Tag

filled with the Spirit

Jul 20 2018
3

Are You Pentecostal?

By | Articles

“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place” (Acts 2:1).

 

This is out of my character to ask the question, “Are you Pentecostal?” The reason it is not normally a question I ask is because I don’t like to use labels to describe factions of Christianity. Whenever a label is used to describe a particular brand of Christianity, it leaves with it the impression that there are other options to pick from. This, of course, causes great division in the body of Christ.

The early church had no options to pick from. The early church was Pentecostal. What do I mean by Pentecostal? Well, it doesn’t mean what many have made it out to be in this present day, by participating in many crazy antics that you don’t find in the Bible. There are false doctrines that have been connected with the term Pentecostal. It has even taken on a denominational identity. Real Pentecostal is a term used to describe those Christians who believe that the experience the early church had on the day of Pentecost, when she was filled with the Spirit and went out to change a world, is still available to the church today. They more than believe it, they have experienced it. They believe this is exactly what the Lord expects from His church. This is what I believe because I don’t have any other choice but to believe what the Bible clearly teaches about the true church. To be truly Pentecostal means to continue on in the same manner, same unity and the same power that those upper room saints had. It means to be a living demonstration today of what the early church was then. It means to duplicate, or in our case, reproduce in our day, what the early church was. Most of all, it means we too have to be filled with the Spirit.

There was no such thing back in the early church to not be in the Pentecostal church. I am sure they never used the term “Pentecostal” to describe themselves, because they did not need to make a distinction. It is just what the church was. If you weren’t in the Pentecostal church, then you weren’t in the church. Today, there are too many options. Even if there were only two options, it would be one too many. No one, no matter how many degrees they have, no matter how high on the church leadership ladder they are, has the authority to say that the church no longer has to exemplify the early church. No one has the right to say that the church does not have to fit the mold of the early church. The church in the Book of Acts is our pattern. How is it, that Christians don’t see that? They shouldn’t be so quick to spout off that if anyone takes away words from the Bible that they will be cut off. Don’t they see, they are doing that when they deny that power for this day? Don’t they see, especially when they are trusted teachers of the word of God, that they are giving believers permission to not believe some of the Bible? Sure they may believe it happened, but they don’t believe it for our day.

The Apostles were commissioned by Jesus to take the gospel to the whole world. However, they were by the same Jesus, forbidden to go until they received the promise of the Father. “And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith He, ye have heard of Me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence” (Acts 1:4-5). Jesus wasn’t wishy-washy, telling the disciples to go into all the world and then another time telling them to wait. The call of God for the disciples to make disciples out of all nations was still on them, but they just needed one more thing before they were fully authorized to go. They had the best training any Christian could ever want. They walked with Jesus daily for about three and a half years. They heard many things that He taught. They had seen many great things that He did. They had the privilege to ask Him, right to His face, many questions. There is no Bible College that could offer you such training. But this training was not sufficient. A head full of knowledge is not enough. They needed one more thing. They needed to be baptized in the Holy Ghost. They needed the baptism of fire. This is the mark of true Pentecost.

There is one main reason the term Pentecostal has been used as a name to be given to a certain sect of Christians. It is because the day of Pentecost was the day that one of the greatest events in all the history of the world took place. It was the day when God poured out His Spirit on the church in that upper room. It was the day that many teachers say was the day the church was birthed. I won’t argue with that teaching even though I believe it was birthed when Jesus breathed on the apostles on the day He rose from the dead and said, “Receive the Spirit.” I believe the day of Pentecost marked the day the church was completed by giving her the power to take the gospel to the world. The day of Pentecost was the day that the baptism or the filling of the Spirit was made available to all born again believers. After all, it fell on ALL of them who were in the upper room.

