21 Days in 2024
LOVE LEADS US TO ACTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
"So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” 22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit'" (John 20:21-22).
“Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high" (Luke 24:49).
“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
"When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts 2:1 - 4).
Every Beleiever has received the Holy Spirit. The regeneration of our conversion does not take place without the work and presence of the Holy Spirit. (Titus 3:4-5) The inheritance we have received is administered to us through the gift of Holy Spirit. The seal of the Spirit is our guarantee that more is coming.
"In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory" (Ephesians 1:13-14 ).
In God there is always more. The Holy Spirit’s role in our salvation was never meant to be limited to our born again experience. It was always meant to be the ongoing provision of Heaven for our continuing spiritual transformation with the explosive power to extend His Kingdom on Earth.
“These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you" (John 14:25).
One of the clearest indications of the intent and unfolding plan of God regarding our receiving the Holy Spirit is seen in the four passages quoted at the beginning of this devotion. John 20:22 and Luke 24:49 take place immediately after the resurrection. The passage in John tells when and how Jesus bestowed the Holy Spirit to the disciples while the Luke passage encourages the disciples to wait for Holy Spirit to come and they are endued with power. The progression of receiving is made even clearer in Acts 1:4-8 and it culminates in Acts 2:1-4 with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit to inaugurate the Church of Jesus Christ.
There, Jesus again underscores the importance of waiting for the coming promise. They had not received Holy Spirit in fullness even though they had already received Him as a seal of promise weeks earlier. 49 days after the resurrection on the day of Pentecost, Acts 2:4 describes the fulfillment of the promise. Like an unfolding revelation, the work of the Holy Spirit is an ever-increasing experience of the power and possibility of God at work in our lives and in the Earth.
How much Holy Spirit is it appropriate for a Believer to have? Are we only sealed with future promise or do we have power available to us now? I beieve it has always been the Father’s intent that His children move with incredible love and power. There is no better time than now to demonstrate the love of God to the World with acts of power accompanying.
“Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high" (Luke 24:49).
“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
"When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts 2:1 - 4).
Every Beleiever has received the Holy Spirit. The regeneration of our conversion does not take place without the work and presence of the Holy Spirit. (Titus 3:4-5) The inheritance we have received is administered to us through the gift of Holy Spirit. The seal of the Spirit is our guarantee that more is coming.
"In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory" (Ephesians 1:13-14 ).
In God there is always more. The Holy Spirit’s role in our salvation was never meant to be limited to our born again experience. It was always meant to be the ongoing provision of Heaven for our continuing spiritual transformation with the explosive power to extend His Kingdom on Earth.
“These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you" (John 14:25).
One of the clearest indications of the intent and unfolding plan of God regarding our receiving the Holy Spirit is seen in the four passages quoted at the beginning of this devotion. John 20:22 and Luke 24:49 take place immediately after the resurrection. The passage in John tells when and how Jesus bestowed the Holy Spirit to the disciples while the Luke passage encourages the disciples to wait for Holy Spirit to come and they are endued with power. The progression of receiving is made even clearer in Acts 1:4-8 and it culminates in Acts 2:1-4 with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit to inaugurate the Church of Jesus Christ.
There, Jesus again underscores the importance of waiting for the coming promise. They had not received Holy Spirit in fullness even though they had already received Him as a seal of promise weeks earlier. 49 days after the resurrection on the day of Pentecost, Acts 2:4 describes the fulfillment of the promise. Like an unfolding revelation, the work of the Holy Spirit is an ever-increasing experience of the power and possibility of God at work in our lives and in the Earth.
How much Holy Spirit is it appropriate for a Believer to have? Are we only sealed with future promise or do we have power available to us now? I beieve it has always been the Father’s intent that His children move with incredible love and power. There is no better time than now to demonstrate the love of God to the World with acts of power accompanying.
Posted in 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting