Day 44: Receiving The Holy Spirit by Faith
Scriptures To Consider
Galatians 3:14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the gentiles through Jesus Christ, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek him.
December 8, 1988 I received Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior at Calvary Temple in Indianapolis. I was instantly delivered of drug addiction that day. That evening I went to First Assembly of God in Greencastle, Indiana. I told Pastor Phil Applegate that where I worked it would be hard for me because I used and sold drugs to people there. Pastor Applegate prayed for me that night that God would take me out of Egypt send me to the wilderness to make me strong.
The next day I went to work and the plant manager came to the machine I was running and asked me to go to Normal, IL to the car plant to inspect car parts. It was then that I knew God was beginning to work in my life in a supernatural way. I spent a month in Normal, IL at a car plant checking parts and coming home on the weekends.
I became a student of the Word of God spending two to three hours a day reading the bible and believing everything that I read. On the weekends I would return home and find myself in Hardees sharing the message with others. Soon the Hardees restaurant would fill completely up with people. Some of my friends begin to be saved. The youth group at Greencastle First began to swell with numbers. Several students in the youth group did go on to bible college.
December 31, 1988 some of my friends that used drugs and I were at Honeycreek Square Mall witnessing to random people. We left the mall and were heading home. We drove past Seelyville First Assembly of God. We saw a lot of cars in that church parking lot and we were prompted by the Holy Spirit to go into the church service.
That night it was me and three other friends all delivered from drug addiction and hungry for God. I had read the scriptures on Baptism of the Holy Ghost but did not know how to receive Holy Ghost. That service that night turned into a testimony service with the four of us sharing our testimonies. Then the entire congregation came forward and laid hands on us and we all received the Holy Ghost.
The feeling that night inside of me was a warm feeling and I felt like there was a ton of bricks inside of me. Receiving the Baptism of the Holy Ghost was the best experience I have had in my Christian Walk. There is a Power like no other once I received the Baptism of the Holy Ghost I read the scriptures again and they made more sense. The Holy Spirit gave me insight in many key scriptures. Also when I would witness to people there was no fear and a boldness to speak out and share my testimony. The Gifts of the Spirit began to open up as well. I have been used many times in the prophetic and I operate the Gift of Faith weekly.
I can not imagine being a Missionary and not having my friend Holy Ghost working in me and with me. Time after time in the ministry Baptism of the Holy Ghost is the Key to Ministry. A Prayer Life, a Time in the Word and Holy Ghost Time is what will make you a Solid, Firm, Bold, Outstanding Believer and Follower of Christ.
There must be an unshakable Faith in Jesus and you must have a deep hungry thirst for being Baptized in the Holy Ghost. It will Rock your World. You will never be the same again. Seek the Holy Ghost, Pray and Fast and when you are filled you will be a force to reckon with against the Kingdom of Dark.
A large part of the ministry and my personal life in my walk with Jesus is daily and weekly built on the Baptism of the Holy Ghost. I make huge decisions for the ministry and must have the leading of Holy Ghost. Praying in the Spirit is that private prayer language between God and my spirit that the devil can’t figure out what we are talking about. I draw strength, power and confidence in Holy Ghost. I don’t see how I could function a ministry like ours without Holy Ghost. In my personal life as well I love Holy Ghost he is my friend and he is not a it. He has feelings as well. It’s one of the perks of your relationship with God. Thank you Holy Ghost for being there and helping me to walk with God and do the impossible daily.
Pray, Believe and Receive The Baptism of Holy Ghost .
Jay S. Covert
Day 43: Barley, Boaz and the Pledge
Verses to Consider
Ruth 3:15-18
He also said, “Bring me the shawl you are wearing and hold it out.” When she did so, he poured into it six measures of barley and put it on her. Then he went back to town. When Ruth came to her mother-in-law, Naomi asked, “How did it go, my daughter?” Then she told her everything Boaz had done for her and added, “He gave me these six measures of barley, saying, ‘Don’t go back to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’” Then Naomi said, “Wait, my daughter, until you find out what happens. For the man will not rest until the matter is settled today.” NIV
Isaiah 11:1-2
A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him- the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord- NIV
1 Cor. 12:4-11 NIV
Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and He gives them to each one, just as He determines.
