Dr MJ Du Plessis Reformed Church Bellville 10 September 2006 (morning) Scripture NIV

REFORMED CHURCH BELLVILLE: SUNDAY 10 SEPTEMBER 2006: MORNING SERVICE

Sing before: Psalm 2:6

Let us commence this meeting with God by declaring openly to one another and to God:
Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Beloved grace and peace be to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, through the mighty working of God the Holy Spirit.
Amen

Psalm of praise: Psalm 33:1+3

Confession of faith: Nicene

We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all ages; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made. Who, or us men and for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was Incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the living and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.
And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life; who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets.
And we believe one holy catholic* and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and we look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.
Amen.

After the reading of the Law we confess our guilt and pray for forgiveness and a new life before God with Psalm 19:4
Law
Psalm: 19:4

Prayer:

Doxology
Worship
Confession of sins
Forgiveness
Gratitude
Prayer for the need of the congregation for the church, the authorities and the sinful world and appeal to God's promises.
General prayer
Enlightenment from the Holy Spirit for the sake of the ministry of the Word.

Amen

Psalm: 32:1

Scripture: Luke 3 and Matthew 3
Text: Luke 3:16

Luke 3:16

"John answered them all, "I baptise you with water. But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire."

Matthew 3:11

"I baptise you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire."

Each one of us was at his/her baptism baptised with the Holy Spirit:

In this process there was no definite conduct by the believer that caused the Holy Spirit to be awarded to him/her.
It was a deed that emanated totally from the Lord and in which He awarded His covenant to the one baptised.
In this award He also gave the Holy Spirit as a material part of His covenant.

In this sermon we consider the following:

1.         The meaning thereof of being baptised with the Holy Spirit.
2.         The Holy Spirit follows me as from baptism into my life.

1.         The meaning thereof of being baptised with the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit and fire are two elements often found together in the Bible. The reason for it is simple – in a way the one represents the other.

The Lord often uses fire to reveal His presence.
Sometimes it shows His mercy and at others His judgment.

In Leviticus 9:24 we read of the first sacrifices offered by Aaron as High Priest.

He lifted his hands towards the people and blessed them.
He and Moses then went into the Tent of meeting and when they came out they blessed the people.
The glory of the Lord was then revealed to the people when fire came out of the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar.

The people understood that this was a revelation that the Lord was in their midst and accepted their sacrifice. They shouted for joy and fell face down.

But things did not always go well when the Lord revealed Himself to the people in fire.

In Leviticus 10:2 we read of Aaron's sons Nadab and Abihu appearing before the Lord with unauthorised fire and that fire came out of the presence of the Lord and consumed them.
The Lord thus uses fire also to reveal His judgment and His mercy.

The sermons and the baptisms of John the Baptist referred to these matters.

He preached that the kingdom of heaven was near.
And then he tells of the Lord Jesus.
I baptise you with water for repentance but He who comes after me – He shall baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.
John the Baptist's baptism was a pointer towards Jesus' baptism.

According to Mark 1:8 and John 1:33 the Lord Jesus would baptise with the Holy Spirit. Matthew 3:11 and Luke 3:6 speak of a baptism with fire.

The two are to be joined together for the combination of Spirit/wind and fire appears in the Old Testament already – see Isaiah 29:6 and 30:27 for example.

"The Lord Almighty will come with thunder and earthquake and great noise, with windstorm and tempest and flames of a devouring fire". (Isaiah 29:6)

The serving of the Holy Spirit and the serving of fire to the one baptised is the same service. That is why two of the evangelists leave the word "fire" out.

Now, if they are the same, why is the word "fire" then used together with the Holy Spirit by the other two?

The fire points to the cleansing working of the Spirit of God.
The Spirit burns away sin and cleanses the heart.
Baptism with the Holy Spirit and baptism with fire is thus the same occurrence but with two effects.

The Messiah comes to do two things.

He comes with spiritual ministry.
And He comes to execute judgment.
He is the Saviour and the Judge.
He is the Bearer of Judgment and the Executioner of Judgment.

The baptism with fire points to the Last Judgment.

Effectively it means that every person who is baptised receives the Holy Spirit physically so that He may prepare him for the Last Judgment.

The Holy Spirit who is served to man at his baptism works repentance in the life of the one baptised. That is why John continued to preach that the people should repent.

Repentance means to become pure.
Jesus' baptism with fire is also the symbol of cleansing for in the Old Testament there are many examples of unclean people being burnt away by the fire coming out of the presence of the Lord.
Likewise the Holy Spirit burns the person who is baptised in the Name of Jesus clean with repentance.
All repentance is worked by the Holy Spirit.

The baptism of Jesus is called a baptism with the Holy Spirit and with fire.

The baptism with the Holy Spirit points to Pentecost. In Acts 1:4+5 we read:

"On one occasion, while He was eating with them, He gave them this command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptised with water, but in a few days you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit."

Note the words "… but in a few days you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit".

With the pouring out of the Holy Spirit the apostle's baptism was completed.
This does not mean that the Holy Spirit is poured out only when a person is baptised.
Even before a person is baptised the Holy Spirit is already working in him.
A good example is a mature person who comes to repentance and confesses his faith whereafter he is baptised.
Everything that occurred before that baptism was already worked by the Holy Spirit.

