Hopefully, having read thus far on this web site, you will be starting to appreciate the “wow factor” of the fulfilment of Bible prophecy, the “wow factor” being that it proves there is an eternal great God, the creator of all things. But it’s not just that, but also the fact that he cares for mankind and literally yearns to enhance every person’s life.  You will have noticed that prophecy fulfilled relates to differing categories. Sometimes it speaks of a country, other times it may be an empire or city or person or specific event. The fulfilment of all categories is incredible and you would think nothing could be more amazing or convincing, but there is one realm of prophecy that I think supercedes all those other realms, and it is this category that is more important to us than all the other categories combined.

You may think it is a bit presumptuous to suggest that there be one realm of Bible Prophecy that is superior to others, and I guess as it is a subjective opinion. It can be challenged, but please allow me the opportunity to explain the point I am hoping to make.  As just mentioned, I am mesmerized by Bible prophecy in that it proves the existence of God, his plan for mankind and the amazing future that lies ahead for those who search out the matter and respond accordingly. That of itself is huge, but to have specific events predicted which were later fulfilled and can be factually proven, to my mind at least, is nothing short of incredible and should be known by everybody, everywhere, so they can make a practical, sensible and informed decision for the direction they choose for their life; hopefully a direction that prevents possible regret, loss or such-like.   

So why would I pick out one area of prophecy as more spectacular? The reason is that this realm of prophecy can literally be realised in a person, a person living today, it is one thing to marvel at events that have happened around the world a differing times, it is completely another thing to have the miracle (of prophecy fulfilment) actually happen in your being, surely it has to be the ultimate proof.

Where is this prophecy made in Scripture? What does it actually say?

What I am referring to is the prophetic claim of an ordinary person being able to receive the Holy Spirit of God, which, when understood, is unquestionably, is the greatest experience that can happen to a human-being. This great miracle is available to all, but unfortunately is ignored by most.

It is reasonable to ask - who or what is the Holy Spirit?  Most of us in the western world are at least vaguely aware of the terminology of The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,  but for many that is where most of us come to a halt in our understanding.  We quickly associate it with powerless church or religious people we don’t want to be like and therefore we dismiss it and in many cases, the hope is never the twain (us and the Holy Spirit) shall meet.  I’m not being critical of people who casually reject the offer, I was one of them but only because I had no idea of who or what the Holy Spirit was and even more importantly had no idea of the total life transformation (mind, body, soul and spirit) that could come upon my life.

Quite a few people have an opinion about God (The Father) and quite a few people have their opinion of Jesus (The Son) but in comparison few are the people who express an opinion of the Holy Spirit.  From the very beginning of the Bible the Spirit of God in introduced to us as a limitless creator, able to take something without form and void and make something staggering in beauty, as he did when involved in the creation of our earth, all life upon it, insects, fish, birds, animals and even man, and as if that wasn’t a great enough feat, just for good measure made a universe that apparently (according to scientists) has over one trillion galaxies in it.  Whoa !!!  I see the Scriptures that acknowledge the role of The Son of God:

Colossians 1:12-17

12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. 13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. 18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.

Revelations 4:11

“You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honour and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.”

And I see the involvement of The Father declared:

Isaiah 42: 5-8

Thus says God the Lord, Who created the heavens and stretched them out,
Who spread forth the earth and that which comes from it,
Who gives breath to the people on it, And spirit to those who walk on it:
6 “I, the Lord, have called You in righteousness, And will hold Your hand;
I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, As a light to the Gentiles,
7 To open blind eyes, To bring out prisoners from the prison, Those who sit in darkness from the prison house.
8 I am the Lord, that is My name; And My glory I will not give to another,

Do you have a clear passage that describes the creative role of The Holy Spirit? There may well be some. I just think you need to cite the source when you make a major claim saying it is The Bible.

