Category: Believe and Receive

As we proclaim the following Scripture aloud, let’s hear, believe, and receive the Spirit again today:

Ezekiel 36:26-27 (NIV)
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.

Galatians 3:13-14 (NRSVUE)
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree” – in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the gentiles, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Romans 8:14-16 (NLT)
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for the ears to hear and the hearts to believe the truth of your Word and the good news of Jesus Christ. By faith, we welcome more of the Spirit’s miraculous work in our lives and in your church. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s receive the Spirit’s empowering as we sing “Breathe on Me Breath of God” sung by the Worship Initiative. (click here)

-JL

Ephesians 1:13-14 (NIV)
And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession – to the praise of his glory.

“Seals were used in the ancient world in ways similar to today. Cargo was sealed before shipping or letters were sealed to guarantee the validity of the contents. A seal conveyed authenticity and ownership. In this case, the Spirit is the seal given to believers to verify that they belong to God. The Spirit is called ‘the promised’ Holy Spirit because of texts like Ezekiel 36:26–27 and Joel 2:28, which speak of an end-time outpouring of God’s Spirit. The coming of the Spirit, along with Jesus’ resurrection, convinced the early church that the end times had begun.” (Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, NIVAC)

Today, let’s be assured that the Spirit is our seal and deposit guaranteeing our future with God. No matter our struggles or doubts at times, we can yield even now to the Spirit’s ministry, making us more like Jesus. Let’s also pray for this assurance to fill the friends, students, and children in our ministries.

Prayer: Father, thank you for the Spirit’s affirmation that we authentically belong to you today, tomorrow, and forever. Thank you that by the Spirit, you will surely finish your redeeming work in our lives. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s sing “You Keep Your Promises” sung by Charity Gayle. (click here)

-JL

Galatians 3:4-5 (NRSVUE)
Did you experience so much for nothing?—if it really was for nothing. Well then, does God supply you with the Spirit and work miracles among you by your doing the works of the law or by your believing what you heard?

“In Christ there is movement forward to finishing in God’s eternal kingdom, while in the law there is movement backward to the beginning that is no beginning, for the works of the law have lost their significance and been replaced by faith. Beginning the Christian life and growing in the Spirit must not be replaced by a digression into works. The sanctifying work of the Spirit must ever progress in the Christian walk, not be repudiated in favor of an obsolete philosophy of works-righteousness.” (Grant Osborne, Galatians: Verse By Verse)

As God’s people, we are to live with ever-increasing movement forward through the sanctifying work of the Spirit. Today, let’s turn from any “obsolete” ways of defining and navigating life by our own doing. The sure solution is to hear the gospel, to believe, and receive again the ministry of the Spirit. For what began by the Spirit in us is to be continued and completed by the Spirit.

Prayer: Father, by your grace, we ask that this new year will be marked by much movement forward as we open our lives to receive and rely more on your Spirit’s continual ministry of power and sanctification in us. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s be found under the Spirit’s covering as we sing “Holy Overshadowing” by Graham Kendrick. (click here)

-JL

Galatians 3:2-3 (NRSVUE)
The only thing I want to learn from you is this: Did you receive the Spirit by doing the works of the law or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? Having started with the Spirit, are you now ending with the flesh?

“With everything that has happened to them since the day Paul came into town and told them about Jesus, has any of it happened because they were keeping the Jewish law? The questions answer themselves: of course not. God was at work powerfully in their community as Paul announced the message about Jesus, and—as when Peter announced Jesus to Cornelius and his household in Acts 11—the Spirit came upon them as they listened.” (NT Wright, Galatians, CCF)

The emphasis here is on God’s divine initiative working powerfully in the lives of the Galatians to bring them into salvation. It is no different for each one of us, as God supernaturally orchestrated his rescuing work in us by the Spirit. According to Apostle Paul, all of us “started with the Spirit.” Today, let’s recognize afresh and give thanks for the miraculous work and gift of the Spirit who alone enabled us to hear and believe the good news of Jesus Christ.

Prayer: Father, we confess that our faith and salvation are truly by your miraculous initiative. We give thanks for the work and gift of the Holy Spirit in us. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s declare our faith in Christ as we sing “Your Cross Changes Everything” by Matt Redman. (click here)

-JL

 

John 20:21-22 (NRSVUE) 
Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” 

“There is no way the finite believers could fulfill their mission in their own strength, so Jesus makes that power available by breathing on them and saying, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit’ (20:22). A major theme in the Farewell Discourse is Jesus’ promise to send the Spirit/Paraclete who would bring God’s strength into the equation and enable them to become ‘sent ones’….In the new creation (John 1:3–4) life is manifest not only in eternal life but also in the gift of the Spirit. So the church as filled with the Spirit is a manifestation of this new creation.” (Grant Osborne, John: Verse by Verse)

Like the first disciples, we need the fullness and fruit of the Spirit to faithfully continue loving God and loving others. In this new year and new season for our churches, let’s open-wide our lives and ask God for new habits to take root of daily asking for and receiving the Spirit’s empowering, filling, and gifting.

Prayer: Father, thank you for the new creation reality we have in Jesus Christ that is life full of the Holy Spirit, here and now. Fill us, your church, to live in the power and gifts of the Spirit as we participate in your mission today. In Jesus’ name, amen.

With humble anticipation, let’s prayerfully sing “Fall Like Rain” by Passion. (click here)

-JL