Pentecost

As you well know, in this day of Pentecost, we really don't do hardly anything at all. It is God and Jesus Christ who do all the heavy lifting. It was Jesus Christ who sacrificed his life so that we could have access to this Holy Spirit that we're celebrating today. When the church, as a collective group for the first time in history, was able to receive God's Spirit, and from then on, of course, generation after generation, now in the 21st century, it's our generation that is celebrating on this very day of Pentecost when God opened up the access, as Mr. Helge mentioned, about Jesus Christ had to be glorified. It means that his sacrifice had to be accepted. He had to be ascended into heaven, and then access, because of the forgiveness of sins, would be available. And with that, then the temple, as a symbol of our bodies, could be washed and purified, and then God's Holy Spirit could enter it through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. So let's turn. We haven't mentioned this Scripture yet fully, and I'm going to complement the two first messages this morning, because, as Mr. Helge mentioned, I'm not going to be talking about a lot of the historical background or more of the ritual of Pentecost. I'm going to talk about the spiritual meaning of it as well. So it will complement what we have already received. But thankfully, just like a diamond has 54 facets, so the Bible has so many facets, we can talk about the same thing, but you always can have a different angle. And it's the same stone, but the different glimmer and the glow from all of these shining facets. And so in Acts 2, verse 1, it says, when the day of Pentecost had fully come, I guess all of you know that means the count of the 50 days had fully been completed. That's why it says it had fully come. The 49 days, the seven weeks, and then the 50th day had arrived. And it says they were all with one accord in one place. So everybody was together. They were keeping this day of Pentecost here in the New Testament. It's never been abolished. It was kept by Jesus Christ, by the apostles, and God's church through the centuries. And it says, and suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing, mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues as of fire. God's Spirit actually was manifested physically at that moment. Seems like electric sparks were going off on top of the people. And one sat upon each of them, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, which means they were given the gift of speaking in different languages and being able to interpret different languages as the Spirit gave them utterance. And so on this Pentecost weekend, we are celebrating the receiving of God's Holy Spirit.

And most people are not aware, but we are born with just three of the four components that you need to have a complete person in this world. People are born with three different parts to them, which are body, soul, and spirit. The body, of course, is the physical part. The soul is the living entity. It gives us the life-giving force. And then the spirit is what separates us from animals. It gives us the capacity to understand abstract thought, self-consciousness, and awareness, the creativity that only human beings have. You don't see chimpanzees reading books.

You don't see them having abstract thoughts and thinking, what am I doing here in this zoo? They never think about those things. They have no self-awareness. Only human beings have that. So they have these three components that you're born with. And the fourth one is one that is a gift that you can receive, which is God's Holy Spirit.

That is not given to children. That's not given to little baptized infants. No, this has to be a fully grown adult who has repented from their sins, willing to turn to God's way of life, committing to it. And then God enables that person to be able to walk with that extra power that He gives each person. And so we are celebrating that fact, that reality of our lives. People from all walks of life, all nationalities, are here today represented because God called them and gave them that fourth component, which completes the person.

I like to compare it with the buses. When they have the school buses, they don't want them to go 100 miles an hour. And so they put governors on them, which means that they can't go past 60 miles an hour. Even if they push it, floor it, they've got this special gear that keeps it from going any farther.

And God's Holy Spirit is like a governor. It helps us control this human nature that is so nasty, that can get so bad, can be so carnal and vain. And so this governor helps us not to just continue in that way. And God chooses whomever He will. So, Pentecost does deal with God's Holy Spirit and how Jesus Christ and God the Father work in creation and in us, because both possess that Holy Spirit. They both are able to share it, and they are able to give it. And so, as it tells us in John chapter 14 verse 23, I'm going to begin with an introduction, preliminary comments before we get into the meat of the sermon.

But just as a way of introducing the subject, we go to John chapter 14 verse 23, where it says, John 1423, Jesus answered and said to him, if anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. So it's both. It's not only God the Father, it's also Jesus Christ. They are both working together as a team. So understanding about God's Spirit means how God can be in us and yet not be intrusive.

He doesn't control us, as Mr. Helge brought out. We're not puppets of God. He still lets us control our mind, our hearts, our choices, but with his Spirit, he is able to guide us if we are willing to go along. In 1 Corinthians chapter 14, this was brought up in a previous but not the whole two verses. 1 Corinthians 14, 32 and 33, it says, and the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints. So if you ever go to a church where people are running up and down the aisles and singing and dancing and uttering all these guttural words, that's not where God's Spirit is.

