Return to the Upper Room E-Book

Riaan Engelbrecht

• Herausgeber: Riaan Engelbrecht
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

A Return to the Upper Room continues to be an in-depth study into the Holy Spirit, who is not a mere force. He is not energy. The Holy Spirit is a person and part of the Trinity along with the Father and the Son. God is Sovereign, and just so God wills and moves according to His will. Just so, the Spirit of the Lord moves and acts never out of His own accord, but always follows the leading of the Father. So the Spirit is interdependent, as there is a mutual dependency within the Trinity. The work of the Spirit is far greater in scope than merely the spiritual gifts, for the Spirit of the Lord leads us in our calling on the narrow path to the glory of the Lord. It is of utmost necessity for the Church to be one that is utterly and completely Spirit-filled and not led by the flesh. For only in the Spirit can we fulfil the Great Commission, be true disciples and walk in His truth, His way and His life. This volume of work explores in greater depth the Holy Spirit’s role in the church, thus in the life of disciples. It explores how revival is directly connected to the flow of the Spirit.

Leseprobe

Series of work by the same author:

––––––––

Perilous Times

In Pursuit of God

The Holy Spirit

The Disciple of God

Deliverance

Crossroads to Freedom

The Kingdom of God

The Prophetic

Apologetics

End-Time Remnant

Table of Contents

Title Page

A Return to the Upper Room (The Holy Spirit, #3)

A Spirit-filled Church rattles the gates of hell

Reality of the Holy Spirit

A return to the Upper Room

Revival flowed from the Upper Room

Abide in God to avoid the snare of the devourer

No lack in revival

Ready to live it

Thoughts on a Spirit-filled Church

Deeper workings of the Spirit

Destroy carnality to promote unity in the Spirit

Good, but is it Spirit, and by what spirit?

Mount Sinai and Pentecost

The Promise and the Preparation

What does it mean to be a reborn disciple?

Walking in righteousness

Opening and restoring the spiritual wells

Excel and mature in the Spirit

Shine the light in the Presence

Strengthening the church by the Spirit of God

The coming amazement and uncertainty

We serve a God of power: declare it!

There is a glorious flow where the Spirit takes us

Worshippers in spirit and truth

Be not drunk on power, be filled by the Spirit

An honest look at being ‘drunk in the Spirit’

The Holy Spirit as the examiner of our inner depths

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Also By Riaan Engelbrecht

About the Author

The Holy Spirit Volume 3: A Return to the Upper Room

This is a distributed edition from Avishua Ministries.

The author’s intellectual property rights are protected by international Copyright law. You are licensed to use this digital copy strictly for your personal enjoyment only: it must not be redistributed or offered for sale in any form.

Scriptures quotes from the New Kings James Bible, Amplified, and the New International Version.

For more free study material and audio visit http://avishuaministries.wixsite.com/avishua

Table of Contents

A Spirit-filled Church rattles the gates of hell

Reality of the Holy Spirit

A return to the Upper Room

Revival flowed from the Upper Room

Abide in God to avoid the snare of the devourer

No lack in revival

Ready to live it

Thoughts on a Spirit-filled Church

As with Jesus, so it is with the Spirit

Deeper workings of the Spirit

Destroy carnality to promote unity in the Spirit

Good, but is it Spirit, and by what spirit?

Mount Sinai and Pentecost

The Promise and the Preparation

What does it mean to be a reborn disciple?

Walking in righteousness

Opening and restoring the spiritual wells

Excel and mature in the Spirit

Shine the light in the Presence of God

Strengthening the church by the Spirit of God

The great move of the Holy Spirit and the coming amazement and uncertainty

We serve a God of power: declare it!

There is a glorious flow where the Spirit takes us

Worshippers in spirit and truth

Be not drunk on power, be filled by the Spirit

An honest look at being ‘drunk in the Spirit’

The Holy Spirit as the examiner of our inner depths

A Spirit-filled Church rattles the gates of hell

YOU CAN SAY I AM COMING full circle. In a way. The start of my spiritual walk with the Lord somewhat two decades ago was indeed a most supernatural and spiritual encounter, which I shall not forget or diminish in value. Back then, very shortly after answering the Lord’s call to serve Him, my hunger for the Lord was further fueled by a book written by Benny Hinn – ‘Good Morning Holy Spirit’. These days, I have rediscovered that book and it is back on my phone. As a very young and immature Christian, I realised back then the Holy Spirit is indeed so real. He wants to be part of our lives. He wants to come and dwell within us. But not for us to manipulate or use Him for our own needs or wants, but for Him to be God and for us to follow.

