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Moses, you recall, recoiled against such an invitation,

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indeed such a command from the Lord.

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And you can understand Moses' reluctance.

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Here was a very fearful task in view.

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That wilderness, it boasted many, many an obstacle.

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And what was more, the Israelite people were

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notorious because they were quarrelsome and disobedient.

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And Moses appreciated that to get that rubble

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back to the promised land would be a

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task that, well, it was beyond his own

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ability.

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And unless God stepped in in a remarkable

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fashion and empowered him, well, he was not

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equal to it.

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And so we found him in the 33rd

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chapter of Exodus saying to the Lord, unless

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you go with me, unless there is a

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great manifestation of your presence, then I'm just

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incapable of going on.

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You remember that, don't you?

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And I made one or two deductions as

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a result of that.

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I suggested to you that you had to

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bear in mind that Moses' knowledge of God

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didn't stem from the 33rd chapter of Exodus.

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Rather, decades ago in Midian, he'd had that

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remarkable encounter with the Lord when the bush

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burned and was not consumed and God gave

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Moses an indication of his name and told

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Moses that he'd be with him and so

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forth.

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But here in the 33rd chapter of Exodus,

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you've got Moses who has already known God

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and the empowering of God's Spirit upon him

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coming to the Lord for something else, something

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extra.

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And as I say, I made certain deductions

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as a result of that and dangled them

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in front of you for your attention and

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indeed for your reaction.

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And some of you did respond in our

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time of corporate prayer later on.

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Well then, with that in mind, let me

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put a question to you.

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When do you argue the church of God

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was born?

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When did the church begin its life?

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At Pentecost, somebody cautiously whispers down here.

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No need to be cautious, you've got quite

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a lot of Bible commentators who would agree.

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It's a popular opinion.

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The church began at Pentecost.

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Acts chapter 2 records it, that mighty outpouring

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of the Spirit and 120 are filled with

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this extraordinary power.

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There's nothing particularly tidy about Pentecost.

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The folk who are gathered together, they see

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what happens as a result of this outpouring

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of the Spirit and they even accuse the

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men and the women who have received the

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experience as being drunk, drunk with new wine.

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And the notion goes that the church was

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born on the day of Pentecost.

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Well, that's all very good.

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Apart from this one problematic fact that I

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bring to your attention, nowhere in the New

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Testament, let alone in the Acts of the

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Apostles, is it argued that the church was

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born on the day of Pentecost.

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It's a popular opinion and there are quite

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a lot of books that you could read

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that make these conclusions.

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But I'm asking you to reconsider the whole

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issue again.

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When does one become a Christian?

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Well, that's an easy question to answer, isn't

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it?

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Paul tells us in Romans, if any man

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has not the Spirit of Christ, he is

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not of his.

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In other words, it is impossible to be

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a Christian without knowing something of the ministry

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of the Holy Spirit within your heart and

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life.

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Well, when, first of all, did the disciples

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have an experience, a personal experience, of the

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Holy Spirit?

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And my answer is this, before the day

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of Pentecost.

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Certainly, directly after the resurrection, possibly even before.

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The latter is up for dispute.

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The former suggestion is not.

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I mean, here we discover our Lord, don't

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we?

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In John 20, he's appearing to the disciples.

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This little snippet of a reading that I've

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just brought to your attention.

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He appears to the disciples.

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They're behind closed doors for fear of the

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Jews.

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And what does the Lord do?

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Well, he speaks to them.

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And in the way that our Saviour often

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introduced a new bout of conversation, he wishes

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them peace.

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The end of verse 19.

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Peace be with you.

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And then he shows them who he is.

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He demonstrates the genuineness of his claim to

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be the Lord because he bears in his

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hands and in his body the marks from

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the crucifixion.

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And then what does he do?

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Well, the disciples, having been overjoyed at the

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thought that Jesus is now back, they listen

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to him once more, giving to them his

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peace.

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Verse 21.

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And then he grants them a commission.

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Earlier, he has said in the high priestly

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prayer in John 17, Father, as you have

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sent me into the world, so I am

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sending them.

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You remember the reference?

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You can backtrack and read it later on.

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Now, here in John 20 and 21 is

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the fulfillment of what he has predicted in

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John 17.

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As the Father has sent me, I am

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sending you.

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Then what does he do?

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Well, verse 22 answers.

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And with that, he breathed on them and

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said, receive the Holy Spirit.

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Now, you see, you're in trouble.

