Holy Spirit Move-the-Mountains 2018

Transcription

1 Holy Spirit There is one more extremely important topic we need to touch on before we jump into the Bible Reading Challenge and beginning our transformation by God's Word. And that is the Holy Spirit. Many of us know that our God is a triune God and is made up of 3 person (Matthew 28:19), God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. I can hear my Sunday school teahcer's voice echoing, "3 in 1," as we circle our cute kid hands from holding 3 fingers to 1 finger. But what does that really mean? Well, it is kind of like God is a triangle. If you were to draw a triangle, you could write "God" in the middle, then on each side write one of the following: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This would give you a simplifed version of how God is God. It's complicated and it's not complicated. But the point is, God isn't God without all three persons and as a triangle isn't a triangle without all three sides. But I often find Christian women living their lives without one side of the triangle, they leave out the Holy Spirit. And Romans talks a lot about the Holy Spirit, so I want to intorduce you to Him in case you've been leaving Him out of your triangle. ;)

2 Holy Spirit - my testimony Before we continue, I want to share a bit of my personal testimony. I was a Christian for a long time before I "met" and understood who the Holy Spirit was. I have had some dark experiences in my past and just the idea of a spirit gave me the heebee jeebees. And it wasn't until recently (like this year), that I got used to folks calling Him the Holy GHOST. Anyway, it wasn't until I began learning about the Holy Spirit and who He was and how He was sent to help and empower me that I really started making strides in my walk of faith to freedom. I used to suffer from severe anxiety and depression but this is not the case today! I have been set free from those things through the power of the Holy Spirit with the help of declarations, prayer, and daily dependace on God and no medication. And I fully believe that each and every Christian is destined to walk in that same freedom!

3 Holy Spirit - the battle However, we are in a battle, and if we don't put on our armor from Ephesians 6 and USE OUR WEAPON, which is Scripture, the best we can hope for is to not lose ground in our mental, emotional, and spiritual lives! But simply "not losing ground" isn't what we are called to do! We are meant to be swinging our sword (the Word of God), and taking back ground the the enemy has stolen from us and from others! Sometimes it takes prayer warrior sisters to step in, shout a war cry at the enemy, and scare him off for a bit while we tend to a wounded sister. So often though, I see my sisters in Christ, wounded and losing ground because they either forgot their weapon or never knew how to use it. But that stops today. That is going to stop with this Bible Reading Challenge because you are going to learn your weapon (Scripture) and how to use it (declarations), and we are going to send the devil running.

4 Holy Spirit - Who is He? Okay, so back to the Holy Spirit. I apologize, I get fierce about this stuff because I know what it is like to feel hopeless and wounded and I know that we no longer have to stay that way in Christ. The Holy Spirit goes by many names in the Bible, as you'll find in Romans, but common ones are: the Holy Ghost, Helper, the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit of God, Indweller of Believers, Intercessor, Spirit of Truth, Spirit of Life, Guide, Comforter, Convicter, Teacher, etc. As we go through Romans, I would suggest when you see His name in any of these forms that you highlight and mark it. Whoa, He is with me, in me, He'll teach me all things, and help bring the Words of Jesus to my rememberance. That's pretty amazing. But wait, there is more! In John 16:13 Jesus says, "When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth, for He will not speak on his own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak, and He will declare to you the things that are to come." Wow, He guides us into all truth meaning, He'll guide us into the perfect will of God! He will guide us into the destiny God has prepared for us and tell us about it before we get there, too! Mic drop, the Holy Spirit is AMAZING!

5 Holy Spirit - Scripture There's more about the Holy Spirit throughout the Bible but a few of my favorites: Ephesians 3:14 - the Holy Spirit strengthening our inner man 1 Corinthians 12: He gives us amazing gifts 1 Corinthians 2: He helps us understand Scripture Galatians 5: He helps us to become more like Jesus Acts 1:8 - He gives us power Isaiah 11:2 - Description of the Holy Spirit

6 Holy Spirit Let that sink in. The Holy Spirit pretty much comes alongside to help you with whatever you need. Need strength? There He is. Need wisdom? He's got your back. Feel lost? Follow His leading. Need understanding? Boom, He gives it! There are so many Christians who live like the Holy Spirit is dead because they simply are never taught about Him and I don't want that to be you. The Holy Spirit has not just made my personal faith come alive, He has helped deliver me from all sorts of darkness that aren't worth describing except in reference to that fact that I am now free because of His help! If you are unsure about the Holy Spirit and His purpose, I suggest you read the following: John 14, 15, and 16, Ephesians 3:14-21, 1 Corinthians 12:1-11, 1 Corinthians 2:713, Galatians 5:22-23, and Romans 8. Ladies, I could go on and on with story after story about how the Holy Spirit has transformed me and helped me. But, it is almost time to get started with our Bible Reading Challenge and I will have opportunities there to share.