Joseph generation, a prophetic call to the church Part 1

Joseph – dreamer,

 

God is raising up the Joseph generation

 

100+ countries around the world

 

– shot at, surrounded by terrorist and delivered by God, in near plane crashes, met, talked and prayed with presidents, terrorists, a pope, and leaders of all faiths, I have seen people of every faith come to Christ

 

I have seen blind eyes open, deaf ears open, a baby dead in a womb come to life, people stand up out of wheel chairs. Prophesied over tens of thousands of people but more importantly I have seen hundreds of thousands come to Christ and tens of thousands filled with the Holy Spirit

 

My daily prayer

 

God break my heart with the things that break your heart. Help me to see people and things they way you do. Teach me how to be a man 100% sold out to you!

 

Genesis 37:5-7

 

“Now Joseph had a dream, and he told it to his brothers; and they hated him even more. 6 So he said to them, “Please hear this dream which I have dreamed: 7 There we were, binding sheaves in the field. Then behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and indeed your sheaves stood all around and bowed down to my sheaf.”

 

God is always raising up men and women of vision. Especially in critical moments in time

 

Proverbs 29:18tells us

 

Where there is no prophetic vision (revelation) the people cast off restraint,

 

Without men and women who know God’s heart and follow His heart there is no hope for our world.

 

Jeremiah prophesies this about all who follow Jesus…Jeremiah 29:11

 

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

 

I believe he is speaking prophetically not only about us but also the hope we can bring to everyone around us.

 

The United States is growing further and further away from the Lord because the church feel asleep…he is awakening them but the Lord gave me this prophetic word several years ago for churches all around the world

 

“you are not the victims of an anti-God society you are the heroes the world is waiting for to bring them to freedom”

 

God is raising up the Joseph generation of dreamers to begin dreaming big dreams the things that are impossible, things that bring hope and great future

 

Romans 12:3

 

For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.

 

You have been given gifts, talent, a personality, and abilities for the purpose of fulfilling you and your destiny

 

Paul challenges us to think the way God thinks, to dream the way He dreams to not be limited in our understanding by our limitations because we serve a God without limitations

 

1 Corinthians 2:9,10

 

But as it is written:

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,

Nor have entered into the heart of man

The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”

10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.

 

Think about your dreams…what are the gifts God has given you

 

James 1:17

 

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.

 

Every gift came from God he ties them in with your dreams and has a plan to bring hope, life, love, freedom joy and so much more to everyone you know because of you!

 

Yes Joseph was a dreamer but his dreams didn’t come about that easily…when God gives us a dream it doesn’t mean that you are ready to fulfill it

 

David had to learn even though he was anointed to be King at a young age so did Joseph

 

Dream with me for a moment…

 

what is it that you love to do?

What skills talents, abilities, anointings do you have?

What problem do you see that you want to solve

 

Dream big! Because if you can do it, the dream is too small. God wants us to walk by faith so the dream must be too big for you

 

After Joseph had his dream he found himself sold into slavery I believe this is prophetic for this generation…not that you be sold into slavery but what he learned there

 

Genesis 39: 1-6

 

Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. And Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him down there. 2 The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. 3 And his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand. 4 So Joseph found favor in his sight, and served him. Then he made him overseer of his house, and all that he had he put under his authority. 5 So it was, from the time that he had made him overseer of his house and all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had in the house and in the field. 6 Thus he left all that he had in Joseph’s hand, and he did not know what he had except for the bread which he ate.

 

Joseph prospered as a slave…isn’t that strange? God had a plan

 

Joseph was sent into slavery so he could learn the culture, understand the language and be exactly where he needed to be to fulfill his destiny.

 

God has you planted, in your job, your community, your school exactly where you need to be to engage your culture

 

In the church, we have our own culture, our own language but it is rare that we lead someone to Christ in the church. This generation must learn the language and the culture of their world not to be influenced by it but instead to understand how to communicate to this culture in a way they can understand it.

 

Many people followed Jesus…he never once compromised who He was or the call on His lifebut he hung around sinners, and broken people all the time so much so that He was accused of being one

 

Luke 7:34

 

The Son of Man, on the other hand, feasts and drinks, and you say, ‘He’s a glutton and a drunkard, and a friend of tax collectors and other sinners!’

 

He wasn’t but he was around the broken so much the religious people thought he was.

 

We are called to be light but we can only be that when we are around darkness.

 

God is calling this generation to engage their generation to understand them so they might be able to communicate the Gospel to them in a way they can understand…using every form of communication

 

Jesus commanded us to “Go into all the world”

 

After Joseph learned to understand and connect with the culture and the language God had another plan for him it didn’t seem like a blessing but it was…He ended up in prison….that is not to say that this generation is destined to prison but it is what He learned in prison that I need you to grasp…the right hand to the Pharaoh, the cup bearer and the Baker were thrown into prison and during that time they both had dreams…

 

God stirred two very powerful things in Joseph that He is stirring in this generation today something that the Holy Spirit wants to release in this generation that I will talk about next time…so will you come back for the next time? I want to see the release of those two things in this generation…I want you to be prayed up and prepared to receive what the Lord has for you so take time

 

Today…if you are willing I want to release an anointing of the Holy Spirit in you for two things today

 

  • might be bold enough to allow the Lord to give you big dreams and for your to have big dreams
  • the key to engaging with your culture is wisdom

 

James 1:5says this

 

“If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Intimacy

Intimacy– fairly large word as the English language goes, 4 syllables

 

It is a word most women long for…many men shudder

 

It is a word God desires for us and the word the enemy fears for us

 

It is a combination of…Trust, Love, vulnerability, strength

 

Hopefully in a few minutes we will all be at peace with this word and moving toward true intimacy

 

Believe it or not, it is something everyone desires

 

Failures in intimacy case things like

 

Depression

Unfulfilled expectations

Feelings of worthlessness

Broken relationships

Broken marriages

Job loss

Emptiness

 

Sex is not real intimacy – sex is simple biology or lust drives a person alone it leaves people empty with no connection, intimacy builds a relationship to lovemaking and wholeness, completeness and connection

 

Intimacy is not people sitting in a room on their devices or watching TV….that may be relaxing but it is not intimacy

 

Intimacy is not casual

 

Intimacy is not accidental

 

Intimacy is not closed

 

So we have some of what intimacy is not so what is it?

 

Intimacy is a deep connection with a friend, child, parent, spouse, God, that says…I know you, you know me, you accept me for who I am and love me enough to push me to be better. I can share with you my fears, loves, worries, joys, I can be totally vulnerable to you and you will still love me, believe in me, and value me, and not judge me…it is like trust but more than trust

 

Jesus talks about the intimacy that He and the Father want with us

 

John 17:21

 

“I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.”

 

In this one verse Jesus’ high priestly prayer is for the power of God to flow through His people in the way it did through Jesus as he walked the earth

 

“I pray that they will be one, just as you and I are one”

 

There was nothing between Jesus and His Father but love and He is praying here that there would be nothing between each one of us but love.

 

Remember a few weeks ago I talked about how “love” is one of the evidences of the Holy Spirit

 

It is the Father’s heart that we walk in intimacy with one another that there would be an openness and a vulnerability that is rewarded with trust, love and being fully accepted.

 

Gossip, backbiting, tearing one another down, un-Christ-like competition, jealousy, envy, slander, fear these and many more things are the things that cause walls that hinder intimacy. Intimacy builds bridges and tears down walls

 

Matthew 18:19,20

 

I also tell you this: If two of you agree here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you. 20 For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.”

