St Peters RC Church Hamilton

The Holy Spirit’s vital, dynamic, dramatic role

Is His power and influence over us, His godly impact.

Holy love will and does attract us 

For life on earth was gifted for this very purpose, 

In the fraternal love of Christ Jesus 

Strengthening our inner being by an outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

A fresh outpouring revealing our faith and destiny.

Let us then respond, called to become one family,

Made holy in Christ Jesus, by the power of the sanctifying Spirit,

Let us trust and depend entirely, fully, daily.

“And He gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors: God is making His appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead ‘Come back to God.’” (2 Corinthians 5 v 10 NLT) 

“All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ.” (Ephesians 1 v 3 NLT)  

All praise, all thanks, all glory ever, ever be for our faith and our destiny. “For Lord God, You made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with You through Christ.” (based on 2 Corinthians 5 v 21)  

Without this knowledge and experience as taught to us, as brought to us by the Holy Spirit, our Advocate, we could have not known the way to gain heaven was through Christ Jesus. 

But now thankfully, He is everything to us, our life, our worship, our purpose for serving, our aim to become holy and gain a place in heaven because Christ Jesus has made us righteous. 

This is the season of Easter, of hope. Let us not waste this, but do all we can to help others come to faith in Christ Jesus, in His fullness of holiness, such a blessing to us.  

United with the One who is our Saviour, our rescue from sin, satan and final condemnation, we are indeed blessed with all that is needed to gain a place n heaven as a brother or sister of the Saviour.  

We ask therefore, that led, guided, encouraged by the Holy Spirit, we “Pursue a righteous life,” (1 Timothy 6 v 11) a life made holy by the example and inspiration of our Brother, so full of love for us.

This love is entirely self-giving, even to accepting death on a †. Such is the power of this love as sourced and shaped in the Holy Spirit, we too can live “A life of wonder, faith, love, steadiness, courtesy.” (Cont in The Message)  

This is what becomes more than significant to us, of higher importance than anything else. For it is such a life as led according to the prompting and persuasion of the Holy Spirit, as will delight and honour You, dearest Father.  

Made of right standing in Your eyes by the sacrifice of Christ Jesus, gaining forgiveness for us at the †, having become truly, newly alive, we rejoice. 

“For we are Your masterpiece” (Ephesians 2 v 10) of creation. Your most wondrous creation. “For the

Lord is the One who shaped the mountains, stirs up the winds, and reveals His thoughts to mankind.” (Amos 4 v 13 NLT)   

Your thoughts ae not our thoughts and Your ways are not our ways, You tell us. But to correct our thinking and to develop our reasoning, You gift us a Brother who is the true Light of the world. 

His existence on earth, Christ Jesus’ death on the †, and His resurrection to be here with us until the end of time, makes all the difference in the world to believers. 

“Because of Christ and our faith in Him, we can now come boldly and confidently into Your presence,” (based on Ephesians 3 v 12) Eternal Father. And we do this to seek Your mercy. 

The Holy Spirit makes us look at our life and the condition of the world in general realistically. We see we are a fallen creation, far from Your intention that we should live a holy life here preparing for the crown of glory in heaven.   

It is by mercy we have been re-united with You, through Christ Jesus, according to the industrious, tireless efforts of the Holy Spirit, the new Life Giver. Once far away from You, we “Have been brought near through the blood of Christ.” (Ephesians 2 v 13 NLT)   

We have been brought newly alive, “So You can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of Your grace and kindness towards us.” (Ephesians 2 v 7 NLT)

Joyously we, Your Easter people who belong fully to Christ Jesus, according to the purifying of the sanctifying Spirit, we rejoice to be united with the Saviour of the world and to make Him our worship.

Father God, in sincere prayer I ask “That from Your glorious, unlimited resources You will empower us with inner strength through Your Spirit.” (based on Ephesians 3 v 16 NLT)

For blessed by the Spirit, imbued with a share in Christ Jesus’ holiness, our Saviour “Will make His home in our hearts as we trust in Him.” (based on v 17)

Then and only then, when impacted upon by the Holy Spirit of wisdom and truth, revealing the victory of Christ on the † to us, our life becomes one of faith.

To love, honour and serve each Person of the Almighty Trinity, becomes our daily, driving passion, our feet fixed on earth, but our gaze upon heaven, as we experience Your love and mercy at first hand, wondrous Father. 

It is Your Spirit, the Spirit of Christ Jesus, the Spirit of love who enables us to “Have the power to understand, as all Your people should, how wide, how long, how high and how deep Your love is.” (based on v 18) This is the fullness Christ Jesus promises us. 

With His love alive and active within us, prayerfully uniting our efforts with our Saviour Brother’s success at conquering evil, we are being graced to fulfil Your perfect will for us. 

Thank You for accomplishing this by faith, making sure that after this fleeting life, hopefully completely united with Christ Jesus by the work of the Holy Spirit, we will one day enter heaven’s eternity.

Thank You for the good gifts of the Holy Spirit, His teaching, His leading, His discerning sense of wisdom, always working within the truth. May His discipline bear fruits with our efforts towards holiness.

To share in the holiness of the Lord Jesus is to share in the power of holy love. “Love enables us to create one great family, where all of us can feel at home…Love exudes compassion and dignity.” (Fratelli tutti 62) 

Let us live then according to Christ Jesus, the Word of Life and Your offer of compassionate love, profound mercy and total forgiveness, dearest Father. Our faith is placed in the resurrected Son, the first born from the dead and our hope this will happen to us. 

Now, until then, let us offer You all glory, all thanks and all praise Father, for we know – the Spirit has taught us and our Saviour Brother has convinced us, that “Through Your mighty power at work within us, You will accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.” (based on Ephesians 3 v 20) How wonderful is the outcome of faith.   

May that ever be “Glory to You in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever,” (based on v 21) by the zealous working of the Holy Spirit, intent on giving us a rich and satisfying life in Christ Jesus. Amen.