The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1916-01-06
LESSON FOR JANUARY 9
THE COMING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
LESSON rrXr-Ants o.,-1e

Good teaching demands the use OF
the concrete; objective teaching is
fundamental and essential. The incar
nation is Gods objective teaching
God manifest" (al to reveal him.
self, John 1879; OBJ to take away sin,
John 3.5; (c) to destroy the works
Of the devil, John 3:8. So likewise
Pentecost is great objective lesson.
This chapter has been divided as fol.
lows: CD The Coming of Power (vv.
l-1S), (2) The Empowered Witness
wv. 1896, 60 A Powerful Result wv.
BAD.
!. Power, IA. At the end of our
last lesson the disciples were in
prayer, The Lords promise 1:5) was
conditioned upon obedience. At last
the day arrived Lev. 23:15-2D.
Their hearts were fused and the fun.
damental requirement for service. the
baptism Of the spirit, came upon them
There has been no need since then to
tarry any time at all to receive a
like blessing. Lack OF unity has much
to DO with our not receiving the spirit
now and the consequent lack of power.
Suddenly from out OF heaven came a
mighty sound ". p and it is such
wind that the church needs today.
There were three manifestations at
this time and one other subsequently
(see 2:44, 4:34, 80; SD. CD Wind.
Let us keep clear the difference be-
tween symbol and spirit. The mani
festation was "as wind" Wind is mys-
terSous, universal and mighty, but like
Elijah on the mountain God is not
alone as a mighty tempest. The
sound filled the whole house. Wind
is figurative of judgment Ger. 22:22,
Hos. 1870 of the Spirit John 3:S),
also Of heresy (Eph. 4:18). This last
suggests the vagaries and limitations
suggested or abetted by Satan to keep
us from the truth. (2) Fire. This
symbolizes power, light, heat and puri-
flying, but the fire was not the spirit
nor do we recall another such mani
hesitation since CD Tongues. The fire
took the form of tongues which parted
or portion,N themselves ont TO leach
one of them" though Peter is alone
subsequently more prominent.
Every manifestation of the spirit is
always that of some new power for
Christ q Cor. 1920.
II. PerpIexity, w. bis. The ques
ton may arise. had the spirit been
seen before? and the answer is yes
Matt. 3:16, Jno 1922. What then
was new? The answer to this is the
program of power. The first evidence
Of power was the gathering Of the peo-
pie ". O.. The disciples at once testi-
fed to each Of the sixteen classes men.
toned Gid Of the mighty works of
God" Not of the gift, but the giver,
a different sort Of testimony than that
given by many who today profess to
have the gift of tongues. The second
result was an amazed people, per
picked" for them as now the world
cannot understand the spirit-flled
man. These spirit.flled men forget
self and were lost in their testimony
". IL.
1t is Of interest to note that they did
not even say much if anything about
the spirit himself Their testimony,
for which many later gave their lives, (
was regarding Gods mighty work OF
the resurrection OF Jesus from the |
dead wv. "a, By.
The spirit-flled man is sure to EN-. /
phasize this mighty work and the evil I
dence of the spirit in a mans life Is
his loyalty to a crucihed, risen and /
assembled Lord.
A third result was that people mis- I
and charged drunkenness, |
a fact seized upon later by Paul &c
teach us the truth (Eph. $50. The /
only sure cure for intemperance, or
any other evil, is an milling of the
holy spirit The final and complete
iulfllment Of the prophecy wv. 1921,
Joel 2:2S. 29) of which Pentecost was
! partial fulfllment will be in the day
Of the Lord" But then, as now. all
who call upon him shall be saved w.
l3, Rom. 1913. Some mOcked,'
even as today ridicule or parody are
he enemy's choicest weapons. Pente.
cost is an event well attested, that
marked the ushering in OF a new dis.
that was misunderstood, but
me that can be verified by experience.
Pentecost was revelation mani
of new spiritual kingdom
distinctly Christian, that exposes sih
md exalts the son.
Pentecost is a prophecy of rea
Christian unity, of a spiritual admins
ration, of Christs intercession and an
'vidence Of an abiding presence
When we are spirit.filled the Lord
'esus Christ will occupy the whole
iorizon of our experience, our testi
nony and will control our service. The
pirit-hlled servant can exclaim THE
ord (Jesus) is my shepherd" he lie
ord, he is my shepherd he is, not
las been or will be, but be is my shep.
Ierd.
The gift of the spirit must not be
onfused with the spirits gifts" q
,or. 12) whereby we are enabled to do
ne work he directs in order to glorify
he son-not the church, nor man, ncr
religious experience, but the Lord