They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the Word of God Boldly

Greetings appolus:

I find it most unfortunate that being filled with the Holy Ghost has undergone a metamorphesis over the centuries. This is do to the dead theological traditions of well-known and celebrated men by which entire denominations have cropped up around. These denominations serve to perpetuate this deadness until this very hour and as a result has successfully robbed the people of God of what belongs to them TODAY. The New Covenant is still in force today. When I say, New Covenant, I mean ALL of it with no part of it "ceasing" at anytime since the birth of the New Testament Church. It seems to me that many have only gone as far as the Reformation in their theological understanding and experience. While many wonderful things were accomplished by the Reformation, and many of the precious truths of the Faith restored, the Reformation did not go far enough to restore to the Church ALL of the New Testament. It seems that as far as the personal experiences of "the Reformers" is as far the Reformation went and no further. I believe that whatever and to what extent of thier personal experiences in Christ was assumed as the whole, and if anything they read in the New Testament was missing in thier lives, it was convienently taught that those elements of the Faith "ceased" with the Apostles, or the canonization of Holy Writ. Most unfortunate.
When it comes to being filled with the Holy Ghost, or being baptized in the Holy Ghost we must look to the New Testament Church as given in God's inspired word. The book of Acts is God's blueprint for all the Church of Jesus Christ for the entire Church age, and no man (no matter how popular, famous, well-known, celebrated, venerated, etc.) has the authority whatsoever to change what God Almighty has ordained.
Remember, the true Church of God is build upon the Apostles and Prophets of the Holy Bible, not on celebrated preachers of the past, or present-day denominations and theological traditions of religious men. I say this because some have look at many a godly men of Church history and have observed their ministries, and have basically said to themselves in so many words, "Well, look at brother so-and-so and how God greatly used them in revival and they were never baptized in the Holy Ghost, nor were they ever really used in the gifts of the Spirit as reported in the New Testament. So it must be true that God does not pour out the gifts of the Spirit upon the Church of today. If this were so, would not these great men have been used in the gifts? So all of the gifts must have ceased with the Apostles or the canonization of the Bible."
Let me encourage every believer to be thankful for the salvation afforded us in the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ at the cross. But let me go further to encourage you appolus and all others who may read this and have not been baptized in the Holy Ghost not to be satified with anything less than a New Testament experience. Ask your heavenly Father for the enduement of power from on high. Ask in faith and Jesus will baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire. The initial physical evidence that always attends this experience according to the book of Acts is that you will speak in tongues as the Spirit gives the utterance. This is that which was spoken of by the prophet Joel and the apostle Peter on the day of pentecost. This promise of the fullness of the Spirit is for every precious saint of God. This may cause some problems in your home denomination who are decieved into thinking that such is a thing of the passed. If you are a minister in some of these denominations this will probably get you the left foot of fellowship, but, praise God, it is worth it. This has always been a sign spoken agianst from the very beginning, but don't let what men think prevent you from recieving. Search the scriptures and ask God to reveal to you if this is for the Church today, and when you are convinced that it is, refuse to live without being endued with power from on high. Hallelujah!!!

[i][b][color=FF0000]"And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith GOD, I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: and on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy." [/color][/b][/i] Acts 2:17-18.

"God is there and He is not silent." - Francis Schaefer

Greetings appolus:

