Now, as always, God discloses Himself to 'babes' and hides Himself in thick darkness from the wise and the prudent. We must simplify our approach to Him. We must strip down to essentials (and they will be found to be blessedly few). We must put away all effort to impress, and come with the guileless candor of childhood. If we do this, without doubt God will quickly respond.
A.W. Tozer

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E-pistle for March 28, 2008

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#1 · March 26, 2008, 9:46 am

Posted by: info <info@...>

E-pistle

                                             Dr. Dan Hite, President            FreeWay Foundation                     March 28, 2008

Hidden In The Day Of The Lord's Anger

(Zephaniah 2:1-15)

Dr. Curt Scarborough

I.  Concentration:  on the contents of this chapter

        1.   The prophet, Zephaniah, called the nation of Judah to repentance, vv. 1-3.

        2.   He pronounced judgment on the Philistines:  the cities of Gaza, Ashkelon,

              Ashdod, and Ekron, vv. 4-7.

3.      He pronounced judgment on Moab and Ammon, the descendants of Lot, vv. 8-11.
4.      He pronounced judgment on Ethiopia and Assyria, vv. 12-15.

II.  Meditation:  on God's speaking in the first person through Zephaniah

1.      To the Philistines:  "I will destroy you," v. 5.
2.      To the Moabites and the Ammonites:  "I have heard the reproach . . . and the

        insults," v. 8.

3.      "Therefore, as I live," v. 9 . . . here God swears upon His own life; He pledges

        the absolute certainty of His existence as the guarantee of His coming judgment.

4.      "You Ethiopians also, you shall be slain by My sword," v. 12.

III.  Revelation:  on Zephaniah's urgent call for Judah to repent

1.      He has specified the nation's sins in chapter 1; here he summarized their wickedness

        by calling them an "undesirable" (shameless) nation, v. 1.

2.      He urged them to take immediate action before it was too late . . . before God's

      decree of final judgment was issued; before the day (opportunity to repent) passed

      away like chaff blown by the wind; before God's fierce anger was poured out upon

      them, v. 2.

3.      He called upon the nation to diligently "seek" (search or strive to find) the Lord . . .

        exhibiting the spiritual characteristics of meekness, justice, righteousness, and

        humility, v. 3.

4.      He held out hope that such sincere seeking of the Lord could avert God's fierce

      anger . . . that they might be "hidden" in that day of judgment, v. 3 . . . a play upon

      the prophet's own name, which meant "The Lord Has Hidden."

IV.  Applications:  as a Christian, I need to . . .

1.      Be sensitive to the Holy Spirit's convicting me of my sins against God.
2.      Immediately repent, confess, and forsake my sins, receiving the Lord's mercy and

      grace, His forgiveness and cleansing.

3.      Diligently seek the Lord, cultivating the spiritual traits of meekness and humility, and

        pursuing God's justice and righteousness.

4.      Live in the blessed hope that through Christ I shall be kept safe from harm in the day

      of judgment . . . "For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God,"

        Colossians 3:3

Words Used In Acts To Describe

Experiencing The Holy Spirit

by:  Dr. Curt Scarborough

1.      Bapto – Being "baptized" (immersed) in the Holy Spirit.

      Acts 1:5 (Luke 3:16)

      Greek word used in describing a sunken ship, a drowned person, dipping bread in liquid,

      and dyeing a garment.

2.      Eperchoma – The Holy Spirit "coming upon."

      Acts 1:8 (Luke 24:29 – "endued; clothed"

      Acts 19:6

3.      Pleroo – They were "filled" with the Holy Spirit

      Acts 2:4; Acts 4:31; Acts 9:17

      (Ephesians 5:18 – "continuously being filled to overflowing")

4.      Ekcheo – The Holy Spirit "poured out."

      Acts 2:17; Acts 10:45

      (Titus 3:5-6; Spirit "poured out" abundantly.)

5.      Epepepto – The Holy Spirit "falling upon."

      Acts 10:44; Acts 8:16

6.      Lambano – "Receiving" the Holy Spirit.

      Acts 8:17; Acts 19:2

OBSERVATIONS

        Luke's terminology in describing people's experience with the Holy Spirit in Acts is fluid.

He is more interested in conveying dynamics than theology.

        He notes:

·       that people were "filled" with the Holy Spirit (2:4; 4:31; 9:17),
·       that they "received" the Holy Spirit (8:17; 19:2),
·       that they Holy Spirit "fell" upon them (10:44; 8:16),
·       that the Holy Spirit had been "poured out" on them (2:17; 10:45), and
·       that the Holy Spirit "came upon" them (1:8; 19:6).

      These terms all are the essential equivalents of Jesus' promise that the church would be

"baptized" with the Holy Spirit (1:5) . . . especially its immediate fulfillment (2:4) which Luke

described as a "filling."

OCCASION OF EXPERIENCING THE

HOLY SPIRIT IN ACTS

        1.  The Promise                 Acts 1:5                "baptized"

                                        Acts 1:8                "come upon"

        2.  Pentecost (Jews)            Acts 2:4                "filled"

                                        Acts 2:17               "pour out"

        3.  Prayer meeting              Acts 4:31               "filled"

        4.  Samaria (Samaritans)        Acts 8:16               "fallen upon"

                                        Acts 8:17               "received"

        5.  Paul (Damascus)             Acts 9:17               "filled"

        6.  Cornelius (Romans)          Acts 10:44              "fell upon"

                                        Acts 10:45              "poured out"

        7.  Ephesus (Greeks)            Acts 19:2               "receive"

                                        Acts 19:6               "came upon"

        

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