Spirit in the Sky - Week 3 (Pentecost 2024)

You know, I think there's a lot of confusion sometimes about some of the

church ology that we use. We talk about the Day of Pentecost, and

we talk about Pentecostals, and I want to spend just maybe thirty seconds just

running down kind of a you know a little bit of a some definitions about

what we're talking about when we say those things. Pentecost actually has nothing to

do by name with our theology. It literally just means fiftieth day. That's

all it means. Pentecost is the fiftieth day after Easter. So we we

we celebrated on the seventh Sunday after Easter, so County Easter and then except

for fifty days, and that is that is what it's about. It's a

it's a feast celebrated by the Jewish people. It was a feast that that

thanks God for that that pre harvest, the early harvest of wheat that would

come in, and it was to give thanks for God's provision. And it

also commemorated the day that the law was given. And I've heard a lot

of messages about people trying to tie what happened when that mighty rushing wind came

in to those things but literally, I just believe he chose to do it

on the day of Pentecost because there were people gathered. That's why I think

he chose to do it that day, that there were a large number of

people gathered in Jerusalem that day, and he wanted to bless as many people

as he can, because God wants to maximize his reach into humanity. And

he chose to take one hundred and twenty people in an upper room, some

of his most faithful ministry supporters, some of those men and women who had

walked with him from the very beginning, and that started out there were five

hundred of them when they first started that prayer meeting. When they started,

they gathered five hundred, and then people just, you know, if you

just keep it just seems like if all you do is pray, if you

just keep praying, you get down to the remnant, come on somebody.

If somebody finds out we're not gonna sing, and we're not gonna preach,

and we're not gonna do those things, that people just begin to kind of

go and find other more important things to do. Amen. And then when

it got down to that one hundred and twenty, it says they were all

gathered together, and they were in one accord. Let's read it out of

Acts chapter two, starting in verse one. It says, when the day

of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place,

and suddenly there came from heaven as of a rushing, mighty wind,

and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to

them divided tongues as a fire, and one sat upon each of them,

and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other

tongues as the spirit gave them utterance. Let's pray, Father, I thank

you. I thank you for your for your word. It's the only change

agent we have on the face of the planet. And I pray that today

we receive you in your fullness that were changed, that when we leave this

place, we especially don't talk like we used to. Lord, we love

you when we thank you in Jesus' name, Amen, Amen, and amen.

You know this term pentecostal and pentecost I think that has a lot to

do with some of the erroneous theology that goes on in the world, because

we tie it back to that, to that Jewish feast and as a result

of that, people want to tie that to old ways of doing things.

Come on, somebody, you know, there's just certain things that we relate

to the old way that things were what were then back back then. We

tie things and we think that because we're modern, that we're better and that

we've moved past things, and we tie it to that because it came through

the voice of those early apostles. And people say that when the apostles died,

that the gifts of the Spirit died. But they're not the gifts of

the Apostles. They're the gifts of the Holy Spirit. And Holy Spirit is

still alive and well in the Church of Jesus Christ right now, still today.

So when we understand that this is very much a gift still for today,

the next question we have to ask is what is the gift for?

And there is an exhaustive amount of reasons what Holy Spirit does in our life.

We could have chosen or not. We It's just me. I mean,

me and Jesus are talking to you today. So I don't know why

I said we, but but I could talk to you about a number of

reasons why the baptism of the Holy Spirit is important but I wanted to narrow

it down. Instead of just giving you a shotgun blast, I wanted to

give you something a little more focused on specifically you. Now, our church

is part of the Assemblies of God. If you don't know what that is,

go to ag dot org. Look it up and read about the Assemblies

of God. Our theology statement. Our theology statement is there. What we

believe is on our website at Seestone dot church. You can go and read

everything we believe. But what we teach and what we believe is that the

baptism and the Holy Spirit. The initial physical evidence of the baptism in the

Holy Spirit is the gift of tongues. We believe that that is the initial

physical evidence. Let me say it again, initial physical evidence, and it's

based on a pattern that we see in the Book of Acts. When people

are baptized in the Holy Spirit, they speak in tongues. But that's the

initial physical evidence. But I believe that there is one thing that goes beyond

the pattern that we see, and that is lives of people filled with the

Spirit are marked by boldness and witness that every time somebody was filled with the

Holy Spirit, there was an empowerment and a boldness that came to their witness

to share their faith, to tell their story to the people around them.

