The Awesome Power Of Our Senior Partner

Sermon preached at Gospel Light Christian Church, Singapore
by Pastor Dr Paul Choo
on 11 August 2002 8 am and 9.45 am English services

Introduction: Imagine the scenario after a super elusive terrorist organization blows up Singapore's power plants. Citizens are immobilized as MRT services grind to a halt. Vehicular traffic is dangerously chaotic as street lights and traffic lights black out. Office work is impossible as elevators, business machines, office lighting and air-conditioning fail. Factories are silent as their machinery lies idle. Patients die by the hundreds as hospital life-support systems stop functioning. Vibrant productive Singapore comes to a virtual standstill. If this terrorist organization successfully blows up every subsequent attempt to restore Singapore's power supply, then there will be nothing left of modem Singapore. Only a shell of its former greatness and a memory of the "good old days" will be left. This is an unbearable scenario - which hopefully will never occur.

However, the Church of Jesus Christ has already suffered such a fate - as the power of the awesome Holy Spirit, who once led and energized the Church, has been "quenched." The Church today is a mere shell of its former greatness. It is usually led by well-trained leaders who know the truths of the Bible but not the power of the Holy Spirit and who try to "liven" the deadness of Christianity with clever scholarly sermons and professionally run quality programs. And Satan happily co-operates to keep these activities in the church, so as to keep the Holy Spirit, the life and soul of the Church, out. The powerless church is the norm today and the events recorded in Acts are often considered to be mere interesting historical facts - applicable to another age and time!

Age of Holy Spirit power: The New Testament Church Age we live in is rightfully called the Age of the Holy Spirit. It was inaugurated by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, and the "textbook of evangelism and church life," the book of Acts, clearly reveals the Holy Spirit as the Builder and Life of the Church. A more accurate title for the book is "The acts of the Holy Spirit - as demonstrated through the life of the Apostles." The Lord in His parting words to His disciples said: "behold, I send the promise of the Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high" (LTJK 24:49). They were not allowed to begin serving God until they were "endued with power." (Even the Lord did not begin His ministry until He was filled with the Holy Spirit, MAT 3:16). This promise of power was repeated in ACT 1:4,5, 8 wait for the promise of the Father .... ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you, and ye shall be witnesses .... unto the uttermost part of the earth." And this Holy Spirit power indeed enabled these unschooled "nobodies" to do "greater works" than Jesus (JOH 14:12) - effectively evangelizing the Roman Empire and beyond in their life times. It was the power of the Holy Spirit, through them, who effectively declared the "unbelievable" Gospel - of a carpenter's son who was the Son of God and of the Giver of Life who died a shameful death on the Cross - to skeptical Jews and worldly Gentiles. While the life and power of the Holy Spirit is so evident in the book of Acts, it is so lacking in our own lives and in modem-day church life. Therefore, it is so convenient for us to conclude that the power of the Holy Spirit was given to the early church but not to us today. However, we cannot find any passage of Scripture that teaches that the Holy Spirit was to be withdrawn after the early Church was established, On the contrary, we are told "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations. ... .and, lo, I am with you alway even unto the end of the world" (MAT 28:20). The word "world" is better translated "age". How can we effectively preach this same " unbelievable" Gospel to a skeptical world without Holy Spirit power?

Evidences of Holy Spirit power: All born-again Christians have personally witnessed the power of the Holy Spirit in their own lives eg. changed view of sin, assurance that Bible is God's Word, victory over sin. Though we do not understand how these changes are effected by the Holy Spirit, they are evident to us. Some Christians have not only evidenced Holy Spirit power in their own lives but also in their service for Him. In other words, they have experienced the power of the Holy Spirit impacting the lives of others, through them. Others, like DL Moody, Bob Jones and John Sung, have impacted the lives of tens of thousands.

Working of Holy Spirit power: The way that the Holy Spirit worked with Philip (ACT 8) gives us a good idea of how He often works. Philip was having a successful ministry in Samaria (v.6), when the Holy Spirit told him to leave it and go to a desert (v.26). Philip obeyed immediately (v.27) and was marvelously led to the right place at the right time to meet the right man who was reading the right passage of Scripture (v.27-30). Philip preached the Gospel and the eunuch trusted Jesus as His Savior (v.37) and was baptized (v.38). All Philip did was to go where he was told and preach the Gospel, the rest of the work eg. arranging the meeting, preparing the eunuch's heart, witnessing the truth to his heart, making him obedient to be baptized) was done by the Holy Spirit.

Conclusion: Are you a frustrated powerless Christian? Do you hunger for the Power of the Holy Spirit to be what you should be and do what you should do? Then claim God's promise: "For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground" (ISA 44:3)!