Prayer

The Gift of the Holy Spirit

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If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Luke 11:12 ESV

My personal search for the Holy Spirit began in Lutheran catechism class. There I learned about the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. Now I was pretty sure the Father was the one who was our creator, and Jesus also seemed familiar, since I had been coloring pictures of him with children and sheep since I was four, but the Holy Ghost had me stumped. So as any religious minded eight-year-old would do; I asked the best theological source I knew of: Louie and Wally: the guys who walked to school with me! Wally went to a different catechism class than me, but he also had no answer, so together we asked Louie, hoping that maybe the Catholics knew, but to no avail. Finally, one night while we were all camping out in our back yard, we decided to settle things by sneaking into the Catholic church around the corner from us. Being Summer, and in the days before air-conditioning, a small window had been left open and we quietly climbed in. We had no mischief in mind, we just simply tiptoed up to the front, wondering if the Pope was there and what he might say. Though the lights were on, the beautiful little church seemed empty, and after dipping our fingers into what Louie told us was Holy Water, we climbed out the way we had come in wondering if God was watching.

Today the Holy Spirit is still one of the most misunderstood and misrepresented topics in Christian circles. For some, the mere mention of the Holy Spirit will bring an entire room to a hushed silence. I fully understand that due to abuse of the topic that care must be taken, but we must not allow our fears to keep us from God’s promised gift. In hopes of casting some clarity let’s begin at today’s verse, where Jesus tells us that God has promised His Holy Spirit to those who ask Him. Notice that the Holy Spirit is God’s Promise for everyone. This gift is not just for Apostles, Prophets and the first century church.

If we back up just a few verses, it is interesting that asking for the Holy Spirit is the culmination of what Jesus teaches about prayer. Jesus begins because His disciples have seen Him praying and are so impressed that they ask Him to teach them how to pray. Here in Luke, Jesus begins by giving a shortened form of what we call “The Lord’s Prayer”, and the first word in His prayer is, “Father.”

And he said to them, “When you pray, say: 
“Father, hallowed be your name.
 Your kingdom come. Luke 11:2 ESV

First it is vital to understand that the Holy Spirit is only for God’s children. Receiving God’s Holy Spirit is not for unbelievers. No amount of outward emotional display, miraculous signs or enthusiasm can change that. We must come to God in humble repentance, putting our faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior. Secondly, Jesus tells us we must ask, and He goes into great detail about asking, “Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened.” Luke 11:9

It is interesting that while we use this promise for all kinds of requests, Jesus’ focus is on our asking for and receiving the Holy Spirit. So, let’s look again at this verse. First, “Ask and you will receive.” Here is a promise for a greater fullness that comes when we ask, not for material things, success or even healing, but for God Himself. Second, comes a time seeking. God allows us to pass through a space between asking and receiving, to test whether we will continue. Mary and Joseph had to travel 90 miles on foot to Bethlehem. The wise men came from over a thousand miles, but Jesus came all the way from Heaven to earth to seek for us. We have only to journey to the cross to find Him waiting there for us. Last of all comes knocking. When we have come as far as we know, and yet there appears to be a closed door at the end of the road, Jesus tells us not to turn away or sit outside in despair. The door is closed, but not locked and our Heavenly Father waits inside, eagerly listening for our knock. Do we desire Him more than anything else, or will we turn aside for something more easily obtained? Do not be afraid to bruise your knuckles on the door! God has promised bread and not a stone to hungry children, and an egg and not a scorpion for those who thirst for the living water of His Holy Spirit and all the fullness of Christ when He opens His door for us!

Is God Really Listening?

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments 
Hear the voice of my pleas for mercy, when I cry to you for help, when I lift up my hands toward your most holy sanctuary. Psalm 28:2 NKJV

Have you ever noticed that when our children are babies, they love to tug on our hair, grab on to our noses and play a game of peek-a-boo? Their persistence and tireless delight at this are a bit puzzling until we realize that what they really want is for us to see and hear them. That longing to be seen and heard is David’s prayer. He asks for help, hopes for God to bring a solution to his problems, but more than anything else, David wants to know that God is listening. The difference between, just wanting an answer and wanting for God to listen, is like the difference between ordering a new game for your kids to play and taking the time to sit down and play it with them. One will occupy them and keep them out of your hair, but the other will give you both time to get to know one another better. Sure, God can answer our prayers in an immediately, but what He also longs for us to get know Him better and realize that He is always listening. So, let’s be grateful, not only for the answers to our prayers, but just like King David, let’s be grateful that God hears our prayers and listens to our pleas for mercy!

Blessed be the Lord! For he has heard the voice of my pleas for mercy. Psalm 28:6
Photo by Ron Lach on Pexels.com

God is Watching Out the Window

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May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble!
 May the name of the God of Jacob protect you!
May he send you help from the sanctuary,
 and give you support from Zion!
Psalm 20:1-2 ESV

One day when our seven-year-old son was walking home from school, a group of three older boys began pushing him, throwing his books in the snow and giving him a hard time. Unfortunately for them, my wife, Nancy, happened to be watching out our apartment window, and immediately went into action. In seconds she flew down the stairs and out the door. You never saw three kids runs so fast once they had caught sight of their victim’s angry mom bearing down on them. Fortunately for everyone involved she never quite caught them, but it was the last time that they picked on Chris that year! In the same way God is looking out the window and watching for us as we are on the way home to Him. But you might think that asking God for help when we have problems is a spiritual no-no or even a bit selfish. But nothing could be further from the truth. God loves to answer our cry. Just as Nancy was not annoyed to immediately come Chris’ defense, the Lord eagerly runs to our aid. Today’s verse also tells us that the name of the Lord is our protection. When we call for help in Jesus’ name, our enemies are terrified and scurry for cover, not because of us but because they see Him angrily chasing them down! Finally, the Psalm tells us that God sends help from His sanctuary. Now this sanctuary is not some place that God goes to hide, instead it is the holiest place in Heaven. It is where the Father sits on His throne, surrounded by millions of angels and saints falling down in worship. Its floor is pure gold, and its support columns shake at the sound of His voice. Yet surrounded by all this eternal splendor, God is not irritated when He hears our cry. He does not mind putting down what He is doing to get involved in our life. No! God rushes to our rescue because we are His. He cares about us and we are precious and loved. So, if you are facing trouble, grief or even life-threatening circumstances today, remember that your Heavenly Father is watching over you. He is listening for your cry and will eagerly answer our prayers when we cry to Him in the day of our trouble!