WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.160 Have you ever made a decision in your life? 00:00:02.240 --> 00:00:06.559 And as soon as you made it, the first thing you thought was, Why didn't I do this sooner? 00:00:07.200 --> 00:00:10.000 Have you ever had a why didn't I do this sooner moment? 00:00:11.279 --> 00:00:22.239 You were hesitant about something, you were holding off on some decision or some experience for a variety of reasons, but when it finally happened, you were just like, man, why was I hesitant at all? 00:00:22.399 --> 00:00:23.600 Why was I waiting for this? 00:00:23.839 --> 00:00:25.600 I had that happen really recently for me. 00:00:25.760 --> 00:00:32.000 Um a few months ago, it got hot for the first time, and uh, because we live in Georgia, so the weather doesn't know what it wants to do, right? 00:00:32.079 --> 00:00:36.640 It's like February, like, let's be in the 70s, and then March, it's like, nah, we'll go back to cold. 00:00:36.799 --> 00:00:42.560 But but the weather got pretty warm, you know, like late February, and our AC unit did not kick on. 00:00:42.880 --> 00:00:44.000 It just didn't kick on. 00:00:44.159 --> 00:00:48.640 And so I had my friend Ben who works in AC, I had him come take a look, and he's like, Yeah, man, this thing is dead. 00:00:48.880 --> 00:00:50.320 You have to get a new unit. 00:00:50.560 --> 00:00:55.520 And the truth is, for the last four years that we've lived in this house, it's never really worked, it's never been able to keep up. 00:00:55.759 --> 00:00:59.520 Our house is always five degrees warmer than the set point in the summer. 00:00:59.600 --> 00:01:02.640 And we found really unique ways to sort of work around it. 00:01:02.799 --> 00:01:06.319 Rather than getting a new unit and having to spend that money, we found several other ways to do it. 00:01:06.400 --> 00:01:12.400 Like if you open this window over here and then you close all these windows, but open this window over here, and you leave this door open, it creates like a nice breeze. 00:01:12.480 --> 00:01:14.159 And we've been figuring this out for years. 00:01:14.400 --> 00:01:17.519 But this year, this thing was dead. 00:01:18.319 --> 00:01:22.719 My friend told me, he said, Hey, look, the truth is this unit was underpowered from the start. 00:01:22.959 --> 00:01:26.799 And because it was underpowered, it had to run constantly. 00:01:27.040 --> 00:01:30.480 It can never keep up, it had to run all the time, all through the night, just to try to keep up. 00:01:30.640 --> 00:01:35.040 And so for the last three or four years, my electric bills in the summer have been$450. 00:01:36.239 --> 00:01:40.000 Now, some of you are like, he must live in a really, really big house. 00:01:40.159 --> 00:01:43.680 And many of you have been to my house and you know it should not cost$450. 00:01:44.079 --> 00:01:46.879 It's not, it's not a manor, it's a house, okay? 00:01:47.120 --> 00:01:55.200 But that's what we've been paying because this unit is underpowered, because it's underpowered, it's overworked, and it has to run and run and run, never stopping just to try to keep up. 00:01:55.760 --> 00:01:57.519 And this year it died. 00:01:58.159 --> 00:02:03.120 Because when you're underpowered and overworked, you have a tendency to break down. 00:02:04.239 --> 00:02:05.439 And so we had to get a new unit. 00:02:05.599 --> 00:02:09.439 My friend Ben came and I said, Look, dude, if we're gonna have to buy a new unit, I want you to hear what I'm saying. 00:02:09.599 --> 00:02:11.120 I want to go big. 00:02:12.159 --> 00:02:13.039 I want to go big. 00:02:13.120 --> 00:02:16.319 And Ben said, Well, I looked at your attic and I don't really know how this stuff works. 00:02:16.400 --> 00:02:22.240 He's like, but it looks like you have room in your attic for a coil that could be like a half ton bigger, and I'm like, I don't know what that means. 00:02:22.479 --> 00:02:24.639 And he said, You will when you turn it on. 00:02:24.960 --> 00:02:30.319 And so, my goodness, guys, it's been amazing in my house. 00:02:30.479 --> 00:02:31.599 I've never been as excited. 00:02:31.680 --> 00:02:33.759 You know that little click you hear when the thermostat kicks on? 00:02:33.840 --> 00:02:39.039 You know that like, I'm like, woo! Like anytime that happens at home, I hear the click and I'm just like, oh, I'm excited. 00:02:39.120 --> 00:02:41.199 Like, because you can you can like hear the air. 00:02:41.280 --> 00:02:43.599 It used to be that that the air would be on, and we're like, is it on? 00:02:43.680 --> 00:02:44.719 And I think it's on, I don't know. 00:02:44.800 --> 00:02:49.280 And we would go up to the vents in our ceiling and hold our hands up to it and be like, no, I think I feel some air. 00:02:49.439 --> 00:02:54.560 I think something's coming through, and now if it kicks on, you're on the other side of the room and it's like wind. 00:02:54.879 --> 00:03:00.319 Megan walks through the house and she looks like a model from a hair commercial, her hair's just like blowing, you know? 00:03:01.520 --> 00:03:03.680 And we've already got four kids, so that's kind of a problem. 