Today's Passage - Luke 4:1-2

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Luke 4:1-2   "Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry."   When Lord Jesus was in the world, Holy Spirit and His work were closely linked.  "Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit" was the transition point between two eras.  In the thirty years prior to it, Jesus did not perform any miracles, and His word did not carry authority.  After filling by the Holy Spirit, however, His work was no longer concealed, but it was revealed and carried power.  His word had authority that produced submissive hearts; His prayer carried power that healed the sick and cast out demon.  It's important to know that the ministry of Jesus Christ on earth began with filling of the Holy Spirit, since Jesus was able to minister full of power because Holy Spirit was full in His life.   The Bible mentioned that after Jesus was anointed, He did great deeds all around, healed the sick and preached the message of the Kingdom of God.  The church is called the "body of Christ" all the time, but never called "body of Jesus," but what is the difference between the two?  The meaning of "Christ" is "the anointed one", and church is closely tied to the anointing of Jesus.  Since Jesus Christ was anointed by the Holy Spirit, and church is the body of Jesus Christ, therefore the church also received the anointing by the Holy Spirit.  This anointing will come upon us, and our ministry will carry power and authority.  That's why Jesus said "...anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these...", because work of Holy Spirit gave Jesus real power to serve.   In the same way, if we depend on the same Holy Spirit, we can also do miraculous work.  Why will we do greater things than what Jesus did while He was on earth?  It is because of what Jesus Christ had done on the cross.  Before Jesus was nailed on the cross, the authority of sin was not completed severed, so the Holy Spirit could only do limited amount of work.  After Jesus resurrected from death, the authority of sin was completed severed, and Holy Spirit can move around much more freely, thus bringing great release of power.  Jesus said "...anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these...", because the same Holy Spirit is within us, and Holy Spirit has much more authority and freedom to work compared to before.  May the Lord help to know the authority we have in Holy Spirit, and rely on Him to serve the almighty God.         Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, I thank you, because in you have authority and power to be victorious.  Please help me to serve those around with the Holy Spirit, and see to that my word will have authority and my ministry will carry power.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!