Joint Heirs Adult Bible Fellowship Luke, Week 12, Luke 3:21-23 August 20, 2017 Tim Powell, Teacher

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1 Joint Heirs Adult Bible Fellowship Luke, Week 12, Luke 3:21-23 August 20, 2017 Tim Powell, Teacher How Important Is the Trinity in My Life? The Holy Spirit Luke 3:21-23 Review: The Trinity is verified. (Lk. 3:21-23) o Jesus prayed. (Lk. 3:21) o Heaven was opened. (Lk. 3:21) o * The Holy Spirit descended on Jesus. (Lk. 3:22) o God the Father spoke from Heaven. (Lk. 3:22) o Jesus begins His ministry. (Lk. 3:23) Lesson: I. Questions: A. Who is the Holy Spirit? B. Why did this event happen where the Holy Spirit was visibly seen descending on Jesus? C. Why is the Holy Spirit important and needed in Jesus and in us? Why is it important for the Holy Spirit to come on Jesus? The Holy Spirit is the most poorly understood member of the Trinity. D. Answers: 1. The Holy Spirit has had a behind the scenes role in the work of God throughout Scripture. 2. The Holy Spirit is mentioned over 70 times in the O.T. and more than 250 times in the N.T. Lk. 1:15-17 John the Baptist filled with the Holy Spirit in his mother s womb. Lk. 1:35 The Holy Spirit will come upon Mary. 1

2 Lk. 1:41-45 Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Lk. 1:67 Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied. Lk. 2:22-32 Simeon was waiting for coming Messiah, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 3. Jesus prayed, and the Holy Spirit descended on Him in bodily form, and thus begins His ministry. Hm-m-m-m! Why so many references to the Holy Spirit in the first three chapters of Luke? Jesus depended on the Holy Spirit to empower and guide Him in His task of redemption because He had emptied Himself of the independent use of His divine powers and prerogatives for the period of the incarnation. II. Question: A. Did Jesus life on earth need the Holy Spirit for direct communion with God the Father while on earth and to know God the Father s perfect will in every situation? B. The answer is yes! Lk. 4:1 Jesus was filled by the Holy Spirit and was led by the Holy Spirit. Lk. 10:21 Jesus was full of joy through the Holy Spirit. III. Who Is the Holy Spirit? A. The Holy Spirit is God. Function: He is the Holy Spirit of God. He is the third person in the Trinity. In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit came upon certain people temporarily to enable them to accomplish certain tasks. In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit comes to indwell believers permanently at the time of their spiritual birth. 2

3 B. The Holy Spirit will come and dwell in you when you repent and believe in Jesus work on the cross for the forgiveness of your sins and commit your life to Jesus. John chapters 14 through 17 were Jesus last instructions to His disciples before the crucifixion. o Jn. 14:23 Jesus replied, Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. o Jesus makes His home within us through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Ac. 2:38 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. o We are made new when the Holy Spirit comes in us. Tit. 3:5 He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. 1 Co. 6:19-20 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. o If you are saved, you have the Holy Spirit within you. Unlike in the Old Testament, since Jesus sent the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Ac. 2) the Holy Spirit does not just come upon someone temporarily, He comes into the believer in a new, permanent residence. C. The Holy Spirit is God s seal on you, guaranteeing your inheritance and redemption. Eph. 1: And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God s possession to the praise of his glory. o In the ancient world, a seal guaranteed the authenticity of a message. o The indwelling of the Holy Spirit similarly guarantees our inheritance in Christ and the redemption He bought for us. Eph. 4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 3

4 o We are confident of our salvation because of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. D. The Holy Spirit is an advocate, encourager, teacher, and guide to help us and be with us forever. Jn. 14: If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever 17 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. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. o Jesus promised His disciples that the Holy Spirit would be in them. o The Holy Spirit was sent to be our advocate and to help and guide us. E. The Holy Spirit is God the Father's and Jesus communication and enabling power to live the Christian life and to do His Work on earth. Lk. 24: He told them, This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high. o Jesus told His disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the power He would send them; the power that would enable them to carry our His work on Earth. Ac. 1:4-8 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. 6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel? 7 He said to them: It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 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. o The power to accomplish the plans Jesus had for them to do would come when the Holy Spirit indwelled them. Statement: You cannot truly have God's ministry unless the Holy Spirit is in control of your life. The Holy Spirit is vital for power in your ministry. o It was no coincidence that Jesus public ministry began after the Holy Spirit descended on Him. 4

5 F. The Holy Spirit is the "Spirit of Truth"; therefore He will teach you the truth, and give you insights from God the Father. Jn. 14:26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Jn. 16: I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. 13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. o The Holy Spirit teaches us the truth and helps us avoid error. Lk. 12: When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, 12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say. o The Holy Spirit provides the words to say when needed. G. The Holy Spirit will glorify Jesus, not Himself. Jn. 15:26 When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father he will testify about me. o The Holy Spirit focuses us on Jesus, not on Himself. Jn. 16:14-15 When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father he will testify about me. o The Holy Spirit is to teach us about Jesus, not so much about Himself. H. The Holy Spirit will convict the world of sin and judgment. Jn. 16: But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 8 When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 about sin, because people do not believe in me; 10 about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; 11 and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. o It is not our job to convince people of their sin; that is the Holy Spirit s role. I. The Holy Spirit will give you godly traits. 5

6 Gal. 5: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. o The Holy Spirit produces godly qualities in us; if we are not experiencing these, the Holy Spirit is not in control. Ro. 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. o If we are to have righteousness, peace, and joy, they will come from the Holy Spirit. J. The Holy Spirit helps us in our prayer by praying for us things we don't even know, and what He prays is always in accord with God's perfect will. Ro. 8: In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God s people in accordance with the will of God. K. God commands us to keep in step with Him by being filled with or controlled by the Holy Spirit. Eph. 5: Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord s will is. 18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. o God s will for us as His followers is to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Ac. 6:3 Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them. o An essential requirement for Christian leaders is to be filled with the Holy Spirit. IV. How do we become full of the Holy Spirit? A. Repent of your sin. B. Invite God to take control. C. Be in the Word of God. It is there that we hear from God and get His instructions. 6

7 D. Pray to the Lord. E. Listen!!! I.e., open yourself up to His instruction. Meditate on God s Word. Application: If you are not full of the Holy Spirit, you are missing out on godly traits in your life. If you are not full of the Holy Spirit, you are missing out on God s guidance and peace in your life. So-o-o-o, make sure you are full of the Holy Spirit if you want to speak God s Word or do the works of God in this life. You cannot be full of the Holy Spirit when you are full of yourself. You must empty out yourself, set aside yourself-centeredness, and allow the Holy Spirit to fill you, taking His rightful place in your life. If Jesus needed to be filled with the Holy Spirit to do what He came to do, we certainly need the Holy Spirit to fill us as well. You cannot successfully live the Christian life in your own strength and determination; you need the Holy Spirit to do it. 7