THE SCROLL READ AT SHAVUOT (a.k.a.: FEAST OF PENTECOST, FESTIVAL OF WEEKS)
The Book of Ruth is read on Shavuot among the Jewish people, by those who believe in Jesus and those who have yet to believe.
Ruth’s story is one of a young gentile woman who decided to leave everything due to love and loyalty.
Naomi, Ruth’s mother-in-law, gave up all hope when her husband and two sons died. Ruth refused to leave Naomi, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.” (Ruth 1:16)
They had each other, and poverty; what they needed was someone who could redeem [save] what was lost, their God-given inheritance in the land. Just as every inspiring story needs a hero: God provided a redeemer in the man, Boaz.
Boaz: a picture of Jesus. Ironically, I didn’t see the Holy Spirit in the story until I read the footnotes of The Jewish Study Bible. According to Rabbah teaching, the six measures of barley that Boaz gave Ruth was a prophetic pledge that “their future son would be blessed with six blessings: the spirit of wisdom and discernment, counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge, and the fear of the Lord (Is. 11:2).” Messianic Jews understand what we, as gentile Christians, know to be true: that Jesus, descendent of Ruth and Boaz, the Son of David, fulfilled this passage in Isaiah.
If it can be said that the six measures of barley given to Ruth is prophetic of the Divine gifting of the Messiah to those who do not recognize Jesus in the story, then for those who do recognize a type of Christ in Boaz, the Old Testament reference to the six measures of barley becomes a picture of the spiritual gifts given to each believer through the power of the Holy Spirit. Consider this: Each gift for the believer from the Holy Spirit listed in 1 Corinthians 12 falls under the heading of at least one of the six gifts Isaiah 11:1&2 prophesied would rest upon the Son of David.
Just as Boaz placed the barley on Ruth’s back, throughout the Bible when the Spirit of God came upon someone it was said that He: came upon; rested on; poured out; filled, etc.
The wave offering of barley, the 50 days leading up to Pentecost, and the two loafs of bread from the wheat harvest, this is the picture of multiplication in the kingdom. The power of Pentecost and waiting on the Holy Spirit. Barley was a grain used for bread which often fed the poor. Wasn’t it Jesus that said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of God” (Matt. 5:3)?
HOW DO WE GET BARLEY?
Like Ruth, we must be willing to leave our past so we can move into our Godly inheritance. We need to wait at the feet of Jesus with no thought to the length of time. We need to be willing to take what we have been given to those in need. We must remember that there is a measure of the Holy Spirit for each believer. The measure is not a matter of quantity, but function.
THE QUESTION?
What might you need to leave behind in your past so that Jesus can say of you in your pursuit of the Spirit of God “I know what you have done…” and it mean something excellent?
PRAYER:
Jesus, Son of David, my Redeemer…. Because of Your great mercy, I know that you have a measure of all that I need of the Holy Spirit to be all that You desire. May the Presence of Your Holy Spirit be with me always. Help me not grieve the Holy Spirit. Help me to practice waiting on the Holy Spirit. In the name of Jesus, shut out all the lies of satan that would try to separate my thoughts from what I know in my spirit to be true, that You will pour Your Spirit out on me. For Your glory, in pursuit of Your Will… grant this in Your Holy Name, Jesus.
- Dolores Tucker
Footnote: The Jewish Publication Society, The Jewish Study Bible, TANAKH translation copyright@1985,1999 by the Jewish Publication Society; pg. 1584
DAY 42 – PROVING THE PROMISE
Title: Proving the Promise
Verses To Consider:
“I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort? Have you suffered so much for nothing-if it really was for nothing? Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard? ” (Galatians 3:2-5, NIV)
“He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit. ” (Galatians 3:14, NIV)
There’s an old saying that goes something like, “once begun is half done.” I suppose this idea was meant to get procrastinators to break the power of inertia and get moving, but a believer’s journey is far from done, once begun. For a Christ follower, we begin in this life and we end in the next. We start by faith and we end by sight. We have heard of Jesus, but one day we will see Him, and the scripture says, we will be like Him for we will see Him as He is. (I John 3:2). I hear you say, “Ken that is a cool finish, but what about now? The economy is in the toilet, the world is going crazy and believing in Jesus is getting harder every day.”
