Table Of Content

The Holy Spirit and His Gifts By Kenneth E Hagin Chapter 1 My Pentecostal Experience................................................................................... 6 Raised From the Bed of Sickness.......................................................................................... 6 MARK 11:23,24 .................................................................................................................. 7 God Is Not Nervous! .............................................................................................................. 7 The Baptism in the Holy Spirit................................................................................................ 8 The Work of the Holy Spirit in the New Birth.......................................................................... 9 The Work of the Holy Spirit In the Baptism of the Holy Spirit ............................................... 10 ‘Tarrying’ Is Not a Formula For Receiving the Holy Spirit..................................................... 10 Any Believer Can Receive the Holy Spirit ............................................................................ 11 Biblical Example of Believers Receiving The Holy Spirit Without Tarrying........................... 11 Why Wait To Receive a Gift?............................................................................................... 12 The Ephesian Disciples........................................................................................................ 14 The Samaritan Christians..................................................................................................... 14 Saul of Tarsus...................................................................................................................... 14 The Sending End or the Receiving End? ............................................................................. 15 The Holy Spirit Gives the Utterance..................................................................................... 16 Chapter 2 The Holy Spirit in the Denominational Church.................................................. 17 Denominational Differences Don't Matter............................................................................. 20 The Holy Spirit: God's Promise to You................................................................................. 20 The Holy Spirit Is a Person .................................................................................................. 21 Extreme Teachings in the Church........................................................................................ 22 Does One Receive the Fullness of the Holy Spirit in the New Birth? ................................... 22 The Baptism in the Holy Spirit: Rivers of Living Waters ....................................................... 23 The Same Holy Spirit in the New Birth As in the Baptism of the Holy Spirit......................... 23 Speaking in Tongues Is Not The Evidence of the New Birth................................................ 24 New Wine: A Type of the Holy Spirit .................................................................................... 25 Born-Again Samaritans Were Filled With the Holy Spirit...................................................... 25 The Holy Spirit: God's Giving vs. People's Receiving .......................................................... 26 The Ministry of Laying On of Hands..................................................................................... 26 Did the Baptism in the Holy Spirit 'Pass Away' With the Last Apostle?................................ 27 Chapter 3: Two Separate Experiences: Salvation and the Baptism of the Holy Spirit .... 28 The Samaritans Born Again Under Philip's Ministry............................................................. 29 First Scriptural Witness ........................................................................................................ 30 Second Scriptural Witness................................................................................................... 30 Third Scriptural Witness....................................................................................................... 30 The Samaritans Received the Holy Spirit............................................................................. 31 Evidence the Samaritans Received The Holy Spirit............................................................. 31 Two Separate Experiences: Saul's Conversion and Baptism in the Holy Spirit ................... 32 Saul's Conversion ................................................................................................................ 32 Chapter 4 The Holy Spirit Within: His Indwelling Presence............................................... 35 God For Us, With Us, and In Us........................................................................................... 36 Believers Are the Temple of the Holy Spirit.......................................................................... 36 The Holy Spirit and His Gifts................................................................................................ 37 Greater Is He That Is in You ................................................................................................ 38 A Thousand Times Bigger on the Inside! ............................................................................. 39 Dare to act on that scripture!................................................................................................ 40 The Role of the Holy Spirit Within ........................................................................................ 40 The Holy Spirit Within: Our Helper and Comforter ............................................................... 41 The Holy Spirit Within: Our Guide in the Affairs of Life ........................................................ 41 Knowing on the Inside of You What To Do .......................................................................... 42 2 CORINTHIANS 5:17...................................................................................................... 42 Chapter 5 The Holy Spirit Upon: His Infilling Power .......................................................... 44 The Holy Spirit Upon............................................................................................................ 45 When the Church Began...................................................................................................... 46 Born Again, but Waiting for the Outpouring.......................................................................... 47 There Is More To Receive of the Holy Spirit After the New Birth ......................................... 47 Wigglesworth's Testimony Of Being Filled With the Holy Spirit............................................ 48 Speaking in Tongues Is Not Evidence Of the New Birth ...................................................... 49 The Holy Spirit Upon: The Gateway Into the Supernatural .................................................. 50 My Own Experiences in Prayer............................................................................................ 53 Cooperating With the Holy Spirit, The Power Source .......................................................... 55 'Something More' ................................................................................................................. 55 Basing Our Faith on the Word, Not on Our Feelings............................................................ 56 Chapter 6 Is It Scriptural To Tarry for the Holy Ghost?...................................................... 57 Tarrying Is Not a Formula For Receiving the Holy Spirit ...................................................... 58 Bible Examples of Receiving the Holy Ghost....................................................................... 59 The Samaritan Believers...................................................................................................... 59 Cornelius and His Household............................................................................................... 60 Is It Scriptural To Tarry for the Holy Ghost?......................................................................... 61 Saul of Tarsus...................................................................................................................... 61 The Ephesian Disciples........................................................................................................ 61 JOHN 7:37-39 .................................................................................................................. 62 The Holy Spirit Is a Gift ........................................................................................................ 64 Possessing What Is Yours ................................................................................................... 64 Take the Direct Route! ......................................................................................................... 65 Chapter 7 How Important Is Speaking in Tongues?........................................................... 66 Have Tongues Been Done Away With?............................................................................... 67 Are Tongues Available for All Believers? ............................................................................. 68 1 CORINTHIANS 12:27-30............................................................................................... 68 Ministry Gifts vs. Spiritual Gifts ............................................................................................ 69 EPHESIANS 4:11,12........................................................................................................ 69 Miracles and Gifts of Healings ............................................................................................. 70 Helps.................................................................................................................................... 71 Governments ....................................................................................................................... 71 Diversities of Tongues.......................................................................................................... 71 Tongues and Interpretation in Public Ministry ...................................................................... 72 The Value of Speaking in Tongues ...................................................................................... 72 Speaking in Tongues: The Door Into the Supernatural ........................................................ 76 Chapter 8 The Bible Evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit....................................... 77 Scriptural Witnesses for Tongues As the Evidence of the Baptism of The Holy Spirit ......... 77 First Witness: The One Hundred and Twenty ...................................................................... 77 Second Witness: Cornelius and His Household................................................................... 78 Third Witness: The Ephesian Disciples................................................................................ 78 Fourth Witness: The Samaritan Believers............................................................................ 79 Fifth Witness: Saul ............................................................................................................... 80 The Baptism of the Holy Spirit And Speaking in Tongues Go Hand in Hand ....................... 80 The Ephesian Disciples: Speaking in Tongues and Prophesying ........................................ 81 The Fruit of the Spirit Is Not the Evidence Of Receiving the Holy Spirit............................... 82 The Ministry of the Laying On of Hands............................................................................... 83 The Bible Evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit ........................................................... 84 Misconceptions About Receiving The Holy Spirit................................................................. 