Holy Ghost sermon to encourage everyone to receive the Holy Ghost or what modern Christianity would label as the baptism of the Holy Ghost and for those of us who received to preach how vitally important is…
Listen to the Holy Ghost Sermon
Transcription:
We Can’t Stress Enough The Importance Of The Holy Ghost
I was sitting back there and just listening to the choruses and the testimonies and they really explain everything we’re about.
You’ve heard mentioned a lot today about the Holy Ghost and speaking in tongues, especially in Craig’s testimony. Singing choruses there about the Holy ghost.
And so today I want to talk about the Holy ghost.
I want to talk about why we as a group, while we as a fellowship, why we as individuals really want to labor the point really and want to beseech people and we really want to encourage everyone that we meet how important it is to receive the Holy ghost.
That’s what we’re all about… And today I just want to just have a look at why.
Why do we stress these things? You’ll find that it is so important.
Starting Acts chapter 2:33
This chapter is about the birth of the church. It’s on the day of Pentecost. Jesus had been crucified. He had risen from the day. He had left instructions for his disciples. He told them to wait in Jerusalem until they received the Holy ghost and this was the fulfillment of it.
They were there. They received the Holy Spirit. They spoke in tongues. There was a huge commotion about town. What’s going on? Peter stood up and told them, this is what God had promised. This was the promise of the Father.
- Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear. (Acts 2:33)
And I just want to start off by saying…
Where Is Jesus Today?
You have people walking around and I was one of them who ask the question… Where’s God? What’s he doing?
And here’s the Bible answer for that question. Where is Jesus today? It says there he’s at the right hand of God in heaven. That’s where Jesus is. He’s not in the tomb. He’s not in the grave. He rose from the dead. He is alive.!
I say it too often… But every time someone gets filled with the Holy Ghost and fire… every time someone gets filled with the Holy Ghost and speaks in tongues it proves that Jesus is alive.
We don’t worship a dead God. We don’t worship someone in the history books. We worship someone who is current, alive, and effective right here, right now.
Jesus is exalted. He’s important. He’s powerful. He’s at the right hand of God and he is in heaven!
But What Is He Doing?
It tells us there… he is shedding forth this which you now see in here. He’s shedding for the Holy ghost. You can read the whole chapter for yourselves when you go home. But that’s what he’s doing. He is shedding forth the Holy Ghost.
He hasn’t been sitting up in heaven for the last 2000 years, doing nothing, the whole purpose, the whole reason, the whole plan of God, Jesus came and he died for a reason and a purpose.
He said to his disciples it is expedient for you that I go away. Expedient… he’s death and his resurrection for his disciples, for us, for individuals, the quicker it happened, the better off they would be because he would send them another comforter.
He would send them the Holy Ghost and God has not been inactive for the last 2000 years. He has been mightily filling people with the Holy Ghost and power, time and time again, whoever asks… no one is left out.
The Holy Ghost is the most important thing that someone can have because when you received the Holy Ghost, (as we will see later) you received Jesus Christ.
There is no Jesus Christ without the Holy Ghost in your life.
- The Bible tells in Romans chapter 8:9, without the spirit of Christ, you are non of his.
There is no such thing as being a Christian without the Holy Ghost, it is that important and that’s why we stress it. That’s why we labor the point. That’s why we encourage people to receive the Holy Ghost first and foremost in their life.
Because once it comes into their life, everything else gets sorted out. It is the most important thing. It is an unspeakable gift. It is the most precious thing in life.
Wait On The Lord
Let’s go to Luke chapter 24. Alright. And again, just one verse first 49. This is Jesus speaking. It’s after he has risen from the dead and he is speaking to his disciples.
- And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high. (Lk 24:49)
I guess a part of this talk today, it’s not only stressing the importance of receiving the Holy Ghost, but it’s also stressing the importance of waiting on the Lord.
We read a word tarry. Tarry means to wait, but it also means to wait with expectation, to look forward to something. That’s what that word means. It’s just not waiting and being a mindless lump. It’s waiting with excitement and anticipation for something.
And here’s Jesus telling them to wait (tarry) in Jerusalem until you be indued with power from on high. Endued means to be clothed upon as in fully dressed, fully clothed upon with power from on high, it happened in Acts chapter two when they received the Holy Ghost.
They were clothed upon with power from high, but this was Jesus’ instructions to wait for it, tarry for it… don’t go into the world and do all sorts of things without it, because you can’t do it without the Holy Ghost.