That is excluded. That that happens one hundred percent of the time and people

that received, and we read about the baptism of the Holy Spirit throughout scripture.

But let's focus on that gift of tongues because that's really, I'm just

gonna be honest with you, that's really the one that most people have to

hold up with. Tongues is really the one that people just can't seem to

get passed because, let's face it, if we're looking maybe not to us,

because some of y'all, y'all been speaking in tongues longer than I've even

been alive. And listen, I've been alive a while now. Yesterday marked

fifty one years I have been on the planet and text my dad and I

said, hey, Dad, I don't feel any older. He said,

tomorrow you will. And I woke up today and I felt like I was

seventy one. Amen. It's just something that happens. But for a lot

of people, let's face it, if we're just looking from the flesh,

if we're not spiritually minded, gift of tongues is weird. It's just it's

strange. It doesn't make sense to our rational minds. So let's talk about

if this is the initial physical evidence. Let's talk about what that gift specifically

does for us as individuals, because we already know it's going to empower our

witness to help us reach the world in a better, more efficient, more

effective way. Amen, So let's talk about what it does for you and

let you decide if this is and it is the next step for you in

your journey with Christ. In James Chapter three, verse five, it says,

even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. So

so, how great a forest a little fire kindles, And the tongue is

a fire a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members

that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature,

and is set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and

bird, of reptile, of creature of the sea is tamed, and has

been tamed by mankind. But no man can tame the tongue. Let me

just stop right here for a second. You know, we believe that every

word in the Bible is true. If the Bible says it, it's truth.

And that says no man can tame the tongue. I just want,

by a show of hands, operating in our number one core value transparency,

how many of you your tongue has ever got you in trouble? Y'all.

Never raise y'all's hands so fast in y'all's lives. So may y'all listen.

Some of y'all gonna have to go see the orthopedic surgeon. I heard stuff

popping and cracking. Y'all throw your hands up so fast. Yeah, I

mean, we've all said things. And listen. And if you're like me,

about the time it gets right here, I'm trying to grab it and

bring it back. Amen. The Bible says no man can tame the tongue.

It is an unruly evil underlying this word. If you have an actual

paper Bible full of deadly poison, with it, we bless God, We

bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men who have been

made in the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth, proceed blessing

and cursing, my brethren. These things ought not to be. So does

a spring set forth fresh water and bitter water from the same opening. Can

a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives or a grapevine bear figs?

Thus, no spring yields both salt and fresh water. He says, Listen,

how why is it that the tongue defies everything else that God created in

nature? Do you get that? Says? The tongue is something. It

defies every other natural principle because both good and evil, good and evil,

and like we have tamed everything else, we struggle holding on to and taming

our tongue to the point that it fills our lives, our destiny with poison

that slowly kills the dreams in the future that God has put and laid in

place for us. Because we just can't be quiet. You know. Even

when we look at the story of John the Baptist's birth, an angel shows

up and he tells Johnny says, listen, you're gonna go home. And

I know you and your wife you're a little older. And he's like,

older, we old. We're not a little older. We're old. We

can't have no baby. He says, Liten, you're gonna go home,

You're gonna have a baby. He's like, well, you know, she's

old, and God says, listen, you are not gonna be able to

speak again until this baby is born, because if I don't freeze your tongue,

you're going to speak death to the promise. You just kept him from

talking, just said no. But when we look carefully and examine the baptism

and the Holy Spirit with the initial physical evidence of speaking in tongues, it's

all about bringing that one thing that man has no control over under the submission

of Christ. It is about yielding the use of that thing that produces our

voice, informs our words, so that we can be an instrument in the

hands of God. He says, this baptism in the Holy Spirit, like

redemption is for our soul, like redemption is for the inner man, the

quickening on the inner man, the baptism, what the Holy Spirit is for

our tongue, that can bring it into order, that can bring it under

mission, so that we stop speaking the poison and the death that we've always

spoken to, those things that we dreamed about, those things that we know

God put in place, and we don't understand while we have them. It's

because we can't get out of our own way. In First Corinthians, chapter

fourteen, The Apostle, Paul writes, pursue love and desire spiritual gifts,

but especially that you may prophesy. Let me tell you something about when we

look at at Pauline theology, when we look at his doctrine, he is

always pointing towards humanity. He is an apostle. His goal was to reach

the world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul's biggest struggle was that he

couldn't get anywhere fast enough. He always he was in one place, and

he always wanted to be in another place because he wanted to show up speak,

have everybody get saved, and go somewhere else and do the same thing.