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If you say that the first indication that

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the disciples had of the indwelling of the

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Spirit was on the day of Pentecost, what

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do you make of John 20 and verse

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22?

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Now, the usual answer is this, that it

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is prophetic.

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Our Lord is, in effect, peering into the

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future, the near future, and he is predicting

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what is going to happen.

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Well, that's all right, but it gives more

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prizes to your ingenuity of thought than what

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it does with the actual rendering of Scripture

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here, because the tense of the verb has

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got nothing whatsoever to do with the future.

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Rather, our Lord says, there and then to

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the disciples, receive the Holy Spirit.

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What is more, he doesn't just tell them

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to receive the Holy Spirit, but he breathes

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on them the Holy Spirit.

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Now, can you remember another occasion way back

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at the beginning of the Bible, the book

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of Genesis, when reference is made to God

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breathing on someone?

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Adam.

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When Adam was formed from the dust of

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the earth, we read that God breathed on

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Adam, and he became a living soul.

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So, right at the beginning of time, the

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beginning of the creation of the world, when

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God brings into being the highest piece of

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creative work in which He engaged, He breathes

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into Adam, and Adam becomes a living spirit.

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Adam will partake of the nature of God.

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Let us make man in our own image.

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Now, doesn't it seem reasonable to you that

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when the Lord Jesus Christ is here depicted

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in the authorised version and the NIV version

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of Scripture, as telling the disciples to receive

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the Holy Spirit, and the older versions indicate

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that He breathed on them the Holy Ghost,

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that He is doing something that has a

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very, very interesting parallel with what was done

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at the beginning of creation.

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He breathed, God breathed on Adam, and he

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becomes a living spirit.

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The Lord Jesus Christ breathes on His disciples,

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and as a result, well, they are able

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to do something that they've not had the

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ability to do before.

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Verse 23 will tell you this, but I'm

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going a little too quickly.

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Do you remember going back to Ezekiel and

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chapter 37, references made there to a rather

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remarkable vision that the prophet had.

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Ezekiel chapter 37.

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The hand of the Lord was upon me.

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He brought me out by the Spirit of

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the Lord and set me in the middle

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of a valley.

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It was full of bones.

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He led me to and fro among them,

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and I saw a great many bones on

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the floor of the valley, bones that were

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very dry.

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He asked me, son of man, can these

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bones live?

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I said, oh sovereign Lord, you alone know.

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Then he said to me, prophesy to these

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bones and say to them, dry bones, hear

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the word of the Lord.

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This is what the sovereign Lord says to

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these bones.

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I will make breath enter you, and you

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will come to life.

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I will attach tendons to you, and make

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flesh come upon you, and cover you with

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skin.

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I will put breath in you, and you

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will come to life.

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Then you will know that I am the

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Lord.

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So I prophesied as I was commanded, and

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as I was prophesying, there was a noise,

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a rattling sound, and the bones came together,

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bone to bone.

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I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on

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them, and skin covered them, but there was

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no breath in them.

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Then he said to me, prophesy to the

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breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to

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it, this is what the sovereign Lord says,

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come from the four winds, oh breath, and

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breathe into these slain, that they may live.

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And the rest, without reading the remainder of

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that incident, you know.

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The prophet preaches, the prophet breathes, and as

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a result of the mighty outpouring of the

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Spirit on that particular scene, something phenomenal occurs.

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A dead army comes to life.

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That which was just a semblance of skeletal

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frames, takes upon it flesh, and blood, and

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sinew, and muscle, and so forth.

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And there's a mighty army, and the army

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is the direct result of the breathing upon

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those in the valley of death.

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Now I'm just making this suggestion to you,

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that as in Genesis, as in Ezekiel, as

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in the authorized version of the John chapter

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20, you come across the use of the

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word breath and breathing.

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So it's highly significant that the disciples are

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said to receive the Holy Spirit sometime before

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Pentecost.

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Then a charge is given to the disciples.

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I come back to where I left off

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some three or four minutes ago.

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If you forgive anyone his sins, this is

254
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verse 23, if you forgive anyone his sins,

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they are forgiven.

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If you do not forgive them, they are

257
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not forgiven.

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Now wouldn't you say that that is in

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effect a prior rendering of the verse that

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00:12:58,840 --> 00:13:01,240
you find at the end of Matthew's gospel,

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the 28th chapter, where our Lord gives the

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great commission to the disciples again before Pentecost,

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as he takes his leave from them.

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In other words, the ascension.

