Posts Tagged ‘Holy Spirit’


Posted on May 16, 2010 - by Tim L

The work of the Holy Spirit I

Pentecost is a Christian festival that does not have the profile of Christmas or Easter.  If it had not happened ,…..well, Christianity would not exist.  But it is not only just a crucial event in history for the birth of Christianity; it is so much more than that.  Pentecost is about the work of the Holy Spirit.  The same power that enabled Jesus to live in relationship with his Father and to do the things he did was released on all who follow Jesus. Wow!

Over the next three weeks we will be looking at the work of the Holy Spirit and what happened around the time of Pentecost and the implications today.

Discussion
Do you believe in ghosts?

They didn’t waste a minute. They were up and on their way back to Jerusalem. They found the Eleven and their friends gathered together, talking away:  “It’s really happened! The Master has been raised up-Simon saw him!”
Then the two went over everything that happened on the road and how they recognized him when he broke the bread.  While they were saying all this, Jesus appeared to them and said, “Peace be with you.” They thought they were seeing a ghost and were scared half to death.  He continued with them, “Don’t be upset, and don’t let all these doubting questions take over.   Look at my hands; look at my feet-it’s really me. Touch me. Look me over from head to toe. A ghost doesn’t have muscle and bone like this.”  As he said this, he showed them his hands and feet.  They still couldn’t believe what they were seeing.
It was too much; it seemed too good to be true.  He asked, “Do you have any food here?” They gave him a piece of leftover fish they had cooked.  He took it and ate it right before their eyes.

Luke 24:33-43 (The Message)

Discussion
What do you think about this passage?

Ghosts, Jesus eating food and doubting from the Disciples.
OK some context of this passage. It is written about the events following Jesus’ resurrection, or ‘raised up’ as the Disciples talk about it here.  It comes at the end of Luke’s Gospel, but we need to remember that Luke also wrote a second part to Luke called Acts.  It is very easy to be confused and not think that they are linked at all, largely because John’s Gospel is sandwiched in between.
The two are the Disciples who have walked with Jesus to Emmaus. They give an account of what happened on the road and how they realised who the stranger was who had shared their journey with them shared bread with him.
And then suddenly without warning Jesus is with them.  Luke uses the word ‘appears’ as though he is not there one minute and is the next - almost ghost like.  Luke does not pull any punches, even the disciples think they are seeing a ghost and are half scared to death!  Jesus confronts them with an alternative reality, don’t be upset, don’t let doubt rob you of belief, don’t let doubt lie to you about the reality you are experiencing now.
My guess is that some of us struggle with what that might mean and especially what it might look like.
But is there another way of looking at this passage. CS Lewis in his book the Great Divorce talks about this very whole concept.  He asks what if the Disciples are the ghosts?  What if the walls of the room where the Disciples are less solid than Jesus himself?  What if Jesus resurrected is more solid than creation?  What if Jesus resurrected is mores solid than what we experience of the world now?
I know it took some time for me to get my head around that idea, but it really helps me to make sense of what is recorded here by Luke.

Jesus show his hands and feet to the Disciples, he invites them, to discover for themselves that he is not a ghost. He is real.  And still they cannot believe what they are seeing.

Jesus only ever asks for food once in the Gospels, and this is it.  It is almost as though he is trying to help them see that this is real.  I can imagine the Disciples looking to see if they can see the food going down Jesus’ throat as he eats.  A bit like some of the clips from Pirates of the Caribbean.

There are 3 things I would just like to draw out;

  • It is comforting that is it OK to struggle with this whole idea of resurrection. The disciples did and they even saw Jesus eat tea with them.  Jesus
  • We have strong physical evidence of Jesus’ resurrection, especially in the last chapter of Luke.  In fact it might be that Jesus resurrected is more than real than the physical evidence we have around us now.
  • The end of Luke is only the beginning, these passages are an important link with what happens next. Without them Pentecost makes no sense, indeed without these passages Christianity makes no sense.  The invitation Jesus gives to those who doubt is simple - dig a little deeper, don’t be afraid, do some investigating, walk with me and see what happens next.

Posted on September 14, 2008 - by Tim L

Ask and it will be given

We begin with a brief clip from the film Bruce Almighty. Down on his luck, Bruce is complaining to God.

Story - taken from the LICC publication “Connecting with Culture”, 12th September 2008

A hotel executive tells this story, as reported by Hashi Syedain in People Management magazine:

‘The hotel I manage is located near a renowned hospital. Recently, we noticed that a man and a boy were visiting regularly and surmised that they were father and son, and that the son was undergoing treatment at the hospital. One evening, the father sent the boy up to bed and called over the head waiter. “My son is about to start chemotherapy tomorrow,” he said. “He’s really upset at the prospect of his hair falling out, so he’s decided to shave it all off tonight. I’m going to do the same to support my son. When you see us tomorrow morning, please don’t react.”

‘The head waiter was touched by the story and briefed his colleagues. The next morning, father and son came down with bald heads, feeling rather nervous. But, as they went in to breakfast, they gradually realised they weren’t the only ones who looked a bit different that day. No fewer than ten members of staff had shaved their heads out of solidarity with the boy.’

‘That,’ she concluded, ‘is how my staff live the corporate value, “Show you care.”’ 

Bible Reading - Luke chapter 11, verses 1 – 13 (The Message)

1One day he was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said, “Master, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.”

2So he said, “When you pray, say,

Father,

Reveal who you are.

Set the world right.

3Keep us alive with three square meals.

4Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.

Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.”

