Awaiting The Holy Spirit

The disciples waited as commanded,
In the upper room, where so much took place,
Each recalling the events since they banded;
How things had unfolded at so swift a pace!
What was this "Holy Spirit" anywaY?
And How would it affect them when it came?
Through the windows they heard men say,
"Who was this Jesus?" "Was he really slain?"
It was Pentecost, and the city teemed
With pilgrims that had come from far and near;
Ev'ry man spoke his native tongue, it seemed;
The favored topic was Jesus this year!
Most were calloused to claims of Messiahship,
Yet this one from the tomb managed to slip!

"After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. On one occasion while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: 'Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.'" (Acts 1L3-5)

After His resurrection, Jesus spent forty days with His disciples on earth. He was in His spiritual body, which was exactly like His old body, but it was a perfect body. The nail and spear scars were apparent but healed. His disciples, including the apostles, numbered about 120; they were all believers in Him. Some had been with Him for the entire 3 years of His ministry.

He commanded them to wait for the Holy Spirit because their mission of preaching the gospel to all the world would be impossible without power and wisdom from Him. The Holy Spirit is God as Jesus is God; the Spirit enters the body of a believer and indwells there for the rest of his life. As it was then, so it is today; He (the Holy Spieit) is willing, even eager, to help the new believer to rid himself of the sinful nature with which he was born and to guide him in developing the traits of love, peace, joy, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control. He will guide the believer in giving him the words to say in telling non-believers about Jesus. He aids the believer in understanding scripture. Wirh His help, the small band of brothers and sisters in the upper room were able to "turn the world upside down" for Jesus. By 325 A. S. the Roman Empire dropped paganism and made Christianity the official religion of the nation. Today there are approximately 2.5 billion Christians in the world.

A word of caution about the Holy Spirit is necessary, however. The believer must co-operate with the Spirit by accepting His advice and consciously asking His help. He does not shout; He speaks in a quiet voice, one which is easily overcome by the bold incursions of the world. If the believer ignores His advice, He grows quieter and retreats, and will eventually fall silent. He can be "quenched" by inattention; that is the reason a great many Christians don't seem to live a life distinguishable from non-Christians.