Participants: Pr. Kenneth Cox, Host: C.A. Murray
Series Code: GMTB
Program Code: GMTB000011S
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00:19 Hello and welcome to what we can call Volume 3
00:23 of our trek through the Word 00:25 of God that we have called 00:26 Give Me The Bible. 00:28 My name is C.A. Murray, and it is my privilege 00:30 and pleasure to welcome our in-house audience 00:33 and those of you listening and viewing from around the world 00:36 to this wonderful walk through the Word of God: 00:39 Give Me The Bible. 00:41 This night you will hear a man who is intelligent, 00:47 but his intelligence will not impress you. 00:51 You will hear a man who is articulate, 00:53 but his articulence... 00:55 Can I say that word "articulence? " 00:57 his... the fact that he is 00:58 articulate will not impress you. 01:00 You will hear a man who has studied much and long 01:02 in the Word of God AND history, 01:04 but that's not the thing that will impress you. 01:07 It will simply be the fact that God has chosen to use this man 01:12 in this place, at this time, 01:16 because He wants to speak to us. 01:19 God wants to give us a message. 01:23 God wants us to be prepared 01:26 for the second coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 01:29 And so He has laid His hand, His mantle, 01:32 on Kenneth Cox because He wants you and I 01:37 to be ready when Jesus comes. 01:40 And so we ask you to give ear this night to the man of God. 01:43 But before Elder Cox comes and speaks to us 01:45 on this wonderful subject - The Promise of His Spirit, 01:49 and we're going to be talking about the Holy Spirit for the 01:51 next several sessions - we have a good friend of the ministry... 01:55 David Tank is here. He's going to talk about nature 01:58 and grace and the goodness of the Lord. 02:00 Hear this beautiful, beautiful song. 02:22 Deep within me 02:25 there lies a true distinction 02:30 between the things I would and what I really do. 02:38 And I cannot believe 02:43 that I'm so unusual. 02:46 Isn't this a common sorrow 02:50 within me and you? 02:56 Nature will seek 03:00 only its own advantage. 03:04 It considers only how 03:07 another might be used. 03:13 But grace will bring 03:17 a new humility 03:20 to comfort those afflicted 03:24 and to help those once abused. 03:31 Nature will seek 03:34 its fair consolation. 03:37 It never offers its help without its price... 03:42 and rewards. 03:47 Grace finds reward 03:50 in another's consolation. 03:55 Learning in this paradox 03:59 the power of our Lord. 04:18 Nature will seek to be exalted 04:23 in authority, to argue its opinion 04:28 and to have all the world conform. 04:34 But grace humbly comes 04:38 in a silent assuredness. 04:42 Seeking only to conform 04:46 a man unto his Lord. 04:52 Nature will seek 04:56 its fair consolation. 04:59 It never offers its help without its price... 05:04 and rewards. 05:09 Grace finds reward 05:12 in another's consolation. 05:17 Learning in this paradox 05:21 the power of our Lord. 05:27 Learning in this paradox 05:30 the power of our Lord. 05:58 Amen. 06:00 Thank you. Thank you, David. Appreciate that very much. 06:04 Hope you were blessed! 06:05 Enjoyed it! 06:07 Glad to see each of you here, and glad that you're back. 06:10 Welcome to Give Me The Bible. 06:13 Give Me The Bible. 06:15 What says the Bible, 06:16 the blessed Bible? 06:18 This should my only question be. 06:22 The Lord has given His Spirit to teach us. 06:26 What says the Book of God to me? 06:29 That's what we want to find out and look at tonight. 06:32 And so this particular series is on the Holy Spirit. 06:37 That's what we're going to be talking about 06:39 is the Holy Spirit. I really don't know 06:42 of any subject that is probably more important 06:46 than the subject of the Holy Spirit. 06:48 Something that you and I need to know about... 06:51 we need to understand. 06:53 And so in this series there is five parts, 06:57 and tonight we're talking about the promise of the Holy Spirit. 07:01 The promise that God gave us 07:03 that He would send us His Spirit. 07:05 That's the subject tonight. 07:07 Our next presentation will be: 07:14 Why many people never receive the benefit 07:18 from the Holy Spirit. And I'm talking about people 07:20 who have accepted the Lord. 07:22 Accepted Christ but they never in their life seem to receive 07:26 any benefit from the Holy Spirit. 07:28 That's what we'll be looking at in our next presentation. 07:32 And then our presentation after that will be on the 07:35 fruits of the Spirit. 07:36 God promises that with the Holy Spirit there are 07:39 certain fruits that come with it. 07:42 And so we'll take a look at that. 07:43 And then our next presentation after that will be on the 07:46 gifts of the Holy Spirit. 07:49 Gifts that God gives to each one of us. 07:53 We're going to take a look at those gifts. 