00:03:03.759 --> 00:03:05.520 Like, I need that to stop, you know. 00:03:05.599 --> 00:03:07.199 I don't have any more of that. 00:03:07.520 --> 00:03:09.199 So we gotta figure that out. 00:03:09.280 --> 00:03:10.960 I'm like, put it in a ponytail. 00:03:11.039 --> 00:03:12.000 I can't handle the hair blowing. 00:03:12.080 --> 00:03:13.120 This is too much. 00:03:14.719 --> 00:03:16.960 But it's serious, like it is powerful. 00:03:17.120 --> 00:03:22.240 And now when we're home, when we're home and that air kicks on, it is, it is, whoo, it is amazing. 00:03:22.319 --> 00:03:30.080 And because it's actually powerful enough, maybe even a little overpowered, it can actually stop every once in a while. 00:03:30.319 --> 00:03:33.919 And so I got my first electric bill of a warmer month, it was$105. 00:03:34.560 --> 00:03:37.199 And I was like, yes, praise God. 00:03:37.280 --> 00:03:38.639 This is awesome. 00:03:39.199 --> 00:03:43.840 But the first thought I had after it was all said and done was, why didn't I do this sooner? 00:03:44.080 --> 00:03:46.719 Yes, it was expensive, but we could have moved some things around. 00:03:46.800 --> 00:03:48.080 We we could have figured some things out. 00:03:48.240 --> 00:03:51.759 Like, like for years, we've been sitting in our house miserable all summer long. 00:03:52.319 --> 00:03:54.319 And I could have just had a new one installed. 00:03:54.400 --> 00:03:57.280 It could have happened, and I just waited and I have no reason to wait. 00:03:57.360 --> 00:03:59.759 And I look back now and I go, why didn't I do that sooner? 00:03:59.840 --> 00:04:04.960 And the truth is, there have been many situations in my life where that's been the case. 00:04:05.199 --> 00:04:07.280 Where I have dragged my feet for some reason. 00:04:07.360 --> 00:04:20.240 And there have been many situations in my life spiritually, in my relationship with God, where I have been hesitant to experience something, where I have, where I have been resistant, perhaps, to something that God wants to do in my life. 00:04:20.399 --> 00:04:25.040 And then when I finally have the experience, I go, why did I wait? 00:04:25.839 --> 00:04:27.040 What was I waiting for? 00:04:27.120 --> 00:04:28.000 Why was I hesitant? 00:04:28.160 --> 00:04:29.759 I should have done this sooner. 00:04:29.920 --> 00:04:33.040 I should have let God do this sooner. 00:04:33.920 --> 00:04:39.040 Today we're gonna talk about an experience that scripture speaks of very clearly. 00:04:39.519 --> 00:04:45.839 And it's an experience in my life that I was as hesitant on, as resistant on as I have been about anything. 00:04:46.560 --> 00:04:49.439 And it's the experience of the Holy Spirit. 00:04:50.319 --> 00:04:53.120 Having an actual encounter with the Holy Spirit. 00:04:53.199 --> 00:04:55.439 Some of you were like, oh no, it's gonna get weird now. 00:04:55.519 --> 00:04:57.199 Um pick the wrong day to come. 00:04:57.360 --> 00:04:57.759 Maybe. 00:04:57.839 --> 00:04:58.240 I don't know. 00:04:58.319 --> 00:04:59.519 Um, you just have to stay here and see. 00:04:59.600 --> 00:05:03.600 No, no, seriously, like this is one of those things where if that's what you're thinking, I was you. 00:05:04.959 --> 00:05:08.720 It's having an actual encounter and an actual experience with the Holy Spirit. 00:05:08.800 --> 00:05:12.079 For some context, we've been in a series called Blessed for the last six or seven weeks. 00:05:12.160 --> 00:05:15.199 We've been looking at Ephesians chapter 1, verses 3 through 14. 00:05:15.360 --> 00:05:16.319 Just going straight through it. 00:05:16.399 --> 00:05:18.160 We're actually going through the whole book of Ephesians this year. 00:05:18.240 --> 00:05:22.720 And so in this section, Paul, the author, talks about the blessings that we have from God. 00:05:22.879 --> 00:05:24.319 He calls them spiritual blessings. 00:05:24.560 --> 00:05:33.519 The very first verse, Ephesians 1.3, he says, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. 00:05:33.680 --> 00:05:36.800 So blessed be God who has blessed us with blessings. 00:05:37.199 --> 00:05:40.959 But not just any blessings, spiritual blessings. 00:05:41.120 --> 00:05:46.240 And I'll be honest with you, like, like as we've gone through this series, part of me has been like, oh Lord, is this practical enough? 00:05:46.560 --> 00:05:49.279 Like, I want people to walk away going, like, yeah, I can do something with this. 00:05:49.360 --> 00:05:50.959 And we're talking about all these spiritual things. 