In 2021 I am returning to that deep realization, and to the startling realization that the Church desperately, urgently and without a moment of hesitation needs to rediscover, submit, yield and move in the Holy Spirit. For without the Holy Spirit, we are lost at sea, tossed to and fro by every teaching, and are left vulnerable to every deception and peril.

Several months after I heeded to the call of the Lord, I remember my first true and real encounter with the Holy Spirit. I was alone in my living room, yearning and seeking more of God, and then for the first time the heavenly tongues rolled from my lips. It was so sweet, and I knew this was not my own doing! There was no worship playing. Just me. And God. And the Holy Spirit was so real! Oh, how I knew at that moment the Holy Spirit was not a figment of one’s imagination but was ever-present, ever-powerful and ever-glorious. He wants to be part of our lives, and wants to be the One who leads and guides us in the greatness and goodness of Majesty! But how I realised that the Holy Spirit is God. Not just a spare wheel. Not just the One in the Godhead toeing the line – no, He is God. He is all-powerful. He moved as the activator of power when the Father spoke life in the Book of Genesis. He is still our Parakletos, and God dwells within and with us!

My journey with the Lord has certainly taken me across many spiritual valleys and mountains. I have clapped and danced with the charismatics and the Pentecostals and I kept my tongue in the setting of the religious folks. I have seen it all. I have seen the true operation of the Church when led by the Spirit, and I have witnessed how many times the diabolical state of affairs when the Church is led by religion, by the carnal desires of the self, by selfish agendas and indeed, by a different spirit! Over the years, I have become deeply aware of the need for truth to be restored in the Church, and how far we have strayed as God’s people from His absolute way. We are indeed living in perilous times of great apostasy, yet amid the storm that brings forth such spiritual darkness, we are afloat holding onto our strength and intellect for we have lost touch with the Holy Spirit.

And so, we are reminded of what the Lord spoke into my spirit in 2020 – it is time to return to the Upper Room. And more than ever the reality of what God spoke has become so real, so true and so important. Indeed, that little book ‘Good Morning Holy Spirit’ caused such ablaze in my heart and spirit to know the Spirit of God. To really know Him. To truly know His presence, not just the touch or the anointing. Do we truly know the Spirit of God anymore? Not just the goosebumps, but the Spirit that brings forth guidance and correction, power and conviction, wisdom and discernment? The Spirit strengthens us to walk by the grace to overcome this world, the flesh and every demonic thought and idea. How we need the Spirit of God again to lead us on the ancient paths, so that we may fear the Lord and know how to build the true and everlasting Kingdom.

For many years I was present in many fellowship meetings (back then they were known as soaking sessions for no better term) and yes participated so freely and openly where the Holy Spirit truly moved. And so we laughed in the Spirit, we were slain in the Spirit, we prophesied under the power of the Spirit, we quaked and we shook in the power of the Spirit and we were left knowing that indeed with God all things are possible. Was I under a demonic spirit? Some certainly will think so if reading this, but then you have stepped into the very trap that the devil has prepared the Church – the trap of demonizing the Holy Spirit! And no, I was not entertaining the devil, but my love and hope soared as the Spirit led me on the glorious path of the Lord.

Yes, back then the Word was true and pure for the Spirit was present! Ministry was simpler. Things were more genuine, authentic, credible and real. Today, the Church has become so tainted and polluted with falseness, hypocrisy and carnality simply because we are no longer moving in the reality of the Spirit of God! We betray each other, we moan, we groan, we bicker and we build our own kingdoms for the spirit of man is now more important than the Holy Spirit.

Yes, we were bold and fearless years ago as the first disciples in the Book of Acts. After all, 2000 years ago the disciples had just experienced Pentecost! They faced persecutions, hardship, trials and tribulations yet they triumphed, prospered and grew fierce for the Kingdom because THE HOLY SPIRIT WAS A REALITY IN THEIR LIVES. Paul sang at midnight while imprisoned for he was on fire for God! And just so, for a time during the mid-2000s, I saw men and women so bold, so alive, so brave and so courageous for the Kingdom because they were led by the reality of the Spirit. Like Paul and the disciples, we embraced the Spirit of God, welcomed Him, walked with Him, and knew Him as a real Person of the Godhead. The only thing to fear was God Himself.

