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A message given at a Tuesday Night Prayer.
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Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Just want to start off by saying, I love you guys.
[00:00:04] I love the topic of the Holy Spirit. I see in scripture three different baptisms. I'm just going to start rolling here, all right? Because I feel his anointing already. So the fear is gone, the intimidation is gone. Let's rock and roll.
[00:00:19] First question I have for you is, what is your hunger level? On a scale from 1 to 10, do you have expectancy in your heart and are you hungry? Because the Bible says those that hunger and thirst for righteousness will be filled. So I want to stir up a little bit of hunger. There's no manipulation in this.
[00:00:37] But simply to say, the more hungry you are, the more God so desires to fill you back up. Amen.
[00:00:46] I'm not a preacher, not a great teacher.
[00:00:49] I'm really just an encourager, and I love to put courage in people.
[00:00:55] So I'm going to share with you in the style that I share, because all I can do is just be me.
[00:01:01] It's so humbling to know that Tom Flaherty teaches this message and then he invites you to teach.
[00:01:08] But if you let me be me, we will see the presence of God come in and touch lives tonight, not because of me, but because the Holy Spirit is alive and well.
[00:01:19] What I see in Scripture is three different baptisms. And the word baptism in the Greek simply means to be fully immersed.
[00:01:29] All right? So the first one is the baptism into salvation. And we all agree on this, right? We're followers of Christ, so we believe that there's a point in our lives where we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and we'll be saved. So if you're notetakers, the first baptism that we see in Scripture is called the baptism into salvation.
[00:01:51] The word baptizo means to be fully immersed.
[00:01:55] So you and I are fully immersed in salvation, right? We've been baptized into his salvation.
[00:02:03] The Bible says, my sheep hear my voice. I know them, they follow me. I give them eternal life.
[00:02:09] So you and I are baptized into salvation.
[00:02:12] Number two, the story of John the Baptist baptized into repentance, right? John the Baptist called out in the wilderness, repent and be converted.
[00:02:22] And then the third is what the topic is about tonight, and that's the baptism into the Holy Spirit.
[00:02:30] All three of them are full immersion into salvation, into repentance, or into the Holy Spirit.
[00:02:37] Tonight, I want to take out some confusion when it comes to the baptism in the Holy Spirit, because I think there's confusion in the camp at times. I think there's some of us tonight that came Forward for prayer.
[00:02:51] And maybe didn't receive a prayer language.
[00:02:54] There's some people tonight that have fear in their hearts. I just want to settle you or settle me and say, a good father always gives good gifts to his children. All right? And our heavenly Father is so good.
[00:03:07] He doesn't give you good gifts because you're good all the time.
[00:03:11] But I promise you this. He's good all the time, so you don't need to be afraid.
[00:03:16] Share with you a testimony.
[00:03:18] And this is a little vulnerable, but I'm okay with that. Many, many years ago, in this corner of this church, I came forward to be baptized in the Holy Spirit.
[00:03:27] This was back in the 80s. Tom may have been the college pastor back then. I'm much younger than Tom, of course, so I was in probably eighth grade. No, I was definitely in high school.
[00:03:39] And in this corner, there was an evangelist at that time. And the evangelist said, if you feel he gave a message on the baptism in the Holy Spirit, he said, if you feel your pounding heart and you believe that you want to be baptized in the Holy Spirit, come forward. And I stood in this corner, and it felt like there were 25 people that had their hot hands on me. These lights had to be 10 times hotter. Or maybe it was just in my head. I don't know what was going on. But I stood here and I was prayed for.
[00:04:11] And to be honest with you, I walked away, and I didn't receive anything.
[00:04:15] There was excitement in the air, but the real reality is I did not receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit. This is a vulnerable part. I was in college, and my thoughts weren't as pure as they could be. This is what the enemy said to me. God doesn't fill dirty vessels.
[00:04:32] So, guys, I have such a passion for this teaching because for seven years, I went without one of the greatest gifts in the body of Christ.
[00:04:44] So I'm here to.
[00:04:45] Well, I'll tell you what, guys. You don't know this side of me. I am here for retribution.
