How to Receive the Holy Spirit–Today there are many churches claiming that they have received the Holy Spirit. To prove their argument, they perform miracles and wonders of healing people just like Jesus 2000 years ago. At this point, what we should think about is the authenticity of healing power as the sign of the Holy Spirit.
Can we believe that healing is the sign of the Holy Spirit? Jesus said about the healing too:
Matthew 24:24 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you ahead of time.
Jesus said that even the false messiahs and prophets will perform the signs and wonders too. But their purpose is to deceive people into destruction, not to lead them to salvation. Then can we say that these false messiah and prophets who mislead people are filled with the Holy Spirit and they can do these amazing things through the power of the Holy Spirit? Definitely not.
At least their power is not coming from God, but from Devil. That is why Christ called them “the sons of Devil”. Therefore, we cannot know the true church through the wonders and miracles. Then what is the true sign of the Holy Spirit and how can we receive the Holy Spirit?
The True Sign of the Holy Spirit
What is the Holy Spirit?
How to Receive the Holy Spirit–Then what is the true sign of the Holy Spirit? To find out this first we have to know the reason God gives us the Holy Spirit? Jesus said that we must be born again through water and the Spirit (or the Holy Spirit). It means God gives us the Holy Spirit for our salvation, not for wonders and miracles.
Ezekiel 37:14 I will put my Spirit (the Holy Spirit) in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land.
The primary purpose of God’s giving the Holy Spirit to people is to give them life and salvation. The main purpose of the Holy Spirit is not in performing wonders and miracles. God gives the Spirit for our salvation. Therefore, to receive salvation, we must have the Spirit of God inside us. Then how can we receive the Holy Spirit?
This is probably the most important questions we must ask as believers of God who want to receive the salvation from God. Then what should we do to receive the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit, the Words of God
How to Receive the Holy Spirit–The bible says that the Holy Spirit works through the words of God.
John 6:63 The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they (God’s words) are the Spirit and life.
God is teaching us that the words of God are the Spirit or the Holy Spirit. Therefore, those who want to receive the Holy Spirit must know the true words of God and receive those words of God. In that way, the Spirit of God will work in us through the Holy Spirit. We can confirm this through another teaching of Christ.
Christ teaches that we can be set free from the slavery of sin and death, and receive the salvation of eternal life through the truth.
John 8:32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.
Then what is the truth that sets us free from the slavery of sin and death?
John 17:17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.
1 John 5:6 And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit (the Holy Spirit) is the truth.
Through this we can understand is that the truth that set us free is actually the words of God, which is the Holy Spirit. Therefore, to have the Holy Spirit in us, we have to know the Words of God. The words of God are not just letters written in the pages of the bible. The bible says that the Words of God are active and living (Hebrews 4:12). And they work in us in the form of Holy Spirit to give us salvation.
The True Sign of the Holy Spirit
How to Receive the Holy Spirit–Then what is the true sign of the Holy Spirit? Can we know the Holy Spirit through wonders and miracles? No. Then how can we know that we have the Spirit of God or the Holy Spirit?
Ezekiel 11:17 “Therefore say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will gather you from the nations and bring you back from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you back the land of Israel again.’ 18 “They will return to it and remove all its vile images and detestable idols. 19 I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. 20 Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God.
This is the prophecies of the last days when God gathers his people from the nations and lead them to the kingdom of heaven, the true Promised Land. At that time, God said that he would give his people “a new spirit”. Then what is this new spirit we must receive from God in the last days?
The New Spirit, the Holy Spirit
Ezekiel 36:24 “‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. 25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. 26 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. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.
How to Receive the Holy Spirit–This is the same prophecy as the one we have already seen in Chapter 11. God prophesies that he would gather his people and cleanse them from the sins and impurities. In this way, they would be free from sin and death. And God will give them a new spirit, that is, the Spirit of God (the Holy Spirit).
Just as the bible says that our body is the temple of God. However, God’s temple is desecrated by the idols and impurities. But God says that he will cleanse our body of temple and put His Spirit in us. According to the prophecies above, what is the most important characteristics of people who receive the Holy Spirit? Do they perform miracles and wonders? No.
Those who Received the Holy Spirit
How to Receive the Holy Spirit–The bible teaches that the main character of God’s people who received the Holy Spirit is not in wonders and miracles, but in keeping the words of God.
Ezekiel 11:19 19 I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; … 20 Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God.
Ezekiel 36:26 26 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. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. 28 Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God.
Those who receive the Spirit of God are those who keep the words of God. God give his words (the Holy Spirit) so that people who keep those words can be cleansed of their sins and impurities. And they would be called the people of God, who can inherit the Promised Land, the Kingdom of Heaven.
Conclusion
How to Receive the Holy Spirit–Today, there are many churches claiming to receive the Holy Spirit. However, they neither know the words of God nor keep them. Then how can we say that they have receive the Holy Spirit? Actually, the bible teaches that those who perform miracles could have received the spirit from the Devil, not from God. Therefore, we must beware when someone says that they receive the Holy Spirit.
The only way we can know if they received the Holy Spirit is through their action. Those who received the Holy Spirit “follow God’s decree and be careful to the laws of God”. Through the Holy Spirit they received, God is dwelling in them and they can have the same mind and spirit as God. Therefore, they obey God completely and make efforts to keep all the commands and laws of God.
Through the festivals God is granting us the Holy Spirit and tells us that we must be careful to keep the laws of God as people who receive the Spirit of God. Let us keep the Sabbath and the 7 festivals of Three Times. And Let us prove ourselves to God and people that we are the true people of God.
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