John 16:4-7
Acts 2:12-21
Romans 8:26-27
Holy Spirit power follows God and His heavenly will.
Unfortunately, most people who claim to have the Holy Spirit or have been
baptized by the Holy Spirit or have been born again do not appear to really
have the Holy Spirit power within them, for they continue to follow the
cruel ways of this world and add to the corruption of creation, particularly
when it comes to animals.
In the heavenly will of God, there is no place for human caused pain,
suffering, or death, for we are to be the peacemaking children of God who
help free creation from its present corruption.
This is what having Holy Spirit power is all about.
This is the Holy Spirit power Jesus wanted all His disciples to have, as He
discusses in John 16:4-7.
4. "But these things I have spoken to you, that when their hour comes, you may remember that I told you of them. And these things I did not say to you at the beginning, because I was with you.
In other words, Jesus was a living example of living in the Holy Spirit power of God, but without His physical presence, the Lord wanted all of us to have our own Holy Spirit power to help guide us in the heavenly will of God.
5. "But now I am going to Him who sent Me; and none of you asks Me, 'Where
are You going?'
6. "But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your
heart.
7. "But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if
I do not go away, the Helper shall not come to you; but if I go, I will send
Him to you.
NASB
This is very important for us to understand; for we only are able to have
true Holy Spirit power for ourselves because Jesus has left this earth and
gone into heaven.
Holy Spirit power cannot be faked, though some may try, for true Holy Spirit
power is easily seen in the lives of all true children of God.
Those who are not true children of God are even easier to spot for their
acquiescence and indifference to the cruel ways of this world can be easily
seen in what they eat and wear, for if what they eat and wear is the product
of suffering and death, then it is of this corrupt world and not of God.
The corrupt people of this world do not understand why people who have Holy
Spirit power appear different from worldly people; note how Peter responds
to them in Acts 2:12-21…
12. And they all continued in amazement and great perplexity, saying to one
another, "What does this mean?"
13. But others were mocking and saying, "They are full of sweet wine."
People who don’t eat, wear, or otherwise use animal products are also often
mocked for their compassion, just as we certainly have been.
Those who are being accused of being full of sweet wine are speaking in
their Holy Spirit power, which a lot of people try to fake.
And because so many people fake this mode of speech while still living in
the corrupt ways of this world, others who see them have cause to doubt, but
Peter has another point to address about those who truly have Holy Spirit
power.
14. But Peter, taking his stand with the eleven, raised his voice and
declared to them: "Men of Judea, and all you who live in Jerusalem, let this
be known to you, and give heed to my words.
15. "For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third
hour of the day;
16. but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel [Joel 2:28-32]:
17. 'And it shall be in the last days,' God says,
'That I will pour forth of My Spirit upon all mankind [flesh];
And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
And your young men shall see visions,
And your old men shall dream dreams;
The translated term “mankind” literally means “flesh” in the original Hebrew, which we believe is the true intent of God’s message, for God does seem to pour forth His Spirit upon all flesh, which would include the animals even if they don’t exhibit the human characteristics of having Holy Spirit power, for only humans were charged with protecting the whole of creation from harm and freeing it from its present corruption.
18. Even upon My bondslaves, both men and women,
I will in those days pour forth of My Spirit
And they shall prophesy.
In other words, God will not hold back His blessing from anyone, but that does not mean that we will all receive it, for we must be open to receive it.
19. 'And I will grant wonders in the sky above,
And signs on the earth beneath,
Blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke.
20. 'The sun shall be turned into darkness,
And the moon into blood,
Before the great and glorious day of the Lord shall come.
21. 'And it shall be, that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall
be saved.
NASB
This is speaking about true believers (children of God) calling on the name
of the Lord, for anyone can say words without believing or having faith, and
that doesn’t bring about salvation.
Let’s now take a look at Romans 8:26-27, which takes place after the Lord
has called upon peacemaking children of God to help free the whole of
creation from its present corruption.
26. And in the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not
know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with
groanings too deep for words;
27. and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is,
because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
NASB
This is a great help for all true children of God, but the vast majority of
people in the world don’t seem to really believe, for they continue to live
in the corrupt ways of this world with all its pain, suffering, bloodshed
and death.
And, what is even worse, they do everything in their power to defend their
way of worldly living by taking Bible passages out of context, even to their
own detriment.
Let’s take a look at an example:
In the beginning, God gave us only plant foods, and people lived a long
time; but after they started eating animal flesh and byproducts, their
lifespan fell way back, similar to what we have today.
The Lord tells us that in God’s heavenly will, there is no pain or death, so
we can most likely conclude that there is no illness, either, such as the
many chronic diseases we have today.
Furthermore, many doctors and studies have concluded that people who eat a
whole (unprocessed) plant food diet live longer, and have very few of the
common chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and many forms of
cancer.
So, why won’t most people realize that living according to God’s creation
and heavenly intent is the best way to live for a long and healthy life?
Is it because they value their worldly friendships more than they value
their relationship with God?
This also shows a lack of love for their friends that Jesus tells us we are
all to have, for by going along with the crowd they allow their friends to
get sick and die earlier in life than God intended, and to cause thousands
more animals to suffer and die because of their indifference and
selfishness.
Their words and actions sure seem to confirm this for they lack, or more
accurately they reject, the Holy Spirit power to guide them into the
heavenly will of God.
None of us have to live this way.
We can and should be filled to overflowing with Holy Spirit power, and live
as peacemaking children of God.
Amen.
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