Peter responded, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." Divine providence adapts to this human condition. They can see Christ, hear him, and touch him in their family and community. “The Holy Spirit is the presence of the living Lord Jesus in spiritual power in the lives of men.” [7] Walter Thomas Conner, The Work of the Holy Spirit (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1949), p. 64. As mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles, outpourings of the Holy Spirit can include healing, prophecy, exorcism, and speaking in tongues. xvi. 2 And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Now He had gone up into heaven to sit at the right side of God. The Holy Spirit is the means by which Jesus continues to do his work in the world. Jesus said "you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. But it is a faith like Peter's, which is ten percent within and ninety percent sustained by their experience of Christ's external presence in others outside them. I. The Holy Spirit is the third part of the Trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit that is the way Christians understand God. [12] Cf. A dove may also be seen at the ear of Saint Gregory the Great – as recorded by his secretary – or other church father authors, dictating their works to them. One of these joy-filled appearances took place along the shore of the sea of Galilee. Today, 2,000 years later, believers are still filled with the power of the Holy Spirit and call upon the Spirit whenever they are in need of strength or guidance. Holy Spirit, in Christian belief, the third person of the Trinity. Peter heard with amazement at the Last Supper Our Lord's words "Truly, truly I say to you, the cock will not crow, till you have denied me three times." Peter then experienced, welling up within him, a surge of joy, love, renewed faith, awe, enthusiasm, and hope that transformed him. It is in faith that all those who believe posses the Holy Spirit tha… Conversely, in the book of Acts, it is evidently presented that the Holy Spirit was initially granted to the disciples, later transferred to the early Jewish believers and ultimately to the Gentiles. This time Peter was a purified person, humbled, free of any inflated self-illusions. As mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles, outpourings of the Holy Spirit can include healing, prophecy, exorcism, and speaking in tongues. Kingdom was not coming in because the King and His message were mostly being rejected. We can best learn from the first Pentecost how the Holy Spirit comes into our lives. And every day more and more people became Christians. It was in the context of this unusual meal that Christ turned to Peter and said to him, "Do you love me more than these?" By Xin jie. The world of inner consciousness is not the primary focus of our attention. Impossible! Entering the Dominican Order, he pursued his sacred studies at St. Albert's College in Oakland and the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. [12] No, the perfection of love is only achieved when the beloved comes to full life within the lover. The power came as did the Holy Spirit … JOHN 14: 15– 20. He takes his sword in hand and cuts off the ear of one of the servants taking hold of Jesus. [3] Peter, once again, flatly denied the possibility. Peter preached to them some more. God's approach to us initially is through the senses. They heard a noise from the sky like a strong wind blowing. Jesus said that it is only when the birthing is over and the woman sees the baby, that the travail of the birth is forgotten. Holy. Now they were surprised that each person could hear in the language he was born in. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. A belief in the real presence of the Holy Spirit as described in this account of the Day of Pentecost is integral to the Christian faith. Saint Thomas distinguishes the carnal man from the spiritual man. The change in emphasis from the outer world to the inner world is always painfu. In an extraordinary scene, they found the resurrected Jesus preparing a meal for them so that he might do what he enjoyed doing most, breaking bread in fellowship with those whom he loved. Wall has had a career rich in pastoral and academic experiences. Separation from Christ, experiencing life without him, often prepares one for his rebirth within. Peter, having been emptied of his illusions about himself, is now filled with Christ and is prepared to bring Christ to others. This is what King David had been talking about in the Psalms when he wrote the song to God that says: "You will not leave My soul in Hades [that is, the world of the dead]; You will not let Your Holy One's body rot.". The Spirit is the active person that came to reside within the followers of Jesus Christ after Jesus had been crucified on the cross, and rose from the dead. The majority of us probably belong to this category. If they had come from such love, he would have returned to the courtyard and acknowledged to all that he was indeed the companion of Jesus. THE COMING OF THE SPIRIT. Forty days after Jesus rose, he went back to be with God the Father. The question that arises is what does this mean and how did