UNIVERSITY OF EXCELLENCE
LESSON FOUR
How to receive the power of God!
Isn't it wonderful to be a new person? A few years ago you probably never dreamed how God would change your life. Isn't God good?!
The wonderful thing about knowing Jesus is that life gets fuller every day - if you let it! When Christ died on the cross for your sins, his blood not only paid for your sins, but it bought your freedom. Jesus wants you to share this GOOD NEWS with others - to tell them he's alive.
Shortly before Jesus went back to Heaven, he said," ... that in his name the message about repentance and the forgiveness of sins must be preached to all nations ..." [Luke 24:47.]
Jesus did not ask you to do this job alone. He promised to send you a "gift" of POWER which would help you. Jesus said that he would send this promise upon you himself. "And I myself will send upon you what my Father has promised." [Luke 24:49.]
The book of Acts you will study in this lesson will tell you how to receive this "gift" (the promise of the Father). The Holy Spirit used a man named Luke, who was a follower of Jesus, to write both the book of Acts and the book of Luke. (Luke is the gospel which you studied with Lesson Two.)
In the book of Luke, Luke tells us how Jesus did his miracles by the POWER of the Holy Spirit - in the book of Acts, Luke tells us how the early followers of Jesus did their miracles by the POWER of the Holy Spirit. You, also - as a follower of Jesus - are to do the same kind of miracles by the POWER of the Holy Spirit!
As a matter of fact, Jesus said, "Whoever believes in me will do the works I do - yes, he will do even greater ones, for I am going to the Father." [John 14:12.] You see, the promise of the Father, the "gift" which Jesus said he, himself, would send upon his followers after he would go back to Heaven, was made to YOU, also!
"For God's promise was made to you and your children, and TO ALL who are far away - ALL whom the Lord our God calls to himself." [Acts 2:39.]
The last chapter in the Book of Luke and the first chapter in the book of Acts overlap. That is, they partly cover the same events. Read Acts Chapter One, verses 1-5. Jesus told his followers that God the Father had promised them a "gift." What was it? [See verse 5.]
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The Holy Spirit lives in all those who follow Jesus - but to be baptized with the Holy Spirit is an extra gift. In John 20:22 (after Christ died on the cross and arose from the grave - before he went back to Heaven), Jesus breathed on his followers and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit." After this, the Holy Spirit was IN THEM, but as yet they had not been "baptized" with the Spirit.
To be "baptized" means to be overwhelmed or covered with. This is why Jesus told his followers (even though the Holy Spirit was already IN THEM), " ... wait in the city until the POWER from above comes down upon you." [Luke 24:49.]
Read Acts 1:8. What did Jesus say his followers would be filled with when the Holy Spirit came upon them?
He said they would be
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[Write the answer in the line.]
Acts 2:1-4 tells what happened as the followers of Jesus waited in the city of Jerusalem. What was the result of their being "filled" with the Spirit? [See verse 4.]
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Who did Peter say "poured out" the Holy Spirit on the followers of Jesus? [Acts 2:32-33.]
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Bonus Question: What are four (4) different references (Bible Verses) that prove Jesus is “The Baptizer” in the Holy Spirit? [The answer is in each of the four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.]
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The Holy Spirit is the "gift" of POWER which God promised!
Study the following verses: Acts 10:44-48 and Acts 19:1-6. Remember in Acts 2:4 when the followers of Jesus were filled with the Holy Spirit - how they began to talk in other languages (strange sounds to the ones who were speaking)?
Read the following verses again and tell what they have in common with Acts 2:4.
Acts 10:46 ____________________________________________________________
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Acts 19:1-6 ___________________________________________________________
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Remember the preacher Paul who we have studied about in other lessons? Before he was saved, his name was Saul (Rabbi Shaul). Just after he was saved, God sent a man named Ananias to pray for him. Read Acts 9:17-18. When Ananias laid hands upon Saul, what did he pray for?
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In the book of 1 Corinthians, Paul said, "I thank God that I speak with strange sounds (other tongues) much more than any of you." [1 Corinthians 14:18.] This was after Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit.
What one thing seemed to happen each time you read about the Spirit coming down upon people?
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Study Acts 8:14-21 carefully. What do you suppose Simon saw that made him know that the Spirit had been given to them when the apostles laid their hands upon them? [See verse 18.]
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Have you ever been "baptized" with the Holy Spirit? If not, ask the Lord Jesus to baptize you right now. Pray and wait on God until you receive this POWER! Tell the Lord how much you love him. Praise him! While you are praising him, simply shut off your own language (English or whatever language you speak), and start praising him in a NEW language the Holy Spirit will give you!
You will not understand your new language (neither will anyone else, unless it happens to be a language they know), but don't let that bother you. The Holy Bible says, "The person who speaks with strange sounds (other tongues) does not speak to men but to God, because no one understands him. He is speaking secret truths by the power of the Spirit." [1 Co. 14:2.]
Pray to God much in your new language. It will build you up, and then you will be able to build others up. 1 Corinthians 14:4 says, "The man who speaks with strange sounds edifies (or, builds up) himself ..."
Your next study (Lesson 5) will be: How to Read God's Map.
For an in-depth study on "How To Receive God's Power," study the unabridged book by Apostle Prince Handley:
How to Receive God's Power with Gifts of the Spirit.
For the answers to this lesson, email us at: worldservicesinc@gmail.com
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LESSON 4 - HOW TO RECEIVE THE POWER OF GOD
University of the future