold. Every 00:03:26.860 --> 00:03:28.599 time, here, it happens here, most of the times 00:03:28.599 --> 00:03:31.659 here in Thailand, so hot outside. And then when 00:03:31.659 --> 00:03:34.560 I get into the sanctuary of ECV, it's so chilling. 00:03:35.300 --> 00:03:38.500 I notice some of our brothers and sisters, if 00:03:38.500 --> 00:03:41.240 they don't feel cold in this sanctuary, they 00:03:41.240 --> 00:03:44.900 wear t -shirts and on flip -flops. But others 00:03:44.900 --> 00:03:49.360 of you really... wear some really thick clothing. 00:03:49.520 --> 00:03:52.840 So it's different. So that triggers my sinus 00:03:52.840 --> 00:03:55.020 allergy. But do I call upon the Holy Spirit to 00:03:55.020 --> 00:03:58.319 help me on that? No, I don't. I just call on 00:03:58.319 --> 00:04:02.159 Mr. Tylenol and it helps me. But again, this 00:04:02.159 --> 00:04:05.419 is a chance of trying to understand what we say. 00:04:06.080 --> 00:04:09.159 How do we express what we see from the Scriptures 00:04:09.159 --> 00:04:11.919 and then try to apply it in our lives today? 00:04:12.419 --> 00:04:16.620 The Holy Spirit comforts us in times of pain 00:04:16.620 --> 00:04:20.579 and loneliness. Because, I was told, and it's 00:04:20.579 --> 00:04:24.899 true, the Holy Spirit, He told me, the Holy Spirit 00:04:24.899 --> 00:04:28.740 is our comforter. That's true. But did you know 00:04:28.740 --> 00:04:34.439 that this attribute of the Holy Spirit originally 00:04:34.439 --> 00:04:39.680 was taken from John chapter 14, 26. In John 14, 00:04:39.800 --> 00:04:45.220 26, it says here, the author John says, all this 00:04:45.220 --> 00:04:49.300 I have spoken while still with you. Jesus was 00:04:49.300 --> 00:04:52.199 the one talking to his disciples, okay? But the 00:04:52.199 --> 00:04:56.079 advocate, or the King James Version, one of the 00:04:56.079 --> 00:04:58.399 oldest versions in the world, the King James 00:04:58.399 --> 00:05:01.060 Version used the word comforter. The Greek word 00:05:01.060 --> 00:05:04.360 for that is parakletos. The comforter. But the 00:05:04.360 --> 00:05:07.500 NIV found out, oh, we should translate it more 00:05:07.500 --> 00:05:10.480 modern. Advocate or helper. The Holy Spirit, 00:05:10.660 --> 00:05:14.339 whom the Father will send in my name, will teach 00:05:14.339 --> 00:05:17.699 you in all things and will remind you of everything 00:05:17.699 --> 00:05:22.600 I have said to you. Peace I leave with you. And 00:05:22.600 --> 00:05:27.000 my peace I give you. I do not give to you as 00:05:27.000 --> 00:05:29.779 the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled 00:05:29.779 --> 00:05:32.519 and do not be afraid. So if you will closely 00:05:32.519 --> 00:05:35.660 look at the passage where the concept of the 00:05:35.660 --> 00:05:38.699 Holy Spirit being comforter, what Jesus was trying 00:05:38.699 --> 00:05:41.800 to say is that, I know that I'm leaving you, 00:05:41.879 --> 00:05:44.560 okay? I know that I will no longer be with you. 00:05:44.560 --> 00:05:46.879 That day will come, I will no longer be with 00:05:46.879 --> 00:05:51.720 you. But do not be sad, because the Father in 00:05:51.720 --> 00:05:55.839 heaven will send the Holy Spirit who will comfort 00:05:55.839 --> 00:05:58.720 you. So the context of the fact that the Holy 00:05:58.720 --> 00:06:04.560 Spirit is our comforter, comes from the concept 00:06:04.560 --> 00:06:09.060 that it has something to do with Jesus appeasing 00:06:09.060 --> 00:06:12.240 and encouraging his disciples that it's okay 00:06:12.240 --> 00:06:14.579 if I leave you, the Holy Spirit will come. That 00:06:14.579 --> 00:06:18.000 kind of comfort. Now, can we extend that? When 00:06:18.000 --> 00:06:20.060 you're doing Bible interpretation, can we extend 00:06:20.060 --> 00:06:24.319 that to other applications? Maybe you can, as 00:06:24.319 --> 00:06:29.230 much as you want to. But we as disciples of the 00:06:29.230 --> 00:06:30.810 Lord Jesus Christ, we have the responsibility 00:06:30.810 --> 00:06:34.110 of making sure that when we share this with others, 00:06:34.230 --> 00:06:37.529 we go back to the original context so that they 00:06:37.529 --> 00:06:41.509 will have the freedom to also understand what 00:06:41.509 --> 00:06:44.589 was the original setting of the word or the concept 00:06:44.589 --> 00:06:48.509 of comforter. And then, you're still okay? Are 00:06:48.509 --> 00:06:51.990 you being comforted? You're okay? And then there's 00:06:51.990 --> 00:06:53.790 another brother who came to me. Nelson, he said, 00:06:54.350 --> 00:06:59.509 The Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. Oh, 00:06:59.529 --> 00:07:02.129 I've heard about this. Yeah, that the Holy Spirit 00:07:02.129 --> 00:07:06.850 helps us in our weakness. I have so many weaknesses. 00:07:07.509 --> 00:07:10.670 How many of you do not have weaknesses? Any weakness 00:07:10.670 --> 00:07:17.170 at all? It's okay. Okay. All of us then. I have 00:07:17.170 --> 00:07:20.790 so many. I don't know if you can tell what type 00:07:20.790 --> 00:07:27.829 of weakness is there. I do. And what compounds 00:07:27.829 --> 00:07:32.310 this weakness is the fact that this guy is diabetic. 00:07:33.529 --> 00:07:36.970 Yeah, I've been diabetic for 30 years. But this 00:07:36.970 --> 00:07:42.649 is a... Wow, now I'm craving. It is a weakness. 00:07:43.430 --> 00:07:47.490 So, what do I do? Do I call upon the Holy Spirit 00:07:47.490 --> 00:07:51.959 to help me? during my cravings for this awesome 00:07:51.959 --> 00:07:55.459 sneakers bar, chocolate? Or do I call upon the 00:07:55.459 --> 00:08:00.240 Holy Spirit to help me, to heal me with my diabetes? 00:08:01.779 --> 00:08:05.579 That, again, is part of the discussion when you 00:08:05.579 --> 00:08:09.040 look at the statement, the Holy Spirit helps 00:08:09.040 --> 00:08:13.220 us in our weaknesses. Now the concept of the 00:08:13.220 --> 00:08:16.279 fact that the Holy Spirit Helps us in our weakness. 00:08:16.339 --> 00:08:20.000 Was taken. Was taken from the apostle Paul. Paul 00:08:20.000 --> 00:08:24.439 wrote in Romans chapter 8. Verses 26 to 28. He 00:08:24.439 --> 00:08:26.879 said. This is where that concept was taken. That 00:08:26.879 --> 00:08:30.300 attribute. It says. In the same way. The spirit 00:08:30.300 --> 00:08:34.600 helps us in our weakness. We do not know what 00:08:34.600 --> 00:08:37.620 we ought to pray for. But the spirit himself 00:08:37.620 --> 00:08:42.240 intercedes for us. Through wordless groans. Wordless 00:08:42.240 --> 00:08:46.539 groans. Because the Christians that Paul was 00:08:46.539 --> 00:08:50.360 ministering to, they couldn't express their prayer 00:08:50.360 --> 00:08:53.899 to the Father. So he said, And he who searches 00:08:53.899 --> 00:08:57.460 our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because 00:08:57.460 --> 00:09:02.159 the Spirit intercedes for God's people in accordance 00:09:02.159 --> 00:09:05.139 with the will of God. So what was the weakness 00:09:05.139 --> 00:09:08.080 here? The weakness is that there are Christians, 00:09:08.179 --> 00:09:10.700 or there were Christians who wanted to pray to 00:09:10.700 --> 00:09:15.440 God. But they couldn't express, they couldn't 00:09:15.440 --> 00:09:18.259 articulate or even express the details of their 00:09:18.259 --> 00:09:21.000 prayers. So Paul was saying, don't worry. The 00:09:21.000 --> 00:09:24.659 Holy Spirit will intercede for you and help you 00:09:24.659 --> 00:09:27.559 express these prayers to the Father in heaven. 