I did not say that everyone that has been baptized in the Holy Ghost has the gift of tongues. I said that THE INITIAL physical evidence is that the believe will speak in tongues as the Spirit gives the utterance. This was the case in every instance where this took place in the book of Acts, and it will always be the case whenever a child of God is truely baptized in the Holy Ghost. Though speaking in tongues is the INITIAL evidence given by God himself that one has been truely baptized in the Holy Ghost, this does not mean that this particular gift will remain with the recipient. In most who recieve this seem to be the case, but not all. One thing is for certain, there should be a manifestation of the Spirit by way of whatever the gift given to the child of God at different times. This is in accord with the teaching of the Bible and the New Testament in particular.
My own personal testamony of being baptized in the Holy Ghost happened to me when I was a young man living on the streets in the city of my birth. I had no place to live at the time (I was 17 years old) and no family to call upon that would help. At that time, God was in the process of separating me from everything and everyone that I could depend upon. Sometimes things and people become convienent distractions used by Satan to keep people from seeing their real need for salvation that can only be found in Christ Jesus. Anyway, to make a long story short, I was saved at an old street mission Church where the minister preached on the reality of eternal damnation and the need to be born-again. Praise God, there is power wonder working power in the precious blood of the Lamb. After salvation, the Holy Spirit stirred up my heart to seek God concerning the baptizism in the Holy Ghost. The Spirit spoke to my heart and told me that this was for today and that it could be mine for the asking and that it was to be recieved by faith. I was so hungry for everything that God had for me as his child and if this is what the Lord had provided for his people, I wanted it. I shared my desire to be baptized in the Holy Ghost with the people who came to the street mission to minister God's holy word, and they had agreed that on the next Lord's day they would pray with me for the outpouring of the Spirit and that I should spend the time in prayer before the appointed time. But it would seem that God had other plans. On the very day when God baptized me in the Holy Ghost, I and another brother in the Lord was seeking work at a daily-labor place where you can go out on a work assignment and get paid on the same day. This was the only source of income for me while living on the streets. However, on this day we were not able to get out on a work assignment so we decided to go to a nearby library and read our bibles. At the library I began to share with this brother that was with me how I was seeking and desiring to be baptized in the Holy Ghost and how the ministry team at the street mission had agreed to pray with me on the next Lord's day until the fire fell. He responded to me by saying we did not have to wait until then, because God was present with us right where we were, and that if God put the desire in my heart and if I was hungry for the baptizism God would baptize me that day. With child-like faith me, and this brother left the library to go to a nearby park so we could pray together that God would baptize me with the Holy Ghost. I can still remember to this day how strong the presence of the Holy One was on us and all around us while we walked together to the park to pray. We were already praising God for what we knew he was about to do. We arrived and found a bench to sit down on as we prayed. I was just a little ambivalent (not much) but the brother that was with me encouraged me a little further and we prayed. As we both prayed that God would baptize me in the Holy Ghost (it wasn't even 30 seconds I suppose) the fire fell and I was baptized in the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking with other tongues as the Spirit gave me utterance. I was so full of joy that the Lord would baptize a street bum such as I in his precious Holy Spirit. Amazing!! I felt like I could take on the world, it was wonderful. My life ever since then has never been the same, and never will be the same. This promise of the Father is unto you and to your children and unto as many as are afar off, even as many as the Lord shall call.

As I look back at that time, I am thankful to God that someone did not try and tell me that the baptizism in the Holy Ghost was not for today. I am so glad that I had the child-like faith to simply believe what the Bible said, and had not been victimized by cold doubt and unbelief recieved by the traditions of religious men. I am so thankful that I was not robbed as many of God's ministers and laity are today due to a theological misintrepretation that has caused many to dismiss this wonderful baptizism of the Spirit.

[u][b][color=0000FF]"Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree:" that the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might RECEIVE THE PROMISE OF THE SPIRIT THROUGH FAITH." [/color][/b][/u]Gal. 3:13-14.

Dear Jimotheus,

You said:

I said that THE INITIAL physical evidence is that the believe will speak in tongues as the Spirit gives the utterance. This was the case in every instance where this took place in the book of Acts, [u]and it will always be the case whenever a child of God is truely baptized in the Holy Ghost[/u].

However, your claim which I underlined in the above quote is not taught anywhere in the Bible. This is a personal conclusion that you have drawn, which I believe to be untrue.

1Co 12:4-11 "There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. Now to each one the [b]manifestation of the Spirit[/b] is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines."