It was all good. God actually said so in Genesis 1. But there was potentially trouble on the horizon because of one, and it was only one, unknown, and that was man was made with the ability to choose his destiny through making a choice to obey God or to disobey Him.   This choice allowed him to even reach the point where he could think he knew more than God. Sounds ridiculous doesn’t it? But because of the folly and dare I say it, arrogance, of our heart (mind) God and his advice was, and in general still is, ignored, and poor mankind was going to have his life consumed on whether we saw the issues of everyday life as Good or Evil. Meaning?  But there was one major string attached, which God warned of, but as is so often the case, we (mankind) apparently knew better and as a result ignored the warning, and from then to now we have been facing the consequences, every single one of us. Just so we are all on the same page I must mention the warning of choosing disobedience to God. It was, “You Shall Surely Die”,  the dreaded prophecy that affects us all.

If the story finished there, woe is us, but thankfully, it doesn’t and the reason is that God found it completely unacceptable that we should live our life and then die with no hope of anything beyond the grave.  And that is why I mention the Holy Spirit, because God decided, that by the magnificent life-force of the Holy Spirit he was going to redeem Mankind back to himself, and that is exactly what he is in the process of doing.  Is this phrase in blue, true? Isn't true when it says in 1 Peter:

18 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. 20 He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you”?

Do we need a different word to “redeemed”?

So the Holy Spirit started to inspire different individuals as the great plan of Almighty God began to unfold; ordinary people whom God chose were moved upon by the Spirit of God. As crazy as it sounds, God started to work with people. Ordinary people were transformed as the power of God came upon them.  People like Moses, Joshua, David, all the prophets of the old testament and many others had the Holy Spirit touch their life and make them special for the time. It was all remarkable and incredible at the time it happened, but it was only the beginning of what was to happen, there was better to come, far, far better and it was of future happening that the Holy Spirit inspired old Testament prophets often spoke.

In simplistic terms, the Bible describes it like this. God chose a man he rejoiced over, which was Abraham, whose seed would increase in number to become nation. That nation was Israel, who would bring forth a person, a special person. The prophets clearly spoke of the coming of Jesus, over 200 times, in fact. Dfferent people at different times spoke of this person of exceptionally beautiful character, and every single time, bar none, and over a time that spanned more than 1500yrs, it was the magnificent Holy Spirit who inspired them to do so.  

In time, and right on time this person was born, and get this, of a virgin, exactly as prophesied. Then at 30yrs of age he was baptised by John, “the voice of one crying in the wilderness,” as prophesied, and as great as all that was, the most amazing thing happened, this special person actually received the Holy Spirit, but this time it was different because this time the Spirit was going to stay with the person, through everything, forever. And what a person the people of that time witnessed. He healed people, mind body or soul. With the Holy Spirit he was without normal human restrictions. The Bible states, “No man EVER spoke like this man”. He spoke the Truth, with authority, he stilled storms, he walked on water, he multiplied a few loaves and fishes and fed a multitude, he loved the common man, ordinary people He cherished, even kids enjoyed being with him and He enjoyed being with them, He was compassionate and He genuinely cared for the bettering of a person’s wellbeing, but He did despise religious hypocrisy and misrepresentation of God by people who claimed they represented God.  Then after only 3&1/2 years from the day he was baptised by John, his time was up, as prophesied by Daniel and as he knew.

On the way to Gethsemane (where he was to be betrayed), Jesus spoke the most beautiful and most gracious words. You can read them for yourself, and you should. They are found in the Book of John, chapters 14 to 17. And then the unimaginable happened.  He was betrayed by a friend, for 30 dirty rotten pieces of silver. The religious goofs of that time persuaded the people to demand He be crucified and as He had told his disciples and as it was written, in explicit detail, He died exactly as prophesied. Firstly mocked by all, then He was whipped, a mocking Crown of thorns was thrust onto His head, nails were driven through his hands and feet, and a spear thrust into his side, and so much more.

Why, why did He or His Father God not stop it? And here is the crux of it all, He the Son of God, filled with the Holy Spirit of the Godhead, had to die on our behalf, the perfect for the loser, and He did. Someway, somehow He gave his magnificent, perfect life, and all was for us. He was put in a tomb and a large stone was placed over the entrance. For 3 days it appeared, for all intents and purposes, it was all over.  But this was different. This Man, this incredibly special man, had received the Holy Spirit New Testament style and that meant the Spirit would stay with him through everything and that obviously meant the norm no longer applied, especially as far as the finality death was concerned.