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Matthew 28 and verse 18, then Jesus came

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to them and said, all authority in heaven

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and on earth has been given to me.

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Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,

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baptizing them in the name of the Father,

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and of the Son, and of the Holy

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Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I

272
00:13:40,020 --> 00:13:40,960
have commanded you.

273
00:13:41,360 --> 00:13:45,520
And surely I will be with you always

274
00:13:45,520 --> 00:13:49,360
to the very end of the age.

275
00:13:50,260 --> 00:13:52,960
Now how could he be with them always

276
00:13:52,960 --> 00:13:56,160
to the end of the age, apart from

277
00:13:56,160 --> 00:13:58,640
the impartation of the Holy Spirit?

278
00:13:59,080 --> 00:14:01,200
I will go from you, and yet I

279
00:14:01,200 --> 00:14:01,880
will come to you.

280
00:14:01,940 --> 00:14:05,220
You remember our Lord's promise, his warning, and

281
00:14:05,220 --> 00:14:08,300
his prediction, as recorded in John's gospel.

282
00:14:08,420 --> 00:14:10,240
The scene was of course the upper room.

283
00:14:11,100 --> 00:14:12,640
So what am I trying to, what am

284
00:14:12,640 --> 00:14:13,380
I trying to establish?

285
00:14:13,500 --> 00:14:19,260
Well simply this, that it is arguable, if

286
00:14:19,260 --> 00:14:23,080
not conclusive, that the church in embryo, the

287
00:14:23,080 --> 00:14:26,720
church in essence, was in existence before the

288
00:14:26,720 --> 00:14:27,600
day of Pentecost.

289
00:14:28,340 --> 00:14:30,180
I would say that if you have to

290
00:14:30,180 --> 00:14:33,800
pinpoint when the church came into existence, you

291
00:14:33,800 --> 00:14:36,980
must at least commence with John 20.

292
00:14:38,060 --> 00:14:40,240
Or if you don't commence with John 20,

293
00:14:40,460 --> 00:14:42,280
then it's arguable that you can go back

294
00:14:42,280 --> 00:14:44,160
some way before then.

295
00:14:47,790 --> 00:14:51,450
You can't even, as the reasoning sometimes goes,

296
00:14:51,790 --> 00:14:56,870
argue that the disciples were somehow unified on

297
00:14:56,870 --> 00:14:57,730
the day of Pentecost.

298
00:14:57,830 --> 00:14:59,750
You see, here they are, they're such a

299
00:14:59,750 --> 00:15:09,070
desperately peopled group of individuals, and they need

300
00:15:09,070 --> 00:15:11,070
to be forged together into a unity, not

301
00:15:11,070 --> 00:15:13,770
just the disciples but 120, because you remember

302
00:15:13,770 --> 00:15:18,470
others are included and embraced in the number

303
00:15:18,470 --> 00:15:20,670
is Mary the mother of Jesus.

304
00:15:21,470 --> 00:15:24,190
And the reasoning goes, well it was Pentecost,

305
00:15:25,010 --> 00:15:27,770
the manifestation, the outpouring of the Spirit that

306
00:15:27,770 --> 00:15:32,290
brings this group of differing individuals together, and

307
00:15:32,290 --> 00:15:34,970
it forges them together as a mighty army.

308
00:15:36,470 --> 00:15:39,070
Well I'm not in any way suggesting that

309
00:15:39,070 --> 00:15:40,770
what happened on the day of Pentecost did

310
00:15:40,770 --> 00:15:43,650
not help towards that end, but what I'm

311
00:15:43,650 --> 00:15:47,050
arguing against is this, that that was not

312
00:15:47,050 --> 00:15:51,550
the direct cause of the unity that there

313
00:15:51,550 --> 00:15:56,550
was amongst the followers of our Lord, those

314
00:15:56,550 --> 00:15:57,990
who went into the upper room.

315
00:15:58,610 --> 00:16:00,590
What I'm suggesting to you is that that

316
00:16:00,590 --> 00:16:03,610
unity existed before they were baptised in the

317
00:16:03,610 --> 00:16:04,230
Holy Spirit.

318
00:16:05,230 --> 00:16:07,510
I've only to direct you to the first

319
00:16:07,510 --> 00:16:08,970
verse of chapter two of the Acts of

320
00:16:08,970 --> 00:16:10,450
the Apostles, and I could have taken you

321
00:16:10,450 --> 00:16:12,870
into the first chapter also of the same

322
00:16:12,870 --> 00:16:13,690
book, but here we are.