00:09:28.059 --> 00:09:30.879 That's the context of the word weakness here. 00:09:30.940 --> 00:09:34.000 Now, do you take the word weakness and extend 00:09:34.000 --> 00:09:37.200 it to any kind of weakness that you have and 00:09:37.200 --> 00:09:39.620 say, Holy Spirit, please help me through this 00:09:39.620 --> 00:09:42.649 weakness? Probably you can do that. However, 00:09:42.889 --> 00:09:48.450 we are responsible when we mix, make certain 00:09:48.450 --> 00:09:51.769 expansions and extensions of what we see from 00:09:51.769 --> 00:09:54.610 the text. By the way, that's my job at ABTS to 00:09:54.610 --> 00:09:59.769 teach a Bible interpretation. But what I'm trying 00:09:59.769 --> 00:10:02.669 to say is that we need to understand what the 00:10:02.669 --> 00:10:06.389 text says and then how we make applications in 00:10:06.389 --> 00:10:08.909 our situations, present situations right now. 00:10:09.549 --> 00:10:13.590 So we go to the second question, which is easier 00:10:13.590 --> 00:10:16.850 for me to answer. And just let me remind you 00:10:16.850 --> 00:10:19.450 what was the second question we asked. Does the 00:10:19.450 --> 00:10:22.889 Holy Spirit help us endure suffering? Yes. My 00:10:22.889 --> 00:10:26.889 answer to this is yes. Why? Because I can find 00:10:26.889 --> 00:10:32.490 exact or clear examples in the Scriptures of 00:10:32.490 --> 00:10:35.950 the fact that the Holy Spirit indeed helps believers 00:10:35.950 --> 00:10:40.059 and disciples endure suffering. The question 00:10:40.059 --> 00:10:43.679 is, what type of suffering? Well, you will find 00:10:43.679 --> 00:10:46.980 many examples in the New Testament. But specifically, 00:10:47.299 --> 00:10:50.120 you will find in the book of Acts. The book of 00:10:50.120 --> 00:10:53.320 Acts has a lot of examples where disciples... 00:10:54.220 --> 00:10:57.700 had to endure suffering in order for the gospel 00:10:57.700 --> 00:11:01.080 to be preached. They needed to endure that suffering 00:11:01.080 --> 00:11:03.580 because if not, if they would have just said, 00:11:03.600 --> 00:11:06.200 okay, just kill me now, then the gospel wouldn't 00:11:06.200 --> 00:11:09.200 have preached. They needed to endure the suffering 00:11:09.200 --> 00:11:13.259 so that the proclamation of the gospel will prevail. 00:11:13.940 --> 00:11:18.259 So, let me make it clear then that my sharing 00:11:18.259 --> 00:11:21.419 with you will be from the book of Acts. And it 00:11:21.419 --> 00:11:23.759 will be highly contextualized, but this is quite 00:11:23.759 --> 00:11:27.700 important, right? In this case, suffering in 00:11:27.700 --> 00:11:30.840 the book of Acts, even in other letters of Paul, 00:11:30.940 --> 00:11:33.500 but here specifically in the book of Acts, suffering 00:11:33.500 --> 00:11:37.679 in the book of Acts is persecution. So how do 00:11:37.679 --> 00:11:39.899 we define suffering in the book of Acts? It's 00:11:39.899 --> 00:11:43.820 always persecution. It's not headache. It's not 00:11:43.820 --> 00:11:46.899 toothache. It's not anything else of all kinds 00:11:46.899 --> 00:11:49.620 of pain. It's always persecution. That is the 00:11:49.620 --> 00:11:52.179 kind of suffering that the disciples had to go 00:11:52.179 --> 00:11:55.080 through. Persecution. And why were they being 00:11:55.080 --> 00:11:58.919 persecuted? Well, they were being persecuted 00:11:58.919 --> 00:12:02.519 because of their proclamation. So in the book 00:12:02.519 --> 00:12:05.759 of Acts, the way they suffered is through persecution. 00:12:05.820 --> 00:12:08.620 And why were they being persecuted? It's because 00:12:08.620 --> 00:12:12.179 they proclaimed God's word. If they were not 00:12:12.179 --> 00:12:14.759 proclaiming God's word, I don't think they will 00:12:14.759 --> 00:12:18.679 even go through persecution. It's most of them, 00:12:18.700 --> 00:12:20.919 if not all of them, were commissioned. Okay, 00:12:21.019 --> 00:12:24.120 they were called, disciples were called to proclaim 00:12:24.120 --> 00:12:28.120 the word of God. Now, this is very crucial because 00:12:28.120 --> 00:12:30.539 I want you to be reflecting from your seats right 00:12:30.539 --> 00:12:34.159 now. Wait a minute. Am I a disciple? Because 00:12:34.159 --> 00:12:37.360 if I am a disciple right now, I should be facing, 00:12:37.580 --> 00:12:40.559 I should be experiencing some kind of opposition 00:12:40.559 --> 00:12:43.960 from the devil right at this moment. If you are 00:12:43.960 --> 00:12:47.240 not facing or feeling any opposition at all, 00:12:47.340 --> 00:12:51.100 because you, I mean, that probably means that 00:12:51.100 --> 00:12:53.480 you are not proclaiming. Because you are not 00:12:53.480 --> 00:12:56.379 a threat to the devil in the first place. Yes, 00:12:56.379 --> 00:12:59.500 you are saved. Yes, we are saved. But how come 00:12:59.500 --> 00:13:03.659 I'm living a very easy life right now? Hey, I'm 00:13:03.659 --> 00:13:06.220 beginning to forget that I am called to proclaim 00:13:06.220 --> 00:13:15.000 God's word. Yes? Oh, bless you. See, in the Bible, 00:13:15.200 --> 00:13:19.460 in the book of Acts, persecution was the result 00:13:19.460 --> 00:13:27.100 of proclamation. What else? Well, did I turn 00:13:27.100 --> 00:13:31.620 this off? There. For proclamation in the book 00:13:31.620 --> 00:13:34.299 of Acts, in the New Testament, for this proclamation 00:13:34.299 --> 00:13:39.419 to prevail, they needed some serious power. What 00:13:39.419 --> 00:13:42.080 do you mean by that? Well, it was not simply 00:13:42.080 --> 00:13:46.139 that they will do this on their own. That serious 00:13:46.139 --> 00:13:50.299 power was needed in order for them to face their 00:13:50.299 --> 00:13:53.120 opponents. Who were their opponents? You have 00:13:53.120 --> 00:13:57.320 Jewish leaders, you have Rome itself, and you 00:13:57.320 --> 00:14:01.700 have the devil. And for the disciples, for them 00:14:01.700 --> 00:14:05.559 to endure suffering so that their proclamation 00:14:05.559 --> 00:14:08.460 will not stop, so that their proclamation will 00:14:08.460 --> 00:14:10.919 prevail, they needed some serious power. What 00:14:10.919 --> 00:14:13.720 was that power or where did that come from? The 00:14:13.720 --> 00:14:17.039 source of that power or that serious power is 00:14:17.039 --> 00:14:21.779 the Holy Spirit. Now, how is this gained in the 00:14:21.779 --> 00:14:25.450 book of Acts? The Holy Spirit, the empowerment 00:14:25.450 --> 00:14:28.809 of, I mean, this serious power is called the 00:14:28.809 --> 00:14:31.789 empowerment of the Holy Spirit, which in Acts 00:14:31.789 --> 00:14:34.009 you will find has something to do with when they 00:14:34.009 --> 00:14:38.830 were baptized in the Holy Spirit. You see, I 00:14:38.830 --> 00:14:42.570 completely misunderstood this. I got saved when 00:14:42.570 --> 00:14:46.830 I was 17 years old, still young. And I got saved 00:14:46.830 --> 00:14:52.340 in a small, charismatic... In fact, a small Catholic 00:14:52.340 --> 00:14:56.720 charismatic church back home. And what I was 00:14:56.720 --> 00:14:59.980 oriented or what I was taught is that we should 00:14:59.980 --> 00:15:02.759 open ourselves for the empowerment of the Holy 00:15:02.759 --> 00:15:07.179 Spirit. And you will conquer the world. I will 00:15:07.179 --> 00:15:10.740 conquer the world. And I can use this power to 00:15:10.740 --> 00:15:15.039 whatever I need to accomplish or whatever I needed 00:15:15.039 --> 00:15:18.000 to do. You know what I did? Would you believe 00:15:18.000 --> 00:15:22.710 if I tell you that I used to lay my hands on 00:15:22.710 --> 00:15:26.730 things that don't work. Anything at all. Because 00:15:26.730 --> 00:15:30.269 I thought that I am empowered by the Holy Spirit. 