Sunday, 1st April 2018
Pastor Kathy Poon
If Jesus has done it on the cross, then what do we have to do?
1.What the Cross Did for Us ?
When Jesus died on the cross, He said, “It is finished!” (John 19:30). In Greek, “finished” is the same word as “teleo”, which means to end, complete, execute, conclude, discharge a debt, etc. What He meant was that all the debt has been paid off, and it was a victory cry when He said, “it is finished”!
2. What the Cross Did In Us ?
The cross was designed to create a divine exchange, it is our wickedness in exchange of His Goodness. Here are some things that have been exchanged:
- From Sin to be Forgiven (Isaiah 53:5)
- From Sickness to be Healed (Isaiah 53:4-5)
- From Curse to be Blessed (Galatians 3:13)
- From Poverty to Prosperity (2 Corinthians 8:9)
- From Death to Eternal Life (Romans 5:8-9)
- From Shame to Glory (Hebrews 2:10)
- From Rejection to Acceptance (Ephesians 1:6)
- From a Sinner to a Righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21)
The Cross is the true source of wisdom and power but why are the sick not healed?nWhy are we not seeing cancer dry up and disappear? Why there are still poverty and many demonic activities? Because we need the power of the Holy Spirit
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
This is the last sentence Jesus said to His disciple before He ascended to Heaven. In order to receive the fullness of the power of God, we need the Holy Spirit. So how can the Holy Spirit manifest in us?
1. Sovereignty Of God
The Holy Spirit may manifest when God initiated it, when God brought this encounter to us. Take Paul for example, in Acts 9:1-22, it talks about Paul on his journey to Damascus and had an encounter with the Holy Spirit, and it resulted making Paul who he was.
2. Hunger
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” (Matthew 5:6)
Cast out the Spirit of comfortism. When there is no hunger, there will be no pursue for God, and no pressing for more. Apostle Maldonado says “the most powerful movement is at the places where people were hungry for God.”
Many people call themselves Christians but they don’t go to church. A lot of people believe faith is in their heart and don’t need to commit in church.
We need the hunger for the move of God in our lives. Don’t stay in our comfort zone. When we started to have thoughts of not reading Bible or not going to church, we are starting to fall into the trap of the devil. So we need hunger to keep our fire going!
3. Sacrifices
There are many ways we can give our sacrifices:
- Prayer (2 Chronicles 7:14)
- Fasting (Joel 2:12-13)
- Worship (Hebrews 13:15)
- Offering (Proverbs 3:9)
Are we willing to lay down what we are holding onto, and lift it up in prayers? When we offer sacrifices, God will see it, our sacrifices will not be in vein.
4. Revelation
“I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength.” (Ephesians 1:17 – 19)
Paul is asking for the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation. Revelation in Greek is “Rhema”, which means God disclosed a portion of His mind in the NOW. There is another word, “Logos”, which is the written Word of God , and from Genesis to Revelation, was inspired by the Holy Spirit. (2 Timothy 3:16).
Rhema is a spoken word of God for today, for a specific situation. So Logos is where our faith is established, and Rhema is where our faith is activated. To demonstrate the power of God , we need revelation of the Word in the Now.
5. Unity
“I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one.” (John 17:22)
Unity is the fulfillment of prayer of Jesus, and the requirement for God to dwell among people. God pleases when He sees unity as it says in Acts 2:1, “On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place.”
Unity means to have one mind, one heart and one Spirit. Because Holy Spirit moves when there is unity; Holy Spirit grieves and retrieves when there is strife or division. Why there is no unity? Because everyone has their personal agenda, we all have our own ways of thinking and doing things. But if we want to experience revival, we need to stop complaining, to put our own agenda on the cross for the sake of unity. Unity is the principle of the presence of God.
“ For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.” (Matthew 18:20)