5Then he said, “Imagine what would happen if you went to a friend in the middle of the night and said, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread. 6An old friend traveling through just showed up, and I don’t have a thing on hand.’

7“The friend answers from his bed, ‘Don’t bother me. The door’s locked; my children are all down for the night; I can’t get up to give you anything.’

8“But let me tell you, even if he won’t get up because he’s a friend, if you stand your ground, knocking and waking all the neighbors, he’ll finally get up and get you whatever you need.

9“Here’s what I’m saying:

Ask and you’ll get;

Seek and you’ll find;

Knock and the door will open.

10“Don’t bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. This is not a cat-and-mouse, hide-and-seek game we’re in. 11If your little boy asks for a serving of fish, do you scare him with a live snake on his plate? 12If your little girl asks for an egg, do you trick her with a spider? 13As bad as you are, you wouldn’t think of such a thing—you’re at least decent to your own children. And don’t you think the Father who conceived you in love will give the Holy Spirit when you ask him?”

Luke 11; 1 – 13 (The Message)

 

Talk - based around Chapter 7 of Mission-Shaped Spirituality by Susan Hope, Church House Publishing, 2006

How do Christians live God’s corporate value?

How do Christians stay on message?

For Bruce Almighty he had hit hard times and the blame game had started. It was his girlfriend and now it was God.

He wanted answers to the big questions his life was throwing up but he was not hearing,…or was it that he did not have faith to hear,…Someone was speaking. Some might dare to say it was God who was speaking, but for some reason Bruce was unable to hear - even though at times it seemed to be easier to hear and see it than not at all.

Jesus was teaching his Disciples about prayer. This is the Father’s message through the son. This is the corporate message but it is one like you have never heard before!

How do we live God’s corporate message?

Ask and you’ll get;

Seek and you’ll find;

Knock and the door will open.

What does that look like?

Dependence, Wilderness and Saturation

Dependence

Dependence gets a poor press in our society and culture today. It is often perceived as weakness, with being incomplete, It is almost offensive to some for whom self styled independence is a god. But Jesus in his prayer says that we should rely on God for everything, food, forgiveness, . To be human is to know our need of God. Dependence is not something we grow out of, Jesus knew what it was to depend on the Father as he knew he could do nothing by himself. All who follow Jesus are called to be dependent upon God. Full stop.

What are you dependent on?

 

  • Alcohol?
  • Nicotine?  
  • Attention?
  • Rules?
  • Caffeine?
  • Chocolate?
  • Pornography?
  • Stuff?
  • Sex?
  • Money?
  • Reputation?

Get high on God.

Wilderness

People who follow Jesus are often led out into the wilderness or experience life as though they live in a wilderness. It may be a wilderness of testing and temptation, or a wilderness of dereliction, of emptiness,

Don’t get me wrong I am not wishing a wilderness experience upon anyone but it the Christian life does seem to have seasons and winter is one of them. It is often in these wildernesses that we learn to be dependent. Wilderness times are not meant to cripple us. If they do they are almost certainly not of God. A wilderness time can equip us. Don’t run from them, don’t even ask for them, but when you are in them, if you can bear to, ask what God is he might be teaching you.

 

  • Parched
  • Thirsty
  • Dry
  • Empty
  • Nothing
  • Numb
  • Lonely
  • Darkness
  • Pain
  • Bereavement

Are you in a wilderness?

Do you know someone who is in a wilderness?

Tread carefully. It might be that in the wilderness you stand on… Holy Ground.

Saturation

Wilderness is not the last word. That belongs to the Spirit who longs to full us, to drench us, to saturate us, When the Sprit comes so too do joy, vitality, and life. Gifts that are massively attractive. Lightening finds its way to earth, so too the Spirit earths itself in humans – and the effects are life changing.

Ask and you’ll get;

Seek and you’ll find;

Knock and the door will open.

Ask for the Spirit, it is the simplest thing in the world. It might not be easy because it might lead to wilderness. But I would rather ask for the Spirit knowing that it might lead to wilderness and a greater dependence on the Living God. Well worth the risk I think.

 


Posted on June 29, 2008 - by Tim L

Transformed by Faith

Over the past few weeks we have been looking at people who encountered Jesus and were transformed by their faith in him.  This evening we will hear of people in the 21st Century who have met Jesus and been transformed by faith in him.

To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see.

Hebrews 11;1

4John the Baptizer appeared in the wild, preaching a baptism of life-change that leads to forgiveness of sins. 5People thronged to him from Judea and Jerusalem and, as they confessed their sins, were baptized by him in the Jordan River into a changed life. 6John wore a camel-hair habit, tied at the waist with a leather belt. He ate locusts and wild field honey.

7As he preached he said, “The real action comes next: The star in this drama, to whom I’m a mere stagehand, will change your life. 8I’m baptizing you here in the river, turning your old life in for a kingdom life. His baptism-a holy baptism by the Holy Spirit-will change you from the inside out.”

9At this time, Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10The moment he came out of the water, he saw the sky split open and God’s Spirit, looking like a dove, come down on him. 11Along with the Spirit, a voice: “You are mine, chosen and marked by my love, pride of my life.”

Mark 1; 4-11 The Message

God says to everyone you are loved, come and join the party.  Come and join in with what I am already doing in this world.  I love you so much I don’t want anyone to miss out.  God says I am remaking everything, from relationships between us, our relationships with each other, our relationship with the world, he says he is remaking and even creation itself.

So, come, come and join the party, come and follow me, and your life will not be the same again.  It will be more life filled.