Jesus knows the reality of our world and I am thankful that He made it possible for us to be overcomers in this life. Here is what we know. Jesus Christ carried our sin to the cross and paid the price and the penalty of our redemption. We are bought with a price! But He didn’t stop there! He went to the tomb and secured the keys of death, Hell, and the Grave! Your salvation is secure and all authority in this life sits firmly in the strong resurrected hand of the Son of God, Jesus.
Jesus promised in John 14:18 that he would not leave us as orphans. He told his disciples to wait in the city of Jerusalem for the promise of the Father, the person of the Holy Spirit who was to come be with them (and us) forever (Acts 1:4-8). Jesus sent the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost and He has never left. Nowhere in the scripture does the sound of a heavenly shop vac echo through the earth extracting the Holy Spirit from the planet. He is here, right here, right now with you in your bad economy, tough relationships, sticky circumstances and troubled marriage. The Holy Spirit has never abandoned us. He is proof of the promise of Jesus to never leave us or forsake us.
But, we leave Him, not in location, but in vocation. In other words, not in where we are but by what we do. Let me paraphrase Paul’s question, “after beginning with the Spirit do you think you can finish in the flesh, by keeping religious rituals, calendars and feasts? Is that how you first received proof of the promise of redemption, by keeping the law?” Paul is saying that by the Galatians, (and you) receiving the fullness of the Holy Spirit is proof that God’s promise of Jesus and even to Abraham are being fulfilled. Let me explain it this way. God confirms to you that your soul is saved by pouring out His Spirit on your life in a way that you experience Him in many ways, one of which is a supernatural prayer life.
So, if we received all of this by exercising our faith, why would we want to enter back into “mere religious activity”? Why would we gossip and criticize instead of praying powerfully? Why would we worry instead of worshiping with abandon? Why don’t we serve gladly instead of glumly? With the Holy Spirit’s help, even challenging chores can become liberated from lifelessness if we will enter in with Him, by Faith.
Actions:
Take time to welcome the Holy Spirit into the room with you now. Sing the first spiritual song that comes to mind. Make a conscious effort to follow the promptings that come from your heart and worship like you are in Heaven, because the Spirit of Heaven is in you.
Testimony:
When I was about 18 I found myself at Valley Forge Christian College pursuing my future. I had met a few youth pastors and thought that might be a cool job for me. I had no concept of “the call of God” or even much understanding about the movement that started VFCC. I was confident that I was where the Lord, whom I had only known for one year wanted me to be.
I was on campus a week before classes and wandering the dorm hallways when the sound of several young men praying cascaded into the hall. As I was passing by, one of the students smiled at me and invited me into the meeting. He said, “We are asking God to move in school this year.” I was in agreement with that so I joined right in. It was a concert of prayer and everyone had instruments. Their hands were clapping, their voices lifting and their feet tapping. They asked if I was filled with the Holy Spirit, to which I responded, “I don’t think so.” They prayed for me, which resulted in two simple syllables becoming prominent in my mind. I spoke them several times and stopped. The young man that had prayed for me encouraged me to go back to my dorm room and continue to speak what God had given me. He said that God would expand those syllables into a language. I went to my dorm room and God has been expanding that language between us for the last 24 years.
DAY 41 – PRAISING GOD IN THE SPIRIT
Title: Praising God In The Spirit
Verses to Consider
1 Corinthians 14:14-17 For if I pray in an (unknown) tongue, my spirit (by the Holy Spirit within me) prays, but my mind is unproductive (it bears not fruit and helps nobody). Then what am I to do? I will pray with my spirit (by the Holy Spirit that is within me) but I will also pray (intelligently) with my mind and understanding; I will sing with my spirit (by the Holy Spirit that is within me), but I will sing (intelligently) with my mind and understanding also. Otherwise, if you bless and render thanks with (your) spirit (thoroughly aroused by the Holy Spirit), how can anyone in the position of an outsider or he who is not gifted with (interpreting of unknown) tongues, say the Amen to your thanksgiving, since he does not know what you are saying? To be sure, you may give thanks well (nobly), but the bystander is not edified (it does him no good). (The Amplified Bible)
Singing is a natural response to a person or an object of love. The airwaves are filled with countless numbers of love songs. When I was in the First Grade I had to sit in the corner for time out, because I could not stop singing the love song that spontaneously came out of my little heart , “I love carrots, I love carrots !”. I was drawing a colorful picture of a pot roast surrounded by potatoes and carrots and I burst into song, “I love carrots, I love carrots”!
