“Thank You, Lord Jesus, that You have told us that in the last days, You will pour out Your Spirit on all flesh. There will be a movement towards oneness in the body of Christ. We commit ourselves to fully realise Your desire for oneness amongst us. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.”
Acts 2:17-18 ‘AND IT SHALL COME TO PASS IN THE LAST DAYS, SAYS GOD, THAT I WILL POUR OUT OF MY SPIRIT ON ALL FLESH; YOUR SONS AND YOUR DAUGHTERS SHALL PROPHESY, YOUR YOUNG MEN SHALL SEE VISIONS, YOUR OLD MEN SHALL DREAM DREAMS. (18) AND ON MY MENSERVANTS AND ON MY MAIDSERVANTS I WILL POUR OUT MY SPIRIT IN THOSE DAYS; AND THEY SHALL PROPHESY.
One of the great moves of God, in the end-times, will be the movement towards oneness in the body of Christ. We see the divisions and barriers that we erected within the church. Yet, we will see how miraculously the Lord will bring greater oneness within the bride of Christ. This will also be one of the demonstrations of the outpouring of His Holy Spirit. This oneness in the body of Christ is critical for nations to come into the habitat of God.
Galatians 3:27-28 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. (28) There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
The specific move of God within His church will be that we will realise that we all must put on Christ. We are to grow together, as His church, into the image of Jesus.
Romans 8:29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Jesus is our eldest brother in the family of God. We resemble Him for we are His family and we, progressively, grow more and more into His image. This is yet another outworking of the baptism of His Holy Spirit. As we together grow into the image of Christ, the barriers and hindrances, that we had created, will dissipate.
Colossians 3:10-11 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, (11) where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all.
The banner that will fly over us, is that Christ is our all and in all. He will be lifted up in His church. When He is lifted up and honoured above all else, then oneness will be a natural outcome. This is the outpouring of His Holy Spirit, which Peter is explaining to his audience.
It is important, therefore, for each of us and for us as groups to give ourselves, intentionally, to this move of God, of bringing oneness in the body of Christ. We must throw out whatever divisions and barriers that we had erected between us, in His church.
When the world begins to see Christ being visible in His church, the world will start moving into His church. This is the prophecy of Isaiah that we considered in yesterday’s study.
In referring to the prophecy of Joel, Peter speaks of the manifestations of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The expressions of the baptism of the Holy Spirit must always be seen in the light of what God is accomplishing to fulfil His purpose.
I Corinthians 12:4-11 There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. (5) There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. (6) And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. (7) But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: (8) for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, (9) to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, (10) to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. (11) But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.
The manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all. The profit for the church is that we are all growing into the fullness of Christ. As we do so, the world begins to see Jesus in us.
The Lord gives the different expressions of His Holy Spirit to each one according to His will. God knows the best gift for each of us and we are thankful and grateful to God for the particular gift or gifts that He gives us.
We celebrate the particular gift of the Holy Spirit that God has given to another brother or sister. *We do this knowing that each one’s gift is for the profit of all, to grow into the image of Jesus.
We praise and celebrate before God of what He is accomplishing and through His church, in the end-times.