07:54 And then we'll close out our last session 07:57 on the Holy Spirit will be on the Latter Rain. 08:00 Those are the subjects we'll be covering, 08:02 and we hope that they will bless you in a special way 08:06 as we look at them. 08:07 But tonight we're taking a look 08:09 at The Promise of the Holy Spirit. 08:16 What do you need to look for in tonight's presentation? 08:19 Well the first thing you need to look for 08:22 is who is the Holy Spirit? 08:26 You know? Who is the Holy Spirit? 08:28 Are you clear from scripture who the Holy Spirit is? 08:32 We're going to take a look at that, 08:35 and then we're going to take a look at the promise that God has 08:38 given to us concerning the Holy Spirit. 08:41 How do I receive the Holy Spirit? 08:43 How does that take place in my life? 08:46 What happens? When does it happen? 08:48 Those are some of the things that you'll need to watch for 08:51 as we go through tonight's presentation. 08:53 And we hope that it will help you understand 08:56 the work of the Holy Spirit in a special way. 08:59 So we appreciate you being here. 09:01 All those that are watching by television... 09:04 we're glad that you're here. 09:05 Those of you that are listening by radio... 09:07 And we hope that as we go through this subject 09:10 that it will make it very clear and that you'll be able to 09:13 understand where we are. 09:15 We are very happy to have with us 09:18 David Tank. David's going to sing for us 09:21 a song: Surely the Presence of the Lord. 09:33 Surely the presence 09:37 of the Lord is in this place. 09:41 I can feel His mighty power 09:45 and His grace. 09:50 I can hear the brush of angels' wings, 09:55 I see glory on each face. 10:00 Surely the presence 10:03 of the Lord is in this place. 10:11 In the midst of His children 10:15 the Lord said He would be. 10:20 It doesn't take very many... 10:24 it can be just two or three. 10:29 And I feel that same sweet Spirit 10:33 that I felt often times before. 10:38 Surely I can say 10:43 I have been with the Lord. 10:47 Surely the presence 10:52 of the Lord is in this place. 10:57 I can feel His mighty power 11:01 and His grace. 11:06 I can hear the brush of angels' wings, 11:10 I see glory on each face. 11:16 Surely the presence 11:19 of the Lord is in this place. 11:27 There's a holy hush around us 11:31 as God's glory fills this place. 11:36 I've touched the hem of His garment, 11:40 I can almost see His face. 11:45 And my heart is overflowing 11:50 with the fullness of His joy. 11:54 I know without a doubt 11:59 that I've been with the Lord. 12:04 Surely the presence 12:08 of the Lord is in this place. 12:13 I can feel His mighty power 12:17 and His grace. 12:22 I can hear the brush of angels' wings, 12:27 I see glory on each face. 12:33 Surely the presence 12:41 Yes, surely the presence 12:46 of the Lord 12:48 is in this place. 13:08 Father in Heaven, 13:10 We come to You this evening 13:13 asking... asking Lord that Your Spirit may be present 13:19 in a marked manner. 13:20 That our eyes may be open. 13:23 That our hearts may be soft. 13:27 That we may see and that we might understand Your Word. 13:33 Help us, Lord, to learn 13:37 all that You have in store for us concerning Your Spirit. 13:41 For this we ask in Christ's name, Amen. 13:51 Christ had spent 3-1/2 years 13:55 with His disciples. 13:56 He's about ready to go back to His Father. 14:00 And of course, understanding that these 12 disciples 14:05 were really young in what they had learned 14:11 and all that was before them, 14:12 the great, great need of them 14:15 having something that would 14:17 guide, direct, and lead them 14:19 was needed. And also in our own case. 14:23 And so Christ gave this promise. He said: 14:44 So He's promising here that He's going to send 14:47 to them and to us the Holy Spirit. 14:51 That it was to be there to help us and to guide and direct 14:55 our lives. You see, each one of us 15:00 are in need of two things that we cannot do for ourselves. 15:06 Two things that we just cannot do for ourselves. 15:09 And one of those things that we can't do for ourselves 15:13 is forgiveness. 15:14 You see Christ did that for us. 15:17 Christ did that on Calvary. 15:19 He died for us, and He paid the price, 15:22 and He made forgiveness possible for you and for me. 15:25 The other thing that we can't do for ourselves 15:29 is that of goodness. 15:31 You see, that's something that the Holy Spirit does in us. 15:36 Christ paid the price and made forgiveness for us. 15:41 But the Holy Spirit does something IN US. 15:44 That's where goodness comes from... the Holy Spirit. 15:47 And that's why as we look at the subject of the Holy Spirit 15:51 it's so important that you and I understand and know 15:55 what the Holy Spirit does in our lives 15:58 and how it works in our lives. 16:00 And so tonight we need to simply ask ourselves the 16:09 question: Is this some force? 