Holy Spirit Power – Luke 4 Encouragement

Greetings,

     “Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit returned from the Jordan and was led around by the Spirit in the wilderness for 40 days, being tempted by the devil.” (Luke 4:1-2) And after, by the Spirit, He resisted all the devil’s temptations, “Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit…” (Luke 4:14) – the same Holy Spirit Power that is available to each one of us (see yesterday’s Encouragement).

     “There was a man possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon and he [the demon] cried out with a loud voice, ‘let us alone,,,’ But Jesus rebuked him saying, ‘Be quiet and come out of him!’…he came out of him without doing him any harm.” (Luke 4:33-35)

     “Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked Him to help her. And standing over her, He [Jesus] rebuked the fever, and it left her…” (Luke 4:38-39)

     “But He said to them, ‘I must preach the Kingdom of God to the other cities also, for I was sent for this purpose.” (Luke 4:43)

     Rebuke – to sharply and sternly scold, criticize, and disapprove of because of behavior or actions. Notice that Jesus didn’t rebuke people. He rebuked demons and the evidence of their actions.

     So, here’s the Encouragement: Exercise your Holy Spirit Power! Don’t stand for anything that does not line-up with the goodness of God’s Kingdom. Rebuke it in the mighty name of Jesus and release His Kingdom Love, Peace, and Joy into the situation. In that way we are actively praying, “Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven”, just like Jesus told us to.

God bless,

Dave