The Fount
Sunday Worship | October 18, 2020
Join us Sunday as we worship the Lord in-person, outside in the gazebo area on the campus of The Fount at 9:00 AM, and online on Facebook Live (see link below) at 10:30 AM (PDT). Pastor Glen will continue a series of messages on basic Christian doctrines (teachings), called "Doctrine Matters."
Locations & Times
The Fount
18225 Bushard St, Fountain Valley, CA 92708, USA
Sunday 10:30 AM
The Fount Facebook page
Go to our Facebook page to watch and engage in worship LIVE at 10:30 AM (PDST).
https://www.facebook.com/TheFount.Church/live/"Doctrine Matters: The Holy Spirit"
John 16:13-15
Pastor Glen Haworth
John 16:13-15
Pastor Glen Haworth
The Fount website
http://thefount.churchSeries Recap
Doctrine Matters!
There is a decided lack of familiarity and understanding of the doctrines of the Christian faith
Even among Christians!
Not only are modern American Christians woefully ignorant of the Bible
For the most part
But they are even more woefully ignorant of the basic doctrines of the faith
Many have reduced the central doctrines to simple catch phrases
“Jesus is my Lord and Savior”
“I believe in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit”
I’ve even heard this:
“I believe in God, and all that stuff”!
So we are attempting to reclaim the historic doctrines of the Christian faith
So far:
Trinity
That the Christian faith speaks of God as being Three Persons:
Father
Son
Holy Spirit
Not three gods, but three Persons of the Godhead
One, yet known in three ways
The doctrine of the Trinity was developed by the early Church because they knew Jesus as the divine Son of God
But also human
So how can we speak of God?
The Trinity was the Churches answer
Jesus
Both human and God
Go-eternal with the Father
Fully God and Fully Human
Because of the…
The Resurrection
Of Jesus
Because we believe that He actually was raised from the dead
Never to die again
It is the foundation of the Christian faith
Today:
The Holy Spirit
Doctrine Matters!
There is a decided lack of familiarity and understanding of the doctrines of the Christian faith
Even among Christians!
Not only are modern American Christians woefully ignorant of the Bible
For the most part
But they are even more woefully ignorant of the basic doctrines of the faith
Many have reduced the central doctrines to simple catch phrases
“Jesus is my Lord and Savior”
“I believe in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit”
I’ve even heard this:
“I believe in God, and all that stuff”!
So we are attempting to reclaim the historic doctrines of the Christian faith
So far:
Trinity
That the Christian faith speaks of God as being Three Persons:
Father
Son
Holy Spirit
Not three gods, but three Persons of the Godhead
One, yet known in three ways
The doctrine of the Trinity was developed by the early Church because they knew Jesus as the divine Son of God
But also human
So how can we speak of God?
The Trinity was the Churches answer
Jesus
Both human and God
Go-eternal with the Father
Fully God and Fully Human
Because of the…
The Resurrection
Of Jesus
Because we believe that He actually was raised from the dead
Never to die again
It is the foundation of the Christian faith
Today:
The Holy Spirit
The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit
Not as controversial as some of the other doctrines
Christians in the mainline…
Methodist, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Episcopalian, some Baptists, etc.
…and many Evangelicals don’t know very much about the Holy Spirit!
The only real controversy surrounds the more “Charismatic” expressions of the Christian faith.
Some Christians shy away from the Holy Spirit because
They associate Him with the “weirdos” who “speak in tongues and bark like dogs!”
The “fire pit walkers” and “snake handlers!”
But the truth of the matter is, the Holy Spirit is active and moving in the Church and in the world
Empowering and transforming worldly people into Kingdom people!
Not to be feared, but embraced as God!
So it is important that we clarify this doctrine and lift it up
Because it speaks of our understanding of God and His Triune Nature.
The Holy Spirit is not just another name for God.
Nor is He just the immediate Presence of God
He is God in our presence
But He is understood to be the third Person of the Trinity
With all of the attributes and power of God
Not a third “god” but the third Person of the Triune God, or Trinity
Nor is the Holy Spirit simply “The Force” from Star Wars
Which a recent study by the Ligonier ministry found 62% of “evangelical” Christians believed!
And so it is important that we refer to the Holy Spirit using the second person pronoun of “Him”
And not the impersonal pronoun “it”
Some have offered to use the female personal pronoun “She” for the Holy Spirit
But there is no scriptural ground to do so
English, unfortunately, does not have a non-gender personal pronoun
And God is consistently identified in Scripture with male pronouns
So the Holy Spirit is “He” “Him” and “His”
Even though there is really no necessity to identify Him as male
Unlike God the Father, and God the Son
It is a limitation of our language in talking about the Holy Spirit.
