GYC 2009: unASHAMED

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Generation. Youth. Christ. (GYC)

Mark Finley:  Empowered by the Spirit

Mark Finley

When the Spirit Falls

I think we have yet a couple minutes before we start, but we welcome each of you here.

And I told the group that came a little earlier, if you have a Bible and a pen and a paper and notebook, you will get the most out of this class.

If you haven't brought your Bible this time, be sure to bring it next time because we are going to spend a lot of time studying God's Word.

Somebody asked if I had a PowerPoint presentation.

My comment was in my evangelism, in much of my teaching, I use PowerPoint.

But I think PowerPoint should never be a substitute for the Bible.

And this is a time that I'm not going to use PowerPoint.

We're going to come and open the Word of God.

I think there is something about seeing the text in the Scripture yourself.

You can see it on the screen and that's wonderful.

I use PowerPoint in my evangelism largely because people that are coming through the doors don't know the difference between the book of Ezekiel and the book of Hezekiah.

When I tell them to turn to Hezekiah, they're all flipping and looking in the Old Testament.

They have no clue that Hezekiah is not a book in the Bible, and they think Sodom and Gomorrah were 2 twin sisters.

So as the result of that, I need to start them with the PowerPoint presentations, but I like to wean people away from that as much as we can, because I still believe that there's something powerful about opening the Word of God, about taking a pen and underlining a text and circling a text.

There's something that you see in Scripture that you don't see if you are looking at it on the screen.

So, and when you see it in scripture, it becomes personally yours.

You write a note to it, you write down a text.

If you don't, I hope you'll bring it next session, look on with somebody next to you.

And we're going to wait just a moment or 2.

I need somebody that's going to help me because you know these preachers they get taken off in the wind as they start preaching and I need somebody's going to help me with timing We need to go from 930 to 1030 somebody in the front row you guys when you got to watch you young lady What time is it now?

931 wow we got to start right Is your clock right?

And this is a six-part class on the ministry and work of the Holy Spirit.

If you come 1 class, it's like going through breakfast and taking 1 piece of Silver Hills bread.

You will get some nourishment, but it's a lot better to eat the whole breakfast.

So you are certainly free to go to whatever seminars you want, but I do want you to know that I've built this seminar not as repetitive, but every class will be a different class.

And I'll tell you a little bit about what we're going to do, then we'll have prayer and launch right into our class.

I am convinced that 1 of the great issues in the Adventist church today in the finishing of God's work is the reception of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of the believers.

As I travel the world and you take Mexico City, 20 million people, 1 of the largest cities in the world, the largest city.

You take Tokyo and Japan and you travel through the cities of Europe and Asia.

Unless there is a dramatic outpouring of God's Spirit, the work of God on earth will not be finished.

No human genius is capable and no methods are capable of reaching this world.

So the key that stands between us and the coming of Jesus is understanding and receiving the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in our lives personally so that we can be those people that God longs for us to be.

That's why this seminar is so vitally important.

And I'm praying that not only will we learn something in the seminar, but that our hearts and minds will be changed, that this seminar will be something that you can take as young people and use it in small groups in your school, in your church from the notes that you have and that it can be life changing.

That the few hundred people here in this room can go out and you can share this material with others and that's why I encourage you to underline your Bible, cross-reference it and take adequate notes.

There are 6 presentations and I'll tell you about each presentation, and then we'll pray and go into our first presentation.

In the first presentation, I'm going to talk about the promise, the personality, and the power of the Holy Spirit.

The promise, the personality, and the power of the Holy Spirit.

We'll talk about the promise that Christ gave the Holy Spirit.

We'll talk about the personality of the Holy Spirit.

Is the Holy Spirit the third person of the Godhead?

What difference does that make if you understand the nature of the Holy Spirit?

And we'll talk about the power of the Holy Spirit in our own lives.

The second session I will talk about the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

If somebody came up to you and said, Have you experienced the baptism of the Holy Spirit?

Let's suppose you have a Pentecostal friend, and the Pentecostal friend says, have you experienced the baptism of the Holy Spirit?

The Pentecostal friend is thinking, have you spoken in tongues?

But what is the baptism of the Holy Spirit?

And how do you know if you have been baptized by the Holy Spirit, does it make a difference in your life and witness if you've experienced the baptism of the Holy Spirit?

And we're going to discuss that in the second session.

In the third session this afternoon, and we have 1 session from 9.30 to 10.30, then we take a 15-minute break.

At 2.30, I'm going to talk about the true and false manifestations of the Holy Spirit.

We're going to look at the gift of tongues.

We're going to look at miracles, and we're going to look at signs and wonders.

What does the Bible mean when it talks about the gift of tongues?

Is the gift of tongues evidence of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit?

Should we expect miracles of healing today?

And if the devil works miracles and God works miracles, how can you tell the difference?

Is it possible that we're so afraid of the devil's miracles that we miss God's miracles?

And is it possible that we want miracles so much that we're willing to accept the devil's miracles.

