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CRBC Sermon Message No.78


"Power From the Holy Spirit"
by CRBC Elder
Rev Alan Griggs

Sermon Date: 5/6/05

Ezekiel
Chapter 3:1-10

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Bible Reading: OT Ezekiel3:1-10
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"Power From the Holy Spirit"

 

When Jesus gave his last instructions to his disciples before he went back to his Father, he told them to tell others. (see Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:47 and Acts 1:8)  But he did not leave them helpless: " stay in the city until you are clothed with the power from on high." (Luke 24:49)

This is what Pentecost is all about: the annual reminder that at the beginning of the church's history God baptised the church in the Holy Spirit and with power (the Greek word Dunamis - from which we get our words dynamo, dynamic - carries the idea of might, strength, ability, capacity, authority):

Power -

to go into all the world,
to preach to the whole of creation,
to make disciples of all nations;
 

Power -

to witness,
to proclaim who Jesus is,
to declare what God has done in and through Him;
 

Power -

to tell the good news (i.e. the Gospel),
to announce the need of repentance and
to tell of forgiveness of sins;
 

Power -

to bring men and women into obedience to Christ.

This is what broke upon the waiting disciples and the unsuspecting world on the day of Pentecost: Empowered, endued with power, baptised in power, inundated with power they were enabled to do what Jesus told them to do, to do it with authority, to do it effectively.

There were three obvious effects:

     (i) 

 

The disciples, once cowardly, fearful, anxious, doubtful – Peter, Thomas, and the rest - boldly confessed their faith in Jesus Christ.
 

     (ii) 

 

 

 

The disciples were telling, speaking, talking, "nineteen to the dozen".

Communicating the Gospel to unbelievers – "in our own languages we hear them speaking about God's deeds of Power"; (Acts 2:6-8) – and Peter preached openly, fearlessly, with fluency, conviction, authority!
 

    (iii) 

And men and women responded, and not in ones and twos, but hundreds and thousands - 3000 were baptised!

And this did not happen once and once only, it went on happening.  The disciples were arrested, imprisoned, punished, forbidden to speak.  It made no difference.  "We must obey God rather than man", (Acts 5:29)

(See also Acts 4:20 and 4:31)

People were amazed.  The authorities were disturbed.  The Lord went on adding to the church every day.

This is what Pentecost is all about!

It all raises questions.  Questions that call for answers.

The church today has more resources than ever before:

Buildings · Equipment · Education · Technology · Money · etc.

Where is the vitality? And vibrancy?

Yet Pentecost has taken place.  The Spirit has been given.  The power is there and available.

In Ezekiel 37:1-14 we read the familiar story of the Valley of the Bones and of how they came to be a mighty army of living beings.  A valley of dry bones does not come to life by the operation of human resources:  no amount of committees, infra structure, advertising, money, technology can bring dry bones to life. One thing will do it: the power of God.

We cannot legislate or organise, buy, manufacture revival - or the coming of the Kingdom.

We can repent -

think again, change our ways, turn from our sins;
 

We can pray -

ask, seek, knock in humility, in all sincerity - for the heavenly Father will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him,
(Luke 11:9-13);
 

We can be obedient -

"a new commandment I give to you, that you love one another...." (John 13:34-35) - "if you love me, you will keep my commandment", (John 14:15).

 

Alan Griggs

Rev. Alan Griggs has been a Baptist Minister for over forty years, and has had pastorates in London, Buckinghamshire and Essex.

He lives with his wife in Westcliff-on-Sea and although retired from pastoral ministry serves as an elder at Clarence Road

Other Sermons by Alan can be viewed in the 2004/2005  Sermon Indexes.

 

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