Introduction: If I asked you whether you would like to be smarter,
wiser, stronger, and in general, more powerful, what would you say?
This week our study opens our eyes to the enormous power that Jesus
enjoyed while here on earth. Is that same power is available to us?
Let’s dive into our study to find out!
- The Holy Spirit and Conception
- Read Luke 1:26-28. What do we learn about Mary? (That the
Lord was with her. She was highly favored by God. She was
engaged to be married and had kept herself pure, even
though she lived in a town with a bad reputation. See John
1:46.) - How would you like to have an angel say those words
to you? - Read Luke 1:29. What was Mary’s reaction to those words?
Why did she have a different reaction than you would have?
(She probably had a greater gift of humility than we
have!) - Imagine someone comes up to you and says, “You look
(insert an age 10 years younger than you are), your
clothes look so wonderful, you are the most
intelligent person I’ve ever met and it would be hard
to imagine a nicer person than you.” What would you
say? “Thank you,” or, “what do you want?” Would you
“wonder what kind of greeting this might be?” - In Luke 1:30-33 the angel explains to Mary the
overwhelming news that she will be the mother of the
Messiah. She has a question. Read Luke 1:34. - Read Luke 1:35 for the answer. Who caused Mary to be
pregnant with Jesus? (The Holy Spirit.) - Large numbers of people doubt this account. What
makes you believe it? An answer more detailed than
“I believe the Bible” would be helpful. - What did we learn from Psalms 104:30 when we
studied the first lesson in this series?(We
learned from this text, and Genesis 1:1-3, that
the Holy Spirit was active in the Creation of
the world. If the Holy Spirit can create the
world and all that is in it, how can this task
be too great for Him?) - Read Romans 8:11 and 1 Peter 3:18. What do we
learn here about the Holy Spirit and life? (That
the Holy Spirit is the power of the
resurrection.) - Friend, do you see how these three beliefs are
interlocked? (The Creation, the Virgin Birth and
the Resurrection all turn on a belief in the
power of the Holy Spirit. If you believe one, it
is illogical not to believe in all three.) - Notice again in Luke 1:35 that it refers to the
“power of the Most High.” Is that a reference to the
Holy Spirit? Does this text teach us that the Holy
Spirit is the means by which God delivers His power
to us? - If that is one of the messages of this text, how
important is the Holy Spirit to your spiritual
life? - A repeating theme of books and movies is the
“super-hero” with exceptional powers. If you had
the opportunity to “borrow” the powers of a
super-hero would you do it? - If your answer is, “yes,” then consider
how much greater is the available power of
the Holy Spirit? Why not pray earnestly
for that power in your life? - Read Luke 1:38. What kind of attitude is necessary for the
Holy Spirit to come into our lives in power? - We have been focusing on Mary when our lesson is about
Jesus. What does this method of conception teach us about
Jesus? - What does it teach us about the role of the Holy
Spirit in His life on earth? (The Holy Spirit was
with Him from the very start. Now you know why He was
able to do such great things!) - The Holy Spirit in Jesus’ Life
- Read Luke 4:18-19. What was the basis for Jesus’ miracles
here on earth? (The Spirit of the Lord.) - What was the basis for Jesus’ preaching here on
earth? (The Spirit of the Lord.) - What is the connection between the miracles and the
gospel? (The common thread is the Holy Spirit, but
the purpose of both is to lead the people to a
relationship with Jesus. Both preaching and miracles
release the people from the effects of sin.) - In the first lesson of this series, we studied the healing
of the demon-possessed man who was blind and mute. Recall
the discussion between the Pharisees and Jesus about the
source of His power? Let’s read this again in Matthew
12:27-29. Who does Jesus say is the source of His power to
heal? - The Promise of Power
- Read John 14:11-12. We have just touched on the miracles
which Jesus performed through the power of the Holy
Spirit. What power does Jesus say is available to us? - How does Jesus describes those to whom this power is
available? (“Anyone who has faith in me.” This is
not just a promise to the 12 disciples. This is not
just a promise to the early church. This says
“anyone” with faith in Jesus.) - Read John 14:13-14. From where does the power to do these
miracles come? (Jesus says that He “will do it.”) - Read John 14:15-18. What further explanation does Jesus
give about the power He is willing to give us? (Notice
that immediately after Jesus says “I will make these
things possible, He launches into a discussion of the Holy
Spirit being given to us. The power of the Holy Spirit is
not something separate from the Trinity, but He is the
means by which heavenly power is exercised here on earth.) - Is the power of the Holy Spirit limited to just doing
miracles? (Remember in Luke 4:18 Jesus tells us the Holy
Spirit helped Him in preaching.) - Read John 20:21-23. Is there a relationship between having
the power of the Holy Spirit and forgiving sins? - Can Spirit-filled Christians forgive the sins of
others? - Read Matthew 16:19, Job 1:4-5 and 1 John 5:16-17. Do
we have the power to ask forgiveness for certain
types of sins in other people? (These three texts and
John 20 all suggest that Christians can have some
sort of impact on the sins of others. Nowhere in the
Bible do I see anyone (other than Jesus) forgiving
the sins of others. Indeed the whole idea of one
person repenting for the sins of another person is
contrary to the entire theme of the Old and New
Testaments. If this were possible, Jesus would simply
have just repented for us and declared everyone
forgiven. He would not have personally paid the
penalty for our sins. What I think these texts
suggest is that using the power of the Holy Spirit we
can help bring others to repentance of sin.) - Read John 16:7-8. If you have available to you the
power of the Holy Spirit to help convict another
person of sin, have you used that power? - Friend, can you see that the Holy Spirit was with Jesus
from His beginning here on earth through His entire life?
Can you also see that the great things that Jesus did here
through the Spirit’s power are also available to you
through the Spirit’s power? Will you pray that the Holy
Spirit will come on you in power? - Next week: The Promise of the Holy Spirit.