Our tradition affirms the Holy Spirit
From the Articles of Religion of the Methodist Church, Article IV—Of the Holy Ghost:
The Holy Ghost, proceeding from the Father and the Son, is of one substance, majesty, and glory with the Father and the Son, very and eternal God.
From the Confession of Faith of the Evangelical United Brethren Church, Article III – The Holy Spirit:
We believe in the Holy Spirit who proceeds from and is one in being with the Father and the Son. He convinces the world of sin, of righteousness and of judgment. He leads men through faithful response to the gospel into the fellowship of the Church. He comforts, sustains and empowers the faithful and guides them into all truth.
As you know, The United Methodist Church was formed in 1968 by the merger of The Methodist Church and The Evangelical United Brethren Church.
Unfortunately, The United Methodist Church has been lax in teaching its official doctrine, so much of what is our “official doctrine” is ignored or even repudiated by those who claim to be United Methodists in good standing.
Our Doctrine of the Holy Spirit (or Holy Ghost) has been neglected and many UM’s do not know what our church teaches about the third Person of the Trinity!
The Holy Spirit in Scripture
Present in Creation, as the wind/spirit of God hovering over the waters
Not as controversial as some of the other doctrines
Christians in the mainline…
Methodist, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Episcopalian, some Baptists, etc.
…and many Evangelicals don’t know very much about the Holy Spirit!
The only real controversy surrounds the more “Charismatic” expressions of the Christian faith.
Some Christians shy away from the Holy Spirit because
They associate Him with the “weirdos” who “speak in tongues and bark like dogs!”
The “fire pit walkers” and “snake handlers!”
But the truth of the matter is, the Holy Spirit is active and moving in the Church and in the world
Empowering and transforming worldly people into Kingdom people!
Not to be feared, but embraced as God!
So it is important that we clarify this doctrine and lift it up
Because it speaks of our understanding of God and His Triune Nature.
The Holy Spirit is not just another name for God.
Nor is He just the immediate Presence of God
He is God in our presence
But He is understood to be the third Person of the Trinity
With all of the attributes and power of God
Not a third “god” but the third Person of the Triune God, or Trinity
Nor is the Holy Spirit simply “The Force” from Star Wars
Which a recent study by the Ligonier ministry found 62% of “evangelical” Christians believed!
And so it is important that we refer to the Holy Spirit using the second person pronoun of “Him”
And not the impersonal pronoun “it”
Some have offered to use the female personal pronoun “She” for the Holy Spirit
But there is no scriptural ground to do so
English, unfortunately, does not have a non-gender personal pronoun
And God is consistently identified in Scripture with male pronouns
So the Holy Spirit is “He” “Him” and “His”
Even though there is really no necessity to identify Him as male
Unlike God the Father, and God the Son
It is a limitation of our language in talking about the Holy Spirit.
Our tradition affirms the Holy Spirit
From the Articles of Religion of the Methodist Church, Article IV—Of the Holy Ghost:
The Holy Ghost, proceeding from the Father and the Son, is of one substance, majesty, and glory with the Father and the Son, very and eternal God.
From the Confession of Faith of the Evangelical United Brethren Church, Article III – The Holy Spirit:
We believe in the Holy Spirit who proceeds from and is one in being with the Father and the Son. He convinces the world of sin, of righteousness and of judgment. He leads men through faithful response to the gospel into the fellowship of the Church. He comforts, sustains and empowers the faithful and guides them into all truth.
As you know, The United Methodist Church was formed in 1968 by the merger of The Methodist Church and The Evangelical United Brethren Church.
Unfortunately, The United Methodist Church has been lax in teaching its official doctrine, so much of what is our “official doctrine” is ignored or even repudiated by those who claim to be United Methodists in good standing.
Our Doctrine of the Holy Spirit (or Holy Ghost) has been neglected and many UM’s do not know what our church teaches about the third Person of the Trinity!
The Holy Spirit in Scripture
Present in Creation, as the wind/spirit of God hovering over the waters
Present at Pentecost as He fell on the first Christian believers and empowered them to become the Church (Acts 2, see the whole chapter)
So, far from being the source of “weirdness”, the Holy Spirit is God present with us, helping us to live faithfully and truthfully!