[00:04:51] That means I'm taking back the seven years the enemy stole from me.
[00:04:57] Amen.
[00:05:02] So for seven years, I went without this baptism in the Holy Spirit. Certainly understood the baptism in salvation, baptism in repentance, but the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Seven years without this empowering gift of the Holy Spirit. I was at a church, so I was married. My wife always says, you're not really very good with the time things, you know, like the timeline. But as long as you get the general picture, that's what counts to me.
[00:05:31] She when we Were married. She would pray in my ear before we went to bed at night in her prayer language. Melody, my wife, 33 years of marriage.
[00:05:41] She is a pastor's daughter in assemblies of God. Pastor's daughter. And at nighttime, she would pray in my ear in her prayer language. And I remember thinking, I have got to have this.
[00:05:54] I just. It so stirred up a hunger inside of me that I desperately wanted to have. And it was so pure, the way she would pray in my ear. And I said, God, I've got to have this prayer language thing. So we're up in kind of up. I Tomah, Wisconsin, pastor gives a message. There's 400 people in the room. He gives a message.
[00:06:15] And the message is about the baptism in the holy spirit. And I'll tell you what, guys, I was not going to be denied this time. Dude runs from the back of the. I mean, I think I know you don't believe this about me. Like you ran from the back of the church.
[00:06:28] Well, I think I ran from the back of the church. I just know I had so much expectancy inside of me. Come from the back of the church. And I am immersed in the presence of the holy Spirit. I finally began to realize sometimes some of these things that we see in scripture, you first have to have revelation to your mind, right? Like Tom always says, if you don't see it in scripture, then don't believe it.
[00:06:57] Let me put it in my terms. If you see it, you believe it, you can receive it. Let me say that again.
[00:07:05] Maybe Tom says it just like this. If you see it and you believe it, you can receive it. In this time, I had fresh revelation to my mind that this was the truth, that these baptisms are available today.
[00:07:21] Now you and I have to make a decision.
[00:07:24] There is a terminology called cessationism, and a person that's a cessationist believes that many of the gifts of the holy spirit have ceased.
[00:07:36] All right. And this can be a real sticking point.
[00:07:41] You and I have to make a decision that we are full gospel, that we believe that all the gifts of the holy spirit are available for us today and that true worshipers worship him in both spirit and in truth.
[00:07:56] Jesus said, I'm the way, the truth, the life.
[00:07:59] No man comes to my father but through me.
[00:08:02] This is the truth. Actually, let me say it this way. If your truth is not this truth, it's not truth.
[00:08:10] Baptized into salvation, baptized into repentance, you and baptized into the holy spirit doesn't need to follow any certain order.
[00:08:18] You and I need to look in scripture and say to ourselves, do the gifts of the Holy Spirit exist today?
[00:08:25] Now many cessationists use a scripture that says, when we come into our fullness, the gifts will cease.
[00:08:32] Or when we come into completion, the partial things will cease.
[00:08:37] And so I have a question for each one of us tonight.
[00:08:40] Have you come into your fullness?
[00:08:43] So three baptisms.
[00:08:46] In order to stir up your hunger, we have to discuss the fact that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are available for each one of us today.
[00:08:54] They're available.
[00:08:56] Mark 16 says, you shall lay your hands on the sick and they'll recover. You'll cast out demons.
[00:09:02] And so we have to say to ourselves, do we believe in the great commission Matthew 28:19 to go into all the world and baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit.
[00:09:15] So let's rest at this point.
[00:09:17] I believe the gifts of the Holy Spirit are super available for each one of us today.
[00:09:22] Acts 1:8 says, when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you'll be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the uttermost parts of the earth. Want to tie in a little bit of experiential things?
[00:09:35] Prior to being baptized in the Holy Spirit, I had not led one person to Christ once I was baptized in the Holy Spirit.
[00:09:44] Straight up guys. Dozens and dozens of people have come to know Christ because I am no longer ashamed of the Gospel.
[00:09:53] It is the power on a salvation. First to the Jew and then to the Greek.
[00:09:57] Guys, I am no longer afraid of the gospel.
[00:10:01] You have to shut me down.
