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Knowing God |
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God does not make it hard to know Him. He desires a personal relationship
with each one of us. We don't mean, of course, that you can
really know God – no one can truly know and comprehend Him
–- but that you can know of Him and know that God is real and
cares about you.
By "knowing" God you can discover this relationship.
It includes the inspired Word, a personal Savior and a loving
Spirit.
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THE SPIRIT |
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We've
already discussed how much God loves us and how much he wants
us to know Him. His plan of salvation through Christ Jesus includes
an incredible bonus.
Jesus asked the Father to send
us a helper, the Holy Spirit.
This
Spirit of God, part of the divine trinity – God in three persons – helps
us by revealing truth and giving us various gifts that assist
us in our lives and our faith. The Spirit is eternal, and as
such, has been active throughout time. At the time of the creation
of the world we are told that God's Spirit moved over the surface
of the waters . He has spoken through the prophets of the Old Testament and he is active today in the lives of Jesus' followers.
At the last supper Jesus consoled his apostles when he told
them that despite the coming suffering and death (both his own
and that of his followers) that he would send a helper . Jesus called him the Spirit of Truth, the one who guides
us into all the truth and glorifies both the Father and the
Son. It is crucial to all of us, that we recognize and accept
this helper!
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Your Holy Temple
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When
you do you invite the Spirit to dwell within you
you have a responsibility to safeguard your "temple". Your invited guest should have a high-quality
dwelling place . This should cause you to think
about what you put into your body, especially your mind. You
can't fill your body and mind with toxic substances and expect
to experience the full benefit of the Spirit.
Jesus promised the Spirit and breathed it on his apostles
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The Holy Spirit also came upon many believers in a very visible way on Pentecost
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When the Spirit moves you
The
power of the Holy Spirit is evident today. You've heard the
expression, "when the Spirit moves you". Paul, in
many of his excellent letters to the early Church communities,
spoke of the activity of the Holy Spirit. Read 1 Corinthians to discover the many gifts(1 Cor 12) and how it all has to be
bound together in love (1 Cor 13 ). Paul's conversion was so complete that he
learned the trap of self and was grateful for the power of the
Holy Spirit in the lives of believers . Further,
in 1 Corinthians 2:12 Paul states, "And God has actually
given us his Spirit (not the world's spirit) so we can know
the wonderful things God has freely given us."(NLT) Part
of knowing God is knowledge of these gifts.
Understanding the truth the Spirit gives you goes beyond human
wisdom. In fact, those who don't have the Helper
can't understand this truth, it is foolishness to them .
So, consider this: if you go through life relying on human
wisdom then you are falling into a trap. You can't discover
the real truth without knowing God.
To be sure, our brains are amazing creations. We use only a fraction
of our potential. Yet, God tells us that no matter how brilliant
we may be it is foolishness in His eyes if we disregard His
wisdom. I think the powerful combination of the Helper and our
individual gifts is what brings about real fruit. Your gifts,
whatever they may be, are God given. The gifts of the Spirit
may be things you've been good at before, like speaking, writing
or music. They will reach their fulfillment in the Spirit. You
might also receive gifts from the Spirit the likes of which
you've never experienced. Be open to this.
Reminding you of God's Truth
The
Helper is what brings to life the teaching from Jesus and God.
You can study the Bible and you can perform good deeds, but
it's ultimately futile to do it without the free gift of God's
Spirit to lead us. We fall into that trap of trying to do what
pleases God on our own power. The Holy Spirit gives us the help
we need to turn from our sinful nature .
Christ saved us from our sins by dying on the cross. Our repentance
is part of the requirement for receiving salvation. That doesn't
mean we won't ever sin again. We're forgiven, yes, but we also
need to change. The real demonstration of that change is in
how we live and how we treat others. The Holy Spirit, dwelling
in you, will give you all the help you need. Furthermore, He
pleads on our behalf to God .
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1,2,3-A Mystery
The
Holy Spirit is God. We believe in the Trinity — God in
three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We cannot fully
define
or understand
this mystery. It is beyond human comprehension. We can only
suggest what it is like, such as a man having a body, mind
and
spirit-which one is man? We can describe H2O as being liquid,
solid and a vapor — water, ice or steam. Which one is
the element we call H2O?
The pattern of the Trinity is woven
into creation. Consider time - past, present and future. What
about space? It's fundamentally three dimensional - length,
width and depth.
We must accept that we cannot define this Trinity. However,
we can believe in it and discover the joy of God dwelling in
us
through
the
Holy Spirit! God is showing us through this
"three-in-one" mystery that God is relational.
It is not enough, however, to just believe in God. We have
to believe in the power of God that intercedes in our lives
and
brings
about miraculous things! That is what the Holy Spirit does.
We become empowered with God's spirit enabling us to be witnesses
to Christ . The Spirit controls our lives and produces
good fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control .
The Spirit makes the Word of God relevant and meaningful to
us. When we are filled with the Spirit we are enlightened
to the true meaning of Scripture.
This is the real calling
of Christians,
to live a Spirit-filled life. Be filled with the Spirit and
then put your faith into Action.
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Scripture taken from the Holy Bible,
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®.Copyright © 1973, 1978,
1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout
the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® and NIV® are registered trademarks
of International Bible Society. Use of either trademark for
the offering of goods or services requires the prior written
consent of International Bible Society.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible,
New Living Translation, copyright ©1996. Used by permission
of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189, USA. All
rights reserved.
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ACTS 1:5
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"John baptized with water,
but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy
Spirit."
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(NLT)
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1 COR 12:7-11
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"Now to each one the manifestation
of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is
given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another
the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another
faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that
one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy,
to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking
in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation
of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit,
and he gives them to each one, just as he determines."
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(NIV)
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