Faithful People – 6

Faithful People – 6

Subject – Holy Spirit, Hell, and Heaven

By Rick Welborne

Acts 1:8 (NKJV) 

8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." 

–Last week we talked about extraordinary power that is available to us thru the Cross. Tonight we want to talk about Holy Spirit, Hell, and Heaven.

1. Holy Spirit in our lives, His power, and being witnesses for God everywhere.

--Are we brave enough to ask for this power? Do we trust Jesus enough to ask for such amazing power?

--I have heard people who have be taught false teaching about Holy Spirit say things like…When I ask Jesus to give me Holy Spirit…will I open myself open to a demon?

--What an insult and what a lack of trust in Jesus Who has told us to ask for this Holy Spirit power…Who told the disciples to tarry in Jerusalem until they were filled with Holy Spirit power. 

Luke 11:9‑13 (NIV) 

9 "So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 

10 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. 

11 "Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? 

12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 

13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" 

–Does God really give this power to those who ask? 

Francis Chan “Forgotten God” - Does God really give Holy Spirit to those who ask, or was Jesus lying when He said that?  I have found that it comes down to faith: Do you believe God keeps His promises or not?  Do your prayers and actions give evidence of your belief? 

–Pastor Rick, I do believe God gives the Holy Spirit to those who ask but I am afraid of what He will demand of me if I am filled with His Spirit.

Chan - The truth is that the Spirit of the living God is guaranteed to ask you to go somewhere or to do something you wouldn’t normally want or choose to do. The Spirit will lead you to the way of the cross, as He led Jesus to the cross, and that is definitely not a safe or pretty or comfortable place to be. The Holy Spirit will mold you into the person you were made to be. This often incredibly painful process strips you of selfishness, pride, and fear...The Holy Spirit does not seek to hurt us, but He does seek to make us Christ like, and this can be painful.

--I cannot tell you (other than the Word of God) what Holy Spirit will lead you to do and where He will lead you to go but I can promise you a life of excitement and a life of God’s wonderful presence. 

Chan: So, if you say you want Holy Spirit, you must first honestly ask yourself if you want to do His will.  Because if you do not genuinely want to know and do his will, why should you ask for His presence at all? But if you decide you want to know His will, there will be moments when you have to let go of the fear of what that might mean–when you have to release your grip of control on your life and decide to be led, come what may.

–Extraordinary power is available if we are willing to seek God, to ask, and to wait until we are filled with God Himself...Holy Spirit!

2. We need unlimited power in our lives because of the reality of hell.

–It is not my mission today to try to convince you that hell is real but my mission is based on the premise of its reality and to motivate us to reach all we can before they go there.

–I personally believe the fields are white and ready for harvest but the workers are few...We must pray to the Lord of the harvest for more workers and those workers must be filled with Holy Spirit power.

--Jesus shares this powerful story to show us the reality of hell and why we should witness.

Luke 16:19‑31 (NIV) 

19 "There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 

20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 

21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. 

22 "The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. 

23 In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 

24 So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.' 

25 "But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 

26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.' 

27 "He answered, 'Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, 

28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.' 

29 "Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.' 

30 "'No, father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.' 

31 "He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.'" 

–Lazarus was not in heaven because he was poor and the rich man was not in hell because he was rich...It all has to do with what we do with Christ...receive - heaven, reject - hell.

–We need power to witness because hell is a literal place of torment (23).

Mark 9:42‑44 (NKJV)

42 "But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea. 

43 "If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched‑‑ 

44 "where  'Their worm does not die, And the fire is not quenched.'   

–Hell is a place of separation...Abraham and Lazarus far off (23).

–Hell is a place where we want what we didn’t give...have pity on me (24).

–Hell is a place where the agony is so great that just a drop of water would bring relief.

–Hell is a place where you will think of those in heaven (they had so little and you had so much) what agony (25).

–Hell is a place of permanence...you cannot leave once you arrive there (26).

–Let me throw this in here...Hell will not be a place of partying.

Matthew 8:12 (NIV) 

12 But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." 

–Hell is a place where you will not want your family to come: Now he is evangelistic.

Luke 16:27‑31 (NIV) 

27 "He answered, 'Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, 

28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.' 

29 "Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.' 

30 "'No, father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.' 

31 "He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.'" 

–If someone from the dead...they will listen...Jesus rose from the dead...Listen.

–Hell is a place where so many go and we will realize it was my responsibility to witness to them.

–We need extraordinary power to witness and stop as many as possible from going to hell.

–Life Church should exist to make it hard for people to go to hell on our watch...missions.

3. We need amazing power in our lives because of the reality of Heaven.

Revelation 21:1‑7 (NLT) 

1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. 

2 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 

3 I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. 

4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” 

5 And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” 

6 And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. 

7 All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children. 

–Heaven will be a place where everything is new...ready for a new start...eternity.  1

–Heaven will be a place with the most beautiful city...New Jerusalem.  2

–Heaven will be a place where God’s home will be our home!  Jesus will be there. 3

–Heaven will be a place where there are no more tears, no more death, no more sorrow, no more crying, no more pain...a place where all of this is gone forever.  4

–Why would we not want to be filled with the power of Holy Spirit and get our friends, family, and foes to a place like this.

–Heaven will be a place where Jesus, the Alpha and Omega will give freely from the springs of the water of life. 6

–Heaven will be a place where all who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and Jesus says, I will be their God, and they will be my children. 

–Heaven will be a place where we will not see a suffering lamb but the glorified Lion of the Tribe of Judah:

Revelation 1:9‑18 (NLT) 

9 I, John, am your brother and your partner in suffering and in God’s Kingdom and in the patient endurance to which Jesus calls us. I was exiled to the island of Patmos for preaching the word of God and for my testimony about Jesus. 

10 It was the Lord’s Day, and I was worshiping in the Spirit. Suddenly, I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet blast. 

11 It said, “Write in a book everything you see, and send it to the seven churches in the cities of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.” 

12 When I turned to see who was speaking to me, I saw seven gold lampstands. 

13 And standing in the middle of the lampstands was someone like the Son of Man. He was wearing a long robe with a gold sash across his chest. 

14 His head and his hair were white like wool, as white as snow. And his eyes were like flames of fire. 

15 His feet were like polished bronze refined in a furnace, and his voice thundered like mighty ocean waves. 

16 He held seven stars in his right hand, and a sharp two‑edged sword came from his mouth. And his face was like the sun in all its brilliance. 

17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as if I were dead. But he laid his right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid! I am the First and the Last. 

18 I am the living one. I died, but look—I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and the grave. 

--I think it is so important to not only be thankful for Jesus going to the cross but to see Him also in His glorified state.

17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as if I were dead. But he laid his right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid! I am the First and the Last. 

18 I am the living one. I died, but look—I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and the grave. 

--He has the keys to your life!