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The Holiness of the Holy Spirit (Pentecost A.D. 2022)
Christ Church on June 5, 2022
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A House Filled With Fire (How God Builds #1)

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INTRODUCTION

As we embark on a new work here in Moscow, we must begin by getting our thinking in line as to how God builds. History is the story of how God built His house. He didn’t do a cost/benefit analysis. He built it despite all the conniving of hell & earth. He built it without outside investors. He built it at the cost of His only Begotten Son. And, as we shall see, He’s now filled it with fire.

THE TEXT

Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved (Acts 2:41-47).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

As the miraculous day of Pentecost concluded, the shockwaves were only just beginning. At the end of Peter’s sermon a multitude (3000 to be precise) gladly received his word and were baptized (v41); this is a callback to the first “Pentecost,” when 3000 Israelite idolaters were cut down after the Golden Calf debacle (Ex. 32:28).

The early church is described in its corporate worship as being steadfast in the Apostles’ teaching––the basis for their fellowship––breaking the bread, and prayers (v42). The remarkable signs & wonders continued––fulfilling the prophetic word in Joel 2:19, 30––and great awe came upon every soul (v43).

Their corporate worship, daily in the temple, spilled over into the rest of life. The Believers were marked by generosity without compulsion, which manifested in a particular care for the host of sojourners in Jerusalem (vs.44-45). Not only did they gather daily in the temple, but also from house to house. The fellowship which they enjoyed through the Apostles’ doctrine spilled over into a joyful singularity of heart (v46), and faithful praise to God. The fruit of their faithful diligence in formal & informal worship & fellowship was favor amongst the people. This, in turn, produced rapid growth (v47).

THE GOD WHO SCATTERS

The day of Pentecost is unmistakably mirroring the ancient events which took place at the Tower of Babel. Babel was man’s attempt to climb into heaven to obtain a name for himself. Whereas God had tasked Adam & Eve to fill the world with His glory & name. The project of Babel was to find a unifying principle for the universe in man apart from God. So God scattered this blasphemous work. He confounded their language, fulfilling their worst fears (Gen. 11:4) of being scattering across the face of the earth.

This imagery is picked up later in the warnings to Israel, when the Lord threatens them with being scattered due to covenant breaking. “And the LORD shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the LORD shall lead you (Deu. 4:27).” Israel was also to be God’s means of frustrating and scattering the city of man, which we see in their battle hymn, “And it came to pass, when the ark set forward, that Moses said, Rise up, LORD, and let thine enemies be scattered; and let them that hate thee flee before thee (Num 10:35).”

When man sets out to build apart from God, and in rivalry to God, God will scatter him. The Hebrew word used for “scatter” means dashing a vessel into a million shattered pieces. When man sets himself in rivalry to God the end result isn’t unity, it’s all the unity of a tornado in a trailer park. If Israel, the household of God, abandoned God and sought to build the kingdom apart from their Covenant King, the result would be what we find in the book of Acts: an Israel scattered to the four winds.

GATHERED TOGETHER IN CHRIST

The nations which are represented at Pentecost echoes the Table of Nations in Genesis 10. These Seventy nations had been scattered and frustrated in their opposition to God’s redemptive purposes. Now, however, these scattered nations, represented by Jews from the Diaspora, are gathered together as one by the mighty work of the Spirit.

Peter warned the Pentecost crowd to flee from this wicked generation (Acts 2:40), referring to unbelieving Israel, which itself had become a new Babel, of sorts. The Lord Jehovah who’d descended upon Altars, and the Tabernacle/Temple as a flaming fire (Cf. Gen. 15:17, Lev. 9:24, Jdg. 13:20, 1 Kg. 18:38,  1Ch 21:26, 2Ch 7:1ff), now sent His Spirit to dwell in a house of people; even people from all nations.

What marked these early Christians as a result of the Spirit’s working? Fidelity to the Gospel as taught by the Apostles, fellowship, breaking the bread, prayers both spoken and sung, hospitality, glad simplicity, and praise to God.

