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Gifts of the Spirit : Pastor Seth Blackledge Week 4 — Transcript

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0:00All right.
0:04Well, good good morning everybody. I
0:08love uh that we are having our 250th
0:10celebration of our nation uh next week.
0:13That's exciting. So, as Pastor Paul
0:15said, uh make sure you sign up for the
0:17baptism because that's a big that's a
0:19big deal. And uh today's the last day
0:21you can do that. I don't know if today
0:22is, but but we want to make sure you're
0:25you are ready and we are prepared for
0:27you. Um, I know the pastor Paul said
0:29that we are in our last week of gifts of
0:32the spirit and and uh, you know, when
0:34you're going to the last person in this
0:36series, it's it's kind of like showing
0:37up to Thanksgiving and uh, everybody's
0:40already made their plate, right? They
0:41already got all the good stuff and
0:42you're just hoping that there's
0:44something left good. Um, but since we're
0:47talking about the gifts, I've been
0:48praying for the gift of creativity all
0:49week.
0:51I'm kidding. But I want to open with
0:53this thought. I'm going to talk kind of
0:54quick because I got a lot of notes and a
0:56lot of things that I covered. I started
0:57writing this message. Man, I got too
0:59much to say here. Um, but I want to open
1:02with this thought and I've been thinking
1:03about this all week um as I've been
1:06preparing and I wonder what would happen
1:09if the Holy Spirit withdrew his power
1:13and his presence from the church. And
1:16I'm not just talking about Covenant
1:17Church. I'm talking about the big C
1:19church in America. If the Holy Spirit
1:22withdrew his power and his presence from
1:25the church across America, I wonder if
1:2899% of just everything we do would just
1:30continue. Would we continue to still
1:34have worship services? Would we still
1:36continue to have all the programs and
1:38events and and and things that I
1:40guarantee you our calendar will probably
1:42still be full?
1:44And I wonder if anybody would even know
1:48the difference.
1:50Now compare that to the early church in
1:52the book of Acts. If the Holy Spirit had
1:55withdrawn himself from them, I guarantee
1:58you that 99% of what they did would have
2:01stopped immediately and everyone would
2:05have noticed the difference because
2:07they're not just organized around good
2:10ideas and and good systems and and good
2:13services. They were completely dependent
2:16upon the Holy Spirit. Hopefully see the
2:19difference here. One church can function
2:21with talent and and planning and and
2:24programming, but the church that Jesus
2:27started, it was never meant to function
2:30without the Holy Spirit.
2:33>> So today, I know we're talking about
2:35gifts, but I don't want to just talk
2:36about what the Holy Spirit gives. I want
2:39to talk about who the Holy Spirit is and
2:42the power that he gives to the life of
2:46the believer.
2:47Listen, I know this that gifts matter.
2:50Gifts are biblical. Gifts are for today.
2:53But gifts are for the building up of the
2:56church. So before we talk about what the
2:58Holy Spirit gives and all his gifts, we
3:00need to know who the Holy Spirit is. But
3:04the because the gifts don't just come
3:07from a formula. They flow out of a
3:10relationship with the Holy Spirit. And
3:14when I say Holy Spirit, I know that
3:16there are a few people or a few
3:17different groups in this room today.
3:20Some of you are excited because we're
3:22talking about the Holy Spirit, right?
3:24You grew up in that atmosphere. Some of
3:26you, you're nervous because you did grow
3:27up around some things and it's been a
3:29little I don't know about that, right? A
3:32little strange. And some of you are
3:33already praying, man, I hope this thing
3:35does not get weird right now. But let me
3:38just help us from the beginning. The
3:40Holy Spirit, he's not weird.
3:43Some people are weird,
3:46right? There's some teachings that have
3:48been weird. Sometimes the church church
3:50culture has made things weird. But the
3:53Holy Spirit himself, he's not weird.
3:54He's not strange. He is God. He is
3:58personal and he is crucial to the
4:01Christian walk. The Holy Spirit, he's
4:04not an emotion. He's not goosebumps.
4:07He's not an it. The Holy Spirit is the
4:10person of God.
4:13>> And many believers are like, "Hey, man.
4:15I can get down with God the Father. I
4:18can get down with God the Son. I can get
4:20down with Jesus." But the Holy Spirit,
4:23I'm a little iffy on that one. But I
4:26want to show you just how important
4:27Jesus said the Holy Spirit is. At the
4:31end of his ministry in John 14:15-16,
4:33those chapters, Jesus is basically
4:35trying to convince his disciples that
4:38that that he's leaving, but it's going
4:40to be okay. He he's telling them, I I'm
4:42not going to be here to heal the sick
4:44and perform all these miracles anymore.
4:47I'm not going to BE ABLE TO PROVIDE fish
4:49dinners for all of our thousands of
4:50friends anymore, but I'm going to leave
4:53you with an upgrade. Jesus is not
4:56saying, "Hey, I'm I'm leaving you with
4:58less." He's saying, "I'm sending the one
5:02who will continue my ministry in you,
5:05through you, and with you."
5:08>> This is what Jesus says in John 14:16.
5:10He said, "I'm going to go ask my father.
5:12I will ask the Father, and he will give
5:14you another helper so that he may be
5:18with you forever." Jesus said, "Listen,
5:21I I've done my part, but I'm going to
5:24send you another helper." And I want you
5:26to realize in your Bible in this in this
5:29verse, it's a capital H, a capital
5:31helper, and a capital he. The Holy
5:34Spirit is not just a power. He's not
5:37just a presence. The Holy Spirit is a
5:40person. The Bible never refers to the
5:42Holy Spirit as an it. But so often in
5:45the Christian world, we he's referred to
5:48as an it. But the Holy Spirit, he is a
5:52person. Why is this important? because
5:56you will never develop a personal
5:58relationship with someone you don't see
6:00as a person. And I think this is where a
6:04lot of believers, we can get stuck on
6:06this. We believe the Holy Spirit, right?
