Pastor Nate is participating with other members of the McGregor Ministerial Alliance to provide a faith column in our local paper – The McGregor Mirror. Here is his submission for the past week:
This week we celebrated Pentecost, which is an annual church holiday on par with Christmas and Easter in terms of its significance: the establishment of Christ’s Church! Jesus said in Matthew 16:18: I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it. But here’s the kicker he chooses to build his Church in us; weak, feeble, and fickle as we are! He takes little stones (petras), and builds something beautiful to be a blessing to the world! But Jesus always knew that this would require some secret sauce from the Father to make it work: the outpouring of the Holy Spirit!
In Acts 1:4-5, shortly before Jesus ascended into heaven, Jesus instructed the disciples to remain in Jerusalem until they received the gift promised by the Father, the Holy Spirit, into the rag tag group of 120 disciples consisting of those who grew up in “church”, those who couldn’t spell “church”, and those who were thrown out of the “church”.
Pentecost is the fulfillment of God’s promise to:
- Send the Advocate, the Teacher, the Reminder, the Comforter, the one who will never leave you, and bring you perfect peace! (John 14:26)
- Replace our hard, stony, heart with a heart that is tender, and replace our sinful and rebellious spirit with His own Spirit that will lead us into a good and right relationship with Him and one another. Ezekiel 36:26
- Pour His own Spirit into all flesh who will invite Him (Joel 2:28-29), to be immersed in the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5,8).
Imagine the power of God, the maker of the universe, living inside of you! Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? 1 Corinthians 3:16
I know, it sounds too good to be true. But that’s the way it is with God, because he is amazing! The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. Romans 8:11
Are you walking with the Spirit of God? Ask the Lord to receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit, and watch in amazement as you see your life transformed by God.
Nate Moehring
Pastor at LAMP Ministries
Amen!