Today, we say it is demonic to laugh in the Spirit. We say it is demonic to speak in tongues. We say there is nothing in the Bible about being slain in the Spirit. Today, we look at the Toronto and the Brownsville revivals and we say it was not God’s presence but people were moved by the demonic. Yes, we look at these revivals and we mock it, we make accusations and ridicule the revivals. Today, if you want to pray for someone to receive the Spirit, they are filled with fear lest they become demonized! How far we have fallen! And so the Church has steadily moved away from tongues and from genuine Holy Spirit revival meetings. Indeed, we have settled for the mundane, the ordinary, and the natural instead of embracing the move of the Holy Spirit. True, we must be balanced in Word and Spirit, thus in Logos and Rhema, but for how long shall the Church slumber in her fleshly bed of comfort and familiarity?

No wonder the Church is an absolute mess. No wonder the prophetic has become a laughingstock. No wonder we are bombarded with so many false doctrines and teachings. No wonder the Church is making no more impact in the world. No wonder the world is laughing at the Church. No wonder the Church looks like the enemy and is so divided, so torn apart, and so overwhelmed with strife. It is no wonder the Church has lost the way of truth, struggles to follow a life of holiness and is hardly as bold and fearsome as in the days of the Apostle Paul. We have quenched the fire of the Spirit! Yes, quenched it! Shall we not mourn and weep?

You see, my full circle has brought a very deep revelation and clarity of spiritual understanding – the Church as we know it has grieved the Holy Spirit. We have pushed Him aside. We have called His work demonic! We have sadly, oh so sadly, mocked Him, jeered Him, laughed at Him and made a joke of Him. We have done so voluntarily and may even have done so involuntarily because of our ignorance, our arrogance, our pride and because we as a Church are so full of ourselves that we have left no room for the Holy Spirit. Granted, people today and also years ago, actually fake speaking in tongues, fake falling, and fake being reborn in the Spirit of God. What travesty! Do we have no more fear of God and no more respect for the Holy Spirit?

And so I mourn for the One who came to lead us in Truth, to empower, to equip, to guide, to counsel, to advise and to lead us in all knowledge, wisdom and understanding. He has been grieved and mocked! Yes, we have belittled the Holy Spirit. We have made Him cheap. We pretend to speak as led by the Spirit yet we speak by a different spirit! We say we prophesy, yet we engage in divination or we speak by the imagination! Yes, we have mocked and grieved the Spirit of God. And then we wonder why truth is trampled upon, and why the Church is compromising with the world and living in fear of man and pestilence and even the devil!

For you see, so many have known the anointing or the touch and then they think they have been filled by the Spirit of God. If we are truly baptised and filled by the Spirit of God, then our entire lives become Jesus-centered, Jesus–orientated, Jesus-focused, Jesus-glorifying and Jesus-exalting! If we have truly been baptised by the Spirit of God then all that we should be doing is to speak Kingdom, to speak Jesus and to speak His Truth and Glory. If we are truly led by the Spirit of God, our entire lives will be changed, infused by His holy fire, awakened to His reality and Kingdom, and all that we will be doing will be to glorify God. Yes, we shall know the will of God, shall follow it, shall seek it and strive for it. We shall desire the Truth, defend it, fight for it and we shall not back down as we wrestle with the spiritual powers that oppose the kingdom and we shall not back down as man pushes its diabolical and secular agendas! Yet we have backed down and watered down the Gospel because we have grieved the Holy Spirit.

Is the Church really Spirit-filled anymore? Hardly. We hardly even speak in tongues anymore, which should be more natural than any earthly language! We have demonized the Holy Spirit speaking through the believer! If we are led by the Spirit of God, we shall sing in the Spirit, move in the Spirit, and even write in the Spirit all the time! Oh yes, no matter where go we must be so filled by the Spirit of God that our entire being resonates His Glory! God’s presence must be so real in our lives that it becomes infectious and contagious!