The Holy Ghost had to come first. The disciples had to receive the Holy Ghost and the power of God before they could go do anything else that was effective for God. It was that simple. It was that important. That’s what Jesus said. Tarry… Wait!
We might touch on that a bit more later because this is the most important thing that could happen to any individual in this world… receiving the Holy Ghost.
It would have been a tragedy if they didn’t wait, it would have been a tragedy. If they said, Oh, no I’ll go and do this instead. Or I’ll move to another town or I’ll just wander off from what Jesus told me.
I’ll just go a little bit this way. Is it really important that I wait in Jerusalem, what’s wrong with the town down the road?
They would have missed out. What a tragedy, if they didn’t wait where Jesus told them to wait.
What a tragedy… they would have missed out on the most powerful blessed gift ever given to mankind. Obey the Lord and wait on his promises.
And of course, they did wait… praise God. And as a result, their names have gone down in history.
The early Apostles, the works that they did, they were martyred, they spread the gospel, all sorts of things happened, healings took place, and miracles took place.
All sorts of things took place because they waited in Jerusalem until they were clothed upon with power from on high.
This Is It!
On that day of Pentecost, Peter actually stood up and when he was explaining what this speaking in tongues was about, he said, this is that, which was promised by the prophets.
Here we are almost 2000 years later, I don’t mind saying the same thing. It is exciting to be able to stand up in front of the group of people or one on one with somebody and say, THIS IS IT! We found it… we’ve got it. This is it. This is what life’s all about.
That is the Holy ghost. Jesus came and died to give us the Holy Ghost. None of it would’ve have happened without Jesus. Jesus comes into our lives when we received the Holy Spirit.
Jesus is the one we worship. In religious circles, on TV, or whatever you hear a lot about Jesus and about this and about that. But you never hear about… the how. You never hear how it can take place today.
How can this person who died 2000 years ago be effective for us today? The Bible tells us when we’re baptized by full immersion, the only way they were baptized in the Bible… it says we’re buried with him.
It says we’ve been baptized into Jesus’ death. That’s how it is effective 2000 years later. That’s how Jesus’ death relates to us now. With baptized into his death.
But he rose from the dead. He rose from the dead. And we can share in that too with the infilling of the Holy Spirit. That’s how we share on the resurrection.
That’s how this amazing event almost 2000 years ago still has relevance today. We are talking about how! How can it be effective in your life and how it’s effective because of the Holy Spirit.
- Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied. (1 Pet 1:1-2)
Later on, when you get the chance read through this passage again nice and slowly. Realizing these words apply to you. It is written to people filled with the Holy Ghost. Peter calls us the elect.
How’s that? The elect of God! According to his foreknowledge.
How?
THROUGH… the sanctification of the Holy Spirit.
So how does it take place? THROUGH the sanctification of the Holy Spirit? Without the Holy Spirit, you’re not the elect. You don’t share in these promises. It’s so important. This is how it takes place.
UNTO… obedience to the sprinkling of the blood of Christ.
- Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. (1 Pet 1:3)
We’re born again to a LIVELY hope. The church isn’t meant to be boring. Being a Christian is not meant to be a boring life. It is a lively hope. It’s exciting.
- To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, (1 Pet 1:4)
We’ve got to rich dad, haven’t we? Think about it. We sing choruses. We own the cattle on a thousand hills. Other people are just looking after us. We’ve got servants out there looking after our cattle.
Think about it… We own the cattle on a thousand hills, we sing the song. We have this inheritance that is incorruptible… amazing. It’s undefiled and fades not away, reserved in heaven for you.
Isn’t that nice?
You imagine your name being on a reserved sign in heaven.
You see people get their noses out of joint if you knock off their reserved parking spot, especially in an office building or the executives. Because it’s their spot and it’s known to be their spot.
When do you are filled with the Holy Spirit you have a reserved spot and it’s in heaven. Isn’t that amazing?
How to comprehend? Just how amazing it is. It’s brilliant. We have this little reserve sign up there. Reserved for us in heaven.
- Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. (1 Pet 1:5)
Just go home and dissect this chapter in particular and on those little words. I’ve got KEPT underlined, understand who I kept.
That’s pretty amazing, isn’t it?
Kept by the power of God. How we are kept by the power of God!
I’ve got through underlined next… THROUGH faith.
I’ve even got UNTO underline.
UNTO salvation, ready to be revealed on the last day.