323
00:16:13,970 --> 00:16:16,530
This will do, because time's at a premium.

324
00:16:16,950 --> 00:16:20,170
When the day of Pentecost came, they were

325
00:16:20,170 --> 00:16:23,150
all together in one place.

326
00:16:23,770 --> 00:16:26,450
You see, there's the unity, there is the

327
00:16:26,450 --> 00:16:28,850
accord, even then.

328
00:16:29,830 --> 00:16:31,930
And you get reference to it, as I've

329
00:16:31,930 --> 00:16:34,790
said, in the earlier chapter, in the first

330
00:16:34,790 --> 00:16:38,510
chapter as well, the disciples being in one

331
00:16:38,510 --> 00:16:38,930
mind.

332
00:16:39,490 --> 00:16:42,830
They come and they wait before the Lord,

333
00:16:43,390 --> 00:16:45,830
and that unity which they had prior to

334
00:16:45,830 --> 00:16:49,310
Pentecost, of course, is made even more solid

335
00:16:49,310 --> 00:16:53,110
as a result of the mighty outpouring of

336
00:16:53,110 --> 00:16:53,830
the Holy Ghost.

337
00:16:54,730 --> 00:16:57,470
Now you say, well what, first of all,

338
00:16:57,510 --> 00:16:58,890
has this got to do with Moses?

339
00:16:59,730 --> 00:17:02,990
And perhaps even more particularly, what has it

340
00:17:02,990 --> 00:17:04,030
got to do with me?

341
00:17:05,069 --> 00:17:08,690
And thirdly, you might ask, why are you

342
00:17:08,690 --> 00:17:09,390
preaching this?

343
00:17:10,170 --> 00:17:13,109
Well let's take the last question and answer

344
00:17:13,109 --> 00:17:13,390
that.

345
00:17:15,010 --> 00:17:18,450
And the direct answer is this, I didn't

346
00:17:18,450 --> 00:17:19,530
prepare to preach it.

347
00:17:20,650 --> 00:17:22,250
I haven't prepared a series.

348
00:17:23,130 --> 00:17:25,450
I came very much with open mind and

349
00:17:25,450 --> 00:17:29,470
open heart to this meeting last Wednesday, and

350
00:17:29,470 --> 00:17:31,770
I took you to the book of Exodus

351
00:17:31,770 --> 00:17:33,550
not knowing that I was going to go

352
00:17:33,550 --> 00:17:34,910
there at the beginning of the meeting.

353
00:17:35,670 --> 00:17:37,850
And I indicated that at the close of

354
00:17:37,850 --> 00:17:39,510
the meeting last, at least the close of

355
00:17:39,510 --> 00:17:41,810
my part of the meeting last Wednesday, that

356
00:17:41,810 --> 00:17:43,970
I bring you back, and that's what I'm

357
00:17:43,970 --> 00:17:44,210
doing.

358
00:17:45,090 --> 00:17:48,790
I'm bringing you back, however, having answered the

359
00:17:48,790 --> 00:17:52,470
third question, I'm bringing you back to Exodus

360
00:17:52,470 --> 00:17:55,790
because, you see, this business of Moses being

361
00:17:55,790 --> 00:17:59,410
confronted with a task that is singularly difficult,

362
00:18:00,170 --> 00:18:01,590
strikes me as important.

363
00:18:02,350 --> 00:18:05,870
For this reason, he had, as I mentioned

364
00:18:05,870 --> 00:18:09,970
before, encountered God decades earlier in his life.

365
00:18:10,450 --> 00:18:12,030
And yet here he is, you remember the

366
00:18:12,030 --> 00:18:15,210
point on Mount Sinai, and he's saying, Lord,

367
00:18:15,370 --> 00:18:17,570
I want to know you, but Moses, you

368
00:18:17,570 --> 00:18:18,630
already know me.

369
00:18:18,870 --> 00:18:21,050
Lord, I want your presence, but Moses, you've

370
00:18:21,050 --> 00:18:22,390
already had my presence.

371
00:18:22,690 --> 00:18:24,710
But Lord, I need to know more of

372
00:18:24,710 --> 00:18:26,690
you, because unless I know more of you,

373
00:18:26,850 --> 00:18:27,950
I don't face tomorrow.

374
00:18:28,610 --> 00:18:30,030
Now, isn't that a fair summary of what

375
00:18:30,030 --> 00:18:30,670
Moses was saying?

