I'm gonna give you just five levels of relationship with the holy spirit based
on a relationship that Jesus had with the Holy Spirit the first degree of our relationship with
the Holy Spirit where all of us start is when we get born when we get born you can write down born
again when we get born again we this is what our relationship with the Holy Spirit begins
now actually the Holy Spirit is with us before we get born again to bring us to Jesus Christ
but the relationship with him begins when we get born again just like Jesus was born by the Holy
Spirit you and I when we get saved we get born by the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit begins to
live in us could somebody say Amen so the Holy Spirit begins to live in us one of the reasons
Jesus lived a supernatural life was because he had a supernatural birth when he came to
Nicodemus and he said Nicodemus told him he says Jesus I noticed that you are you doing
credible things the the miracles amazing the teachings amazing when you teach demons come
out awesome and Jesus almost interrupts the whole thing and says unless you born a water and spirit
you cannot see the kingdom of heaven you almost like Jesus didn't just hear what she said Jesus
was trying to explain to Nicodemus the reason my life is so supernatural because my birth was
supernatural see salvation is not getting a ticket to heaven when you die salvation is an entrance
into a kingdom of God when you live salvation is when the Holy Spirit gives me a new birth
to qualify me for a supernatural life salvation is not just a little insurance card in the glove
box from my theological preferences when they die so in case there is heaven that I don't go
into Hell salvation Jesus says he says unless you born of water which is physical birth and
the Spirit which is supernatural birth salvation he says you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven
Jesus wasn't talking about heaven in heaven he was talking about the kingdom now that you and I
can walk into your supernatural birth when you get saved is what opens the door for the supernatural
life that you have with the Holy Spirit Jesus did not model to us what God can do on earth he
modeled to us what a man submitted to the Holy Spirit can do on earth some people think well
Jesus walked on water that was God well why did he say we can do what he did and more we can't be
God no matter how hard we humble ourselves submit ourselves to God will never be God but we can be
like Jesus because he demonstrated on earth what a man like you and I who submits himself to the
Holy Spirit can achieve on this earth when you get born again by the Holy Spirit this is where
your relationship with the Holy Spirit begins number two is when we get filled with the Holy
Spirit filled with the Holy Spirit is Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit when he was water
baptized and John the Baptist baptized Jesus in the Jordan the Holy Spirit came upon Jesus we
don't see Jesus actually speaking in tongues here but we see a Holy Spirit coming upon Jesus it's
very interesting to see that Jesus was not filled in the Holy Spirit praying at home he was in the
service were John the Baptist who had a smaller ministry than Jesus who did not have miracles
in his ministry who was um who was Baptist that he was baptized if you've been a saint Baptist
denomination and Jesus goes to let me just say to you plainly it's like this Jesus the charismatic
because he had miracles he the gifts he goes into a service that was not like his service that he's
going to have and the Holy Spirit touches him there you know we must understand one thing for
us to have a relationship with the Holy Spirit you have to learn to honor the people God uses
even those you don't disagree you disagree with even those who may not be reaching the fullest
potential in the kingdom of God Jesus didn't go to John and say hmm John your diet is bad you're
eating locusts what kind of madness is that John your dress code is terrible you're dressed up like
what is this do you just didn't come to John and said John you don't feel people John you don't
cast out demons John your ministry is not good enough see this is where most of us do and that's
why the Holy Spirit cannot use us because we know what we're called to do and so we think that our
job is to go put everybody down but Jesus comes to John they say John can you baptize me John
says no no no no Jesus you you are greater are you so great I'm not even worthy to tie your shoelace
it's not even know I can baptize you Jesus says I know John I know I'm greater you know you create a
high-five that's good you need to baptize me Wow Wow most of us we would never do that we would
come to John said John I need to meet with you for coffee afterwards a lot of things you need
to change there's nothing wrong with having your ministry greater than John's but the Holy Spirit
did not come on Jesus when he was praying the Holy Spirit came upon Jesus when he went to
John and said John baptize me sometimes we get I get personally attacked because they say things
like why are you following other ministers first of all I don't follow other ministers who follow
Jesus but why do I listen to other ministers I always do listen to other ministers I preach I
am meet with other pastors in town who are not like us met this Friday with a wonderful pastor
from the vintage few weeks ago from Bethel Church pastor c3 pastor who whose ministries
are different than even where we are going to be you know I listen to podcasts read the books
and people say why do you always do that and you encourage us to do that because there is a degree
