Holy Spirit, the birth and the Ministry of Jesus Christ
Part 4 of the 5-part series is about
Holy Spirit, the birth and ministry of Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us Jesus’ conception was unique in all of human history. God’s plan was that Jesus should be conceived by the Holy Spirit so that the chain of sin inherited through our human ancestry could be broken.
And God had to send His angel Gabriel to reassure Joseph, Mary’s fiancé, that she had not been immoral, but had submitted to His plan to bring His Son into the world as a human being, to become the perfect sacrifice for the sin of mankind.
Here is the record in Matthew 1:20-21.
20 As he considered this, he fell asleep, and an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to go ahead with your marriage to Mary. For the child within her has been conceived by the Holy Spirit. 21 And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” NLT
The Bible tells us about…
THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE MINISTRY OF JESUS CHRIST
At the age of thirty, before Jesus began what God the Father had Him called to do, Jesus was baptized in water in the Jordan River and in the Spirit by John the Baptist.
As He emerged from the water, the Holy Spirit came upon Him, and He began His ministry empowered by the Holy Spirit. Prior to His baptism he was known as Jesus of Nazareth, which just indicated where He lived.
Matthew 3:16 & 17 says,
16 After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, and I am fully pleased with him.” NLT
Jesus became the first human in history on whom the Holy Spirit descended and remained. After His baptism, Jesus of Nazareth became known as Jesus Christ, which means, Jesus the Anointed One. The Holy Spirit anointed Him in every aspect of His life and teaching. Even the miracles that Jesus did were empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Led By the Spirit
Even when Jesus went into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil, He was Led by the Holy Spirit
Luke 4:1 THEN JESUS, full of and controlled by the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led in [by] the [Holy] Spirit (AMPC)
And as He began to minister to the people in His country, He announced that as the Son of God He would be
Empowered by the Holy Spirit
Luke 4:14 Then Jesus went back full of and under the power of the [Holy] Spirit into Galilee, and the fame of Him spread through the whole region round about. (AMPC)
Matthew 4:23 Jesus travelled throughout the region of Galilee, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness.
Vs.24 News about him spread as far as Syria, and people soon began bringing to him all who were sick. And whatever their sickness or disease, or if they were demon possessed or epileptic or paralysed—he healed them all. (AMPC)
Act 10:38 How God anointed and consecrated Jesus of Nazareth with the [Holy] Spirit and with strength and ability and power; how He went about doing good and, in particular, curing all who were harassed and oppressed by [the power of] the devil, for God was with Him. (AMPC)
As He ministered to His people, He
Fulfilled prophecy
Jesus Christ acknowledges the empowering of the Holy Spirit in His life.
Luke 4:18 “The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, Vs. 19 and that the time of the LORD’s favor has come. “(NLT)
A new era begins
About 800 years earlier than the time of Jesus, God told a prophet by the name of Joel to write down in his prophecy that God’s Spirit would be poured out on all flesh, that is, on all human beings who believe in Jesus.
Joel 2:28 “Then, after doing all those things, I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions. Vs.29 In those days I will pour out my Spirit even on servants—men and women alike. NLT
Jesus Christ told His disciples that He was going to leave this earth and he would send the Holy Spirit to help us while He was physically absent.
In John 14:16 & 17 we read what Jesus asked our heavenly Father
16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, who will never leave you. 17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world at large cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you do, because he lives with you now and later will be in you. NLT
The word Counsellor is also translated Helper. This means someone who has been called alongside as a barrister in court to plead our case. There are two other things the Holy Spirit does for us.
Firstly, He helps us as believers to understand God’s truth.
Secondly, He gives us strength to live a life that is completely different from the world’s value system which is hostile to the way God wants us to live.
In John 14:16, Jesus says that the Holy Spirit is another Helper, that is, another of exactly the same kind as He Himself is.
Wow, what an exciting concept, Jesus prayed that the same Holy Spirit who empowered Him would
empower us to replicate the same style of ministry on earth as He did.
The scene is set
for the third Person of the Godhead to come and empower the disciples. They were to continue what Jesus had begun to do and teach, to be just the same as He was on earth. The Holy Spirit would enable them to perform signs and wonders and to teach with God’s authority, which would reveal God’s power through them.
In Acts 1:8 Jesus said,
8 But when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, you will receive power and will tell people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” NLT
Notice that the disciples were to be witnesses. They would experience the coming of the Holy Spirit powerfully and be so touched that they could not help but tell everyone what they had seen and heard.
I trust you have enjoyed reading this, the above is an extract from what we teach on the Holy Spirit in the transformational ®Growing Deep and Strong series.
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In His Service
Carl John Fechner
Carl is a follower of Jesus Christ; Author of the Christian Discipleship and Leadership program called the ©Growing Deep and Strong Series. Founder and Director of Internet Secrets Made Easy. His life passion is to be a catalyst and facilitator in developing people who will become leaders and disciplers of others. Connect with him on Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube