Holy Spirit

So, my dear friends, don't take my rather bold and blunt language as criticism. It's not criticism. I'm simply underlining how very much I need your help in carrying out this highly focused assignment God gave me, this priestly and gospel work of serving the spiritual needs of the non-Jewish outsiders so they can be presented as an acceptable offering to God, made whole and holy by God's Holy Spirit.

—Romans 15:15-16 MESSAGE

Key Thought


Yesterday we talked about the...

 

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to God's elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.

—1 Peter 1:1-2 NIV

Key Thought


"Sanctifying work of the Spirit" sounds so formal and religious. Some...

 

The Holy Spirit confirms this: This new plan I'm making with Israel isn't going to be written on paper, isn't going to be chiseled in stone [says the Lord]; this time I'm writing out the plan in them, carving it on the lining of their hearts.

—Hebrews 10:15-16 MESSAGE

Key Thought


The Holy Spirit used the prophet Jeremiah to speak of God's coming new covenant with his people where the Spirit of God places the will of God on their hearts (Jeremiah 31:31-34), and the...

 

How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?

—Hebrews 10:29 NIV

Key Thought


If we reject Jesus, we reject everything that God is and everything he has given. We insult Father, Son, and Spirit. We reject grace at every level. The message of Jesus is precious and must never be...

 

Through the Spirit, Christ offered himself as an unblemished sacrifice, freeing us from all those dead-end efforts to make ourselves respectable, so that we can live all out for God.

—Hebrews 9:15 MESSAGE

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Jesus' sacrifice, his offering of himself as an "unblemished sacrifice," was not an accident. Yes, evil men put Jesus to death, but it was also part of God's plan (Acts 2:23). The Holy Spirit guided, prophesied, directed, and led God's redemptive...

 

By these [Old Covenant] regulations the Holy Spirit revealed that the entrance to the Most Holy Place was not freely open as long as the Tabernacle and the system it represented were still in use. This is an illustration pointing to the present time. For the gifts and sacrifices that the priests offer are not able to cleanse the consciences of the people who bring them.

—Hebrews 9:8-9 NLT

Key Thought


The Bible is not a disconnected set of stories. Underneath all...

 

For it is impossible to bring back to repentance those who were once enlightened — those who have experienced the good things of heaven and shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the age to come — and who then turn away from God ...

—Hebrews 6:4-6a NLT

Key Thought


Contained within this very tough and frank passage is a powerful promise: Those who belong to Jesus have "shared in the Holy Spirit." Following Jesus...

 

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

—Hebrews 4:12 NIV

Key Thought


The Holy Spirit guides and strengthens Christians in multiple ways (e.g., Romans 8:13-14, Galatians 5:16-26), including through Scripture. The Holy Spirit inspired Scripture and uses Scripture to teach, rebuke, correct, and train us so we can be...

 

So what makes us think we can escape if we ignore this great salvation that was first announced by the Lord Jesus himself and then delivered to us by those who heard him speak? And God confirmed the message by giving signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit whenever he chose.

—Hebrews 2:3-4 NLT

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Some things are simply more important than others. And the most important things of all are Jesus and our response to him. The message of...

 

[Jesus said,] "But when you are arrested and stand trial, don't worry in advance about what to say. Just say what God tells you at that time, for it is not you who will be speaking, but the Holy Spirit."

—Mark 13:11 NLT

Key Thought


What an incredible promise! We are never alone, even when we are under the threat of persecution and martyrdom. We have the Holy Spirit of God within us. We are not abandoned in trial or torture. The Spirit who bore witness to Jesus...