Three days passed and if anybody had been hopeful of something dynamic happening it appeared it was nothing more than wishful thinking, that was until 3 women disciples of jesus got up early and went to the sepulchre where Jesus was, to anoint his body, with the customary sweet, fragrant burial  spices (You’ve got to read Mark 16, one of the best chapters in the Bible) which in a sense was the least they could do considering how He had been to them and so many others, a wonderful, caring, special person whose representation of The Eternal God, was flawless.

When they got to the sepulchre, they marvelled because the great stone that had been over the face of the tomb was rolled away.  Now, brace yourself for what happened next, because it was and still is better than the best dream you could ever have…..they entered into the sepulchre and they saw someone who looked like a man, and as you would expect, they were frightened.   Then, after telling them to not be scared, the person said, “You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified” and then the 3 greatest words ever heard by human ears were spoken, “HE IS RISEN”, Risen from the Dead, raised up by the Spirit of the Living God, the Bible informs us, unable to be held by death and now and FOREVER in the realm where you never die, and let me say it again, exactly as prophesied by the Old Testament prophets and as a final validation, exactly as He had clearly told the disciples, before He had been crucified.  

The women were told to tell Peter and the other disciples, and that Jesus would go before them to Galilee, to literally see Jesus, to talk, eat and drink with him, as they did.  It was during the next 40 days that Jesus showed Himself alive to many people, with, or by, many infallible proofs (See Acts chapter1) that He very soberly instructed the disciples to stay in Jerusalem and wait for what he referred to as, The Promise of the Father, of which he had spoken about with the disciples. (See John Chapters 7&14) The promise of God was about making available the Holy Spirit, for everybody, the same Spirit who created all things, the same Spirit who gave divine inspiration to the Old Testament prophets, the same Spirit who came upon Jesus when he was Baptised by John in the Jordan river and the same Holy Spirit who had raised Jesus Christ from the dead.  This is why Jesus willingly gave His life. He knew a perfect life had to be given so that the imperfect (us mere mortals) could be freed of the many binding hindrances of life and even the finality of death. He called it Life Abundant, and that is the way it is, whether we like it, or not. This was, and still is, the most important issue of this life, for everybody…full stop!!

As mentioned before, it is one thing to have prophecies come to pass in regards to future events about empires, nations, cities or even people, but it is something else when something is prophesied that is promised to people, especially if you are included.

So 50 days after the crucifixion, when the day of Pentecost had come, the disciples were praying together, and guess what happened? While praying, the disciples and others (there were 120 people) were filled with the Great Holy Spirit and began to speak in Tongues, ordinary people like you and me were given, by God, the Holy Spirit (read Acts 2) it appears the whole event was just too overwhelming for people who witnessed this amazing happening. The Bible actually records that the on-lookers were amazed and marvelled…To which the Born Again, rejuvenated, empowered, Peter responded, telling the people that THIS WAS THAT (prophecy) which was spoken by the Prophet Joel (over 800 yrs before) and here it was happening before their very eyes.  Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, explained the whole point of everything and the listening people asked, what everybody should ask, “WHAT SHALL WE DO TO BE SAVED?”

His answer was swift and precise. He said we (mere mortals) had to repent. This means to stop being mesmerised by the world we live in and sincerely check the facts in regards to these issues, make a 180* turn from walking away from God to walking towards God, show you are genuine by being baptised in water (by full immersion) with the intent of God blessing your own life, in the way He wants to, and if you do that the promised GIFT of the Holy Spirit will be given to you, in a similar manner as happened to the Disciples, as recorded in Acts 2, Acts 10 and Acts 19; which, for the record, is exactly what happened to me over 40 years ago.