6:08We believe we we sing songs about the
6:11Holy Spirit. We talk about the power of
6:13the Holy Spirit. We want the gifts of
6:16the Holy Spirit, but many times we don't
6:19actually relate to the Holy Spirit as a
6:22person.
6:23We treat him like a force. We treat him
6:26like a feeling. We treat him like
6:28something that that might just show up
6:30in the in the worship service, but not
6:32someone who wants to walk with us every
6:34day.
6:36>> But the Holy Spirit is not just
6:37something we experience at church. He's
6:39some He's something He is He is someone
6:41that Jesus sent with us to be with us
6:43forever. He speaks to us. He teaches us.
6:46He comforts us. He leads us. He empowers
6:50us. And the Bible says that the Holy
6:52Spirit can be grieved. You can't grieve
6:55feelings. You can't grieve goosebumps.
6:58You can't grieve in it.
7:00>> You can grieve a person. And the Holy
7:03Spirit is the person of God living in
7:06the believer to empower us to live this
7:10life that Jesus called us to live.
7:13>> The Holy Spirit, he's not an accessory
7:15to the Christian life. He is essential
7:18>> to the Christian life. You can't live
7:21this life that Jesus called you to live
7:23without the power of the Holy Spirit.
7:26>> And honestly, I think a lot of us have
7:29heard people talk about the Holy Spirit,
7:32but that doesn't mean that we always
7:33have a clear understanding of who the
7:35Holy Spirit is. And I want to say that's
7:37true for me. And so I want to give you a
7:39little background on me. I grew up in a
7:41non-denominational church, a very
7:43charismatic church where the Holy Spirit
7:45was talked about all the time. MIGHT
7:47ALWAYS NOT HAVE been correct, but he was
7:49talked about, right? And as a young kid,
7:51if I'm honest, I thought the Holy Spirit
7:53was just a feeling because when people
7:57would experience the Holy Spirit, right,
7:59they they began to cry. They begin to
8:02run and jump around or roll around. They
8:04just all sorts of weird things. They got
8:06very emotional, right? And as a kid, I
8:08remember thinking, I don't know if I
8:10want this Holy Spirit thing. Like, I
8:12don't I don't want that.
8:15And I thought the Holy Spirit was I
8:17thought some it was something that you
8:18had to catch like a firefly or
8:20something. Right? You got to have a net
8:23or something to catch this thing. Have
8:24you ever heard that? THAT THING HE
8:26CAUGHT THE HOLY SPIRIT. She caught the
8:28Holy Spirit. Right? They start teach you
8:32need a net to catch this thing. And I
8:34remember I remember walking into uh
8:37services when I was a young kid and and
8:39honestly you could really feel that the
8:41atmosphere was was different. But then
8:44all of a sudden someone would start
8:46speaking in this unknown language and
8:48kind of start blurting out and and
8:50things that I didn't understand and and
8:52and I remember like thinking like, bro,
8:54that's my children's worker and now he's
8:56speaking in Spanish or something. What
8:58is he? He's got another language. And
9:00then I remember going home and and my
9:01mom, she was speaking in her prayer
9:03language. I think I think my mom knows
9:05French or something. Did I miss
9:07something? Did I miss a class or
9:10something? And then somewhere along the
9:11way, I heard this phrase that I thought
9:14was the definition of what the Holy
9:17Spirit or who the Holy Spirit is. And
9:19maybe you've heard this phrase before.
9:21Uh this I was this was later in life. I
9:23was high school and and the pastor was
9:25like, "YOU NEED TO BE FILLED WITH THE
9:26HOLY SPIRIT." And he said this. He said,
9:30"Have you been filled with the Holy
9:32Spirit with the evidence of speaking in
9:35tongues?"
9:37So in my mind I equated being filled
9:39with the Holy Spirit with one thing. IF
9:42YOU WERE FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT,
9:44the proof was that you spoke in tongues.
9:48And this is why it's so important for us
9:50to read our Bible and get personal and
9:52and study the Bible for ourselves
9:54because for years I was walking around
9:56with this misunderstanding.
9:58And honestly, it caused me to judge
10:00people a little bit. And I thought, if
10:02you do not speak in tonesues, then you
10:04must not have the Holy Spirit.
10:08And if because I did speak in tonesues,
10:10then that must mean I'm a little more
10:12spiritual than you. Come on, somebody.
10:16Right? We were judging people. But let
10:19me help us today. Speaking in tongues,
10:21it's very real, right? It's biblical.
10:24It's powerful. And I pray that every
10:26believer in here would be filled with
10:28their prayer language, right? But the
10:30Bible NEVER SAYS THAT THE ONLY PROOF is
10:34being of being filled with the spirit is
10:36speaking in tonesues. Tonesues is not
10:39the only evidence that you have the Holy
10:42Spirit. TONESUES IS A BENEFIT of the
10:45Holy Spirit. I'm going to say that
10:46again. Tonesues is a benefit of the Holy
10:48Spirit. And I want to break down some
10:50walls that maybe have made people afraid
10:53of the Holy Spirit because some people
10:57have rejected the Holy Spirit. not
11:00because of who he is but because of how
11:03they have seen people represent him.
11:07And the answer to misuse is not disuse.
11:11The answer is biblical understanding. So
11:14today I want to just uh talk about what
11:16the Holy Spirit actually produces in the
11:20life of a believer. And I want to say it
11:22like this.