 

There is power in unity of the church family….many times the reason we don’t see the Holy Spirit move is because the power of agreement moves mountains but notice it only takes a few but then if you are not in unity you might miss it….it is sad to say but I have seen this often, a miracle report will be shared about a healing, salvation, a relationship restoration, financial miracle, a new job and after the service or a few days later I will ask people and they will have no recollection or will belittle the miracles of God….I am not a hype person, I am a person of intimacy…Jesus stressed this with in Luke 10:38-42

 

As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. 39 Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. 40 But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.”

41 But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! 42 There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

 

Let’s look at my definition again of intimacy

 

Intimacy is a deep connection with a friend, child, parent, spouse, God, that says…I know you, you know me, you accept me for who I am and love me enough to push me to be better. I can share with you my fears, loves, worries, joys, I can be totally vulnerable to you and you will still love me, believe in me, and value me, and not judge me…it is like trust but more than trust

 

Do you see the difference between Mary and Martha with this definition?

 

The vulnerability, acceptance, honesty, and openness that were happening here between Mary and Jesus…our minds can make this sexual but it was not,

 

it was a pure honest love of two people valuing and seeing each other for who they are

 

Martha saw Jesus for what he could do for her or she could do for him to gain his favor but Mary had already gained his favor by her openness to love with a pure heart to want to hear Jesus’ heart and Jesus defended her because he saw and knew her heart together their purpose was nothing more than to honor the Father where as Martha’s was to honor everyone at the feast, her culture, and ultimately herself for being a good hostess….it was not manically evil it just was not intimacy with the Father that Jesus loved and loved to bring others into

 

In our service to the Lord, in whatever that is, in our service to each other if our desire is to promote intimacy with the Lord, real friendships grow, not based on what you can do for me or what I can do for you, but instead on our mutual love of God

 

Then out of that love, we do the work, the ministry, build the friendships that are bonds for life

 

Out of that love that is where freedom comes the Holy Spirit is honored and given place because He only desires intimacy with the Father and helping us gain intimacy with the Father.

 

As men we want respect…it is part of our nature to have and gain respect but we limit our ability to receive and gain respect by our lack of intimacy and vulnerability to the Lord

 

Ephesians 4:30-32

 

And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness, wrath (rage), anger, clamor (harsh words), and evil speaking (slander) be put away from you, with all malice. 32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. (NKJV)

 

The Message

 

Don’t grieve God. Don’t break his heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for himself. Don’t take such a gift for granted. Make a clean break with all cutting, backbiting, profane talk. 32 Be gentle with one another, sensitive. Forgive one another as quickly and thoroughly as God in Christ forgave you.

 

Men, all the respect you want and need to feel like a man can’t come from any personor that person has power over you, yes you can gain their respect by living this way and we must have a good reputation among those in and outside of the church. But if you are grieving the Holy Spirit through your

– anger,

– cutting remarks and jokes,

– jealousy,

– envy,

 

If you are:

– cruel to one another

– putting one another down rather than building each other up,

– if you are holding unforgiveness

 

You will never flow in the wisdom, knowledge, power, fearlessness, love, soundness of mind that you can in order to shine….only real men of God can totally be at peace, feel empowered and always at peace, always overcome and feel the respect that comes only from being true to the heart of God

 

As the world sees that we are “in the Father, and the Father in us” we have the power to conquer and change a broken world around us. Giving out hope, life, love, joy, and freedom and believe me you will gain all the respect you need!

 

Ladies, you want real relationship that connection of love that doesn’t let go. The only way we can have that kind of love, the love that fulfills and overflows, the kind that allows you to feel completely safe and secure? The Lord wants that for you too but just like the men acquiring respect, real love begins with the Lord…The 1stCorinthians 13 kind of true love only comes from the Holy Spirit’s being alive in us

 

If we grieve Him…

 

The Message

 

Don’t grieve God. Don’t break his heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for himself. Don’t take such a gift for granted. Make a clean break with all cutting, backbiting, profane talk. 32 Be gentle with one another, sensitive. Forgive one another as quickly and thoroughly as God in Christ forgave you.

 

Ladies you desire real, honest, unconditional love in all of your relationships, start by allowing the Holy Spirit to be welcomed in all of your relationships…

 

– walk in forgiveness,

– walk away from gossip,

– from tearing others down

– judging them,

– always giving love and being gentle,

 

Then the love, power, soundness of mind, deep friendships, love will be yours because the Holy Spirit will be flowing through you

 

Ladies and Gentlemen both of these examples also apply to your relationships not only with spouses, friends, co-workers, and God but they can be applied to how you raise your children, allowing them to see that you are consistent inside of your home as you are outside the home, that you walk always in forgiveness, that you aren’t slandering other, being critical always, being judgment and harsh…walk always in love, and forgiveness and your children will be different too

 

Gifts on the go! (What we can do Part 3)

We have talked about tongues, Wisdom, Knowledge faith and healing. If you missed any of those, get our app Christian Center PA or go to our website www.christiancenter.usand catch up on the teachings

 

All of these gifts are available to us and are for the purpose of building up the Body and reaching the world.

 

As the Holy Spirit is in you, you can rely on Him to move through you as you get to know Him better through daily spending time with Him

 

1 Corinthians 12:4-11

 

There are diversities (distinctive) of gifts [special abilities given by the grace and extraordinary power of the Holy Spirit operating in believers], but the same Spirit. 5 There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all [inspiring, energizing, and empowering them]. 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.

 

Working of Miracles–

 

The spiritual gift of miracles is described in Scripture much like the gift of healing.  It is found in 1 Corinthians 12:10and the Greek phrase

 

energemata dynameon –literally translates “workings of powers.”  The double plural most likely means that these gifts were diverse and were not permanently available at the will of the gifted believer, but instead were bestowed at various times and circumstances.  Thus, the gifts are subject to the divine will of God and His purposes and are not decided by the one who performs the miraculous works.

 

We know that Jesus performed many miracles in His earthly ministry, even more than those recorded in Scripture (John 20:30-31, Acts 2:22).

 

The Apostles regularly performed miracles of all kinds including casting out demons, healings, raising people from the dead, striking people dead, causing blindness, and much more (Acts 2:43; 3:1-10; 5:1-16; 9:36-43; 13:4-12; 19:11-12).

 

Other believers performed miracles as well, including Stephen (Acts 6:8) and Phillip (Acts 8:4-8).

 

Miracles were given by God to the church to reveal the presence and glory of God among all people and to create a sense of awe and wonder and Godly fear.  Though there were many enemies of the church, often the result of miracles being performed was more people coming to faith in Jesus and glorifying God, as well as greater faith and boldness within the church (Acts 4:29-31; 9:35, 42).

 

Those with the spiritual gift of miracles often

– have a heightened sensitivity to the presence and power of God through His Holy Spirit.

– have a special measure of faith and desire for God to reveal Himself and draw many to faith in His Son Jesus Christ.

– take care not to draw attention to themselves or have a following of people, but are constantly pointing others to Jesus.

 

Example: Demon possessed woman in Sudan “Jesus Christ is come in the flesh”

 

Those with this gift understand that God is Sovereign and He can work when and how He desires, but they make sure they are available and listening to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.

 

This takes time of learning and waiting on God to have the confidence to know what He is doing in any time

 

This gift is often accompanied by prayer and strong petition by these individuals for God to reveal His glory to people.

 

They do not claim power themselves, but always give credit and glory to God for His mighty works.  Often God will deliberately humble them to keep them relying on His grace and pointing to His Son, rather than miracles.  See also 1 Corinthians 12:10, Acts 1:8;

 

When someone is presented as God’s man or woman as the man of power of the hour you need to ask yourself what spirit are they flowing in as this is all done by God’s power. We can not accept the credit nor the criticism

 

Galatians 3:5,6

 

“Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? — 6 just as Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” 7 Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham”

 

Prophecy

 

-The spiritual gift of prophecy is an extraordinary and unique gift.  Paul says in 1 Corinthians 14:1to “Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy.”

