If Jesus needed the Holy Spirit, how much more do we? If Jesus relied upon the Holy Spirit, how much more should we?
…how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him. (Acts 10:38)
Jesus was anointed by the Holy Spirit to carry out His ministry. We too must be empowered by the Holy Spirit. Without the power of the Holy Spirit, churches are just clubs, preachers are just motivational speakers, ministry is just charity, and our faith is just a culture. Methods cannot replace miracles. Programs cannot replace power. Systems cannot replace the Spirit.
We need the power of the Holy Spirit. We must welcome Him in our lives and in our ministries. We’re helpless without Him. The Holy Spirit can accomplish more in a single moment than you or I could ever accomplish in a hundred years of striving.
Sadly, the Holy Spirit is rejected in many places around the world - and even in churches.
Believer, it’s time to surrender all, to embrace the fullness of what is available to you by the Holy Spirit. We must move beyond just tolerating Him and learn to rely on Him completely. We mustn’t treat Him like an obligation, for He was there at the birth of the Church - the wind and the fire that empowered the early believers to carry the gospel around the world.
In a Church culture consumed by “growth strategies” and “marketing ventures”, it’s all too easy to forget about the breath of the Spirit. Once the Holy Spirit breathes upon a life or a ministry, there is growth and power without measure. There’s no Church growth strategy, no clever means of maneuvering, that can replace the Holy Spirit. He is the ultimate Church growth expert, a leader of leaders, the author of the bestselling book of all time, and the One Who knows best how to grow the Church in this hour.
Don’t strive; surrender to the Holy Spirit.