The person of the Holy Spirit

• The Bible does not contradict itself (I Corinthians 14:33. This implies that not all the perspectives on the Holy Spirit that men come up with are going to be true.
• Person: a conscious being that possesses individuality and identity.
• Individual: a distinct and undivided being.
• Being: a living and existing thing.
• The oneness doctrine: The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are all different manifestations of the same being.
  • Isaiah 9:6 is often used as a prooftext for this belief.
• Passages that show the Holy Spirit executes judment: Acts 5
• In John 16:13-14, Jesus uses masculine personal pronouns to refer to the Holy Spirit, which indicates that the Holy Spirit is an individual person.
• The Holy Spirit is a distinct person from Father and the Son (Luke 3:22.
• Actions in which the Holy Spirit is shown to have fellowship with Christ and the Father: Ephesians 4
• The Holy Spirit is deity (Acts 5:1-4.

• Why we fly
  • To reach our Savior
    • Christianity is all about Christ; Christ is all about excellence (Colossians 3:1.
    • We lose our lives (Matthew 16:24-25.
  • To reach our potential
    • We should not settle for anything less than our best (Philippians 3:12-16.
    • Our “best”so far isn’t enough (Romans 3:23.
    • Jesus saves us to change us (Romans 12:1.
    • God helps diligent motivated seekers find His path (Hebrews 11:6.
• Why we fear
  • Too challenging.
    • God’s big blessings require a big effort (I Timothy 4:10.
    • What we should fear is losing our birthright because we were not brave enough to claim it (Hebrews 4:1-3.
  • Too different
    • Getting comfortable in our successes is a reason for change, not inertia (Deuteronomy 32:11.
    • God pushes us to excel, but He is there to catch us when we falter.
• Jesus says, “Come”
  • It’s possible: Jesus wouldn’t ask something of us we could not deliver (Matthew 14:28-29.
  • It’s taxing: Jesus will put you to work if you come to Him (Mark 1:17.
  • It’s costly: He calls it “a pearl of great price” with reason (Matthew 13:45-46.
  • It’s rewarding: The rest He provides (Matthew 11:28 is worth the effort.
• Jesus will save
  • We rob ourselves of “walk on water” moments because we doubt His power to see us through (Matthew 14:3031).
  • Jesus will pick us up so we can try again (Philippians 1:6.
• Jesus can calm the sea
  • Jesus may remove our problem, or he may just empower us to deal with it (Philippians 1:12-14.
  • Either way, no storm can separate us from Jesus (Romans 8:38-39.
  • He will shake our house for us today if we ask.

• A failure vs. a person who fails
  • The question is not whether we will fail, but how we will respond when we fail.
  • Will failing be a stumbling block or a stepping sone (Proverbs 24:16?
• Real failure is when you abandon your post.
  • The one talent man (Matthew 25:24-30 assured his own failure by not pursuing success.
  • Wicked: God considers inaction to be as evil as inappropriate actions.
  • Slothful: Excuses for passivity are often just cloaks for laziness (Proverbs 22:13.
• Real failure is when you abandon your post.
  • Paul had a stewardship entrusted to him (I Corinthians 9:16-17, and he was determined to be faithful in it.
  • He knew from the beginning how much he would suffer for the Lord (Acts 9:16.
  • He learned to endure, even appreciate, his “thorns” (II Corinthians 12:7-10.
  • Are you willing to “take the shot”?
• Real failure is when you hedge your efforts.
  • Demas was willing to be a “fellow worker” with Paul (Philemon 1:24.
    • He “loved this present world” (II Timothy 4:9 and abandoned him.
    • Was it the lust of the eye? The lust of the flesh? The pride of life? (I John 2:16
    • Whatever it was, it wasn’t his “first love” (Revelation 2:4-5.
  • The widow (Luke 21:1-4.
    • Her commitment to God’s work did not depend on her circumstances.
    • Jesus cared about the hearts of the people, not the rocks of the temple.
    • Are you committed or just involved?
• Real failure is when you “surrender to your past”.
  • Judas did not see the significance of his betrayal until too late (Matthew 27:3-5.
    • He could have been brought to repentance (II Corinthians 7:9-10.
    • Instead he was driven to despair.
    • If Jesus forgives us, we must find a way to forgive ourselves.
    • “God is greater than our heart” (I John 3:20.
  • Peter did not see the significance of his betrayal untill too late (Matthew 26:69-75.
    • He trusted in Jesus, not himself (Matthew 14:28-32.

• Lonely feelings vs. loneliness
  • Loneliness is an obsession, not a feeling.
  • “Finding someone” does not cure loneliness; it merely masks symptoms temporarily.
  • Treating lonely feeling is easy and fulfilling, but it is not a long-term cure.
  • God offers a real cure; are you brave enough to take it?
• God doesn’t want us to be alone.
  • We need the strength fellowship provides (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12.
  • That fellowship must be on His terms.
  • The greatest loneliness is isolation from God (Psalm 42:1-3.
• To cure loneliness …
  • Think future, not present.
    • Lonely ones pick comfort over security.
      • The rich fool (Luke 12:16-21 thought he was planning ahead; he was really just planning to “eat, drink, and be merry”.
      • No relationship is worth putting your soul at risk (I Corinthians 15:33.
    • Lonely ones pick encouragement over growth.
      • “You’re okay the way you are” is not always what a lonely person needs to say.
      • Nor is it what he/she needs to hear (Revelation 3:19.
  • Think others, not self.
    • Loneliness is not “my problem, your fault”.
    • Waiting for others to fix our loneliness is selfish, prideful, and doomed to failure (Proverbs 18:1.
    • We need to put ourselves on the other end of Matthew 20:26
  • Trade doubts for faith.
    • We serve a God of mountains and valleys (I Kings 20:23.
    • Trust God means accepting His will (Philippians 4:12-13.