On this Pentecost Sunday I want to look at the difference Holy Spirit being poured out in this way should make for us. By way of introduction (Pentecost) I want to make clear that Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, along with the Father, and the Son, Jesus. Holy Spirit has his own roles and personality.

Until Pentecost Holy Spirit had only filled specific people for specific purposes, however, at Pentecost all of that was about to change. It shouldn’t really have been a surprise:
Isaiah 44:3 For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.
Joel 2:28-29 And afterwards, 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. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days.

So, what are some of the things Holy Spirit does?
• He comforts (John 14:26)
• He counsels (John 14:26)
• He is the Spirit of truth (John 16:13-14)
• He teaches (John 14:26)
• He anoints (Luke 4:18; Acts 10:38)
• He empowers (Acts 2)
• He gives gifts (1 Corinthians 12:1-11)
• He bears fruit (Galatians 5:22)
• He convicts of sin (John 16:8)
• He delivers (Romans 8:2)
• He gives life (John 6:63)
• He intercedes (Romans 8:26)
• He works signs and miracles (Romans 15:9)
• He makes people holy and whole (Romans 15:16)

There are many more things which you can check out for yourself, but the amazing thing is that as we get to know Holy Spirit we can recognize when he is speaking to us. I’m going to talk a little about the gifts that Holy Spirit gives to his people but I also want to give a reminder that we need to remember the giver of the gifts and not focus on the gifts. Holy Spirit is a person so we must not separate the power from the person of the Holy Spirit. As we surrender more of ourselves to Jesus it is the Holy Spirit within us that responds to our surrender. Glorifying Jesus is paramount, and we must never lose sight of what he has done for us.

Getting to know Holy Spirit means we will understand Jesus more and more. There is no competition in the Trinity. It is Jesus who the Holy Spirit reveals to us and with whom we must be fixated. We receive different gifts and they are given to bring us closer to Jesus and build each other up.

1 Corinthians 12:1-11 What I want to talk about now is the various ways God’s Spirit gets worked into our lives. This is complex and often misunderstood, but I want you to be informed and knowledgeable. Remember how you were when you didn’t know God, led from one phony god to another, never knowing what you were doing, just doing it because everybody else did it? It’s different in this life. God wants us to use our intelligence, to seek to understand as well as we can. For instance, by using your heads, you know perfectly well that the Spirit of God would never prompt anyone to say “Jesus be damned!” Nor would anyone be inclined to say “Jesus is Master!” without the insight of the Holy Spirit.
4-11 God’s various gifts are handed out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. God’s various ministries are carried out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. God’s various expressions of power are in action everywhere; but God himself is behind it all. Each person is given something to do that shows who God is: Everyone gets in on it, everyone benefits. All kinds of things are handed out by the Spirit, and to all kinds of people! The variety is wonderful:
wise counsel
clear understanding
simple trust
healing the sick
miraculous acts
proclamation
distinguishing between spirits
tongues
interpretation of tongues.
All these gifts have a common origin, but are handed out one by one by the one Spirit of God. He decides who gets what, and when.

There are more gifts listed in other places, so this is not a full list of all that God gives. They are not natural abilities or talents. They are gifts from God that show something of the nature and character of God – therefore they are important. They are also for all of God’s people – Everyone gets in on it, everyone benefits. So what happens if we don’t ask and we don’t use these gifts? Only some people get in on it and few people benefit.

We know that Holy Spirit is God and that he will not act outside of what we know about God from the bible. We know that God is loving, totally good, kind, patient, gracious and forgiving. We know he is our shepherd who leads us into all truth, never harming but always protecting us.

We know that people react differently when Holy Spirit fills them. Some are noisy, some are quiet. Some fall to the floor, others seem not to react at all. I remember praying to be filled and adding at the end, “Just don’t embarrass me!” I often wonder why people react so differently – but we are all different, so why wouldn’t we. If you are naturally extrovert and quite loud, then it is possible that’s how you might respond in praise. If you’re naturally introvert it is more likely that your response to Holy Spirit will be quiet. God is not in the embarrassment business, so please don’t be anxious about what might happen if you ask to be filled. Will you trust the Holy Spirit to be gentle with you?
I’m going to lead us in prayers asking Holy Spirit to come and do whatever he wants to do.

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