This was (and is) the secret sauce to church growth. Modern Christians think they can build the kingdom of God by using the bricks of Babel. We see it in the way evangelical leaders capitulate to the talking points of godless politicians. We see it in the way worship services are turned into entertainment events. We see it in how the plain Word of the Gospel is dulled and blunted in order to nuzzle into the same space as Oprah, Dr. Phil, and the self-care counselors on TikTok. We see it in the way we ignore the plain command to show hospitality, considering it an inconvenience to our personal schedule and possessions.

But God gathers people into His house by the faithful preaching of the scandal of the Gospel. The house of Israel crucified Jesus, the promised Messiah, the rejected cornerstone. But God wasn’t thwarted in His purpose. That same Jesus was now exalted to be the true & eternal King of Israel. His first act was to accompany the preaching of His Kingdom with the power of the Spirit to enable His citizens to joyfully obey their King.

FILLED UP TO WORK OUT

The Spirit was poured out, and the people weren’t idle. Just as the Spirit equipped the ancient saints with skill to build the tabernacle, the Spirit now fills His people to build a temple of people. People in whom God pleases to dwell. The Spirit’s outpouring became a flood of good works: fellowship, praise, covenant faithfulness, hospitality, and simplicity of heart.

So, what is the work that God has set in front of you to do? The progression of our text makes one thing plain, the Apostles’ doctrine was inseparable from the practice of the saints. The Word went forth, and the people lived out the Word. The works of righteousness followed the Word of the Righteous One.

Nothing, in principle, has been altered since that day of Pentecost. The description of the early church is what the true church is & always shall be defined by. Pentecost displays in vivid detail how God builds. God builds by scattering the proud and their vain imaginations. Then, just because He can, He gathers up the humble as a house of people.

God then filled that house with fire. The Spirit’s fire equips the saints with His presence, the presence of the Almighty. Thus we’re enabled to minister in His house. God’s household isn’t a silent, empty cathedral; it’s full of the bustle & hum of joyful saints busy with sacred work.

And what is that work? Our first duty is to believe the Apostles’ teaching: God has made Jesus, whom the House of Israel crucified, both Lord & Christ (Acts. 2:36). Secondly, we faithfully worship. Third, we throw the best parties.

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The Holy Spirit and a Sound Mind (Pentecost 2021)

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INTRODUCTION

One of the common mistakes that Christians make as they think about the Holy Spirit—who was poured out upon the Church at Pentecost—is the mistake of depersonalizing Him. But the Spirit is no impersonal force, like gravity or electricity. The Holy Spirit is an eternal person, and is so personal that He is the one who shapes a collection of individuals into a personal Bride for the Son of Man. This is why we can both extend the great invitation. This is the testimony of Scripture:

“And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely” (Rev. 22:17).

This is why we are able to say, every week, come, and welcome to Jesus Christ.

THE TEXT

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God; Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began” (2 Tim. 1:7–9).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Paul reflects on Timothy’s character with gratitude and joy, recalling the unfeigned faith that Timothy had (v. 5). This was the same genuine faith that was in his grandmother Lois first, and then in his mother Eunice (v. 5). He then urges Timothy to get out the poker, and stir up the fiery gift he had been given through the hands of Paul (v. 6). And why? Thus we come to our text. God has not given us a Spirit of fear, but rather a Spirit of power, a Spirit of love, and a Spirit of a sound mind (v. 7). The application of all this, as Paul sees it, is a refusal to be ashamed of the witness or testimony of the Lord, or ashamed of Paul’s imprisonment (v. 8). Rather, Timothy is urged to be a partaker of gospel afflictions, according to the power of God (v. 8). This gospel is the instrument of our salvation, through which God has called us with a holy calling—not according to our works, but according to His purpose and grace, and which was given to us in Christ Jesus before the world began (v. 9).

PREHISTORIC PURPOSE

Not only do you have a purpose for your life, that purpose is much older than you are. It was assigned to you—salvation and a holy calling—before the world began. It is prehistoric. It is not downstream from your first birthday. Your first birthday is millennia downstream from your purpose. Your life has a meaning that is outside the history of the world. Your meaning is anchored elsewhere, secure in the eternal counsels of the living God.

THE ALTERNATIVE TO FEAR AND SHAME

Paul reminds Timothy that he was not given a Spirit of fear (v. 7). And after he itemizes the things that the Holy Spirit does bring, he goes on to say that Timothy must not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord (v. 8), and he must not be ashamed of the fact that Paul is in prison (again).

