God's Holy Fire: 'Bottom Line!'

Sunday, June 15, 2025

While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples and asked them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" They answered, "No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit."
— Acts 19:1-2 NIV

Key Thought

The Holy Spirit is a crucial part of our conversion and of our Christian lives. Jesus pours the Spirit out upon us to give us new birth into a new life (Titus 3:5-6; Titus 3:3-7). We are forgiven (Acts 2:38) as the Spirit cleanses us making us holy (1 Corinthians 6:11). The Spirit comes to live in us (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). The Holy Spirit is a crucial part of our coming to Christ. To leave out the Holy Spirit in sharing the good news is not sharing the full good news of Jesus. As the next few verses after today's passage show us, Paul baptized these followers in the name of Jesus. They had known only the baptism of John the Baptizer and didn't realize that the Holy Spirit was a necessary part of fully following Jesus (Acts 19:3-7).

Today's Prayer

God, I thank you for the gift of Jesus who delivered me from my sin. I thank you for the Holy Spirit who lives in me and whom Jesus sent to me when I became a Christian. I find great comfort knowing that you live in me through your Spirit. I pray that I can live each day honoring you - Father, Son, and Spirit - in the way I live my life. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.

Have thoughts on this devotional? Leave a comment

5 Related Resources by Heartlight

The Essential Work of the Holy Spirit
Devo: Unstoppable!
"While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul traveled through the interior regions until he reached Ephesus, on the coast, where he found several believers...."
Including the Disciples of John the Baptizer in the Family of Jesus
Devo: Unstoppable!
"While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul traveled through the interior regions until he reached Ephesus, on the coast, where he found several believers...."
Receiving the Spirit
Devo: God's Holy Fire
""Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" [Paul] asked them. "No," they replied, "we haven't even heard that there is a Holy Spirit." ... Paul said,...."
Ephesus!
Devo: A Year with Jesus
"Dear Beloved, In today's reading, you will find Paul arriving in Ephesus. Ephesus was a remarkable and important city in Paul's world. But the people..."
See All 5 Related Resources about Acts 19:1-2

Illustration

Illustration of Acts 19:1-2 NIV — "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" —— "No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit."

Other Devotionals from Heartlight for Sunday, June 15, 2025

Spiritual Warfare
A daily devotional about God's power for our battles.
'God Will Use Our Suffering' (2 Th. 1:5-6)
"And God will use this persecution to show his justice and to make you worthy of his Kingdom, for which you are suffering. In his justice, he will pay...."
Daily Wisdom
A daily devotional featuring wise counsel found in Scripture.
Matthew 7:13-14
"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.But small is the gate and narrow...."
Morning & Evening
The classic twice-daily devotional from Charles H. Spurgeon.
Morning Thought: Revelation 3:4
"We may understand this to refer to justification. "They shall walk in white"; that is, they shall enjoy a constant sense of their own justification by..."
Passion for Praise
A daily passage of Scripture emphasizing praise to our God.
'Is there Any as Mighty as You?' (Ps. 77:13-15)
"O God, your ways are holy. Is there any god as mighty as you? You are the God of great wonders! You demonstrate your awesome power among the nations....."

About This Devotional

God's Holy Fire is a daily devotional about the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

The Thoughts and Prayer for God's Holy Fire are written by Phil Ware.

Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
Scripture quotations marked MESSAGE are taken from THE MESSAGE, copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.

More God's Holy Fire

Translations