16:11 Some power? Some magnetic power? 16:15 Is this simply the power of God the Father? 16:19 Who IS the Holy Spirit? 16:22 Never... never... no place in this book - 16:28 absolutely nowhere in this book - 16:31 does it ever refer to the Holy Spirit as "IT. " 16:37 It just does not do that, folks. 16:40 It DOESN'T EVER refer to the Holy Spirit as "IT. " 16:43 It always refers to Him as HIM. 16:47 Puts it in those terms. 16:49 In fact, as you read through, you'll find the Holy Spirit... 16:53 speaks of Him having intellect, 16:56 of Him having a will, 16:58 Him having emotions... all those things it refers to 17:02 as far as the Holy Spirit is concerned. 17:04 And so there's certain things that the Holy Spirit does 17:07 that I'd like for you to look at with me this evening 17:10 as we talk about it. 17:11 One of the things that it tells us that the Holy Spirit does 17:14 is that He speaks. 17:16 You'll find that in Revelation 2:7 17:18 and also in Acts 13:2. 17:21 It simply says: 17:33 So it speaks very clearly here about the Holy Spirit 17:37 saying something, talking to them... that He speaks. 17:41 Also it tells us not only does He speak 17:44 but that He intercedes. 17:47 That's what it says in Romans 8 verse 26. 17:59 Folks, a force... a power... it can't intercede. 18:05 That's impossible. 18:07 When it speaks of it interceding 18:09 that takes a person, that takes a being to do that. 18:14 And so it says the Holy Spirit "intercedes in our behalf. " 18:19 It also says that He testifies. 18:22 John 15 verse 26: 18:24 And it says: 18:38 In other words it's very clear 18:40 that the Holy Spirit was going to testify 18:43 concerning Jesus Christ. 18:45 In other words, He speaks, He testifies concerning Christ. 18:49 Again, this requires a being... not a force. 18:54 Also it says that He leads. 18:56 In the early church this was very, very important that He 19:00 led out as that church was just in the matter of formation 19:04 as they were going out. And it says: 19:10 You remember, He had told Philip to go down to Gaza. 19:13 And you remember the Ethiopian was going there in his chariot, 19:17 and He said: "Run, overtake the chariot. " 19:19 And so He spoke, again... directed. He led 19:23 in what needed to be done. 19:25 It also says concerning the Holy Spirit that He commands. 19:29 Acts 16:6,7... 19:36 The Holy Spirit told them... Paul and his companions 19:39 were going to go over to Asia 19:41 and God said: "No, it's not time. " 19:43 The Holy Spirit said: "Not time to go. " 19:45 He forbade them to go. 19:48 Commands: that is the work of the Holy Spirit. 19:51 Not only has He commanded things 19:54 but it says He appoints. 19:56 In Acts 20 verse 28: 20:07 He appointed them, put them in their position, 20:09 told them what they were to do. 20:11 So when you take a look at the list where it says 20:13 He speaks, He testifies, He intercedes, He leads, 20:18 He commands, He appoints... 20:20 all those are things that the Holy Spirit does, 20:23 and all those are done by a being... 20:26 not by some external force. It's very clear. 20:30 The Holy Spirit, it says, can be lied to. 20:34 He can be blasphemed. 20:36 He can be insulted. 20:38 All those are things that can be done to the Holy Spirit 20:41 because He is a being. 20:43 In fact, the scripture says clearly, folks, 20:47 that the Holy Spirit is God. 20:51 In fact, it tells us that the Holy Spirit 20:54 has attributes that only God has. 20:59 No one else. 21:00 And because it has those... He has those attributes, 21:05 HE IS GOD. Listen... Hebrews 9:14: 21:22 It speaks of the Holy Spirit as the eternal Spirit. 21:27 That belongs only to God - 21:31 no one else - 21:33 when it says He is the eternal Spirit. 21:37 That's an attribute that only God has. 21:40 Nobody else has that attribute. 21:43 It also says: 21:55 Speaking of the Holy Spirit to Mary here, 21:58 it said "the Holy Spirit is going to come upon you" 22:01 and it says "the power of the Highest. " 22:04 In other words what it's saying, folks, is the Holy Spirit is 22:08 omnipotent. 22:10 He is all-powerful. 22:12 That's an attribute that belongs ONLY to God... 22:17 that He is omnipotent. 22:19 And then it says: 22:28 David's saying there's no place I can't go 22:32 where the Holy Spirit isn't there. 22:34 He's present everywhere. 22:36 In other words, He is omnipresent. 22:40 Another attribute that only belongs to God: 22:43 that He's omnipresent everywhere. 22:45 He's not limited. That's why Christ said to His disciples 22:49 "It's expedient for you that I go away, 22:53 because if I don't go away the Holy Spirit won't come. 22:57 But if I depart, He will come to you. " 22:59 That meant that He could be with every one of them 23:02 anywhere they were. And that means the Holy Spirit can 23:05 be with each one of you no matter where you are. 23:09 He's omnipresent. 23:10 That is an attribute of God alone. 