The Spirit bestows three characteristics in this passage. They are power, love, and a sound mind.

The Spirit was displayed in power at the first Pentecost when He equipped the disciples to speak in languages they had not studied. Jesus told them to wait until the Spirit came with power (Luke 24:49), and that was what was displayed in Jerusalem that day. The gifts of the Spirit are indeed powerful. But that is not the great power He has. His great power is the power of the holy calling. He can make tawdry, dirty little sinners like us into holy saints.

Remember that the Corinthian church was not lacking in any of the spiritual gifts (1 Cor. 1:7). Paul had to devote several chapters of traffic control with regard to those gifts (1 Cor. 12-14). But even though they had all those gifts, Paul could not regard them as spiritual men, but rather as carnal. “And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ” (1 Cor. 3:1).

AFFLICTIONS AND THE GOSPEL

When someone like Paul is thrown into prison for the sake of the gospel, do you think the devil is stupid enough to grant that this is why? “Yes, we know he is a good man, and that he is bringing us good news of salvation through Christ, which a gracious God is offering us, but we want to jail him anyway. . .” Do you think that the devil is that foolish?

No. Jesus was executed for blasphemy. The charges against Paul made him out to be a pest and troublemaker. The early Christians were accused of cannibalism (because of the Lord’s Supper) and incest (because of the love between brothers and sisters). Canadian pastors get arrested because they won’t bow down in the spirit of fear that has gripped the world, but the official name for it is “denying the science.”

PUT IT ALL TOGETHER

The Spirit is the one who gives us a sound mind. One of the central aspects of having a sound mind in this world is the result of having a purpose and meaning that is grounded outside the world. So don’t get tangled up in questions about whether you were predestined to reach for the pencil with your left hand or your right. You were predestined to be holy(Eph. 1:4). That is your purpose (Eph. 2:10). You were predestined to be conformed to the image of Christ (Rom. 8:23). That is your destination. And the Spirit is the one who brings you there.

No fear, and no shame. A holy calling. A sincere faith. Power, love, and a sound mind. All of it integrated together, knit together in love (Col. 2:2), as the Spirit completes the work He was sent into the world to do. Why not here? Why not now?

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The Day of the Lord (Joel CCD)

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INTRODUCTION

We’re in dire need of a revival. Evangelicals need to be born-again. The Pentecostals need to be Spirit-filled. The Reformed need a reformation. The Methodists need a Great Awakening. Joel lays out for us what such a Heaven-born revival consists of, what God’s people should do to ready for it, and the consequences of indifference towards the coming Day of the Lord.

THE TEXT

Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand… (Joel 2)

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

After imploring the priests and the people to mourn and fast (1:14) in response to the locust swarms devastating the land––cutting off the ingredients for the meat & drink offerings (1:9)––Joel then invites his audience to look through the locust plague, and discern the cosmic implications.

There are two trumpet blasts in this text (v1 & 15). The first describes the day of the Lord as a marauding army and the right response to it (vv1-14); the second trumpet blast describes how a contrite people will enjoy the relenting of God, and experience the Day of the Lord as a day of the Spirit outpoured (vv15-32). The Day of the Lord is first described as a day of horror, and thus an appeal to repent is made. But then for those who repent, the Day of the Lord is described as a great deliverance.

The warning trumpet should be sounded, for the day of the Lord is near (v1). This is the Helms Deep of the OT. It is a day of unrivaled darkness (v2), Eden turns into Mordor, and none can escape (v3). The locust swarms give way to an invading army: swift as horses (v4), determined, well armored (v5), fierce and fearful (v6), disciplined and indefatigable (v7); they move with remarkable coordination and are not deterred by pain (v8); this invasion will be total, leaving no place to hide (v9); these events shake the earth and throw the heavens into turbulence (v10). This is Lord’s army and has come at His command (v11). The prophet closes this description of the coming day of the Lord with the rhetorical question: “Who can abide it?”

The Lord Himself then speaks to the people to describe the right response to the news of this coming day of judgement: “turn to me (v12).” This returning is to be entire, heartfelt, and accompanied with fasting, weeping, and mourning; and lest they think they can go through the motions of mourning, He admonishes them to rend their hearts and not their garments (v13). This repentance is founded upon God’s covenant mercies (v13, Cf. Ex. 34:6-7). Repentant sinners hope for a repentant God. But should God relent from His wrath, and leave the blessing of the restoration of the meat and drink offerings, it will be purely from His great mercy (v14).

