How Do You Think God Feels?

My father and pastor has mentioned several times (while on stage) that he gets frustrated sometimes. Understandably so — he gets frustrated when he prepares a weekend message for the church about how to heal a broken marriage – and then all throughout that week, couples call him and ask for Godly counsel on how to heal their broken marriage. They would have heard all of it had they just came to church. I get frustrated occasionally as well in a similar way, only with my blog, not a sermon. Think about how frustrating that must be — we go through the work to help people, but the people that are thirsty for that specific thing — the ones needing it — don’t care enough to show up.

It made me wonder how God must feel.

We claim we want to know God’s will. If we’re really on fire we’ll shout out to God, “Speak to me your plans! Let me hear your voice!” And then get mad at him when he doesn’t answer. Think about that – that’s really what we do, isn’t it?

God already spent 1500 years writing down his plans for us. Not only that, but he inspired a group of early church leaders to compile all of it together into one organized book. It’s called the Bible! He did all this – yet we ignore it and holler out for God’s voice saying, “Why won’t you tell me anything?!”

It’s a wonder we can be so stupid and still breathe!

I’m not saying that God won’t speak through Divine Revelation – he certainly does. But Divine Revelation will never contradict scripture and we should always start with the Word of God that He as ALREADY given to us.

Let me end with some strong words that were said to me once:

“You want to know God? How DARE you say that you want to know God when you haven’t even read His Word — all of it — Genesis through Revelation. –the whole thing straight through.”

That same night I started Genesis 1. I’m reading Hebrews tonight. It’s been amazing how much more I understand God when I’ve read things in their context.

Knowing God.

There are two kinds of “know.” There’s a common “know” — like how I know the mailman or how I know some friends. But there are a few people that I really know. I know what makes them tick. I know if they’re having a bad day before they even tell me so. I know their dreams, their passions, and their deepest struggles. I really know a few people.

Consider this verse in Matthew 7:21 where Jesus said, “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'”

Can I please see a show of hands from anyone who has driven out demons? Even to some of those that have, Jesus will say, “I never knew you — Away from me.”

Whoa.
I think too often we say we “know” God . . . but we know God like we know our mailman or even as common friends. “Am I a Christian? Yea. I know God.” But do you really know him, or do you know him like you know the mailman? — you acknowledge that he’s there everyday and gladly welcome and accept whatever he brings, but that’s it.

“I never knew you.” Those are some strong words, and Jesus will say those to some who think they’re living a Christian life. Let’s know God. Really know him. Know his heart – know his desires – know his passions. This starts with the Bible.

A Quote About The Bible.

“We’re living in the Laodicean [Apostate] Church. Christians pass over scripture like its nutritional information on a bag of Doritos: ‘That information helps me be healthy, but I really don’t care.'”

For you, has scripture lost its potency? If you say, “No” then let me ask you another, perhaps more revealing question:

How is scripture transforming your life?

Prostitutes, Paths, and The Holy Spirit.

The imagery of a wedding to express the intimate relationship between God and his people is found all throughout the Bible (Rev. 19:7, Isa. 54:5-7, and Hos. 2:19). I’d like to show you one passage in particular. This is Matthew 22:1-14.

In the Bible’s imagery, God is the groom and the Church (Christians) is the bride. This husband and wife relationship should not be seen as feminine personification, but as a great description of the intimacy God wants with His church (past, present, and future).

If we truly want the Holy Spirit to move in today’s church we need to start living like it. God wants to marry a beautiful bride — not a whore! If this offends you, I’m glad — that’s kind of the point. It should offend. We say, “Holy Spirit come here and do amazing things among us” yet we don’t change our lives — we don’t clean up. God will come with great power when we have prepared for Him something better than a slutty prostitute.

God’s wants to move in our midsts. I believe God wants to blow our socks off. But we are not preparing the way for His presence.
Let’s prepare the way! Let’s put on our “wedding clothes.”

Aslan is on the Move!


I took a walk yesterday and my dog came with me as usual. I live on a dirt road with very little traffic so I wasn’t concerned with a leash or anything. I was surprised to see my two cats come on the walk though. They just followed me everywhere I went a few feet behind mine. Sometimes they stopped to smell something, and then they had to work extra hard to catch up. I didn’t pay a lot of attention to them because I was on the move, but they were constantly following me. Were they expecting something? I don’t really think so. They followed after me because I was the Master and they didn’t want to miss what I was doing.

“Aslan is on the move!” This popular line comes from C.S. Lewis’ book The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. This fictional story is an allegory of the true story of our salvation through Jesus, represented in the story by Aslan the lion. In the story, the main characters are told that Aslan had been away for a long time, but he was coming again very shortly. Then came the noted phrase, “Aslan is on the move!”