00:05:51.040 --> 00:05:55.839 We've talked about truth and grace and being adopted into the family of God and things like that. 00:05:56.000 --> 00:05:57.279 Holiness, you know, is this. 00:05:57.600 --> 00:05:59.519 I feel like it should be more practical. 00:05:59.839 --> 00:06:05.439 Because there's this big push right now in church culture, and actually in most ways it's really good, that you gotta make it practical. 00:06:05.600 --> 00:06:13.360 And I need things made practical for me, but sometimes we have this way of thinking that develops when we give too much of an emphasis on what's practical. 00:06:13.680 --> 00:06:17.680 That we begin to believe that what is spiritual is not practical. 00:06:18.319 --> 00:06:27.199 And so we focus on the practical things at the expense of what's spiritual because in our minds, that spiritual stuff, it's all hazy, it's it's hard to grab a hold of. 00:06:27.279 --> 00:06:31.600 No, no, no, not that stuff's fine and all, but like let's get down to what's practical. 00:06:32.639 --> 00:06:34.959 But the truth is, we're spiritual. 00:06:35.600 --> 00:06:37.439 You are a spiritual person. 00:06:38.639 --> 00:06:39.519 Like you are. 00:06:39.839 --> 00:06:44.399 That's why Jesus once asked the question what good is it if a man gains the world but loses his soul? 00:06:44.720 --> 00:06:48.079 There is no part of you more important than your spirit. 00:06:49.199 --> 00:06:51.600 Your body is gonna die one day, and I know that's kind of a downer. 00:06:51.680 --> 00:06:57.360 I shouldn't have said that, but like you will not because you're not a body. 00:06:58.639 --> 00:07:08.079 Your spirit will endure because your spirit is actually who you are, and so if we are spiritual people at our core, there's actually nothing more practical to us than the spirit. 00:07:09.279 --> 00:07:11.360 And by the way, we see this in our world. 00:07:12.879 --> 00:07:13.920 We see this in our world. 00:07:14.160 --> 00:07:20.319 Our world has no answer, no answer for depression, for anxiety. 00:07:20.879 --> 00:07:29.519 Our world has no answer for problems like divorce, for broken homes, for violence. 00:07:30.639 --> 00:07:36.000 It's because our our culture and our world denies the spiritual. 00:07:37.199 --> 00:07:42.160 And so we see children bringing guns to school and shooting each other, and we're like, oh, what laws can we enact to keep this from happening? 00:07:42.240 --> 00:07:45.680 And we should be asking, what's going on in the spirit of our nation? 00:07:46.720 --> 00:07:59.120 There's something going on spiritually, and until we solve that, it doesn't matter what what laws we put in place, nothing will really change. 00:08:00.079 --> 00:08:01.759 We're seeing that happen in the world, by the way. 00:08:01.920 --> 00:08:03.040 This isn't meant to be political, actually. 00:08:03.120 --> 00:08:04.959 I don't own a gun, so this really isn't political for me. 00:08:05.120 --> 00:08:09.920 But like, like London, London, if you if you know this, London has had an upsurge in knife attacks. 00:08:10.160 --> 00:08:13.839 And so there's actual laws going in in London right now to try to ban knives. 00:08:14.480 --> 00:08:15.360 Like, what's next? 00:08:15.600 --> 00:08:16.720 Pencils, you know? 00:08:16.879 --> 00:08:19.120 Like, is it gonna be illegal to own sharp things? 00:08:19.279 --> 00:08:20.480 Nothing sharp. 00:08:20.720 --> 00:08:31.360 And I I bring this up because when you try to attack a problem without addressing its root cause, nothing changes. 00:08:32.639 --> 00:08:34.240 See, we are spiritual. 00:08:34.720 --> 00:08:42.799 And because we're spiritual, there's nothing more practical, there's nothing more important for us than the spirit. 00:08:44.480 --> 00:08:47.759 And that's why these spiritual blessings that we've been talking about, they're key. 00:08:47.919 --> 00:08:53.039 You you need to be spiritually blessed more than you need to be circumstantially blessed. 00:08:54.159 --> 00:08:59.120 Today we get to this final blessing that Paul speaks about. 00:08:59.360 --> 00:09:01.279 Verses 13 and 14 of Ephesians 1. 00:09:01.360 --> 00:09:02.480 And I'm reading along in the mobile app. 00:09:02.559 --> 00:09:04.720 You can follow there if you want or read on the screens, however you want to. 00:09:04.879 --> 00:09:07.279 It says, Now you Gentiles have also heard the truth. 00:09:07.440 --> 00:09:09.039 The good news that God saves you. 00:09:09.120 --> 00:09:14.639 And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. 00:09:14.960 --> 00:09:20.399 The Spirit is God's guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised, and that he has purchased us to be his own people. 