Because it says here that the Spirit of God, when it was in the prophets, it is subject to the prophets. They don't control the prophets. The prophets control the Spirit in them. And it says that God is not the author of confusion. We're not going to see all kinds of antics going on in the church with people just being moved by different types of spirits.

That's the wrong Spirit. That's a wrong source. That comes more from Satan and his demons. And so Paul celebrated so much when he received God's Spirit. Here was a very dedicated and practicing Jew, a Pharisee. He had dedicated his life to following God. He had used sacrifice, a great effort, and self-discipline. He thought he was doing a great job before God. And then he came to the realization when he received God's Spirit how wrong he had been.

It was quite a shattering experience because he thought he was better than the rest, that he was more dedicated, more service-oriented. But until he received God's Spirit, he really didn't know what was true conversion. And so he confesses this in the Bible in Philippians chapter 3 verses 3 through 11. I'd like to read that. Philippians chapter 3 verse 3 through 11, where he confesses that being a devoted Pharisee, a man who had focused since his early age to learn about church, learn about religion, learn to do the things that God said in the Bible.

And yet he had been taught by teachers that did not have God's Spirit. They taught the letter. They could not understand the Spirit behind the letter because that can only be given through God's Spirit. So in Philippians chapter 3, he confesses how he had been wrong in the past. And many people think religion is like the Pharisee. It's just a bunch of obeying rules, just being nice and behaving properly and doing certain rituals and ceremonies. But here's what Paul brings out in Philippians 3 verse 3. He says, for we are the circumcision, talking about the Jews, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh, though I also might have confidence in the flesh.

He came from an excellent pedigree, Jewish background. He says, if anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so. Circumcise the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews concerning the law of Pharisee, which were the strictest of all. This would have been more like one of these middle-age monks that were so dedicated, concerning zeal, persecuting the church. I wasn't a passive follower of God. I went after those who I thought were the heretics, concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless, according to everything that had been taught in Judaism, which had to do also not only with the written law, but with the oral law, with all the traditions.

You had to wear a phylactery. You had to wear all these things. You had to say certain prayers. Every time you woke up in the morning, you had prayers. For everything that you did with meals, you had to do these special washings, and you had to give prayers. One of the prayers, may I just say, we all ate pretty good today.

I know it's hard to stay awake, but I thought one of the funny stories that one of the Jewish authors showed, a radio commentator said that the Jews have prayers for just about everything imaginable. One of them is, he says, Lord, I thank you that the seven parts of me that should open, that they open at the right time, and the seven parts of me that close, that they close at the right time. Now, until you're old, you don't appreciate what it means to have everything working right. These valves start not working and missing, right? And so, the Jews even invented this prayer about thanking God for this. May that happen. Bless me with the right openings and closings.

And so, he was a dedicated Jew. Let's continue on. He says, but what things were gained to me, what I thought was true religion, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet, indeed, I count all things lost for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish that I may gain Christ. He had to put away all of these traditions, all of Judaism, because he realized he had not had a converted mind. He did not have God's Holy Spirit. And it was through the knowledge of Jesus Christ that he was able to see the spirit of the law, not only the letter of the law. And he says, and be found in him, not having my own righteousness, not something I earn, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith. So, yes, we have to keep God's laws, but no longer with that attitude of self-righteousness that we're going to be good and we're going to deserve all of this. No, it's God who's doing it. Christ is the one that sacrificed for us, and it is for their glory and honor, not for anything that we should crow about. And so, he goes on to say, and be found in him, not having my own righteousness, verse 10, that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his suffering, being conformed to his death, if by any means I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. He's thinking about that first resurrection that he wants to be a part of. And so, he realized that without God's Spirit, you're not really converted. You can be in many different religions. You can dedicate your life to many different noble causes, but if God's Spirit is not there, a person's not converted. That's why he mentions in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17. 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17. It says, therefore, if anyone is in Christ, baptized, received God's Spirit, that's what he means, he is a new creation. All things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new.

So, you have a new view of things. You have a spiritual perspective that you didn't have before.

It's the difference between a converted and an unconverted mind.

And we see that in just one epistle before 1 Corinthians chapter 2 verse 10.

