Pentecostal Power

At His ascension into Heaven Jesus told His disciples what will happened next:

Acts 1:4–5 BSB

4 And while they were gathered together, He commanded them: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift the Father promised, which you have heard Me discuss. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

What is the point of this baptism?

Acts 1:8 BSB

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

The pouring out of the Holy Spirit upon the church is why the church has stood for over 2000 years of persecution.

The pouring out of the Holy Spirit upon the church is why 11 defeated and fearful men made disciples that would eventually count in the millions all over the world.

The pouring out of the holy spirit is both the birth and sustaining of the church - and since you are the church, it is the Holy Spirit that is responsible both for your salvation and for sustaining you in this life.

However:

Before we can unpack all the promises of power we must first understand the biblical terms that are used by God in referring to various works of the Holy Spirit.

Empowering

When we speak about the Holy Spirit EMPOWERING God’s people it speaks of:

The Power to perform a task that the person is not naturally able to do.

Here is the thing:

The empowering of the Holy Spirit is not a Pentecost exclusive or even first time occurrence.

God has been empowering His people throughout the whole bible, OT included.

Examples:

Exodus 31:1–5 BSB

1 Then the LORD said to Moses, 2 “See, I have called by name Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. 3 And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability, and knowledge in all kinds of craftsmanship, 4 to design artistic works in gold, silver, and bronze, 5 to cut gemstones for settings, and to carve wood, so that he may be a master of every craft.

We see that the Holy Spirit gave Bez-a-lel the power (Empowering) to be skillful in making the items of the Tabernacle.

2 Chronicles 15:1–2 BSB

1 Now the Spirit of God came upon Azariah son of Oded. 2 So he went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you when you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you, but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you.

Here the Holy Spirit gives Aza-riah the power (empowering) to prophecy and speak for God.

Isaiah 61:1 BSB

1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is on Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners,

Here we see the Holy Spirit give the prophet the power (empowering) to speak peace and liberation to God’s people.

1 Samuel 16:13 BSB

13 So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David from that day forward. Then Samuel set out and went to Ramah.

here we see the Holy Spirit give David the power (empowering) to be a good and godly king and leader.

This is but a sampling.

In all these cases the Holy Spirit came upon these men and gave them power to do what God had called them to do.

Wonderful and Amen.

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However, this “pre-pentecosttal” empowering was very limited.

1: It was not for all of God’s people but only for a select few for their involvement in bringing about God’s plan for the messiah.

2: It was only a temporary empowering that would cease the moment the task was complete or if the person empowered committed sin.

Israels first king, King Saul was empowered by the Holy Spirit to be King.

However, when Saul fell into sin, what happened?

1 Samuel 16:14 BSB

14 After the Spirit of the LORD had departed from Saul, a spirit of distress from the LORD began to torment him.

David himself knew this fact and when he sinned, in Psalm 51 we can read his ple to God:

Psalm 51:11 BSB

11 Cast me not away from Your presence; take not Your Holy Spirit from me.

Sp the Holy Spirit empowered God’s people but at that time this empowering was both highly selective and fragile temporary.

However:

The great promise of the Old Covenant is that when the Messiah comes, God would give the Holy Spirit to all of God’s people permanently!

This is what Joel speaks of:

Joel 2:28–29 BSB

28 And afterward, I will pour out My Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. 29 Even on My menservants and maidservants, I will pour out My Spirit in those days.

I want you to note the “inclusive” nature of this promise.

It is for ALL people.

For the YOUNG and the OLD.

It is for MEN and for WOMAN.

It is given regardless of a persons social position and it even for the SERVANTS.

This promise is what Pentecost is all about.

Pentecost is the fulfillment of this promise.

Next term:

Indwelling

Indwelling is different from Empowering.

Empowering is when the Holy Spirit gives you the power to DO something.

Indwelling is when the PRESENCE of the Holy Spirit gives you the grace to BECOME something.

What is is that the Holy Spirit works into you to become?

2 Corinthians 3:18 BSB

18 And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into His image with intensifying glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

The Indwelling Presence of the Holy Spirit is what produces the fruit of the Spirit and works in us to day by day make us more and more Christlike.

This is important:

Whilst there was a select few men in the OT who were empowered by the Holy Spirit, the Indwelling of the Holy Spirit is completely new to Acts, Pentecost and the Church.

Points of Clarity:

When does the Empowering and the Indwelling take place?

Are they the same thing?

Can a person be Indwelt by the Holy Spirit and not be Empowered by the Holy Spirit?

Answers:

We are indwelt by the Holy Spirit the moment we put our faith in Jesus and call on him to be saved.

Acts 2:38 BSB

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.

There is no such thing as a non-indwelt christian.

Our entrance into the body of Christ is by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

1 Corinthians 12:13 BSB

13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free, and we were all given one Spirit to drink.

Indwelling and Empowering are NOT the same thing and yes a Christian can be indwelt by the Holy Spirit yet not be empowered by the Holy Spirit.

The disciples are the clearest examples of this.

We read in John how Jesus gave them the Holy Spirit and they were indwelt.

John 20:22 BSB

22 When He had said this, He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.

However, it would still be sometime before, at Pentecost, that they were Empowered.

Question:

Why are there these two ministries of the Holy Spirit?

Why not just empower all of God’s people?

Why must a person first be indwelt before they can be empowered?

The Empowering of the Holy Spirit grants the believer the power to manifest various, what the bible calls, gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Healing, prophecy, miracles, tongues, interpretation....

But here is the catch:

When the Holy Spirit empowers a Christian with the purpose of manifesting any of these gifts, it is done ONLY under a certain condition:

1 Corinthians 12:7 BSB

7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.

Any empowering that takes place is always done ONLY for the “common good”.

That is: A manifestation of the Spirit’s Power is for the benefit, uplifting, good for ALL of God’s people.

Given just how much we struggle with selfishness and pride: It would be a pointless exercise to empower a person who has no intention of manifesting the gift for the benefit of others.

Or perhaps even worse, would use these manifestations for personal gain and private glory.

So the INDWELLING gives us the Christlike character required for the manifestation of power we recieve from the EMPOWERING.

Pastoral Illustration:

I am both a husband/father and a Pastor.

Through the infilling of the Spirit i can become a godly husband and father.

However, as a pastor i am also empowered by the Holy Spirit.

The empowering for my ministry is DEPENDENT on my obedience to the infilling of my character.

1 Timothy 3:1–5 BSB

1 This is a trustworthy saying: If anyone aspires to be an overseer, he desires a noble task. 2 An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3 not dependent on wine, not violent but gentle, peaceable, and free of the love of money. 4 An overseer must manage his own household well and keep his children under control, with complete dignity. 5 For if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how can he care for the church of God?

Notice that none of these “Qualifications” are the result of “Empowering” they are all fruit of “INDWELLING”.