The POWER of the HOLY SPIRIT by vanderKOK

4/2/06 POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
APRIL 2, 2006
Sunday Morning Spiritual Message
from Pastor Kok III:
The Power of the Holy Spirit!
Dear Friends,

Good Morning from Garden Grove, California! It's a cool morning. I've turned my clock ahead and it is 6:50 a.m pst as I begin composing. What a week! Some of you may or may not know that in addition to doing ministry I also am involved in education. I taught as a “regular teacher” for a few years in Coachella Valley, CA before going back to seminary and while going through seminary I substitute taught, and continued to do so after seminary, while building up Mustard Seed Ministries. This week I went to several different Los Angeles area schools and there was a lot of upheaval due to some of the protests that took place earlier this week in regards to the new legislation or potential legislation concerning illegal immigrants. In addition, some of the schools I go to are not “stable” schools. There's constant turnover--teachers quit in the middle of the year, administrations are not always supportive, etc. etc.

This week I saw a few fights--one kids with a very bloody face, another kid was taken out of my classroom in handcuffs. I heard the usual insults from students to students and even a few towards me. I heard the “F word” numerous times. I heard the “N word” a few times as well (did you know that black students call other black students “N-gg-r” in a semi-affectionate manner without any notion of the derogatory history of the word? I've addressed the matter to them a few times and sometimes it helps, temporarily). But the language problem in our public schools is a real problem and is something to pray about.

As you can imagine by 3:00 pm Friday I am ready to get away from Los Angeles, and recently I've been going to San Diego for a brief respite. This weekend I managed to go to San Diego Zoo and Sea World for part of the day before returning here to Orange County to be near the church and compose my morning message. And I promised I would speak about the Holy Spirit this week. After my e-mail campaign on Monday and Tuesday and the Surprise E-mail Birthday Party for Jim Kok --which had an overwhelming positive response, but was clouded by one negative response from my cousin, Bob Kok, led me to send out messages about the Danger of the Abusive Personality and an exhortation to Walk in the Spirit.

Since then I've exchanged a few other messages with cousin Bob and have decided to use only postal mail communication with Bob and his wife, Cindy, who live in Holland, Michigan. Bob got his “fifteen minutes of fame” with his negative spam e-mail messages in the middle of the Birthday Bash for my dad, Jim Kok. Later, I responded to Bob Kok saying you have “no patriarchal authority over me” and a few other things--indicating to him my displeasure not on ly about his negative e-mail spam but the fact that he has not been a leader nor shown any interest whatsoever in me and how I'm doing over the last 40 years--and now to suddenly speak like some sort of upset “father figure” was very disingenuous.

And some positive things came from all of this--I think we broke through some pretense of affection that was never actually there and I'm glad Bob finally was able to say, honestly and openly, “I don't care about you at all, Phil (or John)?” Even as much as it stings to know somebody has no natural affection for you, it is nice to know the truth. And you can begin to develop a paradigm that includes the realization that there are those without any natural affection, some of them are living semi-functionally in society.

My friends, last week I spoke about the Body of Christ and intertwined it with some of my personal history and made references to the Crystal Cathedral and how the Crystal Cathedral, despite seeming to be “larger than life” sometimes, is “just another” part of the body of Christ, and is a member of the Reformed Church of America and answers to the denomination. All the pastors of the Crystal Cathedral have some seminary education at a Reformed or Christian Reformed seminary and must also satisfy certain denominational requirements in order to continue to be part of the denomination.

But to whom does the denomination answer? To whom does the seminary answer? Beyond the Board of Officers or Trustees, et. al. the ultimate answer is Jesus Christ--the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and the “litmus test” of whether it is a genuine “church” or a genuine part of the Body of Christ is the “fruits of the Spirit.” Does (do) the church, the denomination, the Board of Officers or Trustees, the president of the seminary, the professors, administrators, those in charge of “seminary development” or “student life” et. al. as a whole evidence the presence of the Holy Spirit and the “Fruits of the Spirit?” That is how the “common person” can judge. And so let's begin this morning's message with a prayer.

Prayer: Dear Holy Father, we come to you in humble prayer and ask for your guidance for this morning's message about Your Holy Spirit. Give me the Words to say, God. Give me the thoughts to think, Jesus. And give me the wisdom to bring a message together this morning that will be meaningful and edifying to others, Holy Spirit. Hear our prayer. Amen.