 

-This gift is a blessing to the church and can be to those in the Kingdom of darkness and should not be quenched or despised (1 Thessalonians 5:20).

 

-Those who have the gift of prophecy differ from the Old Testament Prophets who spoke the authoritative Word of God directly.  Their words were recorded as Scripture as they proclaimed, “Thus says The Lord,” whereas the messages from those with the spiritual gift of prophecy must be tested which means they can be wrong (1 Corinthians 14:29-33; 1 Thessalonians 5:20-21; 1 John 4:1-3).

 

The Greek word for the gift of prophecy is

 

Propheteia –which is the ability to receive a divinely inspired message and deliver it to others.

 

These messages can take the form of exhortation, correction in the life of the unbeliever (gently), prediction of future events, comfort, inspiration, or other revelations given to equip and edify the body of Christ

 

1 Corinthians 14:3-4, 24-25

 

But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men. 4 He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church…..But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an uninformed person comes in, he is convinced by all, he is convicted by all. 25 And thus the secrets of his heart are revealed; and so, falling down on his face, he will worship God and report that God is truly among you

 

I saw this happen in Russia as they brought young man and women in from the streets and the Lord gave me words about them, not condemnation but things that only God knew so they would know He loved them…each one came to Christ because of this

 

Again, they do not constitute the authoritative Word of God, but are the human interpretation of the revelation that was received.  They are spoken in human words through a human mind, which is why they must be tested against the Scriptures.

 

1 Thessalonians 5:20-21

 

Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies. 21 Test all things; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil

 

The Holy Spirit gives the gift of prophecy to some believers to make God’s heart known and to edify the church.

 

This gift

 

– is for the benefit of both believers and unbelievers and is a sign that God is truly among His church (1 Corinthians 14:22-25).

– those with this gift are sensitive to both the prompting of the Holy Spirit and the needs of the church body.

 

It has become an inaccurate tradition that a word comes unexpectedly and with great force, a prophetic word, insight understanding may be delivered to a person days, weeks, or months in advance to be delivered at God’s right timing

 

1 Corinthians 14:32,33 Remember that people who prophesy are in control of their spirit and can take turns. 33 For God is not a God of disorder but of peace, as in all the meetings of God’s holy people.

 

 

A prophetic person should be humble and continually study the Scriptures in order to test these revelations before speaking them.  When they do speak, they should allow and even expect others to weigh what is said against the Scriptures and interpret the message accordingly.  In this way the church may be continually built up together in unity 1 Corinthians 14:4, 26,1 Corinthians 12:10, 14:1-5,1 Peter 4:10-11.

 

A prophecy can be a direct word, a teaching, preaching, prayer, it can show up in many forms.  Any time a distinct word from the Lord is proclaimed, a prophecy is delivered

 

Discerning of spirits(1 Cor. 12:10; Luke 8:29)

 

The spiritual gift of discernment is also known as the gift of  “discernment of spirits” or “distinguishing between spirits.”

 

The Greek word for the gift of discernment is Diakrisis.  The word describes being able to distinguish, discern, judge or appraise a person, statement, situation, or environment.

 

In the New Testament it describes the ability to distinguish between spirits as in 1 Corinthians 12:10, and to discern good and evil as in Hebrews 5:14.

 

The Holy Spirit gives the gift of discernment to enable certain Christians to clearly recognize and distinguish between the influence of God, Satan, the world, and the flesh in a given situation. The church needs those with this gift to warn believers in times of danger or keep them from being led astray by false teaching.  See also I Corinthians 12:10, Acts 5:3-6; 16:16-18;1 John 4:1.

 

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world”

 

It is important that we understand especially in today’s culture where there are some who claim to be following Christ, even filled with the Spirit but are not, the fruit is not active in their lives and in its place is manipulation and false things….This gift enables us to know clearly what is God and what is not God, understanding the fruit of the Spirit and looking for the fruit enables this gift to function at a very high level. Is the ministry about building the person and their kingdom or the Kingdom of God?

 

Interpretation of tongues(1 Cor. 12:10; 14:13-33)

 

The spiritual gift of interpretation of tongues is found alongside the gift of speaking in tongues in1 Corinthians 12:10.

 

– The Greek word for interpretation is hermeneiaand simply means to interpret, explain, or expound some message that is not able to be understood in a natural way.

 

– this spiritual gift is the supernatural ability to understand and explain messages uttered in an unknown language.

 

– This is a revelatory gift, meaning that God “reveals” the meaning of the words or message being spoken and allows the interpreter to communicate its meaning to those who need to hear it.  When this happens in the church two things happen: the church is edified and God is glorified.It is especially effective when someone interprets other than the person who gave the tongue and in some cases I have seen it where a second person not in the room at the time of the first interpretation, interprets the same things as the first

 

The spiritual gift of interpretation is given by the Holy Spirit to certain individuals to reveal messages spoken in an unknown tongue to God for the building up of the church.  Like the gift of prophecy, tongues that are interpreted have the effect of encouraging and blessing the church to love and serve God more deeply and effectively.  See also 1 Corinthians 12:10, 30;14:28. This gift is only used within a ministry environment

 

Each of these gifts are available for anyone who is filled with the Spirit. Some may stay with a person for life some may come and go as the need demands but learning to use these gifts and understand them takes time, learning from people experienced in these areas. Personally I have used all of these gifts with the exception of a tongue in a public meeting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gifts on the go (what we can do Part 2)

Gifts on the go(what we can do Part 2)

 

Last week I began taking about the gifts of the Spirit and we talked about wisdom and knowledge something I think we could all use…this week let’s go a little further

 

1 Corinthians 12:4-11

 

There are diversities (distinctive) of gifts [special abilities given by the grace and extraordinary power of the Holy Spirit operating in believers], but the same Spirit. 5 There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all [inspiring, energizing, and empowering them]. 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.

 

Faith –

 

The spiritual gift of faith is not to be confused with saving faith.  All Christians have been given saving faith Ephesians 2:8-9,

 

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast”

 

Not all receive a special gift of faith.  The word for faith in the New Testament is

 

“Pistis”–  It carries the notion of confidence, certainty, trust, and assurance in the object of faith.

 

The gift of faith is rooted in one’s saving faith in Christ and the trust that comes through a close relationship with the Savior.  Those with this gift have a trust and confidence in God that allows them to live boldly for Him and manifest that faith in mighty ways.

 

The gift of faith can be given one time, many times, or be with a person for ever…George Mueller from Bristol England denied he had it but everyday the children in his orphanage would gather around empty tables with empty plates and they would pray and within moments something would happen, a vehicle would breakdown loaded with food in front of the orphanage, a baker would bring fresh baked goods, someone else a large catch of fish, everyday they needed food and everyday God would supply, after they prayed

 

The Holy Spirit distributes this gift to some in the church to encourage and build up the church in her confidence in God.  Those with the gift of faith trust that God is sovereign and He is good.  They take Him at His Word and put the full weight of their lives in His hands.  They expect God to move and are not surprised when He answers a prayer or performs a miracle.

