Born Filled

Prayer – Once again, Lord, I ask You to forgive me for the shortcomings I’ve allowed in my life—my sins…and fill me anew with Your Holy Spirit. Refresh my heart, Lord. Thank you. 

But the angel said, "Don't be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give you a son, and you are to name him John. You will have great joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord. He must never touch wine or other alcoholic drinks. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth. And he will turn many Israelites to the Lord their God. He will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and he will cause those who are rebellious to accept the wisdom of the godly." Luke 1:13-17

 

Meditate. Is your heart like a gas tank that needs to be refilled?

 

Fill it up—regular! What would that be spiritually?

 

John’s father, Zechariah, was a priest—the high priest chosen to go into the Holy of Holies that year—and he was told that he and his wife, Elizabeth, even in their old age, would have a son. Before the child was born, he would be filled with the Holy Spirit in order to one day prepare the Jews for their coming Messiah. Did you catch just what that angel said? The rebellious ones would acknowledge the wisdom of the godly. That is a miracle in itself! Usually, defiant people are so disobedient that they wouldn’t respond positively to any godly knowledge, but John the Baptist was predicted to have a way that would guide the Israelites to righteousness, to the Lord. So that he could guide others to the Messiah, John was born filled with the Holy Spirit.

 

New Life through the Holy Spirit

Verses of Salvation ~ "When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. Because of his grace he declared us righteous and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life." Titus 3:4-7

 

© 2023 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. 

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted. 

New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. 

Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm. 

 

Books by Mickey M. Hunacek

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