CHAPTER 7

WHEN GOD’S STORY BECOMES YOURS…

POWER MOVES IN

THINK ABOUT IT!

It’s the old Superman-versus-Batman debate. Superman fans want superpowers. The Man of Steel is cool because he is stronger, faster, and more powerful. Batman fans love that the guy doesn’t have any powers; he’s just smarter, more inventive, and more committed than the bad guys.

Whichever side you take in that debate, the story you are living through faith in Jesus is all about superpowers. In fact, one of the main points in the story is that you and I cannot be good enough on our own to overcome evil. We’ve already lost. We need to be bitten by that radioactive spider to have a shot at winning the battles we will face.

Check that. The Holy Spirit is not a spider, and he doesn’t make you supernaturally strong so you can win your own battles. He makes you supernaturally strong so you can do everything the Storyteller has planned for your character. He empowers you to accomplish what he asks of you.

It is your destiny.

Sergio, 16 — If I could choose a superpower, it would be to make wishes come true. I would use it to help people and make them happy. Help them be a normal person with capabilities. I would most like to help the homeless. I would also help those who need it, help them find God. So no matter what bad things may have happened in the past, we could all be happy to know how to live life.

WHAT GOT INTO PETER? SEVEN WEEKS AGO HE WAS HIDing because of Jesus; today he is proclaiming the death of Jesus. Before the crucifixion, he denied Christ; now he announces Christ. On the eve of Good Friday, you couldn’t get him to speak up. Today, you can’t get him to shut up! “My fellow Jews, and all who are in Jerusalem, listen to me. Pay attention to what I have to say” (Acts 2:14 NCV).

What got into Peter?

He was a coward at the crucifixion. A kind coward but a coward nonetheless. A question from a servant girl undid him. A soldier didn’t bludgeon him. The Sanhedrin didn’t browbeat him. Rome didn’t threaten to export him to Siberia. No, a waitress from the downtown diner heard his accent and said he knew Jesus. Peter panicked. He not only denied his Lord; he bleeped the very idea. “Then Peter began to place a curse on himself and swear, ‘I don’t know the man!’ “ (Matthew 26:74 NCV).

But look at him on the day of Pentecost, declaring to a throng of thousands, “God has made this Jesus — the man you nailed to the cross — both Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:36 NCV). Gutsy language. Lynch mobs feed on these accusations. The same crowd that shouted, “Crucify him!” could crucify him.

From wimp to warrior in fifty days. What happened?

Oh, how we need to know. We admire the Pentecost Peter yet identify with the Passover one. We battle addictions we can’t shake, pasts we can’t escape, bills we can’t pay, sorrow that won’t fade.

Our convictions wrinkle, and resolve melts. And we wonder why. We look at other believers and ask, Why is her life so fruitful and mine so barren? Why is his life so powerful and mine so weak? Aren’t we saved by the same Christ? Don’t we read the same Scripture and rally around the same cross? Why do some look like the early Peter and others like the latter? Or, better question, why do I vacillate between the two in any given week?

Jesus embedded an answer in his final earthly message. He told Peter and the other followers, “Wait here to receive the promise from the Father which I told you about. John baptized people with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:4–5 NCV).

What got into Peter?

God’s Spirit did. Ten days after Jesus’ ascension into heaven, “all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:4). The followers experienced a gushing forth, a tremendous profusion. They were drenched in power. They all were “sons and daughters… young men… old men… servants, both men and women” (Acts 2:17–18). The Holy Spirit, in his own time and according to his own way, filled the followers with supernatural strength.

Didn’t Jesus promise this event? As his days on earth came to an end, he said, “But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you” (John 16:7).

The bad news: Jesus was going away. The wonderful news: Jesus was sending them the Spirit. During his earthly ministry Jesus lived near the disciples. The Holy Spirit, however, would live in the disciples. What Jesus did with the followers, the Spirit would do through them and us. Jesus healed; the Spirit heals through us. Jesus taught; the Spirit teaches through us. Jesus comforted; the Spirit comforts through us. The Spirit continues the work of Christ.

The Holy Spirit is not enthusiasm, compassion, or bravado. He might stimulate such emotions, but he himself is a person. He determines itineraries (Acts 16:6), distributes spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12:7–11), and selects church leaders (Acts 13:2). He teaches (John 14:26), guides (John 16:13), and comforts (John 16:7 KJV).