 

  • Supernaturally trusts and does not doubt what the Lord is saying or doing.
  • Goes beyond saving faith and natural faith
  • Ability to overcome great adversity with confidence
  • Benefit of a group of people generally not just an individual

 

 

Acts 4:19,20 “But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. 20 For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard”

Bob and Fran Hanus

Think about it, has there ever been a time when you needed to believe, you felt the full confidence to believe even though it didn’t make sense. You had an overwhelming sense of peace that despite what was going on around you, you knew God was handling the situation….That is the gift of faith in action and you can have it happen more often as you are in the word and prayer so you know the Holy Spirit in person

 

Healing –

 

I have several acquaintances who seem to have this gift and I have asked them, because I question myself, why they don’t simply go into children’s hospital and lay hands on every child and heal them….their answer….they are not the healer, God is! Every gift even if given freely is still dependent upon the Holy Spirit. As we learn to move in the gifts we are given, most of them are completely dependent of our responding appropriately to the Holy Spirit, tongues is often how we get there to understand the Father’s heart so we can flow in the gifts better.  Jesus didn’t heal all of the sick, crippled and broken in Israel but he did heal everyone he saw the Father healing

 

John 5:19

 

So Jesus explained, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does.

 

This spiritual gift is closely related to the gifts of faith and miracles.  All spiritual gifts are to be exercised in faith, but gifts of healings involve a special measure of it.  This gift is interesting in that there is no guarantee that a person will always be able to heal anyone he or she desires.  It is subject to the sovereign will of God, as all spiritual gifts are.

 

The Disciples were given authority to heal and cast out demons, but they were not always successful.  The Apostle Paul was not able to heal himself and was told that God’s grace was sufficient to carry him through his infirmity without removing it from him (2 Corinthians 12:7-10).

 

This gift is given at various times and places to reveal the God of heaven to the sick and tormented.  If healing is not granted, then we can conclude that God has greater plans for letting the person go through the illness or infirmity.

 

 

We are all called to lay hands on the sick

 

Mark 16:17

 

And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” (ESV)

 

The gift of healing gives you a confidence and insight that the Lord will heal….I have seen this in my own life but for me it has started as a leap of faith, just trusting the Lord and then watching him do the impossible and I expected it, to the point if someone did not get healed it was unusual. Mostly it was for the purposes of evangelism

 

But God does still heal today, sometimes it is gradual, sometimes it is instantaneous. Sometimes people are healed and they don’t even realize it until they look for it…sometimes people are healed in stages, sometimes it is through a doctor and sometimes just a miraculous touch…we are not the healer, God is.

 

My story with the accident skull and thumb but lots of dental work

 

Timothy had stomach ailments 1 Timothy 5:23

 

“No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.”

 

Paul left others ill 2 Timothy 4:20

 

‘Erastus remained at Corinth, and I left Trophimus, who was ill, at Miletus.’

 

Yet Acts 20:9-12

 

And a young man named Eutychus, sitting at the window, sank into a deep sleep as Paul talked still longer. And being overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead. 10 But Paul went down and bent over him, and taking him in his arms, said, “Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him.” 11 And when Paul had gone up and had broken bread and eaten, he conversed with them a long while, until daybreak, and so departed. 12 And they took the youth away alive, and were not a little comforted.

 

I say all of this to say that we need to learn to listen to the Holy Spirit and allow the gifts to flow through us always and to realize that God will give us the Faith, Healing, wisdom and knowledge we need to accomplish everything we need and to give Him glory…next week I hope to finish the rest of the gifts

 

 

 

 

 

What we can do!

What we can do….

 

Real change in our world is impossible apart from the Holy Spirit’s moving in our world. God is waiting for us but not for us to do it in our own strength but we can do anything and expect amazing things as we learn to allow the Lord to empower us by the Holy Spirit.

 

Several weeks ago I talked about the gift of tongues, a spiritual prayer language given by God as a means of building ourselves up and a way to pray God’s perfect prayer…this is only the beginning of what God wants to do so we might walk in dominion in the Kingdom of heaven and winning the war against the kingdom of darkness (ignorance) by our walking in the Kingdom of light (knowledge, God’s knowledge not man’s)

 

Paul tries to make it plain here in his second letter to the Corinthian church

 

Later we will be praying for people to be baptized in the Holy Spirit

 

2 Corinthians 2:4-9

 

And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. 5 I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God. 6 Yet when I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten. 7 No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began. 8 But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord. 9 That is what the Scriptures mean when they say,

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,

and no mind has imagined

what God has prepared

for those who love him.”

 

Paul is telling us that as he spoke and ministered, he did not do it in his human strength. He was the best student, of the greatest teacher of his day but found that his strength was weak compared to the wisdom the Holy Spirit could pour through him. The power of the Holy Spirit in him and pouring through him enabled him to share of the Kingdom of God, God’s original plan for mankind and something that we have not yet seen but soon will!

 

If we were to read on, Paul is saying that God reveals the deep things to those that are spiritual, and the Holy Spirit gives us everything we need to bring hope, life, and freedom to the world but to the rest of the world this is foolishness.

 

I started out last week teaching about tongues and the real and practical application of a gift the Lord offers to us.

 

Today, I’m going to get through two more of the gifts and then at the end of the service if you are willing, we will pray for you to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit and you will receive it and begin to understand the deeper practical application of these gifts so you can function in your role as an ambassador of the Kingdom of heaven

 

1 Corinthians 12:4-11

 

There are diversities (distinctive) of gifts [special abilities given by the grace and extraordinary power of the Holy Spirit operating in believers], but the same Spirit. 5 There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all [inspiring, energizing, and empowering them]. 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.

 

Each of these gifts is given freely by the Lord to strengthen and encourage Christians and to touch a world so they know God is real and loves them. We witness that in the book of Acts….

 

Allow me to try to explain them, starting with the most powerful according to Paul’s distinction

 

Word of wisdom

 

1) Wisdom insight into something unknown

2) Right application of truth.

3) Divine direction.

4) Seeing the world through God’s perspective.

5) Supernatural perspective to ascertain the divine means for accomplishing God’s will.

 

The one who uses this gift and the one who is benefited by this gift begin to have a healthy understanding of awe or fear of the Lord

 

“fear, awe of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” – Proverbs 1:7

 

1 Corinthians 2: 6,7

 

Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory.

 

In 1 Corinthians 1:17Paul says

 

“For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.”

 

In other words he came with divine words or words of wisdom to preach the Gospel

 

Someone who speaks with this gift will help others understand the Lord’s will and purpose

 

It is the “next step” gift it gives us 20/20 foresight into understanding what the Lord wants to do, what His heart is. We all have 20/20 hindsight but this helps us to have no regrets as we know what to do next especially in this age which is like the book of Judges 21:25

 

“….all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.”

 

Wisdom, as James puts it brings peace and all good fruit

 

James 3:17

 

It is “first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.”

 

The gift of wisdom as James describes it comes the nearest of the gifts of the Spirit to seem to be like the fruit of the Spirit.

 

Wisdom is not only the words that are spoken but often it can be the manner in which they are spoken.

 

Word of wisdom takes the next gift word of knowledge and knows how to apply the divine knowledge given

 

Paul speaks next about a gift of divine knowledge, God knows everything and he is willing to give freely what we need as we learn to listen

 

Word of Knowledge

 

  • Information that was not be obtained naturally
  • An utterance of facts given by divine inspiration through, mind, vision, dream, or some other insight that would otherwise remain unknown
  • teaching based on divine insight and revelation.

 

Ephesians 3:3-5

 

that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery, as I wrote before in brief. By referring to this, when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit;–

 

Old Testament reference to both gifts they only were with these people to accomplish the task

 

 Exodus 31:1-5

Now the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. I have filled him with the Spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all kinds of craftsmanship, to make artistic designs for work in gold, in silver, and in bronze, and in the cutting of stones for settings, and in the carving of wood, that he may work in all kinds of craftsmanship

 

This gift can refer to special knowledge as may be needed in a crisis, which, borders on the gift of wisdom. It could refer to supernatural knowledge about someone in a particular crisis, which then borders on the gift of prophecy. A word of knowledge may disclose a person’s illness, concern, or specific need.