00:09:20.639 --> 00:09:23.039 He did this so we would praise and glorify him. 00:09:23.759 --> 00:09:33.600 I hear in a few weeks we're gonna dive into what this inheritance business is all about, but I want to really focus on the simple fact that we're told we have been blessed with the Holy Spirit. 00:09:34.320 --> 00:09:37.279 We've been given the Holy Spirit, whom God promised long ago. 00:09:37.440 --> 00:09:40.960 Now, if you study scripture, if you if you open your Bible, you see the Holy Spirit all over it. 00:09:41.120 --> 00:09:45.279 But it's kind of interesting because the Holy Spirit's role grows as you go through the story. 00:09:45.519 --> 00:09:54.639 It's kind of like a television show where there's this recurring character that plays like a small part and they're in it every once in a while, but then all of a sudden in one season they're like one of the main characters. 00:09:54.799 --> 00:09:56.639 That's the Holy Spirit in the Bible. 00:09:56.799 --> 00:10:01.279 In the Old Testament, we see the Holy Spirit like come upon people, but it's kind of few and far between. 00:10:01.360 --> 00:10:02.960 But when he does, it's it's powerful. 00:10:03.039 --> 00:10:12.879 For example, Ezekiel chapter 31, verse 1 says, The Lord said to Moses, Look, I've specially chosen Bezalel, son of Uri, grandson of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. 00:10:12.960 --> 00:10:17.519 I have filled him with the Spirit of God, giving him great wisdom, ability, and expertise in all kinds of crafts. 00:10:17.679 --> 00:10:22.559 This was the man that was supposed to build the tabernacle, the place where the Jewish people would worship at that time. 00:10:22.720 --> 00:10:25.919 And God's like, here's the guy I want to be in charge of this project. 00:10:26.080 --> 00:10:27.120 Don't worry about it. 00:10:27.279 --> 00:10:28.639 I have filled him with my spirit. 00:10:28.879 --> 00:10:30.480 He's got what he needs. 00:10:31.440 --> 00:10:33.440 Some of us might be familiar with the story of Samson. 00:10:33.519 --> 00:10:37.440 Samson's the dude with the like the long hair and the biceps in the Bible, the strong guy. 00:10:37.679 --> 00:10:46.320 But what you may miss if you read his story, if you haven't read in a while anyway, is every time he performs an act of strength, like some great feat of strength, the Bible says that the Holy Spirit came upon him. 00:10:46.480 --> 00:10:48.639 So it wasn't his own strength. 00:10:48.960 --> 00:10:54.159 It will say, like, and the Holy Spirit came upon Samson, and then he was able to do this crazy thing. 00:10:54.240 --> 00:10:56.159 It wasn't his power, it was the Spirit's power. 00:10:56.320 --> 00:11:00.159 In the Old Testament, we have the prophets, these men that heard from God. 00:11:00.399 --> 00:11:08.080 And the Spirit of God would come into them, and they would be able to converse with God and to see the world through God's eyes, essentially, and speak to the people on behalf of God. 00:11:08.240 --> 00:11:11.919 But the average everyday person had no chance in their mind to be able to talk to God. 00:11:12.000 --> 00:11:14.720 So they were dependent on what the prophets said. 00:11:15.279 --> 00:11:17.440 You're not dependent on what I say. 00:11:17.919 --> 00:11:19.519 I'm not a prophet. 00:11:20.159 --> 00:11:22.240 Because we all have the Holy Spirit available to us. 00:11:22.320 --> 00:11:23.679 We can all hear from God. 00:11:24.559 --> 00:11:25.919 Because Jesus changed things. 00:11:26.080 --> 00:11:26.639 See, that's the thing. 00:11:26.720 --> 00:11:34.960 As the story goes on, there's this hinge moment, and that hinge moment is Jesus, and Jesus opens us up to the presence of God like no one else ever could. 00:11:36.399 --> 00:11:40.720 Jesus frequently promised the Holy Spirit to his followers in a very certain way, by the way. 00:11:40.960 --> 00:11:48.480 This wasn't like, hey, a few of you might just experience the Holy Spirit in power like those of old did. 00:11:48.559 --> 00:11:49.519 That's not what Jesus said. 00:11:49.600 --> 00:11:51.840 He talks about the Holy Spirit as if it is a certainty. 00:11:51.919 --> 00:11:52.720 Listen to what he says. 00:11:52.879 --> 00:11:54.480 John 14, 17. 00:11:54.720 --> 00:11:58.159 Jesus says, He is the Holy Spirit who leads into all truth. 00:11:58.399 --> 00:12:02.639 The world cannot receive him because it's not looking for him, it doesn't recognize him. 00:12:03.360 --> 00:12:07.120 But you know him because he lives with you now and later will be in you. 00:12:07.279 --> 00:12:13.279 So Jesus is saying to his disciples, hey, you've experienced the Holy Spirit around you, because you've been with me. 00:12:13.519 --> 00:12:16.480 And Jesus was completely empowered by the Holy Spirit. 