23:14 And then it says: 23:26 In other words, it says the Holy Spirit knows everything. 23:29 It searches the deep things of God. 23:31 In other words, the Holy Spirit is omniscient. 23:36 He knows all... completely. 23:39 Those are attributes that God the Father has. 23:43 Those are attributes that Jesus Christ has. 23:46 Those are attributes that the Holy Spirit has. 23:49 See? HE IS GOD. 23:52 I'm sure you remember the story 23:54 where in the early church 23:58 a couple by the name of Ananias and Sapphira 24:01 had said they would give 24:03 a portion of land 24:05 to the early church. 24:07 And when they sold it, it brought more money 24:11 than they had expected. 24:13 And so they took some of it 24:15 and kept it for themselves. 24:17 And they came and told the apostles that they had given 24:20 everything they had gotten. 24:22 In other words, they lied about it. 24:24 And this is what Peter said to them: 24:35 Listen folks... 24:40 See? It makes it very clear that the Holy Spirit is God... 24:44 that he had lied to God. 24:46 In fact, it says the Holy Spirit is one that was involved 24:50 in creation. 25:01 Saying the Holy Spirit was there 25:04 and that that was part of the Father and the Son 25:07 and the Holy Spirit in the creation of this world. 25:10 So when we are taking a look at God's Word, 25:13 studying it, 25:15 the Holy Spirit is God. 25:20 That's what it is, and that's what you and I need to realize 25:23 when it says that He promised the Holy Spirit would come 25:28 and be with us. 25:29 That it's going to do certain things in our behalf, 25:33 and we need to look at those. 25:35 Sometimes we use the word Trinity... 25:37 and there's a lot of discussion about the word. 25:39 And some people say that's a word that came as a result 25:42 of the Catholic church. Is not really. 25:45 The word Trinity came from an early church writer 25:48 by the name of Tertullian. 25:50 And he's the one that coined the word... taking the word tri, 25:54 which meant three, and the word unity... 25:56 and put the two together. 25:58 That's where the word Trinity came from. 26:00 And it just means three in one. 26:03 That's what it stands for. 26:05 So when we look at the Trinity, you need to understand. 26:08 Of course, you've got to under- stand, folks, that we're human. 26:11 And we don't even start to comprehend 26:16 the greatness and the complexity of God. 26:20 We don't even... we don't even start to understand that. 26:24 And so when we get into this subject of the Holy Spirit 26:29 or God the Father... folks, we're in areas 26:32 where the amount of knowledge that we have is just so small 26:38 it's unbelievable, OK? 26:40 But when you're thinking about God it says 26:43 these... "We Three are One. " 26:44 "These Three are One. " 26:46 You can't think of it as we do as humans. 26:51 You see, Hebrew helps you... the Hebrew language helps you 26:56 because in Hebrew there are words that are singular. 27:00 OK? And there are words that are dual... 27:04 which meant two. And there are words that are plural... 27:08 which means more than two. 27:10 So if you're reading it in Hebrew 27:13 and you come to this particular word, 27:15 because of the accent and all that's put upon it 27:18 it makes it clear that it is singular, 27:20 or it's dual, or it's plural. 27:23 Well, let's look at a few words here 27:26 in the scripture that in Hebrew that are this way. 27:30 Genesis 1:26 it says: "in Our Image. " 27:36 That word in Hebrew "Our" in Hebrew is plural. 27:41 It means more than two. 27:45 Genesis 3:22: 27:47 "one of Us. " That word Us is plural... 27:53 meaning more than two. 27:55 They aren't singular, they aren't dual... they're plural. 27:58 Genesis 11:7: 28:00 "Let Us go down. " 28:02 And that word Us is plural. 28:05 Isaiah 6:8: 28:07 "Go for Us. " 28:08 Us there is plural. 28:10 So it makes it clear that this is talking about more than just 28:15 God the Father or Jesus Christ the Son. 28:17 It's talking about all three. 28:19 So when we're talking about the Trinity, it's really not 28:24 1+1+1 = 3. 28:30 That's not the way it is, folks. 28:33 It's this way: 28:35 1x1x1 = 1. 28:38 That's the Trinity: Three in One. 28:44 God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit: 28:49 those three. 28:50 So, with that understanding of the Holy Spirit 28:54 and who the Holy Spirit is, 28:55 let's go to the promise... 28:58 the promise of the Holy Spirit. 29:00 That God gave us that promise that He would give us 29:04 the Holy Spirit. And how does that take place in our lives 29:08 and what happens. It says: 29:18 That commission was given that we were to go out 29:22 and we were to preach the gospel and make followers. 29:26 Disciples, OK? 29:28 Baptizing them in the name of the Father, 29:31 in the name of the Son, 29:32 and in the name of the Holy Spirit. 