[00:10:02] I was talking with a young man today and just came so close to leading him to Christ.
[00:10:09] But I'll follow up with him tomorrow. Don't worry.
[00:10:12] There'll be a follow up presentation tomorrow. Don't worry about that.
[00:10:16] Baptism in the Holy Spirit Acts 1:8 when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you will be emboldened and empowered to be my witness in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, into the uttermost parts of the earth.
[00:10:30] Little bit of a context Jesus went into ministry at the age of 33.
[00:10:38] He died on a cross. Three days later he rose again, was resurrected.
[00:10:43] He walked the earth for another 40 days.
[00:10:46] And this is what he said to his disciples. He said, wait here for the promised Holy Spirit. On the day of Pentecost, they were all in the upper room. This is Acts chapter two.
[00:10:57] They were all in the upper room.
[00:10:59] And the Bible says it was like tongues of fire rested upon them and there was a rushing mighty wind.
[00:11:05] And they began to speak in other tongues.
[00:11:08] I want to step back for a minute. The Bible actually says, and they all spoke in other tongues.
[00:11:14] Let me put a couple lies under our feet.
[00:11:17] All means all. So if you have a belief system that maybe this isn't for me, maybe God doesn't want this for me.
[00:11:27] Well, the reality is that everyone represented in the upper room was baptized in the Holy Spirit.
[00:11:33] This is a private prayer language. And I believe that Paul said, I wish that you spoke in tongues more than I do.
[00:11:40] Let's at least say this gift is liberally available to you and I.
[00:11:46] Right? It is available to you and I. Let's look at Acts, chapter two. This is the day of Pentecost.
[00:11:52] When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind. And it filled the entire house where they were sitting and divided tongues as a fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them.
[00:12:08] And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
[00:12:15] So, guys, all means all.
[00:12:17] If you desire to be baptized in the Holy Spirit, he wants to give a good gift to you.
[00:12:23] Now, we'll move into this a little bit. There is some cooperation required. I don't want to forget to say this. When you came to know Christ, you cooperated with the Holy Spirit, right?
[00:12:36] The Bible says if you believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that he is Lord, you will be saved. And I'm not saying works related, but what I'm saying is you had to cooperate with the Holy Spirit and receive Christ and confess with your mouth. You had all the information that was needed, and you finally said, today is the day on salvation for me and my house.
[00:12:56] When you are baptized in water, you cooperate, right? Like you show up somewhere, you usually bring a towel, maybe you bring a combination.
[00:13:08] So you show up and you cooperate with the Holy Spirit. It's the same thing with the baptism in the Holy Spirit.
[00:13:17] And we'll touch on this. But you have to cooperate with the Holy Spirit.
[00:13:22] One of the questions people have is, well, why didn't I get baptized? Or what's going on? And you know, the reality is, like Tom Flaherty says, you have to step over a chicken line.
[00:13:33] The truth is, I believe that baptism actually comes once you cooperate with the Holy Spirit and begin to speak in a new language.
[00:13:44] Now, I don't even know if Tom knows this, but I have literally prayed for hundreds of people to be baptized in the Holy Spirit.
[00:13:51] It's Kind of funny.
[00:13:53] Presbyterian pastors come into my office and they say, well, we're not really supposed to believe this, but is there any chance you could pray for me?
[00:14:02] And I'm a safe place because they don't have to explain it to anybody, and I don't need them to share with their congregation. It's just, you want to be emboldened and empowered, then let's pray for you to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. I love this topic. I love to minister the Holy Spirit. If you haven't received a prayer language, there is a point where you have to step over the chicken line and by faith, begin to pray in a new language language. You and I cannot speak in two languages at the same time.
[00:14:32] So sometimes we're so nervous that we're like, jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.
[00:14:38] Guys, it's already his idea, so we don't need to beg him. We don't have to say, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus. As a matter of fact, you can't speak two languages.
[00:14:49] I actually teach on this topic, and also the Father Heart of God in Columbia, and I've been to Columbia with my wife several times and maybe 16 times now, and I love what I'm able to do there.
[00:15:05] These Spanish kids, you know, so I'm a gringo, so these Spanish kids, they think I don't know any Spanish.