I got some news, guys. “Aslan” is on the move again.

God is on the move!

Do you really believe that? Are you following Him as intensely as my cats followed me, simply because they didn’t want to miss something that their Master was going to do? If Jesus Christ were just outside your front door right now, would you pursue Him with the same intensity that you are pursuing Him right now?

Consumerism.

Consumerism is a part of our society, and boy is it great! I love being able to walk into a store and buy shampoo that smells good. I enjoy the convenience of purchasing nearly all day-to-day items in a “Super-store” all-in-one format. I enjoy being able to walk into a burger joint, grab a Big Mac, and leave. I come in, I eat, I leave. The companies produce a product for me, the consumer. Many times I have a wide variety of types of product to choose from — which makes the “market” competitive. I don’t think there is anything wrong with that. This becomes a negative issue; however, when we apply this same concept to the church or worse yet – a Christian life.

To the Generalized American Church:
Stop treating the church like a burger joint. So many of you walk in, eat, and leave. Church is about community. Find your gift — the thing that God has “wired” you for — and use that thing for the Kingdom of God. In the end you’ll be “pumped up” for serving in your area of gifting. Don’t just eat and leave. That is disrespectful to the Word of God. Let your faith be living faith; faith without works is dead.

To Church Leaders:
Remember we only have one person to please – and that’s God. Don’t be swayed by the consumerism mindset of the generalized American Church. The weekend service is not a product.

A Conversation Earlier Today.

“I believe in God and all that Christianity stands for — I believe it. I’ve asked Jesus in my heart several times. I’ve followed Christ, I’ve fallen away, I’ve rededicated my life — but I’ve never felt any different. Nothing has ever changed. I followed Christian thought for years – but anymore I’m not really even interested in searching for God.” -A friend of mine.

What encouragement might you have for my friend?

Is This The Day of the Outpouring of the Holy Spirit?
The Work of the Holy Spirit in Baptism. Part 7 of 7.
Is the Holy Spirit Real?

[This is a series of blogs which are quoted from the book “Is the Holy Spirit Real?” by Dr. Paul E. Paino].

God promised through the prophet Joel that He would pour out His Spirit in the “last days.” For the past two thousand years (the last days), the Holy Spirit has been poured out. The Holy Spirit has been working throughout the entire church age. We have been promised a “former rain” and a “latter rain.” God is moving on schedule. Everything fits into His divine program.

Today we are experiencing an increase in the ministry of the Holy Spirit. There are reasons why the outpouring is so evident today. Let me name some of these reasons:

1) The Holy Spirit has come to exalt the Lord Jesus Christ in an age of false teachers, false prophets, false Christs, and false religions. (Matthew 24:24, John 16:13-14). On every side, we are seeing false teaching and preaching of false gospel. To counteract the cult and the occult, God is pouring out His Spirit across the earth.

2) The Holy Spirit is being poured out to counteract the Spirit of the anti-Christ. John told us in his first letter that the spirit of anti-Christ was working in the world already. Paul gave a special warning to us. (2 Thessalonians 2:3-9). Deception is the tool that anti-Christ will use. Humanity will be conditioned to believe the great lie. Revival fire is spreading and gaining proportion. The revival is preparing a SPIRIT-FILLED, SPIRIT ANOINTED, and SPIRIT LED church. The Holy Spirit is moving through the church to resist the deceptive powers of the spirit of anti-Christ.

3) The Holy Spirit is being poured out to counteract satanic activity and the flood of wickedness. It is apparent that iniquity is abounding in these closing days. (2 Timothy 3:13). There is a tidal wave of moral pollution. Pornography is sweeping across the world. Homosexuality is spreading like a cancer. Drug abuse has contaminated the nations. Witchcraft and the devil worship are on the increase.

It is into this atmosphere that God promised that the Spirit of the Lord would lift up a standard (Isaiah 59:18).

4) The Holy Spirit is being poured out to ready the church for the coming of Christ. The Father has sent the Holy Spirit into the world to seek a bride for Jesus Christ. Believers are on their way to a marriage celebration. It is the ministry of the Holy Spirit to work in the lives of believers . . . to present a spotless church as a bride adorned for the bridegroom.

5) It is the purpose of the Holy Spirit to bring in the greatest harvest of souls the Church has ever seen. (James 5:7).

The doors are open! It is harvest time across the world!! It is time for the church to move beyond its own walls and reach out to a world that is ready to receive Christ. This is the church’s greatest hour!

***

The Gifts of the Spirit

A distinction must be made between the Holy Spirit sent as “a gift” and the “gifts of the Holy Spirit.” The following distinctions must be understood:

1) The Holy Spirit as a Person being sent to indwell believers [“the comforter” that Jesus promised].

