I have saved the best for the last. The series wouldn’t be complete without this final thought. It is what I call …
THE ALL AND YOU
I apologize upfront. Trying to squeeze this one point into just one blog post is like trying to squeeze a size 46 waist into a size 40 pair of jeans. This one point could be expanded to add several more posts to this series. I will reduce this teaching to a few bullet points and challenge you to read the accompanying scriptures.
This “all” is really all about you. To explain, let me share these two factors.
- The God Side. In this, God took “I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh” (Joel 2:28-29) and personalized the promise. We see this when Peter stood up on the Day of Pentecost and prophesied (spoke for God) “For this promise is for you …” (Acts 2:39). Luke 11:13 sheds a lot of light on the God Side.
* God isn’t just deity, He is your loving Father. “… shall your heavenly Father …”
* God is passionate about you having a relationship with the Holy Spirit. “… how much more shall your heavenly Father give …”
* God’s gift is yours for the asking. “… give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” - The You Side. In the God Side, God does the giving. In the You Side, you do the receiving. The Book of Acts tells of believers receiving this gift. Read the biblical accounts of God’s promise being received (Acts 2, 10, and 19) and you will see these common elements.
* Those receiving the Holy Spirit were Jesus-loving, born-again people.
* In each instance, those receiving the Holy Spirit knew when the promise had been fulfilled. In other words, it was recognizable.
* They all began to speak (pray) in a new, heavenly language.
Some of you right now are thinking, “Oh no. Everything was fine until you brought up that tongue stuff.” Rather than take a lot of space to cover something that I have shared in previous teachings, I will ask those with questions/concerns to check out these four blog posts.
- Answering Questions About Speaking in Other Tongues – Part 1 http://bit.ly/2K6Z2gO
- Answering Questions About Speaking in Other Tongues – Part 2 http://bit.ly/2KKFxLh
- Answering Questions About Speaking in Other Tongues – Part 3 http://bit.ly/2LGbmt4
- Answering Questions About Speaking in Other Tongues – Part 4 http://bit.ly/2IS0jsW
Let me give some bullet points that show how to activate the You Side (be baptized in the Holy Spirit).
- Talk to God and thank Him that you are His child. (This gift is exclusively for Christians.)
- Ask to receive the Holy Spirit. (This gift is for those who ask.)
- Turn on your “expectater”. (There is a super great teaching about the “expectater” in this blog post. http://bit.ly/2SkJcbf)
- After asking, know that God has heard and answered your prayer. Begin to pray aloud in this new prayer language.
I know that this teaching is super-condensed. There is so much more that I want and need to share. Thankfully, I’ve found the answer to completing the teaching. Write a book! In it, I am able to greatly expand on what I’ve shared in this blog series. I will keep you updated as to when it will be published.
Got questions about anything that I’ve shared? I am just an email away. [email protected]