And now let's sing a song
Song:The Bible Stands http://www.newsongonline.org/midi-hymns.html

And the Bible does stand as our source of authority--the Inspired, Infallible, Word of God. This does not mean we do not study the sources--that we do not examine the Greek or Hebrew or that we do not attempt to test the “weight” of a passage given the different fragments of parchment we have from which a verse or passage of the Bible was derived (which takes some time and serious research to understand) but we believe in the Bible as a whole--that the Bible stands as Inspired and Infallible as a whole. But this does not stop us from inquiring into the intended meaning of the Word in specific--various verses, passages, etc. And ultimately it is Jesus Christ in our heart and the presence of the Holy Spirit that provides the personal answer to some specific life questions.

Song: In My Heart http://www.newsongonline.org/midi-hymns.html
Isn 't that a nice piano piece? I'm starting to feel better already. How about you? Now let's go to the morning Scripture

Scripture: Acts 2:33-39
33 Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear. 34 “For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: ‘ The LORD said to my Lord, “ Sit at My right hand, 35Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”’[f] 36 “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” 37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” 38 Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”


What is this passage all about? Well, it's about both Easter & Pentecost, both of which are coming up. It's about the crucifixion, the descending into hell, the resurrection and the ascension. First it is about the promise of the Holy Spirit which we find in Joel 2: 28-29 and which says,

“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: 29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.


This is a promise of the Holy Spirit and it was fulfilled, initially and in general, at Pentecost which we celebrate this year on June 4, 2006. But the Holy Spirit can come at any time, individually or more. And the Holy Spirit is here, now. All good things are due to the Holy Spirit--even those things we take for granted. Although Joel make reference to things that sound sort of “mystical” “shall prophesy” , “dream dreams”, and “see visions” this does not necessarily mean it will always or ever be something exotic like you would find in a fanciful Hollywood movie. Nor do you have to be an ordained minister of any specific denomination to experience the Holy Spirit. You do not have to be hired by a church and given a fancy title to experience the Holy Spirit. Have you ever dreamed of something? Have you ever thought about the effects of a governmental policy and said to yourself or somebody else, “Just wait, you'll see--that is going to lead to trouble.” Have you ever had a premonition about something to come and find out later on it did happen? Well maybe you have been filled with the Holy Spirit. But if you don't act on what the Holy Spirit has inspired in you, you might “quench” the Holy Spirit.

1 Thessalonians 5.19-22 is one verse that warns of the danger of “quenching” the Holy Spirt: 19 Quench not the Spirit. 20 Despise not prophesies. 21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.


I believe that all of God's people--all believers in Jesus Christ are privy to the Holy Spirit but too often we quench that Spirit. The word they translate as quench in the New Testament comes from the Greek “sbennumi” meaning very simply, “to extinguish”

One of my favorite commentaries says this, in part, about the quenching the Spirit: “”Christians are said to be baptized with the Holy Ghost and with fire. [God] works as fire by enlightening, enlivening, and purifying the souls of men. We must be careful not to quench this holy fire...we quench the Spirit if we do not stir up our spirits, and all that is within us, to comply with the motions of the good Spirit... be careful about indulging carnal lusts and affections, or minding only earthly things.” (Matthew Henry's Commentary, Biblesoft)

Too often we become overwhelmed with worldly problems--perceived needs (as opposed to actual needs), desires, fears, phobias, etc. And when we do not rely upon the Holy Spirit and instead capitulate to the world we begin to quench the Spirit. IN fact, they used to say when somebody died that the person “gave up the ghost” --and the King James Version of the Bible uses that phrase for death at least once (see Job 3.11 King James Bible).

But not everybody who has “given up the ghost” is actually, physically dead. We have all met people who seem to lack natural affection and civility. Fortunately, a lot of them are in jail--mass murderers, rapists, habitual thieves, etc. Unfortunately, some are not--some people live without the ghost or much of it in a semi-functional manner in society. But they are not real pleasant people to be around. In fact some of these people are “abusive personalities”--fortunately marginalized by good society to a certain extent--but still dangerous.

And we have the Holy Spirit to rely upon to keep us alive rather than walking dead. Our senses are not dulled. We are “in the Spirit” and “of the Spirit” and together as the Body of Christ we exhibit the Fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5.22-26; also see Ephesians 5.9; among others) We can rely upon the Holy Spirit if we are careful not to get seduced by the world and materialism. This is not to say material things are bad, God forbid.

IN fact that's an opposite danger to think of all material goods as bad. Indeed not, what is dangerous is to make materials goods out-of-proportionally important to your life--so that God becomes secondary. People lose their good judgment when seduced by material pleasures. The congressman from San Diego, Duke Cunningham, one of our heroes from Vietnam, is an example of having become seduced.

