Sunday April 15 2018

Sermon : “Conversion Stage 3”
        Pastor Kim Wenzel
 Conversion Stage 3
Stage 1 - Water Baptism and the Yellow Brick Road.
Stage 2 - Via Dolorosa and the Baptism by Fire - Two Thieves on the Crosses.
Stage 3 - Jesus Real Departure and Holy Spirit Baptism.

Deeper Conversion - Stage 3

John 16:5-15 NLT
The Work Of The Holy Spirit

 ⁵ “But now I am going away to the one who sent me, and not one of you is asking where I am going. ⁶ Instead, you grieve because of what I’ve told you. ⁷ But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate^[a] won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you. ⁸ And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. ⁹ The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me. ¹⁰ Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more. ¹¹ Judgment will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged.

¹² “There is so much more I want to tell you, but you can’t bear it now. ¹³ When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. ¹⁴ He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me. ¹⁵ All that belongs to the Father is mine; this is why I said, ‘The Spirit will tell you whatever he receives from me.’

We are better off with Jesus "In Us" (The Holy Spirit) Than Jesus "Beside Us" 

Footnotes 
a. John 15:7 Or Comforter, or Encourager, or Counselor. Greek reads Paraclete.


1 Corinthians 15:1-11 NLT
The Resurrection Of Christ
1 Let me now remind [you, dear brothers and sisters,^[a] of the Good News I preached to you before. You welcomed it then, and you still stand firm in it. ² It is this Good News that saves you if you continue to believe the message I told you—unless, of course, you believed something that was never true in the first place.^[b]
3 I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. ⁴ He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. ⁵ He was seen by Peter^[c] and then by the Twelve. ⁶ After that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followers^[d] at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. ⁷ Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles. ⁸ Last of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also saw him. ⁹ For I am the least of all the apostles. In fact, I’m not even worthy to be called an apostle after the way I persecuted God’s church.
¹⁰ But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out his special favor on me—and not without results. For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not I but God who was working through me by his grace. ¹¹ So it makes no difference whether I preach or they preach, for we all preach the same message you have already believed.

Footnotes
a. 1 Corinthians 15:1 Greek brothers; also in 15:31,50,58.
b. 1 Corinthians 15:2 Or unless you never believed it in the first place.
c. 1 Corinthians 15:5 Greek Cephas.
d. 1 Corinthians 15:6 Greek the brothers.

Luke 24:50-53 NLT 
 The Ascension

⁵⁰ Then Jesus led them to Bethany, and lifting his hands to heaven, he blessed them. ⁵¹ While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up to heaven. ⁵² So they worshiped him and then returned to Jerusalem filled with great joy. ⁵³ And they spent all of their time in the Temple, praising God.

Acts 1:4-5 NLT 

The Promise Of The Holy Spirit

1 In my first book^[a] I told you, Theophilus, about everything Jesus began to do and teach ² until the day he was taken up to heaven after giving his chosen apostles further instructions through the Holy Spirit. ³ During the forty days after he suffered and died, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive. And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God.

⁴ Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before. ⁵ John baptized with^[b] water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
  
Footnotes
a. Acts 1:1 The reference is to the Gospel of Luke.
b. Acts 1:5 Or in;

Stage 1 - Crisis of Meaning. 
Stage 2 - Yellow Brick Road turns into Via Dolorosa - GOD asks, "will you still Love Me when I don't bless you?"This is the cutting of self-love. Crucifying of ego.
Stage 3 - Also preceded by a crisis - Jesus leaves for good. Wait, Wait, Wait in Jerusalem. A time of contemplation. A time of deep sharing, praying, singing praises, etc.

 George Barna - Researcher for Modern Christianity.

51% No idea what "Great Commission" is.
17% Did know and could state the gist of the "Great Commission"
25% The statement does ring a bell.
6% Said they had never heard the term "Great Commission" in their life.

Huge numbers of "Professing" Believers know little of their Bibles.

87% Of Christians had never shared the Gospel with anyone!

Matthew 28:16-20 NLT
 The Great Commission
 ¹⁶ Then the eleven disciples left for Galilee, going to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. ¹⁷ When they saw him, they worshiped him—but some of them doubted!
¹⁸ Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. ¹⁹ Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations,^[b] baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. ²⁰ Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
  
Footnote
b. Matthew 29:19  Or all peoples.

Mark 16:15-16 NLT 
 ¹⁵ And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. ¹⁶ Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned.

Acts 1:8 NLT 
⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

John 20:21 NLT 
 ²¹ Again he said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.”

Matthew 9:37-38 NLT 
³⁷ He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. ³⁸ So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.”

Romans 10:15 NLT 
¹⁵ And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!”^[h] 

Footnote
h. Matthew 10:15 Isaiah 52:7 

Today's Verse 
 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.