Are there criteria in the Bible, in the writings of Elm White that help you to tell?

So that's the second, that's the first session this afternoon.

You know, the Bible says these signs will follow them that they, that believe.

They will drink poison and they won't be killed.

They'll take up serpents and they'll speak in unknown tongues.

And so we're going to look at the manifestation of the Holy Spirit, the true and false manifestations.

That'll take us both sessions this afternoon.

That is such a comprehensive presentation that will take us both sessions.

So today, presentation 1, the personality power of the Holy Spirit and then the promise of the Holy Spirit.

Then session number 2 today, the baptism of the Holy Spirit, the baptism of fire.

This afternoon, counterfeit signs and miracles of healing and tongues and how do you know the difference between the true and the false?

And how do we deal with the relationship between the true and the false?

And how do we deal with the relationship on the church and the finishing of God's work and how to participate in that finishing of God's work.

That's the early and latter rain tomorrow afternoon.

And then, though our last presentation, we're going to deal with the sanctuary and the Holy Spirit.

What relationship does Christ's ministry in the heavenly sanctuary and his intercession in the Heavenly Sanctuary have to the Holy Spirit.

In each of our sessions, I'll usually make 2 presentations then give you a chance for questions.

What I find is if we do questions through the presentation, many of those things I may have answered and it may take us in a different direction.

So we'll have 3 question and answer periods.

Like I'll do 2 presentations this morning, but at the end of the morning I'll set aside 10-15 minutes for questions.

So your questions will be answered, but if you would be so kind to just jot them down and we can take questions in a block because then we're going to get a lot more done in our studies.

Do you mind if I make a quick announcement?

Receiving the Spirit

We're going to go for an hour until 1145.

I might even get you out at 1144 so you can get a minute ahead in line.

You know, you have to… We have a six-part series on the Holy Spirit.

In our first presentation, we talked about the promise, the personality, and the power of the Spirit.

In that session we looked at the fact that Hebrews 6 verse 18, by 2 what?

Immutable things, it's impossible for God to lie.

We don't have to beg God to fulfill His promises when He's made a promise.

He cannot lie and God has made the promise.

We looked at Luke, the 24th chapter, in the 49th verse and He said, wait in Jerusalem until the promise of the Spirit comes.

And so God promised to give His church the Spirit.

And it is only through the Holy Spirit that our lives are transformed from within, and it's only through the Holy Spirit that we can be the witness to the world.

When, In the first session, we studied the reality of the fact that the Holy Spirit was given to the early church at a specific time.

And what happened on earth was based on what was happening up in heaven.

When Jesus ascended to the sanctuary in heaven, it was when his sacrifice was accepted by the Father, the Holy Spirit was poured out in the earthly church.

So we are looking to the sanctuary in heaven now, not the holy place, but the most holy place, just as the early rain was poured out from the holy place, we're looking to the most holy place for the outpouring of God's spirit, both in the transformation of our own lives and also to bear witness to the world.

So we looked at the promise of the Spirit.

We saw that, and it was kind of an amazing truth, that Jesus said, it's to your advantage that I go away, John 16, verse 7, for if I go not away, the Spirit won't come to you.

Why would it be an advantage for Jesus to go away?

He could sit by Peter's side and teach him truth while he was here, but when he left, he could be by all believers' sides.

In addition to that, remember we read in Ephesians chapter 3, verses 14 and onward, that Christ would live in our hearts by what?

Faith through the power of the Holy Spirit.

So Christ dwells in us through his Holy Spirit.

Why can Jesus be closer to us now than when he was here?

When he was here, he could sit by our side, but through the Holy Spirit, he can live where?

And I want you to begin to grasp the reality of that promise.

Jesus, you want to be closer to me than when you were here personally.

You want to be closer to me than when you walked the dusty streets of Galilee 2, 000 years ago.

Lord, you want to live in my heart in a way that reveals to me your grace, your goodness, your power.

So we looked at the promise of the Spirit, the promise that Jesus would dwell in our hearts, the promise that Christ would be closer to us now than when we were, than when he was here.

We looked at the personality of the Holy Spirit.

We've said the Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit is not an it, it is not a thing, and that makes all the difference.

If you believe the Holy Spirit is an influence or power, you want to use the power.

Was there somebody like that in the Bible?

Simon Magus, you remember, wanted to use the power.

If the Holy Spirit is a power or an influence, we want to use it.

If the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead, we want him to use us, and there's a big difference.

We've seen that our lives can only be transformed and the work of God on earth only finished as the Holy Spirit is poured out through us.

In this session, we're looking at the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

This afternoon, very powerful presentations this afternoon.

The counterfeit and genuine manifestation of the Holy Spirit.

How can you tell true and false miracles?

How can you tell signs and wonders, true or false?

How do you deal with 1 Corinthians chapter 14 that deals with the gift of tongues?

We're going to look at that verse by verse this afternoon and do some very serious Bible studies.

So, all afternoon we're dealing with true and false manifestations of the Holy Spirit in 2 sessions, 230 to 330 and then 345 to 445.

