Glorify His Gifts

"THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT"

"Oh, Taste and See ... the Lord is Good!"

What are the "gifts and fruits" of the Holy Spirit?

"But the fruits of the Spirit are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance." (Galatians 5:22)

"Here in My glorified Father, who bears much fruit, so you will be My disciples". (John 15:8)

"Now, there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit, and there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord, and there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God who works in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is GIVEn to each man to obtain profit, because to one is GIVEn by the Spirit the word of wisdom, to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit, to another by the same Spirit, to other gifts to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discernment of spirits, to another diverse type of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues, but all this works that one and the same Spirit, dividing each man separately as he wants ". (1 Corinthians 12:4-11)

"Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever." (Hebrews 13:8)



Why do we sing and pray in "tongues" and in our native language?
"For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is fruitless." So what will I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind, I will sing with my spirit, I will sing with my mind.” (1 Corinthians 14:15-16)



Why do we have "speaking in tongues" and "interpretation of tongues" in the Church?
"Now to each one is GIVEn the manifestation of the Spirit for profit, to another miraculous power, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another the ability to speak in different kinds of tongues, and to follow another's interpretation. of tongues." (1 Corinthians 12:7, 10, 1 Corinthians 14:4).



What is "prophecy" and why do we prophesy?
"But everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement, and comfort." (1 Corinthians 14:3)



What is the Baptism of the Holy Spirit?
The Baptism of the Holy Spirit GIVEs Believers various benefits as stated in the New Testament. These include: the power to witness and serve others; a dedication to the work of God; a more intense love for Christ, his Word and the lost; and the bestowal of certain spiritual gifts. When the Holy Spirit initially fills the believer, that person will speak in an "unknown language" (also called "prayer or heavenly language") as did the 120 believers in the Upper Room on the day of Pentecost (Acts 1:4, 8, Acts 8 :15-17) and another group of born again believers (Acts 19:1-6)



Why do some people "fall" or become "dead in the Spirit" when you prayfor them?
"Jesus said to them:" I AM "And soon, as He had said "I AM", they drew back and fell to the ground." (John 18: 5-6)

"And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead." (Revelation 1:17)

"This was the appearance of the glory of the Lord, and when I saw (Ezekiel 1:28)

"And then the house is filled with a cloud, the house of the Lord, so that the priests will not be able to bear the ministry because of the cloud, the glory of the Lord had filled the house." (Chronicles 5: 13-14)



Is healing still available in the Church today?
"Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever." (Hebrews 13:8) "By whose stripes they were healed." (1Peter 2:24)

"And heal the sick who are in it, and tell them: The Kingdom of God has come near to you." (Luke 10:9)

"When evening came, they brought to Him many who were possessed by demons, and by the word of Him He cast out the spirits, and healed all who were sick." (Matthew 8:16) "(Jesus) Himself took our diseases, and carried our diseases." Matthew 8:17


What is the "laying on of hands"?
"Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was GIVEn by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery." (1Timothy 4:14)

"Of the doctrine of baptisms, of the laying on of hands, and of the resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment." (Hebrews 5:2)



Why do you put "Oil" on people before you pray for them?
"Is he sick among you, let him invoke the elders of the Church, and that they pray for him, anointing him with oil in the Name of the Lord" (James 5:14)



There is a common misunderstanding, leading to some confusion within the Body of Christ between the Baptism of the Spirit as evidenced by one speaking in tongues (also known as the "prayer language") and the operation of the "gift of tongues", which, while similar in sound and nature, is completely different in focus and purpose.

According to the Scriptures, having "believed in your heart and confessed with your mouth that God raised Jesus from the dead," then a person receives the "gift" of salvation, which is eternal life in Christ Jesus.

There is another - one of many - works that the Spirit of God has/does/offers to the born again Believer; namely, the Baptism of the Holy Ghost. It is this subsequent work of the Spirit that GIVEs the Believer his "prayer language", and is evidenced by the prayer / prayer prayer to the Lord in a heavenly language, compared to a known earthly language. (Since we are Citizens of Heaven, it makes sense that we should speak the jargon, right?