How do we prevent this quenching of the Spirit? There is no formula. Going to church may help but then there are some who so habitually go to church that it is not fully “of the Spirit” as much as it is just another habitual pattern. Take, for example, the mass murderer from Kansas City--whom they called the BTK Killer-- “Bind, Torture, Kill”. He murdered several women over the course of many years and went uncaught for a long time until he led police to him, almost intentionally, with letters and ultimately a computer disc that they traced to his church where he was a deacon. Going to church, alone, is not evidence of the Holy Spirit.

When I first returned to southern California in August of 1997 and resumed seminary at Fuller in Pasadena I began attending the Crystal Cathedral worship service. I actually, physically attended inside the glass cathedral with all the lights and cameras as they filmed the Hour of Power which is on television every Sunday. It was not my first time observing the worship service. Our family came here in 1984. But it was my first time I attempted to go as a “regular attendee” and to try to experience the Cathedral as a regular church. And there were a lot of different dynamics at the Crystal Cathedral than what one might experience at a more “local” church.

The Cathedral is too big to be generalized and so I will not try, but I believe everybody experiences it differently according to their own individual interests or needs. It is only when you begin to interact with the people as part of the Body of Christ that you begin to experience the true church, whether it be the people at the Crystal Cathedral (i.e. physically at 12141 Lewis Ave) or people who are part of the “Houses of Power” around the country and world, or people who are both part of the Crystal Cathedral congregation in Garden Grove or via television as well as a part of another congregation. IT is also each individual person and congregation all across the USA and around the world. It is the Reformed Church, the Christian Reformed Church, the Presbyterian Church, the Baptist Church, and so on and so forth. This is the Body of Christ.


And when we tap into the Body of Christ we begin to experience the regeneration of the Holy Spirit. If I didn't take time on Sunday, at least one out of every seven days to specifically focus on the Word and talk with the Body of Christ I would not be able to regenerate enough to do what I do the rest of the week. Just as we take care of our own individual, physical body we must take care of the Body of Christ.

And this morning's primary passage goes from mention of the actual, physical Body of Christ--the crucifixion (Acts 2:36) to mention of the descent into hell ( “His soul was not left in Hades” Acts 2:31) to the resurrection (”God raised up, whereof we are all witnesses” 2:32) and mentions the “right hand of God” (Acts 2.33).

I used the New King James Version which says “to the right hand of God” but there are those who say the Greek (tee dexia) is more accurately translated “by the right hand of God” ---i.e. a “glorious forth-putting of divine power” as the Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary says.


And it makes sense to think of the resurrection as a divine intervention and perhaps later the ascension as being “to the right hand of God.” But Jesus is with us in Spirit--the Holy Spirit. And it is upon this Holy Spirit which we rely so that we can exhibit and experience “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Gal 5.22) Against such things there is no law.

As some of you saw earlier this week--my attempt to have an e-mail birthday party was “of the Spirit.” And many of you joined in and I thank you. Nonetheless there were some who attempted to quench the Spirit and were negative, trying to get their fifteen minutes of fame using my e-mail list to spam people with negative ideology. Don't let that negativity affect you my friends. Bothersome, annoying, frustrating, and upsetting in the short-run, but not to worry in the long run. The power of the Holy Spirit and people “in Christ” overcomes.

Let's take a break and listen to a song: There's Power in the Blood http://www.newsongonline.org/midi-hymns.html

And indeed there is “power in the blood”. IT is the blood of our Lord Jesus having died on the cross for us which saves. Praise the Lord! Peter reminds us that we need to “repent” ourselves. All of us have something for which we can repent--maybe it's a sin of omission, maybe it's a sin of commission. Whatever it is--and you know in your heart what it is--place it before Jesus and ask for forgiveness. This is the catalyst for regeneration by the Holy Spirit, acknowledging one's shortcomings, but not just acknowledging them and later repeating them but sincerely endeavoring to overcome those shortcomings and to fulfill God's purpose for you.

Song: Sweet Holy Spirit http://www.newsongonline.org/midi-hymns.html

And so my friends as I come to the end of my message feeling much better myself I thank you for listening to (or reading) my morning message and hope we can continue as the body of Christ to support each other and keep our “sails up” so that the power of the Holy Spirit can fill our sails and lead us. We cannot always or fully control the direction of the wind (of the Holy Spirit) not should we. We should allow God's Holy Spirit to lead us where He intended us to go. Amen? Amen.

And now may God bless you and keep you. May the Spirit of the Lord be with you and fulfill you. And may you fulfill others in the day and in the night, in the east and in the west, wherever you may be. We are the Body of Christ filled with the Holy Spirit.