Then tomorrow I'm dealing with the early and latter rain, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the latter rain, and how to receive the latter rain, and then we're gonna deal with the sanctuary and the manifestation of the Holy Spirit in the sanctuary.

This morning, we're going to finish up the morning by looking at the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and let's pray.

Father, As we enter into this topic on the baptism of fire, I pray that our hearts would be baptized with fire.

I pray that the outpouring of your spirit would come.

And may this group of young people in GYC be the vanguard group.

May they be a group who lead out in a mighty spiritual revival here.

May sins be confessed to you and to 1 another, if we've wronged 1 another.

May those habits in our lives that we have indulged in, that in our heart of hearts we know are contrary to your will, may they be gone and crushed.

Father, do something in us so you can do something through us.

Do something for us so you can do something with us.

May the fruits of the Spirit be manifest in our lives so the gifts of the Spirit can be manifest in our witness.

And Lord, we open our hearts to you just now.

Teach us about the baptism of the Holy Spirit in Christ's name.

They were evil men at an evil time in an evil generation.

They were immoral men, had an immoral time in an immoral generation.

The rich oppressed the poor, and the poor trampled on 1 another to try to eke out a meager existence.

It was a time of great spiritual darkness.

He was a straight-talking, no-nonsense, bearded prophet out in the Judean hills.

Not that those things are wrong, he just didn't have any.

He was not part of the religious establishment.

Not that that's wrong, but he just wasn't.

But this 1 thing he had, he was filled with the Holy Spirit.

And when he spoke, people's lives were transformed, and they came by the thousands to hear him speak.

Let's listen in and look in on 1 of his strongest appeals.

And we look there in Matthew chapter 3 and listen to the words of John the Baptist.

I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I'm not worthy to carry.

He, Jesus, will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

So John the Baptist talks about something more than formal religion.

He talks about something more than formal religion.

He talks about something more than ritual, something more than the pomp of the Pharisees.

He's talking about something more than Sabbath observance and health reform and something more than all of that, something more than all of these externals.

1 thing about young people is they want authenticity.

Strange Fire on Church Altars

Now this afternoon, we're talking about the true and counterfeit gift of the Spirit.

But I wanna introduce you to a friend of mine who's had a dramatic encounter with God and the Holy Spirit transformed his life.

And Will, I've got the mic on, so you're gonna have to, we don't have a handheld, so you're gonna have to stand pretty close to me.

I was partying and drinking and doing a lot of drugs.

Okay, Partying, drinking, a lot of drugs 2 years ago.

About a year ago something happened in your life.

My mother had invited me to go to Discoveries 08.

Now the first night you came was rather interesting.

What was the state you were in when she brought you to the meeting the first night?

Well, that Friday, the night before, I had drank about 18 beers.

And I came to church pretty hungover, smelling like alcohol.

So Will walked into the meeting, down at Orlando, he was hungover.

He came to my evangelistic meeting and his mother kind of dragged him there.

But what happened in your heart, Will, the first night?

I went up front and I gave my life to God that night.

And in that commitment, what happened as far as your habits are concerned?

I quit drinking that night and I quit smoking that night.

November 7th made me my first year sober.

And God has changed my life so much in that last year.

And what doors have opened for you during the last year?

Well, I was, first of all, I was unemployed.

I still was able to get money for alcohol.

Got me a job working in Florida Hospital where I talk to the patients and I pray with them on a daily basis.

They share their testimonies with me and I share my testimony with them.

I'm just doing so many different things for God.

Sid Roth What is the difference in your mental state and the difference in the peace of mind you have now, What were you looking for in alcohol that you did not find, that you discovered in Christ?

I really can't remember 10 years, you know, because I smoked for 10 years and I drank for 8.

And I really can't remember everything, but I know it was dark, it was cloudy.

But when I was baptized in November, my vision and my memories and just the love that God has for me just appeared in me and I was able to just like see again and feel the love that God has for me, you know, and I feel reborn.

Here is a young man that walks into our evangelistic meetings hungover, but yet through that besottered mind, the Holy Spirit touches him, changes him, remakes him, and he's out there now working at Florida Hospital witnessing for Jesus.

As we start today, let's have a prayer for Will and a prayer that God's Spirit will continue to move.

You brought him in off the streets and you transformed his life by your Holy Spirit.

Here he is sharing his testimony with others and we thank you for that, Jesus.

We know that your life-changing power is real.

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Series

Mark Finley: Empowered by the Spirit

Receiving the Spirit

Transcript

Parent Series

Parent Conference

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Recorded

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Winning Postmodern Souls to Christ

Strategies on how to Reach Postmoderns

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Making Sense of Last Day Events

3. The Outpouring of the Holy Spirit in Latter Rain Power

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Reprioritizing in the Last Days

Use of Spiritual Gifts

1h 10m

Prophecy's Final Countdown

01 Fire from Heaven

58m

Plenary Sessions

Revived by the Spirit

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IMPACT: Greater Than What Jesus Did?

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Sound Doctrine