Life In The Spirit

1. A powerful Christian is led by both the Holy Spirit and the Word. The Holy Spirit empowers us to be God’s supernatural  witnesses in the world, in the following ways:

a) We receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on us. (Luke 24:9, Acts 1:8 and Luke 4:18-19).

b) We receive boldness to share the gospel when we are filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit (2 Timothy 1:6-8)

2. How do we receive the power of the Holy Spirit?

a) “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)

b) “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor” (Luke 4:18)      

3. The Holy Spirit is ON us, and must remain ON

a) For many Christians, having the Holy Spirit’s anointing is not the issue; rather it is about the Holy Spirit’s continuous anointing of His work through us.

b) We see from the life of Jesus that He led a perfect life and did mighty works while He was on earth, because the Holy Spirit remained on Him. Similarly, the Holy Spirit was vital to the early Church believers in the book of Acts.                  

4.  How do we ensure that the Holy Spirit remains on us? By loving the Holy Spirit, in the following ways:

a)  We must seek never to grieve the Holy Spirit

- We grieve the Holy Spirit when we relate and respond to one another in an unloving, negative way, or when bitterness is found in our hearts. (Ephesians 4:30-31

- We must find out what grieves the Holy Spirit, and endeavour never to do so.

- The Holy Spirit should be our “reference point” for all of our actions and decisions in life.

b) We must never quench the Holy Spirit

- We can quench the Holy Spirit with unbelief (1 Thessalonians 5:19)

- We can quench the Holy Spirit by failing to give Him honour,when we fail to cherish His presence and when we believe we can live without Him.

c) We should acknowledge the Holy Spirit and His presence (Proverbs 3:5-6)

 -  The Holy Spirit is the manifested presence of God here on earth.To refuse to acknowledge and partner with the Holy Spirit is to refuse to partner with God.

d) We should sense His leading everyday (Galatians 5:25)

e) We should seek to know the Holy Spirit (John 14:17)

 Discussion Questions

1. Pastor Julia Sho shared a testimony on behalf of Deborah Lee. The Lord had empowered her through the Holy Spirit on a recent mission trip, giving her opportunities to share the gospel with some prisoners in a local police station, and she eventually led them to Christ. Do you have a similar experience whereby you were empowered by the Holy Spirit, be it to preach the gospel boldly, or to be an effective witness for God? Share your experience with the cell. [10 min]

Leader’s Notes: An ice-breaking question for members to share about their experience of the Holy Spirit. As believers, evangelism should be a response as we walk in step with the Spirit. In Deborah Lee’s testimony, in the natural, she was shy, but she was sensitive to and chose to obey the prompting of the Holy Spirit and share the gospel by faith. This is supernatural! Have members share about an instance whereby they chose to be led by faith to preach the gospel, which led to giving God glory. Such sharing will help contextualize the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, and encourage the other cell members.

2.Pastor Joachim shared as Christians the Holy Spirit is “on” us. What does the Holy Spirit remain “on” us mean? What are some of the daily common struggles in letting the Holy Spirit have full control of our lives? [10 min]

Leader’s Notes: A relate question. The Leader should point out that as believers, we do not lose our position as children of God once we are saved – see Romans 8:9, Ephesians 1:13-14 and Galatians 4:6. The Holy Spirit continues to dwell in us and is the anointing we received – see 1 Corinthians 3-16-17, 6:19 and Titus 3:5-6. However, we must let Him have full control of our lives. The Holy Spirit must remain “ON” us - He must be on the driver seat, or the pilot seat. Together with the Holy Spirit who is divine and His presence within us, He can enable His work or purpose to be accomplished through us; be it for ourselves (sanctification) or for others. This question allows members to share deeper about some of their common barriers/personal struggles preventing them from allowing the Holy Spirit from operating more strongly in their lives (e.g. busyness, fear of men, pride, areas of stronghold, etc).

3. Read Ephesians 4:30-31(NIV) “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.” Pastor Joachim shared how the Holy Spirit is like. How can we better put off these wrong behaviors and attitudes, to avoid grieving the Holy Spirit? [10 min]

Leader’s Notes: A reflect question. All of us, Christian and non-Christian alike, are daily embroiled in problems of human relationships. We have difficulties getting along with people. There are those who irritate us, those who rub us the wrong way, those whose personalities clash with ours. Ps Joachim mentioned that it is easy to grieve the Holy Spirit- according to Ephesians 4:30-31, when we are resentful, angry, annoyed, irritable and impatient, the Holy Spirit is grieved.

Have the members list one common negative attitude they are prone to harbor in their heart, or a difficult relationship that constantly causes them to react in a negative manner. Have them share concrete steps they can adopt, to be more aware of and sensitive to the Holy Spirit in circumstances when they are tempted to sin and grieve the Holy Spirit. If time allows, read also Ephesians 4:32; as believers, we are not only to stop practicing wrong behaviors, but also go a step further to “be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave (us).”

4. Pastor Joachim sets out five ways on how well can the Holy Spirit’s anointing remains “on” us: 1) not to grief the Holy Spirit, 2) not to quench the Holy Spirit, 3) acknowledge the Holy Spirit and His presence, 4) sense His leading every day, and 5) seek to know the Holy Spirit.

What is one/two ways you can commit to better loving the Holy Spirit? List out some practical steps. [10 min]

Leader’s Notes: This is a response question as a follow-through from Q3. Have members state clearly the specific ways that they commit to, in growing to be more filled with the Holy Spirit. Leader may get members to break into small groups to share more if time permits and to pray for one another.