It appears the difference between the people of the Old Testament who had the Holy Spirit come upon (or super-naturally influence) them, and the people of the New Testament (after Pentecost) who received the Spirit, is that in the OT it was a temporary event while in the NT once you Received the Holy Spirit it was FOREVER, as Jesus specifically spoke in John (See John14:16) ie through this life, through death and into life everlasting.  I know it sounds ridiculous but as with all prophecy it shall be, and there is nothing we can do to prevent it.

A couple of thoughts worth addressing are as follows:  Firstly it is not uncommon for people who become intrigued with this realm to express some sort of unworthiness, often because of a looseness with how they lived life, which they sometimes feel means they can take things no further because it would be hypocritical.  Fair comment you may think, but not so, this is the opportunity for a new LIFE, and what you have gravitated to prior to this time is 100% irrelevant, so don’t worry about that. The other thought is for those who have received the Holy Spirit (with the Bible evidence recorded in Acts 2, 10 & 19) and have let things slip and you’ve lived below the standard that is safe.  God doesn’t like his generosity abused and that is reasonable and fair, but YOU can turn things around by being genuinely sorrowful (a Godly sorrow) for your unwise actions, whatever you did. The Holy Spirit will not leave or forsake you, even if you in actions and thoughts leave and forsake him. Be like the Prodical Son of Luke 15, mean business and stop being stupid, The blessing will return if you are genuine in making up for lost time, and God will be as he is, he will want the best for you, as he always has and as he always will.

At this point it is worth considering again the dream that the Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon had that Daniel gave the interpretation of that is mentioned near the beginning of this book.  As you may recall, Daniel at approximately 19 yrs of age, stood before the great king of Babylon, and prophesied. With his life on the line, he explained that the king saw an image of a man, that was frightening, and the image was made up of 4 different metals.  Daniel explained the four metals represented the 4 major empires that would dominate the world (Europe-Asia Minor?). That have been fulfilled in that the Babylonian Empire was first, Medo-Persia was the second, the third was the Grecian empire and the last was the Roman Empire, which for want of a better word, mutated at the time of Constantine into the HOLY ROMAN empire which was headed by the ROMAN catholic organisation.  But what is, yet again, amazing is that Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar, that in the time of this empire, ( Daniel 2:44) God would SET UP a kingdom which shall NEVER be destroyed. What I am alluding to is that Daniel didn’t need to even mention anything about the Kingdom of God, the coming of Empires was more than enough, especially when you consider that, literally, Daniels life was on the line as is made very clear in the Bible record.  But he did say it (that in the time of the Roman Empire God would set up a Kingdom that will be forever) and good on him, as I mentioned earlier, he was a remarkable person, a person who stood up for what was right, rather than some man-pleasing, fly by night snowflake who loses his resolve when pressured by inconvenient circumstance, which unfortunately is all too prevalent in our time, especially within circles where people claim to be representing God but drop the ball, when they shouldn’t, because they are put under pressure in some way.  

I wonder what Nebuchadnezzar would have thought if he had been a spectator at the time of Jesus Christ, what would have gone through his mind as he heard John the Baptist say, “Behold the lamb of God, who takes away the sin (ignorance) of the world”, or when Jesus came out up out of the water at his Baptism in the Jordon river, and a voice from heaven was heard that said, “this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased”.  And that is only for starters, what about when he spoke the Sermon on the Mount, or multiplied loaves and fishes, healed the sick, walked on water, stilled the storm, raised up Lazarus and so on. I reckon Nebuchadnezzar would have been in absolute awe, as we should be, I mean seriously, how good was this, God doing this great, make that super-great, work, before our (mankind) very eyes and right in the time of the prescribed Empire.  And if per chance Nebuchadnezzar was a tough old boot, like most of us are, and just preferred to treat it all as a bit of a non-issue, what would he have thought when he (Jesus) was betrayed by Judas for exactly 30 pieces of silver, the exact amount that Jeremiah spoke of, or when he was whipped and crucified as Isaiah spoke of, or more to the point, when he was on THE CROSS and said, forgive them Father, they don’t know what they are doing, or when he spoke his last words before the horrific, yes horrific death, but also his beautiful, lovely, absolutely selfless death, what about that Neb, maybe still not enough.  OK, well let’s get serious then, the Roman soldiers who mocked and crucified OUR BEST FRIEND (I speak on behalf of all people) as their last act of service to the ways and blindness of man, thrust a spear into his side and it is written in the God inspired scriptures of the Bible, that blood and water came out, point being, he was dead, as dead as dead can be, in fact they didn’t break his legs, as they did to those who were crucified in the those Roman Empire days, and the reason they didn’t break his legs is he was dead, as dead a dead can be. Joseph of Arimathea, actually begged the authorities for the Body of Jesus, and it was given to him.  Jesus, or at the least, his body, was placed in a rich man’s tomb, as also was prophesied, and as most of us know (actually I think in some strange way, it is in the soul of every person) Jesus didn’t move, or even breathe for 3 days.