 

In Russia this last time one of the leaders came to me, he is in his late 30’s and still not married and I gave him a word that it would happen and described her to him

 

Both of these “word” or utterance gifts may occur in conversation, counseling, or public speaking.

 

These are just a couple of things that can help you in your day to day life to bring others out of ignorance into the truth of who God wants them to be

 

How many decisions do you make every day that would be much better if guided by wisdom or knowledge from the Holy Spirit?

 

How many times have you hurt yourself by things you have said when the Holy Spirit could have given you the correct words to say that would have brought life instead of pain?

 

Pray for people to receive the Baptism of the Holy  Spirit!

 

 

How can we be sure? Part 2

How can we be sure? Part 2

Last week we have talked about fearlessness that complete absence of fear and power the type that brings glory to God as things that are evidences of the Holy Spirit being alive in you. This week we will talk about two more because these too are things the devil and the flesh are incapable of really make happen

2 Timothy 1:7

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

Love

Mahatma Gandhi – I like your Christ I just do not like your Christians, your Christians are so unlike your Christ!

Gandhi was on a search for truth, he found it in the words of Christ but not in the followers of Christ because of two things, peace and true love among Christ-followers

1 John 4:7,8, 14

Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. 8 But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love…..such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear.

Fear, one of the enemies greatest tools is destroyed by the power of the Holy Spirit in us…if God is love then the Holy Spirit is love

The fruit, characteristics of God’s nature start with love

Love is at the root of fearlessness, and it is certainly the basis of real legitimate power to change the world

In many ways we control love, we choose to love!

Yes, love is who God is and it is always the leading fruit of the Spirit

The love Paul is talking about is the purest form of love, the kind described in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

“Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.”

The reason many have not been able to live up to this level of love is a lack of the fullness of the Spirit alive in them, only the Holy Spirit, who is God, living in us can love this way through us.

Because love is part of the fruit of the Spirit it must be something we surrender to and allow to work it’s perfect work in our lives.

In some ways it is easy to think about working to love others. To see them and say, I will choose to love them, or asking, “God help me to love them!” But the Love the Holy Spirit pours through us is much more freeing than that!

The devil can’t love, he only hates so the Holy Spirit fully empowering us enables us, if we choose to really love.

John 8:44 “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

Hatred, murderous, liar is the character make up of the devil…real love is just the opposite

Part of love that is not demonstrated as much as it should be by Christians is complete forgiveness…how often does someone hurt us, reject us wound us and we hold a grudge, how often does someone not like our idea, not value our opinion and we hold bitterness toward them, how often have we been passed up for a promotion or position that we thought we deserved and we become bitter and angry…

Real love forgiveswe realize forgiveness is the key to our freedom, our freedom at a minimum and may mean real freedom for others as well. It doesn’t mean we need to put up with abuse or behavior that is not Christ-like in the name of love but we choose to not allow and offense to continue to hurt us over and over again through unforgiveness and on top of that, true love prays for the offender to come to freedom as well.

Matthew 5:44 But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, (NKJV)

– Real love doesn’t mean you are walking on egg shells around people

– It doesn’t hold a grudge bringing up failures from the past always

– It doesn’t look for people to get the come uppin’s

– it isn’t jealous of what others have in position, stuff or anything else

– it isn’t prideful feeling more important than others that is why it doesn’t demand its own way, it may demand God’s but not their’s

– it always desires the truth to come out not their opinion to be right or their feelings to be right but the truth in every instance because real loves highest desire is freedom for people and the truth makes people free

– love endures, never fails and  never gives up that someday people will get it but once again that never means you are to put up with abuse

Until we learn to totally forgive others we can not flow in all the Holy Spirit has for us because Christ did the same for us….once again we don’t have to put up with people that continue in broken behavior or be around them but we must choose to forgive.

But total forgiveness means not repeating to others how someone hurt you over and over, stop making others feel guilty and pointing the finger, letting others save face rather than rubbing their noses in what they did, when you protect people rather than expose them, when you pray for them….this is a sign of real love, the kind only the Holy Spirit can give

Josif Tson, Corrie Ten Boom, Wan Ming Do all men and women that suffered loss of family, material wealth, health, freedom under Russian Communism, Nazi’s, and Chinese Communism respectively as you read their stories you find one under lying truth….they chose to forgive! The result: God brought freedom and used them to change the world

This is the definition of the love we can have through the power of the Holy Spirit and only the power of the Holy Spirit based on 1 Corinthians 13

Sound mind

How many people are out of there are out of their minds that you know?

When people believe a lie to be true and continue to promote it as truth.

When people are willing to die for a drug habit or alcohol habit rather than get the help they need

When someone is being abused and rather than get help they would return to the abuse

When people know they don’t have enough money to buy this thing or that and it will get taken away from them but they purchase it anyway

When you say you love someone but continue to verbally, physically or emotionally abuse them?

When you know you are broken and your refuse to get help?

All these things are signs of brokenness, a lack of a sound mind that needs healing

Here are the promises of God

Isaiah 26:3

You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!

Philippians 4:7

“the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

John 14:27 (NLT)

“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”

This soundness of mind and the fruit of peace we are talking about here means living in a calm, no anger, being able to handle every situation without havoc, fearing nothing, feeling safe and secure at all times, living in prosperity of mind, heart and position, living in harmony with other believers.

Because of the Holy Spirit you don’t ever need to lose your peace, your sense of security or clarity of mind and thinking because the Holy Spirit promises soundness of mind

God provides the sound mind but we must choose to have it. A sound mind is right thinking and right thinking leads to right living…making us different than the world

Optimistic and hopeful 

2 Timothy 1:12 

That is why I am suffering here in prison. But I am not ashamed of it, for I know the one in whom I trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until the day of his return.

Romans 8:28

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

Lives a life of Christian virtues 

Philippians 4:8 

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

A sound mind is established on the Word of God 

Psalms 1:2

But they delight in the law of the Lord; meditating on it day and night.3 They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.

These aspects of a sound mind are all things the Lord will do in us through the power of the Holy Spirit but they are things we have control over receiving of not.

Fearlessness and power are only things God can do we can pray but he makes it happen. He provides Love and soundness of mind but we must choose t walk out love and soundness of mind in all aspects

However as you have been filled with the Spirit and you nurture that relationship in your life you can expect, as you walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16), to see these evidences alive in you

Pray for those who desire to be filled with the Spirit r refilled but where not here or comfortable last week

How can we be sure?


No one wants to be deceived remember as I was preparing us for the in-filling of the Holy Spirit, I taught, what I believed to be enough to allow you to search out the scriptures, to prove to yourself what is real and what is not.

As you are learning to walk in the Kingdom full of the power of the Holy Spirit a few things, other than the gifts and fruit are going to start showing up in your life

That’s what we are going to talk about today 

Jonathan Edwards the great revivalist preacher of the 18thcentury said there is one thing the devil can’t create it is a love for the glory of God. He doesn’t know how, he has no clue and the things I am going to share with you today are like that, evidences of the Holy Spirit being alive and active in you that neither the flesh nor the devil can produce, they all give glory to God!

This is the nearest, based on the word of God, what I believe will help you to understand that you are truly filled with the Holy Spirit is found in this verse

2 Timothy 1:7

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but (a Spirit) of power and of love and of a sound mind. (NKJV)

Fearlessness

Sometimes the word for “fear” is translated “timidity” but that would be an ineffective translation

If a person is shy, or timid and they are filled with the Spirit they will most likely remain shy but God will enhance their personality traits to cause them to be even more effective as their personality is a gift from the Lord to be able to impact people in that way as well

Fearlessness is the total absence of fear….you have heard me define courage as not the absence of fear but instead overcoming fear by faith.