Baptism with water and baptism with the Spirit both emphasize the same issue.

The one does so negatively and the other positively.
The baptism with water emphasizes the negative – sins that are washed away.
The baptism with the Spirit emphasizes the positive – the abundant gift of the new Life.

2. The Holy Spirit follows me as from baptism into my life

Note that John the Baptist placed his announcement that Jesus Christ would be the Baptist with the Holy Spirit within the frame of his announcement that the kingdom of God was near. (Matthew 3:2)

The baptism with the Holy Spirit is therefore nothing less than the arrival of the kingdom of God into the life of the one baptised.
From God's side the baptism is an assurance that through his mercy I move from a life of sin and perdition into a life of eternal glory with God.

Note also that Jesus Himself was baptised with the Holy Spirit so that the relationship between the kingdom of God and the baptism with the Holy Spirit might be clearly revealed therein.

To understand this occurrence properly we must know the meaning and importance of the text of John 1:33. It is written there that the Holy Spirit not only descended onto Jesus but also remained on Him:

"I would not have known Him, except that the one who sent me to baptise with water told me, "The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is He who will baptise with the Holy Spirit".

That is also the meaning of Pentecost.

With the pouring out of the Holy Spirit the kingdom of God arrived.
As from the baptism with the Holy Spirit the kingdom of God is present with all the kingdoms on earth.

In Acts 19 we read that Paul came to Ephesus and found some of John's disciples there.

He asked them whether they had received the Holy Spirit when they believed.
Their reply was that they had never heard of the Holy Spirit.
They were then baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus whereupon they received the Holy Spirit.

From this it is clear that each time a person was baptised in the name of Jesus Christ he received the Holy Spirit.

We do not read in the Bible of any other occasions when it was so clear except those in the beginning.
It is unnecessary for these first occasions make it plain that this is what it would be like in future although it may not be so visible.

Another important text is in the Gospel of John at John 1:29-34.

John tells us there that the Lamb of God is the Son of God and that there is a connection between the taking away of sin and the baptism with the Holy Spirit.
We can refer to the baptism with the Holy Spirit as the giving of a new life through the forgiveness of sin.

Practically it means that someone whose sins are forgiven shall live in the Holy Spirit.

He breaks free from his former life.
Each person's former life is that in which he persists in his sin.
Sins such as willfulness, recklessness and animosity. Sometimes we are devious or we steal or covet that which does not belong to us and so forth.

As against these things there is the new life that God the Holy Spirit engenders in us.

We pray more, we live in peace with other people, we try doing good, to help those in need, we speak well of people rather than to slander them.
We try to become more and more holy in our life, we try to break away from the sins we do.

We recently sat at the Lord's Supper. We must now ask ourselves:

Where does the baptism with the Holy Spirit fit into my life now that the Lord assured me at the Holy Communion of my salvation and the forgiveness of all my sins?
The answer is simple. The Holy Spirit claims my life completely.
But it is not so simple to live a life filled by the Holy Spirit. We often sin because we fail to realize that we must live to the greater glory of God.

Let us consider some examples:

Many of us live our married life in strife and bickering. We know more of quarrelling than of praying together and being the image of God.
Others have children but do not raise them to the glory of God. We just leave them to be.
Every day we act like worldly people – we bungle and perform poorly.
We hang around in places where a Christian should not be.

Briefly – the style of God the Holy Spirit is largely not seen in our lives because we ignore the presence of the Holy Spirit in us.

What must we make of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit?

We must with our hearts and minds glorify and praise the Lord for the Holy Spirit deals with both.
I must deliberately plan my life in such a way that it proclaims the glory of God in every way.

Of course, we must not overdo it and fall into the sin of fanaticism and emotionalism.

Some people let themselves be rebaptised after so-called conversions or reconversions.
Before doing that, one must have a clear answer to the question – what becomes of the first awarding of the Holy Spirit?
Can one reject the awarding of the Holy Spirit?
Is it possible for the Holy Spirit to be re-awarded?
Is it possible for us to control the baptism with the Holy Spirit or to subject it to our conditions? – for that is what happens with a re-baptism.

Sin against the Holy Spirit is unforgivable.

One should guard against even coming close to a situation where you might sin against the Holy Spirit.
Listen to what is written in Matthew 12:31+32:

"And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come".

Anybody can lightly fall into a situation where he may sin against the Holy Spirit.

Remember Ananias and Sapphira who lied about their contribution to the church and who both fell dead because they lied to the Holy Spirit – Acts 5:1-10.

The guideline for a pure life is contained in John the Baptist's sermon. The kingdom of heaven has come. The Lord Jesus is here.

By virtue of His almight He gives each of us His (new) covenant.
He makes the words come true that God said when He spoke to Abraham and said: "I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you". (Genesis 17:7)
God establishes His covenant with us. Today still. The moment we are baptised in the Name of the Lord Jesus, he baptizes us with the Holy Spirit.

Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit we grow up and come to repentance every day. So we become holier until one day we are in the hereafter.

Amen

Closing prayer
Closing Psalm: 66:7

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Amen

Dr MJ Du Plessis
Reformed Church Bellville
10 September 2006 (morning)
Scripture NIV