11:24When the Holy Spirit fills your life,
11:26there should be evidence. There should
11:29be benefits and there will be boldness.
11:33There should be evidence because the
11:34Holy Spirit changes us from the inside
11:37out,
11:38>> right?
11:40And there's boldness because every time
11:42you see people filled with Did I Did I
11:45miss one? There's benefit. Yeah, there's
11:46benefits because the Holy Spirit, he
11:48gives us power. He gives us language. He
11:51gives us comfort. He gives us direction.
11:53And there's boldness because every time
11:55you see people filled with the Holy
11:56Spirit in the in the New Testament, in
11:58the book of Acts, they don't just become
12:01more emotional. They don't run around
12:02and jump and and cry. They become more
12:04courageous.
12:06>> They become witnesses for Jesus. They
12:08begin to speak and they begin to serve
12:10and they begin to love and they begin to
12:12pray for people and minister with a
12:15power that is beyond themselves.
12:18So the question today is not just do I
12:21believe in the Holy Spirit. The question
12:25is is there the evidence of the Holy
12:27Spirit in my life? Am I receiving the
12:31benefits of the Holy Spirit?
12:36Am I walking in the boldness of the Holy
12:38Spirit to do what Jesus has called me to
12:41do? So let's first talk about the
12:43evidence of the Holy Spirit in our
12:46lives. And most of us our first thought
12:48goes immediately to the gifts, right?
12:50The tongues and the prophecies and the
12:52miracles and all the supernatural and
12:55all those are real. But remember those
12:57are benefits of the Holy Spirit. Those
12:59are the manifestations of the Holy
13:01Spirit. And we'll talk about those here
13:03in a second. But before we can talk
13:04about what the Holy Spirit can do
13:06through us, we need to talk about what
13:07the Holy Spirit should be doing in us.
13:10And that evidence of the Holy Spirit in
13:12your in your life is not that you get
13:14louder, right? that you speak in some
13:17unknown tongue or you get more
13:19emotional. The evidence is that your
13:22life begins to look like Jesus.
13:26>> The Holy Spirit does not just come Yeah.
13:29The Holy Spirit doesn't just come just
13:31to give us an experience. He comes to
13:33transform us,
13:34>> right? He changes our desires. He
13:37changes our responses. He changes our
13:40attitude. He changes the way we love. He
13:42changes the way we forgive, the way we
13:44talk, the way we treat people.
13:46>> Right?
13:47>> And this is where we have to be careful
13:49because I believe it is possible that we
13:52can desire the gifts of the spirit while
13:56resisting the fruit of the spirit.
14:00>> We want God to use our mouth
14:01prophetically, but in private we cuss
14:03like a sailor,
14:06>> right? We want the gift of healing, but
14:08we refuse to give forgive the people
14:10that have hurt us.
14:12We want to give a word of knowledge to
14:13other people, but we ignore the
14:15conviction of the Holy Spirit in our own
14:18hearts.
14:20>> The Holy Spirit is not trying to make us
14:22look impressive. He's trying to make us
14:25look like Jesus. Right? So when I ask,
14:28hey, where is the evidence of the Holy
14:30Spirit in my life? I'm not just asking,
14:32have I ever experienced something
14:34miraculous? I'm asking, am I being
14:37changed? Am I more loving? Am I more
14:40patient with people? Am I quicker to
14:42forgive? Am I slow to speak?
14:45>> Am I becoming more like Jesus?
14:48>> And the evidence of the Holy Spirit is
14:50not just what happens around me. It's
14:52what happens in me. It's what's being
14:54produced in me. And this is what should
14:57be produced in us. This is in Galatians
14:595:22. We should know it well. But the
15:01fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace,
15:05patience, kindness, goodness,
15:07faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.
15:13The gifts show us what the Holy Spirit
15:15can do through me. But the fruit shows
15:17what the Holy Spirit is doing in me. And
15:20the Holy Spirit,
15:22if he is really the Holy Spirit and he's
15:24filling my life, there should be
15:26evidence. There should be fruit in my
15:28life. People should be able to see that.
15:30There should be change in my life. I
15:32should walk and talk and love and
15:34forgive differently. Listen, the Holy
15:37Spirit doesn't want to just visit our
15:38life in just one moment. He wants to
15:41transform your life.
15:43>> And when you're filled with the Holy
15:44Spirit, he changes what is coming out of
15:47your life and he makes you look more
15:50like Jesus. And the good news is this,
15:53he doesn't just produce fruit in our
15:55life and change the things in our life.
15:57He releases gifts through our life. And
16:00when you receive the Holy Spirit, you
16:03have access to the gifts of the spirit.
16:07But the question is, are you operating
16:09in your gifts?
16:11I know that that Dr. Jeff, he talked
16:13about a lot of these gifts when we
16:14kicked off these this series a few this
16:17series a few weeks ago, but if you
16:19weren't here for that, I'm just going to
16:20briefly go over some of the gifts. And
16:23they're found in 1 Corinthians 12 7-11.
16:26And there are nine gifts of the spirit.
16:30And I'm going to break these nine gifts
16:31up into three different categories and
16:33kind of talk about these categories. The
16:35first category is the discerning gifts
16:37or the revelation gifts. These gifts
16:41help us see what we could not see on our
16:44own. The first one is this. The word of
16:46knowledge. This is the definition. Word
16:49of knowledge is when the Holy Spirit
16:51allows you to know something specific
16:54that you did not learn by natural means.
16:57We see this in the life of Jesus when
16:59he's with the woman at the well, right?
