Life Filled with the Holy Spirit (6/8/14)

Sunday June 8 was a busy and special day in the life of our church. First of all, it was Pentecost Sunday! And, during both services we were able to participate in the confirmation of the nine youth who were in this year’s confirmation class. And in the evening, we celebrated the service of our pastors.

But, Sunday morning also marked the last sermon preached by Pastor Kee in our church.

Pastor Kee spoke on Acts 2:1-21, and the title of his sermon was “Life Filled with the Holy Spirit”. Click below to read the account of Pentecost, as written in Acts 2:1-21…

Acts 2:1-21

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

5 Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. 7 Utterly amazed, they asked: “Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? 8 Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? 9 Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs — we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” 1

2 Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?” 13 Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”

14 Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15 These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! 16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

17 “‘In the last days, God says,I will pour out my Spirit on all people.Your sons and daughters will prophesy,your young men will see visions,your old men will dream dreams. 18 Even on my servants, both men and women,I will pour out my Spirit in those days,and they will prophesy. 19 I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below,blood and fire and billows of smoke. 20 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. 21 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

NIV

By the way, this scripture (even with all of the hard to pronounce names) was read flawlessly during both services by one of our confirmands…

A young man dreamed that he met God in heaven, and he asked God, “What is it about mankind that surprises You the most?”

God answered…

When they’re young they rush to grow up… When they’re old, they long to be children again.
When they’re young they loose their health to make money… When they’re old, they loose their money to restore their health.

In other words, we don’t live in the present. “The grass is always greener” on the other side of middle age. But God is calling us to walk in His grace NOW and to enjoy the fulfillment of His presence in the present. He calls us to be in prayer; to commune with Him, to share our concerns, to seek His will. Prayer is the wisest way to spend your time. Worry is the best way to waste your time. Prayer fills us with the Holy Spirit and we tap into His power.

Living a life filled with the Holy Spirit gives us two special abilities in life…

1- We can Commune and Communicate with Others…

In verse 4, it says that they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and could speak in other languages. The Holy Spirit freed them of their language barrier and allowed them to communicate with the others who were there. In the same way, the Holy Spirit can free us of our inhibitions, worries, pride, and selfishness so that we can commune with others.

In Genesis chapter 11, the Bible tells us about the Tower of Babel. In that day, people wanted to be like God; they were filled with pride. So God confused their language. He scattered the people and they were unable to share with each other.

But on Pentecost, God undoes this scattering of languages. He brings the people together. He turns the pride of Babel into the humility of the Holy Spirit. Being filled with the Holy Spirit drives out pride and allows us to understand others, to support others, to learn from others, and to resolve conflict.

2- We Can Focus on God even in the Face of Adversity…

Pastors aren’t perfect… Some years back, Pastor Kee related that he received a speeding ticket. It was deserved and he regretted that it happened… “why didn’t I pay more attention to my speed?”

This happened near Thanksgiving, and after receiving the ticket Pastor Kee returned to his office to prepare a sermon on Thanksgiving. But that ticket was on his desk; staring at him reminding him of an event for which he wasn’t particularly thankful.

But then it hit him as if God were verbally speaking to him: “Can I give thanks to God with a speeding ticket on my desk?” Are we so focused on God that we can be thankful and faithful in the face of adversity?

Peter and the disciples were mocked and accused of being drunk on “cheep wine.” And beyond the derision, Peter and all of the disciples knew that following Christ may very well lead them to judgement and death at the hands of the Romans. But Peter stood up boldly and spoke the truth of God’s word. Later on in Acts we see where Peter and the other disciples continued to publicly declare the Lordship of Christ even after being imprisoned and flogged.