You would think it’s all over, I would say, that although a touch perplexed, even Nebuchadnezzar would have thought so. But not so, no way, because God was involved Big-Time, if Nebucahadnezzar had stayed around, just in case Jesus would only be dead for the 3 days, as he (Jesus) actually spoke of to the disciples BEFORE his death, well what a treat to follow. The ladies who went to anoint his body, noticed the huge stone over the entrance was moved aside, (yes I do know I wrote about this earlier, but what the heck, it’s all good) and that HE WAS RISEN as the Angel, yes Neb, an angel, told them, the disciples and many others got to see him, people were able to talk with him, some got to eat with Jesus, how good would that have been? And all of this was God in the process of setting up his Kingdom, as Daniel (600yrs prior) said, it was amazing then and it still is, as Daniel said, this work was CERTAIN and this was SURE.  If Nebuchadnezzar had stayed around a bit longer he would have seen the 120 people receive the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost etc etc and if he had one healthy brain-cell between his ears he should have acknowledged there definitely is the Great God who created Heaven and Earth, and as we go about, Doing our Thing, God is doing his, ours is temporary and we eventually are only remembered by a tombstone, while his is forever and ever and ever and there shall be no end, as Daniel said, and God is beckoning us with all his might to come and be part of his exquisite, eternal plan.

Obviously I don’t know Nebuchadnezzar, but if I did, I would like to think that if he did see all of those goings on, he would evaluate them honestly (that is the key) and admit that it is folly in its purest form to pretend there is no alternative to death with no hope. He was a bright man, I mean you don’t rule the greatest of all the empires without a few clue’s, surely he would do the best for himself, well I know it’s not guaranteed, and sometimes our little thought patterns do play havoc with the bigger and better way, but I like to think our mate Neb would have done what is best for him, and if he did, good on him for showing tenacity when it really counts.

And that is why this realm of prophecy is the greatest of all the realms, this one beckons you into its eternal purpose, you can actually experience in your own being what the prophets and Jesus spoke about when inspired by the Holy Spirit.

How can this be?

Maybe, the biggest problem with True Christianity is that it seems just too good to be reality, because it certainly is phenomenal; firstly the whole preparation done by God, but much more than that, the Holy Spirit coming into a person, forever!!!! It is a bit much really, isn’t it?

But, as you would expect, God even has that base covered.  In fact, in some ways that is one of the main reasons we are asked to receive the Holy Spirit. The Spirit helps in the areas we lack, especially in regards our to understanding. “Why?” you ask. Well to be brutally honest, it is because we just don’t get it.  I did say brutally honest and it is a bit brutal, but at least it is honest. Out with the myths we are fed and in with some solid truth isn’t quite as easy as we might like.

