One of the distinctives of being a pastor of an Assemblies of God church is that we believe that a Christian, led by the Holy Spirit, can speak in another language. I use the word language, for it better explains the intent of what God gives us than the word "tongues."
It is an actual language that can be developed over a period of time as a follower of Christ grows in God.
This language is described in Acts 2, 8, 10, and 19.
What really great about this aspect of our faith is that when I use the language that God has given me I experince expanded worship, enabled warfare, personal edification and communication with God.
To see how spiritual language helps expand our capacity to worship the Lord, I encourage you to check out and compare the disciples before and after the "outpouring" of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2.
Paul tells us in putting on the armor of God in Ephesians 5, to "pray in the Spirit." It's by praying in my spiritual language that I activate the armor of God in my life.
My spiritual language can be used for self-edification as well as for edification of others. Check out Romans 14:19; 1 Corinthians 14:4; 1 Corinthians 14:5,12; 1 Corinthians 14:26; Ephesians 2:21; Ephesians 4:16 and Jude 20.
My spiritual language aids my communication with the Father. It assists me in prayer. Check out 1 Corinthians 14:2; 1 Corinthians 14:14; 1 Thessalonians 5:17.
If you are facing a difficult time today - pray in the Spirit! Let the Holy Spirit encourage you and give you the direction that you need today.
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Man, I wish I had kept up with the blog this week! Maybe God would have revealed my sin earlier and I wouldn't have had to sit and laugh at myself for being so self focused! Enough of that though, God's timing is perfect and I needed the ego crush!
Holy rollers, Jesus freaks, crazy, those are all names we get in this branch of Christianity. We speak in tongues (different languages), get slain (pass out from the touch) in the spirit, run the aisles, swing from the chandeliers...okay, I've never seen anyone swing from the chandeliers but the rest is true...but most of all, we rely on God in our lives. And God's word says that He has provided "gifts" of the Spirit for us. One of those is speaking in a different language as we experience the flood of the Holy Spirit in us and through us. It is a language that God understands, as He understands all things! It is His gift to us to cover those times when we are unable to get our thoughts across through normal words, or to use when in times of distress, or to use in times of intervention, or any other time it happens. You see, some people want to tell us how God would do things (oh, the gift of tongues was only in the early church, it's not for today...does that sound familiar?) or how God thinks. That's not my job here on earth...to explain God. My job is to serve God and man...and rely on God to give me what I need each and every day. Some days, that's prayer in English (though some may say that my English is a foreign language at times) and other days, that's my spirit language. Do I know what language my spirit language is? Nope...and I don't actually care about it! God gifts me with it and I trust Him. The Holy Spirit is my guide in this world and He can do what He will, when He wills. Jesus Christ is my saviour and my example on how to live my life. May I follow that example in all that I say and do. May the Spirit guide me in all that I am. And may God continue to enrich my life through His grace and mercy and blessings and gifts.
The gifts of the Spirit are kind of like Christmas or birthday presents...would you leave one unopened for a day beyond the holiday? Would you deny that one was yours though your name was on it? Open the gifts that God has blessed you with and make full use of them. You may not understand the full depth of your walk unless you do...God loves you and only desires what is best for you. Would you deny a gift from him?
Love God, love people. Trust God with your life and He will fill it more than abundantly with His grace.
Jon
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