86 Magnify the Word, Not Your Experience.............................................................................. 86 ROMANS 10:9,10............................................................................................................. 87 Don't Seek Experiences To Receive the Holy Spirit............................................................. 87 An Example of Wrong Instruction For Receiving the Holy Spirit .......................................... 88 Falling Into a Trance Is Not Biblical Evidence For Receiving the Holy Spirit........................ 88 Experiencing Joy Is Not Biblical Evidence For Receiving the Holy Spirit ............................. 89 Not What You Feel, But What You Do ................................................................................. 89 Chapter 9: Ten Reasons Why Every Believer Should Speak in Tongues......................... 91 Reason Number 1................................................................................................................ 92 Reason Number 2................................................................................................................ 92 Reason Number 3................................................................................................................ 93 Reason Number 4................................................................................................................ 94 Reason Number 5................................................................................................................ 95 Reason Number 6................................................................................................................ 95 Reason Number 7................................................................................................................ 95 Reason Number 8................................................................................................................ 97 Reason Number 9................................................................................................................ 98 1 CORINTHIANS 14:15-17............................................................................................... 98 Reason Number 10.............................................................................................................. 98 Chapter 10 Seven Steps To Receiving the Holy Ghost ...................................................... 99 Step Number 1................................................................................................................... 100 Step Number 2................................................................................................................... 101 PHILIPPIANS 3:12,13 .................................................................................................... 102 Step Number 3................................................................................................................... 103 Step Number 4................................................................................................................... 103 Step Number 5................................................................................................................... 104 Step Number 6................................................................................................................... 106 Step Number 7................................................................................................................... 107 Chapter 11 The Gift of the Word of Knowledge Part1 ...................................................... 108 Don't Be Ignorant of Spiritual Gifts..................................................................................... 109 Spiritual Gifts Will Exalt Jesus............................................................................................ 109 Gifts, Administrations, and Operations............................................................................... 110 The Nine Gifts Categorized................................................................................................ 111 Three revelation gifts ......................................................................................................... 111 Spiritual gifts that reveal something: .................................................................................. 111 Three power gifts Spiritual gifts that do something: ........................................................... 111 Three utterance or inspirational gifts Spiritual gifts that say something: ............................ 111 The Gift of the Word of Knowledge .................................................................................... 112 The Word of Knowledge Is Not Natural Knowledge ........................................................... 112 The Word of Knowledge Is Not A Profound Knowledge of the Bible.................................. 113 The Word of Knowledge Is Not Knowledge of God Through Close Communion With Him 113 Biblical Examples of the Word of Knowledge..................................................................... 114 The Word of Knowledge to John........................................................................................ 114 Word of Knowledge to Ananias.......................................................................................... 114 Modern Examples of the Word of Knowledge.................................................................... 116 Chapter 12 The Gift of the Word of Knowledge Part 2 ..................................................... 117 As the Spirit Wills ............................................................................................................... 118 The Word of Knowledge To Samuel Regarding Saul......................................................... 120 The Word of Knowledge Manifested To Locate a Lost Daughter....................................... 120 The Word of Knowledge to Elijah....................................................................................... 121 The Word of Knowledge To Elisha Regarding Syria .......................................................... 122 Chapter 13 The Gift of the Word of Wisdom ..................................................................... 130 The Word of Knowledge vs. The Word of Wisdom ............................................................ 132 The Word of Knowledge and the Word of Wisdom Can Operate Together........................ 132 The prophet of the Old Testament had to have.................................................................. 132 The Gift of the Word of Wisdom......................................................................................... 133 The Word of Knowledge and the Word of Wisdom Operating Together in The New Testament.......................................................................................................................... 133 Philip .................................................................................................................................. 135 Old Testament Examples of The Word of Wisdom ............................................................ 137 The Word of Wisdom to Joseph......................................................................................... 137 The Word of Wisdom in the New Testament...................................................................... 137 The Word of Wisdom to Paul ............................................................................................. 138 Conditional Words of Wisdom............................................................................................ 139 Jonah ................................................................................................................................. 140 Chapter 14 The Discerning of Spirits................................................................................. 141 What the Discerning of Spirits Is Not ................................................................................. 142 Discerning of Spirits Is Not Simply Discerning of Devils..................................................... 142 Maintain Balance In Dealing With Demons........................................................................ 143 GALATIANS 5:19-21 ...................................................................................................... 143 Discerning the Similitude of God........................................................................................ 144 Discerning the Risen Christ................................................................................................ 145 Discerning the Holy Spirit................................................................................................... 145 Discerning the Spirit Behind an Operation ......................................................................... 145 The Inward Witness As Our Guide..................................................................................... 146 The Word of Knowledge vs. The Discerning of Spirits ....................................................... 147 Chapter 15 The Gift of Faith................................................................................................ 149 Gifts of the Spirit Are Supernatural .................................................................................... 150 The Gift of Special Faith..................................................................................................... 151 The Gift of Special Faith Is Not the Same as Saving Faith ................................................ 151 The Gift of Faith vs. The Gift of the Working of Miracles.................................................... 153 Wigglesworth and the Gift of Faith ..................................................................................... 154 Wigglesworth related his experience: ................................................................................ 155 The Power Gifts Often Work Together............................................................................... 155 Casting Out Demons.......................................................................................................... 155 GALATIANS 3 ................................................................................................................ 156 Chapter 16 The Gift of the Working of Miracles................................................................ 158 Find Your Place of Ministry ................................................................................................ 158 The Working of Miracles Defined....................................................................................... 159 Old Testament Examples Of the Working of Miracles........................................................ 161 Moses and the Israelites .................................................................................................... 161 Elijah and the Widow.......................................................................................................... 161 Working of Miracles in the New Testament........................................................................ 161 Jesus and the Feeding of the Five Thousand .................................................................... 162 Ananias and Sapphira........................................................................................................ 162 Paul and Elymas ................................................................................................................ 163 The Gift of Faith vs. the Working of Miracles To Deliver From Danger .............................. 163 Gifts of Healings More Prevalent In the New Testament ................................................... 164 ACTS 6:8........................................................................................................................ 165 The Importance of the Working of Miracles........................................................................ 165 Desire Earnestly Spiritual Gifts .......................................................................................... 