00:12:16.559 --> 00:12:21.120 He laid his own power aside when he came to earth, but the Holy Spirit is what fueled everything Jesus did. 00:12:21.200 --> 00:12:23.519 And Jesus says, Hey, you've experienced the Holy Spirit around you. 00:12:23.600 --> 00:12:25.919 You're about to have the Holy Spirit in you. 00:12:26.879 --> 00:12:29.200 He says it with certainty. 00:12:29.679 --> 00:12:31.759 There's not really an if there. 00:12:32.000 --> 00:12:34.320 And then Jesus goes on to describe what the Holy Spirit will do. 00:12:34.399 --> 00:12:37.519 And as we read this, by the way, ask yourself: does this sound impractical? 00:12:38.399 --> 00:12:44.000 Does this sound like some hazy thing that you can't really get your head around, or does this sound insanely practical? 00:12:44.159 --> 00:12:48.480 Because I think when Jesus talks about the Holy Spirit, it sounds like someone describing the features of their iPhone. 00:12:48.720 --> 00:12:50.080 John 14, 26. 00:12:50.639 --> 00:12:54.960 But when the Father sends the advocate as my representative, that is the Holy Spirit, he will teach you everything. 00:12:55.120 --> 00:12:56.960 He will remind you of everything I've told you. 00:12:57.120 --> 00:13:00.559 John 16, 13, when the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. 00:13:00.720 --> 00:13:02.960 He will not speak on his own, but will tell you what he's heard. 00:13:03.120 --> 00:13:04.240 He will tell you about the future. 00:13:04.399 --> 00:13:06.879 He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me. 00:13:07.039 --> 00:13:08.720 All that belongs to the Father is mine. 00:13:08.879 --> 00:13:12.960 This is why I said the Spirit will tell you whatever he receives from me. 00:13:13.120 --> 00:13:15.200 And so Jesus is rattling off about the Holy Spirit. 00:13:15.279 --> 00:13:21.440 He's saying, You're going to have the Holy Spirit, and he's going to guide you and teach you and remind you, and you're going to be able to hear from God through the Holy Spirit. 00:13:21.519 --> 00:13:23.039 Like it's going to be amazing. 00:13:23.600 --> 00:13:28.480 Jesus literally told his disciples, I'm going to leave you, but don't even worry about it. 00:13:28.720 --> 00:13:30.639 Because you'll have the Holy Spirit. 00:13:32.159 --> 00:13:34.080 I doubt his disciples were encouraged in that moment. 00:13:34.159 --> 00:13:35.919 Like, no, we need you physically with us. 00:13:36.000 --> 00:13:38.559 But he's like, No, no, no, you need the Holy Spirit. 00:13:39.600 --> 00:13:43.279 And then one day the disciples had that experience. 00:13:43.679 --> 00:13:46.080 It's a day that we call the day of Pentecost. 00:13:46.399 --> 00:13:51.759 What happened was the disciples, it was shortly after Jesus had risen from the dead, resurrected, and then he went back to heaven. 00:13:51.919 --> 00:13:55.919 And so the disciples are in Jerusalem and they're trying to figure things out. 00:13:56.000 --> 00:14:02.159 And one day the Holy Spirit shows up powerfully and he fills them with power that is not their own. 00:14:02.240 --> 00:14:06.720 And they start going out in the streets and they start speaking in languages that they've never learned. 00:14:06.960 --> 00:14:11.679 It'd be like you waking up one day speaking Spanish, and you're like, what in the world's going on? 00:14:11.840 --> 00:14:13.360 It'd be crazy, right? 00:14:13.840 --> 00:14:15.919 Or some other language that you don't know. 00:14:16.159 --> 00:14:19.360 I realize many of us here speak Spanish, so I should have picked Armenian. 00:14:19.440 --> 00:14:22.879 I don't know if that's a language or not, but it's probably, I don't sounded like one, so whatever. 00:14:23.120 --> 00:14:25.679 And so they're speaking language that they don't understand. 00:14:25.759 --> 00:14:29.440 And that day, that one single day, 3,000 people gave their life to Jesus. 00:14:29.519 --> 00:14:32.559 And the movement of Jesus started, and it's never looked back. 00:14:32.720 --> 00:14:37.600 But it all happened because the power of the Holy Spirit came upon these people. 00:14:37.840 --> 00:14:38.159 Okay. 00:14:42.159 --> 00:14:46.240 So here we are 2,000 years later, and we're like, yeah, but that was then. 00:14:47.039 --> 00:14:48.000 This is now. 00:14:49.279 --> 00:14:50.720 Is that for me? 00:14:52.320 --> 00:14:53.360 Like, is that for me? 00:14:53.679 --> 00:14:57.039 See, we have this tendency, I think, to split hairs. 00:14:57.120 --> 00:15:00.000 And the reality is this: if you've given your life to Jesus, you have the Holy Spirit. 00:15:00.080 --> 00:15:06.240 Technically, if you're a person, you sort of have the Holy Spirit because the Bible says that when God created mankind, he breathed his spirit into us. 00:15:06.320 --> 00:15:07.919 That is what makes us different from the animals. 00:15:08.000 --> 00:15:10.240 That's what gives us like a concept of self. 00:15:10.399 --> 00:15:12.399 That's why we're not like every other creature in the world. 