1 Corinthians chapter 2 verse 10. 1 Corinthians chapter 2 verse 10. Mr. Helge touched on this, but he didn't go further. So, I'm, like I say, complementing what he has said because both subjects are based on the same focus. It says, but God has revealed them to us through his Spirit, for the Spirit searches all things, yea, yes, the deep things of God. So, if God's Spirit is in you, you're able to understand spiritual things that someone else cannot. And as you develop in life and you grow with God's Spirit, you get deeper insights into spiritual things. It says that once you have that Spirit, you're able to perceive and go in depth where others that don't have that Spirit cannot do so. 2 verse 11. He says, So, he goes on to say, Even so no one knows the things of God except, and it should be by the Spirit of God. That's what it's talking about. Through God's Spirit, you can understand the spiritual things. It's a privilege. It's an honor. Many times we take it for granted. We don't understand how fantastic it is for things in the Scripture to open up as they do. Continuing on, it says, Now we have received not the Spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.

And so God provides that freely to those He calls. God's Spirit is a fountain that always is renewing spiritually. Yesterday on the sermon, I talked about who was Zerubbabel. I never heard a sermon on Zerubbabel for the 45 years I've been in church. I thought, I want to talk about this. And one of the symbols there in Zechariah 4 that had to do with Zerubbabel and the high priest Yeshua or Jeshua was that they were two olive trees. And then they had here this beautiful candelabra type of candlestick. And they had the oil that was going to these two olive trees. And symbolizing Zerubbabel and Jeshua, who were the two that were carrying out God's work at that time. And the point is that olive oil is a symbol of God's Spirit. Oil is symbolic of God's Spirit. And they were being renewed through this spiritual process that God was providing them. Well, we are olive trees. We're being provided with that as well. And so he says here that verse 14, but the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him. They can't understand it. It goes right over their heads because they don't have that spiritual radar. They don't have that fourth element to make a person complete. And so it goes right through. You can be talked into them the greatest truths. And it just goes one ear in, one ear out. He says, verse 15, and let's go to finish 14 first. The natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. Yes, if you don't have that spiritual radar that God has equipped you, all of that spirit is not going to be captured. It's not going to be received. It's not going to be detected. But he who is spiritual judges all things because God's Spirit helps us discern, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. No unconverted person can really understand what it is to have God's Spirit and judge a person properly. For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct them? But we have the mind of Christ if we have God's Spirit working in us. So the questions I pose to you today are two. What exactly is God's Spirit and how does it work in our lives? Important questions to answer. And here are four attributes that God has through his Spirit that he also provides that he helps us with. These are four great attributes that we should understand and know thoroughly about God and his Spirit.

And then we'll focus on the personal application of this, because on this day of Pentecost, we can't just be talking about theory. We have to talk about practice, how to put it into practice. And so what is the first and one of the greatest attributes of God is that God's Spirit, which God has, is all-powerful. God's Spirit is all-powerful. Nobody can overcome it. Nobody can defeat God.

Nobody can put themselves above God. God is all-powerful. Who gave us our life? Did we just get it at maybe Walmart? Yeah, your mother came and said, hey, I'd like to have a baby. Oh yeah, we just got this machine and we concoct this machine and here it's going to be a baby. No, God gave you life. Nobody else did. And he's the one that one day a person's going to go before him to give account for what life he was given. And so God is all-powerful. Notice in Genesis chapter 17 verse 1. Let me read it to you. It says, when Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, I am Almighty God. Walk before me and be blameless. So God identifies Himself as the Almighty. That means all-powerful. All the angels. Even Satan depends on God for the power that he has. Satan did not concoct his own power. We did not do so. It all comes from God. Whether we accept it or not, this thing is starting to fall a bit here. Okay. See, can you hear me better now? Okay. And so this is one of God's holy names. It's El Shaddai. We have a couple of people that sing El Shaddai. Greg Hilgen does a beautiful rendition over there in Garden Grove. When he sings it, the term is, El God Shaddai. All-powerful. All-Mighty. The term here in Genesis 17.1 is, I am El Shaddai. I am the All-Powerful. And we should never forget that. Because we don't generate our own power. We have received from our mother life. And that comes all the way from Adam and Eve. And who created Adam and Eve? God did. Notice in Isaiah 40, verses 26 through 28. It says, lift up your eyes on high and see who has created these things. Look at the vast universe, the galaxies that we see out here. We basically can see about 3,000 stars. But the Milky Way galaxy itself has 200 billion stars. And it's actually growing. That's just one galaxy.