167 Gifts of Healings: Not Medical Science .............................................................................. 168 Gifts of Healings Prominent in The New Testament .......................................................... 169 Jesus Ministered as a Man Anointed by the Holy Spirit ..................................................... 170 The Gifts of Healings.......................................................................................................... 171 Gifts of Healings vs. Receiving by Faith............................................................................. 172 Ministering by the Gifts of Healings.................................................................................... 172 Chapter 18 Gift of Prophecy ............................................................................................... 175 Divers kinds of tongues is supernatural utterance in an unknown tongue. ........................ 176 The Gift of Prophecy vs. The Office of the Prophet............................................................ 177 New Testament Example Of the Gift of Prophecy.............................................................. 178 New Testament Example of The Prophet's Ministry........................................................... 178 Misuses of the Gift of Prophecy ......................................................................................... 179 The Simple Gift of Prophecy Is Not Prediction................................................................... 180 Manifestations of the Holy Spirit In Corporate Worship...................................................... 181 The Holy Spirit Manifests Himself As We Seek the Lord ................................................... 181 Caution Needed With Personal Prophecies....................................................................... 182 Simple Prophecy Edifies, Exhorts, and Comforts............................................................... 182 1 CORINTHIANS 14:3.................................................................................................... 182 Prophecy in One's Prayer Life............................................................................................ 183 Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs By the Gift of Prophecy ........................................... 185 Chapter 19 The Gift of Divers Kinds of Tongues .............................................................. 187 Tongues: The Most Prominent Gift .................................................................................... 187 The Gift of Tongues Is a Supernatural Sign....................................................................... 188 The Gift of Tongues Is Unique To This Dispensation......................................................... 188 Tongues Is the Evidence Of Being Filled With the Spirit.................................................... 189 Purposes of Speaking in Tongues ..................................................................................... 190 Initial Evidence of Receiving the Holy Spirit....................................................................... 190 Speaking Mysteries Supernaturally to God........................................................................ 190 Magnifying God.................................................................................................................. 191 ACTS 10:45,46............................................................................................................... 191 Edifying Ourselves ............................................................................................................. 191 JUDE 20......................................................................................................................... 191 Praying in the Spirit............................................................................................................ 191 Be Being Filled With the Spirit............................................................................................ 192 Spiritual Refreshing............................................................................................................ 193 Interpreting Tongues In Our Private Prayer Life................................................................. 193 The Gift of Tongues in Public Ministry................................................................................ 194 Prophecy Is Equivalent To Tongues and Interpretation ..................................................... 195 Speaking in Tongues in a Public Setting............................................................................ 196 MARK 16:17,18 .............................................................................................................. 196 Private vs. Public Operation Of the Gift of Tongues........................................................... 196 1 CORINTHIANS 14:18,19............................................................................................. 196 Tongues is not a teaching gift or a preaching gift............................................................... 197 Chapter 20 The Gift of Interpretation of Tongues............................................................. 197 The Gift of Interpretation of Tongues ................................................................................. 199 The Gift of Interpretation of Tongues In Our Private Prayer Life........................................ 199 The Gift of Interpretation of Tongues In Public Ministry ..................................................... 200 1 CORINTHIANS 14:27.................................................................................................. 200 The Gift of Interpretation of Tongues ................................................................................. 201 The Gift of Interpretation — Not Translation ...................................................................... 202 Chapter 1 My Pentecostal Experience Raised From the Bed of Sickness I was born again on April 22, 1933, at twenty minutes to eight o'clock in the south bedroom of 405 North College Street in McKinney, Texas. I was raised up from the bed of sickness on the second Tuesday of August 1934, after spending sixteen long months flat on my back with two terminal organic heart conditions and an incurable blood disease. And my body was almost totally paralyzed. When I first started reading the Word of God on the bed of sickness, Grandma would prop the Bible up in front of me as I lay there on my bed. I could only read for about ten minutes at a time — after that I could hardly see. Then that was all I could read for the day. The next day I would read for another ten or fifteen minutes. After a few weeks of reading like that, I got so I could read for an hour at a time; eventually I could read for as long as I liked. As a child, I had been brought up going to Sunday school; I can't remember the first time I went to church. Nor can I remember the first time I ever read the Bible. It seemed I had prayed all of my life, yet I had never been born again until April 22, 1933. You see, you can be religious and yet not really be a born-again child of God. But when you are born again, the very same Bible that you have been reading looks different. The Bible becomes clear and easy to understand when you are born again. And as I read Grandma's Bible, I found that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb. 13:8). The doctors had said I could die at any time, so when I began reading the Bible, I began reading in the New Testament. I reasoned, I might not be alive ten minutes from now, so I will utilize this ten minutes, or whatever time I have, and I will start reading in the New Testament. I began reading in Matthew 1:1. When I got to Mark 11:24,I read, ". . . What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them." From the first time I read that verse, I never forgot it. I didn't take time to memorize it; it just branded itself on my mind, so to speak, because Mark 11:24 was my answer for healing. MARK 11:23,24 23 For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, B e thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. 24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. However, immediately after I read Mark 11:23 and 24, the devil hopped on my shoulder and said, "Yes, but divine healing has been done away with, you know." I said, "Well, thank God, faith hasn't been done away with! This scripture says, '. . . What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe . . .' (Mark 11:24). I have never heard anyone say that believing and faith have been done away with." "Yes, but healing has. You know all that healing business has been done away with." I said to the devil, "What about Mark chapter 5? In Mark chapter 5, Jesus said to the woman with the issue of blood, '. . . Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole . . .' [Mark 5:34]. Mr. Devil, if her faith made her whole, my faith will make me whole." And, thank God, it did! At that time, I didn't know of anyone else in the whole world who believed in divine healing besides me. There was no Full Gospel church in my town at the time, and I had never heard healing preached. There weren't any Christian radio programs such as we have today; at least, if there were, I didn't know about them. After my healing, I began my ministry just as a young Baptist boy preacher. When I heard that Full Gospel people preached on healing too, I began to fellowship with them because fellowshipping with those of like-precious faith was just like getting a spiritual shot in the arm. It built up my faith. The Full Gospel folks preached some things I didn't quite understand or altogether agree with at that time, such as the baptism in the Holy Spirit, but I put up with that to have a little fellowship around the doctrine of healing! God Is Not Nervous! I wasn't used to church services where everyone would pray all together at one time, and this bothered me at first. I started to say something about it a time or two to straighten these Full Gospel folks out. In fact, I once heard someone else tell them, "Now God's not hard of hearing, you know." But the Full Gospel folks just replied, "He's not nervous either!" When these Full Gospel folks invited Christians to come and pray at the altar, I would go forward to pray with them. But I would get as far away from them as I could because they bothered me all praying at the same time like that. I would get off in the corner somewhere and pray quietly. However, after a while the thought occurred to me, These folks knew about divine healing and my church didn 't. They might know something more here in this area of praying than I do too. So I decided I would read through the Book of Acts and see how the Early Church prayed. As I read, I couldn't find one place where they called on "Deacon Brown" or "Sister Jones" to lead in prayer while everyone else remained silent. Instead, I found to my utter amazement that the Early Church all prayed at the same time! ACTS 4:23,24 23 And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them. 24 And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God WITH ONE ACCORD.... The thing that cinched it with me was when I got down to Acts chapter 16 where it says that Paul and Silas were in jail. Their backs were bleeding; their feet were in stocks. Yet at midnight they prayed and sang praises to God. And the Bible says, ". . . and the prisoners heard them" (Acts 16:25). Until that time, I had believed in praying to God, but I believed in being quiet about it. But then I saw that Paul and Silas didn't pray quietly, not even in jail. The next time I went to the Full Gospel service and they called us to the altar to pray, I got right in the middle of them and lifted my voice just like they did. When I did, I felt a release in my spirit. The Word of God will set you free. Jesus said, ". . . ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32). God's Word is truth, and it will set you free. The Baptism in the Holy Spirit These Full Gospel folks preached something else I couldn't quite accept — the baptism of the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in other tongues. I believed in the Holy Ghost and in the baptism of the Holy Ghost. I knew I hadn't received the baptism in the Holy Ghost, but I believed in it. But that "tongues" business — that was a bitter pill for me to swallow. I had been warned against speaking with tongues. But fellowshipping with Full Gospel people who did speak in tongues was kind of like one fellow down in East Texas said: "It's like a slippery creek bank. You keep fooling around it long enough and you'll slip in." As a young boy preacher and pastor of a community church, I meditated and thought on the scriptures concerning the Holy Spirit, and I came to the conclusion that these Full Gospel folks were wrong about tongues. I concluded that tongues weren't necessary; they weren't for us today. I decided that believers could receive this enduem ment of power — the baptism in the Holy Ghost — without speaking in tongues. That was my own opinion, of course. It certainly wasn't Scripture. I said to the Lord in my heart, "Lord, I know these folks are good people. They are thoroughly saved — born again — and they knew about divine healing when my church didn't. I certainly do believe in the Holy Ghost. And I believe in the infilling of the Holy Ghost, the enduement of power from on High. Then I said to the Lord, "I sense a lack of power in my own life, and I know I need the infilling of the Holy Ghost. And I expect to receive, all right. But I am of the opinion that tongues don't go along with the baptism in the Holy Ghost, and that they are not for us today." Immediately the Lord spoke to my heart. I knew it was the Holy Spirit speaking through the Word of God. That same still small voice that had brought me off a bed of sickness and into divine healing asked me, "What does Acts 2:39 say?" I quoted the scripture, "For THE PROMISE is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call" (Acts 2:39). Then the still small voice said, "What promise is that?" I said, "The last part of Acts 2:38 says,'. . . and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.' So the reference here is to the promise of the gift of the Holy Ghost." Then I hastened to add, "But, Lord, I believe in the Holy Ghost. It's tongues I am not sure about." (I had changed it a little bit this time to "I'm not sure.") The Holy Spirit always leads us in line with the Word of God. The Word and the Spirit agree (1 John 5:7,8). I am not in favor of just following voices, because you can go wrong following voices; you can follow the wrong voice (1 Cor. 14:10). But you can never go wrong following the voice or the leading of the Holy Spirit because He will always lead you in line with the Word of God (John 16:13; 1 John 5:6-8). Jesus said, ". . . he [the Holy Spirit] shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you" (John 16:14). And ". . . he shall not speak of himself [But, thank God, He does speak!]; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak . . ." (John 16:13). Every born-again believer has the Holy Ghost in a measure through the new birth (John 3:5-8; John 4:14). But this is not the same as the baptism in the Holy Spirit — the enduement of power from on High that Jesus talked about in Luke 24:49, Acts 1:8, and John 7:38. Just because someone is born again doesn't mean he is filled with the Holy Spirit. The Work of the Holy Spirit in the New Birth There is the work of the Holy Spirit in the new birth, as we can see by the following scriptures. JOHN 3:5-8 5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of THE SPIRIT, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is BORN OF THE SPIRIT is spirit. 7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be BORN AGAIN. 8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is BORN OF THE SPIRIT. ROMANS 8:16 16 THE SPIRIT itself I Himself ] beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. The Work of the Holy Spirit In the Baptism of the Holy Spirit From these scriptures, we can see the work of the Holy Ghost in the new birth. But there is also a work of the Holy Spirit that God desires to perform in the life of every believer subsequent or following the new-birth experience, and that is called the infilling of the Holy Spirit or the baptism in the Holy Spirit. That is what Jesus was talking about in Luke 24:49 and Acts 1:8. LUKE 24:49 49 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. ACTS 1:8 8 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 Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. I had told the Lord that I believed in the baptism of the Holy Ghost, but that I wasn't sure about the tongues part. The Lord spoke to me again, "What does Acts 2:4 say?" Of course, I could quote these scriptures from the Book of Acts, but just because you have the Word in your head does not mean that you really know what it means. In other words, you need to have the revelation of God's Word in your spirit to really know and understand what it means. I quoted Acts 2:4: "And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." I got that far and said again, "And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak. .. ." Then I exclaimed, "Oh, I see it! I see it! It says, '. . . they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak WITH OTHER TONGUES' [Acts 2:4]. And when I get filled with the Holy Ghost, I will begin to speak with other tongues too! Lord, that settles it. I am going right down to the Full Gospel preacher's house and receive the Holy Ghost." ‘Tarrying’ Is Not a Formula For Receiving the Holy Spirit I then walked over to the parsonage and knocked on the door. The Full Gospel pastor came to the door. I said to him, "I've come to receive the Holy Ghost." He said, "Son, you need to wait." (From that day until this I have never been able to figure out why anyone would ever tell someone to wait to receive the Holy Ghost!) Someone may ask, "Haven't you ever read in the Bible where it says to tarry? And everyone knows that 'to tarry' means to wait." Yes, but that is not a formula for receiving the Holy Ghost, because Jesus actually said, ". . . TARRY YE IN THE CITY OF JERUSALEM, until ye be endued with power from on high" (Luke 24:49). It was just as necessary for that group, the 120 who gathered in the Upper Room, to be in Jerusalem as it was that they wait or tarry. So if waiting were a formula for receiving the Holy Ghost, then why take the word "Jerusalem" out of this verse? In other words, if it's still necessary for us today to wait or to tarry in order to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit, then it must be necessary for us to go to Jerusalem to do it! Also, the 120 people in the Upper Room weren't waiting in the sense that they were getting ready and preparing themselves to be filled with the Holy Ghost. No, they were waiting for the Day of Pentecost to come. The Holy Ghost could not be given until then. If they had been waiting and preparing themselves before they could receive the Holy Spirit, the Bible would have read, "When they were ready, they were all filled with the Holy Ghost." But it doesn't read that way. In Acts 2:1 and 4, the Bible says, "And when THE DAY OF PENTECOST WAS FULLY COME . . . they were all filled with the Holy Ghost. . . ." (We will cover whether it is scriptural to tarry to receive the Holy Spirit in greater detail in Chapter 6 of this study course.) Someone said, "But waiting gets you ready to receive the Holy Ghost." No, it doesn't. Getting saved gets you ready. The Bible mentions the only requirement for receiving the Holy Ghost. It says, ". . . the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call" (Acts 2:39). In other words, the promise of the baptism in the Holy Spirit is for as many as have received Jesus Christ as their Savior. Any Believer Can Receive the Holy Spirit By saying a person has to wait in order to receive the Holy Spirit, people are really saying a person has to clean himself up first. But you can't clean yourself up except through repentance of unconfessed sin (1 John 1:9). The blood of Jesus Christ is what cleanses believers from all sin (1 John 1:9). If you are blood washed, you are ready right now to receive the Holy Spirit. If a person who is saved is sincerely seeking the baptism in the Holy Spirit, he can receive. LUKE 11:9-13 9 And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. 10 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. 11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? 12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your Heavenly Father give THE HOLY SPIRIT to them that ask him? Biblical Example of Believers Receiving The Holy Spirit Without Tarrying Any believer can ask the Father for the Holy Spirit and receive this precious Gift without tarrying or waiting. For instance, after Cornelius and those in his household were saved, they did not have to wait to receive the Holy Spirit. In fact, they were not only saved but they were filled with the Holy Ghost almost at the same time (Acts 11:14,15). In other words, after salvation, they didn't have time to get "ready" to receive the Holy Spirit; they didn't wait or tarry for the Holy Ghost. They received the Holy Spirit immediately without having to get "ready" (Acts 10:30-48). In recounting this experience to the apostles and brethren in Jerusalem, Peter explained that those in Cornelius' household received the Word that was preached to them and were saved. Then they were immediately filled with the Holy Spirit. ACTS 11:11-15 11 And, behold, immediately there were three men already come unto the house where I was, sent from Caesa area unto me. 12 And the spirit bade me go with them, nothing doubting. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered into the man's house. ... 13 And he shewed us how he had seen an angel in his house, which stood and said unto him, Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon, whose surname is Peter; 14 Who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be SAVED. 15 And as I [Peter] began to speak, THE HOLY GHOST FELL ON THEM, as on us at the beginning. Also, there is something in Acts 10:45 and 46 that tells us that speaking in tongues goes hand in hand with the baptism in the Holy Ghost. ACTS 10:45,46 45 And they of the circumcision which believed [the Jewish believers] were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out THE GIFT OF THE HOLY GHOST. 46 FOR THEY HEARD THEM SPEAK WITH TONGUES, AND MAGNIFY GOD.... You see, if it hadn't been for the evidence of speaking with tongues, the Jewish believers would never have accepted the Gentiles into the Church, because speaking in tongues is what convinced the Jews that the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles! It was strictly a Jewish Church up until then. Even Peter himself didn't know that the Gentiles could be saved until he had the vision which is recorded in Acts chapter 10. When the Holy Ghost was poured out upon the Gentiles, it astonished the Jewish believers who accompanied Peter to Cornelius' house. Why Wait To Receive a Gift? Thank God, God showed me His Word on the subject, so I knew I didn't have to wait or tarry before I could be filled with the Holy Spirit. I saw in God's Word that if believers in the Book of Acts didn't have to wait to receive the Holy Spirit, then I didn't have to wait either. I also knew that when I received the Holy Spirit, I would speak in tongues. When I told this Full Gospel pastor, "I've come here to receive the Holy Ghost," and he said to wait, I blurted out, "But it won't take me long to receive!" The church was having a revival service that night, and it was then already 6:00 in the evening, so he wanted me to wait and seek for the baptism of the Holy Ghost in the service. But I knew I would have to wait until after 7:00 when the service started. Then I would have to wait until the preliminaries were over. And then I would have to wait until the preaching was over. In other words, it would have been about 9:00 that evening before I could have gotte...