We are conceived from a cell invisible to the human eye, then all these perfect organs form inside our developing body (in the womb). Then we are born. In a very short time we breathe, we see, we taste, we hear we grow, first as a child, then a teenager, then an adult then an older adult then, “Whammo!”, we are gone.  It’s just so harsh. In our teenage/adult years we get affected by people and view-points of people around us. Not always, but all too often we get trapped by one of, if not all of, the three biggies, Money, Sex and Fame mesmerise our mind and so much so we forget the bigger picture of life. That, together with the fact that the Bigger Picture is often so poorly represented, we think along the lines of, “Church is nerdy” and that observation is often true. We think, “Our days are numbered, so I’m going to be the person I want to be, why not, we are all going to die?”  Been there done that, and speaking from experience we need help to improve on that mind set.

A few years ago, a good friend asked me, “How do you get a bone off a hungry, vicious dog?” it was a perplexing question and as I wasn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer, I hoped he would answer his own question, which he thankfully did. “You give it a bigger bone!” to which I think I nodded in agreement as if I already knew it. I’m sure most know what I mean.  At the time, I couldn’t see that pearl of wisdom being all that beneficial for my life, but now I do think it has an application. Well it did for me anyway. I was caught up in, to be a bit more honest, was drowning in, my thing (the life-style I had chosen) and wasn’t going to just roll over and let anybody to take it from me, but that was only till I had this bigger bone offered. Although I didn’t think so at the time, I was lost, blind to truth and mega-ignorant of the, Jesus dying for me, empty tomb, Holy Spirit available, thing. But now, having experienced both options, I am just so glad I dropped the bone I had for the much better, much bigger bone.  Deep inside my being I wanted a genuine contentment, I just had no idea what it was or how you got it, or even if it existed and hence in my quest  I found out the hard way, you don’t get genuine contentment by following lost people.

And that is why we need help from our creator, and the best help He could possibly give is now available, to everybody.  When you receive the Holy Spirit your life can be transformed by, what the Bible calls, the renewing of your mind. Of all the miracles done by God, there is nothing that compares to this, and the reason is clear.  Every miracle up to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ was temporary, whether it be a prophecy, a healing or an enlightenment, its days were numbered. But that is not the case with the Transforming or Renewing of your mind, this is permanent, and if utilised, forever.  You don’t ever get better than that.

“Hi Buddy, do you see “the transforming or renewing of your mind” as the same thing as being “born again” of the Spirit of God? I have always seen “the mind” as one facet of our soul, the other facets being our will and our emotions. I have also seen the “new birth” being a redemption and regeneration of our spirit, happening instantly on salvation by faith, the “renewing of our mind” happening on an ongoing basis through sanctification through The Spirit by The Word of God, and the end of our salvation being the redemption and final transformation of our body and soul at the rapture or our calling up to Jesus.”

The Holy Spirit is referred to as the Spirit of Grace, the reason for that is that He brings Grace, God’s version of Grace, to our little life and it is everything you would hope it to be and then a lot, lot more.  This is the same grace (unmerited favour) that all Bible heroes had before their life translated into the super-natural. This supernatural was evidenced by God with them as a friend, who had their back as long as they listened to and obeyed Him. That’s a fair deal isn’t it?

Moses (and remember he was the same as you and me) marvelled that such a great thing could happen to him, or anyone for that matter.  In Exodus 33 we are informed that God spoke to Moses as a man speaks to his friend. How good is that? God said to Moses that he had found Grace in his (God’s) sight and Moses said to God, if that is the case, show me Your way, that I may know You…….and that I (Moses) will consider that this Nation (Israel) is YOUR people……for how shall it be known that I and your people have found grace in your sight?  Is it not that you go with us and so shall we be separated from all the people of the earth. And the Lord said, I will do it, for you have found grace in my sight.

I hope this isn’t sounding boring, because it is the exact opposite and it is  really important to grasp.  The point is that when God’s Grace comes into your life, in principle the same things happen…God sees you as a friend, God will, always be with you, He will bless your undertakings, but more than all those types of favour, He will allow you the  privilege of getting to know  Him. That is what we were born, or Born Again, for. Once Moses realised Grace was with him he asked God to show him His (God’s) way. The same applies to us today. Once God’s grace has come to your life you to should desire and will desire to know and understand God’s way, and to uphold it. If you do that, you become an exceptional person, whom God, the creator of everything, will see  as a treasure.