And they used to calculate there are about 200 billion galaxies with about 200 billion stars on the average. But now they've tripled it. So who made all of that? Somebody had to have the power. I didn't. Did you? So you see, we're all dependent on El Shaddai, on the All-Powerful. He says, and see who created these things? Who brings out the host, all these stars, by number? He calls them all by name. So just like God has the very hairs on our head counted, so he knows every little star of every galaxy by name. And they are not accidents. It says, by the greatness of his might and the strength of his power, not one is missing. I don't know how many of you know here in Pasadena, they have this reasons to believe organization with Hugh Ross, famous astrophysicist that is a Christian. I get his new newsletter. And he mentioned in one of his books that they calculated all the molecules in the universe and all the laws that are governing them. And they say that everything is so finely tuned that he says that if you compare all of the atoms and molecules in the universe to a huge aircraft carrier, he says, if you take and chip a little piece of that paint and take it off, the whole thing would start wobbling. He says it's so finely tuned. All the forces. And he says here, not one is missing. Everything is so perfectly balanced. Then he goes on to say in verse 28, Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He's all powerful. And again, I bring up. He's our dad. He's our father. He listens to us. He's our father. He listens to us. And he's on our side. That's wonderful news to know on Pentecost.

One last scripture here in this regard, Jeremiah 32, verse 17 and 18.

It says, O Lord God, behold, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for you. You show loving kindness to thousands and repay the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after them. The great, the mighty God, whose name is the Lord of hosts. So again, the first attribute, God with his spirit, what he carries out with his force and influence is all powerful.

Now, how can we put this in our own personal life, the personal application? Well, first, we understand God is on our side. He is for us. He comforts us. Now, we don't have the power.

But he does. So let's not limit him what he is capable of doing. If he can control this expansion of the universe and put every law so everything is completely balanced and perfectly timed, you don't think he can take care of our problems? They're insignificant in comparison. In Romans 8, in verse 31 and 32, it says, What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? Who's more powerful than God?

He who did not spare his own Son, but delivered him up for us all. How shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Him, meaning Jesus Christ, with him.

The Scripture says we are co-heirs with Christ. We're under Christ, but we are going to share. God's doing all of this. And can anybody limit his power to carry it out? Of course not. So, in times of desperation where we're lacking strength, have we ever proved God's power to come to rescue us? How many would say yes? How many would say, see all these interventions in your lives? Now, I'd like to share a personal experience in that regard. I am nothing but with God's Spirit in me. I am something. And as a minister many years ago, I remember as a pastor in the Santiago Chile Church, two members brought this young lady to our house, and she was having a demonic manifestation. She was speaking gibberish. She was completely out of control. They took her to my living room. And I could tell this wasn't some chemical imbalance because you could tell through her eyes and everything. There was something controlling her. And I hadn't had time to pray. I hadn't had time to fast, which you basically have to do when you face these powerful demons. And so, she was there and I just said to the other two, let's get down on our knees. And I prayed to God and I said, God, I need your help now. I need you to send your angels. I need your power right now because I can't do it. And within five seconds that girl woke up. She started normal. The spirits had been removed. And so, God is there. We have access to Him. Now, that doesn't mean you use Him every time like that. Those are emergencies. But He is there. He wants us to use our minds. He expects us to figure things out. That's why He gave us a brain so that He doesn't have to be bailing us out every time we get into a problem. But when things get difficult, we have access to El Shaddai, the all-powerful God. So, on this day of Pentecost, that spirit comes from the all-powerful God. Secondly, the second attribute of God's spirit. Can we tighten this up here? This thing is just too many years been using this, I think. But see if you can tighten it a bit.