This outpouring of the Spirit, happening on the day of Pentecost, had a greater significance than some may realize. The day of Pentecost was a feast day that took place fifty days after the Passover. It was a festival where the first fruits from the first harvest were offered up to God. So God, who does everything for a reason, chose this specific day of harvest to be a symbol to the church that there is another harvest to gather. It is as if God was saying to them, “Today starts the day of a different harvest, from now on it will be a harvest of souls.” Then He poured out the Spirit on His church, and before the day was over they gathered a harvest of three thousand souls. Hallelujah! This harvest of souls on Pentecost has become a much more powerful festival, so much so that, “There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” Because of Pentecost, heaven erupted with rejoicing.

Can you be saved and not be Pentecostal? Absolutely. We are saved by faith, not Pentecost. However, if we as a church want to continue with the Great Commission in our day, then we have no choice but to go forward in the power that was given on the day of Pentecost. To be in a church that rejects this power from on high is to be disobedient to the demands of God. This is why the church is in the mess she is in today. She has decided that her own wisdom, knowledge, ability and techniques are sufficient to impact this world. If they were, Jesus would have never said, “Wait for the promise of God.” Saints, don’t reject the promise of God. Don’t reject the Pentecostal power God has provided for you. The world needs more Pentecostals.

Feb 03 2017
0

Eyesalve: Influence Holiness

By | Eyesalve

“And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office.” Exodus 28:3

 

Just as the Lord filled men with the spirit of wisdom to help make, or can I say, influence their holiness, so too can the brethren be beneficial to our holiness. As the body ministers, in love, to one another through exhortation and reproof, if it is received, it will help to purify us and produce holiness in our life. However, we must be filled with the Spirit to be able to ever influence another’s holiness.

Apr 15 2016
0

Eyesalve: Get a Reaction

By | Eyesalve

“Now as he reasoned about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and answered, “Go away for now; when I have a convenient time I will call for you… Now as he thus made his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul, you are beside yourself! Much learning is driving you mad!… Then Agrippa said to Paul, “You almost persuade me to become a Christian.” Acts 24:25, 26:24,28

 

Paul testified before two governors and one king. He got a reaction out of all three. Felix got scared, Festus told Paul he was a mad man and King Agrippa was almost persuaded to be a Christian. The scriptures do not tell us if any of these men were persuaded to the point that they become a Christian, but one thing is clear, Paul preached with authority and power. We believers don’t save souls, we preach to them. We must preach to get a reaction. Not by irritating people so they finally shout back in anger, but with genuine Holy Ghost authority. You cannot do this unless you are filled with the Spirit. We don’t need evangelism techniques and outreaches, we need believers to be filled with the Spirit.

Mar 22 2016
0

Eyesalve: They Do The Work

By | Eyesalve

“And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:” Jn. 20:22

 

Just as God breathed into Adam’s nostrils and he became the first living soul, Jesus breathed on His disciples and they became the first to be born of the Spirit. That very day was the first day that men were BORN AGAIN. From that day on the Spirit of God would dwell in men. 49 days later believers were filled with the Spirit which would usher the born again man out into a dark world and give him the power and boldness to speak against that darkness. Some men want to be filled with the Spirit, but have never been born again; that won’t work. Some believers want salvation, but don’t want to be filled; they don’t work. And last, some believers are filled with the Spirit; they do the work.