17:01Jesus goes and says, "Hey, uh, go call
17:03your husband." She says, "I don't have a
17:05husband." He says, "THAT'S RIGHT. YOU
17:06GOT FIVE OF THEM, AND THE ONE YOU'RE
17:08WITH RIGHT NOW AIN'T YOUR HUSBAND
17:09EITHER." AND SHE LOOKS AT YOU. "OH, you
17:11must be a prophet." Right?
17:15This wasn't Jesus exposing her to shame.
17:17It was a word of knowledge that opened
17:20her heart to truth. Right? This is this
17:23isn't a gift about embarrassing people.
17:25It's it's about helping people encounter
17:27God. And there are moments when the Holy
17:29Spirit might bring something to your
17:31mind that you could not have known on
17:34your own. Maybe you're praying for
17:37someone and and the Lord just highlights
17:39something in their life that you need to
17:41speak to them. Maybe you're talking to
17:43your child. Parents, we need this a lot
17:44and especially middle school and high
17:46schools. talking to your your child and
17:48the Holy Spirit helps you discern what's
17:50really going on in their life underneath
17:52the surface maybe and you're you're in a
17:55meeting at work and you don't know what
17:56to say and suddenly the spirit just
17:58gives you insight to something that
18:01might not just be you you being
18:03brilliant right that's the Holy Spirit
18:05helping you he's giving you a word of
18:08knowledge second one is a word of wisdom
18:12word of wisdom is when the Holy Spirit
18:14gives a divine answer or solution for a
18:18specific situation.
18:20Knowledge helps us know something.
18:23Wisdom helps you know what to do with
18:25it. Right? How many times have you ever
18:27been in a situation you thought, man, I
18:29do not know what to say. I don't know
18:30how to lead this moment. I don't know
18:33how to respond in this moment. I don't
18:37know what the next right step is. But I
18:38promise you, the Holy Spirit knows. And
18:41he gives wisdom that is beyond our
18:43experience, that is beyond our
18:45education, that is beyond our natural
18:48ability. Parents, we need words of
18:51wisdom. Coaches, teachers, leaders,
18:56spouses, you need words of wisdom.
19:00Sometimes word of wisdom sounds like
19:02this. Don't respond yet.
19:07>> Don't have that conversation with that
19:08person. Just right there. You might need
19:10to have that conversation face to face.
19:13Wait, before you make this decision,
19:16you need to apologize first.
19:19A word of wisdom is the Holy Spirit. He
19:22steps into a confusing moment and gives
19:25clarity that only he can give. Now, the
19:29last one in this category is the
19:31discerning of spirits. And I think this
19:34is a gift that can get very
19:35misunderstood sometimes. Have you ever
19:38heard anybody say, "I have the gift of
19:40discernment." Right? Anybody I have the
19:43gift of discernment? I hear that a lot.
19:45Well, I want to tell you that there is a
19:46difference between discernment
19:50and the gift of the discerning of
19:52spirits.
19:54Often times what people really mean when
19:56they say, "Hey, I have the gift of
19:57discernment is I notice everything wrong
19:59with everybody."
20:02Right? And that's not the Holy Spirit.
20:06That's a gift of suspicion. That's a
20:08gift of being critical,
20:12right? And there are some people that
20:14are highly gifted and highly anointed in
20:16this area.
20:20But that's not what Paul's talking about
20:22here. In general, as believers, we
20:25should all have the gift of discerning,
20:28right? A a gift of discernment. As
20:30believers, we should all grow in wisdom.
20:33We should all learn to recognize what is
20:35God and what's not God. Right? But the
20:38the difference between being discerning
20:41and the discerning of spirits is the
20:44discerning of spirits is when the Holy
20:46Spirit makes you aware of what is
20:49spiritually influencing a person, a
20:52moment or a situation. That's the
20:54definition.
20:56Is it bombing behind that? Okay.
20:57Awesome.
20:59It's not spooky.
21:01It's a benefit of the Holy Spirit. And
21:04sometimes there are spiritual ga attacks
21:07against your peace, against your
21:09marriage, against your family, against
21:11your mind, against your calling. And
21:15wouldn't you want the Holy Spirit to
21:17help you recognize what is really going
21:20on?
21:22>> Because you can't fight an enemy that
21:24you don't know is there. And so many of
21:27us, we're worn out because we keep
21:29fighting people when it's when the real
21:32enemy is spiritual, right? But this is
21:34why the Bible tells us we don't wrestle
21:36against flesh and blood, but against the
21:38powers and principalities of this dark
21:40world. So the discerning of spirits is
21:42not being is not about being suspicious
21:45about everybody. It's about knowing how
21:47to pray. It's about knowing how to
21:50respond in a situation, how to bring the
21:53authority of Jesus into the situation
21:56and change it.
21:58>> So the discerning gifts are the word of
22:00knowledge, word of wisdom, and the
22:04discerning of spirits. The second
22:06category of gifts is what we call the
22:09declarative gifts, the vocal gifts,
22:12right? And these are the gifts that
22:14involve speaking. And according to 1
22:16Corinthians 14, these gifts are meant to
22:18strengthen, encourage, and build up the
22:21church. And the first one is prophecy.
22:25Prophecy is a message from God through a
22:28person that strengthens and encourages
22:31others. 1 Corinthians 4:1 says that we
22:34should all desire the gift of prophecy.
22:39Now I know that prophecy sometimes can
22:41make people nervous because we have seen
22:43people misuse this gift. People have
22:47used prophecy to manipulate. They've
22:50used prophecy to control a situation or
22:53or correct in ways that don't look like
22:56Jesus. Right? You I I've seen it before.
