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Ghost Stories

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"I was awakened by the sound of my bedroom window being slammed shut. I jumped up in horror and amazement as there was nobody there and yet...the curtains continued to thrash around like they were being driven by a tornado gust. I heard an unearthly voice rip through the silence and scream..."

Got you, didn't I? I was attempting to recreate some of the memories I have of ghost stories. I spent many a night around a campfire or in a dark room with friends and flashlights telling ghastly tales of ghostly terror. I still remember not being able to sleep for hours because of the mental images left by unnatural narratives.

Which is why I completely missed out on taking advantage of the awesome power of the Holy Spirit until I was much older.

What in the haunted house am I talking about?

Well, as you may or may not know, there are literally dozens of versions of Bibles these days. They make it easier for everyone to understand God's Word so we don't get confused. And confused is exactly what I was as a kid, because we only had one version of the Bible. That's right - no NIV, NAS, NLT, Bible for teens, Bibles for men, Bible for pet owners, or any other type of helpful translation. We had the King James Version - which, if you didn't know, has been around since 1611 A.D.

It turns out people talked a little different 400 years ago. That's why the King James has all those "thee's" and "thou's" that can turn theology into a tongue twisting trial. The twistiest of which is the King James title for the Holy Spirit:

But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. (John 14:26)

Every time we talked about the Holy Spirit in church, He was called the Holy Ghost. So sometimes in my mind I had weird images of a floating spirit that haunted the building, other times I pictured a Casper-like figure with a cross around his neck.

Not exactly what God had in mind.

I wish I would have known what I am about to tell you, because having an accurate view of the Holy Spirit is a critical part of living the Christian life. So if you're a little (or a lot) confused about this sometimes mysterious member of the Trinity, read on for some important Christian service announcements:

First, the Holy Ghost is not a ghost, or Casper with a cross...He is God - with all the same characteristics and qualities of the Father and the Son. People who deny this fact have never read this story:

There was also a man named Ananias who, with his wife, Sapphira, sold some property. He brought part of the money to the apostles, but he claimed it was the full amount. His wife had agreed to this deception. Then Peter said, "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart? You lied to the Holy Spirit, and you kept some of the money for yourself. The property was yours to sell or not sell, as you wished. And after selling it, the money was yours to give away. How could you do a thing like this? You weren't lying to us but to God." (Acts 5:1-4)

Peter first says that Ananias lied to the Holy Spirit, then points out that he lied to God. Questions? There should be none.

Being God means being everywhere, knowing everything, holding all power, and having no beginning or end.

Second, the Holy Spirit is not an impersonal force (can you say Star Wars?)...He is a Person. Just because He is missing familiar personality titles like Father or Son doesn't mean He is missing familiar personality traits like intelligence, feelings, thoughts, desires and dreams. Here are some examples:

He speaks to people:

One day as these men were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Dedicate Barnabas and Saul for the special work I have for them." (Acts 13:2)

His feelings are hurt when we sin:

And do not bring sorrow to God's Holy Spirit by the way you live. (Ephesians 4:30)

He thinks about Christians all the time:

How precious are your thoughts about me, O God! They are innumerable! I can't even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up in the morning, you are still with me! (Psalm 139:17-18)

He has a desire for the world:

And when he comes, he will convince the world of its sin, and of God's righteousness, and of the coming judgment. (John 16:8)

He has a dream for you:

For the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you through Christ Jesus from the power of sin that leads to death. (Romans 8:2)

Third, the Holy Spirit is not floating around, He is living inside all Christians:

Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? (I Corinthians 3:16)

This is a completely awesome truth. When you trusted Christ as your only hope of salvation, God moved in! He is there whenever you need Him to guide, protect, comfort, and correct. He wants you to be there when He needs you to share Christ and be Christ to the world around you.

Now you know what I didn't know, so do the things that need to be done:

• The Holy Spirit is God...worship Him!
• The Holy Spirit is a Person...love Him!
• The Holy Spirit lives inside you...serve Him!
• Did I just hear a window open somewhere?

Head: What you need to know about this truth

The Holy Spirit is not a ghost or an impersonal force. He is God and has a personality which includes personality, intellect, emotions, and a will. At the moment of salvation the Holy Spirit comes to live inside a believer.

Heart: What you need to feel about this truth

Knowing that the Person of God lives inside you should bring up strong feelings of confidence, gratefulness, and motivation. When you base your confidence on yourself, it will ultimately fail. When you base it on God, it ultimately cannot fail. Here's a story that brings this truth out:

Come with me into West Texas during the Depression. Mr. Ira Yates was like many other ranchers and farmers. He had a lot of land, and a lot of debt. Mr. Yates wasn't able to make enough on his ranching operation to pay the principal and interest on the mortgage, so he was in danger of losing his ranch. With little money for clothes or food, his family (like many others) had to live on a government subsidy.

Day after day, as he grazed his sheep over those rolling West Texas hills, he was no doubt greatly troubled about how he would pay his bills. Then a seismographic crew from an oil company came into the area and told him there might be oil on his land. They asked permission to drill a wildcat well, and he signed a lease contract.

At 1,115 feet they struck a huge oil reserve. The first well came in at 80,000 barrels a day. Many subsequent wells were more than twice as large. In fact, 30 years after the discovery, a government test of one of the wells showed it still had the potential flow of 125,000 barrels of oil a day.

And Mr. Yates owned it all. The day he purchased the land he had received the oil and mineral rights. Yet, he'd been living on relief. A multimillionaire living in poverty. The problem? He didn't know the oil was there even though he owned it.

Are you ready to take advantage of the priceless treasure you've been given?

Hands: What you need to do about this truth

One of the great things about having the Holy Spirit live inside you is that you have the ability to understand the Bible. After all, He's the One who wrote it, right? This is like getting a pair of glasses that allows you to see the unseen world. When you start to realize how amazing the Bible is, and how you have the author with you at every moment, you'll have no trouble diving into God's Word. This week, set aside 10-15 minutes a day to read the Bible, and be sure and ask the Holy Spirit to make it come alive and show you what it means before you read. I can pretty much guarantee that your devotions will never be the same!