Make Room

By Pastor Bob Rasmussen

Good morning everyone and hello to those watching online – YouTube, Facebook, Roku, our website, or on Christian World Media. We are so glad you are here.

We also want to thank those watching online for their patience as we navigate some new hardware. I am grateful for Doug and his help. I feel that our efforts, along with the church’s support for making changes, are resulting in better video and audio.

We’ll be making one more change, and that is our streaming provider. We’ll test that, and we should be done with all of that for a minute.

Pentecost Sunday this year is May 24^th – but this morning I was drawn to speaking about the Holy Spirit this week.

But that is how the Holy Spirit works sometimes, we can plan all we want, and then we are prompted by the Holy Spirit, and we are given a choice, either follow Him or follow our own interests.

This week that I had was not a good one. It was full of frustration, some anger, some fear over some personal issues, and a coffee shop with 30 young folks jamming to music that I do not like on a good day.

I finished the week hopeful to have a more relaxed Friday. Diana and I were blessed to get a ¼ of a cow through God’s provision. I had a quick job before I had to go to pick it up in Richland Center. Well, the quick job took an extra hour more than I had planned, but I had a cushion.

I was supposed to meet the matriarch of the farm at 1:00. I pulled in at 12:59.As I was driving home, I got a text from one of my buyers -I had to ship some equipment out via UPS second-day air immediately. The equipment was so big it filled my whole van, and it was heavy. So, go home, drop the beef, and help get it in the freezer. Load the van, go to the UPS store, and unload all the equipment. And then get to soak by 6:00.

I made it at 5:47 PM. Get everything set up. I mentioned to Diana earlier in the day that I was not really in the mood for a soak. Well, things got started, and between the worship, between the prayers, between and in the Word, the Holy Spirit ministered to me – refreshing my outlook, giving me strength, the holy oil renewing my mind and my spirit.

And I realize that some may be new to the faith, and all this talk about the Holy Spirit, which was sent after the resurrection of Jesus, might be like, ” What’s the deal?”

I am glad that you asked!

The Holy Spirit is not something that just happened in the New Testament. From the first page of the Bible all the way through the last, the Holy Ghost was not silent, missing, or on the back burner. He is the breath of God in the creation of everything that we see around us. The Holy Spirit is the power of God in redemption, and He is the presence here in this body of believers this very morning.

The Holy Spirit that dwells in you, if you have received it, is the same One who hovered above the waters in Genesis, who empowered all of the prophets in the Old Testament, who descended upon our Lord and Savior at the Jordan, and filled the first apostles like a roaring wind at Pentecost, and for all of us.

• Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

Before there was light. Before there was anything formed upon this place we call earth, before there was life, the Spirit was moving.

• 3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.

The Holy Spirit was there when it all started; He did not just appear in Acts 2.

• Psalm 104:29 Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust. 30 Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth. 31 The glory of the Lord shall endure for ever: the Lord shall rejoice in his works.

 

All of our lives begin and end with Him. The Spirit is the breath of creation and the sustainer of our lives.

I keep hearing people in my life talking about things like karma and talking to the universe, and I turn into conspiracy Santa!  I want to tell them to wake up, those things do not exist, and I want them to come to Christ and open their eyes to the real ruler of the universe before it is too late. A righteous and Holy God who loves them and wants to help them navigate this thing we call life with a real identity and a real purpose.

Now, throughout the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit came upon individuals for specific tasks.

Joseph, in Genesis 41, is called upon by the Pharaoh to interpret his dreams; no one else could do it, and Joseph is brought before him. Before Joseph speaks, he says this:

• Genesis 41:16 And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.

Joseph goes ahead and interprets the dreams, and then Pharaoh says:

• Genesis 41:38 And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?

There is a lot more to this story, but I think that there are two very important things to draw from this.

The first is that Joseph knows where and who these things come from – from God. And He honors that. There are folks out there who try to take credit for what God is doing or has done. There are times when the Spirit moves, physical manifestations and miracles occur, and people try to attach themselves to the power of God. That is so wrong.

To God be the glory, amen? To God be the glory.

The other thing is we need to be ready and aware of when the Holy Spirit is noticed, for lack of a better word. When we enter places, at work, school, or wherever else it may be, we bring that Holy Spirit, and when the Holy Spirit is in the room, things happen, the atmosphere changes. There is authority, not ours, but His that is in the room.

Remember all those youngsters in that picture. Dang, youngsters, I sound old!

Anyway, I have some AirPods, they have this super cool feature when you do not want to hear much around you, so they are noise canceling. Anyways, I was listening to my work-play mix, doing my thing, and a young lady caught my attention. I popped my bud out, and she said a young man had tripped her.

I looked at him and quite vocally told him to knock that off. The room went absolutely quiet except for the mind-numbing music, and all eyes were on me – he was bigger and younger, yet he said: “Yes, sir”.

I do not think I look that scary – but I was able to speak with authority because of He who is in me. We need to carry that wherever we go.

• 1 John 4:4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

And by the way, the next day, dude said he was being good – lol.

• Numbers 11:16 And the Lord said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be the elders of the people, and officers over them; and bring them unto the tabernacle of the congregation, that they may stand there with thee. 17 And I will come down and talk with thee there: and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee, and will put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it not thyself alone.