Paul is telling a fearful Timothy that the Holy Spirit’s power in you will, at times, when needed, shore you up, not so that you have courage but that you have a complete absence of fear.

Fear is something that is completely foreign to the Holy Spirit. In Him there is no fear at all

Romans 8:15,16

“For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God”

The enemy lives in constant fear of what God has for his future, what we will do if we realize who we are in Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit

Many live in fear, because they fear the disapproval of man, always looking over there shoulders for how someone may react, not resting in the trusting love and approval of their Father

Timothy was filled with fear but it did not come from God. Paul knew this he had experienced his own battles with fear (2 Corinthians 1:8)

The Holy Spirit wants to mature us to the place where we can tap into the fearlessness when we need it to become who God needs us to be at any given moment.

Only the Holy Spirit can make us fearless….if you have fear, admit it, confess it, allow the Holy Spirit to raise up fearlessness in you….the enemy can not make you fearless only the Holy Spirit can.

Think about Peter’s fearlessness on the day of Pentecost a fisherman standing before the people who thought he was drunk, some of the most knowledgeable and powerful in the nation giving them the truth from the Holy Spirit for them to say after he delivered his word…”what shall we do????” that is fearlessness and power

You don’t need to raise your voice, there is confidence in what you know and need to do….no man can generate this kind of fearlessness only God!

Power

Jesus promised a sign of the Spirit’s moving in and through mankind would be power

Acts 1:8 

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Luke 24:49

And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.”

At Pentecost with the fresh outpouring of the Spirit and in front of the Sanhedrin you can see the power of God manifest in Peter

No scripted sermon yet

Acts 2:37- People are overwhelmed with conviction and are saying “what do we need to do?”….3000 people said that, and came to Christ

Then in Acts 4:8-12 he amazes the leaders with his wisdom because he was “filled with the Holy Spirit”

We often think about the power of God as miracles and it can be but as Jesus said it is given to be His witnesses, everywhere He sends us

Jesus told us part of the Holy Spirit’s job was John 14:26b

“He, (the Holy Spirit), will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.”

Peter saw just that in the power he observed as he taught!

There of course was more power…

Acts 2:43 A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders.

– Peter healed the crippled man

– spoke boldly

– Spoke judgment over Ananias and Sapphira

– Received a vision that led a Centurion to Christ

– Escaped prison through an angelic visitation

Yet became embarrassed to be with Gentiles when Jews were coming to visit and Paul had to rebuke him

The power is there in ways we understand and yet do not understand but apart from the Holy Spirit we have no power and the devil won’t do anything that will glorify God the way these signs did

There are many things that seem like power but to God, curing cancer is as easy as healing a headache so discernment is needed when we go to meeting with people to see if the Holy Spirit is really in the house or not….we need to believe here as well and especially be aware that we are open to all God has for us….that we stay away from the traditions of men and grieving or quenching the Holy Spirit and we are ready for all God has for us

Acts 4:16

“What should we do with these men?” they asked each other. “We can’t deny that they have performed a miraculous sign, and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it.

I wanted to get to all 4 of what I would call evidences of the Holy Spirit alive in you but we need to spend time today praying for as many as we can that are hungry for more

2 Timothy 1:7

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but (a Spirit) of power and of love and of a sound mind. (NKJV)

Fearlessness and power are things only God can give as miraculous examples of God’s power alive in usand the devil can’t duplicate. We simply keep our hearts right, ready and always attuned to the Holy Spirit and God will flow through us this way. However the next two, Love and Soundness of mind are determined in many ways by us…we will talk about them next week!

How hungry are you?

You have spent weeks listening and learning. Do you believe what I am telling you to be the truth? Our region needs us to be all God has called us to be. We can only do that as we are filled with the Holy Spirit the way Jesus asked that we be.

Today you may be saying I was filled with the Holy Spirit but I’m not seeing what Pastor Tim described, then it is time to get refilled

OR You may be saying, I’m hungry and I want all God has for me, then this is part of what Christ died for so we could be temples of the Holy Spirit

Or you may be saying, this scares me but I believe the Pastors believe it so while I might not be there yet, I trust the Lord and I want all he has for me

I have instructed our team to not do anything but lay hands on you, pray for you in English and in the Spirit and give you some words of encouragement if you need them

We are allowing the Holy Spirit to do the work, what I’m asking from you is that you are open to receive what the Lord has for you

It is not based on your feelings but on your faith, not in us but in God’s love for you

Most of you will receive a prayer language just relax and allow the Holy Spirit to do the work

Some of you may feel nothing until later today or tomorrow but I guarantee you, if you come hungry you will be fed

After prayer, the people praying for you will try to follow up with you in a few days to help you even further to understand what the Lord is doing

If the Spirit…then the power follows

That being said Romans 11:29is always a challenge before us

“for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable (never withdrawn)”

Satan has the power he has because when God created him as Lucifer, a powerful angel of God given freewill which he chose to use to rebel against God. He gave him certain gifts that even those he has not taken from him…fortunately God did not give Satan dominion over the earth, man did and God was able to take that back.

The gifts are to be used for God’s purposes but can be misused

1 Corinthians 12:4,7

There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all…. A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.

I want to start with the “least” of the gifts because generally speaking tongues can be the cause of the greatest division when people talk about the gifts…

1 Corinthians 14:4 “The one who speaks in a tongue builds up himself,” (ESV)

Kowloon Walled City BBC Documentary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JchVQMuxRVA

Another Documentary done by another group called Jackie Pullinger – The law of love https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0QfoluAZ44

So what is this tongues and prayer language thing I’m talking about

1 Corinthians 12:7-11

To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.

1 Corinthians 14:1-5

Let love be your highest goal! But you should also desire the special abilities the Spirit gives—especially the ability to prophesy. 2 For if you have the ability to speak in tongues, you will be talking only to God, since people won’t be able to understand you. You will be speaking by the power of the Spirit, but it will all be mysterious. 3 But one who prophesies strengthens others, encourages them, and comforts them. 4 A person who speaks in tongues is strengthened personally, but one who speaks a word of prophecy strengthens the entire church.

5 I wish you could all speak in tongues, but even more I wish you could all prophesy.

Romans 8:26,27

And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. 27 And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will.

I have seen primarily there are two ways people respond to asking for a prayer language.

“If God wants to give me one I’m open but no one’s going to make me say anything!”

Two scriptures come to mind Isaiah 55:8,9

My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord.

“And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.

9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth,

so my ways are higher than your ways

and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

1 Corinthians 1:27-29 

Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. 28 God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. 29 As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.

The other response I have seen is people coming hungry, saying God I don’t fully understand this but if this is a gift you have for me then I want it

If we pray in tongues, I believe it prepares us to move in the other gifts more easily.

I believe anyone who wants all that God has for them should begin seeking the gift of tongues…does everyone receive it? Apparently not…

1 Corinthians 12:29-31

Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles? 30 Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? 31 But earnestly desire the best gifts. And yet I show you a more excellent way.

 1 Corinthians 14:18

“I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you”

I mentioned Jackie Pullinger earlier… 

Jackie Pullinger said. She found it embarrassing. She had been in Hong Kong for two years with no good results or success. She decided one day to start praying in tongues fifteen minutes a day by the clock (those were her exact words). Every day for fifteen minutes by the clock. “I felt nothing,” she said Absolutely nothing. “But that is when we began to see conversions of the addicts on the streets.” She linked the two together. And they kept increasing thereafter. I believe God honors those who will accept such a stigma.

Scriptures that may help you understand tongues better.

