The Holy Spirit
Jesus said it was better for Him to go back to the Father or else the Comforter or the holy spirit would not come. He promised that He would send the promise of the holy Spirit upon those who believed in Him. The purpose of Jesus' sacrifice was to obtain the holy spirit baptism for men. How precious it is that the spirit of God can come and dwell in our hearts. But what is its' role? Is it necessary or just optional? How do you know if you have received the spirit?
Study the resource on this page to come to a better understanding of the wonderful gift of life that is given to us when we receive the holy spirit.
Video - Did The Apostles Think Of The Holy Spirit As A Person?
In this 3 part video, Pastor John Clark, Sr., examines the evidence from the Greek New Testament that shows that the apostles never referred to the holy spirit as a person even though they were free to depart from the basic rules of Greek grammar if they thought they were speaking of a person. Pastor John teaches some very simple, basic Greek grammar to show what the apostles could and did do with Greek words but never did in the case of the holy spirit. This class was taught to people with no background in Greek so don't worry that you know nothing about Greek!
Spiritual Light
Spiritual Light is the result of four visitations from the Lord over a period of 4 years.
Starting with a discussion of the 3rd commandment, marriage and "taking the name of the Lord" and then wonderful insight into Christ's sacrifice this book reveals desperately needed understanding that dispels the confusion about conversion, baptism, salvation and works. This book is available on-line and at cost price from our eBay store
. Check out the eBay store for other good gospel materials and music.Thought for Today
Aug. 19
THE BLOOD OF JESUS AND THE BLOOD OF CHRIST
. . . but with the precious blood of Christ."
1Peter 1:18-19
On those rare occasions when Israel's high priest was allowed into the "Most Holy" of Israel's earthly temple, he was required to bring with him the blood of a sacrificial animal. If he dared to enter into that sacred room without the blood of a slain animal, God would have taken his life instead. When Jesus ascended into the Most Holy in heaven to offer himself to God for our sins, he also was required to enter with blood. But Jesus did not take with him the blood of bulls and of sheep; instead, he entered into God's presence with his own blood, shed at Calvary just weeks before.
The blood of Jesus was as human as any other human being's blood. In Jesus' natural, human body there was natural, human blood flowing through natural, human blood vessels. That natural blood brought natural life to his human body. This blood had to be shed for our sins, and then Jesus had to offer his shed blood to God for us. This is the "blood of Jesus".
The incorruptible "blood of Christ" is another story. The "blood of Christ" refers to something not natural or human at all; namely, the holy Spirit. The blood of Christ is God's Spirit, and it brings eternal life to whoever receives it. The apostles called the Spirit the "blood of Christ" because, for one reason, they wanted us never to forget the connection between the agony of Jesus on the cross and the pouring out of the holy Spirit. They wanted those who receive the Spirit always to remember the price that Jesus paid for our forgiveness and sanctification. Secondly, the apostles called the Spirit "the blood of Christ" because the eternal Spirit brings God's eternal life to the body of Christ, just as natural blood brings natural life to human bodies. If blood ceases to flow through any member of a person's body, that member immediately grows weak and will die if the blood flow is not restored; likewise, if the Spirit of God ceases to move through any member of the body of Christ, that member immediately grows weak and will die if the flow of the Spirit is not restored to their souls.
"THEY WALKED NO MORE WITH HIM"
Jesus was actually the first to refer to the Spirit as his blood, but when he did so, a large number of his disciples were angered. In fact, they were so scandalized by his claim that only those who drank his blood would have eternal life that they renounced him, walked away, and never returned to follow him again (Jn. 6:53-66). Today, they are in hell, pleading for another opportunity to drink the blood of Christ.
The blood of Jesus was corruptible, natural blood. The blood of Christ is incorruptible, spiritual life. The blood of Jesus flowed out of his body in streams as he struggled on the cross, but all of the "blood of Christ" stayed within him, giving him strength and, after three days, it raised up Jesus from death (Heb. 13:20).
Jesus suffered and poured out his earthly, natural blood so that the Father would pour out His life-giving, spiritual blood from heaven. Jesus' natural blood was shed on the ground at Calvary, but the blood of Christ, the holy Ghost, was "shed" on the disciples on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:33). This spiritual blood still flows, and still sanctifies, justifies and cleanses men from all unrighteousness. The blood of Jesus was shed upon cruel Roman soldiers at Calvary, and it made them dirty. The blood of Christ was shed upon Jesus' humble disciples in an Upper Room, and it made them clean. From the Lord's wounds, the blood of Jesus stained the cross red as it ran down to the ground. From God's heart, the "blood of Christ" rained upon the souls of the disciples, making their spirits white as snow (Rev. 7:14; Isa. 1:18). God had a Son before the virgin Mary did. That Son of God was living long before Mary was born. The blood of that Son of God is life itself, the eternal life of the Father, the life that the Father gave to the Son before the world began (Jn. 5:26). The blood of Jesus has long since returned to the dust from whence it came, but the blood of Christ is still flowing, cleansing souls from sin. The blood of Christ is still available. The blood of Jesus is not.
Jesus was willing to die, to shed his natural blood, so that his spiritual blood, the holy Spirit, could be shed upon our hearts. God's holiness required that someone pay the penalty for our sin. Sinless Jesus is the only one who could pay that debt, and without the shedding of the blood of Jesus, God would never have granted to anyone the cleansing blood of Christ.