“He dwells with you and will be in you” (John 14:17 NKJV). Occasional guest? No sir. The Holy Spirit is a year-round resident in the hearts of those who believe. As God’s story becomes our story, his power becomes our power. Then why do we suffer from power failures?

I believe we make the mistake the Welsh woman made. She lived many years ago in a remote valley but determined that it would be worth the cost and trouble to have electricity in her home. Several weeks after the installation, the power company noticed that she had barely used any. So they sent a meter reader to see what was wrong.

“Is there a problem?” he asked.

“No,” she answered, “we’re quite satisfied. Every night we turn on the electric lights to see how to light our lamps.”24

We’re prone to do likewise: depend on God’s Spirit to save us but not sustain us. We are like the Galatians whom Paul asked, “After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?” (Galatians 3:3). We turn to him to get us started, and then continue in our own strength.

The Christians in Ephesus did this. The apostle Paul assured them that they had received the Spirit. God “put his special mark of ownership on you by giving you the Holy Spirit that he had promised” (Ephesians 1:13 NCV). Even so, he had to urge them to be “filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18). Interesting. Can a person be saved and not full of the Holy Spirit? They were in Ephesus.

And in Jerusalem. When the apostles instructed the church to select deacons, they said, “So, brothers and sisters, choose seven of your own men who are good, full of the Spirit and full of wisdom” (Acts 6:3 NCV). The fact that men “full of the Spirit” were to be chosen suggests that men lacking in the Spirit were present. We can have the Spirit but not let the Spirit of God have us.

Christian, 17 — Living independently of others is something I often feel the need to prove. I shrug off help from my friends, parents, and worst of all, God. I’ve come to realize that living my life in a Christian manner without him in my life is impossible. If I am going to live independently from the world, I must be dependent on God.

When God’s Spirit directs us, we actually “keep in step with the Spirit” (Galatians 5:25). He is the drum major; we are the marching band. He is the sergeant; we are the platoon. He directs and leads; we obey and follow. Not always that easy, is it? We tend to go our own way.

Some time ago I purchased a new cartridge for my computer printer. But when I used it, no letters appeared on the page. It was half an hour before I noticed the thin strip of tape covering the outlet of the cartridge. There was plenty of ink, but until the tape was removed, no impression could be made.

Is there anything in your life that needs to be removed? Any impediment to the impression of God’s Spirit? We can grieve the Spirit with our angry words (Ephesians 4:29–30; Isaiah 63:10) and resist the Spirit in our disobedience (Acts 7:51). We can test or conspire against the Spirit in our plottings (Acts 5:9). We can even quench the Spirit by having no regard for God’s teachings. “Never damp the fire of the Spirit, and never despise what is spoken in the name of the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 5:19–20 Phillips).

Here is something that helps me stay in step with the Spirit. We know that “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22–23 NASB). God’s Spirit creates and distributes these characteristics. They are indicators on my spiritual dashboard. So, whenever I sense them, I know I am walking in the Spirit. Whenever I lack them, I know I am out of step with the Spirit.

I sensed his corrective pull just yesterday at a Sunday service. A dear woman stopped me as I was entering the church building. She didn’t agree with a comment I had made in a sermon the week before and wanted to express her opinion… in the foyer… in a loud voice… ten minutes prior to the service.

What’s more, she pressed the nerve of my pet peeve. “Other people feel the same way.” Grrr. Who are these “other people"? How many “other people” are there? And why, for crying out loud, don’t “other people” come and talk to me?

By now it was time for the service to begin. I was more in a mood to bear hunt than to preach. I couldn’t get my mind off the woman and the “other people.” I drove home from the morning service beneath a cloud. Rather than love, joy, peace, and patience, I felt anger, frustration, and impatience. I was completely out of step with the Spirit. And I had a choice. I could march to my own beat, or I could get back in rhythm. I knew what to do.

I made the phone call. “I didn’t feel like we quite finished the conversation we began in the foyer,” I told her. So we did. And over the next fifteen minutes, we discovered that our differences were based on a misunderstanding, and I learned that the “other people” consisted of her and her husband, and he was really okay.