I am fully aware of how we have mourned and grieved the Spirit of God. Not only have we claimed what is truly of the Holy Spirit to be demonic, but we have also claimed what is demonic to be of the Holy Spirit! We have sadly and also freely entertained profane fire that has saturated church services and worship sessions. And because we have failed to truly be led by the Spirit of God, we can easily be led astray by a different spirit, which is even happening in churches! Thus, divination is now rife in the church, along with New Age teachings and practices being gladly welcomed to be part of Christianity! Yes, we have played with the profane fire for we have lost touch with the true and real Shekinah fire of God. 

You see, we can only know the Truth and the Ways of the Kingdom if we are filled by the Spirit of God. If we do not have the mind of Christ how can we know His will, His way and truth? And to have the mind of Christ is to be filled and led by the Spirit of God. How can we teach people the truth of the kingdom if they are not yet Spirit-filled and thus reborn to see and to understand and to comprehend the Kingdom? How can we truly go to war in the spiritual without being ablaze with holy fire? How can we truly understand the dangers, the perils and the threats without the Holy Spirit? How can we truly know how to shatter the darkness by the beauty of God without the Holy Spirit? Of yes people, do we know the Spirit of God is real? He is more real than anything else. Without Him, we cannot understand the Kingdom. We cannot walk in Life. He conforms our morals, renews the mind, and quickens us to arise and for our light to shine! 

And so we sit with sermons today that can hardly move one person to true repentance and conviction of serving God.  Our sermons are designed to be cleverly scripted, thus the study of homiletics, yet what about simply speaking as the Spirit of God leads? My God, where are the days of men and women simply opening the Bible and declaring the Word as the Spirit speaks? For then we shall thunder in the truth of God, and the dead bones will come alive and the thirsty soul will be quenched and the broken healed and the lost found! For then the gates of hell shall again quake and the demons flee and the enslaved run from the tombs seeking Jesus! For if we are truly led by the Spirit of God, we shall know the Word, for the Word is Jesus. We shall know Scriptures, for the Holy Spirit comes to lead us in the Truth of the Kingdom (John 16). Where are the days of prophecy being so real, so authentic, so true and so alive with the power of God? Prophecies that resonate with Heaven, and are so infused with the voice of God that it leaves no room for doubt or questions. 

Sadly, the Church has become flesh-led and not Spirit-filled. And this is what God has been placing on my heart now for some time. We have grieved the Holy Spirit. We have blasphemed to call what is holy to be demonic! How we need to repent and return to the Upper Room! With the Holy Spirit, there is no room for prophecies to be misconstrued, misinterpreted, and misdirected. With the Holy Spirit, there is no room for His truth to be butchered, twisted, distorted and used as part of man’s games of manipulation. For God will not contradict Himself. There is one Truth. Prophecies will not be left blowing in the wind for man’s entertainment, for God is not in the business of mind games. Yes, we have mocked the Spirit of God. Grieved Him. Shall we forget Ananias and Sapphira?

We have indeed become a church led by the flesh, for more and more our focus turns to the world, to our carnal needs, to earthly treasures, to earthly governments and to earthly affairs. We are more concerned about such matters than the Kingdom of God! God help us, for we are hardly led truly and utterly by the Spirit of God. Just look at social media and look at what the Church is talking about. We talk more about the world than Jesus! Even in our worship songs, the name of Jesus is being omitted more and more! A Spirit-filled believer only seeks God and seeks to speak Jesus day and night! For if we were Spirit-led then our gaze is on God, our walk steady even in the valley of death and our lips will be on fire to speak what is pure and true. Yes, and we shall know the common from the uncommon, the false from the truth and the proper from the improper.

When a Church changes Biblical truths to match current culture then the Church is pleasing the lost and not God! The Church is then entertaining the ways of the fallen, the wicked and the carnal, instead of seeking the true way of God. How we need a church again that is on fire for God – unapologetic to the Truth of God. A church that refuses to compromise. Thus a Church led by the Spirit of God, infused by Pentecostal fire. For such a church shakes and rattles the gates of hell and refuses to be shaken by the world. But these days the world is rattling the church, and the church has bowed the knee in submission. Yet the church in the Spirit is only called to bow the knee before God, and before God alone.

It is time again to dance in the Spirit. To loosen the tongues. To strip away our pride and ego. To seek God. For the Spirit to become a reality in our lives. For worship to become more than just music and the ambience. It is time to be a true priesthood of servants and warriors, led by the Spirit of God, declaring only His Truth, walking only His path and never surrendering, backing down or compromising.