00:15:12.559 --> 00:15:15.360 Like there's never been a bear that's had an identity crisis, you know? 00:15:15.519 --> 00:15:18.240 There's never been a bear that's woken up and being like, Am I a bear? 00:15:18.480 --> 00:15:19.759 I don't know who I am. 00:15:19.919 --> 00:15:21.679 You know, I gotta go find myself. 00:15:21.759 --> 00:15:23.840 Like that's never happened before. 00:15:24.320 --> 00:15:25.600 But people, we're different. 00:15:25.679 --> 00:15:31.600 We're a little bit more complex, and that's because God breathed his spirit into us and he made us unique, he made us different. 00:15:31.919 --> 00:15:40.480 And so, you know, the Holy Spirit, like, technically, I guess, is in is in people, like sometimes we come to Jesus because something stirs inside of us, and that's the spirit and our spirit. 00:15:40.559 --> 00:15:41.440 And God, like, how does it all work? 00:15:41.519 --> 00:15:42.879 And God doesn't really explain it to us. 00:15:42.960 --> 00:15:46.240 There's no part in the Bible where God says, Let me break it down for you scientifically. 00:15:46.480 --> 00:15:51.679 First, the Holy Spirit enters through your ear canal, and then he moves down into your lungs, and we get no, we don't know. 00:15:52.159 --> 00:15:54.159 It's just like it's very vague in a sense. 00:15:54.240 --> 00:15:56.399 Like the Holy Spirit just comes upon you. 00:15:56.639 --> 00:15:57.919 That's what it is. 00:15:58.799 --> 00:16:03.279 But the reality is in Scripture, there were experiences. 00:16:04.399 --> 00:16:10.399 People had experiences with the Holy Spirit that were undeniable, and they called it the baptism of the Holy Spirit. 00:16:10.639 --> 00:16:14.159 Maybe you've heard that term, maybe not, but but before I jump into that, let me just kind of explain something. 00:16:14.240 --> 00:16:17.440 We go back to Ephesians 1.13 for a second. 00:16:18.559 --> 00:16:26.000 It says, Now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the good news that God saves you, and when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit. 00:16:26.080 --> 00:16:34.000 Now, where it says he identified you as his own, that phrase is actually a Greek word that we could replace with the word sealed. 00:16:34.320 --> 00:16:37.120 He sealed you with the Holy Spirit. 00:16:37.360 --> 00:16:41.840 Last night I got to perform a wedding in coming, and uh it was a great wedding. 00:16:42.000 --> 00:16:44.080 I've only had two weddings that went horribly wrong. 00:16:44.240 --> 00:16:46.960 Uh one I called the bride by the wrong name, that was bad. 00:16:47.120 --> 00:16:49.120 Uh the other I forgot to show up, that was worse. 00:16:49.279 --> 00:16:52.240 So um, it was bad. 00:16:52.480 --> 00:16:57.279 Those people go here, I don't know if they still go here, probably not, but like it was a bad day. 00:16:57.440 --> 00:17:01.840 Anyway, I showed up, got the bride's name right, it was a good day. 00:17:02.080 --> 00:17:03.039 Pete, you were there. 00:17:03.200 --> 00:17:03.679 Remember that? 00:17:03.759 --> 00:17:04.480 Yeah, Pete was there. 00:17:04.559 --> 00:17:05.119 It was great. 00:17:05.359 --> 00:17:15.359 So I'm doing this wedding last night, and you know that we've gone through the whole ceremony, they've said their vows, they've exchanged rings, and then at the end, the way you finish the wedding is you say, Hey, you may kiss your bride. 00:17:15.519 --> 00:17:17.920 Now, chances are they've kissed. 00:17:18.079 --> 00:17:20.079 I'm just saying, probably so. 00:17:21.279 --> 00:17:28.640 They're still married if they don't kiss, but there's something about that kiss at the end that sort of like seals it, you know? 00:17:29.039 --> 00:17:31.680 And you just see the joy in their face that they kind of need that. 00:17:31.759 --> 00:17:35.920 They need that moment, they need something tangible to seal it. 00:17:36.000 --> 00:17:39.440 Like, yes, we're husband and wife, we're married, and that's what that kiss does in that ceremony. 00:17:39.519 --> 00:17:43.359 Well, God knows us as people, and he knows that we need to be sealed sometimes. 00:17:43.519 --> 00:17:48.799 We need to have an experience, we need something we can grab a hold of, we need something that is undeniable to happen to us. 00:17:48.880 --> 00:17:50.319 So we go, oh, I know. 00:17:50.559 --> 00:17:53.359 I know that this is real, I know that I experienced God. 00:17:53.519 --> 00:17:56.240 And that is what the baptism of the Holy Spirit is. 00:17:57.039 --> 00:18:00.160 We see it in scripture, for example, in Acts chapter 19. 00:18:00.400 --> 00:18:04.880 Paul is traveling around and in Acts 19 says this, it begins by saying, Let me find it. 00:18:04.960 --> 00:18:05.680 It's somewhere in here. 00:18:05.759 --> 00:18:06.079 Hold on. 00:18:06.160 --> 00:18:06.559 There we go. 00:18:06.720 --> 00:18:08.000 Acts 19, 1. 