00:15:30.350 --> 00:15:33.029 I will lay my hands on something that doesn't 00:15:33.029 --> 00:15:36.629 work. And that power will transmit through me, 00:15:36.669 --> 00:15:39.269 go through me. And power, it will become alive. 00:15:39.549 --> 00:15:43.830 And this is true. I used to lay my hands on a 00:15:43.830 --> 00:15:48.370 flat iron that wasn't working. Yes. I was late 00:15:48.370 --> 00:15:51.330 for school and I needed some power. I didn't 00:15:51.330 --> 00:15:57.850 know that, I forgot that it was blackout. So 00:15:57.850 --> 00:16:00.710 there was really no power coming from the outlet. 00:16:00.870 --> 00:16:03.110 But I laid my hands on it. This is how I was 00:16:03.110 --> 00:16:06.669 oriented. Especially from charismatics. This 00:16:06.669 --> 00:16:11.269 is for people. I was part of that prosperity 00:16:11.269 --> 00:16:14.070 gospel thing. That the Holy Spirit will come 00:16:14.070 --> 00:16:17.009 and power will come through you and do whatever 00:16:17.009 --> 00:16:20.470 you want to do with that power. Did you also 00:16:20.470 --> 00:16:24.389 know that during that time, I called upon the 00:16:24.389 --> 00:16:27.769 Holy Spirit to empower me so that I can control 00:16:27.769 --> 00:16:33.470 people? I did. I was so infatuated with a young 00:16:33.470 --> 00:16:37.470 girl then in the church, at the church. This 00:16:37.470 --> 00:16:39.309 is true. Well, it's okay. My wife is already 00:16:39.309 --> 00:16:44.269 married. Anyway, I was so infatuated with a girl. 00:16:44.690 --> 00:16:48.730 And at a Christian church, their service was 00:16:48.730 --> 00:16:51.289 10 o 'clock in the morning. The youth fellowship 00:16:51.289 --> 00:16:54.649 was 9 o 'clock in the morning. And I was consistent 00:16:54.649 --> 00:16:57.889 in attending the youth fellowship. Not because 00:16:57.889 --> 00:17:04.210 of Jesus, but because of that girl. And I fasted 00:17:04.210 --> 00:17:08.809 for two weeks. I fasted for two weeks and I called 00:17:08.809 --> 00:17:11.250 upon the power of the Holy Spirit. I told the 00:17:11.250 --> 00:17:14.329 Spirit, help me convince this girl so that she 00:17:14.329 --> 00:17:19.809 will be my girl. And so after two weeks, I was 00:17:19.809 --> 00:17:23.170 there at the fellowship, youth fellowship. And 00:17:23.170 --> 00:17:27.049 you know, this girl loves to wear yellow. Her 00:17:27.049 --> 00:17:29.910 favorite color is yellow. She dresses always 00:17:29.910 --> 00:17:33.009 in yellow. And I told the Holy Spirit, if she 00:17:33.009 --> 00:17:36.509 comes today wearing yellow, That means you've 00:17:36.509 --> 00:17:41.809 answered my prayer. I did that. Yes. That means 00:17:41.809 --> 00:17:45.410 you've answered my prayer and she's mine. And 00:17:45.410 --> 00:17:49.990 then, so I was early at the youth fellowship 00:17:49.990 --> 00:17:55.089 venue. And I saw her coming. And I was so hurt 00:17:55.089 --> 00:17:58.390 because I could see that she's wearing red, not 00:17:58.390 --> 00:18:03.579 yellow. And I was forcing, I was forcing myself, 00:18:03.740 --> 00:18:05.680 no, no, no, that's a yellow, right? That's a 00:18:05.680 --> 00:18:09.119 yellow, but it's red. Now those are, that could 00:18:09.119 --> 00:18:12.519 be the most extreme kind of colors that you could 00:18:12.519 --> 00:18:17.220 force a red to be yellow. So I went up to her 00:18:17.220 --> 00:18:19.599 and I said, did you know that the Holy Spirit 00:18:19.599 --> 00:18:22.579 told me that you will be mine, you are my girl. 00:18:22.960 --> 00:18:29.210 And she was so shocked, she cried. She hated 00:18:29.210 --> 00:18:31.210 me from that. She left. She didn't even attend 00:18:31.210 --> 00:18:35.829 the fellowship. The first thing I did when that 00:18:35.829 --> 00:18:40.069 happened to me is go to the... I was so disappointed. 00:18:40.289 --> 00:18:43.730 I was so... I was even angry at the Holy Spirit 00:18:43.730 --> 00:18:48.329 because I was so hungry. I ordered two Big Macs. 00:18:48.369 --> 00:18:50.829 While I was eating, I was bawling and crying 00:18:50.829 --> 00:18:56.910 because I was let down. Well, this is not how 00:18:56.910 --> 00:19:00.970 the Holy Spirit's empowerment works. Not this 00:19:00.970 --> 00:19:04.089 way. That's why it's very important for us to 00:19:04.089 --> 00:19:08.349 search God's Word and carefully do our hermeneutics, 00:19:08.349 --> 00:19:11.390 our interpretation, our theology, so that we 00:19:11.390 --> 00:19:14.690 can be a blessing to others and guide them properly, 00:19:14.970 --> 00:19:18.150 especially in the application of the text. In 00:19:18.150 --> 00:19:21.529 the book of Acts, and this is clear, in the book 00:19:21.529 --> 00:19:25.519 of Acts, there are three reasons. why the disciples 00:19:25.519 --> 00:19:29.680 received the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. 00:19:29.880 --> 00:19:32.420 Let me repeat that. In the book of Acts, there 00:19:32.420 --> 00:19:39.579 are three reasons why the disciples needed the 00:19:39.579 --> 00:19:42.839 empowerment of the Holy Spirit. What was it for? 00:19:43.039 --> 00:19:48.440 They needed empowerment for proclamation. Nothing 00:19:48.440 --> 00:19:53.160 else, okay? not for reviving flat irons, not 00:19:53.160 --> 00:19:57.700 for healing headaches. Do you find any headaches 00:19:57.700 --> 00:20:01.259 being healed in the book of Acts? No. The empowerment 00:20:01.259 --> 00:20:04.240 of the Holy Spirit was for the disciples primarily 00:20:04.240 --> 00:20:09.180 for proclamation. And what are these three reasons? 00:20:09.359 --> 00:20:13.619 Number one, the apostles especially, they needed 00:20:13.619 --> 00:20:15.799 the empowerment of the Holy Spirit because they 00:20:15.799 --> 00:20:21.549 were fearful. Number two, They needed the empowerment 00:20:21.549 --> 00:20:23.930 of the Holy Spirit because they were, some of 00:20:23.930 --> 00:20:26.450 them, not all of them, some of them were ignorant 00:20:26.450 --> 00:20:30.269 or what I would call they felt inadequate. And 00:20:30.269 --> 00:20:33.170 I will give you examples about this, on this. 00:20:33.490 --> 00:20:37.250 And number three, they needed empowerment in 00:20:37.250 --> 00:20:39.650 the book of Acts is because they were outgunned 00:20:39.650 --> 00:20:43.329 or ill -equipped. Why? They were not against 00:20:43.329 --> 00:20:47.670 just human beings. They were against superpowers. 