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The Holy Spirit and His Gifts by Kenneth E Hagin PDF

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The Holy Spirit and His Gifts By Kenneth E Hagin Chapter 1 My Pentecostal Experience................................................................................... 6 Raised From the Bed of Sickness.......................................................................................... 6 MARK 11:23,24 .................................................................................................................. 7 God Is Not Nervous! .............................................................................................................. 7 The Baptism in the Holy Spirit................................................................................................ 8 The Work of the Holy Spirit in the New Birth.......................................................................... 9 The Work of the Holy Spirit In the Baptism of the Holy Spirit ............................................... 10 ‘Tarrying’ Is Not a Formula For Receiving the Holy Spirit..................................................... 10 Any Believer Can Receive the Holy Spirit ............................................................................ 11 Biblical Example of Believers Receiving The Holy Spirit Without Tarrying........................... 11 Why Wait To Receive a Gift?............................................................................................... 12 The Ephesian Disciples........................................................................................................ 14 The Samaritan Christians..................................................................................................... 14 Saul of Tarsus...................................................................................................................... 14 The Sending End or the Receiving End? ............................................................................. 15 The Holy Spirit Gives the Utterance..................................................................................... 16 Chapter 2 The Holy Spirit in the Denominational Church.................................................. 17 Denominational Differences Don't Matter............................................................................. 20 The Holy Spirit: God's Promise to You................................................................................. 20 The Holy Spirit Is a Person .................................................................................................. 21 Extreme Teachings in the Church........................................................................................ 22 Does One Receive the Fullness of the Holy Spirit in the New Birth? ................................... 22 The Baptism in the Holy Spirit: Rivers of Living Waters ....................................................... 23 The Same Holy Spirit in the New Birth As in the Baptism of the Holy Spirit......................... 23 Speaking in Tongues Is Not The Evidence of the New Birth................................................ 24 New Wine: A Type of the Holy Spirit .................................................................................... 25 Born-Again Samaritans Were Filled With the Holy Spirit...................................................... 25 The Holy Spirit: God's Giving vs. People's Receiving .......................................................... 26 The Ministry of Laying On of Hands..................................................................................... 26 Did the Baptism in the Holy Spirit 'Pass Away' With the Last Apostle?................................ 27 Chapter 3: Two Separate Experiences: Salvation and the Baptism of the Holy Spirit .... 28 The Samaritans Born Again Under Philip's Ministry............................................................. 29 First Scriptural Witness ........................................................................................................ 30 Second Scriptural Witness................................................................................................... 30 Third Scriptural Witness....................................................................................................... 30 The Samaritans Received the Holy Spirit............................................................................. 31 Evidence the Samaritans Received The Holy Spirit............................................................. 31 Two Separate Experiences: Saul's Conversion and Baptism in the Holy Spirit ................... 32 Saul's Conversion ................................................................................................................ 32 Chapter 4 The Holy Spirit Within: His Indwelling Presence............................................... 35 God For Us, With Us, and In Us........................................................................................... 36 Believers Are the Temple of the Holy Spirit.......................................................................... 36 The Holy Spirit and His Gifts................................................................................................ 37 Greater Is He That Is in You ................................................................................................ 38 A Thousand Times Bigger on the Inside! ............................................................................. 39 Dare to act on that scripture!................................................................................................ 40 The Role of the Holy Spirit Within ........................................................................................ 40 The Holy Spirit Within: Our Helper and Comforter ............................................................... 41 The Holy Spirit Within: Our Guide in the Affairs of Life ........................................................ 41 Knowing on the Inside of You What To Do .......................................................................... 42 2 CORINTHIANS 5:17...................................................................................................... 42 Chapter 5 The Holy Spirit Upon: His Infilling Power .......................................................... 44 The Holy Spirit Upon............................................................................................................ 45 When the Church Began...................................................................................................... 46 Born Again, but Waiting for the Outpouring.......................................................................... 47 There Is More To Receive of the Holy Spirit After the New Birth ......................................... 47 Wigglesworth's Testimony Of Being Filled With the Holy Spirit............................................ 48 Speaking in Tongues Is Not Evidence Of the New Birth ...................................................... 49 The Holy Spirit Upon: The Gateway Into the Supernatural .................................................. 50 My Own Experiences in Prayer............................................................................................ 53 Cooperating With the Holy Spirit, The Power Source .......................................................... 55 'Something More' ................................................................................................................. 55 Basing Our Faith on the Word, Not on Our Feelings............................................................ 56 Chapter 6 Is It Scriptural To Tarry for the Holy Ghost?...................................................... 57 Tarrying Is Not a Formula For Receiving the Holy Spirit ...................................................... 58 Bible Examples of Receiving the Holy Ghost....................................................................... 59 The Samaritan Believers...................................................................................................... 59 Cornelius and His Household............................................................................................... 60 Is It Scriptural To Tarry for the Holy Ghost?......................................................................... 61 Saul of Tarsus...................................................................................................................... 61 The Ephesian Disciples........................................................................................................ 61 JOHN 7:37-39 .................................................................................................................. 62 The Holy Spirit Is a Gift ........................................................................................................ 64 Possessing What Is Yours ................................................................................................... 64 Take the Direct Route! ......................................................................................................... 65 Chapter 7 How Important Is Speaking in Tongues?........................................................... 66 Have Tongues Been Done Away With?............................................................................... 67 Are Tongues Available for All Believers? ............................................................................. 68 1 CORINTHIANS 12:27-30............................................................................................... 68 Ministry Gifts vs. Spiritual Gifts ............................................................................................ 69 EPHESIANS 4:11,12........................................................................................................ 69 Miracles and Gifts of Healings ............................................................................................. 70 Helps.................................................................................................................................... 71 Governments ....................................................................................................................... 71 Diversities of Tongues.......................................................................................................... 71 Tongues and Interpretation in Public Ministry ...................................................................... 72 The Value of Speaking in Tongues ...................................................................................... 72 Speaking in Tongues: The Door Into the Supernatural ........................................................ 76 Chapter 8 The Bible Evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit....................................... 77 Scriptural Witnesses for Tongues As the Evidence of the Baptism of The Holy Spirit ......... 77 First Witness: The One Hundred and Twenty ...................................................................... 77 Second Witness: Cornelius and His Household................................................................... 78 Third Witness: The Ephesian Disciples................................................................................ 78 Fourth Witness: The Samaritan Believers............................................................................ 79 Fifth Witness: Saul ............................................................................................................... 80 The Baptism of the Holy Spirit And Speaking in Tongues Go Hand in Hand ....................... 80 The Ephesian Disciples: Speaking in Tongues and Prophesying ........................................ 81 The Fruit of the Spirit Is Not the Evidence Of Receiving the Holy Spirit............................... 82 The Ministry of the Laying On of Hands............................................................................... 83 The Bible Evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit ........................................................... 