[00:15:13] So when I start to pray for them, they're speaking in Spanish.
[00:15:17] And so I just joke with them. I'm like, guys, you can't speak in Spanish and have a prayer language.
[00:15:23] We can't say Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, right? You can pray for a moment, but then by faith, step into your prayer language.
[00:15:30] No other languages.
[00:15:33] By faith, by faith, begin to speak in a new language.
[00:15:38] All right, let me stay focused here. All of them that were in the upper room, they spoke in other tongues.
[00:15:43] Three baptisms, Baptism into salvation, baptism into repentance, and baptism into the Holy Spirit.
[00:15:51] Do we have Acts, chapter 8, verses 14 through 17?
[00:15:56] Now, when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
[00:16:15] Then they laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit just came upon them.
[00:16:22] But I don't know in Scripture if there's ever been a time where we were instructed to wait on the Holy Spirit again, Right? It's more scriptural to say they laid their hands on and imparted the Holy Spirit.
[00:16:36] And this is what happened in Acts, chapter 8, verses 15. Specifically, the apostles laid their hands on and imparted the Holy Spirit.
[00:16:45] The gifts of the Holy Spirit are available for us today.
[00:16:49] How many in the upper room spoke in other tongues?
[00:16:52] The Bible says all of them spoke in other tongues.
[00:16:56] Now, for those of you that are cognitive and analytical, you know who you are, this is super hard for you because you can't really get out of your head.
[00:17:06] First Corinthians 14 says your prayer language is unfruitful to your mind, so you have to disengage.
[00:17:15] I'm not saying check your brain at the door, but you have to disengage your intellect a little bit, because this private prayer language is designed to go from your spirit to Jesus, who sits at the right hand of the Father making intercession for you.
[00:17:34] I don't need to know how to pray. I can pray with intent. All I'm really doing is agreeing with what Jesus is saying to his Father at the right hand of the Father about a situation, about a person.
[00:17:49] There's two types of tongues represented in Scripture.
[00:17:54] The one we're talking about mostly tonight is the private prayer language.
[00:17:58] All of those in the upper room spoke in other tongues. This is a private prayer language.
[00:18:04] Now, sometimes there's confusion between the private prayer language and the public prayer language. And I've prayed enough for people and I've discussed this enough with people that sometimes there's the question about, well, where's the interpreter? The Bible says you need to have an interpreter.
[00:18:19] And it's really important that we distinguish between the private and the public prayer language. If I stand here in front of you and I have an exhortation in tongues, and this hasn't happened here.
[00:18:31] I know back in the 80s, there was a lot of tongues and interpretation. The Birkelands would remember this, and there would be a word that was given in a public setting to build up the church and exhort the church, and it would be prayed in a language that would be called the gift of tongues.
[00:18:50] In a situation like that, there has to be an interpreter. So Paul was talking to the church at Corinth. He said, when you pray in a tongue in a public setting, you must either pray that you're given the interpretation or you must pray that someone else has the interpretation.
[00:19:09] If not, you're in error. So Paul was bringing some structure to the church in Corinth, and he was simply saying there needs to Be some structure. There needs to be some order in the church in Corinth. And this is one thing he said is you can't just belt out in this foreign language something without there being an interpreter or you praying for interpretation. The difference between the private prayer language and the public prayer language.
[00:19:35] You and I should eagerly desire the gifts. Okay? 1 Corinthians 13 says, Pursue love.
[00:19:43] Super important.
[00:19:45] 1st Corinthians 13. Pursue love and eagerly desire the gifts, especially the gift of prophecy.
[00:19:54] First Corinthians 13, 14, 15, 13.
[00:19:58] Talking about the love chapter.
[00:20:00] Gifts that operate without love are like a gong, right? That's what First Corinthians 13 says.
[00:20:09] Have you ever been in a setting where someone was ministering to you super loud and super, like, so, like, almost shaking your whole system? You remember First Kings 18 or 19, I think 19, where Elijah, God said to Elijah that he couldn't be found in the earthquake or the fire, but he could be found in this still small whisper. I'm pretty soft spoken. I love to minister to people with a whisper.