00:20:48.299 --> 00:20:51.940 That's why they needed the empowerment of the 00:20:51.940 --> 00:20:54.440 Holy Spirit. Let's start with the first one. 00:20:55.599 --> 00:20:59.059 They were fearful. So let's ask this question. 00:20:59.319 --> 00:21:03.299 Why did Jesus instruct the disciples to stay 00:21:03.299 --> 00:21:06.059 in Jerusalem and wait for the promise of the 00:21:06.059 --> 00:21:09.240 Father? This you will find in Acts chapter 1 00:21:09.240 --> 00:21:13.440 verses 4 to 5. The answer there is because they 00:21:13.440 --> 00:21:17.559 needed to be baptized by the Holy Spirit. But 00:21:17.559 --> 00:21:19.660 why did they need to be baptized by the Holy 00:21:19.660 --> 00:21:23.400 Spirit? Because they were all in fear. They all 00:21:23.400 --> 00:21:26.519 went into hiding when Jesus was sentenced and 00:21:26.519 --> 00:21:30.299 crucified. Do you remember, if you recall, reading 00:21:30.299 --> 00:21:34.579 the Gospels, when Jesus resurrected, He said 00:21:34.579 --> 00:21:38.539 to His disciples, Go and meet Me in Jerusalem. 00:21:39.180 --> 00:21:43.359 And then He commissioned them, when Jesus ascended, 00:21:43.579 --> 00:21:47.190 He commissioned them to preach the Gospel. Did 00:21:47.190 --> 00:21:50.009 you hear them go and preach the gospel? No. Something 00:21:50.009 --> 00:21:53.490 happened. And you will need to catch, especially 00:21:53.490 --> 00:21:55.490 if you're reading from the gospel of Luke, you 00:21:55.490 --> 00:21:58.289 will see that they had to go to Jerusalem to 00:21:58.289 --> 00:22:00.930 wait for the empowerment for the coming of the 00:22:00.930 --> 00:22:05.049 promise of the Father. How fearful were the apostles? 00:22:05.490 --> 00:22:08.829 How fearful were the disciples? Let me give you 00:22:08.829 --> 00:22:13.009 a beautiful account that the Gospel of Mark wrote. 00:22:13.109 --> 00:22:15.789 I know you have read this before, but probably 00:22:15.789 --> 00:22:19.269 you didn't see the significance of these verses. 00:22:20.029 --> 00:22:24.829 You see, during the Last Supper, Jesus already 00:22:24.829 --> 00:22:28.180 predicted. He told His disciples. the shepherd 00:22:28.180 --> 00:22:32.299 will be arrested and the sheep will be scattered. 00:22:32.740 --> 00:22:35.299 And he was telling his apostles and his disciples, 00:22:35.539 --> 00:22:39.599 you will all leave me. You will all abandon me. 00:22:39.700 --> 00:22:42.339 And the apostles were shocked. No, Lord, we will 00:22:42.339 --> 00:22:46.349 not do that. Never, never abandon you. Even Peter 00:22:46.349 --> 00:22:49.450 rebuked Jesus, you know. But later on, you know, 00:22:49.470 --> 00:22:52.849 Peter denied the Lord Jesus Christ three times. 00:22:53.069 --> 00:22:56.369 But all of them literally left the Lord Jesus. 00:22:56.690 --> 00:23:00.089 From the Last Supper, Jesus went to the Garden 00:23:00.089 --> 00:23:02.569 of Gethsemane. They finished celebrating the 00:23:02.569 --> 00:23:06.049 Feast of Pentecost. They went to the Garden of 00:23:06.049 --> 00:23:08.910 Gethsemane. By the way, they had a meal, the 00:23:08.910 --> 00:23:11.009 Last Supper. I'm sure they had a lot of wine. 00:23:11.269 --> 00:23:14.460 And they were all probably sleepy. And Jesus 00:23:14.460 --> 00:23:18.099 asked the three, Peter, James, can you stay here, 00:23:18.200 --> 00:23:21.259 watch and pray? Because at least give me a heads 00:23:21.259 --> 00:23:24.559 up if somebody is going to arrest me. And these 00:23:24.559 --> 00:23:27.500 three, yes Lord, we will pray. But they couldn't 00:23:27.500 --> 00:23:31.200 hold their men. They were probably really exhausted. 00:23:31.559 --> 00:23:34.539 They just couldn't do it. Jesus came and said, 00:23:34.660 --> 00:23:38.480 oh, it's useless now. My betrayer is here. So 00:23:38.480 --> 00:23:42.509 when Jesus was arrested, Everyone scampered. 00:23:42.529 --> 00:23:46.009 Everyone left the Lord Jesus Christ. Now Mark 00:23:46.009 --> 00:23:50.210 adds some detail to that arrest in the Garden 00:23:50.210 --> 00:23:54.329 of Gethsemane. And he says in Mark chapter 14, 00:23:54.549 --> 00:24:00.029 verses 50 to 52. He says here, Then everyone 00:24:00.029 --> 00:24:06.369 deserted Jesus and fled. A young man wearing 00:24:06.369 --> 00:24:09.599 nothing but a linen garment. was following Jesus. 00:24:11.099 --> 00:24:14.400 When they seized him, he fled naked, leaving 00:24:14.400 --> 00:24:18.619 his garment behind. Now, you need to study, read 00:24:18.619 --> 00:24:21.480 this in context. What was going on? What was 00:24:21.480 --> 00:24:24.180 probably going on, and this is my proposal, is 00:24:24.180 --> 00:24:26.500 that there were many disciples who wanted to 00:24:26.500 --> 00:24:29.359 see and follow Jesus. This guy, a young guy, 00:24:29.519 --> 00:24:33.579 probably heard, Jesus is on his way to the Garden 00:24:33.579 --> 00:24:36.779 of Gethsemane. So he was probably sleeping and 00:24:36.779 --> 00:24:40.029 then he got up. Took a garment. I love the Lord 00:24:40.029 --> 00:24:42.049 Jesus Christ so much. I don't even care if I 00:24:42.049 --> 00:24:44.710 need to put on other clothes. Just put on a linen 00:24:44.710 --> 00:24:47.890 garment and went to see Jesus. That is how committed 00:24:47.890 --> 00:24:51.170 he is to see the Lord Jesus Christ. But then... 00:24:51.400 --> 00:24:53.500 He didn't know that Jesus was going to be arrested. 00:24:53.839 --> 00:24:56.700 And so the arresting team came. You know what 00:24:56.700 --> 00:25:00.640 this guy did? Who was so excited to see the Lord 00:25:00.640 --> 00:25:02.359 Jesus Christ. When he saw the arresting team, 00:25:02.460 --> 00:25:05.339 he didn't care. He was so scared that he was 00:25:05.339 --> 00:25:09.680 willing to flee naked all in Jerusalem. Because 00:25:09.680 --> 00:25:12.660 that is how scared he was. Now the reason why 00:25:12.660 --> 00:25:15.660 this is here is to give you a picture of how 00:25:15.660 --> 00:25:20.759 the apostles really left. Jesus alone was arrested 00:25:20.759 --> 00:25:23.980 and was taken to the court of the high priest. 00:25:24.579 --> 00:25:28.720 This kind of fear remained with the apostles. 00:25:29.000 --> 00:25:33.220 And that's why the Lord Jesus knew these disciples. 