22:58Hey, stand up. I'm going to read your
23:00mail. I'm going to tell you all the
23:01things that you've done wrong. That
23:03doesn't look like Jesus. But we don't
23:06define prophecy by how people have
23:08misused it, right? We define it by what
23:11the scripture says. And this is what 1
23:14Corinthians 14:3 says. But the one who
23:17prophesies speaks to people for their
23:20strengthening, for encouraging, and for
23:23comfort. That means prophecy should
23:26build up. It shouldn't beat down people.
23:291 Corinthians 14:31, for you can all
23:32prophesy one by one. so that all may
23:35learn and be encouraged.
23:38That doesn't mean that we all hold the
23:41office of a prophet. That might not be
23:44our necessary spiritual gift, but it
23:46does mean that the Holy Spirit can use
23:48ordinary believers to speak
23:50encouragement from God.
23:53Prophecy is the Holy Spirit giving you
23:57the right encouragement at the right
23:59time for the right person. And I want to
24:03just give us some kind of pastoral guard
24:05rails on this. You do not have to throw
24:07the God card on everything that you say.
24:10Right? Sometimes it's better to say,
24:13"Hey, I feel like or I I sense this or I
24:18want to submit to you something." Right?
24:21If it's God, he's going to confirm it.
24:24And if it's not, you haven't used his
24:26name to pressure someone into something.
24:30Amen.
24:31>> And that can look like this. Hey, I was
24:33praying for you and I felt like the Lord
24:35wanted me to tell you that you were not
24:37forgotten. Right? Simple as that. That's
24:40encouraging to someone. And if it
24:43resonates, God will confirm it. Prophecy
24:46is for encouragement.
24:49And the next next gift
24:53next two gifts are tongues and the
24:55interpretation of tongues. Right? And
24:58I'm going to kind of combine these two
24:59together because they flow together. And
25:01I know this is where people from
25:02different backgrounds, this is this is
25:04where it gets a little uncomfortable,
25:05right?
25:07But let's but I want to take the fear
25:08out of it and just look what the Bible
25:11teaches.
25:12>> Tongues is a spirit-given language.
25:16It's a language given by the Holy Spirit
25:19that is unknown to the person speaking
25:21it. And I want to say this, tongues
25:23isn't weird. It's not scary. Tonesues is
25:27biblical. Paul says 1 Corinthians 14:5
25:30that I wish you all spoke in tongues.
25:34So why would we reject something that
25:36the spirit that the scripture affirms?
25:40But we also need to be understanding of
25:41it biblically because there is a
25:43difference between tonesues in a private
25:46prayer language and tonesues as a public
25:49message. When I'm praying in tonesues
25:52personally, I'm speaking to God. I was
25:54praying in tonesues right before I
25:55walked up here on stage. That is my
25:57personal time. Paul says 1 Corinthians
25:594:2 uh 14:2, "For he who speaks in
26:02tonesues does not speak to men but to
26:05God." That that means when I pray in
26:08tonesues personally, I'm not I'm not
26:10talking to people. I'm talking
26:12specifically to God. My spirit is
26:15communing with God. And Paul says in 1
26:17Corinthians 14:4, "He who speaks in
26:20tongues edifies himself." That word
26:23edify means to build up. I'm building up
26:26the spirit inside of me. So when I pray
26:29in the spirit, my spirit is being
26:32strengthened. I may not understand every
26:34word in with my mind, right? But
26:37something is happening in my spirit. I'm
26:40being built. I'm being strengthened in
26:42my spirit. I'm being aligned with the
26:45heart of God.
26:48Let me ask you this. Have you ever been
26:49in a place where you didn't know how to
26:52pray or or what to pray? You didn't have
26:54the words. You didn't know exactly what
26:57to ask. You just knew, God, I need you
27:00in this moment. And this is where the
27:02Holy Spirit helps us because prayer is
27:04just not about having the perfect words.
27:07Prayer is about depending on the spirit
27:09when we don't know what to say. Romans
27:138:26 says, "In the same way, the Spirit
27:16helps us in our weakness when we don't
27:19know what we ought to pray for, but the
27:22Spirit himself interceds for us through
27:26word through wordless groans."
27:29That is one of the benefits of praying
27:31in the spirit. The Holy Holy Spirit
27:34helps us when our natural language runs
27:37out. When my words are are limited, the
27:41Holy Spirit is not limited. When I don't
27:44know what to pray, THE SPIRIT KNOWS
27:45EXACTLY WHAT to pray through me.
27:50So, there is a private prayer language.
27:52There's a personal side of tongues where
27:54I'm speaking to God and it's building me
27:57up. It's strengthening me. It's edifying
27:59my spirit. But then there's also a a
28:02public side and a public use of tongues.
28:06And when tongues is given publicly as a
28:08message to the church, this Paul says it
28:11needs to be interpreted. 1 Corinthians
28:1414:27 says, "If anyone speaks in a
28:17tongue, two or at the most three should
28:20speak one at a time and someone must
28:24interpret." Why? Because the goal of the
28:28gift is not confusion. The goal of the
28:31gift is edification. The goal is to
28:33build up the church. So if someone gives
28:36a public message in tongues, there
28:39should be interpretation. Everyone
28:41should understand what the spirit is
28:44saying. It should build up the church.
28:46And this is why Paul gives order to it.
28:48Not because tongues is bad, but because
28:51tongues is it's powerful. And powerful
28:53things need to be handled with with
28:55wisdom. Order in the church. It doesn't
28:58it doesn't quench the spirit. Order
29:01helps the church receive what the spirit
29:04is saying.
29:05So in your personal prayer life, pray in
29:07the spirit. Build yourself up. Let the
29:11Holy Spirit pray through you. But when
29:12we gather as a church
29:15and and there is a public declaration or
29:18a public message of tongues, we need to
29:20interpret it so the whole body can be
29:23strengthened. So tongues is not
29:24something weird or to be afraid of, but
29:27it's something that we need to
29:29understand biblically because when it's
29:31used biblically, it builds up the
29:34believer. It strengthens the believer
29:36and it builds up the church. All right,
29:38so everybody take a deep breath.