84 Misconceptions About Receiving The Holy Spirit................................................................. 86 Magnify the Word, Not Your Experience.............................................................................. 86 ROMANS 10:9,10............................................................................................................. 87 Don't Seek Experiences To Receive the Holy Spirit............................................................. 87 An Example of Wrong Instruction For Receiving the Holy Spirit .......................................... 88 Falling Into a Trance Is Not Biblical Evidence For Receiving the Holy Spirit........................ 88 Experiencing Joy Is Not Biblical Evidence For Receiving the Holy Spirit ............................. 89 Not What You Feel, But What You Do ................................................................................. 89 Chapter 9: Ten Reasons Why Every Believer Should Speak in Tongues......................... 91 Reason Number 1................................................................................................................ 92 Reason Number 2................................................................................................................ 92 Reason Number 3................................................................................................................ 93 Reason Number 4................................................................................................................ 94 Reason Number 5................................................................................................................ 95 Reason Number 6................................................................................................................ 95 Reason Number 7................................................................................................................ 95 Reason Number 8................................................................................................................ 97 Reason Number 9................................................................................................................ 98 1 CORINTHIANS 14:15-17............................................................................................... 98 Reason Number 10.............................................................................................................. 98 Chapter 10 Seven Steps To Receiving the Holy Ghost ...................................................... 99 Step Number 1................................................................................................................... 100 Step Number 2................................................................................................................... 101 PHILIPPIANS 3:12,13 .................................................................................................... 102 Step Number 3................................................................................................................... 103 Step Number 4................................................................................................................... 103 Step Number 5................................................................................................................... 104 Step Number 6................................................................................................................... 106 Step Number 7................................................................................................................... 107 Chapter 11 The Gift of the Word of Knowledge Part1 ...................................................... 108 Don't Be Ignorant of Spiritual Gifts..................................................................................... 109 Spiritual Gifts Will Exalt Jesus............................................................................................ 109 Gifts, Administrations, and Operations............................................................................... 110 The Nine Gifts Categorized................................................................................................ 111 Three revelation gifts ......................................................................................................... 111 Spiritual gifts that reveal something: .................................................................................. 111 Three power gifts Spiritual gifts that do something: ........................................................... 111 Three utterance or inspirational gifts Spiritual gifts that say something: ............................ 111 The Gift of the Word of Knowledge .................................................................................... 112 The Word of Knowledge Is Not Natural Knowledge ........................................................... 112 The Word of Knowledge Is Not A Profound Knowledge of the Bible.................................. 113 The Word of Knowledge Is Not Knowledge of God Through Close Communion With Him 113 Biblical Examples of the Word of Knowledge..................................................................... 114 The Word of Knowledge to John........................................................................................ 114 Word of Knowledge to Ananias.......................................................................................... 114 Modern Examples of the Word of Knowledge.................................................................... 116 Chapter 12 The Gift of the Word of Knowledge Part 2 ..................................................... 117 As the Spirit Wills ............................................................................................................... 118 The Word of Knowledge To Samuel Regarding Saul......................................................... 120 The Word of Knowledge Manifested To Locate a Lost Daughter....................................... 120 The Word of Knowledge to Elijah....................................................................................... 121 The Word of Knowledge To Elisha Regarding Syria .......................................................... 122 Chapter 13 The Gift of the Word of Wisdom ..................................................................... 130 The Word of Knowledge vs. The Word of Wisdom ............................................................ 132 The Word of Knowledge and the Word of Wisdom Can Operate Together........................ 132 The prophet of the Old Testament had to have.................................................................. 132 The Gift of the Word of Wisdom......................................................................................... 133 The Word of Knowledge and the Word of Wisdom Operating Together in The New Testament.......................................................................................................................... 133 Philip .................................................................................................................................. 135 Old Testament Examples of The Word of Wisdom ............................................................ 137 The Word of Wisdom to Joseph......................................................................................... 137 The Word of Wisdom in the New Testament...................................................................... 137 The Word of Wisdom to Paul ............................................................................................. 138 Conditional Words of Wisdom............................................................................................ 139 Jonah ................................................................................................................................. 140 Chapter 14 The Discerning of Spirits................................................................................. 141 What the Discerning of Spirits Is Not ................................................................................. 142 Discerning of Spirits Is Not Simply Discerning of Devils..................................................... 142 Maintain Balance In Dealing With Demons........................................................................ 143 GALATIANS 5:19-21 ...................................................................................................... 143 Discerning the Similitude of God........................................................................................ 144 Discerning the Risen Christ................................................................................................ 145 Discerning the Holy Spirit................................................................................................... 145 Discerning the Spirit Behind an Operation ......................................................................... 145 The Inward Witness As Our Guide..................................................................................... 146 The Word of Knowledge vs. The Discerning of Spirits ....................................................... 147 Chapter 15 The Gift of Faith................................................................................................ 149 Gifts of the Spirit Are Supernatural .................................................................................... 150 The Gift of Special Faith..................................................................................................... 151 The Gift of Special Faith Is Not the Same as Saving Faith ................................................ 151 The Gift of Faith vs. The Gift of the Working of Miracles.................................................... 153 Wigglesworth and the Gift of Faith ..................................................................................... 154 Wigglesworth related his experience: ................................................................................ 155 The Power Gifts Often Work Together............................................................................... 155 Casting Out Demons.......................................................................................................... 155 GALATIANS 3 ................................................................................................................ 156 Chapter 16 The Gift of the Working of Miracles................................................................ 158 Find Your Place of Ministry ................................................................................................ 158 The Working of Miracles Defined....................................................................................... 159 Old Testament Examples Of the Working of Miracles........................................................ 161 Moses and the Israelites .................................................................................................... 161 Elijah and the Widow.......................................................................................................... 161 Working of Miracles in the New Testament........................................................................ 161 Jesus and the Feeding of the Five Thousand .................................................................... 162 Ananias and Sapphira........................................................................................................ 162 Paul and Elymas ................................................................................................................ 163 The Gift of Faith vs. the Working of Miracles To Deliver From Danger .............................. 163 Gifts of Healings More Prevalent In the New Testament ................................................... 164 ACTS 6:8........................................................................................................................ 165 The Importance of the Working of Miracles........................................................................ 165 Desire Earnestly Spiritual Gifts .......................................................................................... 