00:25:33.319 --> 00:25:35.440 I've spent three years, more than three years 00:25:35.440 --> 00:25:38.640 with these guys and yet they all left me. I want 00:25:38.640 --> 00:25:41.759 you to wait in Jerusalem and wait for the promise 00:25:41.759 --> 00:25:46.119 of the Father. What happened in Jerusalem? This 00:25:46.119 --> 00:25:48.980 you will find in Acts chapter 2. When the day 00:25:48.980 --> 00:25:52.119 of Pentecost came, they were all together in 00:25:52.119 --> 00:25:55.500 one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing 00:25:55.500 --> 00:25:58.539 of a violent wind came from heaven and filled 00:25:58.539 --> 00:26:02.579 the whole house where they were sitting. They 00:26:02.579 --> 00:26:05.380 saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated 00:26:05.380 --> 00:26:08.579 and came to rest on each of them. All of them 00:26:08.579 --> 00:26:11.740 were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to 00:26:11.740 --> 00:26:14.839 speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled 00:26:14.839 --> 00:26:19.569 them. That was the last time. They feared. When 00:26:19.569 --> 00:26:22.210 the Holy Spirit came upon them, they didn't even 00:26:22.210 --> 00:26:26.069 wait a second. They all came out. They started 00:26:26.069 --> 00:26:29.549 to preach, proclaim the gospel. The Holy Spirit 00:26:29.549 --> 00:26:32.549 empowered them. All of them, by the way, were 00:26:32.549 --> 00:26:36.410 executed except for one. All of them died proclaiming 00:26:36.410 --> 00:26:39.630 the gospel. Why didn't they fear? Because of 00:26:39.630 --> 00:26:44.009 the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. The next 00:26:44.009 --> 00:26:48.259 one is found in Acts chapter 2. So the first 00:26:48.259 --> 00:26:51.680 one is that the disciples were fearful, the apostles. 00:26:51.920 --> 00:26:54.740 Now, there are also a group of disciples who 00:26:54.740 --> 00:26:58.339 were not actually fearful, but you will find 00:26:58.339 --> 00:27:02.240 that their teaching is a bit inadequate. They 00:27:02.240 --> 00:27:05.339 too needed the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. 00:27:05.500 --> 00:27:10.980 You will see this in Acts chapter 18. You've 00:27:10.980 --> 00:27:13.619 heard of the name Apollos, and of course, Paul 00:27:13.619 --> 00:27:17.460 has referred to him too. In Acts, Luke was writing, 00:27:17.599 --> 00:27:23.160 he says here, Meanwhile, a Jew named Apollos, 00:27:23.160 --> 00:27:27.920 a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was 00:27:27.920 --> 00:27:30.960 a learned man with a thorough knowledge of the 00:27:30.960 --> 00:27:33.799 scriptures. He had been instructed in the way 00:27:33.799 --> 00:27:37.059 of the Lord. It is very important that the author 00:27:37.059 --> 00:27:41.720 Luke mention where he comes from. He is a native 00:27:41.720 --> 00:27:45.339 of Alexandria. If I say, hey, I'm a graduate 00:27:45.339 --> 00:27:49.140 of Cambridge University, or I'm a graduate of 00:27:49.140 --> 00:27:52.839 Oxford University, or I'm a graduate of Harvard 00:27:52.839 --> 00:27:55.480 University, that's quite impressive. That is 00:27:55.480 --> 00:27:58.940 what is happening here. Unlike Harvard, of course, 00:27:58.980 --> 00:28:03.400 Harvard is in Massachusetts. Cambridge and Oxford, 00:28:03.619 --> 00:28:05.960 did you know that these are cities in England? 00:28:06.650 --> 00:28:09.609 And then in the city, you have Oxford University, 00:28:09.930 --> 00:28:12.490 and then you have Cambridge University. Well, 00:28:12.589 --> 00:28:15.630 in Alexandria, this is it. That's the city. That's 00:28:15.630 --> 00:28:18.309 the place where all educated people come from. 00:28:18.329 --> 00:28:21.130 Really educated people. So what is happening 00:28:21.130 --> 00:28:24.130 here is that the author is giving you the credentials 00:28:24.130 --> 00:28:29.529 of the disciple Apollos. And it says here, we 00:28:29.529 --> 00:28:32.829 will continue, it says, Until he spoke, and he 00:28:32.829 --> 00:28:36.779 spoke with great fervor, And taught about Jesus 00:28:36.779 --> 00:28:41.839 accurately. But there's a statement there. Though 00:28:41.839 --> 00:28:46.200 he knew only the baptism of John. That is very 00:28:46.200 --> 00:28:48.960 crucial. Despite the fact that this guy is a 00:28:48.960 --> 00:28:51.400 learned person. Despite the fact that he comes 00:28:51.400 --> 00:28:54.539 from Alexandria. And despite the fact that he 00:28:54.539 --> 00:29:00.529 teaches. spoke about Jesus accurately, there's 00:29:00.529 --> 00:29:02.309 something that you will find that is missing 00:29:02.309 --> 00:29:06.410 about this guy. He only knew the baptism of John. 00:29:06.529 --> 00:29:09.569 That is very important. So he began to speak 00:29:09.569 --> 00:29:12.930 boldly in the synagogue when Priscilla and Aquila, 00:29:12.990 --> 00:29:15.750 who were disciples of Paul, by the way, when 00:29:15.750 --> 00:29:18.410 Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited 00:29:18.410 --> 00:29:21.710 him to their home and explained to him the way 00:29:21.710 --> 00:29:25.150 of God more adequately. They saw something that 00:29:25.150 --> 00:29:27.769 was not adequate about him. So they explained 00:29:27.769 --> 00:29:33.109 to him about God. After this story, immediately 00:29:33.109 --> 00:29:37.109 after this story, is Acts chapter 19. During 00:29:37.109 --> 00:29:39.890 those days, when Luke was writing the gospel, 00:29:39.990 --> 00:29:42.029 there were no chapter and verse divisions. So 00:29:42.029 --> 00:29:44.769 these two will go together, and you will see 00:29:44.769 --> 00:29:46.730 that there's something significant about the 00:29:46.730 --> 00:29:51.779 baptism of John. He says here in Acts 19, While 00:29:51.779 --> 00:29:54.440 Apollos, now that's a connecting literary device. 00:29:54.779 --> 00:29:58.819 While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road 00:29:58.819 --> 00:30:02.279 through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. 00:30:02.619 --> 00:30:06.420 There he found some disciples and asked them, 00:30:06.519 --> 00:30:10.200 did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed? 00:30:10.259 --> 00:30:14.759 He asked the disciples. They answered, no, we 00:30:14.759 --> 00:30:18.640 have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit. 00:30:19.369 --> 00:30:21.849 Not even a baptism, but they didn't even hear 00:30:21.849 --> 00:30:26.789 that there was the Holy Spirit. So, Paul asked, 00:30:27.210 --> 00:30:31.930 then what baptism did you receive? John's baptism, 00:30:32.210 --> 00:30:35.789 they replied. Paul said, John's baptism was a 00:30:35.789 --> 00:30:39.109 baptism of repentance. He told the people to 00:30:39.109 --> 00:30:43.390 believe in the one coming after him, that is, 00:30:43.410 --> 00:30:49.440 in Jesus. So, verse 5, on hearing this, They 00:30:49.440 --> 00:30:52.819 were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 00:30:53.380 --> 00:30:56.599 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy 00:30:56.599 --> 00:30:59.599 Spirit came on them and they spoke in tongues 00:30:59.599 --> 00:31:03.519 and prophesied. They were about 12 men in all. 00:31:03.759 --> 00:31:08.039 What do you find similar between the story of 00:31:08.039 --> 00:31:11.380 Apollos and these 12 disciples? What is similar 00:31:11.380 --> 00:31:13.819 is that all they knew and all they had was the 00:31:13.819 --> 00:31:17.279 baptism of John, a baptism of repentance. They 00:31:17.279 --> 00:31:20.160 didn't know about the empowerment coming from 00:31:20.160 --> 00:31:23.660 the Holy Spirit. That which makes them both inadequate. 