00:18:08.240 --> 00:18:17.519 While Apollos, Apollos was another teacher in the church, says, while Apollos was in Corinth, Paul traveled through the interior regions until he reached Ephesus on the coast, where he found several believers. 00:18:17.680 --> 00:18:23.440 And notice Paul's first priority, the first question he wants to ask these people. 00:18:24.000 --> 00:18:26.480 Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed? 00:18:26.799 --> 00:18:28.079 Like Paul thinks this is important. 00:18:28.240 --> 00:18:29.599 It's the first thing he wants to know. 00:18:29.839 --> 00:18:32.640 No, they replied, we haven't even heard there is a Holy Spirit. 00:18:32.880 --> 00:18:34.480 Then what baptism did you experience? 00:18:34.640 --> 00:18:36.799 He asked, and they replied, the baptism of John. 00:18:37.119 --> 00:18:43.920 Paul said, John's baptism called for repentance from sin, but John himself told the people to believe in the one who would come later, meaning Jesus. 00:18:44.079 --> 00:18:47.839 As soon as they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:18:48.079 --> 00:18:53.839 And then Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in other tongues and prophesied. 00:18:54.000 --> 00:18:55.680 There were about twelve men in all. 00:18:56.480 --> 00:19:03.759 John the Baptist once said, I baptize in water, but one who is coming who will baptize in fire and in spirit. 00:19:04.000 --> 00:19:07.759 Like these men had this interesting experience, right? 00:19:08.000 --> 00:19:11.839 Because first they're baptized in the name of Jesus by Paul, and that's what happened last week. 00:19:11.920 --> 00:19:13.200 We had seven people go all in with Jesus. 00:19:13.279 --> 00:19:13.680 It was awesome. 00:19:13.759 --> 00:19:15.039 They got baptized in the name of Jesus. 00:19:15.119 --> 00:19:24.799 But then Paul laid his hands on them and they had a separate experience where they were filled with the Holy Spirit in power, and it was undeniable, and they were changed. 00:19:25.599 --> 00:19:29.200 And it says that they spoke in other tongues and they prophesied. 00:19:30.799 --> 00:19:33.440 You know, I grew up as a young man who loved the Bible. 00:19:33.519 --> 00:19:34.480 Like I love the Bible. 00:19:34.559 --> 00:19:39.680 In fact, it's weird because in church culture anymore, I hear pastors talk about things like you don't want to use too much Bible because it's boring. 00:19:39.759 --> 00:19:41.599 I'm like, have you read the Bible? 00:19:41.920 --> 00:19:44.480 You can call the Bible a lot of things, but boring is not one of them. 00:19:44.559 --> 00:19:46.240 Now you might be afraid to go there with the Bible. 00:19:46.319 --> 00:19:48.400 You might be afraid to read the juicy parts. 00:19:48.640 --> 00:19:51.119 But if you're willing to do that, it's not boring. 00:19:51.440 --> 00:19:52.640 Scandalous. 00:19:53.519 --> 00:19:57.119 So I grew up reading the Bible and I have great faith in the Word of God. 00:19:57.200 --> 00:19:58.640 And so that's a problem for me. 00:19:58.720 --> 00:20:02.799 Like, there's a lot of things I wish the Bible didn't say, because then I have to deal with it. 00:20:03.200 --> 00:20:16.160 And I grew up having not had an experience like this and also not being in a church culture that really talked about this kind of thing, and I would read stuff like this, like they were they the Holy Spirit came upon them, and then they spoke in other tongues and they prophesied, and that seems really weird. 00:20:16.240 --> 00:20:22.000 And I've met some freaky weird people in the church who are kooky and strange, and they talk about the Holy Spirit a lot. 00:20:22.160 --> 00:20:23.200 I don't want to be one of those freaks. 00:20:23.279 --> 00:20:26.160 And so, like, you know, um, what's this about? 00:20:26.240 --> 00:20:28.480 But it's there, it's in scripture, like it happened. 00:20:28.720 --> 00:20:31.119 And so I'm going, God, I have this like identity crisis. 00:20:31.200 --> 00:20:33.839 God, if this is real, I want it, but I don't want to be a weirdo. 00:20:33.920 --> 00:20:40.000 And at the same time, I really want to have you and I want to experience your power, but again, I want to emphasize, Lord, not the weird stuff. 00:20:40.160 --> 00:20:42.079 So, what do I do? 00:20:42.400 --> 00:20:45.200 You know, because it's there. 00:20:46.559 --> 00:20:50.799 Yes, we have the Holy Spirit in us, but God intends to seal us with his spirit. 00:20:50.880 --> 00:20:57.279 He wants to give you and I an experience with the Holy Spirit so real, so powerful, it's undeniable. 00:20:58.720 --> 00:21:01.200 And that's the baptism of the Holy Spirit. 00:21:01.920 --> 00:21:05.680 But for years I was so resistant, so hesitant. 