A church of disciples that follows Jesus and not man, and a church that truly lives out the Great Commission in the power of the Holy Spirit – thus a church of witnesses of the Kingdom, of making disciples, of winning the lost and tearing down every stronghold that exalts itself against God. Yes a Church that does not seek its own crown, but only to serve the true King. A Church not interested in showboating, but a Church solely focused on serving the Kingdom, no matter the cost or price.

Reality of the Holy Spirit

PSALM 139 7 WHERE CAN I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence?

I grew up as a reborn Christian in 2002 in the afterglow of the Toronto and Brownsville revivals.

The Brownsville Revival was a widely reported Christian revival within the Pentecostal movement that began on Father's Day June 18, 1995, at Brownsville Assembly of God in Pensacola, Florida.

The Toronto Blessing, on the other hand, refers to the Christian revival and associated phenomena that began in January 1994 at the Toronto Airport Vineyard church, which was renamed in 1996 to Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship and then later in 2010 renamed Catch the Fire Toronto.

Of course, I never attended these revivals, but they had a global impact. And the reason why they had an impact was that God was present.

The underlying thrust of the revivals was a return to Pentecost, therefore reconnecting to the Holy Spirit, and moving into the reality and the manifestation of the Spirit of God.

It was about becoming aware of the reality of the Holy Spirit. It was about becoming aware that we need to become aware of His presence and His work in the life of the believer. 

I ‘grew up’ spiritually in a Charismatic/Pentecostal afterglow. I thus grew up in the reality of the Spirit. Praise the Lord.

I grew up in a time when the Church had truly caught fire, as was the catchphrase at Toronto. At Brownsville, Lindel Cooley the worship leader sang about sending the fire again, reigniting a hunger for a life infused with Pentecostal fire.

At Toronto, David Ruis led the revival in worship and praise, his focus being on the Spirit of God and intimacy with God.

The worship back then has stood the test of time. They are a reminder of what happens when people truly yield to the power of God, and they simply let go of their religion, fears and pride to simply follow God. It is a reminder of what happens when people truly realise the Spirit is real and seeks to dwell with and in us.

Back then, the talk around town was all about Brownsville and Toronto. Back home, there were even talks about the Hatfield revival,

There was a buzz in the church. Believers were alive with Pentecostal fire.

It was a time when it seemed that there was more sincerity in the church. Authenticity was tangible.

It was a good time for the Church that was being swept up by the gathering Charismatic wave. Soaking sessions were held where people simply gathered to seek the Lord, seek the touch of the Spirit and seek to be in the presence of the Almighty.

It was a time when people were not afraid or ashamed to speak in tongues.

It was a time when people freely laughed in the Spirit.

It was a time when people without restrictions or limitations would dance in the Spirit.

It was a glorious time. It was a simple time of seeking, yearning, submitting

I remember during the middle of 2002 when I first spoke in tongues. In December of the previous year, God reached out His sweet hand of mercy and love to save my life. I was alone in my apartment, wrapped up in my personal darkness and battling my hordes of inner demons, when God called me unto His love, unto His Kingdom and service.

A good friend of mine, who was very much connected to what was happening with the revivals, suggested that I spend one evening in my apartment just allowing the Holy Spirit to minister to me. I was told that I was keeping the Holy Spirit from truly moving in my life and I simply had to yield.

This I did that very same night. I was on my knees, seeking the Lord, and felt led to speak as I felt prompted. And oh how sweet and wonderful when the heavenly tongues flowed from my lips. Such joy! Such glory! There was no one to guide me, for this is the work of the Spirit of God. And I spoke deep into the night, as the Spirit flowed through me, infilling me, and I knew this was Pentecost fire and I knew the Holy Spirit was alive and real!

During those days, I truly saw how the Spirit of God manifests and work. Today, such manifestations have sadly been demonized.

Oh yes, I have been slain many times in the Spirit. No one pushed me. And I never faked it. How to describe it to someone when the Spirit of God so consumes you that the flesh simply submits, yields and surrenders to the power of God? It is the same when the tongue gives up control and allows Divinity to speak and act.

I have seen incredible encounters that people have had with the Spirit of God. I have seen videos of the youth back in the early 2000s who were so under the power of the Spirit that their entire lives, so broken, were turned upside down by the love and grace of God.