00:31:24.059 --> 00:31:27.079 They may be disciples, they may be teaching about 00:31:27.079 --> 00:31:29.519 the Lord Jesus Christ, but their preaching and 00:31:29.519 --> 00:31:32.759 their teaching is a little bit inadequate. And 00:31:32.759 --> 00:31:34.779 what is the cure for that? They need to be empowered 00:31:34.779 --> 00:31:38.740 by the Holy Spirit. I have a theory, okay? And 00:31:38.740 --> 00:31:41.460 this is just my theory. I think there's a difference 00:31:41.460 --> 00:31:47.420 between a believer and a disciple. Okay, this 00:31:47.420 --> 00:31:52.019 is just mine. It's okay. Well, a believer for 00:31:52.019 --> 00:31:54.380 me is one who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:31:54.480 --> 00:31:57.220 forgiven, washed by the blood of our Lord Jesus 00:31:57.220 --> 00:32:04.619 Christ, and the Holy Spirit attends to this believer's 00:32:04.619 --> 00:32:08.400 needs. I believe in that. But a believer is somebody 00:32:08.400 --> 00:32:12.680 who simply comes to church, worships the Lord 00:32:12.680 --> 00:32:16.900 Jesus, really gives his heart or her heart to 00:32:16.900 --> 00:32:20.359 the Lord Jesus Christ, but is not a proclaimer 00:32:20.359 --> 00:32:24.839 of the gospel. This person, this believer, may 00:32:24.839 --> 00:32:30.059 be regularly coming for services, but does not... 00:32:30.839 --> 00:32:34.680 is not even involved in any ministry at all that 00:32:34.680 --> 00:32:38.759 pushes the gospel to be proclaimed. And I know 00:32:38.759 --> 00:32:41.059 of brothers and sisters, great brothers and sisters, 00:32:41.160 --> 00:32:45.420 who are members of the church, but I doubt if 00:32:45.420 --> 00:32:49.019 I can call them proclaimers of the gospel. And 00:32:49.019 --> 00:32:53.579 this is what, similar to the baptism of repentance 00:32:53.579 --> 00:32:56.279 of John. What was the teaching of the baptism 00:32:56.279 --> 00:32:58.880 of repentance? They were to repent of their sins 00:32:58.880 --> 00:33:03.319 and God in heaven forgives them. That's it. That's 00:33:03.319 --> 00:33:08.440 it. But in this case, a disciple is the one not 00:33:08.440 --> 00:33:11.420 only is saved by the grace of God, washed by 00:33:11.420 --> 00:33:14.940 the blood of Jesus, but he fulfills, he or she 00:33:14.940 --> 00:33:18.339 fulfills the calling of a disciple. And what 00:33:18.339 --> 00:33:22.190 is that? To proclaim the gospel. So the question 00:33:22.190 --> 00:33:24.710 that I ask you right now, are you a believer? 00:33:25.450 --> 00:33:28.650 Of course you will say yes. But are you a disciple? 00:33:28.849 --> 00:33:32.910 Do you proclaim the gospel in your own way that 00:33:32.910 --> 00:33:36.529 the Lord has impressed upon you? Are you a proclaimer 00:33:36.529 --> 00:33:41.529 of the gospel? I'm here. I mean, we're okay. 00:33:41.609 --> 00:33:44.990 We're okay. Say yes, please. Yes. Okay, good. 00:33:45.970 --> 00:33:50.599 That comforts me now. Well, that's... is what 00:33:50.599 --> 00:33:55.140 you call people they felt, Apollos, as educated 00:33:55.140 --> 00:34:00.640 as he was, it was still inadequate until the 00:34:00.640 --> 00:34:04.720 coming of the Holy Spirit upon him. The third 00:34:04.720 --> 00:34:10.820 one, the third one is they were outgunned or 00:34:10.820 --> 00:34:14.659 ill -equipped. Now, a good example is the Apostle 00:34:14.659 --> 00:34:18.489 Paul. Now, this is what you will find in the 00:34:18.489 --> 00:34:21.789 book of Acts. And even in his letters. Paul was 00:34:21.789 --> 00:34:26.369 not fearful of anything. He didn't fear anything 00:34:26.369 --> 00:34:29.829 or anyone. Even when he was still Saul. When 00:34:29.829 --> 00:34:35.469 he was still Saul, he pursued Christians. He 00:34:35.469 --> 00:34:38.849 was so determined. He was so zealous. I'm going 00:34:38.849 --> 00:34:42.780 to arrest all this. people who follows the way 00:34:42.780 --> 00:34:46.159 of the Lord, calling them the way. He pursued 00:34:46.159 --> 00:34:49.980 them. He arrested them. He imprisoned them. He 00:34:49.980 --> 00:34:53.940 persecuted them. And he even killed them. Remember 00:34:53.940 --> 00:34:56.699 Stephen? Stephen was stoned to death in front 00:34:56.699 --> 00:34:59.639 of Paul. He didn't stop it. He was even holding 00:34:59.639 --> 00:35:03.579 the cloaks of other people executing Stephen. 00:35:03.920 --> 00:35:08.139 So Paul was never fearful of anything. And this 00:35:08.139 --> 00:35:12.659 is a good thing because when Jesus met him, that 00:35:12.659 --> 00:35:15.900 kind of fervor, that kind of zealousness, that 00:35:15.900 --> 00:35:20.579 kind of commitment, Paul used to proclaim the 00:35:20.579 --> 00:35:23.969 gospel. So that was not even the problem. Paul 00:35:23.969 --> 00:35:26.789 was not inadequate of knowledge. He is a Pharisee 00:35:26.789 --> 00:35:29.889 of the Pharisees. One of the most educated persons 00:35:29.889 --> 00:35:33.670 you will find. He is responsible for a big bulk 00:35:33.670 --> 00:35:36.269 of the writings in the New Testament. His letters. 00:35:36.349 --> 00:35:40.710 Because he was that educated. So, why did Paul 00:35:40.710 --> 00:35:44.030 need to be empowered by the Holy Spirit? Well, 00:35:44.050 --> 00:35:46.789 the answer to that is so that Paul could endure 00:35:46.789 --> 00:35:49.809 suffering. One thing that he needs is the ability 00:35:49.809 --> 00:35:53.429 to endure so that he can prolong his life. and 00:35:53.429 --> 00:35:56.250 make sure that the gospel is proclaimed. What 00:35:56.250 --> 00:35:59.449 was his target? His target was Jerusalem, and 00:35:59.449 --> 00:36:03.469 his final target was Rome. Unlike us, me, my 00:36:03.469 --> 00:36:07.250 target is just what? Chatuchak, or what? But 00:36:07.250 --> 00:36:11.349 Paul, his target was Rome. And that's a big goal, 00:36:11.530 --> 00:36:17.030 but he did it. See, this guy, this is very interesting, 00:36:17.150 --> 00:36:21.099 because you can see the... The enthusiasm and 00:36:21.099 --> 00:36:23.699 the commitment that Paul had when it comes to 00:36:23.699 --> 00:36:26.860 preaching the gospel. There's a story in Acts, 00:36:26.960 --> 00:36:30.019 in Acts chapter 20, that probably we may have 00:36:30.019 --> 00:36:33.099 misinterpreted. This is the story about Eutychus. 00:36:33.099 --> 00:36:36.119 Do you know who Eutychus is? Well, Eutychus is 00:36:36.119 --> 00:36:39.219 the one who fell from the building because he 00:36:39.219 --> 00:36:43.039 fell asleep. Anyway, let's read this. He said, 00:36:43.159 --> 00:36:48.489 I want you to understand what... the author Luke 00:36:48.489 --> 00:36:50.989 is actually trying to say. This is not about 00:36:50.989 --> 00:36:53.190 the story of Eutychus being raised from the dead. 00:36:53.269 --> 00:36:56.269 No. That's not the point of the story. And sometimes 00:36:56.269 --> 00:36:58.710 we focus on the miracle rather than what the 00:36:58.710 --> 00:37:01.090 author is trying to say. It says here, on the 00:37:01.090 --> 00:37:03.269 first day of the week, we came together. This 00:37:03.269 --> 00:37:05.829 is Luke talking. We came together to break bread. 