it affect the church. July 28, 2019. It was on the Jewish feast day of Pentecost. That same Holy Spirit has come upon you; He inspires you and teaches you. . He was ordained in Rome in 1950. After some time, they also had begun to recognize dimly that Jesus was more than merely human. Like the prodigal son eating the food of the animals in his charge, they remember "even the servants in their father's house live better than they do." We don’t have to search the Scriptures very far to see that just as Jesus was foreshadowed and prophesied in the Old Testament, so was the Holy Spirit’s coming. For the first time he could see clearly Christ within, the mirror of the divine. Suddenly they find that they no longer believe. A short time later, we find Jesus in the courtyard, being brutalized by the Roman soldiers. Wherefore, both in Holy Scripture and inthe writings of the fathers, men are styled regenerated, new creatures,partakers of the Divine Nature, children of God, god-like, and similar epithets.Now these great blessings are justly attributed as especially belonging to theHoly Ghost. So, he was surprised and hurt at the words of Jesus. Peter would have been partially correct. Jesus looks at Peter, and Peter looks into Jesus' eyes. Later that evening in the courtyard, where the torturing of Jesus continued, Peter is singled out by a maidservant as one of Jesus' followers. Daniel L. Segraves, Teacher [1] Just before His ascension, Jesus gathered His apostles and commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now” (Acts 1:4-5). Among their characteristics I would include the following: In a word, they are the true charismatics. Take for example the prophecy of Jeremiah, in chapter 31. We have in Peter, then, a clear illustration of how one passes from the first and second stage of the journey to God, to the third stage in which one experiences the mirror of Christ within. Then those who believed what he said were baptized. Jesus came and died to save you. With spiritual maturation, our spiritual development can survive without the external support system that brought it into being in the first place. Simeon, as a man of the spirit, did not need an external sign to recognize the presence of Christ. The other disciples had abandoned Jesus in fear. He probably looked at Our Lord with hurt in his eyes, saying, "See. b 3 Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire, * which parted and came to rest on each one of them. The Church is a unique spiritual organism which began on the Day of Pentecost and which has a unique relationship to the Spirit. Their experience of his presence continued to take place by way of "reflections" of that presence. Peter is seeing a bound, beaten, helpless, impotent, ineffective Jesus. It is all too easy to attribute to the Holy Spirit inner movements that should be attributed solely to the human spirit. It came rather from the thought that Jesus did not really know him, that Jesus could think him capable of such an action. No longer the Jesus who magisterially preached to the thousands and dominated the minds of his enemies. [13]. The profound emptying of the flawed ego in us prepares for the birth of the mature Christ within. Therefore, it was fitting that God would lead them to the discovery of Christ through external, sensible signs. The stage has been set for their return to their true home. [14] St. Thomas refers in many places to the idea that carnal men must become spiritual men to approach God, e.g., in Catena Aurea, Vol. Summary: The Holy Spirit did not come because the believers prayed but because the day of Pentecost had come, the day appointed for the “birthday of the church.” He baptized the believers into one body,so that they had a living connection with their sovereign Head 1 2 Holy Spirit. The Coming of the Holy Spirit Acts 2. CHAPTER 2. The Holy Spirit brings spiritual freedom no matter what. For the first time, Peter experiences the stirrings of doubt and fear. Luke 4:1 How Muhammad could be “in” the disciples stretches all credibility. His work has many facets and is definitely worthy of study. “When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession” (Ephesians 1:13-14). Surely there were times when you wavered, when you experienced doubts about Jesus' mission, when you experienced fear coming from your association with him? July 28, 2019. That the real Peter was the part of him that was loyal, believing, courageous, self-sacrificing and true. and instructor of truth. In the beginning, the external, sensible, visible reflections of God are indispensable to our spiritual development. It marked a turning point in the early church. From the Gospel accounts, though, it is clear that they still had a long road of spiritual growth ahead. While he himself administered a baptism in water, there was One coming who would be the administrator of a baptism with the Holy Spirit 3. The coming of the Holy Spirit takes place normally only after a period of substantial growth of Christ within, a growth that can take place only after an equally substantive purgation of the many obstacles that hinder such growth. NAS: Spirit will come upon you, and the power KJV: The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, INT: Spirit [the] Holy will come upon you. The story of the coming of the Holy Spirit in an almost visible form – a form that was perceived by the senses – is one of the most dramatic stories in the New Testament. [6] These words seem similar to those spoken by Peter at the Last Supper when he professed his love for Christ. [1] Peter's surprise came not because he learned that he would deny Jesus. He told the crowd that they were not drunk, but that what the prophet Joel had said would happen was happening. 