Really dissect what’s in these verses. There is just so much in these verses. It’s just incredible what is in store for us. It is all there… How we are kept, how we are looked after, and how it takes place.
- Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: (1 Pet 1:6-8)
Joy Unspeakable!
That’s a precious thing to have… joy, unspeakable, and full of glory.
I remember a brother in the Lord years ago. I think he was three years in the Lord. We had a house meeting for our Christmas breakup and we are sharing testimonies.
And he said the first year was good. The second-year was better. But he said this year… if it keeps getting better like this I’m going to bust. Now that’s joy unspeakable.
That’s what happens. What a precious thing to have. People are out there chasing happiness. They’re trying to find it… it’s in God. He gives it to you. He lays it all out for you.
- Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. (1 Pet 1:9)
This is a big one. These scriptures are so great they’ve got nothing to do with the talk. There is leading up to the next few verses. How great is this book?
- Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: (1 Pet 1:10)
Are we switched on here? Are we listening to what it’s saying here?
The prophets wanted to have what we have got. The prophets wanted it. They search for it and it says diligently. It wasn’t half-hearted they really searched and inquired and wanted to have what we have been given on a silver platter basically.
And I want you to think of something else here… who prophesied of the grace that should come onto you.
That grace that comes unto us is when we get filled with the Holy ghost. When you get filled with the Holy Ghost, when you receive what Jesus Christ is sending, you’re receiving the grace of God.
- Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. (1 Pet 1:11)
I want you to really switch on here. The sufferings of Christ we are well aware of them. He came, he was whipped, he was beaten, he was spat upon, and he died for us. That was his suffering.
What Was The Glory That Should Follow?
We’re in it! The Holy Ghost was what came after Jesus’ suffering.
It wasn’t talking about a far off event for us. These guys were talking about the glory that would follow after the death of Jesus Christ. That glory was Jesus sending the Holy Ghost to anyone who asks.
People can enter into the grace of God. This is the glory that followed. We are now involved in the glory that should follow. It’s not a future event. It’s going to get better. But we’ve got hold of something great right now.
Those poor guys back in the Old Testament wanted to be involved in it. They knew it was coming. They knew something big was happening. They prophesied about it. They spoke about it. They dreamed about it. They wanted it.
We got it. How amazing is that? We got it!
- Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into. (1 Pet 1:12)
How great as this Holy Ghost, the angels want to look into it. The angels are ven thinking… what are we missing out on here?
We’ve got this laid on for us. How important is the Holy Ghost?
Preaching the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost. There is no gospel… There is no effective preaching without the Holy Ghost.
Christianity, religion, whatever you want to call it, is just an empty name when it doesn’t have the Holy Ghost.
The Holy Ghost is what makes everything complete. Remember it says it was sent down from heaven. We read that at the very start… What’s Jesus doing? Where’s Jesus? He’s at the right-handed God.
- Where? in heaven.
- What’s he doing? Sending the Holy Ghost.
- Where does the Holy Ghost come from? Jesus.
He’s in heaven? Sending the Holy Ghost. That’s where it comes from. We received something. We received good gifts from heaven. We receive something precious from on high, and we really want to encourage people as much as possible.
To be single-eyed as possible with the determination that every person we meet gets to share in his wonderful experience.
It is so important, that there’s a scripture in the gospels that says Jesus breathed on them to receive the Holy Ghost.
People think, Oh, he breathed on them and they received the Holy Ghost but that’s not the case. The Holy Ghost hadn’t come yet for Jesus was not yet glorified. He wasn’t glorified until he rose from the dead.
The Holy Ghost didn’t come inside men until the day of Pentecost, that was the first time. But when he breathed on, he was really pressing the point.
When you, when you breathe on something, well, you, you really labor the point. Get hold of the Holy Ghost, that is what he emphasizing, take hold of the Holy ghost. Get it with all your being and all your mind.
It shouldn’t be your first and only priority… wait in Jerusalem until you get filled with the Holy ghost. That’s what Jesus said to his disciples.
And if we haven’t gotten to that stage yet, if we’re new, we haven’t received the Holy Spirit yet. That should be number one in our lives should be seeking it. Ask and keep on asking. Should be persisting with the Lord.
He Who Receives Who Jesus Sends Receives Jesus
Nothing else matters, Lord. I want this Holy ghost because it’s just so powerful. Wonderful. I want what the angels can’t have. I want what all the old Testament prophets wanted and couldn’t have. I want what Jesus came and died to give me… the Holy ghost. It is so important.
- Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me; and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me. (John 13:20)
It might have other applications. He who receives who Jesus sends receives Jesus is what he’s saying. We read earlier that Jesus is sending the Holy ghost. That’s what Jesus came and died for.
I really want you to get it into everyone’s head that was his number one priority. He healed the sick. He did lots of things, but he’s number one priority was to die on that cross and rise from the dead so that we can be filled with the Holy ghost.
If you receive who Jesus sends and he’s sending the Holy Ghost, then you receive Jesus.
There are a lot of scriptures that talk about us being baptized into Christ or now that we have received the Holy Spirit we’re now in Christ… in the body of Christ, all these sorts of terminologies.
Really want us to try to comprehend the power that comes, with receiving the Holy Ghost. I’m sure we can get a glimpse of it. Taste of it.
I’m sure none of us will even get close just to the immensity of the power that is available by receiving the Holy Spirit.
There Is Power In Jesus Garment
Let’s read a couple of stories, go to Matthew chapter nine. It’s a fairly well-known about the woman reaching out to touch the hem of Jesus’ garment.
- While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live. And Jesus arose, and followed him, and so did his disciples. And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment: For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole. But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour. (Mat 9:18-22)
Here’s this woman who was suffering from this sickness for 12 years and she thought within herself I’ll just touch the hem of Jesus’ garment. I’ll be made whole. And she was!
I just for you to contemplate here. Well, boy, that was a lot of power in just touching the hem of Jesus’ garment. Wasn’t it?
The hem of a piece of his clothing was able to heal a 12-year-old sickness. Something that none of the doctors could fix, something that nothing on this earth could fix, but touching the hem of Jesus garment, fixed it. Wow, the power in that garment.
It wasn’t a rare event. There was power in Jesus garment
- And when the men of that place had knowledge of him, they sent out into all that country round about, and brought unto him all that were diseased; And besought him that they might only touch the hem of his garment: and as many as touched were made perfectly whole. (Mat 14:35-26)
And as many as touched were made perfectly whole… how’s that? So it just wasn’t the woman with that issue of blood that was healed by touching the hem of his garment.
There were many, they brought all the sick, all of the diseased to him this day, and as many as reached out and touched the hem of his garment they were made whole.
It says they were made perfectly whole!
Power in the heavenly garment, power available by reaching out and touching his garment.
Endued With Power
Now we’re I want to go with this is with that scripture back there Luke. Wait (tarry) in Jerusalem until you be endued with power from on high.
Endued means clothed upon!
When we come to the Lord we put on a robe of white. The garment…we are clothed upon with the power, the garment of Jesus Christ.
We don’t have to rely on touching the hem we are fully in it. We are in Christ the Bible tells us. If the clothing he wore brought about this power that people were made perfectly whole just by touching a bit of his clothing, how much more power is available to us who are in Christ himself.
It is amazing how much power has been made available to us. We are in Jesus Christ when we receive the Holy Spirit.
This power reminds me of the story back in 2 Kings. We won’t read it today but involved Elijah and Elishah. Elijah was this powerful prophet. People feared him. If there was a problem, they come and get him. He just did all these miracles.
He wanted to cross a river and he just smashed a rod on the water and it would part so he could walk across. I mean, this is the power of the miracles this Elijah could do. And there was this other guy Elishah who wanted to be just like him.
Take Up The Mantle
Elijah said I have to go, mate. And Elishah said I want to receive a double portion of your spirit. And Elijah said man, that’s a hard thing. But if you are with me when I go, if you see me go, you will have it.
Anyway, Elijah was taken up in a whirlwind and he threw back his mantle and Elisha got his mantle. And he thinks I’ll test this out walks back across the river. Waters opened and he walked across it? He did receive a double portion? He did do the same sort of miracles.
Jesus said that to us. He said he had to go, he had to send us the Holy Ghost. He said the works that I do, you shall do, and greater. It’s the double portion story.
As Elishah received the mantle of the Elijah as he rose up to the heavens. So you and I have received the mantle of Jesus Christ. We have been clothed upon with the garment of Jesus Christ.
He was seen rising up to heaven and he sent something back down to us. The Holy Ghost! You know the story. Take up the mantle, we’ve been given it.
The story of Elijah and Elishah is a type of Jesus, there were all these miracles, he rose up into heaven and Elishah is a type of us who were left behind, who want to be like Jesus, who want to be involved and do the same miracles that he did.