May 20 2015
0

And Began to Speak with Tongues

By | Articles

It may be a little old fashioned today to believe that speaking in tongues is evidence of being baptized with the Holy Spirit, but I have to admit that I am one of those who believe it. I don’t care how intelligent a Bible teacher is that tells the church that speaking in tongues isn’t for today. When my Bible talks several times of this phenomenon happening upon receiving the Spirit and then, personally experiencing it just as the early church did, I have no choice but to reject what these men teach. I have had so called brothers try to convince me that it was fake or from the devil or something, but it was too late, it already happened. How could I deny what happened? You can be certain that these men that stand against it, more than likely, are not filled with the Spirit otherwise they would not dispute it. Before I continue, I want you to know that I am not one that makes a doctrine out of experiences. To do that is extremely dangerous and leads to mysticism. However, there are doctrines in the Bible that are backed up by experience. A simple example of this would be healing. When God heals someone, you can be certain that person experienced the healing. That healing would be a testimony to the truth of the word that people can be healed in the name of Jesus.
Let me tell you a testimony of what happened the second Sunday I entered a Christian church. I was born into a Catholic home and went to a Catholic grade school through sixth grade. I remember one day in religion class, my teacher who was a nun, told the class that the Red Sea may not really have split. She then gave a few suggestions of what may have happened. From that day on, my teacher left me with the impression that the Bible wasn’t actually true, but just a good book with examples of how we should live. Now fast forward to the year 1983. I owned a home improvement business at that time and hired the man that would lead me to the Lord. His name was Reed. One day while we were working, Reed told me that his church believed in speaking in tongues. Speaking in tongues? I never heard of that. He told me that it is in the fourteenth chapter of First Corinthians. When I got home from work that evening, I opened up my Bible and read about speaking in tongues. It seemed a little strange, but none the less it was in my Bible.
One Sunday I decided to go to church with Reed. Then I went again the next Sunday. Now remember, I was taught that the Bible wasn’t one hundred percent accurate. During the song service that morning, a sister in Christ gave a message in tongues with an interpretation following. When I heard her speak in tongues, I began to weep and I said to myself, “I can’t believe this is true. The Bible really is true! This thing on tongues I read about really happens to people.” A few months later, I too got filled with the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. Speaking in tongues has several purposes to it. One of them is that it is a sign to unbelievers. “Wherefore tongues are for a sign, not to them that believe, but to them that believe not..” (I Corithians 14:22). That day in church, God used tongues as a sign to me that His word is the absolute truth. Hallelujah!
Since that day I have had my share of discussions about speaking in tongues as being the primary evidence that one has been filled with the Spirit. I know a large portion of the church does not believe it. Though I am disappointed with that, I have learned to not let it discourage me or judge those that deny it. There is one thing that does irritate me a little and that is when Christians try to make other things the evidence. If you are going to be truly open and honest, through reading the Bible plainly, you cannot deny that speaking in tongues seemed to be the primary evidence. Let’s look at the scriptures of what happened when saints were filled with the Spirit.

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

This potion of scripture has been the most prominent verses used by the Pentecostal church to support that one will speak in tongues after they are filled with the Spirit. It is also where the term Pentecostal comes from. I know that some Pentecostal’s have misrepresented what true Pentecost is, but in simple terms it means to continue on with the same authority and power that was given to those disciples in that upper room. We must continue on with this Pentecostal power until the Lord takes the church home. It is important that you take note of one thing that happened that day. They were ALL filled with the Spirit and they ALL spoke with tongues. Not just the Apostles, not just the men, but the women too. This gives very strong indication that this blessed promise is for every believer. If only some would have been filled that day and only some would have spoken in tongues, then I would hold my peace. One thing I have to say, that has been one of the reasons some saints struggle with the whole idea of being filled with the Spirit, is that many have made it about speaking in tongues instead of yielding their life to be filled with the Spirit. I am aware that this article could seem to be promoting tongues more than the Spirit. Even now, my prayer is that this article promotes an appetite for every believer to desire to be filled with the Spirit.

“Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John: Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost: (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.) Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost. And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost” (Acts 8:14-19).

There is no mention that anyone spoke in tongues in these verses, but Simon saw something happen to those that received the Spirit because he wanted to buy the power to lay his hands on others so they could receive the Spirit. It could be that Simon heard them speak in tongues.

“And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost. And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized” (Acts 9:17-18).

There is no mention that Paul spoke with tongues at this moment, but don’t forget that Paul said, “I thank my God I speak with tongues more than ye all” (I Corinthians 14:18).

“While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter, Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we” (Acts 10:44-47)?

How did Peter and the rest know that these Gentiles received the Spirit? “For they heard them speak with tongues.”

“And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples, He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John’s baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied” (Acts 19:1-6).

Our last portion of scripture shows once again that speaking with tongues followed receiving the Holy Spirit. My question for you is, have you received the Holy Ghost since you believed? Jesus told us that the Father will give the Holy Spirit to them that ask. Will you ask God to fill you today with the Spirit?

