The Power Beyond the Walls

Power of Holy Spirit

Synopsis

The Holy Spirit equips and empowers believers so that the reign and reality of God is revealed through them in the world.

The power of the Holy Spirit is witnessed to in the OT

Is 11:2–3

Isaiah 11:2–3 (ESV) — 2 And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. 3 And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear,

See also Is 42:1

Isaiah 42:1 (ESV) — 1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.

The Spirit will show his power on the earth

Is 32:15

Isaiah 32:15 (ESV) — 15 until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, and the fruitful field is deemed a forest.

The Spirit’s power will enable people to serve God

Eze 36:26–27

Ezekiel 36:26–27 (ESV) — 26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.

See also Je 31:33

Jeremiah 31:33 (ESV) — 33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

The Spirit’s power will prompt prophecy and visions

Joe 2:28–29

Joel 2:28–29 (ESV) — 28 “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. 29 Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit.

See also Ac 2:17–18

Acts 2:17–18 (ESV) — 17 “ ‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.

The Holy Spirit’s power is described by OT imagery

Oil:

1 Sa 10:1; 1 Sa 16:13

1 Samuel 10:1 (ESV) — 1 Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on his head and kissed him and said, “Has not the Lord anointed you to be prince over his people Israel? And you shall reign over the people of the Lord and you will save them from the hand of their surrounding enemies. And this shall be the sign to you that the Lord has anointed you to be prince over his heritage.

1 Samuel 16:13 (ESV) — 13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah.

Is 63:11–12 the arm of God

Isaiah 63:11–12 (ESV) — 11 Then he remembered the days of old, of Moses and his people. Where is he who brought them up out of the sea with the shepherds of his flock? Where is he who put in the midst of them his Holy Spirit, 12 who caused his glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses, who divided the waters before them to make for himself an everlasting name,

The hand of God:

Eze 3:14; Eze 37:1

Ezekiel 3:14 (ESV) — 14 The Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness in the heat of my spirit, the hand of the Lord being strong upon me.

Ezekiel 37:1 (ESV) — 1 The hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones.

The Holy Spirit’s power is demonstrated in the OT

In creation

Ge 1:2; Job 33:4; Ps 104:30

Genesis 1:2 (ESV) — 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

Job 33:4 (ESV) — 4 The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.

Psalm 104:30 (ESV) — 30 When you send forth your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the ground.

In acts of judgment and war

Jdg 14:19

Judges 14:19 (ESV) — 19 And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him, and he went down to Ashkelon and struck down thirty men of the town and took their spoil and gave the garments to those who had told the riddle. In hot anger he went back to his father’s house.

See also Jdg 3:10; Jdg 6:34; Jdg 11:29; Jdg 14:6; Jdg 15:14; 1 Sa 11:6; 1 Sa 16:13

Judges 3:10 (ESV) — 10 The Spirit of the Lord was upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and the Lord gave Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand. And his hand prevailed over Cushan-rishathaim.

Judges 6:34 (ESV) — 34 But the Spirit of the Lord clothed Gideon, and he sounded the trumpet, and the Abiezrites were called out to follow him.

Judges 11:29 (ESV) — 29 Then the Spirit of the Lord was upon Jephthah, and he passed through Gilead and Manasseh and passed on to Mizpah of Gilead, and from Mizpah of Gilead he passed on to the Ammonites.

Judges 14:6 (ESV) — 6 Then the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him, and although he had nothing in his hand, he tore the lion in pieces as one tears a young goat. But he did not tell his father or his mother what he had done.

Judges 15:14 (ESV) — 14 When he came to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting to meet him. Then the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him, and the ropes that were on his arms became as flax that has caught fire, and his bonds melted off his hands.

1 Samuel 11:6 (ESV) — 6 And the Spirit of God rushed upon Saul when he heard these words, and his anger was greatly kindled.

1 Samuel 16:13 (ESV) — 13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah.

In the lives of his servants

Mic 3:8

Micah 3:8 (ESV) — 8 But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the Lord, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin.

See also Nu 11:17; 1 Sa 10:6; 1 Sa 10:10

Numbers 11:17 (ESV) — 17 And I will come down and talk with you there. And I will take some of the Spirit that is on you and put it on them, and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, so that you may not bear it yourself alone.

1 Samuel 10:6 (ESV) — 6 Then the Spirit of the Lord will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man.

1 Samuel 10:10 (ESV) — 10 When they came to Gibeah, behold, a group of prophets met him, and the Spirit of God rushed upon him, and he prophesied among them.

The Holy Spirit’s power is seen in the life of Jesus Christ

In his conception

Lk 1:35

Luke 1:35 (ESV) — 35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.

In his teaching and ministry

See also Mt 7:28–29; Mt 12:28; Mk 1:22; Mk 1:27; Lk 4:14; Lk 5:17; Ac 10:38

Matthew 7:28–29 (ESV) — 28 And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, 29 for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.

Matthew 12:28 (ESV) — 28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

Mark 1:22 (ESV) — 22 And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.

Mark 1:27 (ESV) — 27 And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.”

Luke 4:14 (ESV) — 14 And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and a report about him went out through all the surrounding country.

Luke 5:17 (ESV) — 17 On one of those days, as he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with him to heal.

Acts 10:38 (ESV) — 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.

In his resurrection

Ro 1:4

Romans 1:4 (ESV) — 4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,

See also Ro 8:11; 1 Ti 3:16; 1 Pe 3:18

Romans 8:11 (ESV) — 11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

1 Timothy 3:16 (ESV) — 16 Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.

1 Peter 3:18 (ESV) — 18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,

The Holy Spirit’s power is seen in the church’s mission

In the church’s witness and preaching

Ac 1:8

Acts 1:8 (ESV) — 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

See also Lk 24:49; Ac 6:10; Ac 16:7; 1 Co 2:4; 1 Th 1:5

Luke 24:49 (ESV) — 49 And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

Acts 6:10 (ESV) — 10 But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking.

Acts 16:7 (ESV) — 7 And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them.

1 Corinthians 2:4 (ESV) — 4 and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,

1 Thessalonians 1:5 (ESV) — 5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.

In the apostolic ministry of signs and wonders

Ro 15:18–19

Romans 15:18–19 (ESV) — 18 For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to bring the Gentiles to obedience—by word and deed, 19 by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God—so that from Jerusalem and all the way around to Illyricum I have fulfilled the ministry of the gospel of Christ;

See also Heb 2:4

Hebrews 2:4 (ESV) — 4 while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.

In miraculous works in the church

Ga 3:5

Galatians 3:5 (ESV) — 5 Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith—

See also 1 Co 12:28

1 Corinthians 12:28 (ESV) — 28 And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues.

The Holy Spirit’s power builds Christian character

Ro 15:13

Romans 15:13 (ESV) — 13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

See also 2 Ti 1:7

2 Timothy 1:7 (ESV) — 7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

The Holy Spirit’s power strengthens the church

Eph 3:16

Ephesians 3:16 (ESV) — 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being,

See also Ro 1:11; 1 Co 1:7–8

Romans 1:11 (ESV) — 11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you—

1 Corinthians 1:7–8 (ESV) — 7 so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8 who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.