Oh yes, I have laughed in the Spirit. Such joy! Such glory!

I have sung and still do in the Spirit of God. Such joy! Such glory!

Life in the Spirit needs to be supernatural to the point that it becomes natural.

If there is one thing I know, simply because I know and have seen, is the power of God through the Spirit can change any life. It can break any yoke. It can heal. Restore. Mend. Deliver.

Why? Because the Spirit is real.

For this I know: we can never truly be a disciple of God without the Spirit of God. We can never be as God intended for us to be unless we are led by the Spirit of God.

A life yielded to the Spirit of God is one where darkness recedes for light to shine, where the pain is overwhelmed by the love and where hope tramples upon fear.

Jesus is still the Resurrection and the Life. He is still the Hope of Glory. He is the hope and Saviour of any sinner, the Shepherd of the lost and the Redeemer of the forgotten. He is the eternal Light for those suffering in darkness, and the One that releases the captive. This reality I have seen and witnessed over many years, especially during the time when conducting prison ministry along with my wife.

Yet, the One who leads us to the revelation and realisation of such truth is the Spirit of God. He is the One who makes us Jesus-centered, Jesus-focused and Jesus–conscious.

I truly believe that the Church is no longer making an impact because we have lost touch with the Spirit of God. What is truly the work of the Spirit is now regarded as demonic, and what is demonic is regarded as the Spirit of God!

There it seems is a diminishing sense of freedom among believers to entertain the manifestations of the Spirit of God. Such as laughing in the Spirit, such as quaking in His Power or even being slain by the Spirit of God.

Oh yes, the Spirit of God is not just about the goose-bump moments. Far from it. Yet the question remains, how real is the Spirit of the Lord to us anymore?

Are we truly filled by the Spirit of God?

All Christians must be committed to being filled with the Spirit. Anything short of a Spirit-filled life is less than God’s plan for each believer. We are called to be Spirit-led, Spirit-filled and Spirit-conscious, for then we become Jesus-centered, Jesus-focussed and Jesus-conscious!

To be Spirit-filled is to be controlled or dominated by the Spirit’s presence and power. In Ephesians 5:18 Paul says, “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit.” We all know what it looks like when someone is intoxicated with wine. Its presence and power override normal abilities and actions. Similarly, with the Spirit of God, we are called to be “under the influence” of the Spirit. Instead of doing things only with our own strength or ability, He empowers us. Instead of doing only what we want to do, we now are guided by Him.

It should be by His might and power that we follow the Lord as disciples.

These days’ people laugh at those who are intoxicated by the Spirit. They mock as on the day of Pentecost when the first disciples were filled by the Spirit of the Lord. It says in Acts 2 of those who witnessed the disciples who were in the Upper Room the following: “13 Others mocking said, “They are full of new wine.”

Granted if you are filled by the Spirit of God it does not mean you are not able to function normally! Of course not. The Spirit is a gentleman. Some have this idea you will be shaking all the time or be out of control. This is not true. Most of the time the Spirit works a deep work of conforming our moral fabric, teaching us the Kingdom and convicting us of the path that we should be following.

Again, the question is, how real is the Spirit to you? The Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit is a person. Jesus never referred to “it” when He was talking about the Holy Spirit. In John 14, 15, and 16, for example, He spoke of the Holy Spirit as “He” because He is not a force or thing but a person. Whoever speaks of the Holy Spirit as “it” is uninstructed, or perhaps even undiscerning of the reality and nature of God.

It is beyond sad that the Holy Spirit has been made to be less important, to be less personal and has seemingly a lesser role to play in the life of the believer.

We have to remember we serve a God as the Holy Spirit who can be lied to as we learn in the following verse: “But Peter said, ‘Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back some of the price of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men, but to God’” (Acts 5:3–4).

This is a very real Person as God who can also be insulted: “How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled underfoot the Son of God and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?” (Hebrews 10:29). He can also be blasphemed as we read in the following verse: “Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. And whoever shall speak a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever shall speak against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age, or in the age to come” (Matthew 12:31–32).

And yes, He can be grieved for it says in “Ephesians 4:30: And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption”.

Yet, if we look at what is happening in the churches, we have distorted the Truth and thus grieved the Spirit. We pretend to speak as the Spirit leads, yet we act in falseness, by deception and by misleading others and so we lie to God and not man! We fake laughing in the Spirit, being slain in the Spirit and operating in the Spirit. We insult the Spirit of God!