Take The Name of Jesus With You http://www.newsongonline.org/midi-hymns.html

Footnotes
How you Know Me or How I know You
1)
Yes it's me, J.P. Kok class of 1985 (GRCH) and class of 1989 (Calvin College, psychology major, with honors) ) and 1994 (Calvin College again, English/Education major) and class of 2002 (Fuller Seminary, Masters-in-Divinity, M.Div ), and "ex" of California State Long Beach Graduate School (for Social Work, one semester)) and "ex" of Wayne State Law School (one semester) and "ex" of Calvin Theological Seminary (one year, 1996-97) and "ex" of Reformed Bible College (where I took two years of Greek in one year) among other things. Some of you might know me from one of the above schools or programs.

Others of you might remember me from growing up in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Still others might remember me as an infant in Iowa City, Iowa (where I was born). Others of you might remember me from 1st CRC on Bates St. where our family attended church for fourteen years. Still others might know me from California where our family moved to in 1984 when I was a senior in high school. Others might know me because you know my brother (Andrew) or sister (Julia), or you know my dad (Jim) or my mom (Linda), or my grandfather Kok (the late Rev. Gareth Kok) or my grandfather Peters (the late Leo Peters of Butterball Farms).

Some of you may know me from the Crystal Cathedral where I am a member and where my dad works and where the Kindness Conference just took place over the last three days. Others of you may know me from the mission work I did in Costa Rica (1991) or the teaching I did there (also 1991) or from the mission work I did in the Philippines (1992). Still others of you may remember me from the judicial setting. And some of you I know from the little Bible Study group, Koinonia. Some of you I remember from working with at Pine Rest Christian Hospital. Others of you I know because I attended the church you were pastoring at the time.

Maybe some of you remember me from Spring Break in Florida, either with Christian Adventures (riding our bikes to Key West with the Calvin College group) or hiking in the Appalachian Mountains in Georgia (with another Calvin group) or Fort Lauderdale and Daytona Beach (a little more of a secular experience).

And some of you may remember me from the Student Teaching I did at Holland Christian Middle (now South Shores Middle) in Holland, Michigan or maybe even the summer weeks we spent at my Grandpa's Cottage on Lake Michigan (near Holland) and others of you remember me from the Cottage near Stony Lake. Some of you may remember me better from Millbrook Christian Junior High (or Seymour Christian Elementary) And at least one or two of you I went fishing with once or more, either around West Michigan or on the Outer Banks in North Carolina.

Some of you are former girlfriends (I still love you) or friends from somewhere along the way. And for those of you who are enemies I hope we can be friends now. I'm not such a bad guy after all. Some of you I knew from the semester in Spain, 1988. Others of you I know from the semester in Hawaii at Chaminade University of Honolulu (1986). Others of you I know from doing CPE at UCLA Medical Center where we were hospital chaplains together. Some of you remember my dad, Jim Kok, as a college basketball player or maybe played with him. Others of you know my dad as a chaplain and CPE leader.

Still others of you know me because I know your son or daughter. Some of you remember me as a student from English, Psychology, Education, or Seminary. Some of you remember me as a high school football player. Also, some of you may or may not realize that I've been preparing Sunday morning messages from outside the Crystal Cathedral for a while now.

At least one of you is a former suite-mate from the Beets Dormitory at Calvin College. And one of you is a pastor at the CRC in St. Joseph, Michigan, where my sister lives and where I was for the month of May, 2005.

IF you are receiving this I somehow found your e-mail address and would like to hear from you, but if I don't hear from you, at least just listen, weekly. Or at least save this in your archives for a while. God bless you. I am hoping to create a Hol-E-Spirit Revival. That's a Holy Spirit Revival by e-mail. JPK

FEEL FREE TO FORWARD THIS MESSAGE TO OTHERS. THE MORE THE MERRIER! I HOPE THIS E-MAIL LIST WILL GROW INTO THE 1000'S OR MORE!

Attachments: 1) ja23_032 is a photo of Pastor Kok III on a hobycat on Lake Michigan near Stony Lake (New Era) when my parents used to own a cottage there. 2) mr06_503 is a photo of the Kok family (when Pastor Kok III was a kid) at their home on Griswold St on Easter in the 1970's (also shown is the Peters Family--or the Peters 2 Family--my grandfather Leo Peters re-married and had three children after his first wife died) 3) mr06_469 is a picture of Pastor Kok III and a few of his siblings in the "dinghy" on Lake Michigan at Grandpa's Cottage which is still owned by the Peters and where my mom and dad spent a month last summer (2005); 4) A photo of Pastor Kok III with a fish he caught on Lake Michigan several years ago and a reminder not to be just a fisherman but be a "Fisher of Men"! 5) A more contemporary photo of Pastor Kok III by a stream next to the Mississippi River( Summer, 2004) 6) A picture of the Crystal Cathedral taken last week by Pastor
J.P. Kok
JOHN THE EVANGELIST FOR CHRIST