“It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, and He has identified us as His own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything He has promised us.” 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 (NLT)
In my early years as a follower of Christ I belonged to a church that was “cessationist.” That means they did not believe that the Holy Spirit was operating in the same manner that He did in the early church. That at some point He ceased doing the “amazing things.” Though they would probably not say it this way, the Holy Trinity consisted of the Father, Son and Holy Bible. Yes, the Bible is important, it is vital and absolutely necessary. It is the word of God! But it is not the third member of the Trinity!
What I discovered was that the Holy Spirit did not stop functioning once the Bible was written, or when the last apostle died. In fact, the Holy Spirit is our down payment, a deposit for the kingdom to come! The Holy Spirit is absolutely needed in this hour of history. It is the Holy Spirit that empowers us to do what Jesus did, and to even do greater things (John 14:12). Jesus prophesied that we would heal the sick (Matthew 4:24), calm the storms (Matthew 8:23-27), raise the dead (John 11:44), walk on water (John 6:19), multiply food (Luke 9:10-17), turn water into wine (Jon 2:1-11), cast out demons (Luke 9:42-43) … the things He did AND MORE! Like me, you may need to repent for believing and teaching that the things of the Holy Spirit were not God but of the devil (yes, I had to repent of that)! Ask the Father to baptize you in the Holy Spirit (Matthew 3:11), to fill you with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18) and to empower you to do the greater works through the Holy Spirit. Ask Him for a fresh wind of the Holy Spirit to blow through your church, starting with your pastor. Ask Him for an increase of the Holy Spirit in our city!