And he leads off and he says, listen, I prefer that you

prophesy. That's the biggest thing, because it is going to reach others more

effectively than the gift of tongues will. So when we understand who Paul was,

and we apply that to the totality of his teaching, we understand why

he leads with these kinds of things. But he also understands that the person,

the individual, is the one with the mandate to reach the world.

He says, but especially that you may prophesy. For he who speaks in

a tongue does not speak to men, but to God, for no one

understands him. However, in the spirit he speaks mysteries, but he who

prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men. He who speaks in a

tone ung edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church. Now see,

we read that, and it's easy to kind of extract from that that

Paul doesn't want us to edify ourselves, but we all need edification. Every

single one of us need at times to be lifted up. And he says,

I am equipping you through the baptism of the Holy Spirit with this gift

that gives you the ability when nobody else will, to lift yourself up.

That gives you the ability to get past all of the external pressures that you

have, and then even in a moment of intense pain or trauma, to

release this gift and edify yourself. The gift of tongues is as much for

you as it is for anything else. There's something that special about those gifts

that God gives us that are personal gifts. And when we look at tongues,

in scripture. There are three different types of tongues that we see in

scripture. There's the gift of tongues that happened on the Day of Pentecost,

where the Holy Spirit fell and they spoke, and those that heard it understood

it in their own language. They were empowered either to speak in a language

that they didn't know, or God did a miracle in the ears of the

hearer and they understood it as a language that they knew. And then there's

the second gift, and this is the one that most people in the modern

church think about, especially non Pentecostals. It is that gift, that corporate

gift of tongues, where somebody stands up gives a message in tongues and then

somebody interprets it. That's what I call the corporate gift of tongues. And

I have lots of I have lots of friends that are not Pentecostal, and

that is a hard thing for people that are not used to our theology to

understand, because you know, they think that like when we walk in there

are designated positions like a football team, and that you walk in and you're

the interpreter, and I try to explain yeah, we don't like pass out

jerseys that have interpreter on the back. Right. A lot of times a

message in tongues can come forth out of obedience, but if the people that

are supposed to interpret it are in disobedience, there's never an interpretation given.

But it doesn't mean the person was wrong that gave the message. But we

want to focus on those things because again those things feel strange to us in

our flesh. And then there's the third type of tongues mentioned in scripture.

As a matter of fact, Paul chastises the Corinthian Church. He says,

listen, y'all speaking, y'all, it's like crazy folks when y'all get together,

everybody speaking in tongues. Nobody knows what's going on. Simeon down now,

just chill out a bit. And then he goes on to write,

but I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you.

It's that personal prayer language that God gives us, that encoded language where Holy

Spirit prays threw us sometimes about things we don't even know were happening in our

lives, and he prays and the enemy can't understand it, so that he

can't set ambush an interception against the miracle that comes now when we look at

Daniel. Daniel began to pray in that great thing that we've written books about,

and every church participates in the Daniel Fast. Right twenty one day,

Daniel fast. The reason Daniel fasted for twenty one days is because his answer

came on the twenty first day. If it had come on the twenty seventh

day, I guess we had fast for twenty seven days. I'm glad it

didn't take three years, amen. But when the angel showed up, this

is what he said. He said, the very moment you prayed, the

Lord sent your answer. But it was hindered by the Prince of Persia.

In other words, God sent it immediately. But because God knew what,

or because the enemy knew what Daniel was asking for, he knew how to

set ambush against the answer to the prayer, and he caused it to be

delayed. So God says, I'll show you. I'll just give them an

encoded language to be able to speak to me, so that the enemy doesn't

know how to set ambush against it. This prayer language, this gift of

tongues that we have, and I want to go just to I want to

go just a little bit deeper, because remember, even the apostle Paul says

here that listen, it's for our edification. So let's look one other place.

Let's go to First Corinthians chapter two. Start in verse six. It

says, however, we speak wisdom among those who are mature yet, not

the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age who were

coming to nothing. He says, listen, we're not I'm not talking about

the wisdom of people. I'm not talking about the wisdom that is really leading

us to nothing. God is progressive and effective, and his word always accomplishes

what it was sent for. But it seems like the wisdom of this age

many times just brings us in asserle keeps us busy, but we don't ever

make progress. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery. Let

me show you something. This word mystery right here has only used one other

time in scripture. This word interpreted mystery right here is only used in First

Corinthians chapter fourteen, when it says that we speak mysteries in tongues. He's

talking about the exact same thing. In one Corinthians fourteen and First Corinthians,

chapter two. He's talking about the gift of tongues and the mysteries that we

speak, he says, but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery,

the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory. It's

the only place in scripture also that God talks about our glory. Every other

place it is God's glory. But he says, listen, this is a

special gift I've created for you, and the wisdom that it unlocks is going

to elevate your platform and give you more credibility and effectiveness to be able to

share the gospel because you're edi fight. Listen. I know I don't expect

y'all to shout because that feels uncomfortable. It feels uncomfortable when we start talking

about Oh, God wants people to see us. But the reality is he

does want He does want people to see you. He wants people to see

you because he He is alive in you, and when people see you,

they will see Him and you may be the only Him that they've ever seen.

So he wants you to live a kingdom's successful life. He wants you

to be empowered. He wants you to experience that wisdom and have that wisdom

unlocked over your life or day before the ages for our glory, which none

of the rulers of this age knew, for had they known, they would

not have crucified the Lord of Glory. But as it is written, I

has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of

man the things which God has prepared for those who love him. But God

has revealed them to us through his spirit. For the spirit searches all things.

Yes, the deep things of God. We apply that eye has not

seen nor ear heard. How many have you ever heard that applied to heaven?

That's where we apply that scripture most of the time, right, Heaven

is not referenced at all in this passage of scripture. He's talking about wisdom

that elevates humanity and puts eyes on you. We've completely miscontextualized that passage of

scripture because we feel uncomfortable knowing that people are going to look at us.

And part of the reason we feel uncomfortable that people are looking at us is

because our tongue always gets us in trouble, and we don't want people to

see that because we know we're gonna say or do something dumb, and we

think that embarrasses Jesus. When you mess up, it doesn't embarrass Jesus,

it embarrasses you. Jesus is still up there. Man, I died for

your dumbness and your smartness. You and me, we're still okay. But

he says, listen, there are things released by the gift of tongues that

when you begin to pray and release God's hidden wisdom over your life through the

gift of tongues, you're releasing things that I has never seen, that ear

has never heard. You're opening yourself to dream things that have never been dreamt,

to see the impossible happen. I'm releasing things that nobody knows about,

because after all, they didn't even know about. They didn't even know enough

not to kill Jesus. He said. The wisest people of the day didn't

know anything. But God says, I've given you a secret wisdom that the

smartest people on the face of the planet don't have, and you can do

things that they've never even dreamed about doing. Wow, and that's for you.

See what the band can come on and get ready. I think I'm

about I think I'm about done, he says. Listen, this is how

special you are that I went away so Holy Spirit could come, so he

could walk beside you and be your comforter and your rear guard to guide you

and direct you until you come to this place where you completely yield your life

and allow the thing that you were filled with when you got saved. We've

alreay talked about it. When you get saved, Holy Spirit moves into your

life all the way up to here, and when we receive the baptism,

the Holy Spirit God continues to pour more in us, until that which was

only in us is now rising up around us and covers us. And we're

not just filled with but we're immersed in the power of the Holy Spirit,

and it brings us into alignment. The baptism of the Holy Spirit brings us

to alignment with the things of God. And when we get an alignment with

the things of God, we can begin to manifest those gifts of the Spirit,

those nine gifts and those other exhaustive gifts talked about through scripture, tongues

being one of them, but also interpretation of tongues and prophecy, faith,

miracles, healing, word, of knowledge, word of wisdom, and discernment,

those gifts that are tools in the tool belt of the evangelist, of

the of the believer to not only make a difference in the lives of others,

but to create a difference making life in yourself. God wants you to

have a difference making life by having the wisdom and the empowerment to do things

that nobody else can do. And it's waiting on you to get past your

fear and what people will say. And oh, that whole tongue's thing.

