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Why the City?
There are many similarities between the ancient city of Corinth and our own city of Brighton.
There are unique opportunities in Brighton as, like Corinth, it is a city of consequence. Some cities are just influential. What is created in Brighton will have a much wider affect beyond our city, the ripples go out from here.
What could be possible in the next 20 years if we really make a difference in this city?

How the City?
The story of Corinth from Acts 18 emphasises the sovereignty of God in mission – and our partnership with him in it. Our story here in Brighton will be the same. Despite all our efforts and publicity it all rests on His sovereignty.
Like Paul we should seek ‘men of peace’, those who God is already working on, perhaps even people who’ve been part of CCK in the past.

What Price the City?
This great mission will take perseverance and faith.
When the gospel is loudly proclaimed, resistance and persecution will come and sometimes in very public ways. This is when we need to be strong in faith and remember that it’s His gospel.

What is this?
Acts 2 fulfils John the Baptist’s statement concerning Jesus ‘He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit’.

At Pentecost, the disciples were filled with the promised Holy Spirit. This changed everything for them. For example, the Spirit transformed Peter from a coward denying Jesus to a man preaching to thousands that they had killed the Son of God.

Peter, along with the other disciples in Acts 2, believed in Christ’s resurrection from the dead and that He was the Son of God long before being filled with the Holy Spirit. So did the Samaritan converts in Acts 8 and Paul in Acts 9. The Ephesian disciples in Acts 19 are probably not yet real believers – but Paul’s question to them is nevertheless revealing.

Throughout Luke’s writings, the baptism in the Holy Spirit is distinct from salvation through believing in Christ – even though the two happen together in Acts 10.

Throughout the book of Acts there seems to be a general theme of an experience of being baptized in the Holy Spirit. It is always more than a secret work.

How does this happen?
Often through the laying on of hands, but not always. There are visible manifestations of the infilling of the Holy Spirit – for example the gift of tongues (languages). But there are some Spirit filled men who do not speak in tongues. That said, it would not be wise to despise the gift of languages.

Have you received this?
There are 5 types of people:

• You know you have been Holy Spirit baptised
• You have not and want to be
• You are not sure
• You have not and you think you have
• You don’t know Jesus yet

Ask Jesus and He will give the Holy Spirit to you.