2 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. It is not an organization that you join. After Jesus rose from the dead, He told the apostles to wait in Jerusalem until they received power when the Holy Spirit came on them. Take for example the prophecy of Jeremiah, in chapter 31. He flatly denies having anything to do with him. So, "the Word became flesh and dwelt among us." Unlike the shepherds and the Magi, Simeon was a man of the spirit. Acts 2:1-15 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) The Coming of the Holy Spirit. 1 When a the Day of Pentecost had fully come, b they were all 1 with one accord in one place. What had to happen to them to remove the final barrier that kept them from that immediate encounter? The Holy Spirit and his involvement in the ministry of Jesus. 1 When a the Day of Pentecost had fully come, b they were all 1 with one accord in one place. The disciples were very happy and so they waited in Jerusalem as Jesus had said, praying all the time. Peter's experience illustrates the transition from consciousness of Christ as the mirror of the divine outside, to consciousness of the mature Christ reflecting God's presence within. Persons who are truly spiritual depend less on external signs. The Christians listened to what the apostles taught, shared what they had, ate the Lord's Supper together, and prayed together. But you should meet with a local group of Christians to study the apostle's teaching, share together, eat the Lord's Supper together, and pray together. The stirrings of religious hunger within take on an infinite variety of forms. Happiness is pursued primarily in that world of outer reality and not in the world within. Notice that the Holy Spirit has always been omnipresent and ministering upon the earth, but John clearly says at that time that He “had not yet been given” (John John 14:16). "Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you." Father Antoninus Wall, O.P. These qualities were indeed in him. [4]. Then Peter told them, "Repent [that is, change your mind about sinning], and each of you must be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Holy Spirit, in Christian belief, the third person of the Trinity. But whether He will or not is up to you. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” 40 With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. 3 Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them. The Church is the organic completion of the united body to the Head – Jesus Christ. The coming of the Holy Spirit takes place normally only after a period of substantial growth of Christ within, a growth that can take place only after an equally substantive purgation of the many obstacles that hinder such growth. Forty days after Jesus rose, he went back to be with God the Father. 2 And suddenly there came from the sky a noise like a strong driving wind, and it filled the entire house in which they were. Two thousand years ago, the Lord Jesus promised us: “And, behold, I come quickly” (Revelation 22:12).Now, all manner of signs of His return have appeared, and many brothers and sisters have had premonitions that the day of the Lord is near. When a woman is in travail she has sorrow...but when she is delivered of the child, she no longer remembers the anguish." 1 When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled, they were all in one place together. The Holy Spirit would bring that power (Acts 1:8) 4. In many paintings of the Annunciation, the Holy Spirit is shown in the form of a dove, coming down towards Mary on beams of light, as the Archangel Gabriel announces Jesus Christ's coming to Mary. The traditional view says that this is the coming of the Holy Spirit to inaugurate the Church Age. This law is true of our relations with Christ. 1 * When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled, they were all in one place together. Saint Thomas points out that humans tend to live in the senses. When the others arrived with nets bursting with fish, they found that Jesus had a fire lit on which there was a skillet with fish in it. We know who they are – although we may not think of them in the terms I have been using. Peter, honest person that he was, would probably have acknowledged that there were such moments. Old Testament Promises. The ----- is the Church's official summary and profession of faith in the chief mysteries revealed by God through Jesus. When we have the Holy Spirit in our lives, we can walk into a new feeling of freedom no matter what the situation past, present or future. (Micah 3:8; Luke 1: 35) God sends out his spirit by projecting his energy to any place to accomplish his will. 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