[00:20:37] And the reason I do it is because the devil ain't deaf, right? So we don't need to yell at anybody. When's the last time you went to your doctor and your doctor was yelling at you about something so we can minister with the love of Christ, with the whisper.
[00:20:54] Can you imagine, guys, you go into your physician, he's like yelling at you because of your ingrown toenail.
[00:21:01] So let's just minister to people at a place of love. Pursue love, eagerly desire the gifts, especially the gift of prophecy.
[00:21:09] Amen. This is a private prayer language.
[00:21:13] Now, why do you and I want a private prayer language?
[00:21:17] Well, imagine a tool belt around your waist.
[00:21:20] We want to be able to access a tool as needed, either for ourselves or to minister to other people, right? So we reach into our tool belt, and the gifts of the Holy Spirit are available to us as a tool in our tool belt. But I believe that the baptism in the Holy Spirit is an open door for the gifts of the Holy Spirit to flow.
[00:21:44] Anybody agree that's been baptized in the Holy Spirit forever?
[00:21:48] So I've just noticed, and we don't create a theology based on our experience, but I've just noticed that once you're empowered by the Holy Spirit, you're a better preacher, you're a better discerner. You have a boldness to lay your hands on the sick and see them recover. There's just a boldness that comes on you. There's an empowerment that comes on you. So one of the reasons that you and I want to be baptized in the Holy Spirit is to be empowered by the Holy Spirit.
[00:22:18] Number two, why do you and I want to be baptized in the Holy Spirit? Well, it's kind of funny. The enemy has no idea what you're saying, right? The enemy doesn't understand prayer language. The enemy doesn't know what you're praying. It's a secret weapon against the enemy.
[00:22:33] Number three, how much English do you have inside of you to pray for your.
[00:22:39] For whoever. Father God, I thank you for Pastor Tom and Alice and I just thank you that they're good people. And, you know, all of a sudden you're like, well, I'm completely out of words and I don't want to freak you out. If this freaks you out, please forgive me. But I can pray with intent for these guys. Simply not even understanding exactly because it's unfruitful to my mind what Jesus is saying to the Father about them.
[00:23:05] So I'm like, father, I thank you for Pastor Tom and I thank you for Alice, God.
[00:23:24] In Jesus name. Okay, for those of you that were just completely weirded out, you just exit out through the church this way and our greeters will greet you at the door and give you a hug and invite you back next Sunday.
[00:23:38] So, guys, this is the real deal. It is so much fun to be empowered by the Holy Spirit and then begin to see the gifts of the Holy Spirit operate through you.
[00:23:49] Number four, First Corinthians 14:2 says, if any man speaks in tongues, he speaks to God, not to man.
[00:23:58] Indeed, no one understands them.
[00:24:01] They utter mysteries by the Spirit.
[00:24:03] Anybody here tonight want to utter mysteries to the Creator of the ends of the earth?
[00:24:08] Once again, unfruitful to our minds. First Corinthians 14:14.
[00:24:14] And we utter mysteries to God. So to review here, it's a secret weapon against the enemy. The enemy has no idea what you're praying. It's an empowering.
[00:24:24] The Bible says, be filled, but be constantly filled.
[00:24:30] My family owns fitness centers in Madison and So there's about 2,000 people that go through every club every day. And we see everybody working on their physical well being.
[00:24:42] But I'm concerned for this topic that we also are building ourselves up through the Holy Spirit. So the prayer language is a way to build yourself up and edify you.
[00:24:56] The Bible says, in Ephesians, Paul said, put on the whole armor of God. Right? You guys know this? Yes, sir.
[00:25:04] Put on the whole armor of God. The helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the belt of Truth, the shoe shod with the gospel of peace. Take up the sword of the Spirit, the shield of faith. Praying always in the Spirit. Stand firm against the wiles of the enemy. Pray always in the Spirit.
[00:25:18] So this is a way to be empowered. It's a way to have a secret language against the enemy.
[00:25:24] And for you and I, we want to be those that worship him in both spirit and in truth. All right, well, what is this thing about prayer languages?
