Tag Archives: Faith

Full of the Holy Spirit and Faith

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“he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith…”
(Acts 11:24)

I want this passage engraved on my tombstone.

I know it’s too early to think about that sort of thing, but since I am turning 40 in a couple of weeks, one might as well begin thinking about the inevitable.

All kidding aside, wouldn’t we all want this said about us at the end of our lives?  This passage comes from Luke’s description in Acts of the growing church in Antioch.  Believers who fled persecution in Jerusalem had assembled in Antioch, a predominately Hellenist (read Greek, or non-Jewish) community.  We read in Acts 11 that “the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.”  When news of this tremendous growth reached Jerusalem, they sent Barnabas to Antioch to teach and encourage the believers there, and while Barnabas was there, God continued to prosper and grow the church.  Barnabas rejoiced when we saw the grace of God present in Antioch, and he exhorted them all “to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose.”  Then we are given a clue as to the success of Barnabus’ ministry, “he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith.”

That Barnabas was a good man has been previously established in the book of Acts.  We first read of Barnabas in Acts 4:36-37.  There we find a man called Joseph, whom the disciples called Barnabas, which means “son of encouragement,” who, with many other believers, sold his property and gave the money to the poor.

This is the kind of guy people want to be around.  He was an encourager, building up others, helping equip and strengthen them for service.  And he was generous and charitable, considering the needs of others before his own.  This characterizes Barnabas as a “good man.”

But, as Matthew  Henry notes, “the goodness of his natural disposition would not have qualified him for this service if he had not been full of the Holy Spirit.”  That is a phrase that is worth considering.  It’s used to describe only two other people in the New Testament, Jesus, just after his baptism in Luke 4, and Stephen, when he was selected as a Deacon in Acts 6, and as he was martyred in Acts 7.

So what does it mean to be full of the Holy Spirit?  It think that first we must remember that it is the Holy Spirit who awakens us to the gospel, who convicts us of our sin, and who leads us unto a saving knowledge of our savior Jesus Christ.  One cannot be a believer, one cannot be saved, unless the Spirit has first come and given life.  There is no such thing as life in Christ apart from the Holy Spirit – for it is the Spirit who gives life (John 6:63).

But there is a sense in which, once quickened by the Spirit from death unto life, the Holy Spirit may also fill individuals with power and equip them for ministry.  It was this outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost that filled the disciples and enabled them to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ for salvation to the nations gathered in Jerusalem.  It was this outpouring of the Holy Spirit that strengthened Stephen to boldly proclaim the risen Christ even as he was being killed. It is the outpouring of the Holy Spirit that equips and gifts the Church for ministry (1 Corinthians 12).  When the Holy Spirit fills a person, the result is a dramatic and mighty demonstration of God’s saving power.

Inwardly, the fullness of the Holy Spirit must also imply the crucifixion of the spirit of flesh.  Paul writes in Romans 8 that “the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus…” that we “walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit…” and “you, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you.”  To be full of the Spirit is to live according to the Spirit, to seek the leading of the Spirit, through the Word of God (read and proclaimed), and through prayer.  It is following the lead of God’s Holy Spirit in every decision, every action, every word – placing yourself captive to the sovereign and gracious power of God’s Holy Spirit.

And, of course, Barnabas was a man of faith.  He knew and trusted the power of God for salvation.  He could give his possessions knowing his life was secure in the hands of his Provider.  He could encourage others to faithfulness because he knew that Christ was the Faithful One.  Again, Matthew Henry writes, “He was full of faith, full of the grace of faith, and full of the fruits of that faith that works by love.”

If you try to make a name for yourself, you will probably lose it.  But if you live selflessly, living by faith, living in the fullness of God’s Spirit, God will let the quality of your character be known.  “Seek first the Kingdom of God,” Jesus said, “and all these things will be added unto you.”  Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith.  Can the same be said of you?  It is my prayer that it be said of me.

Standing in the Wake of Evil

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 “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
(Romans 12:21)

 On Monday, April 15, two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing 3 and wounding over 140 others.  Currently, two days later, we still know nothing about committed this act of terror, or even why.  As if knowing would somehow bring meaning to such tragedy, as though there could possibly be some explanation to justify the killing of innocent men, women, children.

I struggle to find the words that would express the heartbreak, the anger, the fear that such violence brings.  Lately, I’ve found myself reading the Psalms just to have something to pray, it has been difficult to find my own words.

Truth be told, I am also saddened by the “knee-jerk” reaction of my own mind – this had to have been some Islamic terrorist striking fear into the nation – that’s where my thoughts went immediately.  There’s no proof.  Outside of historical trends, there’s nothing to support the notion.  It’s just my hatred, my fear, my anger needing someone, something, to stand as a target.  When faced with evil, it is easy to respond with evil, quick decisions, rash assumptions, broad generalizations, and indiscriminate retribution.  How many times after 9/11 did you hear people talking about turning the Middle East to glass?

So how do we respond?  What can we say?  Let me offer, briefly, a few responses.

Remember we live in a broken and sinful world.  While we can often feel secure in our own quiet corners of the world, having managed our sins into respectability, the truth is that the world is broken and evil is very much real.  We live in a world that is in desperate need of salvation, and every day we must “be killing sin, or sin will be killing us.”

Remember that we are called to compassionate ministry.  Paul says in Romans 12:15, “weep with those who weep.”  In 2 Corinthians Paul blesses God, “the Father of all mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”  The comfort that you have received in Christ, the assurance of your salvation, the mercy of your pardon from sin, the grace of everlasting life; all of this is the comfort we have received from God, and the comfort we can share with others.

Remember to give thanks for God’s daily grace.  When you realize that this kind of violence is shocking and rare for us, we can be grateful for the restraining grace of God that protects us and prevents us from even greater evil.  Such remembrance, however, should also cause us to prayer for those for whom this kind of violence is commonplace, like those in Israel, and all of the Middle East.  Let us also be grateful for those who ran into danger to help those in need, the first responders, the other runners and bystanders.

Repent.  Repent of the anger and rage, the thirst for vengeance that is smeared with sin.  Repent of the dependence on military strength and political savvy as the source of your security and confidence.  Repent of the quiet complacency with the “acceptable sins” of our society while decrying this outrageous act of violence.  We will not rest until this act of terror is brought to justice and rightfully so.  But should we not also be as committed to seeking justice for the thousands of unborn who died on April 15, to the countless lives lost in Kermit Gosnell’s government funded death clinic?  R.C. Sproul once wrote, “The American psyche has no place for a God who judges people or nations.  God can bless us, but God forbid He ever judges us.  Rather than repent in dust and ashes before a holy God, we continue to shake our fists in His face, demanding a more benevolent providence from His hand.”

Live for the Kingdom of God.  The rest of Romans 12:9-21 speaks to our moving forward. I’ve highlighted a few verses here:

    • Let love be genuine.
    • Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.
    • Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all.  If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
    • Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”
    • To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.”  Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Finally, remember Christ is coming.  We longing for the day when, rather than blood in the streets, righteousness will roll like the streams, when God will judge the actions of man, and righteousness will reign.  We look to that day when He will wipe away every tear, “and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Rev. 21:4).

And so we pray, Come Lord Jesus!