Okay. All right. The second attribute, God's spirit is all loving. So, it's not just the power of God. It's not the quantity of this power. It's also the quality of this power. What that power contains, God is all loving. In Galatians 5, 22, and 23, it gives us nine qualities of God's spirit. This is what flows from God's very nature. It says, but the fruit of the spirit, the fruit means the results, is love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Now, those are nine fruits of God's spirit. But did you know that there are three more stuck away in the New Testament? Just like little treasures that you have to go and find, they're actually 12 that at least I have found. So, it's not just these nine. Notice in Ephesians chapter 5 verses 8 and 9. It says, for you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Light because of God's spirit, illuminating our lives. Walk as children of light, for the fruit of the spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth. Well, goodness, we already have it. But there are two new ones. Righteousness and truth are also the fruits of God's spirit. And they're very important because they give structure to all of these other attributes. They fortify, they strengthen righteousness. We know that has to do with following God's right way of life. Righteousness is based on obedience of humbly following God, following His laws, following His way of life. So, this is an old word, righteous. It used to be right-way-ous, the right-way-ous of doing things. And so, it was contracted to righteous, but it means the right-way of doing things. God's right way, not ours. And then, the next fruit is truth. It's how important God's spirit also results in us following truth. What is truth? It is the system of belief found in the Bible, based on God's laws. The system of belief, based on the Bible, has to do with God's laws. And so, if a person is following God's Holy Spirit, he is not going to go against God's laws, because the truth is defined by the Ten Commandments and its extension of all of these other laws. So, again, these last two fruits give it structure, because love and joy, peace, those can be misunderstood. But when you talk about righteousness and truth, those are solid virtues and qualities. And there's one more, which makes it number 12. And that is found in 2 Corinthians 3, verse 7, describes Jesus Christ. It says, now the Lord is the Spirit, because presently Jesus Christ is made of Spirit.

And where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. And this is the 12th result of God's Holy Spirit. You have liberty. You have freedom. Thayer's Greek dictionary says, true liberty is living as we should, not as we please.

In Psalms 119, verse 45, David knew what true liberty was. He says, I have gained perfect freedom by following your teachings, your laws. See, as is one of the greatest virtues. When you're following God's Spirit, you have freedom from sin, from all the evil effects of this world. Your mind is free from all of these cluttering things, and you're able to focus on the true values in life. Because this world wants to enslave you with the wrong values. It wants to control your thoughts and enslave you in that way. And this is with the shield and the sword of God's Spirit. You can have liberty. Liberty to develop yourself in your full potential that God gave you, so that your fruits will truly not be based and bound by all of these worldly things. You cut through them. So, yes, we live in a land of freedom, but people are still enslaved in sin. They're still enslaved with false teaching.

And to live in liberty is to live free from the condemnation of sin, of all of these wrong ways that attack us and try to control our lives. Yes, it's a wonderful feeling when you're following God's Spirit. You feel none of this world is going to touch me. None of this is going to contaminate me. I'm going to be able to do things. I'm going to control my own destiny and not let the world control it for me. So, this is the 12th of the qualities of the Spirit. And since God's Spirit is all-loving, nothing evil comes out of God. We should never attribute anything evil out of God. Yes, there are many things that happen, tragedies, many difficult things. But remember, we live in a fallen world. We live in a world where God is not actively intervening every time because man has turned our back since Adam and Eve. They turned their backs on God, give us our independence. We want to build this world according to our own thoughts and ideas. And God said, go ahead, let's see what kind of world you create. And we see how much terrorism and war and the things are deteriorating so quickly. God is going to only allow man to use and to have certain things once. And he is allowing that once now. But he's going to intervene because it's going to get so bad that the whole thing is going to get contaminated.

And so, James chapter 1, verse 13 through 14, it says, Let no one say, when he is tempted, I am tempted by God. For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires. And enticed. So if we are tempted, it's because we are allowing ourselves. We're yielding to it. We're not free from sin. We are enslaved. We have not gained our freedom. God's Spirit is what breaks those shackles of sin. And so it says here that God is not responsible. He wants the good. Only good comes out of him. In 1 John chapter 4, verse 8, it says God is love. That is his main quality.

And God, because he and Jesus Christ are love, can choose to limit what they do.

