By Michael Haldas
Thoughts on Us and the Holy Spirit, June 17, 2016
“If Jesus had stayed on earth, his physical presence would have limited the spread of the Good News, because physically he could be in only one place at a time. After Christ was taken up into heaven, He would be spiritually present everywhere through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was sent so that God would be with and within His followers…” (Life Application Study Bible, Acts 1:4-5)
“The Holy Spirit dwells in the humble soul, bringing freedom, peace, love and blessedness…The Spirit is the living presence of God…” (St. Silouan the Athonite, Father John Zeyack)
“The Holy Spirit gives us the power to live in Christ and to love others. Only the grace of God can change hearts, and we must not allow our own critical spirit to hinder the work of the Holy Spirit in others.” (Abbott Tryphon)
“The Spirit is the power of our new lives. He begins a lifelong process of change making us more like Christ.” (Life Application Study Bible, Acts 1:5)
“The Holy Spirit will always tell us the real truth about ourselves if given the chance. This knowing is not so much cognitive as spiritually intuitive. It goes beyond words or concepts—it is simply a knowing.” (Father David L. Fontes, PsyD)
Thoughts on “Being Filled,” June 20, 2016
“When the day of Pentecost had come, they (the Apostles) were all together in one place. And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance,” (Acts 2:1-4).
“…the Holy Spirit of God is poured out upon the Disciples of Christ, and they are filled with all knowledge; they are filled with wisdom; they are filled with the ability to speak and be heard in every language; they are filled with the ability to perform the same sort of wonders of Christ Himself…” (Chris Andreas)
“The tense of the Greek word translated filled indicates that filling is a moment-by-moment repeatable action. To be filled with the Spirit is to be controlled by the Spirit and is therefore crucial to successfully living the Christian life. The imperative says that the believer is to be filled with the presence of the Spirit so that he comes to know God in all His fullness, living in relationship with Him. Out of this relationship, the believer is able to manifest Christlike character.” (Foundation Study Bible, Ephesians 5:18)
“The Spirit-filled person will exhibit the Christlike character described in Galatians 5:22–23 as the fruit of the Spirit…Being filled and led by the Spirit may take you places you never planned; but the will of God will never lead you where the grace of God cannot keep you.” (Foundation Study Bible, Ephesians 5:18, Neil Anderson)
“…the sincere agreement of two people in prayer is more powerful than the superficial agreement of thousands, because Christ’s Holy Spirit is with them. Two or more believers, filled with the Holy Spirit, will pray according to God’s will, not their own…” (Life Application Study Bible, Matthew 18:19-20)
~Michael Haldas, https://www.ancientfaith.com/contributors/michael_haldas.
Michael Haldas is an author, a religious educator and a speaker. He wrote Sacramental Living: Understanding Christianity as a Way of Life (published by Eastern Christian Publications), a book which he presented special editions of as gifts to Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in private audiences. Michael is also published monthly in Theosis Magazine and he has authored several Orthodox Christian themed articles for various publications. Additionally, he has recorded and contributed to multiple YouTube, DVD and CD educational projects. He teaches adult religious education and high school Sunday school at the Greek Orthodox Church of St. George in Bethesda, Maryland and has worked with the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Religious Education Department to create educational lessons and materials.
