Acts 2:1-4 (NASB) ‘When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance. ‘
I went to Sunday service at Celebrate in Knoxville this past weekend. Pastor Schmidt taught on the Holy Spirit. As he spoke, it reminded me a two other sermons I’d heard about 4 years ago. One was by Pastor John Mitchum of Indianoala Community Church, the other was by Pastor Kevin Corver at a Vital Men event.
When people talk about the Holy spirit, I will almost always think about this passage from Acts. It’s such a vivid depiction of the power of the Holy Spirit. As I listen to sermons like the ones I mentioned and I hear them talk about the power of the spirit, I feel like the Holy Spirit is something that is lost on most people. I know for me, He was for a long time. Why is that? Scripture talks about the Holy Spirit, throughout, yet when most of us pray, we pray to God the Father, or God the Son. Honestly, how many times have you prayed to God the Holy Spirit?
I think most have a hard time understanding the Holy Spirit, because they haven’t had an experience like the one described in Acts 2, the whirlwind and fire. The fact of the matter is, that most of the time God the Holy Spirit comes to us in a whisper, lighting on us like a dove, softly, gently, not roaring like a hurricane. For most the power expressed by the Holy Spirit in us and through us is a progression not an eruption.
This is where are efforts become vitally important. This is where the desirous seeking out of a relationship with Jesus, cultivating the Spirit that I’ve spoke so many times becomes most abundantly relevant. If you want to feel, see, experience the Holy Spirit like the disciples at Pentacost, it requires you to want that relationship and connection first and more than any other thing in your life. The gift of the Spirit grows and produces fruit in the lives of those who actively engage and cultivate these things. If you want to experience the overwhelming power of the Spirit, pursue, don’t wait. Have a blessed weekend.
In full pursuit of the greatest Trophy,
Scott Pace
