Praise the Lord, family! We are so excited and can't wait for Sunday to see some of you in person. Please continue to pray for all of the RC family and that we will all be able to gather fully very soon. Also, please continue to pray for our global online family and friends, as Glynis and I will continue to pray for all of you.
Do you know that one of the reasons Jesus sent the Holy Spirit was to EMPOWER us to be powerful witnesses for Him, so the gospel would SPREAD through the whole world? Have you ever felt powerless while talking to people about your faith in Jesus? I wonder how many of us would still show up for church on a Sunday morning if I told you that we will be cancelling our regular service so we could go and SPREAD the good news of Jesus to our community.
In our current sermon series on the Holy Spirit entitled GET LIT, STAY LIT, and SPREAD IT, we've been learning how to get filled and stay filled. This week we will unpack how we can "SPREAD" the Holy Spirit.
Family, we need to understand that apart from the power of the Holy Spirit, we cannot do the work of God or influence people for Christ. Without the Holy Spirit, all of our efforts and work cannot bear fruit.
The book of Acts opens with a greeting to Theophilus, and Luke references his other book, which he wrote, and restates the Great Commission, which was given to the disciples by Jesus in Luke 24.
In Acts, Luke shows how the Great Commission was being carried out, as the news of the gospel spread throughout "Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." In verse 4, Luke quotes Jesus as saying something that seems counter-intuitive at first glance, given the urgency of their task. Jesus had told the disciples to "Go, and make disciples of all nations." But here he says, "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about."
So, were the disciples supposed to "go" or "wait?" They were meant to do both, but the waiting was supposed to precede the going. Remember what Jesus said in John 15:1-8. He says over and over that there is no power, no fruitfulness unless we are connected to Him because a branch can't bear fruit in itself. It must remain in the vine. In John 15:5, Jesus said, "apart from me you can do nothing."
I'm not sure I (we) actually believe this. If we did, we would be a whole lot more intentional about having the Holy Spirit empower us in everything we do in life. If you study John 15, you will discover how the Holy Spirit will help us "SPREAD" the good news of the gospel of Christ. Verse 26 says, "But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. 27 And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning."
In John 16:7-13, He says, "When He comes, He will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment. 13 But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth. "
When we surrender our lives to Jesus and begin to walk in the fullness of the Spirit, we receive His power and ability to witness. When we are filled with the Spirit, He teaches us what to say. He adds His "SUPER" to our 'NATURAL." When the Holy Spirit flows through our words, our words begin to convict those we are witnessing to.
Only the Holy Spirit can draw a person from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. Our talent can't do it, our pleasant personalities cannot do it, our wisdom cannot do it, only the Holy Spirit can do it.
According to Jesus, we can only "SPREAD IT" when the Holy Spirit is at work. In fact, according to John 15:4-5, without the Holy Spirit, we cannot do anything. However, Jesus tells us in verse 8: "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Family, we are given the Holy Spirit's power, so we SPREAD IT, meaning we can tell people about Jesus, enabling them to know Him too. There is no point in having the power of the Holy Spirit if we are not willing to "SPREAD IT."
So I commission you today in the name of Jesus: "GET LIT,” "STAY LIT," and "SPREAD IT."
Prayer:
Holy Spirit, I need You. I need You to lead me, teach me, fill me and empower me to bear witness to all you have done for humanity. Holy Spirit, I pray for myself, my family, and for all of the RC family. I ask that You would open up doors for us to share your Word. Give us the boldness today to speak forth the mystery of Christ. And I pray that when you do, you will clarify precisely what we should say and how we should say it. Give us fruit that will remain, and we ask that you will help us to "GET LIT,” "STAY LIT," and "SPREAD IT" in Jesus' name.
Amen.