29:35 Those three. That was the commission 29:37 that is given to you and to me. 29:40 Not to just a preacher but to everyone 29:44 to proclaim the message there. 29:47 Now, we find that when John the Baptist came 29:51 it says that he preached the kingdom of God. 29:55 He said: "The kingdom of God is at hand. " 29:57 And he said this to them: 30:19 So John prophesied, proclaimed, 30:23 that Jesus Christ would come 30:25 and that He would baptize them with the Holy Spirit 30:29 and with fire. 30:32 Well, when Jesus came He did just exactly that. 30:37 In fact, it was on the day of Feast 30:43 of Tabernacles and all of Israel had gathered there 30:48 in Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of the Tabernacles. 30:52 It's the last day... the last day of that 30:56 particular feast, and on that 30:58 particular day they went and 31:02 took jugs of water and a jug of wine 31:06 and they would stand at the altar of sacrifice 31:09 and they would pour the water and the wine 31:12 into a funnel there. 31:14 And just as those priests are pouring that water 31:17 and wine into that funnel 31:19 Jesus, who was standing out in the crowd, 31:21 began to shout. 31:22 And this is what He said: 31:36 Now if you can just picture that... 31:38 here Christ is shouting out across that whole crowd 31:41 of people: "If anybody's thirsty, let him come unto Me 31:45 and drink. " 31:58 Told them, He said: "If you believe in Me, 32:01 out of you will flow rivers of living water. " 32:05 Now what is Jesus talking about 32:07 when He talks about out of them flowing rivers of living water? 32:31 He told them, He said they would receive this 32:34 and out of them would flow rivers of living water. 32:37 But that was to come with the... 32:40 baptism of the Holy Spirit. 32:42 It had not yet been given, folks. Get that clear. 32:47 It had not yet been given. 32:50 But He promised it. In fact, this is after Jesus has 32:55 been crucified. This is after He has been 32:59 resurrected from the grave and when He is spending 33:03 this time on earth with the disciples. 33:06 This is what happened here. 33:08 Acts the first chapter verse 4: 33:26 Now watch: 33:39 Hence... He said: "You're going to receive the baptism of the 33:42 Holy Spirit" so He told them "don't depart from Jerusalem. 33:46 Stay here; pray. You're going to receive the baptism 33:49 of the Holy Spirit. " And true to Christ's words 33:53 on the Day of Pentecost it happened. 33:56 It says: 34:22 Here the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost 34:27 fell on these people. 34:28 Settled on them like tongues of fire, 34:32 and they were all filled with what? 34:43 The Day of Pentecost the promise that out of them would flow 34:47 rivers of living water... The Holy Spirit was given 34:50 to them on the Day of Pentecost. 34:53 Jesus had told them the promise of it. He said: 35:08 Now folks, you must understand this text in Luke 11:13. 35:12 This text Jesus said to them 35:15 before the Day of Pentecost. 35:18 Get it clear. 35:20 This was a promise He made to them and told them 35:24 before the Day of Pentecost. 35:26 And He said they were to ask for the Holy Spirit 35:29 and they would receive it. 35:32 And He said God wanted to give them this. 35:35 So this is a promise that Jesus was making to them 35:38 before the Day of Pentecost. 35:42 You see, I was raised in a... a community 35:47 that was very, very heavy Pentecostal. 35:51 And they believed in the Holy Spirit 35:56 but sometimes the conversation as people were talking 36:01 would go something like this: 36:02 "Did you hear that Mr. Haney received the Holy Ghost 36:06 last night? " And they'd say: "Yeah? " 36:10 They said: "Yes, he went to church and he went forward 36:13 to the altar there, and he prayed through 36:16 and he started speaking in tongues. " 36:19 That was a conversation that you could hear them talk about. 36:24 And I must admit, folks, 36:26 that that influenced my thinking. 36:30 Because that's what went on there and was taught and all. 36:35 And it influenced my thinking, 36:36 and even when I got into the ministry 36:40 that same concept was there 36:44 because I would hear church members or pastors 36:48 say to them: "We really need to get together and pray 36:51 for the baptism of the Holy Spirit. 36:53 We really need to get together and pray. 36:56 We need the baptism of the Holy Spirit. " 36:58 And that was always in the back of my mind. 37:02 It wasn't until I decided that we would do this series 37:07 on the Holy Spirit that I really dug into this 37:13 and began to read it and try to understand it... 37:16 because it just didn't fit in some places. 37:21 And as I studied it 37:24 I found that there is a clear teaching in God's Word 37:30 about the Holy Spirit and when it happens. 37:32 For instance, this happened on the Day of Pentecost. 37:38 Now let's take a look at what the scripture says 37:41 AFTER Pentecost. 