Adults

Posts about Roger Severino

Home / Roger Severino / Page 3
Jan
30
Roger Severino

9 Things You May Not Know About The Holy Spirit

In some Christian traditions the Holy Spirit is strongly emphasized, while in others the Spirit may be deemphasized. A balanced, biblical view of the Holy Spirit is helpful, not harmful. Here are nine things you should know about the Holy Spirit:

  1. He is a Person. OK, maybe not a person in terms of human, but the Bible, including Jesus, refers to the Spirit as a “he” not as an “it.” The Holy Spirit is not merely a force, but a person who has a mind, feelings, and will (see Romans 8:27; Ephesians 4:30; 1 Corinthians 12:11).
  1. He is the Third Person of the Trinity. The Trinity was a term coined early on in the history of the church to explain what the Bible taught. God is one but is revealed in three persons: God, the Father, God, the Son, and God, the Holy Spirit. They are all equally God and yet the Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Spirit, and the Spirit is not the Father. We worship God the three in one. The mystery is profound, yet profoundly true.
  1. His Primary Role may be summarized as “God’s Empowering Presence.” After studying some of the things Jesus taught about the Holy Spirit in John 14-16, I summarized that the “Spirit mediates the presence and power of Christ to the believer.” That explanation is by no means comprehensive, but it’s a good start.
  1. He Brings About the Believer’s Conversion. Titus 3:5, among others, is a verse that tells of the Spirit bringing regeneration (new birth/spiritual birth) to the believer.
  1. He Gives Believers Assurance of their Salvation. Romans 8:16 tells us that the Holy Spirit testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Ephesians 1:13-14 also talks about the believer being sealed with the Holy Spirit, as a down payment of our ultimate inheritance.
  1. He is Needed for Spiritual Growth. Galatians 5:16 says that if we walk by the Spirit we will not carry out the desires of the flesh (our sinful nature). The fruit, or evidence, that we are living by the Spirit is that He will develop certain qualities in our life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (see Galatians 5:22-23).
  1. He Brings about Christian Fellowship and Unity. Ephesians 4:1-6 is one passage that talks about “keeping the unity of the Spirit with the peace that binds us.” The Spirit is at work making us all one in Christ.
  1. He Empowers Believers for Service and Missions. Not only does He give every believer a spiritual gift for serving God’s purposes in the church and world (see 1 Corinthians 12:4-11), He also empowers us to take the good news of Jesus to the world (see Acts 1:8).
  1. His Work is Necessary to Convince Unbelievers of the Truth. Apologetics is about giving a defense for what we believe and the hope we have. In the end, however, we can never argue someone into the Kingdom of God. Unless the Holy Spirit illumines the mind of the skeptic, the words will be foolishness to him and he will not receive it (see 1 Corinthians 2:12-16). Conversely, the Spirit is able to soften the hardest heart and bring men and women to faith in Jesus.
Jan
23
Roger Severino

The Source of Truth: Getting To Know Jesus

by Roger Severino       

Last time, we considered that the truth is not a philosophy or religion, but a person: Jesus Christ.
So, if Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (see John 14:6), how do we get to know Him? Fortunately, the Living Word (Jesus) has been captured in the Written Word (the Bible). For a scholarly yet reasonably accessible study of the reliability of Scripture, check out Craig Blomberg’s new book Can We Still Believe the Bible?
Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are the most obvious places to get to know Jesus. Here, you will encounter eyewitness accounts of the teachings, character, personality, deeds, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
Book of Acts: Here, you will read about the earliest followers of Jesus and how they began to spread His message throughout the Roman Empire. The first half of the book focuses on Peter and the Twelve disciples, while second half centers in on the miraculous conversion of Saul, who goes on to become Paul the Apostle, and great missionary for the Christian faith.
The Letters of Paul and the Rest of the New Testament: In these books we find the reflections and interpretation of the Christ event (Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection) by these Spirit-inspired writers. Typically, these are letters written to specific churches in a given city. Often these letters have two sections:

  1. “You Are” — who they are in Christ
  2. “Therefore, Be” — how they are to live out their faith

The Old Testament: You may be surprised that I would suggest you can discover Christ in the Old Testament. But do you remember what Jesus taught on the road to Emmaus: “Didn’t the Messiah have to suffer these things and enter into His glory?” Then beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He interpreted for them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.”[1] Jesus read the Old Testament (Moses and all the Prophets) as pointing to Himself. This fall our church will do a study of “God’s Unfolding Story” which will help us see how all of Scripture points to Jesus and the New Covenant.
Next Steps: If you are new to the Bible, I would encourage you to begin with the one of the Gospels. Other great places to go are Philippians, James, or 1 John. The Psalms and Proverbs are also great ways to begin reading the Old Testament. If you prefer a selected daily Scripture passage with devotional thoughts from someone in our church, go to our web site and read the JourneyOn Today reading. There’s also an app for that.
Take Away: Whether you are a Bible scholar or brand new to the Bible, nothing can replace a regular study of Scripture to grow in your relationship with Jesus.
One More Thing: During this emphasis on apologetics and truth, videos are available to view at: http://adults.journeyonleadership.com/training/video-training/
For several weeks, we will look at how early Christians defended the faith during difficult times in the Roman Empire.
[1]The Holy Bible: Holman Christian Standard Version. (Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers, 2009), Lk 24:26–27.