That's that's old timey church. When we got padded chairs instead of wooden pews.

We don't need holy ghosts no more. But that's the way we think.

Sometimes we're we're a hip church or worship plead looks like Jesus. Amen,

he looks like him. Clint sings like him. Listen. We preach

the things we preach, We do the things we do because we want God's

very best for you. I don't get paid on commission by how many people

come and pray for the baptism and the Holy Spirit. But I stand like

a proud father when you've accepted that call to action and that challenge, and

you allow the things of God to be manifest in your life, and then

you begin to tell the great, powerful stories of God working in you and

through you. And today, on the day of Pentecost, where the New

Testament Church was born and they did things that have never been done, you

realize the early Church was marked by doing things that had never been done.

Why is it his church today marked with people that do things that have never

been done because we haven't embraced the fullness of the gifts He's given us.

And listen, maybe you're here. At some point you came to an altar

and you had an experience and you spoken tongues, but you haven't exercised that

gift. I don't know. Maybe in months or years. People ask me

all the time. I rethek can you go to heaven without baptism the Holy

Spirit? And I say, yes, you can. But I don't want

to go to the grocery store without the baptism the Holy Spirit. Why would

I want something that God is willing to give me to help me and empower

me, but I push it away. I practice the gift of tongues every

single day. I pray over you, I pray over me. Sometimes I

just I don't even know what I'm doing. To be honest with you,

I'm going to ask the Lord one day, why do I just go down

the road sometimes and speaking tongues And He's gonna say, oh, yeah,

because when you were driving by that house, you didn't even know who lived

there, but that person was about to commit suicide. And you release that

wisdom, you release that power, and that injury changed the atmosphere right there.

That's what it does in your life. You're hearing you you have an

exercise. It's gifted a long time. This alter call is for you,

or maybe you've here. You're here, You've you've never prayed for God to

baptize you with his Holy Spirit. You've never asked God to bring you into

alignment, so the gifts of the spirit can operate in your life. Today

is your day. God planned this back then, when the Holy Spirit dwelled

those first believers in that room on the original day of Pentecost. Back then

he planned for you to have that same experience. Jeez, thank you Jesus.

And I love it when God illustrates the sermon. Everybody's staying with me

all over the building. Alter team, come and get ready. If you're

here today you want to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit, a refeeling

of the Holy Spirit, or that first one. Just a minute, I'm

gonna count to three. I'm gonna ask you to step out and make your

way down here, and these men and women of God, they're gonna pray

for you. God's gonna touch you, baptize you. But you know,

you can't have the baptism of the Holy Spirit if you have at first surrendered

your hearted life to Jesus in salvation. So if you're here and you have

never asked Jesus to forgive you of your sins to be the lord of your

life, this is your chance for that. So with every head bowed and

every eye closed, if you're here today and you'd say, hey, I

want to ask Jesus into my life. I want to ask him to forgive

me of my sins. I want him to save me today. Slip up

your hand and say that's me, Pastor, I want to give my life

to Jesus today. Just put your hand up, put it right back down.

If that's you, Hey, man, every eye open, every head

looking up. On the count of three, if you want to see the

baptism the Holy Spirit. I want you to step out and move don't wait.

Step out and move one, two three, Step out and come right

now. Come on, come on, come on, come on, come

on, come on, come on, come on, come on. You

want a fresh touch, a new feeling. Come on, step out and

move right now. Step out and move right now. Come on, come

on, don't wait and figure it out. Just move by faith, Just

move by faith. Step out and come right now. He cut shut.

I want to shut shut. Yes, the Lord is talking to you.

He's talking to you. I feel like the Lord is saying to somebody right

now. You're asking the question in your mind. I don't know if that's

from me or not. Yes, he is talking to you. This is

for you. Step out and come right now. Thank you, Jesus,

Thank you, Jesus. Thank you Jesus. Thank you Jesus. Thank you, jes