DBS Essay

DBS Essay (Draft)

How did the coming of the Holy Spirit revolutionize the people of God?

The coming of the Holy Spirit truly revolutionized the people of God! The Holy Spirit empowers the people of God to do the will of God.  Under the New Covenant, God’s very presence is now inside the hearts and minds of all true believers!

Jesus is the Son of God who came to the do the will of God.   Luke 4:18-19 states, “The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the LORD’s favor has come.”  Jesus read these words from the scroll of Isaiah the prophet (see Isaiah 61:1-2) while teaching in the synagogue.  Jesus then said, “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!” (see Luke 4:21).  

Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and he will save his people from their sins (see Matthew 1:20-21).  John the Baptist baptized Jesus in the Jordan River (see Matthew 3:13-15).  John saw “the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him.”  God then said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy” (see Matthew 3:16-17).  Jesus was empowered by God to do the will of His Father.  Jesus was then then led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil (see Matthew 4:1).  Afterward, Jesus began to preach the message, “Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near” (see Matthew 3:17).  Jesus taught in the synagogues and announced the Good News about the Kingdom.  He healed every kind of sickness and disease (see Matthew 4:23-25).  Jesus invited twelve men to become his disciples.  Jesus gave these twelve apostles authority to cast out evil spirits and heal every kind of disease and illness (see Matthew 10:1).  Jesus knew the will of God and he was doing the will of God.  Jesus was living a life that was pleasing to God and he was teaching his disciples how to do the same.

Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father” (see John 14:12).  Jesus said, “If you love me, obey my commandments.  And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you.  He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.  The world cannot receive him, because it isn't looking for him and doesn’t recognize him.  But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you” (see John 14:15-17).  Later on, Jesus was crucified and died on the cross.  However, God raised him from the dead!  Acts 1:3-5 states, “During the forty days after his crucifixion, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive.  And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God.  Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, ‘Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before.  John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’”  He added, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.  And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere – in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (see Acts 1:8).  “During the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. . . And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability” (see Acts 2:1-4).  Jesus kept his promise to his disciples and sent them the Holy Spirit!  His disciples now filled with the Holy Spirit would never be the same!

The Holy Spirit revolutionized the people of God!  The Holy Spirit gave the people of God special gifts and abilities.  “A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.  To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice, to another the same spirit gives a message of special knowledge.  The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing.  He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy.  He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit.  Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said.  It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts.  He alone decides which gift each person should have.  The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body.  So it is with the body of Christ.  Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free.  But we have all been baptized into one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit” (see 1 Corinthians 12:7-13).  The Holy Spirit gives special gifts and abilities to God’s people so that they can help each other.   “Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers.  Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.  This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ” (see Ephesians 4:11-13).  God empowered His people to do His will!

The Holy Spirit gave the people of God boldness to do God’s will.  For example, Peter had denied knowing Jesus three times.  However, Peter (after he was filled with the Holy Spirit) boldly preached to the Jewish crowd (see Acts 2:14-36).  He finished His speech by saying, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.  Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  This promise is to you, and to your children, and even to the Gentiles – all who have been called by the Lord our God” (see Acts 2:38-39).  The result?  Approximately 3,000 believed and became baptized!  (see Acts 2:41).  Likewise, Saul met Jesus on the road to Damascus.  He was renamed Paul and became filled with the Holy Spirit.  Immediately afterward, Paul boldly preached about Jesus declaring that “He is indeed the Son of God!” (see Acts 9:17-20).  Both Peter and Paul were empowered to do the will of God.  Both of these men preached the Good News, cast out evil spirits, healed numerous people, and raised people from the dead!  2 Timothy 1:7 states, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.”  The Holy Spirit certainly infused Peter and Paul (and others) with boldness to do God’s will!  James 1:22 states, “But don’t just listen to God’s word.  You must do what it says.”  Both Peter and Paul were empowered by the Holy Spirit to do (not merely listen to) what the Word of God says.  They both recognized that they could not possibly do the will of God in their own strength.  Paul clearly recognized that he needed God’s grace and power to do so (see  2 Corinthians 12:9).  Paul encouraged the believers to imitate God since they are His children (see Ephesians 5:1-2).  Paul encouraged them to be led by the Holy Spirit rather than their sinful nature.  The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (see Galatians 5:16-26).  Both Peter and Paul were empowered by the Holy Spirit to do the will of God.  Both followed the example of Jesus and both encouraged others to do the same.  Both men encouraged others to live a pure and holy life worthy of God!

I believe that God has called me and equipped me to draw people to God, the Father.  Isaiah 43:5-7 states, “Do not be afraid, for I am with you.  I will gather you and your children from east and west.  I will say to the north and south, ‘Bring my sons and daughters back to Israel from the distant corners of the earth. Bring all who claim me as their God, for I have made them for my glory.  It was I who created them.’”  God has repeatedly assured me that He loves me and He is with me – always.  God has repeatedly shown me that His grace is sufficient.  God has repeatedly encouraged me to have faith in Him, believe Him, obey Him, trust Him, and love Him.  Despite my weaknesses, I choose to believe God when He says that His grace is sufficient.  I choose to love God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength and I choose to love others as myself.  I choose to live my life in a manner that is worthy of God and I encourage others to do the same.