That's the paradox. Being all powerful, being all loving, and yet they give us the gift of free choice. And we can mess it up. But don't blame God. We blame ourselves. We were the ones that chose that. And then we eat the sour fruit, and then we blame God for that. That's not good. That's not fair. From the Garden of Eden, God chose these created beings and gave them free will. And unless God chooses to do so, both limit themselves how much they want to know before we choose. Was God there already looking at Adam and Eve when they were about ready to take the fruit? And that God already knew ahead of time they were going to take that fruit? No. Because it says that God was there, and he saw them hiding. And he says, have you taken of the forbidden fruit? Now God wasn't playing a game. This wasn't a God that was kind of play-acting. Well, of course, I knew everything. I know everything. And so I have to play along like this chess player that already knows all the moves you're going to do, but he's going to pretend let's play because I don't know who's going to win. If he knew all the moves ahead of time, what grace and what enjoyment would you get if you knew all the moves ahead of time? No. He limits himself. As far as free will, he doesn't know what you're going to do when you leave here. You can go and do those stupidest things. And God doesn't say, well, I knew he was going to do that because I know everything. No, they limit themselves because they are love. They respect. It's just like a parent has to trust their child. They can't be in the backseat hiding to see what the kids are going to do that night. No kid would like to do that, right? To have that type of parent. And I had four daughters, so I know what you're talking about. I had a hard time. I had a hard time. All the guys coming up and down the stairs. I had to be out there with my shotgun.

And they all married good. Thank the grace of God for it, more than us. But you see, you can't put your child in a bubble. You have to train them, guide them, give them a good example, and then let them leave the nest. See if they're going to learn those principles. One of the beautiful things our daughters would say, say, dad, we know that we could get away with a lot. You're not going to be watching us when we're out there at college or doing other things. But you know, dad, we just don't want to disappoint you. We don't want to disappoint you. That's why we don't do these bad things. Boy, that warms your heart. And again, it's nothing we are, but it's who is in us that's doing the work. And we're very thankful for that. So, how can we apply this? Second point, since God is all-loving, we should trust in His will as Christ did.

In Mark 14, verse 36, Jesus said, Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from me. Nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will. We have to say, God, You're all loving. Guide us. I'm going to follow Your will. You know better than me. I'm going to let You guide the way. And then, one final Scripture in the second point, Romans 8, 28. And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. See, the key is work together. All things work together. It means eventually. It doesn't mean immediately. Things can really go wrong, but God is working it out. In the end, you're going to look back and say, yeah, God was with me. Yes, I made mistakes, but He was there with me. He didn't forsake me in my difficulties. It takes time. Did you know that Abraham had a 100-year trial? Because when he was 75, they promised him a son. And he said that your descendants will be like the stars in the sky. And you know, a hundred years later, how many descendants Abraham had of his wife, Sarah? One son, Isaac. He was 75 years old when Abraham was 175. And he had two grandsons, twins, Jacob and Esau. They were 17.

And God said, look at the sky. These are the descendants you're going to have. He had three.

Three. But you know, he never wavered. He trusted God that things were going to work out. And you remember, in the time of David and Solomon, it said that the Israelites were like the sands in the shore. There were so many. And now, how many descendants of Abraham are there around the world? The great majority. Eventually, if you count Ishmael and that side of the family as well. And so, we come to the third attribute. God's Spirit is all pervasive. This is how God is able to work. His Spirit extends outward. It is extremely sensitive. It detects even the smallest happenings. We know a little about this because cars now are equipped with electronic sensors, with control remote. It tells you exactly what's going on in so many parts of the engine.

And yet, that's nothing compared to God's Spirit. It is so ultra sensitive in comparison. In Matthew 10, verse 29 through 30, it says, Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground, apart from your father's will. But the very hairs on your head are all numbered. And God's Spirit is so sensitive. So finally, too, that He knows how many hairs we have left.

You get old, you don't know how many. It gets easier to count, but God knows. Now, even the greatest love of a mother, I don't see any mother counting how many hairs her child has. I mean, they love them. They know every little part, but nobody counts. But God does. And He's got everybody's count. He's got all the stars counted. And He says a little bird does not drop dead without Him realizing that. Why? Because it's all pervasive. It extends out.

In Jeremiah 23, verse 23 and 24, it says, Am I a God near at hand, says the Lord, and not a God afar off? Can anyone hide himself in secret places? So I shall not see Him, says the Lord. Do I not feel heaven and earth? With His Spirit, He feels heaven and earth. It's all pervasive. Psalm 139, verses 7 through 10, David explained, So God is everywhere we go. He's there listening. He's aware, and He is waiting for us to go to Him.

So a personal application we find in James chapter 4, verses 8 through 10. How can we apply? This all-pervasiveness of the Spirit of God. It says, Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.

Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. We have to draw closer to Him for Him to draw closer to us.