[b]The word manifestation means outward or perceptible indication, or evidence of the Spirit. If a believer manifests any of the other gifts, he has been filled by the Spirit, whether he speaks in tongues or not.[/b]

In fact, the Bible teaches that there are higher manifestations of a God-centered life:

[b]1Co 13:1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.[/b]

Greetings appolus:

I just read your articles and have been blessed by them. I especially appreciate hearing of the faith of your precious mother and her perserverance under such a terrible circumstance with your Father being full of the devil persecuting your Mom because of her faith in Christ. I was blessed to hear how the Lord came upon you at a crucial moment when you felt that your mother would not survive the night, but the Lord contradicted the work and intention of the enemy and preserved your Mother. Hallelujah to the Lamb.
Is your Mother still alive? And your Father, did he ever come to Christ? I hope and pray so, Sir. There were a couple of things in your articles that were a source of conviction for me. One is (to my shame) I have not personally lead any to Christ in a long time. I can not remember the last time I have seen someone GENIUNELY saved by the blood of the Lamb. Please pray for me that the Lord will create in me a clear heart and fill it once again with "Katanusso" from on high and become a profitable servant for his kingdom honor, and glory. Thanks and God Bless.

Jimotheus wrote:

I did not say that everyone that has been baptized in the Holy Ghost has the gift of tongues. I said that THE INITIAL physical evidence is that the believe will speak in tongues as the Spirit gives the utterance

That's not the way Peter sees it read Acts 15:8-9 And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us; And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.

Peter reconciles the Holy Spirit with having a pure heart not any gift of the spirit.

Jesus says out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.

Jesus went on to say in Matthew 5:28 everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery or whoever is angry with his brother is in danger of the judgment Matthew 5:22.

Paul says in 1 Corinthians 3:3 For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?

All these issues come from the heart a heart that's has not been purified by the Holy Spirit.

I ask you as I ask myself do you love God with all your heart? Do love people like you love yourself?

Maybe like me, you can say what Paul says in Romans 7:22-23 I delight in the law of God after the inward man but I see another law in my members bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.

Who can deliver us from this body of death. Jesus Christ our Lord through his baptism of the Holy Spirit he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire. He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver.

What I am trying to say is that we focus on the gifts of the Spirit, when we should be focusing on purity of heart without such no man can see God. Paul spoke to the carnal christians in Corinth about the gifts of the Spirit saying I will show you are more excellent way.

What is the more excellent way well it way of Love 1 Cor 13:2 You can speak in tounges as much as you like, you can prophecy as much as you like, you can have faith to move mountains, you can understand all mysteries but if you don't have love you are nothing.

Love is Kind, Love suffers long, Love is not puffed up, Love does not act the wrong way, Love is not easily provoked, Love does not think evil, Love does not rejoice in evil but rejoices in truth, Love never fails.

This love flows from a purfied heart, a heart that's been cleanesd and refined where all the dross has beed burned up. From that heart flows the very opposite of the what I mentioned earlier in the post.

Leonard Ravenhill quote "There’s only one proof of the Holy Ghost in your life and that’s a holy life"

Greetings Leo Grace:

Thanks for the your reply. I guess considering how in the book of Acts as it is reported by Luke, every instance where believers were baptized in the Holy Ghost they initially spoke in tongues as the Spirit gave them the utterance. I therefore concluded that if this is what is demonstrated in the Holy record that this is God's paradigm of how one should know if they have received the baptizism that everyone should have this initial sign. I was under the understanding that anyone thereafter who recieved would be acted upon in the same manner as we have it in God's word. I was certainly acted upon by the Holy Ghost this way when I recieved, but maybe some are an exception to this. I guess as long as we seek to be filled, I know God will do it. As Jesus said it is the Father's good pleasure to give the Holy Spirit to those who ask. Praise the Lord.