And the mantle that was left behind is a type of the Holy Ghost. Elishah is an example of how to be clothed upon from on high with power, you and I have this.
If you are not filled with the Holy Spirit yet make it your number one priority because you too can have this.
So all these wonderful things take place, all this power, the works that I do you shall do also and greater works. When you received the Holy Spirit.
As I said before what a tragedy it would have been if they didn’t tarry, if they didn’t wait in Jerusalem, it would have been a tragedy, but praise the Lord they did tarry.
If they didn’t tarry they would have missed out on this blessing. The Holy Ghost is the promise of the father, the power, the glory, the grace of God, they would have missed out on all that if they didn’t tarry.
- That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; (Eph 4:14)
Don’t be tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine. Keep it in your mind. The importance. If you are new here today, don’t be tossed to and fro everywhere.
Make it your number one priority to receive the Holy Ghost, nothing else matters, shot everything else out. Get what God has to offer.
For the rest of us, it is the same deal. Forget all these different winds of doctrine and always preach the importance to people of receiving the Holy ghost. It is the number one priority for other people’s lives.
I’m sure that when the disciples were told to tarry in Jerusalem or to wait in Jerusalem until they were clothed upon with power from on high that when the Holy Ghost came that they would have been under pressure.
Jesus had just died. They were suffering persecution. It wasn’t a good thing to be a follower of Christ. I mean, they just crucify him.
You were called some sort of weird cult if you wanted to follow Jesus. The religious people didn’t like him. There would have been a lot of pressure on the disciples to move. Not just physically, but move where they stood, to stop believing.
There would have been doubts coming in. Whoa, you know, Jesus is dead. We thought he was everything but he is dead now. This was before they saw him rise from the dead. Then Jesus comes and tells them to wait. He’s risen from the dead, comes and tells them to wait.
But what happened in the meantime? People would have been in their ears, they would have been scared of the rules. All sorts of things would have been going on. It wouldn’t have been just a piece of cake.
But they waited. They stayed where they were. They weren’t moved by every wind of doctrine that was going around. They weren’t moved by the slight of men and cunning craftiness.
Don’t Be Moved
They stayed where they were. And because they stayed where they were, they got the blessing. We’re told to tarry for something else, another great event’s going to take place. The return of Jesus Christ. We’re told to wait, to be patient, tarry… are we going to remain steadfast for the doctrine that was once preached to the saints?
Or are we going to be moved by every wind of doctrine and by the slight and cunning craftiness? Are we going to do what Jesus said and wait?
That doesn’t mean we stay in the one spot it means we stay in the doctrine of the gospel. We stay put in the things that Jesus said, we don’t move over here because it’s the latest fashion. We do not move over there because it’s the latest trend, we stay where Jesus told us to stay.
And by remaining, we liked those disciples. I received the blessing of being filled with the Holy Ghost and fire we will receive the great blessing of meeting the Lord in the air. There is importance in tarrying and waiting for the Lord.
It reminds me of my favorite story in the Old Testament… Joseph. It’s got it all… forgiveness. It’s got everything in that story. He was betrayed by his brothers and Joseph is a type of Jesus.
It all started with his brothers who were supposed to be looking after the flock and the father was worried (a type of God), he sent Joseph (a type of Jesus) to check on his brethren and how they were going with the flock.
Go to such and such a place where they’re supposed to be feeding them. When Joseph went there, they weren’t there. They moved somewhere else.
It’s a bit like the religious leaders. God, Jesus, Go check on the religious leaders. See how my flock is going. See how they’re feeding my flock and they’re not feeding them in the pasture they are supposed to be fed in.
They moved them over there somewhere with false doctrine. We have to make sure we’re feeding in the green pastures and the pastures that God wants us to feed in. And to do that, we’ve gotta take a stand.
Someone’s got to take a stand. Why not us? Why shouldn’t it be us? If you shouldn’t get along in life being swept along with the tide, we have something incredible. The Holy Ghost.
We don’t have to be selfish about it. We can share it with others. Remember it’s number one, number one priority. It’s all wrapped up in that Holy Ghost, the best gift ever given to mankind.
Really it’s our responsibility to be out there preaching it. Isn’t it. Amen.
You may also be interested in… What Does It Mean To Pray In Tongues? and The Holy Spirit And The Grace Of God Are Inseparable
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