Jan 30 2015
0

We Are In This World

By | Articles

“I have given them Thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that Thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that Thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy word is truth. As Thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.” John. 17:14-18

A half mile down the road from my house is a Muslim Mosque. I remember when they bought the building, it was a Kingdom Hall. The building went from one false religion to another. Anyway, one thing I have noticed about the Muslims is that they do not associate too much with other Americans. They send their children to Islamic schools, and I often see groups of them together at the stores. I rarely see Muslim girls, with the head dress on, hanging around with other girls in their neighborhood. I have even noticed that many Muslims are buying up certain neighborhoods close to their Mosques. The same with the Amish / Mennonite communities. They go through great effort to disconnect from American society. This is understandable that they should be this way. They are trying to preserve their culture, traditions and religious beliefs. The less they mingle with those of other religious beliefs and cultures, the less impact it will have on their people.

I am in hearty agreement that we Christians must be careful who we associate with and who and what we allow into our children’s lives. This world is a dark place, and the darkness is increasing by the day. However, one of the major differences between Christianity and other religious groups is that Christians are the only people that are promised that they can be in this world and not be overcome by it. Instead of being on the run or go in hiding, we can go out into this world and make an impact on its citizens. As other religious groups fear being impressed and demanded upon, to conform to this worlds system, the Christian can walk amongst it with confidence and boldness.

Jesus did not pray for the Father to take us out of this world, He prayed that God would keep us from the evil of this world. We must never go out into this world with the hope we can be satisfied by this worlds delicacies, nor shall we partake in her evil, but be encouraged to know that the devil can do a surprise attack on you with all kinds of evil and yet you can stand strong. You can even do more than stand strong, you can overcome him. “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.” (Revelation 12:11) What makes it hard for a believer to overcome in this world is when he loves this present life. If we love not our lives unto death, this world will have no pull on us. You don’t have to fear it.

We are given the ability to overcome this world, we are blessed with peace in the midst of a world filled with tribulation. We can overcome because Jesus overcame this world. “These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” (John. 16:33)

“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.” (1John 4:4)

We have more than the ability to be in this world and not be overcome by it, but we are demanded of, by Jesus, to go into this world and make disciples of all nations. John recorded these words of Jesus, “even so have I also sent them into the world.” Jesus sent us into the world, not as lambs to the slaughter, but as bold proclaimers of the gospel of truth. “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.” (Romans 8:37)

Imagine if Jesus went and gathered Himself a few disciples and then went and found a little place in the wilderness to hide out in. Lazarus would have never had his grave clothes removed. Blind Bartimaeus would have remained blind Bartimaeus. The lady with the issue of blood would have never been emboldened to burst through the crowd to get to the hem of Jesus’ garment. The woman from the city, known by all as a sinner, with broken alabaster box in hand, would have never heard those precious words, “thy sins are forgiven.” As long as the devil can keep the church fearing this world, he will not have to deal with the church impacting this world. We’re not lost, the world is; we don’t need to hide, sinners are the ones who hide in darkness.

I don’t advocate that we take young believers and thrust them out into this world. They must sit at the feet of Jesus for a season, so they can grow in the grace of God. However, once they have been grounded, they too must make their presence known in this world. Another very important factor, which is so imperative if the church is going to affect this world; we must be filled with the Spirit. “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;” (Ephesians 5:18)

Jesus would not let His well-trained disciples leave Jerusalem until they received power from on high. When they did receive it, the world couldn’t handle them. Church, we need power from on high if we are going to be true witnesses who can overcome this world. The mistake isn’t letting the church go into this world and witness the evil for themselves, the mistake is in sending them out there without that baptism of power. I used to belong to a religion that had no power, this religion was accepted by the world because it did not confront the world.

Saint of God, understand that you will not be accepted, you’re not supposed to be. “Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.” (1John 3:13) Receive the Spirit, become full of God, and then go boldly into this world.