Jll83

If Jesus' power to work miracles traced only to His divinity, then it would have been impossible for the Apostles, much less us, to follow His example. The Holy Spirit's role is to confer power upon humans who have faith in God and who look to God for direction in serving Him and obeying His will for the good of the Kingdom. Jesus , through obedience to the Father, and through the power of the Holy Spirit, showed us how to be obedient disciples operating in faith.

In accepting his role as Son in humanly form, Jesus demonstrated the importance of depending on God, the Father and submitting to His Father's will. He is equal to His Father and the Holy Spirit in person, but each have distinctive roles while operating interdependently.

The Spirit establishes Jesus' identity as the Son of God before the Messiah was even born. Luke 1:35 the Spirit will come upon you and the power of the MOst High will overshadow you. Early on, we see that The Holy Spirit packs power and gives that power to those who receive the Spirit. while the Spirit was within him from birth, Jesus submitted to Baptism in the Spirit, modeling for us the way to receive the Holy Spirit....the Holy Spirit descended on in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: "you are my son , whom I love: with you, I am well pleased." Luke 3:21-22. This verbal declaration from God establishes Jesus as God's son for all the world to hear and see! Through our own baptism in the Spirit, we are established as disciples of Jesus and as children of God!!

"And afterward I will pour out my spirit on all people.. " Joel2:28-32a 36:25-27 And I will give you a new heart and a new spirit I will put within you."...Ezekial 36:25-27 To all who accept Jesus as Savior and place their trust in Him, God will send the Holy Spirit to all and the promise is we are saved and God will never leave us, even when we fail. And all who call on Jesus, will be saved!

God makes clear that the Messiah will descend from Jesse and "from his roots a Branch will bear fruit and God's Spirit will rest on him.. He is to be rich in wisdom, understanding, knowledge and will possess the Spirit of counsel and power and the fear of the Lord. The Messiah, in human form, but with the gift of God's Spirit, is perfectly equipped to experience temptation in a carnal world without succumbing to it. Through the Spirit, He follows God's perfect plan to the letter and because of this, we are saved by grace. Jesus, overcame the human condition. My question is how do we get there?? What has to be happen for us to be able to follow God's perfect plan for our own lives? Does God give the same measure of the Spirit to all believers in the New Covenant? Are we missing out on God's best because we grieve the Holy Spirit in daily life? Or does He give different measures of Spiritual blessings according to purpose and need? What are we missing for the Spirit to nest fully in us? I think the fear of the Lord is key... in modern culture many people don't know God, much less fear Him. How can you love someone you do not know? What is a healthy fear of the Lord? I used to be really afraid of God in the Old Testament until I spent time exploring our (the body Of Christ's) Hebrew roots. I no longer think He is angry all the time and I know He loves us. But how do we show reverential Fear? Does anyone have a good definition? Sorry for the Soliloquy

God takes "some" of the Holy Spirit to give to the Elders, so they can judge the people with wisdom. They prophesied once but their power was for a specific purpose. This transfer eases some of the burden on poor Moses who, understandably, felt overwhelmed by the responsibility to communicate God's directives to the people and act as judge when they had complaints -- which was often. While Joshua was offended by the two Elders who prophesied but were absent from the tent during the transfer, Moses didn't see a problem. He understood God has no limits and will find people chosen to serve Him no matter where they are. Moses knew that if the Spirit resided in everyone, there would be precious few problems, as people would act with wisdom as they grew in relationship with God.

In response to today's question, I believe God searches for folks who are pure of heart... not perfect people, Abraham was an idol worshipper when God chose him, but those who have loving hearts. Then He sends His Spirit to teach and prove those persons so they can carry out a specific mission(s). And when God chooses someone for a special annointing, escape is impossible -- thinking Jonah, Gideon here. When God's annointed embraces that calling, the power of God is unleashed in their lives. It's an invitation, really, to enter a deep relationship with our Creator. I can't wait to see how the Spirit will move in my own life as I embrace this teaching.

My name is June and I live in Westport a beautiful coastal town in southeastern Massachusetts. So excited for this teaching on the Holy Spirit! and looking forward to sharing with and learning from others' insights!