Here is your first lesson, please keep it, print it out, memorize the verse and do the homework. Thank you for your commitment in this!!
Acts 1:4-5, Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”(NASB)
Jesus, just before He ascended to Heaven, gave His followers very important, final instructions. They were not to even attempt to start witnessing about Him until the Holy Spirit came to fill them with His “anointing: and power. This still applies to us today.
Memory Verse:
Acts 1:8, but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth. (NASB)
The Holy Spirit, who is God Himself, the third person of the Trinity (He’s not a feeling), anointed the ministry of Jesus, empowered the Church in the book of Acts, and is still in charge of the Church today!!! He has a twofold purpose – to fill you and to come upon you. He is God’s seed of power planted in every Believer and responsible for every success in life. The Holy Spirit within you must be renewed daily by fellowshipping with God. This can be accomplished through prayer, praise and the singing of spiritual songs (Eph. 5:18-19). Renewing your spirit daily is essential to seeing God’s power released in your life.
From out of this study, you will learn from the Scriptures:
1. Jesus said that He himself could do nothing supernatural – apart from the power and presence of the Holy Spirit.
2. Jesus commanded all His followers to receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit (to come upon).
3. The Bible shows us that the 120 people in the upper room at Pentecost (Acts 1 & 2), were already saved, water baptized and had received the Holy Spirit (they were filled)… as Jesus breathed on them in John 20:22, and said “receive the Holy Spirit” (he came upon them).
4. Receiving the Baptism of the Holy Spirit (to come upon) is a definite experience in addition to salvation, water baptism, and having the Holy Spirit come in and live in us when we are born again.
5. Like salvation, the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is a free gift from God and is available to every Christian. You will definitely know when you receive this gift.
6. The Baptism in the Holy Spirit is received through faith in God’s Word and by believing that it is God’s gift for you today!!
Even if you have received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, it would be a good idea to ask the Lord to refresh, to refill and to strengthen you as you go through this study.
We need to take seriously what Jesus meant when He said, “Follow Me”!
study outline:
Part 1 The Twofold Work of the Holy Spirit
A. Power is the ability to get results in every area.
1. The Holy Spirit is not a feeling. He is the 3rd person of the Trinity (Father, Son & Holy Spirit (or also known in some translations as Holy Ghost)).
a. He is responsible for every vision from God and positive result you achieve in life.
b. The Holy Spirit executes every vision and purpose from God in the earth.
2. The Holy Spirit is God’s seed of power in the life of the Believer.
a. The Holy Spirit gives you the advantage in life.
b. Power comes through the Holy Spirit.
c. You can’t walk in the power of the Holy Spirit without a consistent hunger and thirst for God.
3. You will receive power from God when the Holy Spirit comes upon you (Acts 1:8).
a. Jesus received power when the Holy Spirit came upon Him.
i. The Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus in a bodily shape like a dove (Luke 3:22).
b. Jesus did not do any miracles until the Holy Spirit came upon Him (Luke 4:14).
B. The Holy Spirit has a twofold purpose.
1. The Holy Spirit is within you.
a. The Holy Spirit within you is a result of the born-again experience.
i. When you got born again the Holy Spirit came to live on the inside of you.
ii. You were filled with the Holy Spirit.
b. The Holy Spirit within you is for character development.
i. The Holy Spirit within you will produce the 9 fruits of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).
c. Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would live within the Believer (John 14:17).
d. The Bible likens the Holy Spirit within you as a well of water (John 4:14).
2. The Holy Spirit will also come upon you.
a. When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you are equipped with power to do what you couldn’t do in your own ability.
b. The Holy Spirit upon you is a result of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.
i. The Holy Spirit must be within you before He can come upon you.
c. The Holy Spirit upon you is for service and ministry to others.
i. The Holy Spirit upon you will produce the 9 (supernatural) gifts of the spirit (1 Corinthians 12:4-11).
a. The 9 gifts of the spirit are used so you can bless others.
d. The Bible describes the Holy Spirit upon a person as rivers of living water (John 7:37-39).
C. There are several things that you must do to cooperate with the Spirit within.
1. There must be a continual renewing of your spirit man.
a. Your outward body goes through the aging process but your spirit (or inner man) is renewed day by day (2 Corinthians 4:16).
i. The Holy Spirit within you is responsible for recreating your spirit, and is also responsible for renewing your spirit (Titus 3:5).
ii. The renewing of your spirit will affect your physical body.
a. God will renew your strength like an eagle (Psalm 103:1-5).
b. Renewing your inner spirit is more than just confessing and studying the Word.
i. You can renew your spirit by fellowshipping with God in your secret place every day.
ii. The Holy Spirit will grant you to be strengthened with might by His spirit in the inner man (Ephesians 3:16).
iii. Be constantly filled with the spirit by singing songs, hymns, melodies, and praying (Ephesians 5:18-19).
iv. Wait on God by serving Him and remaining in constant fellowship with Him. He will renew your strength (Isaiah 40:31)
c. There are answers, healing, deliverance and insight waiting for you in the presence of God.
Quick questions to work through:
1. What command did Jesus give to His followers right before He ascended to heaven? (Acts 1:4-5)
2. Why did Jesus tell His followers to wait for the Holy Spirit to add His spiritual power to their ministry? (Acts 1:8)
3. Today, in these modern times, do we Christians need the same anointing power that Jesus and His disciples received? Why?
4. When we are born-again, do we receive the Holy Spirit to dwell in us? (1 Cor. 6:19-20)
5. If we have the Holy Spirit when we accept Jesus as our personal Saviour, why do we then need the Baptism in the Holy Spirit? (Acts 1:8)
6. Is it possible to earn the right to receive the empowering of the Holy Spirit through good works? Why or why not? (Acts 2:38)
(Thanks to Richard Heckman’s step-by-step study guide for Receiving the Baptism in the Holy Spirit, BibleGateway & Dr. C. Dollar)
