Have You Received the Holy Ghost Since You Believed?

Scripture:
Matthew 3:11; Luke 24:49; John 14:26; Acts 19:1-6

Key Scriptures:
Acts 19:1-6 (Paul at Ephesus)
1 And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples, 2 He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. 3 And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John’s baptism. 4 Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. 5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.

Message Summary:
John the Baptist preached repentance; but he also said, “There cometh one mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose. I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost” (Mark 1:7-8). John preached repentance, but many have stopped at John’s baptism. Water baptism is necessary, but you are going to need some power afterwards to live a successful and perfected life.

While Jesus was on the Earth, HE was the power and protection for HIS people. But before HE left, HE gave instructions to tarry until the disciples were endued with power from on high (Luke 24:49). Jesus knew that they would not be able to operate without the power. Now the spirit would not just be on them, but it would be in them—teaching and bringing all things to their remembrance.

When you have the Holy Ghost, it is as if God took a chunk of HIMSELF and placed it inside of you. Now truly greater is HE that is in you than he that is in the world. The Holy Ghost will bring you into all truth. He will ensure that you are not in the spirit of error, but that are able to discern between you, the Lord, and the devil’s voice. But until you can discern the voice of God, God will give you leaders to help lead and guide you. God gave us a gift of the Holy Ghost. It is up to us to exercise it and wake it up.

Once you are connected to the power; it is also important to stay connected. Like an electronic shaver, you may be able to run without being plugged in for a while, but eventually, you are going to run out of power. We can’t depend on our own strength. We must stay connect to the source which is Jesus Christ.