Yes, He's there, but He expects an invitation. He expects us to come. God is a perfect gentleman. He's never going to barge into a person's life. He's not going to control you as a puppet, as it was brought out. No, you have to draw near to Him, and then you will feel His presence. But you have to have faith to do that. You have to step out and believe He really is there, and He's a rewarder of those that follow Him. That takes us to the fourth and last attribute. God's Spirit is all existing. It has existed. There's no moment when God never had it. He's always had it, because God is an uncreated first cause. That's why we're here, because something got the ball rolling. You know what the first law of thermodynamics says? Matter cannot be created, nor destroyed. Every atom that we have in the universe, nobody can destroy it. All you can do is knock it off, so then the electrons can go and skip here and there. But you can't destroy an electron. You can't destroy a proton or a neutron. You can just rearrange it.

All the matter that exists existed at that initial expansion of the universe. Everything that is created that makes up the present universe, it's the same amount of matter at the original creation. Eventually, the universe is expanding as an elegant expansion. Eventually, the atoms will begin to get so far away from each other. Eventually, the spin of the electrons and everything will lose energy, but those electrons will still exist.

Matter is still the same weight and mass. It can just be distributed. Now, there's one exception to this first law of thermodynamics, and that is, if matter cannot be created nor destroyed, who created matter in the first place? So, God is the answer. He got the ball rolling. He got matter created, and that's what it is now. And so, God's Spirit is eternal.

It never wears down. It never wears out.

And God's Spirit is there forever. In Romans 1.20, it says, For since the creation of the world, his invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse. God's Spirit does not run out. In Isaiah 26, verse 4, it says, Once it's in a person and you're glorified, it's never going to run out. You're not going to have to go to a spiritual shell station and gas up with God's Spirit, because you're worn out. No, it's constantly regenerating, constantly regenerating itself. It doesn't never wear out.

In Luke 11, verse 13, you have to ask for it. You are not to take it for granted. It says, If you, then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him? See, the key word is ask Him. How many ask Him for that? For Him to renew that in us? Because God's Spirit cannot be created nor destroyed in that sense, but it can go out from us. It can just disperse if we are not constantly going to God as the source of it. Now, there is a limit to this Spirit of God in us. Isaiah 59, 1-2. How can we limit God's Spirit in us? How can we make it a short circuit?

How can we hinder it? It says here, Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, nor His ear heavy, that it cannot hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you so that He will not hear. So people say, well, where's God? I have asked Him, well, we have to look at ourselves in the mirror and say, are we responsible? Were we the ones to separate it from God? Are we the ones that because we have not confessed and repented of our sins, those are hindering God from doing something in our lives.

And sometimes He has to pull on our ears to get our attention with circumstances.

Finally, let's remember this Scripture, Matthew 28, 18.

We should always remember who that eternal and all-powerful force has been given to us. It says in Matthew 28, 18, and Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. So yes, God has delegated that to Jesus Christ. And He is our elder brother. We can go to Him. We're celebrating today Jesus Christ and His sacrifice that He made it possible. And God the Father above all who gave up His Son for us to be able to be here celebrating Pentecost, celebrating the receiving of God's Spirit. Now, if we had to give an account to God of what we have done with that Spirit, how would it go? Are we doing well? Are we growing? Are we developing? Overcoming? Are we stagnant? Are we going backwards? Who knows? Everyone has their own walk. Everybody has to give account to God, as it says that everybody will come before Him. And it says also about coming to Him with fear and trembling, work out our own salvation. Each one has to be responsible on this day.

So the spirit of Pentecost means that we are reminded of what God's Spirit is, and what it does, and continues to do in our lives. But it is conditional. It is dependent on us how much God can do with His Spirit. We have to draw near to Him, obey Him, as it says in Acts 5.32, that He gives the Holy Spirit to those who obey Him, and ask Him and apply it in a proper way. Is He going to give us a lot of God's Spirit? If it's going to be like a child inside of a tank, that you're going to push buttons, and you're going to be blowing things up, because you've got this power, just like the disciples, the sons of thunder, that they're ready to rain thunderbolts and fire down, because they'd gotten offended of some villages that had not accepted. They weren't ready for that power. So, in summary, God has a Spirit which is all-powerful, all-loving, all-pervasive, and all-existing.

Let us allow it to come into our lives. And Pentecost is a reminder of this very thing. What God's Spirit is, and what it can do for all of us.