376
00:18:31,890 --> 00:18:34,550
And the Lord, he attends to the earnest

377
00:18:34,550 --> 00:18:35,690
request of his servant.

378
00:18:35,890 --> 00:18:39,130
He realizes that Moses means business, that Moses

379
00:18:39,130 --> 00:18:41,290
is making these strong demands.

380
00:18:41,390 --> 00:18:42,830
Lord, show me your glory.

381
00:18:43,870 --> 00:18:46,650
The goodness of God passes by, and Moses

382
00:18:46,650 --> 00:18:48,530
hides himself in the cleft of the rock,

383
00:18:48,850 --> 00:18:50,810
and there occurs one of those remarkable things

384
00:18:50,810 --> 00:18:52,970
in Old Testament scriptures, and we don't have

385
00:18:52,970 --> 00:18:55,310
a full description because, well, the Hebrew language,

386
00:18:55,470 --> 00:18:57,570
the Greek language, the English language can never

387
00:18:57,570 --> 00:18:59,090
convey fully, adequately.

388
00:18:59,330 --> 00:19:02,570
Words cannot bear the imagery of what is

389
00:19:02,570 --> 00:19:06,210
meant by God revealing himself, even partially, to

390
00:19:06,210 --> 00:19:08,530
a man in the cleft of the rock.

391
00:19:09,690 --> 00:19:13,230
But such was Moses' experience, and when he

392
00:19:13,230 --> 00:19:15,490
came down from the mountain, you remember I

393
00:19:15,490 --> 00:19:16,830
took you to the next chapter and to

394
00:19:16,830 --> 00:19:19,790
the final few verses, there's something different about

395
00:19:19,790 --> 00:19:20,210
Moses.

396
00:19:20,890 --> 00:19:23,090
The Israelites say they cover their eyes, and

397
00:19:23,090 --> 00:19:25,050
ultimately Moses has to drop a veil on

398
00:19:25,050 --> 00:19:25,390
his face.

399
00:19:25,430 --> 00:19:25,550
Why?

400
00:19:25,770 --> 00:19:27,210
Well, he's been in the presence of God.

401
00:19:27,770 --> 00:19:29,950
There is something that is notable about this

402
00:19:29,950 --> 00:19:30,250
man.

403
00:19:30,510 --> 00:19:32,670
It was there perhaps in degree before, but

404
00:19:32,670 --> 00:19:35,450
it's never been as absolutely evident to others.

405
00:19:38,610 --> 00:19:40,650
And even the Apostle Paul, when he's writing

406
00:19:40,650 --> 00:19:42,910
to the Corinthians, makes reference of this great

407
00:19:42,910 --> 00:19:45,650
glory that fell upon Moses.

408
00:19:45,910 --> 00:19:47,430
You recall that, don't you, at the end

409
00:19:47,430 --> 00:19:48,630
of, is it the second chapter or the

410
00:19:48,630 --> 00:19:50,310
end of the fourth chapter?

411
00:19:51,110 --> 00:19:52,370
And the Apostle uses it.

412
00:19:52,530 --> 00:19:55,050
He plunders the imagery, and he speaks about

413
00:19:55,050 --> 00:19:57,370
the glory of God, now no longer in

414
00:19:57,370 --> 00:20:00,150
terms of Moses and the Old Dispensation, but

415
00:20:00,150 --> 00:20:02,870
his inter-New Testament times, and he speaks

416
00:20:02,870 --> 00:20:05,510
about we beholding the glory of God as

417
00:20:05,510 --> 00:20:05,950
in a mirror.

418
00:20:06,510 --> 00:20:09,910
And ultimately he gives the idea that the

419
00:20:09,910 --> 00:20:13,030
glory of God can transform us, it can

420
00:20:13,030 --> 00:20:16,310
rub off to us, so that men can

421
00:20:16,310 --> 00:20:18,950
see that we're being changed in the poetry

422
00:20:18,950 --> 00:20:22,830
of Wesley, changed from glory unto glory, till

423
00:20:22,830 --> 00:20:24,670
in heaven we take our place.

424
00:20:24,870 --> 00:20:26,610
Ah, but Wesley didn't say that you'll be

425
00:20:26,610 --> 00:20:27,730
changed only in heaven.

426
00:20:28,430 --> 00:20:30,130
He was a much better theologian than that.