To walk in the Spirit, respond to the promptings God gives you.

Don’t sense any nudging? Just be patient and wait. Jesus told the disciples to “wait for the gift my Father promised… the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:4–5, emphasis mine). Abraham waited for the promised son. Moses waited forty years in the wilderness. Jesus waited thirty years before he began his ministry. God instills seasons of silence in his plan. Winter is needed for the soil to bear fruit. Time is needed for the development of a crop. And disciples wait for the move of God. Wait for him to move, nudge, and direct you. Somewhat as I’m learning to wait on my dance teacher.

My wife, Denalyn, and I are taking dance lessons. This was her announcement to me on our twenty-eighth wedding anniversary. She’s been making such comments for years. “We need to learn to dance, honey.” “What’s there to learn?” was my stock reply, and I would remind her of the night we waltzed our way across the dance floor at my niece’s wedding reception in 1985. She would mumble something about tractor-trailers having more finesse and drop the subject.

Of late she’s been picking it back up. Now that our third little bird has winged her way out of our nest, it’s time for the Mr. and Mrs. to slide their heels. So for my anniversary gift, she loaded me in the car, drove me to a shopping center, and parked in front of the Fred Astaire Dance Studio. (I know where they got the name. I just sat there and… uh… stared).

Our instructor is young enough to be our son. He wears a mustache-less beard and an innocent smile, and I wonder if he’d more quickly teach an elephant to pirouette than me to waltz. He spent the better part of the first class reminding me to “gently lead” my wife. “Place your hand beneath her shoulder blade and guide her.”

He said I shoved and dragged her. Denalyn agreed. And, to convey his point, he danced with me. He matched one hand on mine, placed the other beneath my left shoulder blade, and off we went, forward, forward, slide, slide, following the beat of Barry Manilow across the room. I know, it’s not a pretty sight. But it was a good lesson. I learned to follow his lead. He nudged me this way, led me that way, and, at the end I even did a nice twirl.

(Just kidding about the twirl. It was more of a tumble.)

It’s nice to be led by a master. Won’t you let your Master lead you?

He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way.

—PSALM 25:9

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”

—ISAIAH 30:21

Wait on the Spirit. If Peter and the apostles needed his help, don’t we? They walked with Jesus for three years, heard his preaching, and saw his miracles. They saw the body of Christ buried in the grave and raised from the dead. They witnessed his upper room appearance and heard his instruction. Had they not received the best possible training? Weren’t they ready?

Yet Jesus told them to wait on the Spirit. “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised… the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:4–5).

Learn to wait, to be silent, to listen for his voice. Cherish stillness; sensitize yourself to his touch. “Just think— you don’t need a thing, you’ve got it all! All God’s gifts are right in front of you as you wait expectantly for our Master Jesus to arrive on the scene” (1 Corinthians 1:7–8 MSG, emphasis mine). You needn’t hurry or scurry. The Spirit-led life does not panic; it trusts.

God’s power is very great for us who believe. That power is the same as the great strength God used to raise Christ from the dead and put him at his right side in the heavenly world.

—EPHESIANS 1:19–20 NCV

The same hand that pushed the rock from the tomb can shove away your doubt. The same power that stirred the still heart of Christ can stir your flagging faith. The same strength that put Satan on his heels can, and will, defeat Satan in your life. Just keep the power supply open. Who knows, you may soon hear people asking, “What’s gotten into you?”

DON’T JUST SIT THERE…

Thank God that he does not just give you commands; he also gives you the power to obey him and do amazing things for his glory.

Ask God to give you the wisdom to know in what areas of your life you need to quit relying on your own strength and start relying on his power through the Spirit.

Read Galatians 5:22–23 and make a list of each of the fruits of the Holy Spirit in a Christian’s life. Circle the ones you have noticed more of in your life in the last few years.

Look at that list again and think about one or two of the Christians you respect most. Draw a box around the ones in whose lives you have noticed growth.

One area of power the Holy Spirit gives us is the power to do something specific to serve other Christians in the church — but he doesn’t give us power to do everything well. Pick one area of service in your church and jump into it. Notice if you feel “empowered” to do that thing or if it just feels like human work to you.

Write out Ephesians 1:17–19 on a piece of paper and pray it for yourself and one other Christian every day for a week.