37:44 See? And you find that it changes. 37:47 This is Peter. This is after Pentecost. 37:51 He's preaching: 38:05 In other words, up until Pentecost 38:09 Christ had told them that they were to ask 38:12 and you find the Holy Spirit was given 38:14 to different individuals. 38:16 But on the Day of Pentecost, 38:18 the Holy Spirit was poured out 38:20 on the people and no longer did they need to do that 38:26 because you and I receive the Holy Spirit 38:29 when we accept Jesus Christ. 38:32 That's when the Holy Spirit is given to us! 38:35 It is not given to us, folks, 38:38 from praying through 38:40 or struggling 38:42 or doing something of this type. 38:44 That's not the reason the Holy 38:45 Spirit is given to us. 38:46 It's given to us 38:48 un... how shall I say... unearned. 38:52 Unmerited. It's given to us by the grace of God. 38:56 And God gives you the Holy Spirit. 38:59 That's what He does for us. 39:02 In fact, as you read the scripture it begins to come 39:05 very, very clear. As Jesus was talking to Nicodemus 39:09 He said to him: 39:19 When is a person born of water and the Spirit? 39:22 When they accept Christ. 39:47 So it makes it clear 39:49 that when you and I accept Jesus Christ 39:53 we receive the Holy Spirit. 39:56 In fact, if you listen to Paul... he's gone up into the 40:01 coast to Ephesus and that area. 40:04 And he finds some disciples there, and he asks them 40:07 a very pointed question. I want you to listen to what he said: 40:17 In other words he said: "When you accepted Jesus Christ, 40:20 when you believed, did you receive the Holy Spirit? " 40:23 That... you see, that's what the scripture teaches. 40:27 So you and I, when we come to Jesus Christ and we accept Him 40:32 as our personal Savior, we receive the Holy Spirit. 40:37 As I got into it and was studying it, 40:40 I found that there were other people 40:42 who understood that clearly. 40:44 In fact, here's a statement by Billy Graham. 40:48 This is what he said: 41:05 See, he's very clear. He said: 41:08 "that's when you receive the Holy Spirit is when you 41:10 accept Christ as your personal Savior. " 41:13 One of my favorite authors... one of my favorite writers 41:17 felt the same way. 41:19 Her name was Ellen G. White, 41:22 and this is what she said: 41:41 That comes from The Upward Look by Ellen White. 41:45 Makes it very clear 41:46 that we receive the Holy Spirit when we accept Jesus Christ. 41:50 Does that mean that you and I 41:52 are not to pray for the Holy Spirit? 41:55 No, that doesn't mean that. 41:56 It means that you've been given the Holy Spirit. 42:00 You and I need to pray 42:03 for a greater infilling of the Holy Spirit. 42:06 As one person said: "We're all leaky vessels 42:11 and so we need to be filled. " 42:14 And so I need to come to God and pray for the infilling 42:18 of the Holy Spirit. But folks, it's not a question 42:21 of you and I having to go and pray for the baptism 42:25 of the Holy Spirit. You've already been given it. 42:27 You see, it's something that is given exclusively 42:31 to Christians. 42:33 And God does that work in your life. 42:36 But some people will say: "But Brother Cox, 42:39 what about the incidents where the Holy Spirit was given? " 42:44 Well, I'd like for you to follow very carefully now. 42:48 This is in Acts 1 verse 8. 42:51 Jesus is speaking to them, 42:54 and He said: 43:10 Now He said this is what you can expect. 43:13 Now you need to look at that very carefully 43:16 because He specified. He said in Jerusalem, 43:19 Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. 43:24 Well, on the Day of Pentecost, 43:27 when the Holy Spirit was poured out on the Day of Pentecost, 43:31 it says here: 43:42 OK. So they're there in this upper room. They're praying. 43:45 They receive the Holy Spirit. 43:47 Watch what the scripture says here: 43:49 "And there were dwelling in Jerusalem" who? 43:57 In other words, on the Day of Pentecost 44:00 the Holy Spirit was poured out on Jews. 44:03 They were all Jews in that room, 44:06 and it was poured out upon them at that time. 44:09 But a few weeks later 44:12 Philip is down in Samaria 44:16 and it says here concerning Philip... It says: 44:26 Philip went down; preached to them. 44:29 These are Samaritans now folks. 44:30 Let's take a little time and talk about them here. 44:32 Samaritans were hated by the Jews. 44:38 They certainly didn't want them involved in anything they did. 44:42 They hated them. 44:43 OK? So it says here Philip went down and preached to them. 44:47 When he preached Christ to them 44:49 they accepted Jesus Christ 44:51 and it says they received water baptism. 45:10 They sent them down, and they prayed for them 45:13 and the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the Samaritans. 45:18 OK? Why? 45:20 In order to take the gospel to them 45:23 there had to be some proof that they were approved of heaven... 