Holy Spirit - Refresher

"In the last days, I will pour out my spirit" (Act 2)

We are a soul, that happens to have a body.

"You don't have a soul. You are a Soul.  You have a body" (CS Lewis)

"The Lord is Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom (from the Law).  And we with unveiled faces are being transformed into his likeness with ever increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit"
(2 Cor 3: 17-18)

"ministers of the new convenant - not of the letter but of the Spirit, for the letter (Law) kills but the Spirit gives life" (2 Cor 3: 6)

"For the god of this age has binded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the Glory of Christ, who is the image of God". (2 Cor 4:4)

"Yet the time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks.  God is Spirit and the worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth"
(John 4: 23-24)

"For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.  We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God and we take captive every thought and make it obedience to Christ" (2 Cor 10: 3-5)

Guys we spoke last week about being "Spiritually aware", about being Spiritually attuned.  That is, to be cognisant that though we live in the world, like Jesus, he spent vasts amounts of his time explaining life and purpose, but (in-particular) the Pharisees couldn't "get it".

So I want to have a refresher on this topic, which I think really needs a few sessions on the Holy Spirit: His role, purpose, function, baptism into the Holy Spirit, Trinity, grieving the Holy Spirit etc.

So for today, here's the context: If I am, first a spirit, soul, person(ality), with a physical body, then what are the implications?
That is, my body is essentially, hosting my soul, my spirit.  It is the physical manifestation of the workings of my person.
In other words, God could have decided to host my spirit in a different physical structure, but He didn't, we are in the Image of God.

Now when you think about it, the materialist, says, "not so", the mind and body are one (monism), we are the working of matter and space, of no external consequence or purpose.  Rationality, morals and love are self made concepts. The implications to that are profoundly illogical and irrational, but that's a whole other topic.

But God who is outside time and space, is Spirit and it is by his Spirit the universe, through Jesus, came into existence.
"Not by might, not by power, but by my Spirit" God says.

Jesus, spoke in spiritual truths, that is, he said "the truth will set you free".  But many didn't get it, that is, they didn't comprehend it, or accept his teaching or truths.  Truth is truth, it can not be anything else, it is immoveable. Jesus spoke truth.  "I am the way" "God loved the world" "I have come to give life" "I am the Son of God"......

When we hear truth, we recognise it, it strikes a chord in our spirit, soul, person. It resonates.  It convicts us.  It does not condemn us. "Where the Spirit is, there is freedom".

When we see someone healed, a marriage restored, incredible provision, the dead raised, a person released from drug abuse or a hardened criminal turn to Christ, that is physical witness of a Spiritual event.  The power behind that spiritual event is the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is SO SO important in our day to day walk.  Otherwise religion either comes in and hijacks our faith, or we dull our spirit to materialism and reject God altogether.

Which is exactly what Satan does, through argument and rationality to the physical.  He is sneaky (the father of lies), in turning what God has set up (structure, reason, love, purpose) to discredit the very structures God put in, in the first place.  The argument goes something like this from Satan to mankind's thinking/beliefs: "I am rational, therefore I believe that because I am rational, I can not believe or accept there is a God or divine creator, because rationally that doesn't make sense"

So what does Paul say "Though we live in the world, we do not wage ware as the world does.... instead we take captive every argument and thought and make it captive and obedient to Christ"

On so, so many levels the issue of the Holy Spirit is fundamental to our walk as men of God.  IF WE DON'T HAVE THE HOLY SPIRIT IN US OR IF WE DON'T COMPREHEND AND ENGAGE WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT, WE WILL BE SPIRITUALLY DEAD.

What does that mean?

Our fruit will be that of the world's.

Simple example: Family member, friend, colleague, associate, neighbour does something wrong towards you. Could be a small annoying thing or something big, could be suicide, could be stealing your idea at work, you pick it.

A relationships counselor might take you down several paths of counselling (if it really caused you grief) and if they had any sense, suggest you forgive them.
A close friend might empathise and feed your desire for revenge or hatred.
A family member might show sympathy and say nothing of what to do.

But really, Christ says "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do" while he's being crucified. And you and I know Truth: forgive me my sins, as I forgive those who have sinned against me". Yet we want  revenge, retribution, justice, sense of entitlement to retaliation, and on Satan goes....
"To err is human, to forgive is divine" (Alexander Pope - 1688-1744)

Forgiveness is a spiritual act - it goes outside our physical, mental physiological sphere.  Now to the person outside of Christ, without the Holy Spirit, it doesn't mean they can't forgive.  At times, mankind aligns itself with Spiritual truths from God and get's blessed by them.
But the difference is, people who have the Holy Spirit, are enabled to "do greater things than these"  (heal, create wealth, bless others, restore, rebuke, prophesy, call out demons off people, speak in tongues....)

If we are to Worship God in Spirit and in Truth, I take that to imply that I will not allow my Spiritual relationship be hijacked by the materialistic prism that dominates our culture.  If I am being transformed into His Likeness, from Glory to Glory, then the only way is via the Spirit.

What does that actually mean?

- Get baptised into the Holy Spirit (not essential, but highly recommended!) (Acts 8:15-16)
- Fill your mind with Spiritual Truths: Bible, Church
- Speak, relate to the Holy Spirit, learn to listen, hear His Voice.
- For me, it's good to sacrifice/give up things/fast for a period something to refocus
- Look for opportunities to release the Holy Spirit (whatever you lose on earth will be loosed in heaven and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven) i.e. pray for someone to get healed, restored. Declare God's word into a situation. Ask the Holy Spirit to give you wisdom or helpin forgiving someone.