Now the second trumpet blast sounds. All the residents of Zion––the elders and infants, the bridegroom and his bride––are summoned to solemnly assemble (vv15-16, Cf. 1:14). Joel paints a touching picture of what this repentance should look like: priests and people in the temple courts, with the priests crying out on behalf of all the people, “Spare thy people, O Lord (v17).” If Judah responds with this sort of total repentance, the result will be God’s aroused jealousy and pity (v18). What will follow is His restoration of the Deuteronomic blessings: bountiful crops, reproach removed, and the invaders driven back (vv19-20). The land shall be refreshed, and all which the locust had eaten would be restored (vv21-25). The people would enjoy the Sabbath rest of the Promised Land once more, and offer thankful praise without shame, all so that it might be known that the Lord is in their midst (vv26-27).

After this, the Spirit of God would be poured out upon all the people (vv28-29). The Cosmos themselves would reverberate to this radical turning of the redemptive tides (vv30-31). The repentant people, being restored to communion with God, are assured that the Lord shall ever be their Deliverer, and any who call on Him shall enjoy this salvation (v32).

THE LAYERS OF PROPHECY

One of the key tactics of the prophets is how they look through current events. The immediate tragedy of swarming insects was just a forerunner of a greater day of judgement which awaits. Think of it as standing atop a high hill and being able to see the next ridge, and beyond that a higher mountain, and further still the Snow-capped peaks.

Joel has rebuked the people for failing to respond appropriately to the locust swarm (the first ridge). He then employs the locust as a portent of coming invaders (the higher ridge). The prophecy then concludes with a Messianic crescendo foretelling the downfall of all God’s enemies, and Zion enjoying His blessed reign (the Snow-capped peaks).

So the people ought to have responded to the locust with full-throttled repentance. In order to stir them up to this, Joel warns that an army––fiercer than the swarms they just endured––will soon invade (likely the Assyrians, Cf. v20). Looming behind this is an even greater “Day of the Lord” which will be experienced one of two ways: either great blessing, or great ruin. All of it hinges on the sort of repentance. Is it heaven-born sorrow––which God alone gives––or just earthly sorrow?

Innovation is often mistaken for repentance. But just because we’ve made some innovations culturally, doesn’t mean we have repented. Repentance is a returning. Returning to God’s Word. Our modern debates within Christendom center––as they always do––on the authority of God’s Word. The rejection of God’s word as the standard for justice, in favor of embracing Marxist and humanist definitions of justice indicates that we are not truly interested in righting wrongs. Those loudly ringing the bells of social justice are offering a semblance of repentance, but it is mere innovation. It is not reformation, which would be a humble return to God’s Word.

THE SERMON AT PENTECOST

This text from Joel was the text which the Apostle Peter went to in Acts 2:17 to describe the day of Pentecost. Peter insists that what Joel prophesied had come to pass in this marvelous outpouring of the Spirit. This wasn’t innovation, this was a return to what God had promised He would do when Messiah came. Peter informs us how to read Joel. The Day of the Lord had come

God’s compassion forms the basis for Joel’s vision of the future blessing of the outpoured Spirit. An army of destruction comes, but those whom God mercifully humbles and brings to repentance––the first fruits of the outpouring of the Spirit––will enjoy deliverance. The fire fell, and now empowered a nation of priests for prophetic service in a new temple, the church (Cf. Num. 11:16-30).

A PROPHETIC PEOPLE

Joel’s vision is of a prophetic people. To quote Spurgeon: “Unless we have the spirit of prophecy resting upon us, the mantle which we wear is nothing but a rough garment to deceive.” The Spirit emboldens us to proclaim that Jesus is Lord (Cf. Rom. 10:13). When the Spirit applies what Christ purchased, the result is a new heart. A heart assured that sin is forgiven.

A mom no longer riddled with shame will be bold in teaching her children to follow Christ. A formerly resentful teen will no longer cower before his peers. A businessman whose confidence is in Christ’s work and not his own will freely speak up about Jesus in his workplace. This is because the Spirit gives boldness.

