Pentecost: Fresh Filling of Holy Spirit

19 May 2013

1. Introduction

· Exodus 19:16-19 The first Pentecost – a visitation of God to His people.

· Thunder, lightening cloud, trumpet, fire, earthquake.

· God met with His people to become engaged to marry them.

· He required that they remember and celebrate this day each year!

· Leviticus 23: 16, 20-22  Pentecost instituted as an annual celebration.

         (v16) Come before the host to make an offering and celebrate.

         (v21  No work!

         (v22) Remember to be generous to the poor.

●Pentecost begins with an encounter with God and ends with generosity to the poor.

● Church needs constant fresh encounters with God and filling with the Holy Spirit.

2. Personal Experience: Be Filled with the Holy Ghost

      Acts 2: 1-4 “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit”

(a)        Baptism In Holy Spirit is a gateway experience to Supernatural Life.

· God’s intention is for us to experience spiritual reality.

· Baptism in the Holy Spirit opens up realm of Supernatural.

· Further evidence – overflow with new languages of spirit – speaking in tongues.

· This is the language of intimacy with God (1 Corinthians 14:2)

· They received from God an impartation – speaking, joy, drunkenness.

(b)        Keys to Ongoing Filling with the Holy Spirit

· Believers need to keep being daily filled with the Holy Spirit.  The power to live the Christian life.  (Eph. 5:18)

· Trying harder doesn’t change us or make us better, must learn to receive.

· Everything we receive from God comes by believing not trying.

(i) Speaking in Tongues

· When you speak in tongues you activate and energize your spirit man.

· You open up a direct flow with the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:4)

· You edify or build up your inner man.  (1 Corinthians 14:4)

· Speaking in tongues is a powerful way to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

(ii) Yield to the Holy Spirit Within

· We receive from God by believing not trying – striving.

· To receive must first stop trying, striving, struggling

· Yielding is an act of surrender – letting go self effort: letting God.

· Our challenge is to believe what God says is true about us.

· John 6:29 “This is the work of God that you believe….”

(iii) Meditation – Imagining Gods’ Word

· V17 “Dreams and Visions” – both are pictures or imaginings.

· Nothing indicates they are seen with the natural eyes.

· Both are images in the mind, in the imagination.

· They are God inspired pictures in your imagination.

· Take Gods’ truth – practice imagining what it would be like to experience being in this truth.  What would it look like? Feel like? Sound like?

Eg:    Being in the Temple of God

         Entering the Throne of God

         Being filled with the love of God

· Stop working, striving to obtain – set imagination to see, embrace, believe.

3. Personal Experience: Flow with the Spirit

      Acts 2: 17-18 “I will pour out My Spirit in those says and they will prophesy”

· You are filled with the Spirit for the purpose of mission.

· The overflow of the Spirit of God is seen in life and ministry to needs.

· 1 Corinthians 12:7 “The manifestation of the Spirit is given to each man to profit all”

· ‘Given’ – you receive by believing not by striving or struggling.

·  ‘Each man’ – Gods design is every believer ministers to others.

4. Practice Generosity (Fruit of the Spirit)

      Vs 44-45 “Generosity to those in need were the consequence of being spirit filled.”

· Generosity is evidence of the love of God: can’t love without being generous.

· Pentecost starts with being filled with Holy Spirit and ends with generosity.

· Dt 24:18-22 “Pentecost was a harvest time – here is what God required.”

· World pressure – consumerism, pressure to spend all on yourself.

· God requires intentional generosity to be part of our life.

· Leave margins in your life – compassion for those in need, time, finance, talent, relationships.

· No quantity specified – the issue is gratitude to God and generosity.

· Command – this is a way of life of person filled with the Holy Spirit.

· Generosity to strangers, fatherless, widows.

Questions:   (i)  Are you filled with the Holy Spirit?

(ii) Are you flowing with the Holy Spirit?

(iii) Are you practicing generosity?