The Third Person- Part Five
The word rush has various shades of meaning: moving rapidly, sudden surge, forceful flow, and even football and sorority rushes. The Holy Spirit also rushes from time to time as God surges forcefully on people with distinct purpose. We saw it with Samson, now let’s look at Saul and David.
Two kings, two dissimilar personalities, and two different destinies; let’s begin with Saul. After being anointed as Israel’s king, scripture tells us the Spirit of the LORD rushed on him and he not only prophesied but ‘turned into another man’ and was given another heart (1 Sam. 10:6-7). What’s the meaning, ‘another man’? After reflecting on Saul’s life he seems to be a foreshadow of the contrast of remaining in our sin nature or receiving the new nature in Christ (John 3).
He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior.
Titus 3:5-6 NLT
After receiving a third spiritual rushing by the Spirit Saul began his decline. He didn’t remain in God’s presence; he walked by the flesh. Due to his impatience and foolishness God rejected him and the Spirit departed. Thank God that today His Spirit remains in us, even when we’re foolish or impatient; He’ll never leave you.
David, on the other hand, after receiving his rush of the Spirit (1 Sam. 16:13) became the most revered king in Jewish history with Messiah coming from his family. What a contrast of kings! Don’t get me wrong, David was a sinner just like you and me but he had a different mindset than Saul as we learn from his Psalms. David acknowledged his sin, cried out for mercy, and asked God to wash and cleanse him. He desired that Titus 3 passage: a clean heart, renewal of his spirit, and presence of the Spirit active in his life (Ps. 51). David’s experience with the Holy Spirit caused him to be overwhelmed with wonder and praise (Ps. 139) as he realized his strength was a gift from God.
We find another rush of the Spirit in Acts 2 during Pentecost. Jesus, our Mediator with God, departed our world but sent His Spirit to be Another Advocate for us (John 14:12-31). The promise is that He’ll remain with us forever, counseling, comforting, teaching, reminding, and strengthening us in life. The Third Person has been poured out so that we can be filled with Him; it’s a gift that needs to be unwrapped. We become another person, with another heart, by Another One. The fullness of the Holy Spirit gives us power to be His witnesses in this fallen world (Acts 1) and we, like David, bring His comfort to others as we tell of His faithfulness, love, and mercy in our story. Be His witness this week.
Comments are closed.