29:41We made it through dong section and
29:42nobody ran for the exits, right? I might
29:44have saw one person run out. No, I'm
29:46kidding.
29:48I know this is quick, but we're just
29:49going through these. Um, now let me give
29:51you the third category. We we call these
29:53the dynamic gifts, the power the power
29:56gifts. And and you've probably heard
29:57this a lot. The word that is connected
30:00with power in the New Testament is
30:01dunamis, right? It's where we get the
30:04the dynamite. It's the dynamite power.
30:06And remember the Holy Spirit doesn't
30:08come to empower us to impress people. He
30:12empower us. He powers up to impact
30:15people. Right? And the first gift in
30:18this category is faith. Faith is the
30:20supernatural confidence from God for a
30:23specific situation. Now, now this is not
30:27saving faith, right? Every believer has
30:29been saved by grace through faith in
30:33Jesus. But the gift of faith is is
30:35different. This is when the Holy Spirit
30:37gives you supernatural confidence to
30:39trust in God in a moment that feels
30:42bigger than yourself. Right? It's when
30:45everyone else looks at the situation and
30:47says, "Man, there is no way that this
30:50could happen." But the Holy Spirit, he
30:52rises up on the inside of you and he
30:54says, "Hey, you know what? I believe God
30:56can make a way." And he encourages your
30:58spirit. Not because you're naturally an
31:01optimistic person, not because you're a
31:03positive thinker or you're just ignorant
31:05of reality, but because the spirit of
31:08God breathes confidence into you. This
31:11is the dunamis power of the Holy Spirit
31:14that gives you faith beyond your natural
31:16ability to believe. And then all of a
31:19sudden, your faith begins to to rise up.
31:22You get to you can you can believe for
31:24healing. You can believe for that
31:25marriage. You can believe for that child
31:28to be healed. You can believe for
31:31provision. You can you can believe God
31:33to do what only God can do. And the gift
31:36of faith doesn't just help you as a
31:38believer for yourself. It helps believe
31:41it helps helps you believe for other
31:44people as well. This is why that's why
31:47the gift matters because sometimes
31:49people they can they can walk into a
31:51room being very discouraged. They're
31:53they're defeated. They're overwhelmed.
31:55They just they just want to give up and
31:56and and the Holy Spirit will put the
31:58faith in you to stand with them and say,
32:02"Listen, I know that this situation
32:04looks impossible, but we're going to
32:06believe God together. I have a
32:08supernatural faith to believe God for
32:11your situation as well."
32:16The next gift is the gift of of healing.
32:18The gifts of healing are when the Holy
32:20Spirit releases the healing power
32:22through a believer to bring healing and
32:24wholeness to someone else. And I love
32:27what Paul says. It's the gifts of
32:30healing. That's plural. It's not the
32:32It's not just the gift of healing. It's
32:34the gifts of healing. And that reminds
32:36us that God, he heals in different ways.
32:38He heals in different times through
32:40different people. Sometimes God heals
32:43instantly, but sometimes it's a
32:44progressive healing. Sometimes God uses
32:47prayer and sometimes God uses something
32:49that no one else can explain except that
32:53was the power of God. And I just want to
32:55say listen, we believe in doctors. We
32:58believe in medicine. We believe in
33:00counseling. But we also believe that God
33:03still heals.
33:05>> And sometimes he chooses to release that
33:07healing through through ordinary
33:09believers who are willing to pray. We
33:12don't have to choose between wisdom and
33:14faith. We can go to the doctor and we
33:16can still pray. We can we can take that
33:19medicine and still believe God. We can
33:21sit with the counselor and still believe
33:23that God is going to heal. Yeah. The
33:25inner places, the most deepest places in
33:27my heart. Healing comes from God. So
33:31before you go to the doctor, pray after
33:34you get that report. Pray. When you when
33:37you when your child is sick, lay hands
33:39on them and pray. When your marriage is
33:42hurting, pray. When you feel
33:44overwhelmed, pray. Ask God for healing.
33:48Trust God for healing. Believe God for
33:50healing. And trust that the results are
33:53in his hands.
33:54>> And whether h healing happens instantly
33:56or gradually, we still believe that he
33:59is healer today.
34:02>> Don't lower your expectations of healing
34:04because you're afraid of disappointment.
34:08The same Jesus who healed then is the
34:11same Jesus that heals now.
34:17>> The last gift it's it's the working of
34:19miracles. And the working of miracles is
34:21when the Holy Spirit works through a
34:24believer to do something that cannot be
34:26explained by natural ability or normal
34:29circumstances. A miracle is when God
34:31steps into just the natural and he does
34:34what only he can do. Now I want to say
34:37that healing is miraculous. But the
34:40working of miracles is a little bit
34:42broader than just healing. This could be
34:44this could be simply just supernatural
34:47provision. Provision, divine protection,
34:50right? This could be God just opening a
34:52door that no one else could open. God
34:54making a way where there is no way. It's
34:57the moment where everybody looks at this
34:59situation and said, "Man, there's no
35:01explanation for that except for God."
35:04And church, we can't read our Bible and
35:07act like God doesn't perform miracles,
35:09right? He split the sea. He shut the
35:12lion's mouth. He opened blind eyes. He
35:14made the lame to walk. He raised the
35:16dead. He calmed the storm. And the same
35:18Holy Spirit that worked through Jesus
35:22and empowered the early church is still
35:25working miracles today.