00:37:06.429 --> 00:37:10.989 Paul spoke to the people and because he intended 00:37:10.989 --> 00:37:14.489 to leave the next day, he kept on talking until 00:37:14.489 --> 00:37:18.389 midnight. There were many lamps in the upstairs 00:37:18.389 --> 00:37:20.409 room where we were meeting. I don't even know, 00:37:20.489 --> 00:37:23.469 probably those lamps even contributed to the 00:37:23.469 --> 00:37:28.449 atmosphere that made, what's this, Eutychus fell 00:37:28.449 --> 00:37:33.349 asleep. And then it says here, seated in a window 00:37:33.349 --> 00:37:37.710 was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking 00:37:37.710 --> 00:37:40.949 into deep sleep. Now, Luke could have stopped 00:37:40.949 --> 00:37:44.949 there. But he said, as Paul talked on and on, 00:37:45.849 --> 00:37:48.389 When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground 00:37:48.389 --> 00:37:51.150 from the third story and was picked up dead. 00:37:52.570 --> 00:37:54.630 Now let this serve as a warning to you, those 00:37:54.630 --> 00:38:01.250 who are falling asleep right now. First, I don't 00:38:01.250 --> 00:38:03.909 think I can erase you from the dead, so that's 00:38:03.909 --> 00:38:09.050 even worse. But what the story is trying to tell 00:38:09.050 --> 00:38:12.150 is that this guy just wouldn't stop. Have you 00:38:12.150 --> 00:38:14.449 attended a service where it was already overtime 00:38:14.449 --> 00:38:17.769 and the pastor wouldn't stop? Then you lose all 00:38:17.769 --> 00:38:20.670 the blessing. I just want to get up. It's lunchtime 00:38:20.670 --> 00:38:23.349 and you're so hungry. This is even worse. He 00:38:23.349 --> 00:38:27.909 kept on talking and talking until midnight. This 00:38:27.909 --> 00:38:32.489 poor guy fell from the window. Paul went down, 00:38:32.670 --> 00:38:37.070 threw himself on the young man and put his arms 00:38:37.070 --> 00:38:40.050 around him. He said, don't be alarmed. He said, 00:38:40.170 --> 00:38:42.690 he's alive. And thank God, probably the other, 00:38:42.750 --> 00:38:47.230 he's alive, right? But this is funny. What comes 00:38:47.230 --> 00:38:50.469 after is funny. He said, the Bible says, then 00:38:50.469 --> 00:38:53.969 he went upstairs again and broke bread, ate. 00:38:54.750 --> 00:39:00.150 After talking until daylight, he left. The people 00:39:00.150 --> 00:39:02.829 took the young man home alive and were greatly 00:39:02.829 --> 00:39:06.929 comforted. If somebody dies right now in the 00:39:06.929 --> 00:39:09.210 middle of my preaching, just for example, I'm 00:39:09.210 --> 00:39:11.610 not talking, it's going to be you. But in case 00:39:11.610 --> 00:39:14.949 somebody does, if that happens, I will call on 00:39:14.949 --> 00:39:17.690 the elders. Can we stop the service now? Let's 00:39:17.690 --> 00:39:20.989 just go home. This guy didn't. Probably because 00:39:20.989 --> 00:39:23.469 he raised him from the dead. But shouldn't that 00:39:23.469 --> 00:39:25.969 serve as a warning? If I continue preaching again, 00:39:26.170 --> 00:39:30.150 probably all of these people will die. But he 00:39:30.150 --> 00:39:33.969 didn't stop. What that story is trying to tell 00:39:33.969 --> 00:39:36.989 is giving you a picture of who Paul is. You will 00:39:36.989 --> 00:39:41.550 not be able to stop this disciple in proclaiming 00:39:41.550 --> 00:39:44.590 the gospel. I wish I had that kind of fervor, 00:39:44.590 --> 00:39:49.030 that commitment and zealousness. That kind of 00:39:49.030 --> 00:39:52.650 definition of what a disciple, an empowered disciple 00:39:52.650 --> 00:39:58.590 of the Lord Jesus Christ is. So, why did Paul 00:39:58.590 --> 00:40:03.280 need... The empowering of the Holy Spirit. Well, 00:40:03.320 --> 00:40:06.900 Luke lays out the answer clearly in Acts 18 to 00:40:06.900 --> 00:40:11.639 24. Now, look at this. From Acts 18, even from 00:40:11.639 --> 00:40:14.900 Acts chapter 16, all the way to 24. This is all 00:40:14.900 --> 00:40:16.940 about Paul and his proclamation of the gospel. 00:40:17.139 --> 00:40:20.539 This is all about Paul and the opposition he 00:40:20.539 --> 00:40:23.639 received. All the persecution he received. And 00:40:23.639 --> 00:40:25.860 later on you will find out he was executed in 00:40:25.860 --> 00:40:30.519 Rome. But he didn't stop. But why did he need 00:40:30.519 --> 00:40:33.840 the proclamation of the gospel? Why? Well, because 00:40:33.840 --> 00:40:37.440 Paul's proclamation was not mainly for people 00:40:37.440 --> 00:40:41.619 who did not know Jesus. His proclamation was 00:40:41.619 --> 00:40:45.440 directed at those who opposed Jesus. That's different. 00:40:45.920 --> 00:40:50.599 That opposition came from both evil spirits and 00:40:50.599 --> 00:40:53.900 the human leaders who held power in the temples, 00:40:54.059 --> 00:40:58.150 Jerusalem and Rome. Luke and Paul doesn't see 00:40:58.150 --> 00:41:00.550 any distinction between evil spirits and evil 00:41:00.550 --> 00:41:03.409 humans. They are all under the evil kingdom. 00:41:03.829 --> 00:41:07.590 All persecution is an opposition to the gospel. 00:41:08.110 --> 00:41:12.309 And its purpose, of course, is to be perpetrated 00:41:12.309 --> 00:41:15.789 by evil. That's why he said in Ephesians. In 00:41:15.789 --> 00:41:20.449 Ephesians chapter 6 verse 12. This is Paul talking. 00:41:20.670 --> 00:41:22.809 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood. 00:41:23.320 --> 00:41:25.860 but against the rulers, against the authorities, 00:41:26.260 --> 00:41:30.219 against the powers of this dark world, and against 00:41:30.219 --> 00:41:32.559 the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly 00:41:32.559 --> 00:41:36.460 realms. He did not distinguish them. He didn't 00:41:36.460 --> 00:41:38.780 say, these are humans. Oh, these are spirits. 00:41:38.880 --> 00:41:43.400 No, he sees it all together. And in order for 00:41:43.400 --> 00:41:47.159 the battlefield, the leveling of the battlefield, 00:41:47.579 --> 00:41:51.199 Paul needed power. And what is that power? Power 00:41:51.199 --> 00:41:56.400 to endure. So that the proclamation of the gospel 00:41:56.400 --> 00:42:00.059 will prevail. Are you familiar with the saying? 00:42:01.780 --> 00:42:05.139 The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was 00:42:05.139 --> 00:42:07.579 convincing the world he didn't exist. You know 00:42:07.579 --> 00:42:11.420 where that comes from, right? To me, this is 00:42:11.420 --> 00:42:14.860 true. Didn't you notice? This is what I've noticed. 00:42:15.039 --> 00:42:18.219 I'm old, you know. But I've noticed that... Did 00:42:18.219 --> 00:42:22.380 you notice that the... It's now very common for 00:42:22.380 --> 00:42:26.820 people to say the F word. Very common. Even when 00:42:26.820 --> 00:42:30.639 they're joking or when they are upset. Even when 00:42:30.639 --> 00:42:33.059 people are happy. Some people are just used to 00:42:33.059 --> 00:42:36.780 saying the F word. To me, oh boy, this society 00:42:36.780 --> 00:42:40.059 is getting worse. This is, to me, the influence 00:42:40.059 --> 00:42:42.539 of the devil. He's taking hold. But at the same 00:42:42.539 --> 00:42:46.130 time, did you also know that... revivals are 00:42:46.130 --> 00:42:48.789 going on, powerful revivals are going on right 00:42:48.789 --> 00:42:53.630 now in Africa, in China, in all over, in different 00:42:53.630 --> 00:42:56.050 parts of the world because I believe that the 00:42:56.050 --> 00:42:58.670 constant mistake the devil makes is believing 00:42:58.670 --> 00:43:01.389 that true Christians have ceased to persist. 00:43:04.369 --> 00:43:08.369 Look at what the Apostle Paul said in Acts 20. 