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Face to Face:Spirit-Empowered
by J. Ross Greer of The Place of Grace Ministries (about the ministry)
[Note: If you'd like to read more from J. Ross Greer, be sure to subscribe to his daily e-mail list A Word For The Church.]
14And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about Him spread through all the surrounding district. 15And He began teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all. 16And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. 17And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written, 18“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are oppressed,19To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.” 20And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
In Philippians 2:7, we are told that Jesus emptied Himself and was made in the likeness of a man. It was not that He ceased to be God, but that He willingly submitted Himself to the weaknesses consistent with living in a human body. That being the case, how did He accomplish the mighty miracles that He performed?
Note that our text indicates that Jesus came “in the power of the Spirit”. This follows His baptism by John, in which the Spirit came upon Him in the form of a dove. It also follows the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness, to which Jesus was led by the Spirit. We see that the activity of Jesus was directed and empowered by the Spirit.
The very same can be true for us. When Jesus came into an area, being full of the Spirit, people took notice. If we want those who know us to see Jesus in our lives, it will only happen when we are Spirit-controlled.
Is the Spirit of God upon your life? This is not to question whether or not He indwells and possesses you. We may have been birthed into God's family, but we may not be under the Spirit's control. We may not be experiencing His power and leadership. If we truly want our lives to count and make a difference, we must continually be yielding ourselves to the control of the Holy Spirit. For this to occur, we must empty ourselves of our wisdom, our ideas, our plans, our wishes, our desires, our ways, our hopes, our dreams, and give ourselves fully to all that God has in mind for us. God will only fill that which is empty.
Copyright 2002, The Place of Grace Ministries. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
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About The Place of Grace Ministries: In 1992, God interrupted the well-organized life of J. Ross Greer through a study called "Experiencing God". This encounter birthed a passionate vision for local churches that has become The Place of Grace Ministries. Through teaching, music, and writing, we call believers to return to the basic principles of God's Word and participate in the work of God. For questions or scheduling information, please contact us at: theplaceofgrace@att.net Or visit our web site at: http://home.att.net/~theplaceofgrace/theplaceofgrace.html |
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