35:27>> And the gift of miracles is not so
35:29people can look at us and say, "Man,
35:31you're powerful." Right? Right? The gift
35:33of miracles is so people can look at
35:35Jesus and say, "Wow, he's real. He's
35:38powerful." The gift of miracles, it
35:41points people back to God who is bigger
35:43than the situation in front of them. But
35:46here's what I want us to remember. All
35:47these gifts are not given so that we can
35:50look spiritual. The gifts are not so
35:53people can be impressed with us. The
35:55gifts are benefits of the Holy Spirit
35:58that help people encounter Jesus. So,
36:01here's where I want us to land today.
36:04The gifts are not the finish line that
36:06we're we're shooting for. Right? The
36:08gifts flow out of a life that is filled
36:13with the Holy Spirit. This is where I
36:15think we have to be honest. A lot of us,
36:17we believe in the Holy Spirit, right? We
36:20believe that the gifts are real, that
36:22God can move, that God can still heal,
36:24that God can still speak. But the
36:26question is,
36:28it's not just do I believe in the Holy
36:31Spirit. The question is, am I being
36:34filled with the Holy Spirit? Because I
36:38can believe the right things and still
36:40try to live this life in my own
36:42strength. I can believe that the gifts
36:45are real and still not be walking in the
36:48power of the spirit. And Jesus did not
36:51call us to live a powerless life.
36:55He tells us in Acts 18, "But you will
36:58receive power when the Holy Spirit comes
37:01upon you, and you will be my witnesses."
37:04Jesus didn't say, "You shall receive
37:06power so you can have a cool church
37:09service." He said, "You shall receive
37:10power, and you will be my witnesses."
37:14So, the power of the Holy Spirit is not
37:16just for moments at the altar that we
37:18have. It's for Monday morning. It's for
37:21our marriages. is for our parenting and
37:24our workplaces and and and young person.
37:26It's for your school. We need the power
37:29of the Holy Spirit.
37:32This is not just a one-time thing.
37:34Ephesians 5:18 says, "Be filled with the
37:38spirit." That word be filled means to
37:40keep being filled. A repetitive feeling.
37:43Why? Because we leak, right? We get
37:46tired. We get we get distracted. We get
37:48discouraged. We get offended. We start
37:52depending on our own strength and before
37:53we know it, we're trying to live this
37:57supernatural life in our natural
38:00strength and it doesn't work.
38:02>> We need to keep being filled with the
38:04Holy Spirit.
38:06>> Not just at at youth camp or not just at
38:09a moment that we had. We need to
38:11repeatedly repeatedly be filled.
38:14We need to be filled for our homes, for
38:16our marriages, for our kids, our
38:18workplace. filled for the for the people
38:21that God has called us to reach.
38:25The the Holy Spirit doesn't just fill us
38:27so we can feel something, right? He
38:29fills us so we can carry something. He
38:32fills us with power. He fills us with
38:35boldness. He fills us with love so we
38:38can carry on our mission. So, what do we
38:42do with with all this? We've talked
38:43about the Holy Spirit. We've talked
38:45about his power. We've talked about his
38:47gifts. We've talked about being filled,
38:50but now we have to ask ourselves, am I
38:52open to receiving everything that the
38:56Holy Spirit has for me? Because the
38:59baptism of the Holy Spirit is not
39:01something that we just study.
39:03It's something that we receive.
39:06The fresh filling of the Holy Spirit is
39:07not something that we we earn. It's
39:09something that we ask the father for.
39:13So, how do we respond? I think it's very
39:15simple. We believe. We ask and we
39:19receive. First, we believe the Holy
39:22Spirit is available to us. The Bible
39:24says faith comes by hearing and hearing
39:27by the word of God. So, we don't believe
39:30the Holy Spirit because someone told us
39:31a cool story, right? We believe the Holy
39:33Spirit because the scripture teaches us
39:36that the Holy Spirit empowers the
39:39believer. We believe because Jesus said,
39:42"I am sending another advocate to you."
39:45We believe because Jesus said you will
39:47receive power when the Holy Spirit comes
39:51upon you. We believe the word of God.
39:54Second, we ask.
39:56Luke 11:13 says, "If you then being evil
40:00know how to give good gifts to your
40:02children, how much more will the Father
40:05in heaven give good give the Holy Spirit
40:08to those who ask him?"
40:10That's a simple verse.
40:13The father gives the Holy Spirit to
40:16those who ask. It's that simple. So why
40:19will we not ask for a fresh filling of
40:23the Holy Spirit? And third, we receive.
40:25Ephesians 5:18 says, "Don't get drunk on
40:28wine, but be filled with the spirit."
40:32I love this because it reminds me that
40:34being filled isn't something that we we
40:36have to manufacture. It's not something
40:38that we have to make up. I can come to
40:40the father with open heart and and open
40:42hands and just say, "Holy Spirit, fill
40:45me.
40:47Fill the places that I've been trying to
40:49do it on my own. Fill the places that I
40:52feel dry that I've been been trying to
40:54carry in my own strength." We don't have
40:56to force it. We don't have to fake it.
41:00We don't have to work ourselves up. We
41:02just have to receive.
41:04Would you stand with me as we end today?
41:07I'm going to pray for us here in a
41:08second. But but first, I think there's
41:11some people in this room that may have
41:14never accepted Jesus as your savior yet.
41:18And you're hearing this message and
41:20you're hearing all these the benefits of
41:23the Holy Spirit, the gifts of the Holy
41:25Spirit, and you're saying, "Man, I want
41:27that. I want all of that." And I want
41:30you to know that you can have every bit
41:32of that. But the first step is
41:34surrendering your life to Christ.