00:43:08.630 --> 00:43:12.079 And now, Compelled by the Spirit. Pastor Pablo 00:43:12.079 --> 00:43:16.460 read this last Sunday. And now compelled by the 00:43:16.460 --> 00:43:19.139 Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem. He was determined. 00:43:19.599 --> 00:43:23.119 Not knowing what will happen to me there. I only 00:43:23.119 --> 00:43:25.639 know that in every city, the Holy Spirit warns 00:43:25.639 --> 00:43:28.739 him. The word warning here means the Holy Spirit 00:43:28.739 --> 00:43:31.659 is preparing him. The Holy Spirit was not stopping. 00:43:31.699 --> 00:43:33.900 The Holy Spirit was not taking away persecution. 00:43:34.159 --> 00:43:36.639 The Holy Spirit was warning him that prison. 00:43:37.230 --> 00:43:39.909 and hardships are facing me. However, he said, 00:43:40.050 --> 00:43:43.869 I consider my life worth nothing to me. My only 00:43:43.869 --> 00:43:46.829 aim is to finish the race and complete the task 00:43:46.829 --> 00:43:50.489 the Lord Jesus has given me. The task of testifying, 00:43:50.510 --> 00:43:55.789 that task of testifying to the good news of God's 00:43:55.789 --> 00:43:59.949 grace. Well, Paul achieved his objective to get 00:43:59.949 --> 00:44:04.150 to Rome. In AD 64, he was beheaded. In Rome. 00:44:04.309 --> 00:44:07.409 He spilled his blood on the streets of Rome. 00:44:08.010 --> 00:44:13.449 And then 248 years later, the emperor of Rome 00:44:13.449 --> 00:44:18.750 became a Christian. And you know the story. I 00:44:18.750 --> 00:44:21.949 took a break when I was preparing this message. 00:44:21.969 --> 00:44:24.170 And I was asking God, how am I going to end this? 00:44:24.550 --> 00:44:27.650 And the Lord Jesus, the Holy Spirit provided 00:44:27.650 --> 00:44:32.860 a very ample ending to this message. So, there 00:44:32.860 --> 00:44:35.840 was one new student that we just finished the 00:44:35.840 --> 00:44:37.679 course. I was the one teaching. That one student 00:44:37.679 --> 00:44:43.860 said, Dr. Estrada, can you give me the opportunity 00:44:43.860 --> 00:44:45.539 to take you out to lunch? And you know, whenever 00:44:45.539 --> 00:44:47.760 I hear lunch, I would always say yes. Especially 00:44:47.760 --> 00:44:51.380 if it's free, okay? And I said, yes, yes, of 00:44:51.380 --> 00:44:55.519 course. So, I met him at Central Rama 9. I haven't 00:44:55.519 --> 00:45:04.389 met this guy. I just saw him on Zoom. On the 00:45:04.389 --> 00:45:09.409 left is Pastor Frank Mangti. On the right is 00:45:09.409 --> 00:45:18.030 Brad Pitt. Anyway, to cut the story short, he 00:45:18.030 --> 00:45:20.030 shared a testimony with me that I didn't even 00:45:20.030 --> 00:45:22.630 know. I was not even telling him about what I 00:45:22.630 --> 00:45:26.489 was preparing. He said he was so scared one time. 00:45:26.869 --> 00:45:30.190 He is a missionary and a pastor of Salvation 00:45:30.190 --> 00:45:33.179 Army. So he was brought as a missionary here 00:45:33.179 --> 00:45:36.119 now in Bangkok to pioneer churches amongst the 00:45:36.119 --> 00:45:39.340 Myanmar nationals. He's from Myanmar. He's a 00:45:39.340 --> 00:45:44.400 pastor. On the eve of sometime in July 2023, 00:45:44.519 --> 00:45:48.139 he said he was riding his bike on the way to 00:45:48.139 --> 00:45:52.039 lead a Bible study and prayer meeting. And unfortunately, 00:45:52.139 --> 00:45:56.699 he saw a checkpoint manned by the military men. 00:45:59.789 --> 00:46:03.889 They stopped him. And he was explaining, I'm 00:46:03.889 --> 00:46:08.150 a pastor, blah, blah, blah. But they were about 00:46:08.150 --> 00:46:11.869 to probably let him go. I'm not sure what actually 00:46:11.869 --> 00:46:13.969 happened. But what happened is that they took 00:46:13.969 --> 00:46:17.349 his wallet. And in his wallet, they saw an ID, 00:46:17.570 --> 00:46:21.769 Salvation Army. And it says, Lieutenant. Lieutenant 00:46:21.769 --> 00:46:28.500 Rang Monty. Because in the Salvation Army missionary 00:46:28.500 --> 00:46:31.940 group, they have ranks. Captains, lieutenant. 00:46:32.360 --> 00:46:35.300 His rank was lieutenant. And the moment they 00:46:35.300 --> 00:46:38.920 saw that his rank was a lieutenant, they thought 00:46:38.920 --> 00:46:40.980 that he was part of the PDF, the People's Defense 00:46:40.980 --> 00:46:45.059 Force, the rebel army in Myanmar. They immediately 00:46:45.059 --> 00:46:48.820 took him to prison. Immediately. And he was crying. 00:46:49.159 --> 00:46:52.199 He was telling them, Pastor, I'm not with the 00:46:52.199 --> 00:46:54.809 military. They wouldn't believe that. They locked 00:46:54.809 --> 00:46:57.150 him in prison. It was a dingy, dark prison, he 00:46:57.150 --> 00:46:59.710 said. And he was crying to God, asking, Lord, 00:46:59.889 --> 00:47:02.670 I was on my way to a Bible study, and you allowed 00:47:02.670 --> 00:47:04.590 this to happen? He was praying to the Holy Spirit 00:47:04.590 --> 00:47:09.150 for strength. And then eventually he said, just 00:47:09.150 --> 00:47:12.469 gracious Holy Spirit, I pray that you just give 00:47:12.469 --> 00:47:16.429 me the power to endure this. Now that is suffering, 00:47:16.550 --> 00:47:20.269 because he was proclaiming the gospel. You know 00:47:20.269 --> 00:47:22.250 what happened is that every now and then, every 00:47:22.250 --> 00:47:27.630 two days, he would have a new cellmate. Most 00:47:27.630 --> 00:47:32.050 of them were Myanmar nationals who were Buddhist. 00:47:32.329 --> 00:47:35.769 And this guy, just like Paul, he wouldn't stop 00:47:35.769 --> 00:47:39.789 sharing the gospel to all of his cellmates until 00:47:39.789 --> 00:47:43.170 he was released. And he met some of them and 00:47:43.170 --> 00:47:45.789 they said, can you please guide us to the Christian 00:47:45.789 --> 00:47:50.579 faith? Now that's suffering. That's persecution. 00:47:51.500 --> 00:47:54.780 That's proclamation. And that's the empowerment 00:47:54.780 --> 00:47:57.679 of the Holy Spirit to endure suffering so that 00:47:57.679 --> 00:48:01.500 the gospel will prevail. Bow your heads with 00:48:01.500 --> 00:48:04.760 me, please. Lord Jesus, gracious Holy Spirit, 00:48:04.940 --> 00:48:09.500 I pray for your blessing. Clothe my brothers 00:48:09.500 --> 00:48:12.579 and sisters with your power. And I pray that 00:48:12.579 --> 00:48:15.300 we will recall, remember that we are not just 00:48:15.300 --> 00:48:18.619 believers. but rather we are disciples and we 00:48:18.619 --> 00:48:22.920 are called to proclaim your name. I pray, Lord 00:48:22.920 --> 00:48:25.619 God, in our own small way, tell us which ministry 00:48:25.619 --> 00:48:28.000 you want us to really get involved with because 00:48:28.000 --> 00:48:32.179 we want to be part of the proclaiming group, 00:48:32.300 --> 00:48:34.940 the proclaiming army of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:48:36.280 --> 00:48:38.420 And Lord, may your name be glorified through 00:48:38.420 --> 00:49:04.099 our lives. In Jesus' precious name, amen. If 00:49:04.099 --> 00:49:06.980 God is calling you to support our ministries, 00:49:06.980 --> 00:49:09.699 you will find giving options on our website. 00:49:10.500 --> 00:49:13.960 And remember to join us next week. God bless 00:49:13.960 --> 00:49:14.199 you.