167 Gifts of Healings: Not Medical Science .............................................................................. 168 Gifts of Healings Prominent in The New Testament .......................................................... 169 Jesus Ministered as a Man Anointed by the Holy Spirit ..................................................... 170 The Gifts of Healings.......................................................................................................... 171 Gifts of Healings vs. Receiving by Faith............................................................................. 172 Ministering by the Gifts of Healings.................................................................................... 172 Chapter 18 Gift of Prophecy ............................................................................................... 175 Divers kinds of tongues is supernatural utterance in an unknown tongue. ........................ 176 The Gift of Prophecy vs. The Office of the Prophet............................................................ 177 New Testament Example Of the Gift of Prophecy.............................................................. 178 New Testament Example of The Prophet's Ministry........................................................... 178 Misuses of the Gift of Prophecy ......................................................................................... 179 The Simple Gift of Prophecy Is Not Prediction................................................................... 180 Manifestations of the Holy Spirit In Corporate Worship...................................................... 181 The Holy Spirit Manifests Himself As We Seek the Lord ................................................... 181 Caution Needed With Personal Prophecies....................................................................... 182 Simple Prophecy Edifies, Exhorts, and Comforts............................................................... 182 1 CORINTHIANS 14:3.................................................................................................... 182 Prophecy in One's Prayer Life............................................................................................ 183 Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs By the Gift of Prophecy ........................................... 185 Chapter 19 The Gift of Divers Kinds of Tongues .............................................................. 187 Tongues: The Most Prominent Gift .................................................................................... 187 The Gift of Tongues Is a Supernatural Sign....................................................................... 188 The Gift of Tongues Is Unique To This Dispensation......................................................... 188 Tongues Is the Evidence Of Being Filled With the Spirit.................................................... 189 Purposes of Speaking in Tongues ..................................................................................... 190 Initial Evidence of Receiving the Holy Spirit....................................................................... 190 Speaking Mysteries Supernaturally to God........................................................................ 190 Magnifying God.................................................................................................................. 191 ACTS 10:45,46............................................................................................................... 191 Edifying Ourselves ............................................................................................................. 191 JUDE 20......................................................................................................................... 191 Praying in the Spirit............................................................................................................ 191 Be Being Filled With the Spirit............................................................................................ 192 Spiritual Refreshing............................................................................................................ 193 Interpreting Tongues In Our Private Prayer Life................................................................. 193 The Gift of Tongues in Public Ministry................................................................................ 194 Prophecy Is Equivalent To Tongues and Interpretation ..................................................... 195 Speaking in Tongues in a Public Setting............................................................................ 196 MARK 16:17,18 .............................................................................................................. 196 Private vs. Public Operation Of the Gift of Tongues........................................................... 196 1 CORINTHIANS 14:18,19............................................................................................. 196 Tongues is not a teaching gift or a preaching gift............................................................... 197 Chapter 20 The Gift of Interpretation of Tongues............................................................. 197 The Gift of Interpretation of Tongues ................................................................................. 199 The Gift of Interpretation of Tongues In Our Private Prayer Life........................................ 199 The Gift of Interpretation of Tongues In Public Ministry ..................................................... 200 1 CORINTHIANS 14:27.................................................................................................. 200 The Gift of Interpretation of Tongues ................................................................................. 201 The Gift of Interpretation — Not Translation ...................................................................... 202 Chapter 1 My Pentecostal Experience Raised From the Bed of Sickness I was born again on April 22, 1933, at twenty minutes to eight o'clock in the south bedroom of 405 North College Street in McKinney, Texas. I was raised up from the bed of sickness on the second Tuesday of August 1934, after spending sixteen long months flat on my back with two terminal organic heart conditions and an incurable blood disease. And my body was almost totally paralyzed. When I first started reading the Word of God on the bed of sickness, Grandma would prop the Bible up in front of me as I lay there on my bed. I could only read for about ten minutes at a time — after that I could hardly see. Then that was all I could read for the day. The next day I would read for another ten or fifteen minutes. After a few weeks of reading like that, I got so I could read for an hour at a time; eventually I could read for as long as I liked. As a child, I had been brought up going to Sunday school; I can't remember the first time I went to church. Nor can I remember the first time I ever read the Bible. It seemed I had prayed all of my life, yet I had never been born again until April 22, 1933. You see, you can be religious and yet not really be a born-again child of God. But when you are born again, the very same Bible that you have been reading looks different. The Bible becomes clear and easy to understand when you are born again. And as I read Grandma's Bible, I found that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb. 13:8). The doctors had said I could die at any time, so when I began reading the Bible, I began reading in the New Testament. I reasoned, I might not be alive ten minutes from now, so I will utilize this ten minutes, or whatever time I have, and I will start reading in the New Testament. I began reading in Matthew 1:1. When I got to Mark 11:24,I read, ". . . What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them." From the first time I read that verse, I never forgot it. I didn't take time to memorize it; it just branded itself on my mind, so to speak, because Mark 11:24 was my answer for healing. MARK 11:23,24 23 For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, B e thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. 24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. However, immediately after I read Mark 11:23 and 24, the devil hopped on my shoulder and said, "Yes, but divine healing has been done away with, you know." I said, "Well, thank God, faith hasn't been done away with! This scripture says, '. . . What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe . . .' (Mark 11:24). I have never heard anyone say that believing and faith have been done away with." "Yes, but healing has. You know all that healing business has been done away with." I said to the devil, "What about Mark chapter 5? In Mark chapter 5, Jesus said to the woman with the issue of blood, '. . . Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole . . .' [Mark 5:34]. Mr. Devil, if her faith made her whole, my faith will make me whole." And, thank God, it did! At that time, I didn't know of anyone else in the whole world who believed in divine healing besides me. There was no Full Gospel church in my town at the time, and I had never heard healing preached. There weren't any Christian radio programs such as we have today; at least, if there were, I didn't know about them. After my healing, I began my ministry just as a young Baptist boy preacher. When I heard that Full Gospel people preached on healing too, I began to fellowship with them because fellowshipping with those of like-precious faith was just like getting a spiritual shot in the arm. It built up my faith. The Full Gospel folks preached some things I didn't quite understand or altogether agree with at that time, such as the baptism in the Holy Spirit, but I put up with that to have a little fellowship around the doctrine of healing! God Is Not Nervous! I wasn't used to church services where everyone would pray all together at one time, and this bothered me at first. I started to say something about it a time or two to straighten these Full Gospel folks out. In fact, I once heard someone else tell them, "Now God's not hard of hearing, you know." But the Full Gospel folks just replied, "He's not nervous either!" When these Full Gospel folks invited Christians to come and pray at the altar, I would go forward to pray with them. But I would get as far away from them as I could because they bothered me all praying at the same time like that. I would get off in the corner somewhere and pray quietly. However, after a while the thought occurred to me, These folks knew about divine healing and my church didn 't. They might know something more here in this area of praying than I do too. So I decided I would read through the Book of Acts and see how the Early Church prayed. As I read, I couldn't find one place where they called on "Deacon Brown" or "Sister Jones" to lead in prayer while everyone else remained silent. Instead, I found to my utter amazement that the Early Church all prayed at the same time! ACTS 4:23,24 23 And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them. 24 And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God WITH ONE ACCORD.... The thing that cinched it with me was when I got down to Acts chapter 16 where it says that Paul and Silas were in jail. Their backs were bleeding; their feet were in stocks. Yet at midnight they prayed and sang praises to God. And the Bible says, ". . . and the prisoners heard them" (Acts 16:25). Until that time, I had believed in praying to God, but I believed in being quiet about it. But then I saw that Paul and Silas didn't pray quietly, not even in jail. The next time I went to the Full Gospel service and they called us to the altar to pray, I got right in the middle of them and lifted my voice just like they did. When I did, I felt a release in my spirit. The Word of God will set you free. Jesus said, ". . . ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32). God's Word is truth, and it will set you free. The Baptism in the Holy Spirit These Full Gospel folks preached something else I couldn't quite accept — the baptism of the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in other tongues. I believed in the Holy Ghost and in the baptism of the Holy Ghost. I knew I hadn't received the baptism in the Holy Ghost, but I believed in it. But that "tongues" business — that was a bitter pill for me to swallow. I had been warned against speaking with tongues. But fellowshipping with Full Gospel people who did speak in tongues was kind of like one fellow down in East Texas said: "It's like a slippery creek bank. You keep fooling around it long enough and you'll slip in." As a young boy preacher and pastor of a community church, I meditated and thought on the scriptures concerning the Holy Spirit, and I came to the conclusion that these Full Gospel folks were wrong about tongues. I concluded that tongues weren't necessary; they weren't for us today. I decided that believers could receive this enduem ment of power — the baptism in the Holy Ghost — without speaking in tongues. That was my own opinion, of course. It certainly wasn't Scripture. I said to the Lord in my heart, "Lord, I know these folks are good people. They are thoroughly saved — born again — and they knew about divine healing when my church didn't. I certainly do believe in the Holy Ghost. And I believe in the infilling of the Holy Ghost, the enduement of power from on High. Then I said to the Lord, "I sense a lack of power in my own life, and I know I need the infilling of the Holy Ghost. And I expect to receive, all right. But I am of the opinion that tongues don't go along with the baptism in the Holy Ghost, and that they are not for us today." Immediately the Lord spoke to my heart. I knew it was the Holy Spirit speaking through the Word of God. That same still small voice that had brought me off a bed of sickness and into divine healing asked me, "What does Acts 2:39 say?" I quoted the scripture, "For THE PROMISE is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call" (Acts 2:39). Then the still small voice said, "What promise is that?" I said, "The last part of Acts 2:38 says,'. . . and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.' So the reference here is to the promise of the gift of the Holy Ghost." Then I hastened to add, "But, Lord, I believe in the Holy Ghost. It's tongues I am not sure about." (I had changed it a little bit this time to "I'm not sure.") The Holy Spirit always leads us in line with the Word of God. The Word and the Spirit agree (1 John 5:7,8). I am not in favor of just following voices, because you can go wrong following voices; you can follow the wrong voice (1 Cor. 14:10). But you can never go wrong following the voice or the leading of the Holy Spirit because He will always lead you in line with the Word of God (John 16:13; 1 John 5:6-8). Jesus said, ". . . he [the Holy Spirit] shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you" (John 16:14). And ". . . he shall not speak of himself [But, thank God, He does speak!]; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak . . ." (John 16:13). Every born-again believer has the Holy Ghost in a measure through the new birth (John 3:5-8; John 4:14). But this is not the same as the baptism in the Holy Spirit — the enduement of power from on High that Jesus talked about in Luke 24:49, Acts 1:8, and John 7:38. Just because someone is born again doesn't mean he is filled with the Holy Spirit. The Work of the Holy Spirit in the New Birth There is the work of the Holy Spirit in the new birth, as we can see by the following scriptures. JOHN 3:5-8 5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of THE SPIRIT, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is BORN OF THE SPIRIT is spirit. 7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be BORN AGAIN. 8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is BORN OF THE SPIRIT. ROMANS 8:16 16 THE SPIRIT itself I Himself ] beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. The Work of the Holy Spirit In the Baptism of the Holy Spirit From these scriptures, we can see the work of the Holy Ghost in the new birth. But there is also a work of the Holy Spirit that God desires to perform in the life of every believer subsequent or following the new-birth experience, and that is called the infilling of the Holy Spirit or the baptism in the Holy Spirit. That is what Jesus was talking about in Luke 24:49 and Acts 1:8. LUKE 24:49 49 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. ACTS 1:8 8 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 Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. I had told the Lord that I believed in the baptism of the Holy Ghost, but that I wasn't sure about the tongues part. The Lord spoke to me again, "What does Acts 2:4 say?" Of course, I could quote these scriptures from the Book of Acts, but just because you have the Word in your head does not mean that you really know what it means. In other words, you need to have the revelation of God's Word in your spirit to really know and understand what it means. I quoted Acts 2:4: "And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." I got that far and said again, "And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak. .. ." Then I exclaimed, "Oh, I see it! I see it! It says, '. . . they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak WITH OTHER TONGUES' [Acts 2:4]. And when I get filled with the Holy Ghost, I will begin to speak with other tongues too! Lord, that settles it. I am going right down to the Full Gospel preacher's house and receive the Holy Ghost." ‘Tarrying’ Is Not a Formula For Receiving the Holy Spirit I then walked over to the parsonage and knocked on the door. The Full Gospel pastor came to the door. I said to him, "I've come to receive the Holy Ghost." He said, "Son, you need to wait." (From that day until this I have never been able to figure out why anyone would ever tell someone to wait to receive the Holy Ghost!) Someone may ask, "Haven't you ever read in the Bible where it says to tarry? And everyone knows that 'to tarry' means to wait." Yes, but that is not a formula for receiving the Holy Ghost, because Jesus actually said, ". . . TARRY YE IN THE CITY OF JERUSALEM, until ye be endued with power from on high" (Luke 24:49). It was just as necessary for that group, the 120 who gathered in the Upper Room, to be in Jerusalem as it was that they wait or tarry. So if waiting were a formula for receiving the Holy Ghost, then why take the word "Jerusalem" out of this verse? In other words, if it's still necessary for us today to wait or to tarry in order to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit, then it must be necessary for us to go to Jerusalem to do it! Also, the 120 people in the Upper Room weren't waiting in the sense that they were getting ready and preparing themselves to be filled with the Holy Ghost. No, they were waiting for the Day of Pentecost to come. The Holy Ghost could not be given until then. If they had been waiting and preparing themselves before they could receive the Holy Spirit, the Bible would have read, "When they were ready, they were all filled with the Holy Ghost." But it doesn't read that way. In Acts 2:1 and 4, the Bible says, "And when THE DAY OF PENTECOST WAS FULLY COME . . . they were all filled with the Holy Ghost. . . ." (We will cover whether it is scriptural to tarry to receive the Holy Spirit in greater detail in Chapter 6 of this study course.) Someone said, "But waiting gets you ready to receive the Holy Ghost." No, it doesn't. Getting saved gets you ready. The Bible mentions the only requirement for receiving the Holy Ghost. It says, ". . . the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call" (Acts 2:39). In other words, the promise of the baptism in the Holy Spirit is for as many as have received Jesus Christ as their Savior. Any Believer Can Receive the Holy Spirit By saying a person has to wait in order to receive the Holy Spirit, people are really saying a person has to clean himself up first. But you can't clean yourself up except through repentance of unconfessed sin (1 John 1:9). The blood of Jesus Christ is what cleanses believers from all sin (1 John 1:9). If you are blood washed, you are ready right now to receive the Holy Spirit. If a person who is saved is sincerely seeking the baptism in the Holy Spirit, he can receive. LUKE 11:9-13 9 And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. 10 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. 11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? 12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your Heavenly Father give THE HOLY SPIRIT to them that ask him? Biblical Example of Believers Receiving The Holy Spirit Without Tarrying Any believer can ask the Father for the Holy Spirit and receive this precious Gift without tarrying or waiting. For instance, after Cornelius and those in his household were saved, they did not have to wait to receive the Holy Spirit. In fact, they were not only saved but they were filled with the Holy Ghost almost at the same time (Acts 11:14,15). In other words, after salvation, they didn't have time to get "ready" to receive the Holy Spirit; they didn't wait or tarry for the Holy Ghost. They received the Holy Spirit immediately without having to get "ready" (Acts 10:30-48). In recounting this experience to the apostles and brethren in Jerusalem, Peter explained that those in Cornelius' household received the Word that was preached to them and were saved. Then they were immediately filled with the Holy Spirit. ACTS 11:11-15 11 And, behold, immediately there were three men already come unto the house where I was, sent from Caesa area unto me. 12 And the spirit bade me go with them, nothing doubting. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered into the man's house. ... 13 And he shewed us how he had seen an angel in his house, which stood and said unto him, Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon, whose surname is Peter; 14 Who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be SAVED. 15 And as I [Peter] began to speak, THE HOLY GHOST FELL ON THEM, as on us at the beginning. Also, there is something in Acts 10:45 and 46 that tells us that speaking in tongues goes hand in hand with the baptism in the Holy Ghost. ACTS 10:45,46 45 And they of the circumcision which believed [the Jewish believers] were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out THE GIFT OF THE HOLY GHOST. 46 FOR THEY HEARD THEM SPEAK WITH TONGUES, AND MAGNIFY GOD.... You see, if it hadn't been for the evidence of speaking with tongues, the Jewish believers would never have accepted the Gentiles into the Church, because speaking in tongues is what convinced the Jews that the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles! It was strictly a Jewish Church up until then. Even Peter himself didn't know that the Gentiles could be saved until he had the vision which is recorded in Acts chapter 10. When the Holy Ghost was poured out upon the Gentiles, it astonished the Jewish believers who accompanied Peter to Cornelius' house. Why Wait To Receive a Gift? Thank God, God showed me His Word on the subject, so I knew I didn't have to wait or tarry before I could be filled with the Holy Spirit. I saw in God's Word that if believers in the Book of Acts didn't have to wait to receive the Holy Spirit, then I didn't have to wait either. I also knew that when I received the Holy Spirit, I would speak in tongues. When I told this Full Gospel pastor, "I've come here to receive the Holy Ghost," and he said to wait, I blurted out, "But it won't take me long to receive!" The church was having a revival service that night, and it was then already 6:00 in the evening, so he wanted me to wait and seek for the baptism of the Holy Ghost in the service. But I knew I would have to wait until after 7:00 when the service started. Then I would have to wait until the preliminaries were over. And then I would have to wait until the preaching was over. In other words, it would have been about 9:00 that evening before I could have gotte...

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