Blessing of Abraham

The Gift of the Spirit is one of God’s Covenant promises and ways of blessing the nations through Abraham’s Seed.

Peter and John prayed for a man who was “lame from his mother’s womb” as he was begging for alms near the Jerusalem Temple. Rather than money, they commanded him to stand and walk “in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.” Immediately, he began to walk, and afterward, he was seen and heard “leaping and praising God.”

Promise of the Father

With the outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the blessings for all nations promised to Abraham commenced. The Apostle Paul calls the Gift of the Spirit the “Promise of the Father” which he links to the Abrahamic covenant. The promises to Abraham and “his Seed” find their fulfillment in the New Covenant inaugurated by the Death and Resurrection of Jesus.

The Mission

The mission of the Church is to proclaim the Good News of God’s Kingdom to all nations without exception until Jesus returns – Matthew 24:14.

Jesus commanded his followers to announce the same message he preached. He summarized it as the “Good News of the Kingdom of God.” His Church would spread this Kingdom on Earth in unexpected and paradoxical ways. His sovereignty over all nations would be established and his “enemies” would be subdued by the day of his return. Until then, his disciples were summoned to proclaim his message to the “ends of the Earth.”

In Spirit and Fire

John the Baptist proclaimed a baptism in water “for the remission of sins,” and he announced the arrival of the “Coming One.” He was sent to prepare the way for the Messiah as promised in Isaiah - “Behold, I send my messenger before your face… The voice of one crying in the wilderness. Prepare the way of the Lord.” Jesus is the King of Israel who baptizes his people “in Spirit and Fire.”

The Forerunner

All four gospel accounts apply the same passage from the Book of Isaiah to John the Baptist, the messenger who summoned men to repent “for the remission of sins” in preparation for the Messiah. The passage identifies John as the forerunner who was expected before the “Day of the LORD” - “The voice of one crying, in the wilderness, prepare the way of the LORD” - (Isaiah 40:3-5).