of the presence of the Holy Spirit that will not be available to you if you don't respect other
people that God is using that is different than you if you only able to listen and respect those
that that just literally tickles you it's just like you you you're still with God but there's a
limitation there see the spirit of Pharisees is this the speed the Pharisee says I honor Moses
Moses is the man of God Jesus don't understand him but Oh God used me to be a prophet for tomorrow
see when Moses was alive everybody hated him and know everybody started loving Moses when
Moses died we love prophets that are dead kill the prophets that are alive and hope and wish
to be prophets tomorrow we're all like that you can't you come to church you say Kathryn Kuhlman
was a mighty woman of God vlad smith wigglesworth with a mighty man of God except he was rejected
from most charismatic churches because he know what Smith Wigglesworth did who raised 32 people
from the dead he brought dead person on the stage and told him to walk carrots with kids
ran and they said this is nonsense you know what Smith Magus was that he walked in the kitchen and
people dropped on the floor by the power of God and people said this is crazy this is not good
but when Smith Wigglesworth died everybody's just [ __ ] was mighty men of God we always do
that and so Jesus doesn't want us to be like that he wants us to be like he was he came to John and
he didn't honor John when John was dead he says John God is moving through you baptize me let's
be students of the Holy Spirit not scholars of the Holy Spirit and somebody shout him in the level 3
when Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit level 3 as Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit after you
get filled you have to be led by the Holy Spirit is the Holy Spirit begins to give you promptings
now it's interesting Jesus wasn't led by the Holy Spirit into a crusade or a service he was led by
the Holy Spirit to fast and to pray when I was younger I remember I even fasted and said Lord
I want to hear your voice until God started to speak and I said lord please a little bit
less of your voice now don't speak to me as much because see what I thought is that when God will
speak to me he will tell me which real estate to buy and trace cities which has gold mine I
thought when he was speak to me he will right away point out at the age of 16 who my wife is gonna be
I wanted God to tell me you know what is gonna be what I'm gonna do like an you know 15 years
one years down the road but when Gaston to speak to me he said Vlad could you apologize to your mom
for not cleaning up your room for three days in a row and I said Lord no don't don't talk to me
about this stuff talk to me about deep things of the Spirit the mysteries of the kingdom of
God that the whole Council of God gases yes this is my console pick up a vacuum and vacuum that
room that you won't be telling you to vacuum for so long I don't want to hear that our Lord
it's not about hearing God it's about hearing God that makes all the difference amen and many
times the Holy Spirit does not start speaking with this person needs to be healed this person
needs to be healed he will start speaking to you about things that involve your self-denial you
get on your knees you say Lord speak to me and he says you know what it's been six months for
some it's been six years you haven't fasted you should start fasting I'll be buek this in Jesus
name God speak to thy servant because thy servant heareth thee God leads sometimes starts leading
you into wilderness before he leads you to a mountaintop and don't rebuke it and then shut
it down if it's a client's with the Word of God it might be the Holy Spirit leading you and you
need to be obedient to that amen the fourth step is when Jesus was in the wilderness he
overcame Satan in the wilderness in Matthew and Luke chapter 4 verse 4 now you might say but lad
that was Holy Spirit wasn't mentioned there you're saying that the Holy Spirit how does
that help me to know the Holy Spirit listen to this very carefully it will help you so
much the Holy Spirit was not mentioned in the wilderness temptation of Jesus yet he was there
why when you don't feel the Holy Spirit you have to stand on what the Holy Spirit said
in his word that's where you find the Holy Spirit and that is how Jesus overcame Jesus
overcame Satan and his hardest times is when you don't feel the spirit you can find him in his
Jesus who's felt the Holy Spirit come upon him Jesus who felt the Holy Spirit lead him into the
wilderness and then he goes into the wilderness and there is no more mention of the Holy Spirit
and Jesus doesn't get distracted to say God you left me he doesn't say Holy Spirit where is you
where are you Holy Spirit help me the Bible says Jesus begins to quote the scriptures Holy Spirit
Road see God's Spirit will always lead you to a place that only his word will get you through
God will never leave you God will not give you so much of his presence that makes you unnecessary
to rely on the Word of God the Holy Spirit Road the Word of God and when you cannot feel him in
worship you find him in the scriptures when you cannot feel him during the sermon you find him
in the Word of God because he hides himself in his word when you don't see him don't feel him
or don't experience him in your wilderness and that is how you overcome can somebody shout amen
I cannot tell you how many times in my personal life I sensed the leading of the Holy Spirit to
give up for example that the account comes to my mind is last year when I gave a vehicle away it
was the second vehicle within about four months and I felt so great I knew it was God leading me