I was doing what came natural, singing about something I loved, carrots. But it was not the time or the place to make my solo debut, I was out of order. In the above passage, the Apostle Paul was correcting the Corinthian church for being out of order. The saints were not being edified, or built up when someone prayed or sang without being interpreted. When the Apostle Paul said, I” will sing with my spirit (by the Holy Spirit that is within me), but I will sing (intelligently) with my mind and understanding also. ” Vs. 15, he was talking about his personal devotional life.
Apostle Paul again referred to singing in the spirit by the term “spiritual songs” in the following passage, ” …be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord,” Eph.5:19.(NIV) When we are “filled with the Spirit” it is only natural to sing from the overflow of our heart, (our emotions, not with our intellect) just as it is natural to pray in tongues when we are filled and overflowing with the Holy Spirit.
In Colossians 3, Paul is telling the church to set their hearts and minds on things above, not on earthly things. He admonishes the church to “be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you “……sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” Col. 3:15,16 (NIV) In the early church it was normal to sing various styles of corporate songs; psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. I believe the spiritual songs were sung corporately during a time of reverent worship when the heart was overflowing with God’s love, again as a body during the singing, not as solos interrupting the flow of the service. I have been in church services where during a time of instrumental praise, people reverently sang in the spirit.
At church, at home or in the car after singing the songs in English, I find that my English words aren’t sufficient to express my gratitude to Jesus for his love for me, when I run out of English words, I start singing quietly in the spirit. Charles Wesley had such a profound love of Jesus that he penned, “O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing”, following is the story. ”It was when Charles Wesley was approaching his first “spiritual birthday” that he heard his Moravian friend, Peter Böhler, remark, “If I had a thousand tongues, I would praise Jesus Christ with them all!” The words caught hold of the imagination of the poet and to mark the anniversary of his conversion he wrote the joyous lines:
O for a thousand tongues to sing
My great Redeemer’s praise,
The glories of my God and King,
The triumphs of His grace!
Jesus! The name that charms our fears,
That bids our sorrows cease;
‘Tis music in the sinner’s ears,
‘Tis life, and health, and peace.
“Charles Wesley” by Frank Colquhoun http://www.churchsociety.org/
We are edified, or built up, when we sing in the spirit. Personally, I need to be built up in my spirit to face the challenges of the world that I live in and to give me power to overcome. When I am really stressed I sing in the spirit and a sweet peace comes over my troubled soul.
Would you like to experience the presence of God on a deeper level? Would you like to live in more holy life and be a better witness to the lost ones around you? I encourage you to seek the baptism in the Holy Spirit.
A Prayer to Pray
I invite you to use the following chorus as a closing prayer.
“Holy Spirit, rain down, rain down
Oh Comforter and Friend
How we need Your touch again
Holy Spirit, rain down, rain down
Let Your power fall
Let Your voice be heard
Come and change our hearts
As we stand on Your word
Holy Spirit, rain down
No eye has seen, no ear has heard
No mind can know what God has in store
So open up heaven, open it wide
Over Your church and over our lives ” Russell Fragar, Hillsongs United
My Testimony
As I was serving in my first mission’s assignment, I was not yet with the Assemblies of God, I became friends with a young man that was Pentecostal. He was very bold in his witnessing and had a powerful testimony of being delivered from drugs. At the same time, one of my closest Christian friends from college told me she had been filled with the Holy Spirit as in the book of Acts. I told her I had been reading in Acts and wanted all that the Lord had for me. I talked to her on the phone about her experience and was so hungry for the Holy Spirit that I traveled from Texas to Maryland where she lived in order to learn more about the baptism and hopefully be filled. The night before I left her house, in the quiet of my room, I ask the Lord to fill me with the Holy Spirit. He baptized me that night and as a result I have had a closer relationship with Jesus and have followed the Holy Spirit’s leading in many places as a missionary. As a single, the Holy Spirit is my comforter and friend. I encourage you to seek the baptism in the Holy Spirit and have more power for your journey.
- Rita Richmond
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