I don't know whether or not this happens to you, but at times, I can read a book and within hours, most of what I've read has escaped my memory. So, some time ago, I took steps to keep this from robbing me of what I've read. First of all, I began to highlight the thoughts and add annotations in the side margins. And then I went one step further. I created an Excel spreadsheet file on my computer and began to enter those quotations for future reference. For those of you who follow my Billy Burns Ministries page on Facebook, you see these quotations each Monday. (www.facebook.com/billyburnsministries)
Some four or five months ago, I read a small pamphlet written by Jimmy Swaggart titled The Baptism in the Holy Ghost. Though the booklet was only 29 pages in length, it contained so many powerful nuggets that I couldn't afford to forget, thoughts that I had to enter into my quotations file. This week, I want to share a few of these quotations with you. To use my southern vernacular, I believe that these truths will bless the socks off of you!
"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."
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"Salvation is God's greatest gift to the world. The Holy Ghost is God's greatest gift to His children, the Church."
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"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."
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"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."
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"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."
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"We need power if we are to work effectively against the perverting, destructive conspiracy promoted by the enemy. Anyone hindering the Christian in any way as he enters this battle is tacitly working for Satan, even though he might be appalled at the thought of doing so."
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