2) The Holy Spirit baptizing us into the Body of Christ [which is the same thing as “becoming a Christian.” This is asking Jesus into your heart.]

3) The Lord baptizing us into the Holy Spirit.

4) The gifts of the Spirit (spirituals) operating in the life of a believer (1 Corinthians 12).

When we receive the Holy Spirit, he comes as a gift (John 14:16-17; John 15:26-27; and John 16:7-15). The Holy Spirit is a Person and was sent as a gift. Then there are “spirituals” that are referred to as the “gifts of the Holy Spirit.” There are nine of them (1 Corinthians 12:4-11). [That’s not to say there are plenty of other gifts that are very spiritual, but there is a distinction to the nine listed in 1 Corinthians. These are the spirituals. Other “spiritual gifts” exist, and are available to ANY CHRISTIAN (regardless if they have received the baptism in the Holy Spirit or not). Examples would be music, helps, and encouragement. These are “spritual gifts,” especially when used in the church. But they are not of the spirituals listed in 1 Corinthians].
The person who has not received the baptism in the Holy Spirit cannot become the channel through which these gifts can function. They are referred to as the “manifestations of the spirit.” Where people believe in and have received the experience of the baptism in the holy spirit, there will be evidences of the gifts of the spirit in their midst. [I have not found, nor did Dr. Paino provide sufficient scripture to support the statement that the spirituals only work in those who have received the baptism in the holy spirit. I think they could work in anybody, “just as the spirit chooses.” However, in my experience and apparently in Dr. Paino’s nearly 60 years of pentecostal ministry, the 9 spirituals only work through those who have received the baptism in the Holy Spirit].

The Apostle Paul introduces this subject in 1 Corinthians 12:1 when he writes, “Now concerning spirituals, bretheren, I do not want you to be unlearned.” He then writes chapters 12, 13, and 14 on the subject of manifestations, spirituals, or the gifts of the spirit, and concludes by saying in 1 Corinthians 14:38, “If any man be unlearned, let him be so.”

Very candidly, the apostle was saying, “I have just spent three chapters talking about these manifestations. If you choose to be without knowledge after I have shared this revelation, then there is nothing more that I can do about it.” God wants us to have knowledge of the gifts, and the Holy Spirit wants these manifestations to be evident among believers.

When we have a good perspective on the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit, the things of the Lord are beautiful, powerful, and practical. The Holy Spirit came to give life and liberty to the believers! The Holy Spirit was sent so that those of us who desire to serve the Lord could be anointed to do so.

We have been commanded to be FILLED with the Spirit so that the fruit of the Spirit could be produced in our lives. Chrisitan character is developed to the degree that we stay FILLED. The Holy Spirit pours out a blessing after blessing to inspire us to worship and praise. We are blessed because we are loved.

The Lord desires that every believer receive the Baptism in the Holy Spirit.

This opens the doors to spiritual manifestations, to praying and praising in an unknown tongue, and to be used of the Lord in the power and demonstration of the Holy Spirit.

He is here to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ and to make us witnesses to the four corners of the earth.

My prayer is that YOU experience how REAL the Holy Spirit can be in YOUR life and ministry.

[Comments to this post are related to all 7 posts in the series of “The Holy Spirit’s Role In Baptism.” This subject is historically controversial. Comments from those who disagree or are searching for biblical truth are most certainly welcome, but comments believed to be trolling will be deleted. No trolling allowed.]

What Must Be Done To Receive the Baptism in the Holy Spirit?
The Role of the Holy Spirit in Baptism. Part 6 of 7.
Is The Holy Spirit Real?

There are several things that a believer can do to position himself so the Lord can baptize him [in the Holy Spirit].
1) The believer must seek the Lord with all his heart. Halfhearted seekers will never receive this blessing (Jeremiah 29:13). God demands unwavering faith when we ask the Lord to do anything for us (James 1:6-7).

When we combine a strong faith with a deep sense of our need, we have met the necessary prerequisites for receiving this glorious experience.

2) We must thirst after a deep relationship with the Lord. God feeds hungry souls. When a believer feels that his greatest need is to be baptized with the Spirit, then they will receive the divine blessing and be satisfied (Psalm 143:6; 119:174). Do we feel what the Psalmist felt? Is our spirit parched and dry? Do we long for God in the same way that the desert longs for water? He has promised that He would quench our thirst (Isaiah 44:3).

3) Our motives must be right! If we are to receive, we must thirst and we must pray. We cannot expect Him to give us the blessing until we are obedient. Our hearts must be free from condemnation (1 John 3:21-27).