Mark 16:15-18, Acts 2:3,4, Acts 10:44-46, Acts 11:15, Acts 19:1-7, Romans 8:26, 1 Corinthians 12:1-31, 1 Corinthians 14:1-40, Jude 1:20


What position do you have in the Kingdom?


1 John 4:13

God gave us His Spirit as proof that we live in Him and He in us.

As I read the scriptures and understand who the people of the first century church were, it would seem that every person who was a Christ-follower was filled with the Spirit

Why was it necessary for every believer to be filled with the Spirit

Their world was in bondage with people all around bound by confusion, fear, control. People had no understanding they were in darkness and needed the light

– by the power of the Holy Spirit they were able to change mind-sets setting people free from their bondages of sin or religion…they were able to stand against the greatest government known, to bring a message that transformed the culture to where within 300 years even Caesar gave his life to Christ

Acts 17:6 they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also…”

I have mentioned over the last few weeks that Jesus came preaching the Kingdom of God, not religion, but instead a relationship with God that sets us free from the bondages of this world.

1 John 3:8b “….But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil”

As we look around our world don’t you see the brokenness, families destroyed, hopelessness, fear, confusion, jealousy, fighting for power and control, so much anger and hatred with road rage, facebook, government…religion, the world is a powder keg waiting to go off…I took this from a news report from last week

“There is certainly a mental health crisis growing in our youth in America. Suicide rates among the young, especially those between 15 and 24, have climbed rapidly in recent years. Levels of anxiety and depression among young people are also up. The reasons for this growing epidemic are numerous and many researchers are studying the problem. But it is clear that if we honestly target the actual problem things can be done.” 

There is a need for the church to move in power and to live out what we believe in our world

Do you think this is what God wants? Why doesn’t He do something about it? He already has! He has won the dominion of this earth back from the traitor who stole it from Adam and Eve

In my opinion two things have happened, first many deny the role of the Holy Spirit for today so they deny the power to be the people of the kingdom, or second, the Holy Spirit has become a bless me club or a show, that has nothing to do with the Father’s heartbeat for the world…Jesus won the dominion of the earth back from Satan for whoever is willing to enter the Kingdom of heaven and because of our sin being obliterated we can now become a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19) the Holy Spirit now lives in us rather than just visiting or is around us, as long as we don’t grieve or quench Him 

This is why (just as a review)

1) God created man and gave him dominion over the earth, empowered by the Holy Spirit, one kingdom on earth ruled by man under God’s authority. 

2) Man sinned surrendering his authority to Satan, creating a second kingdom here on earth

3) God came to earth in the flesh born as a baby to take back this dominion 

4) Jesus proclaimed the Kingdom of God, explained the Kingdom, showed us the power He wants to give us, so the Kingdom of darkness may be destroyed in the hearts of men, 

5) God cannot dwell with man if they are still covered in sin

6) Jesus went to the cross to take on all of our sin so that we could have relationship with God the way he did with Adam and Eve

7) As we accept the forgiveness of our sins we become an open door for the Holy Spirit with power to dwell in us with the same power Jesus had, so we might destroy the works of the enemy and bring people out from darkness, bondage, slavery, into freedom and light!

John 14:12 I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father.

Then Jesus goes on to talk about the Holy Spirit

We are empowered by God to make this all happen, if we are filled with the Spirit.

John 14:17 “…But you know Him (the Holy Spirit), because He lives with you now and later will be in you.”

The message of the Kingdom of God is the greatest message, the life, death and resurrection of the King of kings so that we could live in 

Freedom from worry, fear, anxiety, sin, failure! 

We can restore the hope to our friends, families and communities if we will choose to be filled with the Holy Spirit and allow him to do the work in us and be in us as I described last week

Why? How? Once again, let’s go by what Jesus said here is what He said

Luke 22:29 “I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom,” (ESV)

Jesus is saying we have been given a royal assignment as Children of God, heirs of the Kingdom, a mandate to function with the authority of the King to establish the kingdom here on earth. The Holy Spirit fills us with the power, wisdom, guidance, strength, gifts, and fruit to accomplish this purpose and we are assigned a title in the Kingdom

2 Corinthians 5:16b-20 “…At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! 17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 18 And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. 19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. 20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors;God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”

We are new because of Christ, the old is gone, the Kingdom of darkness has been broken off of us, we have been brought back to God’s original intent as part of the Kingdom, but he has given us an assignment, as members of the Kingdom we are his ambassadors to the Kingdom of darkness, not our country but one the Father has sent us to…what is an ambassador?

An ambassador is a political appointee whose job is to represent and speak for his or her home government before the rulers of other countries. In the eyes of those rulers, the word of an ambassador is the word of the government that he or she represents. Good ambassadors never speak their personal opinions, but only the official policies of the government that appointed them.

Let’s take a look at how Jesus functioned as an ambassador of the father and a King at the same time and what it means to us  

1) An ambassador is one who is sent by the king to represent the King in the nation to whom he is sent

John 20:21,22 Again he said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.” 22 Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.

We are no longer citizens of this world but aliens to it and are called to bring the light, truth, hope, salt, and freedom to this alien world

2) Committed only to the state’s interests;

John 5:19

So Jesus explained, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does.

Paul tells us talking about the body of Christ and using the example of soldiers that no one entangles themselves in the affairs of this world in order to accomplish pleasing people….we are ambassadors of the King only  

3) Embodies the nation-state or kingdom;

John 14:9,10

Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father! So why are you asking me to show him to you? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words I speak are not my own, but my Father who lives in me does his work through me.

You were made in God’s image created for his purpose, called from darkness into his glorious light to reflect Him, greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world

4) Is the responsibility of the state;

Luke 23:46

Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!”

Jesus told us not to worry or be anxious, we are more valuable than the sparrows and he cares for them

5) Totally protected by his government;

John 19:10,11

“Why don’t you talk to me?” Pilate demanded. “Don’t you realize that I have the power to release you or crucify you?”

11 Then Jesus said, “You would have no power over me at all unless it were given to you from above.

The psalmist has written he is our strength and our shield (Psalm 28:7), our very present help in time of trouble (Psalm 46:1), Isaiah said the Lord is our rear guard and our protector (Isaiah 52:12) we are completely protected by the Lord (Psalm 91)

6) Never becomes a citizen of the state or kingdom to which he is assigned;

Luke 4:5-8

Then the devil took him up and revealed to him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. 6 “I will give you the glory of these kingdoms and authority over them,” the devil said, “because they are mine to give to anyone I please. 7 I will give it all to you if you will worship me.” 8 Jesus replied, “The Scriptures say,

‘You must worship the Lord your God

and serve only him.’”

1 Peter 2:9,10 “…for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light. “Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy.”

7) Can only be recalled by the king or president;

John 5:30

I can do nothing on my own. I judge as God tells me. Therefore, my judgment is just, because I carry out the will of the one who sent me, not my own will.

We may feel abandoned or that we are out on our own sometimes but we never are, 

Romans 8:38,39 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

8) Has access to all his nation’s wealth for assignment;

Luke 12:31,32 

“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need. “So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.”

The Father’s riches are not in limited supply, the earth belongs to him 

Philippians 4:19 And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.

9) Never speaks his personal position on any issue, only his nation’s official position

John 6:38 

For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.

The Bible is our constitution in this kingdom of heaven and when we start teaching things that are not in God’s word then we begin to build our own kingdom not God’s. 

1 Corinthians 2:1-5 And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. 2 For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. 3 I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. 4 And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

10) His goal is to influence the territory for his kingdom government.

Matthew 28:18-20

“Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.”  

2 Peter 3:9

The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.

This is who you are, or at least part of who we are called to be in order to change the world. Like Adam and Eve we can’t accomplish the things of God without the in-filling of the Holy Spirit. We can’t function as ambassadors without the power of the Kingdom.