[00:25:33] Our prayer language is designed to edify us and build us up. We can pray in the Spirit just like someone that's exercising physically. We can exercise our gift. Prayer language. Well, let me say it this way. When you are baptized in the Holy Spirit, the expected evidence of that baptism is to speak in other tongues.
[00:25:51] It's an expected evidence. And so when you are prayed for tonight, there's an expectation that God will give you this prayer language so that you can pray in the Spirit with your private prayer language.
[00:26:06] And I look at some of you tonight, and I'm like, oh, I prayed for that person and that person and that person. And some of the stories are so funny.
[00:26:13] So I pray for James. Several years ago, we worked together at the health club.
[00:26:18] We went over to what was a house of prayer. Pray for him to be baptized in the Holy Spirit.
[00:26:22] Dude could not put his arms down.
[00:26:25] He put his arms up like this. For one hour. He stood like this. You almost had to pull his arms down like this.
[00:26:33] He could not put his hands down. He was just worshiping for one hour in the Holy Spirit. Just washing him and cleansing him and purifying him.
[00:26:45] It was an amazing experience.
[00:26:47] So when you're prayed for to be baptized in the Holy Spirit, Tom says this too. It's not a radio that gets turned on inside of you. You have to cooperate with the Holy Spirit. If someone lays their hands on you and imparts the Holy spirit, like Acts 8:15 says, you will feel the presence of God by faith. Step over the chicken line and begin to pray in a new language just by faith and watch and see what God will do. It's not a radio that gets turned on inside of you. It's not like you're uncontrollably being sort of robotically moved by something else. It's cooperating with the Holy Spirit and by faith, beginning to pray in this new language that you see in scripture. You don't see it. You don't believe it. It's no problem.
[00:27:35] It's not a salvation issue. It's just an empowerment issue.
[00:27:39] Right. If you want to Go into all the world and preach the gospel, or you want to have boldness to reach your neighbor, you must be baptized in the Holy Spirit.
[00:27:49] Amen.
[00:27:50] Well, why would you want tongues?
[00:27:53] Well, one reason is just to pray for others. We've discussed that a little bit. Simply to pray for others, to lift somebody up before God. What about the person that has cancer?
[00:28:02] And you really have no more words to pray, but you can intercede on behalf of that person that has cancer.
[00:28:10] You can speak life in English, but you can also pray in your prayer language for a significant amount of time.
[00:28:17] I don't know if there's a day that goes by that I don't speak in my prayer language for at least a half hour. If you're anxious, which I'm not, but if you're anxious, pray in your prayer language. Pray until the anxiousness goes away.
[00:28:32] The Bible says, be anxious for nothing. But by prayer and supplication, let your requests be made known unto God.
[00:28:38] How do you get baptized in the Holy Spirit? The first step is to be hungry.
[00:28:43] They that hunger and thirst for righteousness will be filled. It starts by being hungry, starts by being thirsty.
[00:28:50] Paul said, pursue love eagerly. Desire the gifts. Do you eagerly desire the gifts this morning?
[00:28:57] Acts 2:37, 39. Peter says, Repent and you will receive the promised Holy Spirit, which is for you as a reminder. The gift of the Holy Spirit is a gift given because Father, God is good, not earned.
[00:29:13] It's not something we earn. It's something that's freely given to many as received Him. He gave them to become the power. He gave them the power to be the sons of God. Acts 2:4. We just read that says they spoke. And I cannot emphasize enough the need for us to step into our new prayer language. You'll feel the presence of God.
[00:29:37] The Bible says, don't be drunk with wine, but be filled with the spirit.
[00:29:41] Don't raise your hands for this, but if any of you have had your drunk on, you know what that feels like.
[00:29:48] This is so much better.
[00:29:51] You feel the presence of God. The Bible says, don't be drunk with wine, but be filled with the spirit.
[00:29:56] When you feel the presence of God, you simply step over and allow the prayer language to begin to fill you up. Utter mystery is secret weapon against the enemy.
[00:30:06] Some have asked like, what if it's a bad language?
[00:30:10] What if it's not? Like, what if it's some sort of weird something?
[00:30:16] And I just want to remind you, your heavenly Father gives good gifts to his children, right?
