April 23, 2009 

 What A Promise  

Christians have just completed the celebration of two of the most important events of the church, namely the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. From there, we look forward to Pentecost Sunday, which occurred fifty days after the resurrection. This marked the birth of the church, when the Holy Spirit descended upon those in the upper room. Sadly this event, while also very significant in the history of the church, is disregarded by so many churches today.

The outpouring of the Holy Spirit was exactly what man needed to empower him to conquer sin in our lives. It became our antidote for the infection of sin.

Epidemics and disease outbreaks have caused great concern in the history of man. In bible days, leprosy was a dreaded disease, leading to quarantine and almost certainly death. In these modern times, we have witnessed the impact of various outbreaks that threatened the health and vitality of our community (measles, malaria, diphtheria, HIV/AIDS).

The question understandably becomes, what is the antidote? Antidotes cut off the threat of a disease wiping out an entire population of people. It takes the power out of the disease by attacking it with something more potent, normally using the same stuff that the disease is made of. We call it anti-venom.

God tackled sin the same way. Sin is so potent until it always causes spiritual death. So God said, "I’m going to defeat you by attacking you with your own stuff. I’m going to defeat death with death. By defeating death, I also become the antidote for sin. But, in order for it to work, I’ve got to place it in you". Thus, we have the promise of the Holy Ghost.

Promises are something that is becoming less effective. It used to be that a person’s word was their bond. Promises were rarely, if ever, broken.

In this one verse Jesus makes two promises:
1. You shall receive power.
2. You shall be witnesses.

The Holy Ghost was promised for two main purposes:
1. To provide us with the power over sin. Nothing else would do.
2. To guarantee us the gift of eternal life. With the Holy Ghost, we are sealed until the day of redemption.

We don’t hear much about sin anymore. It is not fashionable, even in the church. The church has found itself giving in to the resistance of people so much until we hear IN THE CHURCH statements like it’s a personal choice, alternate lifestyles, as long as no one else is hurt, etc.

But if there was no sin, then Jesus would not have had to die. Sin has never ceased to exist.

The bible makes it clear that all have sinned, and fallen short of the glory of God. But sin no longer has dominion or power over me. The Holy Ghost gives me the edge. I now have power over sin. I don’t have to fall victim to Satan’s schemes any longer.

The bible further states in Romans 6:6 that "our old man is crucified with him". I am no longer dead IN sin, but now I am dead TO sin. Verse 14 lets me know that "sin shall not have dominion over me". In other words, sin will always be a challenge to me. Satan will always attempt to entice me to transgress against the law of God. But as Paul states in Romans 8:2 that "The law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death". 

Contrary to popular opinion today, even within the church, we can live holy. We can present our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God". The expectation of God is that we allow his power to work within us. "You shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you". (Acts 1:8) What A Promise!