Please do me a favor — yawn with me a couple of times. It’s 4:40 a.m., and I’m sitting in front of my computer, writing this post that will be published in a little over an hour. I had prepared another post to send out this morning, but with the recent news of the passing of one of God’s generals, Brother Jimmy Swaggart, I felt it would be appropriate to honor this great man of God. What could fill pages of tributes will be summarized in two sentences: the preaching, teaching, and music of Jimmy Swaggart were and continue to be a significant influence in my life. I owe much to this man of God.
If you followed his ministry for any length of time, you will agree that the subject of the infilling of the Holy Spirit, as recorded in Acts 2, was a major emphasis in his ministry. With that in mind, I thought it would be both fitting and honoring to share a few quotes on this subject that I journaled as I read his book, “The Baptism in the Holy Ghost.” I trust that they will be a blessing to you.
- Salvation is God’s greatest gift to the world. The Holy Ghost is God’s greatest gift to His children, the Church.
- Sending a Christian into the world without the Holy Spirit is tantamount to sending a soldier into battle without a weapon. Admittedly, at the moment a person is saved, he becomes a Christian just as a person becomes a soldier the moment he is sworn into the Army. But the inductee is not ready for battle until he has basic training and has been issued his weapons. And the Christian is in the same condition at the time of salvation. If he isn’t encouraged to receive the Baptism in the Holy Spirit, preparing him for the ever-continuing battle against Satan, he is being sent out onto a battlefield woefully unprepared.
- At salvation, life is imparted to someone who is heretofore dead. In the Baptism in the Holy Spirit, power is imparted to the Christian who was previously weak and ineffectual. He is henceforth fitted for service to God.
- For the person planning to die within the next few days, there probably aren’t any great advantages to receiving the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. But for those who don’t plan to leave this vale of problems soon, there are tremendous advantages.
- Salvation equips us to enter into the presence of God after mortal life is over. The Baptism in the Holy Ghost equips us to live fruitfully (and happily) during those years before we go to be with God.
Thank you, Pastor Billy,
I agree 100%, Jimmy had a lot to do with me receiving the Baptism of the Holy Spirit way back in 1987. I never knew anything about the Baptism until hearing His messages. That eventually led me to Trinity Assemblies of God (at the time) TCI now where I met you. Thank you for all you do God Bless you and your family.