David Diga Hernandez - 3 Things I've Learned About the Power of the Holy Spirit

So here are three things I’ve learned about the power of the Holy Spirit. Number one, the power of the Holy Spirit draws criticism. Here’s what Jesus said in John 15:20. «Do you remember what I told you? 'A slave is not greater than the master.' Since they persecuted me, naturally they will persecute you. And if they had listened to me, they would listen to you». There are various levels of persecution, criticism being the lowest level of persecution, violence being the highest level of persecution. Now, no matter what kind of persecution you experience, you can expect to be persecuted if you walk in the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus tells us clearly here that if they persecuted Him, they’ll persecute you. We can’t expect to not endure criticism if Jesus had to endure criticism. He’s the Lord, we’re the servants. So we will experience criticism just like He experienced criticism. Think about the fact that when He drove out demons, He was called demon-possessed, that when He healed the man on the Sabbath, instead of people celebrating that miracle, they criticized Him for doing it in what man considered to be the wrong timing. Think about the man who was filled with a legion of demons. When he was set free, the demons left him, went into pigs, and then the people who witnessed this miracle said, «Jesus, go away from us» because they didn’t like the stirrings that that miracle had caused. So if you walk in the power of the Holy Spirit, you need to expect to endure criticism and slander in all forms. You will be persecuted. Now, let me be clear here. This isn’t a license to be weird and then just excuse that weirdness. This isn’t a license to be bizarre and to embrace strange doctrines and then get mad when people call you out on those strange doctrines. Rather, I’m talking about walking in the power of the Holy Spirit with purity and biblical accuracy. Even when you do it right, you’ll be criticized. Think about how polarizing Jesus was. Jesus was so polarizing, that they crucified Him. He was the perfect son of God. He did everything with perfection. He lived a perfect life. He spoke perfect words. He taught perfect lessons. And people still criticized Him. Think about the fact that Jesus, the greatest teacher of all, speaking with perfection, was still often misunderstood. He was still often misquoted. You will be misunderstood. You will be misquoted. You will be cleverly edited. You will be questioned about everything. People will look at you and they’ll say, «Impure motives» when your motives are pure. People will misunderstand you. People will talk bad about you. People will do all sorts of things to come against you when you begin to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit. But this doesn’t mean you become combative. This doesn’t mean you come against them. This doesn’t mean you respond emotionally. Keep a level head, keep walking forward. Walk in the power of the Holy Spirit. Recognize that if they persecuted Jesus, they’re gonna persecute you, and take it for the privilege that it is. Walk in the power of the Holy Spirit. Don’t apologize, but do expect persecution. A very powerful man of God once said that the power of the Holy Spirit will draw crowds, controversy and criticism. So yes, that same power that impacts lives, that same power that draws crowds, will also be a magnet for criticism and controversy. But stay focused on the call of God regardless.

Number two, it doesn’t come upon the lazy. The power of the Holy Spirit does not come upon the lazy. Now, for this point, I don’t have a chapter and verse, but what I do have is a biblical pattern that I wanna show you. Watch this now. When Moses was called, he was tending his father-in-law’s flock. When Isaiah was called, he was serving in the temple. When Samuel was called, he was serving Eli. Peter and Andrew were fishing when Jesus called them. Elisha was plowing the field when Elijah called unto him. Now, think about the fact that even Saul, who was persecuting believers, was busy doing what he was passionate about. Now, he had misguided zeal. What he was doing was wrong, but he was still doing something. He was still active. God will not anoint the lazy. Now, God can use anyone he wants, but he rarely decides to use the lazy. You must be going in order to be guided. Now, many times Christians are waiting for the heavens to open, for a light to shine down, and for God’s voice to be audibly heard, instructing them what to specifically do. But if you’re waiting for something like that, it’s most likely that that moment just will never come. So instead, what should you be doing? You should be doing something. Look at what the scripture says. Look at what the scripture reveals about the will and the nature of God. Do what the Bible says, and then allow the Holy Spirit to speak specific instructions. But most believers will wait until they hear specific instructions before they actually start doing what the Bible says. The Bible says to live a lifestyle of worship. The Bible says to live holy. The Bible teaches us to know the word of God. The Bible teaches us to have prayer lives. The Bible teaches us to evangelize. So instead of waiting for those specific instructions, do something, do what the Bible says, and then God will reveal the next steps. So you have to be moving. If you want steps two and three, you have to begin with step one, do what the Bible says. And as you do what the Bible says, the Holy Spirit will begin to reveal specific instructions for your specific calling. But in the meantime, recognize the power of the Holy Spirit does not come upon the lazy.

Number three, and I really wanna emphasize this one, it doesn’t prove that you know Jesus. Let’s take a look at what’s possibly one of the most frightening portions of scripture in all of the Bible, Matthew 7:21–23. «Not everyone who calls out to me, 'Lord, Lord' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, we prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.' But I will reply, 'I never knew you. 'Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.'» Now, here’s one of the more troubling aspects of this verse. The people being described here were completely confident that the Lord would embrace them. They were fully expecting to hear, «Well done, good and faithful servant». But instead, they were surprised. They were shocked to learn that the Lord had rejected them. One translation puts it that they strutted up to the Lord, that, «many will come strutting up to me». They expected to be embraced, they expected to be rewarded. Instead, they were rejected. Now, this proves to us that Jesus will use you even if He doesn’t know you. So you have to remember that demonstrations of power alone, the flow of the Holy Spirit’s power alone, is not the proof that you belong to God. So many times, people live immoral lives, they teach unbiblical doctrines, and they live lives completely separated from God but point to the power that’s flowing through their lives. And they say things like, «Well, there’s the fruit. „There’s the fruit of my life. People are being healed, people are being delivered. I’m prophesying“. But that’s not what the scripture means by fruit. The fruit that Jesus describes when He says, „You’ll know them by their fruit“ is character, it’s Christ’s likeness. So the proof that you belong to Him isn’t power, it’s the character of Christ. How do you get that? It’s the presence of the Holy Spirit. You see, God will always back His word with power. The word of God is so powerful, that there’s power demonstrated even when a hypocrite preaches it. But while God backs His message with His miracles, He only backs His people with His presence. So the presence, not the power, is the main thing here. You have to remember that we must stay connected to the Lord. We must live lives of obedience to Him. We must put our faith in what He did, and not in what we are doing. Your ministry is not an indication of your relationship with God or the health of your relationship with God. You must keep that relationship protected and pure, and never look to signs and wonders to validate your salvation. We are not saved by works. This includes miraculous works.