The Holy Spirit: Giver of Gifts and Bearer of Fruit
In our lives of Christian discipleship (following Jesus), the Holy Spirit is the Gift Giver
We find the “Gifts of the Spirit” in primarily two places in the New Testament:
The Holy Spirit: Giver of Gifts and Bearer of Fruit
In our lives of Christian discipleship (following Jesus), the Holy Spirit is the Gift Giver
We find the “Gifts of the Spirit” in primarily two places in the New Testament:
These are not meant as exhaustive lists!
There are many “Gifts of the Spirit”
And I don’t think God wanted to limit them just to these two lists
There are indications of other spiritual gifts, in addition to these
But they all serve the same purpose:
“to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:12)
When the Holy Spirit is present in our lives (and He is present in all believers), He produces what we call the “Fruit of the Spirit”:
There are many “Gifts of the Spirit”
And I don’t think God wanted to limit them just to these two lists
There are indications of other spiritual gifts, in addition to these
But they all serve the same purpose:
“to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:12)
When the Holy Spirit is present in our lives (and He is present in all believers), He produces what we call the “Fruit of the Spirit”:
These are the characteristics of a follower of Jesus
Or should be!
Our lives should exhibit:
Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity (or goodness), faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control
To the degree that our lives DO exhibit these fruits we are what John Wesley would call “sanctified”
To the degree that our lives DO NOT exhibit these fruits, we still have a ways to go!
The Baptism of the Holy Spirit
The Bible speaks of a “baptism of/with the Holy Spirit”
John the Baptist said that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit
When Paul was in Ephesus he found some disciples (of Jesus):
Or should be!
Our lives should exhibit:
Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity (or goodness), faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control
To the degree that our lives DO exhibit these fruits we are what John Wesley would call “sanctified”
To the degree that our lives DO NOT exhibit these fruits, we still have a ways to go!
The Baptism of the Holy Spirit
The Bible speaks of a “baptism of/with the Holy Spirit”
John the Baptist said that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit
When Paul was in Ephesus he found some disciples (of Jesus):
Baptism in/of/with the Holy Spirit is a second blessing, beyond the blessing of salvation, that is available for all believers.
It isn’t a step “up” in the Christian faith, rather
It is a step “beyond” the ordinary life of faith
In my experience, it is a deeper empowerment of my walk with Jesus
Such that I have experienced some of the miraculous power to heal and transform that the early Christians experienced.
It has also deepened my understand of Scripture and opened my eyes to the spiritual dimension all around us.
I was a Christian before I experience the baptism of the Holy Spirit
But I have been a better Christian since then
And I find that the Holy Spirit is working in me to sanctify and transform me more and more into the likeness of Jesus
It isn’t a step “up” in the Christian faith, rather
It is a step “beyond” the ordinary life of faith
In my experience, it is a deeper empowerment of my walk with Jesus
Such that I have experienced some of the miraculous power to heal and transform that the early Christians experienced.
It has also deepened my understand of Scripture and opened my eyes to the spiritual dimension all around us.
I was a Christian before I experience the baptism of the Holy Spirit
But I have been a better Christian since then
And I find that the Holy Spirit is working in me to sanctify and transform me more and more into the likeness of Jesus
The doctrine of the Holy Spirit is important for us
Because without it, we have no clear understanding of how God works in the world or in our lives
It is why the doctrine of the Trinity is also so important
We know God primarily in three ways:
Father
Son
Holy Spirit
We are not unitarians
God the Father only
Nor are we binarians
God the Father, and
God the Son only
We are Trinitarians
God the Father,
God the Son, and
God the Holy Spirit
Because if we were not, we would not be Christians
In the historic, orthodox definition that the Church has declared:
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets.
(from The Nicene Creed)
Next Week
Ted Smith, our Lay Leader, will be preaching
It is Laity Sunday!
I’ll be back after a short vacation to continue our series on “Doctrine Matters” on November 1st
When the Doctrine that Matters is: Scripture
Read 2 Timothy 3:14-17
Because without it, we have no clear understanding of how God works in the world or in our lives
It is why the doctrine of the Trinity is also so important
We know God primarily in three ways:
Father
Son
Holy Spirit
We are not unitarians
God the Father only
Nor are we binarians
God the Father, and
God the Son only
We are Trinitarians
God the Father,
God the Son, and
God the Holy Spirit
Because if we were not, we would not be Christians
In the historic, orthodox definition that the Church has declared:
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets.
(from The Nicene Creed)
Next Week
Ted Smith, our Lay Leader, will be preaching
It is Laity Sunday!
I’ll be back after a short vacation to continue our series on “Doctrine Matters” on November 1st
When the Doctrine that Matters is: Scripture
Read 2 Timothy 3:14-17