427
00:20:31,050 --> 00:20:34,090
He believed that the process of transformation was

428
00:20:34,090 --> 00:20:37,210
on earth, and of course you've got New

429
00:20:37,210 --> 00:20:38,750
Testament evidence of this, have you not?

430
00:20:39,170 --> 00:20:40,470
Even in a visible fashion.

431
00:20:40,870 --> 00:20:42,450
I put a question to you last week,

432
00:20:42,610 --> 00:20:44,050
and you gave me the answer, Stephen.

433
00:20:44,390 --> 00:20:46,770
Stephen was a man whose face was irradiated,

434
00:20:47,050 --> 00:20:49,630
illuminated with a power, with the presence of

435
00:20:49,630 --> 00:20:49,850
God.

436
00:20:52,400 --> 00:20:56,160
Now my second question, which you've probably forgotten,

437
00:20:56,700 --> 00:20:58,140
and by the grace of God I haven't,

438
00:20:59,400 --> 00:21:03,280
was this, what has this got to do

439
00:21:03,280 --> 00:21:04,400
with the acts of the apostles?

440
00:21:05,240 --> 00:21:07,260
Well, I've almost answered the question.

441
00:21:08,420 --> 00:21:12,260
You see, here are the disciples, and before

442
00:21:12,260 --> 00:21:15,700
Pentecost they received the Holy Spirit.

443
00:21:16,500 --> 00:21:18,020
Of that there can be no doubt.

444
00:21:19,060 --> 00:21:22,160
They received the Spirit, and I took you

445
00:21:22,160 --> 00:21:24,280
to the older versions that speak of our

446
00:21:24,280 --> 00:21:27,300
Lord breathing the Spirit.

447
00:21:28,100 --> 00:21:30,620
Now the tenses are such that you cannot

448
00:21:30,620 --> 00:21:35,220
but admit that something occurred then, and yet

449
00:21:35,220 --> 00:21:38,280
on the day of Pentecost they knew a

450
00:21:38,280 --> 00:21:40,760
mighty endowment of power.

451
00:21:42,280 --> 00:21:46,600
They were embraced with the dynamic of the

452
00:21:46,600 --> 00:21:47,860
third person of the Trinity.

453
00:21:48,800 --> 00:21:49,140
Why?

454
00:21:50,300 --> 00:21:51,780
Well you see, they're back with the same

455
00:21:51,780 --> 00:21:53,200
predicament as Moses, aren't they?

456
00:21:53,380 --> 00:21:55,240
They've got something to do that is utterly

457
00:21:55,240 --> 00:21:55,720
impossible.

458
00:21:56,260 --> 00:21:59,000
I mean for Moses it was difficult, but

459
00:21:59,000 --> 00:22:02,920
for the disciples the obstacles are insurmountable.

460
00:22:03,220 --> 00:22:05,600
Here they are, 120 of them, and they're

461
00:22:05,600 --> 00:22:09,140
faced with the bastion of Rome and Judaism

462
00:22:09,140 --> 00:22:11,300
as their sworn enemies.

463
00:22:11,520 --> 00:22:14,620
How will 120 men and women make an

464
00:22:14,620 --> 00:22:16,580
impact for God on the streets of Jerusalem?

465
00:22:16,760 --> 00:22:18,840
How will they spread out into Judea, to

466
00:22:18,840 --> 00:22:21,120
Samaria, to the uttermost parts of the earth?

467
00:22:21,560 --> 00:22:26,900
And the answer is they won't, unless they

468
00:22:26,900 --> 00:22:30,620
know that drenching in the power of the

469
00:22:30,620 --> 00:22:36,560
Holy Ghost, unless they have flowing, pulsating through

470
00:22:36,560 --> 00:22:41,840
them, the very power that fell on the

471
00:22:41,840 --> 00:22:48,200
Lord Jesus Christ when He is publicly acknowledged

472
00:22:48,200 --> 00:22:52,380
as Messiah, as His baptism, and when He

473
00:22:52,380 --> 00:22:55,860
goes into the wilderness, you remember how Mark

474
00:22:55,860 --> 00:22:59,980
puts it, full of the Holy Ghost.

475
00:23:02,240 --> 00:23:04,600
Now let me try and draw one or

476
00:23:04,600 --> 00:23:05,980
two conclusions at this stage.

477
00:23:09,850 --> 00:23:12,610
I was once struck by a phrase that

478
00:23:12,610 --> 00:23:14,310
I read in a book, I believe it

479
00:23:14,310 --> 00:23:14,910
was by A.