As a candidate for this baptism, we must examine our motives and seek the Lord with a pure heart. A sanctifying work must be done in our lives so that we are free from the controlling influence of pride, from the negative power of bitterness, and from the destructive forces of anger and resentment. The believer must have a pure heart to be a receiver.

4) The seeker must not allow discouragement! Jesus tells the story in Luke 11:5 about a friend who arose and granted a neighbor his request because the man continued to ask. If we keep asking and seeking and knocking, our request will be granted.

5) To receive, we must confess our weakness! Too many of us tend to feel self-sufficient. We need spiritual power for spiritual living. The source of this power is in the Spirit of God. The baptism in the Holy Spirit brings a deeper relationship with the Lord, a wonderful sensitiveness to the things of God, a new dimension in prayer and praise, and permits us to be channels through which the Holy Spirit can manifest Himself in so many ways.

[For the sake of consecutive learning in the manner in which the book was intended (all in one chapter), comments to this post have been turned off. Discussion will open on Part 7.]

The Initial Evidence.
The Work of the Holy Spirit in Baptism. Part 5 of 7.
Is The Holy Spirit Real?

[This is part of a series of blogs which are directly quoted from a book by the late Dr. Paul E. Paino, Is The Holy Spirit Real?]

The doctrine that “speaking with other tongues” is the initial evidence of the baptism in the Holy Spirit rests upon recorded cases in the Book of Acts. The New Testament contains no plain categorical statement concerning what must be the sign. However, the conclusion is that hte initial physical evidence of the Baptism in the Spirit is “speaking with other tongues.” It is the result of a logical sequence of reasoning.

The New Testament teaches that the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is a definite experience. It is not the same as regeneration. It is different than anointing. And the experience is not the same as sanctification.

This spiritual experience must consist of some outward manifestation. The outward manifestation of the “new birth” experience is a confession by the believer that he has received Christ as Savior.

As we carefully examine the reccords mentioned in the Book of Acts, we will immediately conclude that the initial physical evidence of this experience is, indeed, “speaking with tongues.”

1) The Day of Pentecost. It is clear that tongues were the divinely chosen evidence to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The early believers received the Person of the Holy Spirit and simultaneously “experienced” the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Every believer spoke with “tongues” in this case. It was a supernatural manifestation of the “experience.”

2) Samaria (Acts 8:14-18). In this particular case, there is no apparent indication as to the nature of the manifestation; however, when we read verses 18 and 19, we must logically conclude that Simon observed something supernatural and made an amazing request (Acts 8:18-19). This is proof that something very obvious had taken place.

Since the other cases in the Bible indicate that the manifestation of “speaking with tongues” was present, we are certainly justified in believing that this was the case in Samaria. “Speaking with other tongues” meets all the requirements of the context.

3) Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9:17; 1 Corinthians 14:18). The Scriptures do not record when the Apostle Paul received this experience. When we read Paul’s strong personal testimony in 1 Corinthians 14, we realize that he did speak with “tongues.” It was he who wrote three chapters concerning the “spirituals” (commonly referred to as the gifts of the Spirit). There is every reason to believe that Paul received this particular manifestation of “speaking with tongues” at some point in his spiritual experience just as the other apostles received it when they were baptized in the Holy Spirit.

4) The Household of Cornelius (Acts 10:44-47). The Scriptures state conclusively that the evidence that satisfied the Jewish believers that the Gentiles had received the Holy Spirit was their “speaking with tongues.” In verse 46 we read, “for they heard them speak with tongues.” This is a definite statement concerning this evidence. It reveals that this unique sign had already been accepted in the New Testament church.

5. Ephesian Believers (Acts 19:1-6). This company of twelve men received the Holy Spirit. The Scriptures plainly state: “They spake with tongues and prophesied.” Nothing could be more clear! Some nineteen years had passed since they day of Pentecost but the same identical initial evidence is found accompanying the baptism in the Holy Spirit.

***

It is clear that this evidence of speaking in tongues is spontaneous (Acts 10:44-46). The gift of speaking with tongues is controllable (1 Corinthians 14:28). The initial evidence can be given to any number as was done on the day of Pentecost, or a room full of people as at the home of Cornelius, or on twelve as is recorded in Acts 19 concerning those who were at Ephesus.

The use of the gift is limited to “two or at the most three” (1 Corinthians 14:27). These passages completely contradict one another unless a distinction is made between tongues as the initial evidence of the baptism in the Holy Spirit and tongues as the gift in the Body of Christ.

[For the sake of consecutive learning in the manner in which the book was intended (all in one chapter), comments to this post have been turned off. Discussion will open on Part 7.]