St. Peter Lutheran Church
2929 F.M 972 (at F.M. 1105)
Walburg, Texas 78626

Office: (512) 863-5600
Worship Services - each Sunday 10:15 a.m.
Holy Communion - 1st & 3rd Sundays

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Last Updated:
June 8, 2020

St. Peter Lutheran Church at Walburg, Texas
2020 - All Rights Reserved

Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ Texas District

So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied. - Acts 9:31

  The Person of the Holy Spirit is a kind of difficult concept for people to get their minds around. Some people say that that you are a truly faithful person, you will be able to tap into the Spirit's power to get your heart's desire. Other people think the Spirit came for a certain time and a certain people, but isn't around anymore. Still other people say the Spirit is just a pretty metaphor. With all these misunderstandings, let's look at what the Bible says about the Holy Spirit.

  First, the Spirit leads people to faith. The opening sections of the book of Acts show how the Disciples were all huddled together inside their worship space until the Holy Spirit sent them out to bear witness to Christ. What was the hold up? These folks had seen the risen Christ with their own eyes. If belief in Christ was a decision, why wait? Well, out of Jesus' own mouth, the Disciples are told to wait until they receive the promised Holy Spirit (Luke 24:49).

  Next the Holy Spirit reminds us that we are forgiven and that sin and death are not the end of the story. Paul, in the book of Romans, reminds his listeners that the Spirit which has been promised to all the Disciples was the same one which raised Christ from the dead (Romans 8:9-11). For many people, the Holy Spirit is seen as one who will make our own powers a little better. Yet the Bible's vision of the Spirit is that He causes people dead to sin to rise into a new life in Christ.

  Finally, the Spirit allows us to bear witness to the Gospel. Acts 5:32, finds the Disciples declaring to a less than open-minded audience, "We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him." This echoes Jesus' comforting command in Matthew 10:19-20, "When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you." Our biggest problem when sharing the hope of the Gospel with people is thinking it all rests upon us. Yet just as the saving work of Christ on the cross was not our doing, the work of sharing falls upon the Holy Spirit inside of us.

  You know, the Holy Spirit is often called the "Advocate" or the "Comforter." Those are two really good terms. The Spirit advocates for the faith for us and our neighbor and advocates for us to take God up on His promise of forgiveness. But the Spirit also comforts us by leading us to the Gospel, reminding us we are forgiven, and taking responsibility for the heavy lifting of sharing the Gospel. As we think of the first outpouring of the Spirit, let us continue to listen to the Spirit's call and speak the words of comfort to our world.

 In Christ,

 Pastor Phil

The Holy Spirit in Our Lives