Greetings appolus:

Praise the Lord that you Father was saved. Often times only one in the marriage comes to faith in Christ and the other is lost. I want to thank you for your prayers. I know you do not know me personally, but the Lord will know the wretch of whom you speak when you pray. I can only say that the Lord has been patient and longsuffering with me. I have wasted some time in the Lord and feel that I have missed an opportunity of a lifetime in the lifetime of the opportunity. I remember the passage of scripture that says, "I will restore unto you the years the cankerworm, the palmerworm, locust and the catapillar have eaten. . ." Praise God there is hope in the saving strength of his right hand.

Deep thinker: Praise the Lord!! I was blessed reading your reply. I just smiled in agreement. I loved when you said:

"Some people rather stay in the wilderness and never venture into the promise land. Some actually step into the Jordan the waters are pulled back for them to cross over."

nothing would thrill my heart if many that visit this site began reporting that they have recieved the baptizism of the Spirit and have crossed over Jordan. I also chuckled in agreement when you wrote:

"If you've never been filled with Holy Spirit according to what has been witnessed in the book of Acts, you have not been filled but have been lied to by one of these preachers that do not stand for the whole counsel of God."

All I can add to this is a hardy,
[b][size=large][color=FF0000]Amen!!![/color][/size][/b]

thank you brothers for this thread.
I've been seeking the baptism of the Holy Spirit for about a year but I kinda became frustrated and gave up... This stirrs me up again to seek HIM and knock, knock, knock...

Don't look for deceptive gifts. It is great to speak with tongues if the Lord gives it. However, there are better evidences of the Holy Spirit working in your life. Only twice in the books of Acts did they speak in tongues, once as a sign to Jews and once as a sign to Gentiles. For example, there is no evidence that the Philippian jailer or Ehtiopian eunuch spoke in tongues. Paul's teachings would contradict that he saw his churches all speaking in tongues, as has been mentioned. The best evidence of being filled with the Holy Spirit is . . . holiness!

Greetings MeiLi:

It blessed my soul to hear of that you are going to continue to seek the Lord for the mighty baptism in the Holy Ghost. I pray that the Lord will fill you to the overflow and know assuredly that this is real; that this is holy, and that this is for the Church today. In just a little while I, and my family will be leaving for Church so I only have time for a few lines of encouragement.

St.Luke 24:49 says, "And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you; but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, UNTIL YE BE ENDUED WITH POWER FROM ON HIGH."

The baptism in the Holy Ghost is called by the Lord Jesus, "the promise of the Father" and that indeed it is. Let me encourage you to continue to tarry, and you will be endued with power from on high. With myself, it was only a week or so after I was saved, but with some others it takes a little longer. I do not understand all of the reasons why, but one thing is for sure, it isn't the ridiculous teaching that this isn't for today. If the Devil had his way, you will never recieve this power from on high. Unfortunately, he will even use popular and well-known ministers in our day to deceive and discourage any and all who would even consider the truth of this promise. Remember, just because a preacher is well-known and seems to be a "pillar" to many means absolutely nothing. Take you eyes and ears off of anyone who will try to discourage you in anyway from you receiving from your heavenly Father this baptism of power. It is the Father's good pleasure to give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.

Acts 1:8 says, "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you; and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."

The Church was tarrying for the power (Gk. Dunamis- supernatural ability, miracle working power, inherent power, etc.) They had no idea that this filling with the Holy Ghost would produce the manifestation of speaking in tongues. Jesus never told them one thing about tongues, but he did say that they would be given this "Dunamis" from on high for the purpose of being the witness that they were called to be. That also meant power to confirm the word of the gospel preached as the Lord promised. Jesus said to his disciples, "The works that I do shall ye do, and greater works than these because I go to my Father." And what did Jesus do you may ask:

Acts 10:38 tells us, "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power; who went about doing good and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him."

This is what Jesus did with the anointing of the Holy Ghost and this is what he has called his Church to do today. Notice that if you were to continue reading on in that 10th chapter, the bible says that the Holy Ghost fell on all those who heard the word and all of the men that accompanied Peter was astonished being Jews, Why? Because that God had pour out upon the Gentiles the Holy Ghost. How were they able to tell that God poured out the Holy Ghost upon these hungry Gentiles? The scripture continues: "FOR THEY HEARD THEM SPEAK WITH TONGUES AND MAGNIFY GOD." O Hallelujah. Now unto the King eternal immortal invisible, to the only wise God be honor and glory forever.