45:27 because the Jews would never go there if they weren't. 45:29 They just wouldn't have gone there because they hated them. 45:33 They didn't have anything to do with them. 45:35 So there had to be some proof that they were accepted by God, 45:38 and so that's the reason Jesus said it would be to 45:42 Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth. 45:46 And just exactly as Jesus said, 45:48 it was poured out in Samaria. 45:50 A few weeks or months later, Peter... 45:55 Peter is over in Joppa. 45:59 There's a man in Caesarea 46:03 who has been praying, and this man is by... 46:07 his name is Cornelius. He's a Roman centurion, 46:10 and in a dream he's been told to send some servants 46:13 to get Peter. And they went down 46:16 and knocked on Peter's door. 46:19 Peter had just had a dream, 46:21 and in that dream he had seen all kinds of unclean animals 46:26 and a voice that said: "Rise, Peter, kill and eat. " 46:30 And Peter said: "Not so, Lord. I've never eaten anything 46:34 common or unclean. " 46:35 That was done three times, 46:37 and it says that Peter was wondering what that meant 46:40 when there was a knock at the door. 46:42 And they told him Cornelius had sent them. 46:45 The next morning Peter goes with them back to Caesarea. 46:49 When he gets there to Cornelius' house, 46:51 the house is full of people. 46:53 And Peter goes in and Peter says to them: 46:57 "You know how it's an unlawful thing for a man... 47:01 a Jewish man... to go to one of another nation, 47:05 but God has showed me that I am not to call any man 47:09 common or unclean. " And then something happened. 47:22 In other words, he had just got through talking there 47:25 and he said this is not a lawful thing for me to do 47:28 to come to Gentiles. Folks, they didn't hate the Gentiles. 47:32 They considered them nothing. 47:35 They considered them dogs. 47:37 They considered them a total waste of time. 47:40 They wouldn't have gone to the Gentiles at all 47:43 unless there was absolutely some proof 47:46 that they were to take the gospel to the Gentiles. 47:48 And so when that happened, 47:50 this is what took place: 48:03 Just as Jesus had said! 48:05 It had been poured out on the Jew, on the Samaritan, 48:09 and on the Gentile. 48:12 That's the reason the Holy Spirit was given, 48:14 and that's the reason they prayed for it for those people. 48:17 Well, there's two exceptions. 48:22 And I must talk about those two exceptions because 48:25 people will bring them up if I don't. 48:28 One exception is what I mentioned earlier 48:31 when Paul is up in the area of Ephesus 48:35 and finding some disciples. 48:38 Now these people were followers, 48:40 and he had asked them the question 48:42 "Did you receive the Holy Spirit since you believed? " 48:46 OK? Asked them that. 48:49 And as he talked to them, he found out that these 48:53 were people that John the Baptist had talked to. 48:56 Now these disciples in Ephesus 48:59 are kind of people that are out of time and out of place 49:05 because they were taught by John the Baptist. 49:09 They don't know anything particularly about Jesus Christ. 49:14 And so here Paul has explained to them about Jesus 49:17 and it says: 49:23 Because they knew very little about Jesus Christ 49:27 and so Paul explained about Christ to them. 49:29 They accepted Him as their Savior, and they were baptized. 49:34 And then it says here: 49:44 Now the reason for that is like I said: 49:47 because they were out of time and out of place. 49:49 They weren't there, and so it had to have some authority... 49:54 so the Holy Spirit was poured out upon them. 49:57 That is an exception, folks. 49:59 There is one other exception, 50:01 and the other exception is concerning Paul himself 50:07 because Paul... they had real questions about Paul. 50:13 I mean he had gone and drug them off to prison. 50:18 Had testified against them 50:20 and even to people who had been killed. 50:22 And so on the road to Damascus 50:25 when Paul gave his heart to the 50:27 Lord, all of a sudden 50:29 they didn't know what to do with it here. 50:32 And so God intervened. 50:34 And it says: 50:57 The reason for that, folks, 50:59 is there needed to be some marked evidence 51:02 that Paul was accepted by God. 51:06 And Ananias could say clearly 51:08 "Yes, the Holy Spirit fell upon him; he received it. " 51:12 Those are the two exceptions that are given. 51:17 That's what the scripture simply teaches. 51:20 And so when you came to Christ 51:23 and you gave your heart to the Lord, 51:26 you received the Holy Spirit. 51:28 That was given to you. 51:31 Now the question of the Holy Spirit here, folks, 51:35 is a question of you and I learning to surrender. 51:40 Of surrendering our life to the work of the Holy Spirit 51:45 and letting it do its work in our life. 51:48 So many people I find 51:51 that are waiting on the Holy Spirit to do something. 