We have to remember this is the Person of the Godhead with emotions and we clearly see His characteristics in the Bible. The Holy Spirit is not an impersonal force, like gravity or magnetism. He is a person, with all the attributes of personality. But not only is He a person; He is divine as well. Yet we treat Him as an afterthought, with discontent and with lack of respect.

Indeed, this mighty Spirit is eternal for we read in “Hebrews 9:14: This means that there never was a time when He was not. “How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”

Yes, the Spirit is  all-powerful as we read in Luke 1:35: “And the angel answered and said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy offspring shall be called the Son of God.”

He is all-knowing (that is, omniscient): “For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man, which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God” (1 Corinthians 2:10–11).

It is truly time that we stand still and comprehend the greatness of the Spirit. The importance of the Spirit in the believer’s life.

It is so absolutely vital that we again come to the realisation of the reality of the Spirit of God. Jesus did not leave us alone, but He sent the Holy Spirit to be real in our lives so that we are empowered, equipped, strengthened, counselled, and on fire to be of service to the eternal Kingdom.

We must no longer be ashamed of the Spirit.

Or grieve Him.

Or insult Him.

Or quench His fire.

For He is God in us as we fight the demonic battles and the onslaughts of this world. He is our strength in the morning and the evening. He is the One who awakens us to the reality of the Kingdom. In His wisdom and knowledge and understanding, we are led in the will, truth and way of God.

May we again yearn for the Spirit, and may we hunger for His presence, His fire, His anointing and His reality in our lives.

Without the Spirit, we are doomed to struggle in the storms alone, and we are left powerless in a dark world. How sweet is the presence of the Spirit! How glorious! How wonderful! May we burn again with the Spirit! May we again overflow! May we again be joyous as we speak, dance, minister and rejoice in His presence!

For without the Spirit, we shall become like dry bones. Yet in His presence, we yield to the refining fire, we grow in the living waters and we transform from glory to glory in the image of the Living God. 

The Unpardonable Sin

AS WE THUS CONSIDER the reality of the Holy Spirit, and we consider not grieving the Spirit or quenching His fire, we have to briefly consider the Scripture that speaks of the unpardonable sin.

The one sin which God cannot forgive is mentioned in Mark 3:28-30 and Matthew 12:31-32. Jesus had been performing miracles, including driving demons out of people by the power of the Holy Spirit. Instead of recognizing the source of Jesus’ power and accepting Him as God’s Son, the religious leaders accused Him of being possessed by the devil and driving demons out in the power of the devil. Of course, this is a crazy accusation, as Jesus Himself that a house divided against itself cannot stand.

Jesus responded by saying to the leaders, “I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin.”

Yes, this is a shocking statement. As we consider what Jesus was speaking about, we have to also consider by this time Jesus had not yet died to shed His Blood, and by that Blood to forge the New Covenant. We also have to consider that while Jesus speaks about this sin, it is not one that a true believer in Jesus Christ can commit. You see, the sin of the religious leaders, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, was a refusal to accept the witness of the Holy Spirit to who Jesus was and what He had come to do, and then submit their lives to Him. Jesus said concerning the Holy Spirit, “When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment” (John 16:8).

They chose rather to reject the Spirit’s witness to their sin and to Jesus and accused Him of being demon-possessed. They were opposed to the work of Jesus, and thus they were opposing the divinity of Jesus. They were even refusing to accept the divinity of the Holy Spirit.

Everything Jesus was doing at the time after all was to declare His divinity. It was to declare the Gospel of the Kingdom. The Spirit of God came upon Jesus to empower the Son of God in His work on earth to establish the Kingdom in the hearts of man. His message of hope and life rested on the authenticity of His testimony, as declared by the Spirit. It was such authenticity that the religious leaders challenged, and thus threatened the coming work on the cross.