Here we can see that the Lord Himself is basically doling out His Spirit on a case-by-case basis as He sees fit to accomplish a task, to help Moses. In order for Moses to complete his mission, the Lord sends His Spirit temporarily upon these 70 men. We see this many times in the Old Testament, where the Holy Spirit is used for a specific purpose.

Yet, in all these instances, the Spirit that came upon people left. He empowered them for a season, for a purpose, but did not dwell within them permanently. I think that the Old Testament folks longed for something more — a day when the Spirit would be poured out on all flesh.

• Joel 2:28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: 29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. 30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.

And they believed because it was prophesied for them as well.

• Ezekiel 36:26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. 28 And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.

Generations came and went, waiting for the fulfillment of that prophecy.

Then Jesus enters the history of mankind. Jesus’ conception itself was a work of the Spirit, marking Him as the One who would bring salvation to humanity.

• Luke 1:34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? 35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.

Jesus, born of the Spirit. Now, we do not know much from the Word about Jesus after His birth, but when we see the beginning of His ministry, it is clear that something very important had happened to Him early on.

• Matthew 3:16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

 

Jesus’ ministry is inseparable from the work of the Holy Spirit. From the beginning of His earthly life to the commissioning of His disciples, Jesus operated in perfect unity with the Spirit, revealing God’s power, compassion, and purpose. Scripture shows that the Spirit did not merely accompany Jesus—He empowered, guided, and confirmed His identity as the Son of God.

• Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

Jesus’ miracles were not random displays of supernatural ability. They were intentional signs—evidence that the Spirit‑empowered kingdom was breaking into a world bound by darkness. When He healed the sick, it showed the Spirit’s power to restore what sin had damaged. When He opened blind eyes, it revealed the Spirit’s work of showing people the truth of God.

• Acts 10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.

As we all celebrated Jesus’s resurrection last week, remembering how He paid our sin debt, died, and rose again. Before He went to the cross, He knew that His people would need more. Something that would give them power to overcome the works of the enemy and continue His mission of bringing heaven to earth.

I love the apostles, but they were just men. They all failed at times. Their faith was not perfect. There is no way Jesus could leave His ministry to those 12 guys in their own power. So, He said this.

• John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. 13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it. 15 If ye love me, keep my commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth

with you, and shall be in you. 18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

In John 14:12–18, Jesus prepares His disciples for His departure by assuring them that His work will not end when He returns to the Father. They may not understand it, but it will come. Those who believe in Him will carry on His mission, empowered by prayer and the authority of His powerful name. He promises that love expressed through obedience will open the way for deeper fellowship with Him.

Jesus makes it clear that the Christian life is not lived by human strength but by a righteous partnership with the Holy Spirit.

He then gives one of the most comforting promises in Scripture: the Father will send the Holy Spirit, the Helper, to dwell with believers and within them. Jesus will not leave His people as orphans; His presence continues through the Spirit’s guidance, comfort, and power.

In a world full of uncertainty, this passage reminds us that the church is never abandoned and never powerless—Christ is with us, and His Spirit equips us to live out His mission faithfully.

And then the great day came for all of us.

• Acts 2:1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

The rest is really history. From that moment on, the church was born, and it began to spread, not because of men, but because of the Word of God and His Holy Spirit.

The Spirit gives us life and regenerates us.

• Titus 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; 6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; 7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

We have a life that has the opportunity to be filled with the indwelling of Jesus;

• 1 Corinthians 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

There are several gifts of the Spirit. Pastor Jeff has a great teaching on that. The gifts of the Spirit help us move forward today. It is what empowers God’s people.

• 1 Corinthians 12:11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will. 12 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

In an ever more complex world. It does not matter how smart AI gets, or how stupid it is, depending on your experience. We just sent humans into space again, a technological and spectacular thing, but it is nothing compared to the power of the Holy Ghost.

But there is one thing that the Holy Spirit needs from each of us. Room. Room to move, room to edify, room to instruct. Room to correct. Room to minister to our hearts and minds.

How much are we hindering the work of the Spirit, not because God is out of provision, but because we do not make room for it?

I started this sermon sharing how much of a bad week I was having and how things changed when I took an intentional moment of praise, prayer, and the Word.

 

I think that sometimes when we are living our lives and there is the undercurrent of anger and bitterness, it continues because we do not stop and ask God, why? Why am I so frustrated, angry, or sad?

But to do that, we have to take the time to ask the question and then wait for Him to wait for Him to respond. Which means we have to listen. We have to give God a minute.

In a world of immediate gratification, resting in time of prayer is so important. Spending time in His Word and waiting is what will recreate those upper room experiences for us.Are you making room for Him? I am asking myself that as well. What if I had taken some additional time before Friday at 6:00 PM, would I have been in a better place? The answer is pretty obvious, yes indeed!

• Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

All of those sound pretty good to me. So my question is, will you make room this week for Him to accomplish all the things He has for you?

We have a Bible study on Thursdays at 6:30 PM to spend time in His Word. Pastor Jeff is in the book of Romans. We have soak Fridays at 6:00 PM. We have prayer here at 10:00 AM on Sunday.

• John 14:2-2 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

My question is. “If he has a mansion for you, will you give Him some room?”