Get to Know the Holy Spirit Pt. 6
The Holy Spirit- The One for the Present Day Believer: December 2022
One of the biggest lies the enemy has implemented into the church over the past many years, is that the baptism of the Holy Spirit, the gifts, the power, the anointing, the benefits of Him have come and gone and were only meant for the early church. Of course, satan does not want the body of Christ operating through the Holy Spirit. The more we operate in all that the Holy Spirit has to offer, the more and more we look like Jesus. Then the more the unsaved world realizes this whole Jesus thing IS REAL. Honestly, the enemy has done a fairly good job of getting that lie rooted into many parts of the body of Christ. But I believe that that is coming to an end. More and more believers are realizing that they were deceived into believing that all the benefits of the Holy Spirit were not for them. They are now being set free and stepping into the POWER of the Holy Spirit. Let me help you be set free this week and help you start experiencing the ‘over and above’ goodness of the Holy Spirit that you CAN and SHOULD experience EVERYDAY!
It says in Romans 2:11 AMPC, “For God shows no partiality [undue favor or unfairness; with Him one man is not different from another].” And in Acts 10:34-35 AMPC, “And Peter opened his mouth and said: Most certainly and thoroughly I now perceive and understand that God shows no partiality and is no respecter of persons, but in every nation he who venerates and has a reverential fear for God, treating Him with worshipful obedience and living uprightly, is acceptable to Him and sure of being received and welcomed [by Him].” God does not see or love any person more than another. That is not who God is. So He would not give a special power of the Holy Spirit to one person or generation of people and then leave all the rest for the remainder of time, to fend for themselves, powerless. I urge you not to give into the lie that the early church, Paul, Peter, John, etc are more special than you are or I am today. The stories and testimonies they tell us in the Bible are not meant to be a history book. They are meant as an example for us to also step into that same power! Praise God! Our beloved elders in the faith- Peter, Paul, John, the early church leaders and attendees that were touched on Pentecost and the days following (Acts 2); were sinners who were saved by the blood of Jesus and His grace, just like you and me. We give honor where it is due, and we honor those saints that have gone before and paved a path and gave us amazing examples of how to live our lives today. However, we cannot live under the deception that because they were who they were, that they received any special treatment.
Read with me in Malachi 3:6 NLT, “I am the Lord, and I do not change. That is why you descendants of Jacob are not already destroyed.” And Hebrews 13:8 NLT, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” Jesus did not do something one way and then years down the road just mix it up, and change it. That is not who He is. If that were true then we could not stand firmly on the Word of God as truth. If He would be willing to change one thing then why wouldn’t He be willing to change everything else too? It is because of this truth, we can stand firm believing that we too have access to the power, giftings, and ALL the Holy Spirit has to offer.
In Acts chapter 2 & 4, after the apostles and the early church members received the power of the Holy Spirit and the gift of speaking in tongues, they went out and preached the Gospel and performed MANY signs, wonders, and miracles. And during this time the Bible accounts that THOUSANDS were added to the church! Why were thousands of people getting saved and joining the church? Because they were seeing the power of the Holy Spirit showing the heart of Jesus placing it on display for the world to see. Unbelievers are attracted to that, they are attracted to their problems being solved and their sicknesses being healed. And if the early church needed the power of the Holy Spirit to show the world Jesus, then why doesn’t the church in the current day need that same power? ESPECIALLY when the world today is so much more wacked out and twisted! That just doesn't make any sense to believe that the power of the Holy Spirit, His baptism, and all the gifts that come with it, passed away and just stopped. There are portions of the unsaved population in the world who are just not going to pick up the Bible. Many people will not just decide to read how Peter, Paul and the others moved in power in the early days of the church and then be drawn to Jesus. Historical accounts of a prior day of power is pretty meaningless when you need current solutions to fix current problems. We must move in the Holy Spirit TODAY to minister His solutions to a broken world…Today, Right Now!
I’d also like to point out that “present-day church” and the “early church” from the Bible are not two different churches. There is only one church and it is the body of Christ. The Bible did not talk about different denominations and break us into different groups and different timelines. It was always just one church, one body. Separation of churches and denominations was a man-made thing. I’d like to propose that God did not create that and I have not seen that mentioned in the Bible. No matter the doctrine, the details, the geography, the generation, or era we are all THE church. So what was given to the ‘firsts’ is also given to us. Believers back then and believers today have the same Great Commission, to go preach the Gospel, win souls, heal the sick and show the unsaved world Jesus. The early church believers had the power of the Holy Spirit to fulfill that call, and so do we!
We cannot pick and choose what parts of the Bible we believe and which ones we don’t. If we believe the Bible and model our lives after what it says when it comes to how to live right (i.e. love others, don’t kill, be kind, don’t steal, turn the other cheek etc) we have to believe it and live by it in all areas. Mark 16:17 NKJV says “And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” It does not say “these signs will follow the early church members who believe” or “these signs will follow Paul, Peter and John who believe.” It says “these signs will follow THOSE who believe!” “Those” refers to you and me!
If the general population of Christians believe that the Holy Spirit came to the earth following the ascension of Jesus at Pentecost and is still here today, then why would we think His giftings, baptism, and power are gone? The amazing news is that they’re not gone, they didn’t pass away, they are still here and available today FOR EVERY SINGLE BELIEVER IN JESUS! Don’t fall victim to the lie that it was only meant for the apostles or just the early church. Don’t let Satan steal the power you have been given to kick his butt out of your life and other people’s lives. The more Holy Spirit power you walk in the more you look like Jesus and the more the world will be attracted to the Gospel!
This concludes our “Get to Know the Holy Spirit” series. I have had an amazing time studying the Holy Spirit with you. I pray that you walk away from this study, baptized and full of the Holy Spirit power! I hope you grab that quality of boldness that only comes from the anointing of the Holy Spirit, that turns you into another person, to go out and change lives and show Jesus to a lost world. I pray that you start to walk in a new wisdom and path of solutions in every situation you face. I want you to find your unique giftings that The Holy Spirit has specifically imparted to you and begin to minister to those around you! And I SO desire that you have found your prayer language and pray always the perfect will of God and build yourself up in faith through speaking in tongues. The Holy Spirit, His baptism, His gifts, His power are the most important keys to truly access the “MORE” that God has for you. So do not walk away from this study the same as you were before. And here is one last Holy Spirit benefit: you get baptized in the Holy Spirit once and receive a prayer language. Moving forward make sure to exercise that prayer language because it is like a muscle! But the Bible tells us in Ephesians 5:18 and Acts 13:52 that we can be refreshed, refilled, and ever filled with the Holy Spirit. So anytime you feel like you need to be refreshed just ask Him to and He will. Any time you are in a church service that offers the baptism of the Holy Spirit, even if you have already been baptized, receive a refreshing flow. So go out, cast out demons, speak in new tongues, lay hands on the sick and watch them recover! Show the world that Jesus is real and can change lives!
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