This is the INITIAL sign (not the only) but the INITIAL sign of being endued with Holy Ghost power is that you will speak in tongues as the Spirit gives you the utterance. This gift may not remain with you (with most, it does) but there will be a gift, or gifts of the Spirit that he will reveal to you for the purpose of evangelism and the edification of the body of Christ. Well, I wish I could say more but it will have to wait. Gotta go to Church. God Bless you.

Koheleth

I don't really know what you mean by don't look for deceptive gifts.

Paul tells us to covet earnestly the best gifts 1Cor 12:31 We are told by Jesus that signs will accompany those who believe.

Mark 16:17-18 "And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."

Jesus told us as well in Mark 13:22 false christ and false prophets will arise and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.

But Jesus gave us away to find the source of the signs and wonders and that was to look at the fruits of there life. Matthew 7:16 Ye shall know them by their fruits.

I personally was filled by the Holy Spirit before I went to church. I said a simple prayer "God I want to change I am fed up being this way" When I lay back on my bed a wind left me from my stomach then a wind blew into my stomach from there is spread all over me. When it stopped I sat up and spoke in tounges.

If the Spirit is present we must look for the fruits. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

The greatest of these is Love as Paul says so if we do hear of signs and wonders we must look for the fruits in that persons life so we don't get decieved by anyone false but we can't just say that all gifts are false and we should not seek them at all.

appolus wrote:
HI Koheleth,

I would have to disagree with your logic when it comes to highligihting the fact that the two people did not speak in tongues, you cannot prove anything from the negative. I think that if we look at Acts and Corinthians, we see that it was normative. Yet, I do agree with the second part of your comment, although I would say love rather than holiness would be a better choice of words. 1Cor 13 just hammers home the point in graphic ways that we can have everything in regards to gifts, but if we do not have love we do not have anything.

/

Brother Frank,

Although I haven't posted in a while, your post has compelled me to comment with a heartily amen!

I have enjoyed reading most of the responses on this thread. I appreciate the zeal for the truth in Jim and also the last post of Colin.

I believe this thread you have started is very important. I appreciate the way you are going about this thread with the others who have posted.

I believe that love has the preeminence of the infilling of the Holy Ghost along with boldness that must be controlled by meekness of the spirit. Holiness will be produced in us by the process of sanctification through the truth of the word of God. There must be growth in sanctification.

Many mistake the baptism with the Holy Ghost different from what the scriptures reveal. The scriptures plainly tell us that we will receive power immediately after the infilling, and along with that will be an over flowing of love. There is still a lot of growing in holiness for the christian. We need to understand that a gift is given but fruit is produced from abiding in the word of Christ.

I believe that there were a lot of ministers in the past who were filled with the Holy Spirit with a measure of power to do the works of God without ever speaking in tongues. I also believe that all those in the book of acts who were baptized(immersed) in the Holy Ghost received the initial evidence of speaking in an unknown language as the spirit gave them the utterance.

The gift of tongues and the initial evidence are not the same things. When a person is totally immersed in the Holy Spirit and yielding completely to the Holy Spirit then the spirit can move through him with an utterance to speak by the spirit. The person will be doing the speaking but the utterance will be of the Holy Spirit. This is an amazing experience but minor compared to the overwhelming experience of power and love that the person will feel. When I was immersed in the Holy Spirit I thought back and remembered that I had praised God in a loud voice that the language was unknown to me but the feeling and the changes that also happened to me were greater than the fact that I spoke in an unknown tongue.

It is really sad that tongues have become such an issue and also abused that people misunderstand the baptism altogether but I don't see how anyone can convince me from scripture that the initial evidence is not speaking in a unknown language.

Blessings to you all!