Chained to a Ghost

White Stone Church

Chained to a Ghost

February 19, 2024 • Brock Tharpe • Acts 20:22–24

The Apostle Paul saw the Holy Spirit much differently than many of us do. While many of us see the Holy Spirit as a sort of adviser, Paul saw Him as his Master. While many of us see the Holy Spirit as a supplement to our faith, Paul sees him as central.

A great example of this is in Acts 20, where Paul says that he is literally "chained to" or "bound to" the Holy Spirit, even when the Spirit leads him to places where there will be hardship and suffering.

It's obvious that the majority of us don't submit to the Spirit in this way, but we are invited deeper into submission. We are all on a journey of relying more and more on the Spirit, from being curious about him, to being led by him, to being bound to him. And it is through being bound to the Spirit that God can use hardship and suffering in our lives to produce power in us to reach the world.

Pneuma - An Introduction

January 8, 2024 • Brock Tharpe • Acts 2:32–41

For many christians, the Holy Spirit is the most misunderstood and most neglected member of the Trinity. When you look at all of the promises in scripture about the Holy Spirit and compare them to how most of us interact with the Spirit, the difference is absolutely tragic. Our church is in a very interesting season right now. Externally, things look really good. God is doing incredible things. People are being served and loved in our community. We are witnessing miracles. But for many of us, internally, we are having a rough time. That is why it is so important for every believer to prioritize their own relationship to the Holy Spirit that has been poured out on us. In this message, Brock introduces us into our next sermon series on the Holy Spirit. In this message, he answers the questions: Who is the Spirit? Where does the Spirit come from? And how do we receive the Holy Spirit?

The Helper, The Advocate, The Comforter

January 15, 2024 • Brock Tharpe • John 16:7–15

Jesus told his followers in John 16 that it would actually be to their advantage that he go away, because of who he would send in his place: The Holy Spirit. He then went on to describe the Holy Spirit with a word that we don't really have an equivalent for in English: paraklētos. Paraklētos can mean a "helper." It can also mean "an advocate," and it can mean "comforter as well." Most literally, it means, "Someone who comes alongside." Jesus knew that for all those that followed him, there would be times that they were mistreated, times that they felt alone, and times that they needed someone to advocate on their behalf. In this message, Brock talks about how in the Holy Spirit, we all have the promise of a helper, advocate, and comforter who will be with us even on the darkest of days.

By The Spirit We Die, By The Spirit We Live

January 22, 2024 • Cody Zimmerman • Galatians 2:20, Romans 8:5–14

There is a lie in the church that many of us have come to accept as truth: Jesus is one of many different things that can bring us lasting satisfaction, peace, and fulfillment. The truth is, while there are all kinds of good things in the world that can bring us pleasure, the things that are appealing to our human nature don't bring lasting joy. Ultimately, God has a better definition of what it means to be human than we do. Paul talks a lot about this in Romans 8, and he tells us that it is by the power of the Spirit that we can step out of the corrupt side of our humanity, and into the glorious purpose and life that He has for us. And again, this is only by the Spirit. Many people have tried to do it on their own strength, and that always ends badly. In this message, Cody explores the early verses of Romans 8 which tell us that it's by the Spirit we die to ourselves, and it's by the Spirit we live in our new role as renewed humans in a world that is on its way to being redeemed.