41:37Out of all the miracles, this is the
41:39greatest miracle that you accept Jesus
41:42as your as your savior. You don't have
41:44to be perfect. You don't have to have
41:46everything in order. You just have to
41:49believe. You have to ask. The Bible says
41:51that if you want to receive Jesus as
41:54your savior, all you have to do is ask
41:56and believe. Believe that Jesus died on
41:59the cross for you. On the third day, he
42:01rose from the dead. And if you say it
42:03with your mouth, you will be saved. And
42:06I'm going to pray for the Holy Spirit in
42:07just a second, but I need to do this
42:08first. So, with every head bowed and and
42:10every eye closed, I just want to ask if
42:12you're in this room today and you're
42:13saying, "Hey,
42:16I'm hearing of all these benefits, but
42:19you know what? I really haven't
42:20experienced them yet. Maybe I need to
42:22receive Jesus first." If that's you and
42:25you're in this place and say, "I'm tired
42:26of chasing all the other things in this
42:28world, but I'm ready to receive Jesus as
42:31my savior." Would you just raise your
42:32hand? Would you just slip up your hand?
42:34No one's looking around saying, "I need
42:35Jesus in my life. I'm tired of running."
42:38I see that hand. I see those hands.
42:40>> Let's pray this prayer real quick. Say,
42:42"Jesus,
42:43>> Jesus,
42:43>> I know I've sinned.
42:45>> I know.
42:45>> I'm asking you
42:47>> to forgive me.
42:49>> I believe
42:50>> I believe
42:50>> that you died on the cross,
42:51>> you died.
42:52>> And on the third day,
42:53>> on the third day,
42:54>> you rose from the dead.
42:56>> I'm asking you.
42:57>> I'm asking you
42:57>> to come live inside of me.
43:00>> Thank you.
43:01>> Thank you
43:01>> for saving me.
43:03in Jesus name.
43:04>> Amen. Amen. Come on, let's give a round
43:06of applause for all those that accepted
43:09Jesus.
43:13That's the greatest decision. That's the
43:15greatest miracle right now. Now, you can
43:18receive the Holy Spirit. The Holy
43:20Spirit, every one of us who accepted
43:22Jesus, the Holy Spirit came to live on
43:25the inside of us. He is in us. But
43:27sometimes we just need to activate the
43:30Holy Spirit in us so we can live this
43:32empowered life. Amen. So I just want to
43:35take a moment and I want to respond to
43:36the Holy Spirit. Maybe you're saying
43:38today, "Hey, I I am saved, but I'm
43:41running a little dry. I believe the Holy
43:44Spirit, but I've been trying to live
43:45this life on my own strength, and I want
43:49the gifts of the Holy Spirit flowing
43:51through my life. I want to be filled
43:55again. and I want a fresh anointing.
43:58So, if that's you today, would you just
44:01kind of put your hands out like this? It
44:03doesn't have to be anything strange. It
44:04doesn't have to be anything weird. I
44:06said we don't have to manufacture
44:08anything, but just put your hands out.
44:09This is just a posture of surrender.
44:12And right where you are, begin to ask,
44:14"Holy Spirit, fill me again." Make this
44:17your prayer. Holy Spirit, come fill me
44:20again. Father, your word says that your
44:22Holy Spirit
44:27will come to those who ask. So, Holy
44:30Spirit, we ask for you today. It's as
44:32simple as that. Holy Spirit, we welcome
44:34you in this place. Holy Spirit, we ask
44:36that you would just fill us aresh today.
44:38Every dry place, Father, every
44:41distracted place that you would just
44:43come. Every tired place that you would
44:45come, Holy Spirit, we surrender to you.
44:48Fill us today. Empower us with your
44:51gifts. awaken the gifts inside of us.
44:55God, give us boldness and courage to be
44:58witnesses to those around us. God, give
45:01us faith to believe for the miraculous.
45:04Father, give us words of wisdom, words
45:06of knowledge to speak. GOD, USE US TO
45:10HELP point people to Jesus. Holy Spirit,
45:12do in us what only you can do. We need
45:15you,
45:16>> Holy Spirit, fill us aresh today.
45:23Holy Spirit, I pray right now
45:25that you would do a work in us that only
45:28you can do.
45:30God, for those who have never received
45:31your prayer language, God, I pray that
45:33they ask while they're driving in their
45:35car, where in their closet, wherever
45:37they may be. Holy Spirit, that they just
45:40believe.
45:41They ask and they receive. It's as
45:44simple as that. Holy Spirit, I pray that
45:46you would just embolden them with power.
45:49you would just encourage them with
45:51power.
45:52>> Hallelujah.
45:52>> That you would strengthen them.
45:57>> Holy Spirit, I pray that you would
45:58empower us today to live on purpose for
46:01you in Jesus name. Amen. And amen. Come
46:06on.
46:12I pray that the Holy Spirit did
46:14something in your heart today. And this
46:16week as you go, be empowered with the
46:19Holy Spirit. He is He is ready for you
46:22to ask him to use you. That's the most
46:24dangerous thing that you can do is say,
46:26"Holy Spirit, use me." Cuz I promise
46:28you, he will if you're obedient. Amen.
46:32Let me bless you out of here as you go
46:33today. Remember, next week is our
46:35freedom Sunday. If you want to sign up
46:37for salvations, if you accepted Jesus
46:39today, that is your next step is to be
46:41baptized in water, right? So, make sure
46:44you sign up for that today. Let me bless
46:46you out of here. May the Lord bless you
46:48and keep you. May the Lord make his face
46:50to shine upon you and be gracious unto
46:53you. May the Lord lift his countenance
46:55upon you and give you peace. And may he
46:57cover you with his name, Jesus. Be
46:59blessed. We love you.

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