Key Truth: We have been unified and empowered by the outpouring of the Holy  Spirit so as to proclaim the Gospel in our spheres of influence and bear fruit for the glory of God.  

Introduction:

What most empowers you to share the Gospel with others in some form or fashion?
What limits you from sharing the Gospel?

The Promised Unifying Outpouring of the Holy Spirit for the Life of the World:

Joel 2:28-29

“Joel brings the good news of an even greater blessing. He prophesies about a climax in God’s redemptive work that exceeds the restoration of the years the locust has eaten. God promises that with the coming of this great day, he will pour out his Spirit on people from all the nations of the world. That is the greatest blessing he can give. It binds them intimately and inseparably to him, and provides them with unlimited power to serve and glorify him.”

Palmer Robertson, Prophet of the Coming Day of the Lord: The Message of Joel

What’s the true gift of receiving the Holy Spirit?
What does it empower us to do?

The Gracious Opportunity to Call Upon the Name of the Lord for Salvation:

Joel 2:30-32

“This is indeed a remarkable passage, for God declares that the invocation of his name in a despairing condition is a sure port of safety. What the Prophet had said was certainly dreadful, -- that the whole order of nature would be so changed, that no spark of light would appear, and that all places would be filled with darkness. What, therefore, he says now is the same as though he declared, that if men called on the name of God, life would be found in the grave. They who seem to be even in despair, and from whom God seems to have taken away every hope of grace, provided they call on the name of God, will be saved, as the Prophet declares, though they be in so great a despair, and in so deep an abyss. This circumstance ought to be carefully noticed; for if any one takes this sentence of the Prophet by itself, though then it would not be frigid, it would not yet be so striking; but when these two things are joined together, -- that God will be the judge of the world, who will not spare the wickedness of men, but will execute dreadful vengeance, -- and that yet salvation will be given to all who will call on the name of the Lord, we see how efficacious the promise is; for God offers life to us in death, and light in the darkest grave.”
John Calvin, Commentary on Joel

What must someone do in order to be saved?
How does this affect your hope for those you know in your spheres of influence that are not currently saved?

Joel 2:28-32 teaches us that:

-we have been unified and empowered by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit
-to proclaim the Gospel in our spheres of influence and bear fruit for the glory of God

Communion

Benediction:

Revelation 21:3-4