The Daily + Midweek Updates!
Good morning Immanuel! The coming of the Holy Spirit stands between us and spiritual orphanhood.
“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. (John 14:16-18)”
There are times when we feel somewhat abandoned spiritually here on earth. Even if we don’t doubt that God is there, we wonder if he is actually here. And there are times when the difficulties of this life feel more than we can bear without God being right alongside us. So we need to hear these precious words of Jesus: “I will not leave you as orphans.” He’s not saying he won’t leave us. He will. He is saying he won’t abandon us. We will be physically without him. But we won’t be on our own.
The reason for this is what he previously said: “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth” (John 14:16–17). Jesus is promising the Holy Spirit. The Son’s departure will be followed by the Spirit’s arrival. Pentecost wasn’t just a watershed moment of empowerment; it was a form of consolation. Pentecost shows us we aren’t abandoned on earth as spiritual orphans.
The Bible never denies the reality of deep loss and trauma in this world. Nor does it promise us immunity from such loss the moment we become Christians. Instead it promises us something in the midst of this loss––something more precious than anything else in this world, and which itself can never be lost––the presence and love of God within us, by the Holy Spirit.
The coming of the Holy Spirit stands between us and spiritual orphanhood. We have not been abandoned. The Spirit of Jesus himself has been given to us, and placed forever in us.
You can read the full article on The Gospel Coalition here.
April 26, 2023 - Immanuel At a Glance
Celebrating Sunday
SUNDAY SERMON - If you missed Sunday’s sermon, don’t sweat! You can get caught up here!
FIRST WORD GENESIS SEMINAR - If you haven’t caught up on the latest lecture from Dr. Russell Moore’s Genesis seminar, you can check it out here!
FAMILY WORSHIP - This upcoming Sunday is Family Worship! Children four years old and up are invited into the corporate worship service as we worship Christ together.
Things To Know
WEDNESDAY NIGHT - Join us tonight as we continue our study time in the book of Acts!
ONLINE PRAYER - Every week, Jenn Ross, one of our Discipleship Groups leaders, facilitates two online prayer meetings that everyone is welcome to join. Join us every Thursday afternoon from 12:00-12:45 pm, or every Sunday morning from 7:30-8:00 am.
PRAYER REQUESTS - Have a prayer request that you’d like to share with us? Feel free to submit them here. We would be honored to pray with and for you!
SERVING - Interested in serving at Immanuel? There are opportunities everywhere, from the parking lot to the pews, cafe to kids. Consider your opportunity to get in on this, and fill out this form if you’re interested!
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Read the full article, thank you Sam.
Oh, that believers would grasp the fact that the Holy Spirit dwells in us… sadly the hyper spiritual movement has caused so much drama that people don’t like to fully engage with the third person of the trinity.