This prayer language is the voice of the new spirit of him being born again, being indwelt and empowered by the Holy Spirit. It is a "living" voice; is your "direct line" to Jesus in the Spirit!!! Only the Father knows what is being spoken (do not confuse this with the "gift of tongues" and the "gift of interpretation of tongues").

When the Believer prays in his heavenly language, it is a "direct line of communication" with God; it is "spirit to Spirit"; yours to him It is *you* speaking to God, directly from your new born again spirit; and while your tongue, lips, mouth and vocal chords *are* used in this process, your intellect (the Apostle Paul calls it his "understanding") is not used. (We don't *not* go into a trance or anything like that...but rather we have a new spirit within us, and are instructed by the Word to live outside of our spirit-man, it doesn't also make sense that our spirit would also have its own voice, like our body?)

Paul declares that "I will pray in spirit, and I will pray with his understanding," and that "he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to man but to God, for no one understands him except in his spirit he speaks mysteries." A "mystery" is simply something that is not known to that person.

So...why should the Believer "want" a prayer language??? Although this is quite a condensed version and teaching, it is the basics about the language of prayer.

Taking what Paul said, it is clear that there are several reasons for desiring the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.

#1. It is a gift, freely GIVEn, to the Believer; but, like all gifts - whether spiritual or natural gifts - they must be "received."

# 2. It is the form of communication of the Believer with God that is pure and uncontaminated. They are not confused with the carnal/natural mind, which tends to focus on one's own needs, etc. It is communication with the Lord at the highest and purest level.

#3. Your enemy, satan, CANNOT understand what you are praying or asking God for!!!

While satan is not as intelligent or omnipotent as he wants you to think he is, (we can look at what he did to Jesus, and the Bible says "if they had only known..."), he is knowledgeable of known human languages, therefore, he (Satan) is able to hear and understand your prayers, and has been known to use that information against the Believer (ie when we are in fear, worry, pain, doubt, etc.).

Remember, satan only has very limited powers against us, and HE CANNOT READ YOUR MIND OR THOUGHTS!!!

What he *can* do, however, he is attentive to our *reactions* and he listens to our *words* to see if his strategies and devices are affecting us in any way.

Satan is a dead spirit. He is a created being, satan is not God. He is, in essence, a dead duck, separated from his God and out there on his account, waiting for the final fire. The "goose" of Satan is cooked!

You, on the other hand, are a NEW CREATION, you are ALIVE in Christ, and you HAVE ACCESS to the very THRONE of God, without limitation, without the need for further invitation, and without any doubt!!!

So... when you pray "in the spirit", you are communicating to God and to God alone. Satan cannot understand what you are saying...is it any wonder that he (satan) will bring confusion to the Church about this gift???

On the other hand... there is the "gift of tongues" which is a spiritual gift, received by faith, as are all good things of the Lord. It is used in congregational assemblies (large or small) to produce a "word" or "utterance" of the Spirit of God, and while it cannot be understood by satan, it is "interpreted" into the dominant earthly language of that Church.

It has a different focus and purpose than prayer language, even though it sounds the same and flows out of your spirit.

The "gifts of the Spirit" and the "gift of prayer language" are similar in sound but different in function. One serves to build the Body of Believers, while the other serves to build (edify, strengthen, and encourage) the individual Believer.

(I, personally, do not have the Gift of Tongues, although I do have my prayer language, and I can move in the Gift of Tongues, but feel uncomfortable doing so, however, I have no hesitation in coming out with a prophetic word or words of knowledge or words of wisdom, are the individual gifts that are in operation at the moment.)

If church leadership doesn't believe in the Gifts of the Spirit as "relevant" for today, or if they don't want the Spirit to move (usually for fear of exposing their hidden sins), then the gifts don't work. Jesus is a Gentleman, and will not violate the will of the leaders, no matter how wrong they may be.

We hope this helps you reconcile what you can see in our services with the actual recorded events within the Bible. If you have any questions, please send us your concerns and questions.

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