until the next day I recognized that I don't have money I had $150 left on my checking account the
second day both of us didn't have cars me and my wife and and I did not want to go and get it
from a dealer on the payment so I said great I'm just gonna call a few of my guys that I know who
have dealerships and I'm gonna tell him that I have a problem hopefully God will speak to them
like he spoke to me to give a car God will speak to them to give me a car simple solution give
and you receive I'm like I'm I gave on Sunday I'm gonna get it back and use it that's gonna
be the fastest harvest ever received on this planet and I will experience that I called one
guy on Monday I called not the guy on Tuesday called third guy on Wednesday they all wanted
to sell me a particular car for about 45 to 60 thousand dollars I was like sorry somebody else
is calling me I gotta go $2,000 and this is where by Thursday I start getting depressed and I said
Lord you didn't speak to me about giving a car why did I give a car in the first place my dad
told me was a stupid idea should have not done it should have listened to my father and I said
God nobody's giving me a car and this is where I started to Holy Spirit that presence Lord that
I felt when I decided that where is that presence and I got on my knees I turn on my favorite music
and I started to create those same feelings and they were not there and for two weeks I'm
not exactly in two weeks after three o'clock I come home I laid in a bonus room over there and
cried my eyes and say God where are you why did you forsake me and God didn't speak nothing the
only way I got through that point is I realized God leads me what only what he says in his word
will get me through I started to rely on the fact God will never forsake me I started to rely on the
fact that God never promised to give me a car back and I didn't give it to get a car back I
gave it because I felt leading of the Spirit I wanted to bless a people Gossard to deal with my
motives and I came out of that I said Lord now I'm gonna go find another way gonna find a car
and everything but I didn't do it to get a car God said to clean up with his word my motives and my
things and eventually I have a car better than I had before my wife has the car but I don't know
she had before but it's not about the cars it's about going through a season when only God's Word
only God's Word begins to clean you up because to change things inside and it's not gonna be
what you feel it's what you feed on in that season that will get you through somebody shout Amen are
you with me so this the five number five is you get empowered by the Holy Spirit so after you go
through some things and the Holy Spirit helps you with using his word he empowers you after
Jesus came out of the wilderness we see that Jesus was empowered and the anointing of the Holy Spirit
he started to touch the life of Jesus and Jesus started to minister with the power of the Holy
Spirit now we out the Holy Spirit's anointing Jesus wouldn't be able to accomplish anything
that he accomplished in this world without the Holy Spirit you cannot fulfill your calling now
Jesus is calling was to die for the world your calling is to raise up your family your calling
is to be a good husband your calling is maybe a businessman maybe you're in this room today
your calling is to raise your grandchildren your calling might be to to preach to lead a homegroup
when I tell you something without the Holy Spirit you cannot fulfill your calling the way God wants
it to be fulfilled but the Holy Spirit aside and says I don't have time for your understanding
you're confusing you kind of crazy and all the crazy people I'm gonna talk about the hosts but
want to stay I just want to believe there is a God don't know who Allah Buddha but there is one and
I'm gonna stick with that and that's it buddy I don't want nothing to do with the Holy Spirit Saul
one day did their he disobeyed the Holy Spirit by this honoring his mentor and the Holy Spirit
was drew from him and something happened the Bible says diamond started to attack him Brian I
want you to turn off all the lights in this sanctuary including the lights on the top quickly
one two and three all of them everywhere in the side lights as well have you noticed the moment
the lights were turned off like in a split second actually the darkness came in anybody noticed that
mm-hmm nobody invited the darkness I only asked them to turn off the lights I did not invite the
darkness what did the darkness come from it's always been here huh absence of light created
right away the darkness turn on the lights please you don't have to invite the darkness
it will always come you only have to invite the light when you reject the light you invite the
darkness that's how it works when we reject the holy spirit the darkness is always there when
you say I don't want the Holy Spirit I don't have time for the Holy Spirit I ignore the Holy Spirit
that's exactly what happens the light gets turned off the demons of pornography they quickly appear
the demons of drinking they quickly appear all kinds of addictions of depression they quickly
appear demonic is always there and it's waiting for you to switch off the switch that's why you
relationship with the Holy Spirit is not a luxury for us it's not just well my life is
good but the Holy Spirit will be greater this is life with the Holy Spirit and without it we are
exposed to the darkness I am and so are you the best of us will see the worst in us when
we reject the relationship with the presence of Jesus the Holy Spirit because somebody say Amen