Wednesday - July 6, 2016

Woodlawn Family Bible Study
WEDNESDAY

BIBLE READING:  John 14:16; 15:26; 1 John 4:13  

 MAIN IDEA: “Does the Spirit of God dwell in you?”

 DISCUSSION: 
Navy ships that were used for gun fire support in Vietnam all had gyroscopes. This device compensates for the ships movement to keep the guns on target even when the ocean is rough, causing the ship to roll and pitch. The gyroscope helps keep the aim on the target at all times, but it is especially noticed during rough seas.  

 With the Holy Spirit in our lives, He is always there to help us stay focused on our target: heaven. We go through life with the Holy Spirit guiding us with decisions and choices we make, without really realizing the blessing He provides for us. When tragedy comes into our lives and the seas of life get very rough, the Holy Spirit helps us keep our life focused on the target of heaven. We know we have a helper to get us through life’s rough seas. 

 To help illustrate God’s dealing with man, you could say that there were three ages.  The first age is the age of the Father, which existed from the beginning till the birth of Jesus (about 4000 years). God the Father was most active during this period. The second age was the age of God the Son, which existed from the birth of Jesus until the coming of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost (about 34 years). Jesus the Son of God was most active and revealed during this period.  The third age was the age of God the Spirit, which began with the coming of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost and will last till the coming of Jesus on judgment day (over 2000 years and continuing). The Holy Spirit is most revealed and most active during this period.  The purpose of this illustration is to show that different members of the Godhead were most revealed and most active in dealing with man at different times in history. The Holy Spirit age is the last and final age. 

 We have to ask ourselves if we have truly made room for the Holy Spirit in our hearts or is our lives so crowded there is standing room only? Do we only need and want to talk to Him when the hard times are upon us? 

 APPLICATION: Has the level of spirituality declined within the church? (If I were Satan and my ultimate goal was to keep people out of heaven, one of my main strategies would be to get Christians to ignore the Holy Spirit.)

 Prayer Requests

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