In the Jewish era, the Holy Spirit was given to a selected few, for example we see in Genesis 41:38-40 how Pharoah testified that Joseph was filled with the Spirit of God after he was able to interpret his dreams.
In Numbers 11:24-27, we see how God took some of the power of His Spirit and rested it on the seventy elders who were able to prophesy once and never again.
Judges 3:10, records how Othniel was able to judge Israel after the Holy Spirit came upon him, and in chapter 6:34 of the same Judges, we see how Gideon was able to blow the trumpet for all the clan of Abiezer to follow him because the Holy Spirit was upon him.
Now there were a group of people in Judaism known as the prophets who were all given the Holy Spirit, and their duty was to communicate the mind of God to the people.
But as the advent of Christianity was approaching, God made it known through one of those Prophet known as Joel that He will not give the Holy Spirit to a few selected people or group again, rather He will pour out His spirit upon all flesh.
Thus, we are going to see how God will pour out His spirit upon all flesh in this sermon. And without much ado, let’s get started.
The scripture on God pouring out His spirit in the last days.
The scripture on God pouring out His spirit on all flesh can be found in Joel 2:28-29 and it says:
“It will come about after this that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; and your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. “even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
In Acts 2:17-21, Peter can also be seen quoting this scripture on the day this prophecy was fulfilled, and he did so in order to remind the people that God had already made such promise.
What it means that God will pour out His Spirit on all flesh.
God will pour out His Spirit on all flesh means that God and His Son Jesus are going to dwell within those who loves Him and keep His commandments. Jesus Himself was the one who made this known in John 14:23.
What I want us to note in this statement is that the “all flesh” that the scripture is referring to is not literally all human beings but those who will love God and obey all His commandments.
When you go to Acts chapter two you will discover that after the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples on the Pentecost day and Peter reminded those who witnessed them speaking their various languages that God has already promised to pour out His spirit on all flesh, they asked him what they were going to do to receive the Holy Spirit, Peter gave them the reply below:
“Each and everyone of you must repent and be baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, and you shall receive the Holy Spirit as was promise”.
However, let us move from here to see what all flesh really means in the Bible.
What does all flesh mean in the Bible?
In the Bible all flesh simply means the physical component or nature of human beings which we can all see, touch and feel.
According to the Bible in Genesis 27, God created human beings out of the dust of the earth and afterward blew the breathe of life into his nostrils and he became a living soul.
This therefore means that human beings are made up of two parts: the dust of the ground and the breathe of life, and the Bible further reveals in Ecclesiastes 12:7 that the dust will return to the ground from whence it came and the spirit will return to God who gave it.
This latter knowledge will help us to quickly understand that the dust of the ground is the “all flesh” while the breathe of life is the Spirit as the Bible further reveals in John 4:24 that God is Spirit.
When was the Holy Spirit poured out?
The Holy Spirit was poured out on the Pentecost day as it is being recorded in Acts chapter 2.
According to the story, all the disciples of Christ were gathered in one place on the day of Pentecost, and all of a sudden they heard a sound like the blowing of a violent wind coming down from heaven to fill the whole house.
Immediately this happened, they saw tongues of fire resting on the heads of each and everyone of them, and they were filled with the Holy Spirit and started to speak in tongues.
What happens when the Holy Spirit comes upon you?
According to Joel 2:28-29 where God promised to pour out His Spirit on all flesh, the following things are gloing to happen when the Holy Spirit comes upon you:
- The ability to prophesy.
- You will be able to see the future by way of dreams as well as be able to interpret yours or other peoples dreams.
- You will also be able to see visions.
When the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples on the Pentecost day, the first thing that happened to them was the ability to speak in tongues, and this hoes to say that when the Holy Spirit comes upon you you will also be able to speak in tongues.
All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. Acts 2:4.
Food for thought.
Beloved, the benefits of receiving the Holy Spirit are uncountable and you need to receive it first before you can be able to figure them out one after the other.
Don’t forget that only repentance and baptism are required for one to receive the Holy Spirit, and I wish you will take that bold step now and get your eternal relationship started with Him.