480
00:23:14,970 --> 00:23:15,190
W.

481
00:23:15,390 --> 00:23:19,970
Tozer, who said this, that the man who

482
00:23:19,970 --> 00:23:22,190
has known the overwhelming or the baptism of

483
00:23:22,190 --> 00:23:25,750
the Holy Spirit never has to be logically

484
00:23:25,750 --> 00:23:27,770
convinced that that's been his experience.

485
00:23:29,930 --> 00:23:32,410
It's not just an assurance that comes through

486
00:23:32,410 --> 00:23:35,010
Scripture by a deduction of texts, that was

487
00:23:35,010 --> 00:23:36,870
the first assurance I taught you about last

488
00:23:36,870 --> 00:23:37,090
week.

489
00:23:38,610 --> 00:23:41,090
It's not just a question of him liking

490
00:23:41,090 --> 00:23:43,630
the company of the brothers and responding to

491
00:23:43,630 --> 00:23:45,610
those who preach Jesus Christ as Lord, the

492
00:23:45,610 --> 00:23:48,530
second test I brought to your attention last

493
00:23:48,530 --> 00:23:49,590
week from John's epistle.

494
00:23:51,760 --> 00:23:54,600
It's this outpouring to which Paul makes reference

495
00:23:54,600 --> 00:23:56,620
in Romans 8 and which you find on

496
00:23:56,620 --> 00:24:00,080
subsequent occasions throughout the Acts of the Apostles,

497
00:24:01,180 --> 00:24:05,760
this mighty overwhelming, this mighty drenching.

498
00:24:05,760 --> 00:24:10,540
Now my own theologizing of the experimental work

499
00:24:10,540 --> 00:24:13,720
of the Spirit has always been strained.

500
00:24:13,860 --> 00:24:16,060
I've never been able, clearly, to put it

501
00:24:16,060 --> 00:24:19,200
in watertight compartments, my understanding of the doctrine.

502
00:24:19,440 --> 00:24:21,560
That doesn't really worry me too much, because

503
00:24:21,560 --> 00:24:23,400
I think sometimes we attempt to be more

504
00:24:23,400 --> 00:24:26,400
systematic in our understanding of the Bible than

505
00:24:26,400 --> 00:24:27,780
the Bible would allow us to be.

506
00:24:29,840 --> 00:24:32,180
And I don't think that it's necessary for

507
00:24:32,180 --> 00:24:34,920
any preacher, in fact he would be wise

508
00:24:34,920 --> 00:24:38,400
to avoid this, suggesting that everyone receives the

509
00:24:38,400 --> 00:24:40,440
blessings of God in such a way as

510
00:24:40,440 --> 00:24:42,180
he has received blessings from God.

511
00:24:42,520 --> 00:24:44,500
We don't all go through the same hoop.

512
00:24:45,500 --> 00:24:47,780
God respects our individuality.

513
00:24:48,980 --> 00:24:51,100
But what I do believe, not for everybody

514
00:24:51,100 --> 00:24:54,700
here, for many of you have had greater

515
00:24:54,700 --> 00:24:57,560
experiences of God's grace and power than I

516
00:24:57,560 --> 00:24:59,180
have known, and I seek for the ones

517
00:24:59,180 --> 00:24:59,940
that you have had.

518
00:25:01,400 --> 00:25:04,060
But I think many of us here are

519
00:25:04,060 --> 00:25:09,600
longing for a greater manifestation of the power

520
00:25:09,600 --> 00:25:12,740
of the Spirit of God in our own

521
00:25:12,740 --> 00:25:13,260
lives.

522
00:25:14,400 --> 00:25:17,800
And I suggest to you, I advise you,

523
00:25:18,560 --> 00:25:22,400
I implore you, go on in your pursuit.

524
00:25:23,560 --> 00:25:27,340
I will not let you go unless you

525
00:25:27,340 --> 00:25:27,940
bless me.

526
00:25:29,220 --> 00:25:31,520
Lord, put me in the cleft of the

527
00:25:31,520 --> 00:25:34,820
rock, because the task in front of me

528
00:25:34,820 --> 00:25:37,200
is too difficult, and Moses meant business.

529
00:25:37,920 --> 00:25:41,680
He put his life on the line at

530
00:25:41,680 --> 00:25:42,400
that stage.