For the reborn believer, if we have received Jesus as our Saviour and Lord, we have not blasphemed the Holy Spirit; we have accepted His divinity as declared unto the Spirit of God. We have embraced the cross, the resurrection and the ascension. If we have not, we are not a believer of Christ. As we are led and submitted to the Spirit of God, we accept the divinity of the Spirit, and the power of His witness according to John 16.  Thus, what Jesus said stands true, but this applies to those who constantly reject Christ and reject the work of the Spirit to declare Jesus as the Messiah. Thus to commit this sin one must consciously, persistently, deliberately, and maliciously reject the testimony of the Spirit to the deity and saving power of the Lord Jesus. If a person keeps doing that until death, there is no hope of forgiveness and eternal life in heaven. After all, we can only be saved and be forgiven from all sins when we believe in Christ, follow Him and accept His Lordship.

The unpardonable sin is thus not some particularly grievous sin committed by a Christian before or after accepting Christ, nor is it thinking or saying something terrible about the Holy Spirit. It has to do with the divinity of Jesus, and yes, of the Spirit of God. It is deliberately resisting the Holy Spirit’s witness to Jesus being the Son of God. To experience God’s peace, we must come to Him, trusting His promises. Isaiah 1:18 says, “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.” In 1 John 1:9, we read: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Jesus Himself assures us, “Whoever comes to me I will never drive away” (John 6:37). Our God is compassionate and merciful. He desires that no one should be lost, but that all should come to salvation through repentance and personal faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord (2 Peter 3:9; Acts 2:21). God’s saving grace, however, only comes into action when we believe in Christ. When we embrace the witness of the Holy Spirit.

If you think about it, many people in this world like the Jewish leaders of Jesus’ day are not really acting out of ignorance or misunderstanding. The Pharisees knew that Jesus was the Messiah sent by God to save Israel. They knew the prophecies were being fulfilled. They saw Jesus’ wonderful works, and they heard His clear presentation of truth. Yet they deliberately chose to deny the truth and slander the Holy Spirit. Isn’t this also not happening in the world today? Downright rebellion against God, despite all the evidence pointing to the divinity of Christ? How many people are not deliberately shutting their eyes to the reality of Jesus, and resisting any work of the Spirit of God? Romans 1 declares that everything around us speaks of God’s reality and existence, yet mankind still refuses. Revelation 9:20 says “But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk.” Yes, even at the end of all things, many continue to defy and resist God.

Our continued unbelief or rebellion will always lead us away from God, instead of embracing His love, mercy and grace. There is no pardon for a person who dies in his rejection of Christ. The Holy Spirit is at work in the world yet so many are resisting His conviction and remain unrepentant. Thus many are CHOOSING hell over heaven. The object of faith is Jesus (Acts 16:31). There is no forgiveness for someone who dies without faith in Christ.

So yes, as Christians, we do not have to fear that we have committed some sin that God cannot or will not forgive, especially when it comes to the Spirit of God, but this does not mean that the Spirit cannot be grieved by us. Or that His fire cannot be quenched, or that we cannot resist Him and His work. Of this, we need to remain very careful, and very sensitive to His leading.

A return to the Upper Room

MORE THAN EVER THERE is a need for the church to return to the Upper Room. The Lord has laid it strongly on my heart is time for the Church to rediscover the importance of the Upper Room in our spiritual walk. But then we need to understand what the Upper Room is, and what it truly means. For it was more than the place where the Holy Spirit was poured out. Yes, so much more.

We all know what happened in the Upper Room. We all know the story of Acts 2: 1 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Another translation is as follows: Complete Jewish Bible (CJB): 1 The festival of Shavu‘ot arrived, and the believers all gathered together in one place. 2 Suddenly there came a sound from the sky like the roar of a violent wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then they saw what looked like tongues of fire, which separated and came to rest on each one of them. 4 They were all filled with the Ruach HaKodesh and began to talk in different languages, as the Spirit enabled them to speak.

Oh yes, there in the room, after waiting as instructed by Jesus for the power from on high, 10 days taking into consideration the 40 days before Ascension after the resurrection, the disciples were equipped and empowered by the very presence of God, filling them and enabling them to be witnesses unto the ends of the earth!

Glory to God. Yes, there was a wind, for the Spirit is the Rauch Elohim – the very breath of God. Of those born in the Holy Spirit, it says “John 3:8: The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

Indeed, of the breath of God, we read in Ezekiel 37 in regards to the prophecy with the dead bones. For the life-giving Spirt of the Living God descended upon the disciples, fulfilling the promise of “John 16 verse 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 (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor—Counselor, Strengthener, Standby) will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him (the Holy Spirit) to you [to be in close fellowship with you].”