Why are people around you depressed, overwhelmed, lost, addicted, broken, afraid, angry, out of control, because they are looking for what you have, do you have the power to give it to them, to help them from their darkness into His marvelous light?

Will you begin to choose to believe you are His ambassador with all the right and privileges that affords; will you begin to change you thinking to think this way?

Today is the day to start!

Next week I’m going to talk to you about the power you have at you disposal to be His ambassador

The real versus the fake!


Basically, all of my life I have been on a quest for the real versus the fake…someone once did a study on renewal and revivals and they came up with this statistic

70% is real 20% is flesh and 10% is evil

I wonder at times if that is the way it is in the church not just revivals. For years it drove me nuts, why fake it, why let the flesh grab hold of it or why let wounds, jealousy, envy or whatever overwhelm us when what God has for us is so very real.

From George Whitefield to John Arnott it has been tough for those leading the move of God to separate out the good from the bad without hurting some of the good in the process.

Jesus dealt with this in this parable Matthew 13:24-30

Here is another story Jesus told: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. 25 But that night as the workers slept, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat, then slipped away. 26 When the crop began to grow and produce grain, the weeds also grew.

27 “The farmer’s workers went to him and said, ‘Sir, the field where you planted that good seed is full of weeds! Where did they come from?’

28 “‘An enemy has done this!’ the farmer exclaimed.

“‘Should we pull out the weeds?’ they asked.

29 “‘No,’ he replied, ‘you’ll uproot the wheat if you do. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. Then I will tell the harvesters to sort out the weeds, tie them into bundles, and burn them, and to put the wheat in the barn.’”

Why start out a teaching like this?

For years the church has been criticized for its hypocrisy but see as we now are beginning to understand the Kingdom. We can look around and begin to see what is wheat in our lives and in our church and what are weeds. We must sort out the weeds in our lives and trust that as the Lord has us.

Let’s begin our journey together

Luke 3:16

John answered their questions by saying, “I baptize you with water; but someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not even worthy to be his slave and untie the straps of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.

John 14:16,17

And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor—Counselor, Strengthener, Standby), to be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive [and take to its heart] because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He (the Holy Spirit) remains with you continually and will be in you. (Amplified version)

In order for us to explore what is real versus what is fake we need to understand who the Holy Spirit is….

I started with these two scripture passages because they tell us something about the Holy Spirit that impacts us as we are “baptized in the Holy Spirit”

Water versus fire

Water cleanses but basically leaves everything intact. John was prophetically comparing his baptism, a baptism of repentance and cleansing, with what Jesus would do as people receive the Holy Spirit

Fire burns away all of the impurities; fire changes us; fire purifies us! It is an inward action of purification. You are changed and transformed by fire. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit changes peoples hearts even further than conversion, you burn with the presence of the Lord as the disciples felt on the road to Emmaus “didn’t our hearts burn” motives are changed, you now understand the Father’s heart because the Holy Spirit lives within you as you practice His presence in your life.

The Jesus said I will send “another helper, comforter, advocate, intercessor, counselor, strengthener”

– this suggests that He is the first…

– The word “another” means one just like me, of the same essence, one identical to me

In the first 15 verses of John 14, Jesus is explaining to the disciples his unity with the Father, that they are one in essence when you see me you see the Father….then basically says when you see me you see the Holy Spirit. 

The Holy Spirit doesn’t act differently from the Father or the son and same with the other twoso when you see someone claiming to be full of the Holy Spirit and it is disruptive or distracting from what the Lord has already been doing it is a pigeon not the dove (we will talk about that next week)

When a person is filled with the Holy Spirit they have been given a gift that the Old Testament saints yearned for but could not have.

This is the Holy Spirit. If we know the real the fake will never have an opportunity to deceive us. Here are 7 keys we need to understand about the Holy Spirit

1) Is God – He is a person equal as Jesus is a person and The Father is a person. He is not an “it”, a mood, an influence. He is God just as Jesus is and the Father is. He is different than the other two but in total and complete unity with them.  He is personal and if you are baptized in the Holy Spirit He fills you and will lead, guide, and speak truth to you always

2) Is the Spirit of truth and leads to the truth– as we have seen from earlier in John 14 and then also in 

John 16:13 “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth…”

God cannot lie (Hebrews 6:18, Titus 1:2). The Holy Spirit is incapable of error he will always guide you into what is true. You will want to live the truth, uphold the truth, love the truth and follow the truth because one of the signs of the failure of the last days is that people even in the church will not want the truth 2 Thessalonians 2:11,12. A sign the Holy Spirit is reigning in you is you desire to walk in and love the truth regardless of anything else. Jesus said in John 14:6 He is the way, truth, and life.

As it is impossible for God to lie, it is impossible for the Holy Spirit to mislead us in anyway including theologically. The one who wrote the scripture would never lead us into something that is not scriptural

2 Timothy 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

If we are moving in the Holy Spirit we will clearly walk in the truth always

3) The Holy Spirit convictsJohn 16:8

“And He, when He comes, will convict the world about [the guilt of] sin [and the need for a Savior], and about righteousness, and about judgment: 9 about sin [and the true nature of it], because they do not believe in Me [and My message];”

The Holy Spirit will always keep you on the right path, correcting each step of the way to make sure we fulfill our calling always. There are so many distractions that would want to take us away from where we could or should be. It is his job to convict, not yours or mine, but His and He does a wonderful job sometimes too well 

4) The Holy Spirit gives us clear and direct guidance – Philip and the Ethiopian

Acts 8:26, 29-31 As for Philip, an angel of the Lord said to him, “Go south down the desert road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza.” The Holy Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and walk along beside the carriage.” Philip ran over and heard the man reading from the prophet Isaiah. Philip asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” The man replied, “How can I, unless someone instructs me?” And he urged Philip to come up into the carriage and sit with him.

The result the Ethiopian came to Christ. There are many other cases where the Holy Spirit instructed people where to go, when to go, and he will show us when we have it right and when we have it wrong.

Philippians 3:15

Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. (ESV)

We need to always understand and follow the Holy Spirit’s guidance

5) The Holy Spirit intercedes for us– we know Christ is seated at the right hand of the Father ever interceding for us, we have talked about that much in the last days but the Holy Spirit also prays for us Romans 8:26,27

“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. 27 And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”

This is Paul praying in the Spirit but it is the Spirit of God praying through him. It is the one time we can be assured we are praying exactly God’s will. Satan has no clue what we are praying

6) The Holy Spirit shows himself through various gifts– Paul gives us a list of the gifts given by the Holy Spirit in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10, 28-30.Paul also instructs us to seek the best gifts 

1 Corinthians 12:31 “But earnestly desire the best gifts….”

Which means according to the need at the moment or long term there is a hierarchy of gifts and we should seek the best. Romans 11:29 tells us the gifts and calling can not be taken away which means neither our worthiness nor our unworthiness to use these gifts limits the gifts which should give us pause because neither our maturity, immaturity nor spirituality are indicated by the gifts (DON’T LOOK AT THE GIFTS AND ASSUME SPIRITUAL MATURITY) 

Then what do we look at for spiritual maturity?

7) The Holy Spirit shows himself through fruit – 

Galatians 5:22,23 – But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

The gifts do not show how spiritual or how obedient a person is to the Lord but the fruit always does. If we have anger, bitterness, pride, envy, jealousy and many or any works of the flesh the fruit will be gone and so will the Holy Spirit. The fruit flows out of being in the word of God and prayer. When it is not present you can be sure the Holy Spirit is not either. 

If we live in and understand the real, we will never accept the fake. We’ll look at the real versus fake Holy Spirit attitudes and activity in more detail next week!