531
00:25:43,120 --> 00:25:46,780
When a man is desperate, when he knocks

532
00:25:46,780 --> 00:25:48,660
on the door as a man at night

533
00:25:48,660 --> 00:25:50,860
will knock on his neighbor's door because a

534
00:25:50,860 --> 00:25:52,740
friend has pitched up and he doesn't have

535
00:25:52,740 --> 00:25:55,380
the food to satisfy the friend's hunger.

536
00:25:56,240 --> 00:25:57,740
When a man will knock, when a man

537
00:25:57,740 --> 00:26:00,120
will seek, when a man will find, or

538
00:26:00,120 --> 00:26:01,100
then a man will find.

539
00:26:02,040 --> 00:26:03,660
And that's what the Scripture says.

540
00:26:04,900 --> 00:26:05,820
So here we are.

541
00:26:06,320 --> 00:26:09,080
We're back again to my starting point of

542
00:26:09,080 --> 00:26:09,720
last week.

543
00:26:11,400 --> 00:26:14,760
Seeking after the power of the Spirit of

544
00:26:14,760 --> 00:26:17,340
God, not for emotional experiences.

545
00:26:18,160 --> 00:26:20,300
You know, I get a little concerned about

546
00:26:20,300 --> 00:26:23,260
folks who are so trigger-happy with shooting

547
00:26:23,260 --> 00:26:26,360
their criticism of emotion and emotionalism at the

548
00:26:26,360 --> 00:26:27,380
evangelical church.

549
00:26:29,300 --> 00:26:31,900
Pentecost, my friend, was not exactly devoid of

550
00:26:31,900 --> 00:26:32,260
emotion.

551
00:26:32,500 --> 00:26:34,100
They thought that the pubs were open and

552
00:26:34,100 --> 00:26:35,280
the men had been there and they were

553
00:26:35,280 --> 00:26:35,700
drunk.

554
00:26:38,330 --> 00:26:40,290
They were singing and praising God in such

555
00:26:40,290 --> 00:26:42,650
a fashion that secular minds were looking for

556
00:26:42,650 --> 00:26:45,290
an illustration to describe the phenomenon that they

557
00:26:45,290 --> 00:26:47,110
were beholding, and they were seeing men who

558
00:26:47,110 --> 00:26:48,530
had been emotionally moved.

559
00:26:49,470 --> 00:26:51,430
And you can't know the power of God

560
00:26:51,430 --> 00:26:55,590
in your life without having your emotions aroused.

561
00:26:56,490 --> 00:26:57,870
So do be a little careful.

562
00:26:58,030 --> 00:26:59,690
Some of us who tend to be more

563
00:26:59,690 --> 00:27:02,490
sophisticated or so we think in the way

564
00:27:02,490 --> 00:27:03,710
that we shoot our criticisms.

565
00:27:05,070 --> 00:27:07,470
The great revivals of the past, they affected

566
00:27:07,470 --> 00:27:11,150
the mind, but they surpassed the mind.

567
00:27:11,270 --> 00:27:13,450
They overwhelmed the mind and they affected the

568
00:27:13,450 --> 00:27:15,590
whole emotion as people were caught up in

569
00:27:15,590 --> 00:27:16,990
praise to the living God and then they

570
00:27:16,990 --> 00:27:20,270
were sent out in service to do what

571
00:27:20,270 --> 00:27:21,250
God wanted them to do.

572
00:27:22,110 --> 00:27:23,330
So my time is through.

573
00:27:24,210 --> 00:27:26,970
I bring you back to my comment at

574
00:27:26,970 --> 00:27:28,030
the beginning, my question.

575
00:27:28,250 --> 00:27:30,810
When did the disciples receive the Holy Spirit?

576
00:27:31,130 --> 00:27:33,490
I argue exegetically that you must put it

577
00:27:33,490 --> 00:27:34,390
before Pentecost.

578
00:27:34,910 --> 00:27:36,490
So what happened on the day of Pentecost?

579
00:27:36,690 --> 00:27:39,910
Well, the disciples were baptized with the Spirit

580
00:27:39,910 --> 00:27:41,650
so that they had the power to be

581
00:27:41,650 --> 00:27:46,710
able to go throughout the world to proclaim

582
00:27:46,710 --> 00:27:50,290
the gospel of the blessed Lord Jesus Christ.

583
00:27:51,110 --> 00:27:53,750
Let us come before our God for that

584
00:27:53,750 --> 00:27:57,970
self-same power and anointing or a renewal

585
00:27:57,970 --> 00:27:59,910
of it in our lives.

586
00:45:19,910 --> 00:45:48,250
you