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Lord of Life, Dealer of Death, Giver of Gifts (Pentecost 2020)

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Introduction

Today we celebrate Pentecost, the ancient harvest festival of the Jews, the great day on which the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the church, and three thousand souls were harvested into new life. This giving of the Spirit was a great event in the history of the church, but the gift of the Spirit also has great significance for each individual believer. Today we are going to consider three important activities of the Holy Spirit in the life of every believer here.

The Text

“And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” (Luke 11:9–13).

Summary of the Text

We too often interpret these words of Jesus as though He were speaking about answered prayer with regard to material things. Now Jesus does teach elsewhere that we are to trust God for material things—like our daily bread (Matt. 6:11), and what you will wear (Matt. 6:30)—but that is not what is happening here. Jesus is not here saying that if you need a new car, then ask, and you will receive it. You should still ask for the car if you need it, but you need to find a different verse.

In His teaching here, the Lord is very specific about what we should ask for, what we should seek, and where we should knock. First comes the promise. Ask and you will receive. Seek and you will find. Knock and the door will open (v. 9). And then He goes on to reiterate the certainty of this. Everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. Everyone who knocks, stands before an open door (v. 10). The Lord then sets up a comparison between God’s goodness and ours. If a man’s son asks for bread, will his father give him a rock? If he asks for a fish, will his father give him a snake? If he asks for an egg, will he receive a scorpion? (vv. 11-12). These are rhetorical questions, and the answer to all three is obviously no. So then, if evil human beings know how to not betray their children, how will it be with God? Obviously, our heavenly Father will give us the good gift.

What is that good gift? What will everyone receive if they ask for it? The Holy Spirit. What will everyone find if they seek for it? The Holy Spirit. Who will open the door for everyone if we knock there? The Holy Spirit.

“How much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” (Luke 11:13b).

The Infinite God

The Holy Spirit is the third Person of the Holy Trinity, and not to be regarded as some kind of impersonal force. We are sometimes tempted to think this because He works in such a way as to not draw attention to Himself. His task is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ (John 16:13-14), and the Lord Jesus is the one who brings us to the Father (John 14:6). And so Christian prayer is to the Father, in the name of the Son, in the power of the Holy Spirit (Eph. 2:18). To remind you of an illustration we have used before, the triune God encompasses the entire journey. The Father is the city we are going to. The Son is the road we travel on. The Spirit is the car we drive.

But never interpret His behind-the-scenes work as that of an impersonal force, like electricity. When Peter rebukes Ananias and Sapphira, he says to Ananias that he has lied to the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:3). And in the next verse he says that it was a lie told to God (Acts 5:4).

And the work of the Holy Spirit in your life includes, but is not limited to, the following three realities.

Lord of Life

The Spirit is the one who gives the new birth. He is the one who quickens you, and brings you to life. He is the one who regenerates you.

“For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death” (Rom. 8:2).

You were previously dead in your trespasses and sins, and the reason the principle of new life suddenly appeared in you is because of the Holy Spirit. He is the Lord and Giver of life.

Dealer of Death

But God does not save us, and then rocket us up to Heaven that instant. He wants us to learn some things about ourselves first, and He wants us to do this in a difficult environment. Because of the Spirit’s presence and the new life He brings, we no longer have to deal with reigning sin. Reigning sin, the old man, the unconverted you, is forever dead. But the transformation is not entirely complete. We still have to deal with remaining sin, and the Holy Spirit in you is an effective killer.

“For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live” (Rom. 8:13).

Giver of Gifts

One Spirit knits us into one body (Eph. 4:4), and that Spirit joins all of us together in love. In thatcontext, He gives particular gifts to His saints (Eph. 4:11; 1 Cor. 12:7-11; Rom. 12:6-8). Those gifts cover a wide array of abilities—helps, administration, mercy, faith, teaching, and so forth.

“For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office:” (Rom. 12:4).

So as you rejoice in the new heart you have been given, and as you hunt down remaining nodes of self-centeredness in order to pull them up by the roots, don’t forget to look down at your hands. What has God placed there that you might be privileged to give to your brothers and sisters in this community?

The only gift we can ever give one another is the gift of Christ. But we must also remember that Christ, and the love of Christ, comes in many different shapes.

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