51:54 No! You've been given the Holy Spirit. 51:57 What you need to do is surrender your life to Him 52:01 and let Him work in your life. 52:03 And as we learn to surrender, 52:06 the more we surrender our life to Him 52:09 the more the Holy Spirit can do in our life and work in us. 52:13 Gives us this promise here: 52:24 The Holy Spirit will be there, abide with you, forever. 52:39 That's a promise given to you. 52:41 The Holy Spirit is with you... will be in you. 52:49 And so the Holy Spirit comes to our life 52:52 and works in our life in a very, very definite way. 52:57 You see, all the power... 53:02 now listen to me... 53:04 all the power in heaven and earth 53:09 is available to you 53:12 simply through the Holy Spirit. 53:15 And what you and I need to do 53:17 is in our daily life we need to learn to access 53:20 the power of God. 53:22 We need to surrender, 53:24 let the Holy Spirit come into our lives 53:26 and work in us and use us in a very definite way. 53:31 God has promised you the Spirit. 53:33 He's given you the Spirit. 53:35 Now all that we need to do is to go forth 53:39 in the Spirit and the power of the Holy Spirit. 53:43 Let us pray. 53:44 Heavenly Father, we thank you. 53:48 Thank you, Lord, for the gift of the Holy Spirit. 53:51 We ask that each of us 53:54 may take our lives 53:57 and lay them at the foot of the cross. 54:01 Surrender, and give it all to Jesus. 54:04 That we might learn 54:07 how to let the Holy Spirit use us. 54:10 That we aren't here to use the Holy Spirit... 54:14 that the Holy Spirit is to use us. 54:17 Bless each one here, Lord, 54:20 that they might day by day walk as the Lord would have them to 54:26 that we all might enter into Your kingdom 54:28 because we've given our hearts to You. 54:31 For this we ask in Christ's name, Amen. 54:35 Well, tomorrow night: Why Many People Never Receive 54:40 the Benefit of the Infilling of the Holy Spirit. 54:43 So we hope you'll be sure be here as we talk about it. 54:46 That you'll find it to be helpful, I think. 54:49 May God bless you. Goodnight. 54:52 A coal miner of old 54:54 would leave his family every day 54:55 and descend into the depths of the earth 54:58 with the certain knowledge that the smallest mistake 55:01 could keep him and others from ever seeing daylight again. 55:04 Walking along in the dark, 55:07 he could only rely upon his feeble oil lamp 55:10 to keep him alive. 55:12 He faced many dangers down there. 55:14 Rockfalls, flooding, fires. 55:17 But perhaps the danger he feared the most 55:20 was the one that he could not see. 55:23 They called it chokedamp or blackdamp: 55:26 an unbreathable mixture of gases 55:29 that could quickly snuff out his life. 55:31 Imagine for a moment the terror he felt when he realized 55:35 he had hit a pocket of blackdamp. 55:37 The sudden drop in oxygen would put out his lamp 55:41 leaving him in terrifying darkness, fumbling in vain 55:45 to relight it before he lost consciousness. 55:49 Then in the late 1800's, 55:52 a bright new light began to shine in the dark world. 55:56 Using marble-sized pellets of calcium carbide 56:00 and a few drops of water, 56:02 this new lamp produced a gas which burned six times brighter. 56:06 Not only did it make his job a whole lot easier 56:09 but it also saved lives. 56:12 You can see this tiny reflector 56:14 could focus that beam of light 56:17 on the roof of a mine so that he could detect dangerous cracks. 56:21 The lamp was also easy to re-light. 56:23 And since it required far less oxygen, 56:26 it could illuminate the way out 56:28 should they encounter the chokedamp. 56:31 What an incredible illustration this is 56:34 of the condition of fallen man. 56:36 After struggling to survive the pitfalls of life, 56:40 he suddenly realizes the danger he could not see 56:43 had left him without hope and gasping for his last breath 56:48 in utter spiritual darkness. 56:50 For him there is no eternal life through Jesus. 56:54 In fact, he may not have ever heard about Him. 56:59 But friends, just as that bright light 57:03 of the carbide lamp saved lives, 57:05 so does the light of the Bible. 57:07 We need the light of God's Word to illuminate the dark corners 57:11 of our hearts. It focuses our attention on Jesus Christ... 57:15 our only hope for salvation. 57:17 And all who read and study it 57:19 are warned about the rockfalls of life. 57:23 That's why we call this series Give Me The Bible. 57:26 We're trying our best to bring the light of God's truth 57:30 to those who are living and dying in despair. 57:33 It's our mission. It's our passion. 57:35 Won't you join us? 57:39 Please consider what you can do 57:40 for those who still don't know about Jesus. 57:43 As the Holy Spirit impresses, 57:45 you may send your tax-deductible gifts to: 57:59 Thank you for helping us to bring the Blessed Hope 58:02 to millions all around the world. |
Revised 2020-04-30