The Breath of God

"And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit"                                    John 20:22   NKJV

The disciples had locked themselves in the upper room because of fear that, they too, would be arrested and dealt with the same as Jesus; when all of a sudden, Jesus turned up. Closed doors were not a barrier to Him. He gave them His peace and then told them that He was about to send them out. Therefore, they needed the Holy Spirit.

Jesus breathed on them and gave them the Holy Spirit. Perhaps John, in the writing of this gospel, was remembering the creation outlined in Genesis 2:7: 'And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.'

And then of course in Ezekiel 37:9-10 and the example of The Valley of Dry Bones God said

'Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, say to the breath, "Thus say the LORD God, 'Come from the four winds, O breath and breathe on these slain, that they may live.' 10 So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath came into them and they lived and stood upon their feet, an exceeding great army.

The wakening of life from the dead; in fact, it would be more apt to say 'Awakening. Some scholars and believers, feel that Jesus was anticipating Pentecost and the dynamite power that would hit the whole city. Others believe in the immediate sense, where they would receive the Holy Spirit right there and then. The Old Testament creation began with the breath of God. Now the New Testament creation begins with the breath of God the Son.

It is more likely that Jesus breathed the Holy Spirit on them in preparation to what they and others would receive at Pentecost (Acts 2). Dunamis power would descend on them at Pentecost and, this would have a powerful impact rather like dynamite, where the whole city would be turned upside down. However, we cannot deny that Jesus was giving them a lot of responsibility and they would need the power and wisdom of the Holy Spirit in order to carry this out proficiently. And this would be prior to Pentecost.

Whatever was really happening that day when Jesus appeared to His disciples, on top of their grieving for Jesus following His death, they were now faced with the fact that He had said, He would rise again, and it had happened. And they were truly overwhelmed and probably mixed up about it all. With the days that were leading up to Pentecost, they had to cope with their feelings about this, and then the fact that Jesus would ascend to heaven very soon and, all of this was going to happen before Pentecost.

This brings to our attention that, whatever you may be facing at this time, Jesus is around you; the Holy Spirit is in you and giving you the power to be able to approach whatever mountain or hurdle that may be in your way. With Jesus, you are a winner, a victorious person of God. Never forget this wonderful news.

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now:

'Lord Jesus, I have sinned and I ask you to forgive me and be my Lord and Saviour. Please come into my heart, fill me with Your Spirit and give me a brand new start today.

In Jesus' Name. Amen'

Copyright 2024 Grahame Howard.                                

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