00:21:06.480 --> 00:21:07.680 And I really prayed this week. 00:21:07.759 --> 00:21:08.000 Why? 00:21:08.079 --> 00:21:10.000 Like, why was I so resistant? 00:21:10.319 --> 00:21:11.839 And really, three things came to my mind. 00:21:11.920 --> 00:21:13.519 Number one, I didn't understand it. 00:21:13.839 --> 00:21:21.200 We live in a time and in a culture where our intellect has been elevated, and we're told essentially that if we can't understand it, it must not be right. 00:21:22.559 --> 00:21:24.720 And so I couldn't make sense of the Holy Spirit. 00:21:24.880 --> 00:21:29.519 Like, God the Father, I get Father, Son get Son, Spirit, I don't know what that is. 00:21:30.240 --> 00:21:34.240 And all this other stuff about prophesying in tongues, I don't get that stuff. 00:21:34.319 --> 00:21:37.039 So if I don't understand it, I don't want it. 00:21:37.440 --> 00:21:40.720 But the reality is there's a lot of things I don't understand. 00:21:41.680 --> 00:21:43.519 That doesn't mean they're not true. 00:21:44.079 --> 00:21:52.400 If I make my ability to understand something a necessity for experiencing, I will experience very little in this life. 00:21:52.880 --> 00:21:57.839 In fact, just this last week there was something, and those of you who are on social media probably uh were made aware of this. 00:21:57.920 --> 00:21:59.440 Have you heard the Yanni Laurel thing? 00:21:59.519 --> 00:22:01.359 Like it Of you like raise your hand if you're aware of that. 00:22:01.440 --> 00:22:02.240 You you heard that this week. 00:22:02.400 --> 00:22:02.559 Okay. 00:22:02.640 --> 00:22:03.759 Some of us are like, What in the world is that? 00:22:03.839 --> 00:22:04.319 Who is not? 00:22:04.400 --> 00:22:05.599 You're like, what are you talking about? 00:22:05.759 --> 00:22:06.079 Okay. 00:22:06.240 --> 00:22:13.440 So there's this clip going around on the internet, and it's this it's made by a professor, and like you hear an audio clip. 00:22:13.599 --> 00:22:24.720 And depending on like how you hear, you either hear the word Yanny, yanny, like Y-A-N-N-Y, or Laurel, which don't sound alike at all, right? 00:22:25.039 --> 00:22:27.759 So, in case you're just completely unfamiliar, we'll go ahead and play this. 00:22:27.839 --> 00:22:29.519 So, I just want to see how it breaks down in our group. 00:22:29.599 --> 00:22:30.319 I think this will be fun. 00:22:30.480 --> 00:22:32.160 So, go ahead and play that, guys. 00:22:32.880 --> 00:22:33.680 Laurel. 00:22:34.720 --> 00:22:35.519 Laurel. 00:22:36.160 --> 00:22:36.960 Laurel. 00:22:37.680 --> 00:22:38.160 Laurel. 00:22:38.400 --> 00:22:38.880 Alright, that's enough. 00:22:39.119 --> 00:22:39.359 Laurel. 00:22:39.599 --> 00:22:40.480 You don't need much. 00:22:40.799 --> 00:22:41.200 How much? 00:22:41.680 --> 00:22:41.920 All right. 00:22:42.000 --> 00:22:43.599 Raise your hand if you heard Yanny. 00:22:44.240 --> 00:22:46.079 Raise your hand if you heard Laurel. 00:22:46.799 --> 00:22:50.240 Those of you, those of you who heard Yanny, are you like, what? 00:22:50.880 --> 00:22:52.720 It's clearly Yanny. 00:22:52.799 --> 00:22:55.119 Like, as clear as day, because I'm a Yanni person. 00:22:55.279 --> 00:22:57.279 Let's hear it for the Yanni people in the room. 00:22:57.519 --> 00:22:58.160 Yeah. 00:23:01.200 --> 00:23:03.440 The sad thing is we're wrong. 00:23:04.799 --> 00:23:06.960 It's actually, he's actually saying laurel. 00:23:07.839 --> 00:23:08.400 He is. 00:23:08.559 --> 00:23:09.119 He is. 00:23:09.359 --> 00:23:11.759 Oh, pipe down with the pride. 00:23:12.079 --> 00:23:12.400 Okay. 00:23:15.599 --> 00:23:18.240 Isn't it amazing the things we'll brag about as people? 00:23:18.400 --> 00:23:20.160 Like, I heard laurel. 00:23:20.640 --> 00:23:21.279 You know? 00:23:21.519 --> 00:23:22.000 Yeah. 00:23:22.160 --> 00:23:22.400 Right? 00:23:22.960 --> 00:23:29.759 So, yeah, he's actually saying laurel, but depending on the way your your ear hears, if you're more prone to hearing high tones, you hear Yanny. 00:23:30.000 --> 00:23:31.200 Low tones, you hear laurel. 00:23:31.359 --> 00:23:34.480 I watched a whole video explaining it and I still don't understand it at all. 00:23:34.640 --> 00:23:38.559 I still think it's nuts, but I okay, it's I guess that's true. 00:23:38.799 --> 00:23:40.799 It just defies my logic. 00:23:41.519 --> 00:23:43.440 There are a lot of things in this world I don't understand. 00:23:43.519 --> 00:23:50.160 And if and if you make your ability to understand something fully, a necessity for you to experience it, you will experience very little. 00:23:50.319 --> 00:23:58.000 If you make your ability to understand God a necessity for you to experience God, you will experience him none. 00:24:00.319 --> 00:24:02.720 Because he cannot be understood fully. 00:24:03.039 --> 00:24:03.839