May 24th

May 24th     

It’s Pentecost! This marks the day that the early church experienced the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in all of His fullness, “baptism” of the Holy Spirit as Jesus called it. Oh they had the Holy Spirit in them before that (John 20:22) but they needed the fullness of the Spirit once Jesus returned to Heaven and the day of Pentecost was when they received it. That too is available to us, Peter preached that it was for all who will believe. Before Jesus returned to Heaven He told the disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit to come upon them.

Acts 1:4b-5,8 “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with a water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” Verse 8-“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Acts 2:38-39 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

Are you ready for all that God has for you?! Your salvation is just the beginning, the start of the journey. You have said “yes” to the Holy Spirit’s call to you for salvation, are you ready to say “yes” to the rest? Are you ready to let Him lead you further? Are you ready to experience all of the transformation that God has for you through the work of the Holy Spirit? Does it kinda freak you out? You don’t think you will hear the Holy Spirit’s guiding in your life the way others talk about in their lives?

Don’t sweat it, you already know His voice. You have already responded to His voice as He was drawing you to salvation. It is not some weird, metaphysical mish mash, you already have experienced the work of the Holy Spirit in your life and in your heart. It is a continuation of that very thing. It is like that very thing on steroids so to speak.

He will teach you, guide you, lead you, transform you, comfort you, encourage you, talk you down, -whatever you need. All you need to do is surrender and ask Him to take the wheel and tune in to His voice in your heart.

The benefits that come with surrendering to an overwhelming infilling of the Holy Spirit are not easily measured by human standards. The fruit of the Holy Spirit will manifest in your life if you surrender to the Spirit and let Him move. Contrary to some people’s beliefs, the Holy Spirit is not scary or weird, and total surrender to Him does not make someone weird. You already know the Holy Spirit’s voice and can confirm that He is not weird. (I suppose if we measure by human standards the world will likely think we are “weird” because we are Christ followers.)

John 14:16-17 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.

You have responded to the Holy Spirit calling you to salvation, are you ready to respond to His call to you for His will for your day today? What more can you surrender to Him today?

Jesus, thank you for knowing I would need the Holy Spirit. Thank you for the gift of the Holy Spirit. Help me to surrender all of myself to You so that I am fully filled with the Holy Spirit. Help me to give you the wheel Holy Spirit. Show me what I am holding on to instead of surrendering to you. Thank you for your prevenient grace and for never giving up on me.