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Down in the Valley

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Omer Count – Day 30 to Pentecost, or Shavuot

Pentecost (or the Hebrew word Shavuot) for Christians marks the day the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the newly birthed New Covenant Church, Jesus’ Bride. Yet it was far more than that. It marked an epoch. What’s an epoch? An epoch is a significant, distinctive period in history or geology, often marking the beginning of a new development or era. In history or geology? Yes, geology! Why geology? Pentecost was an earth shaking, history making event. Neither have been the same since. Even Paul said the earth is groaning for the sons of God to be revealed. Scripture alludes to the fact that the earth is in travail or labor – waiting for that day. What’s really amazing is that her contractions have begun, and they are getting closer together. Which means the sons and daughters of God are about to be birthed and revealed.

But Pentecost is significant for another reason. Lamentations 1:11 records: All her people groan and sigh, seeking for bread; they have given their desirable and precious things [in exchange] for food to revive their strength and bring back life. See, O Lord, and consider how wretched and lightly esteemed, how vile and abominable, I have become! Lamentations, historically, is attributed to the Prophet Jeremiah who walked the streets of Jerusalem seeing the pain, suffering, and destruction in the wake of the Babylonian invasion of 586 BC. Jeremiah was about to accompany these newly exiled people from their homeland. The prophet Ezekiel describes their spiritual condition in Ezekiel 37:1-3: The hand of the Lord was upon me, and He brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones. And He caused me to pass round about among them, and behold, there were very many [human bones] in the open valley or plain, and behold, they were very dry. And He said to me, Son of man, can these boneslive? And I answered, O Lord God, You know! 

Pentecost, or Shavuot marked the beginning of Ezekiel 37:9-14 Then said He to me, Prophesy to the breath and spirit, son of man, and say to the breath and spirit, Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath and spirit, and breathe upon these slain that they may live.10 So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath and spirit came into [the bones], and they lived and stood up upon their feet, an exceedingly great host.11 Then He said to me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, Our bones are dried up and our hope is lost; we are completely cut off. 12 Therefore prophesy and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves, O My people; and I will bring you [back home] to the land of Israel.13 And you shall know that I am the Lord [your Sovereign Ruler], when I have opened your graves and caused you to come up out of your graves, O My people.14 And I shall put My Spirit in you and you shall live, and I shall place you in your own land. Then you shall know, understand, and realize that I the Lord have spoken it and performed it, says the Lord.

Israel, and their spiritually dead inhabitants, were in need of bread that assured a resurrection. They needed the Spirit of God to open their graves, and be poured out on them. But guess what? Nothing has changed. Spiritually speaking have we become like Israel? Have we reached the point in which we are groaning and sighing for His Bread? Have we yet reached the point in which we see our true spiritual condition: wretched, lightly esteemed, vile and abominable? That’s the true condition of a church and a follower of Jesus divorced from the power of the Spirit.

Spirit-Filled

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Acts 2:42-47 And they steadfastly persevered, devoting themselves constantly to the instruction and fellowship of the apostles, to the breaking of bread [including the Lord’s Supper] and prayers.43 And a sense of awe (reverential fear) came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were performed through the apostles (the special messengers).44 And all who believed (who adhered to and trusted in and relied on Jesus Christ) were united and [together] they had everything in common;45 And they sold their possessions (both their landed property and their movable goods) and distributed the price among all, according as any had need.46 And day after day they regularly assembled in the temple with united purpose, and in their homes they broke bread [including the Lord’s Supper]. They partook of their food with gladness and simplicity and generous hearts,47 Constantly praising God and being in favor and goodwill with all the people; and the Lord kept adding [to their number] daily those who were being saved [from spiritual death].

I was on a plane returning home from Africa and had a lengthy discussion with a retired pastor from a fundamental denominational persuasion. During our discussion I was often flabbergasted at his misinterpretation of Scripture, not to mention his self-assured, arrogant ignorance. Not only did he believe the supernatural manifestation of the gifts of the Spirit were limited to the 12 disciples, (and ceased to exist after their death) but he believed the church was birthed during the ministry of Jesus. What he failed to realize is that the church couldn’t be the Church, the Body of Christ, apart from the crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus. The other glaring truth, often ignored by modern Christians, he failed to recognize is that the church ceases to be the church apart from the Holy Spirit (Who birthed the Church in the Book of Acts). Let that sink in deep. You can’t be the church apart from the Spirit. You can’t be born-again apart from the Spirit. You can’t know Jesus apart from the Spirit. You can’t know the Word apart from the Spirit. You can’t get into Heaven apart from the Spirit. You can’t worship the way God the Father wants you to worship apart from the Spirit. Individual Christian or so-called Churches can do nothing of eternal significance apart from the Spirit. Is this why so many buildings with Church lettered on the outside have so little of God’s Presence on the inside? And is this the key to why so many church attenders believe church attendance is optional? Why so many believe devotion to the Word (the Apostles teaching), fellowship, communion, praise and worship, prayer, giving, gathering in each other’s homes – is optional? Because Baptism, and the infilling of the Holy Spirit has been ignored and dismissed?

Years ago I mistakenly learned that the sign someone had been baptized in the Spirit was speaking in tongues. I say mistakenly because it’s only – A Sign – one sign, of the Baptism but not the only sign. The other signs of a Spirit-filled life are listed above. This is what made the gathering of the believers more than a day at the country club, or gathering around a table playing bridge. All these “signs” – devotion to the Word (the Apostles teaching), fellowship, communion, praise and worship, prayer, giving, gathering in each other’s homes – were Filled, Baptized, and Immersed in the Presence of the Holy Spirit. And it’s these signs that accompany, and follow those who are Baptized, Immersed, and Filled with the Spirit. Now many questions arise: Are you baptized in the Spirit? Is our church? Is your church? Can you call a church a church that has left Jesus and the Spirit outside of its “services?” And who are the services for? For that matter can you really claim to be a follower of Jesus divorced from communion with the indwelling, and infilling of the Spirit?