[00:30:23] It'll be a Good gift. I don't want to freak you out with this. I've traveled internationally and there was one time I heard what's called a demonic tongue. And it's. You would know a demonic tongue if you ever heard it. So I don't want to plant this seed. I don't want you to be afraid of this.
[00:30:38] Your heavenly Father gives good gifts to his children.
[00:30:42] The word possession.
[00:30:46] When you came to know Christ, the Holy Spirit made his home in you.
[00:30:52] Abide, abode, possession.
[00:30:55] So the Holy Spirit has made his home in you, which means there's no room for any other dark anything.
[00:31:02] Is that cool? So you and I don't need to worry about any kind of wrong language or demonic tongue. I just want to tell you because I've traveled. There was one time that I heard demonic, and it's like a screeching, awful thing, but it wasn't in the church community. It was something altogether different.
[00:31:21] John 16. The Ministry of the Holy Spirit. He will lead you in all truth.
[00:31:26] He will convict the sin. He'll convict the world of sin and righteousness. And he'll bring back to your remembrance everything that Jesus taught you guys. We need the power of the Holy Spirit.
[00:31:39] Baptism into salvation, baptism into repentance, and baptism into the Holy Spirit.
[00:31:47] Private language and public prayer language. Yes, if there's a public word given, you need an interpreter.
[00:31:53] But what we're talking about tonight is that empowering of the Holy Spirit for you and I to intercede on behalf of others, to build ourselves up, to edify ourselves. You know, Jude 20, I think it says, build yourself up in the most holy faith.
[00:32:10] I have prayed for people, and one of the first things they say is, well, what if I don't get a prayer language?
[00:32:15] And I just. I'm wired a little bit differently because I'm like, well, what if you do right? Or what if I went forward one time and I didn't actually receive a prayer language? Well, persevere.
[00:32:28] Press in a little bit. Press in.
[00:32:31] Act with the Holy Spirit. Cooperate with the Holy Spirit tonight.
[00:32:37] This is the invitation.
[00:32:39] You may have been prayed for before, and you never felt like you actually received a prayer language.
[00:32:46] When I went forward at the church in Tomah, Wisconsin, to be baptized in the Holy Spirit, I went forward and the presence of God washed over me with. It was so phenomenal.
[00:32:57] But I actually didn't speak in tongues yet.
[00:33:00] Two weeks later, I actually had a prayer closet at my house. I had to kind of move the clothes around, but I had a prayer closet. And I said to Father God, I said, holy Spirit, if this language is you, then I'm going to pray by faith. And if it's not, will you please stop me?
[00:33:18] 30 some years later, 35 years later, praying always in the spirit. Okay? Some really practical things.
[00:33:24] When you are baptized in the Holy Spirit, you may have a couple vowels.
[00:33:30] How does a baby talk with just a couple vowels?
[00:33:33] So some people will just have a couple vowels.
[00:33:37] It's always the fact that the guy on your right and the guy on your left, they just get shaken to the core. And you're like, what is wrong with me? Right? They just get so filled up and you hear them, they're just going for it. And you're like, but I promise you this. If you keep pressing in, keep pressing in, keep pressing in, you will develop a prayer language that will be so beneficial to your Christian walk.
[00:34:05] Don't compare yourself to other people.
[00:34:08] We prayed for a lady a couple days ago, and I didn't expect her to say this, but it was a pastor, and he asked her, now, how do you feel?
[00:34:18] And what she said actually was disappointed.
[00:34:22] Well, I'm sort of a volunteer. I don't get paid to pray for people, so that's not exactly what you want to hear if someone says they're disappointed.
[00:34:31] But she added more to it. She said, in comparison to what I've seen other people go through, this just wasn't exactly.
[00:34:39] And he just encouraged her. He said, every experience is different.
[00:34:44] You may receive a couple vowels and you develop it over time. The other thing that's fascinating with your prayer language that I found experientially is when I pray for different nations, my prayer language changes.
[00:34:58] It's like a different dialogue. I feel an empowering and greater empowering.
[00:35:03] So, I mean, it's kind of like having a toy, a new toy at Christmas. There's so many features to it.
