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Table of Contents Who Is the Holy Spirit? Page 4

God’s Spirit in Creation Page 4 Who is the Holy Spirit? Page 5

Receiving the Holy Spirit Page 6 How Does One Receive the Holy Spirit? Page 6 Why Was the Holy Spirit Given to Man? Page 7 Stirring Up The Holy Spirit Page 9

Don’t Let the Holy Spirit Be Dormant in You Page 9 Spirit of Power Page 10

Gifts of the Spirit Explained: Wisdom Page 13

A Word of Wisdom Page 13 Gifts of the Spirit Explained: Knowledge Page 15

A Word of Knowledge Page 15 Gifts of the Spirit Explained: Discernment Page 17

Discerning of Spirits Page 17 Gifts of the Spirit Explained: Faith, Healing & Miracles Page 18 Gifts of the Spirit Explained: Prophecy & Tongues Page 19

Prophecy Page 19 Different Kinds of Tongues Page 20

The Holy Spirit in the Upper Room Page 22 Acts Chapter 2 Explained Page 22 The Fruit of the Spirit Page 25 Seek Ye First the Kingdom Explained Page 27

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Who is the Holy Spiri t?

God’s Spirit in Creation Most of the bible’s accounts of God on earth refer to Him being present in the form of His Holy Spirit. It is seen that whenever the bible talks about the Holy Spirit on earth or in the presence of man, He is usually there to perform a task: God's Spirit is first mentioned as being present on earth in Genesis 1. The scripture says:

“1- In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2- The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.”

Verse one mentions God and gives no specification of whether The Father, The Son or the Spirit is being referred to. However, the bible differentiates in verse two that it was God’s Spirit that was on the earth hovering over the waters after the heavens and earth were created. The scriptures make an account of God creating the content of the universe in six days. Consider the fact that the Spirit was the form of God said to be present on earth before the earth's content was created. We can therefore conclude that when God spoke the Word and commanded the elements of the earth to be made; it was the Holy Spirit that actually created them. Nevertheless, there is nowhere in Genesis' description of creation that says the Holy Spirit is the One who completed

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the task of creating the world's elements. So, we will use another scripture in the bible to further show this was the Holy Spirit's role during the formation of the earth's content. In the book of Isaiah, there is a mention of God in the beginning when the earth was created. Isaiah 40:12-13 (NLT) says:

12- Who else has held the oceans in his hand? Who has measured off the heavens with his fingers? Who else knows the weight of the earth or has weighed the mountains and hills on a scale? 13- Who is able to advise the Spirit of the Lord?

Here we see Prophet Hezekiah telling Isaiah that God's Spirit does not need anyone to give Him counsel because He is the one who created the foundations of the earth. This scripture illustrates what tasks were performed by God's Spirit during the time of creation.

Who is the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit is literally the Spirit of God. When referring to people on this earth, we've all heard a phrase like: “She has a meek spirit”. Here we see the personality and spirit of a person being referred to separately from their actual physical body. This is the same way we can think about God and His Spirit. When we talk about the Spirit of God we are referring to God's state of being that is separate from the actual person we perceive as God the Father. It is important to understand that for the most part when a person seeks after the presence of God or Jesus on earth it is His Spirit they are asking for. This is the case even if they don't

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make mention of the term “Holy Spirit”. Remember, there is One God who exists eternally in three forms; The Father, Son and Spirit. When men and women call on the Father for something, it is generally the Spirit that is sent down to the earth. This is similar to the way God created the heavens and the earth, but sent His Spirit to actually create the earth's content. We can also infer that when people call on Jesus, it is generally not the case that they are expecting Him to come as a physical human body in front of them. However, when we hear people proclaim in churches “He's in the room” they are talking about the presence of His Spirit. This is the case even if they were not calling on the Spirit, but called on Jesus or the Father. Remember again, there is one God who exists in three forms. Whatever form He comes in, it is still the same God.

Receiving the Holy Spiri t

How Does One Receive the Holy Spirit? In the Old Testament the Spirit of God would only come upon select favored people. However, as of the time of the New Testament (up until now) the Spirit would dwell continually in the lives of anyone who is saved. Now, this is a controversial topic in the sense that not many radical Christians believe a person has the Holy Spirit unless they see the person speaking in tongues. However, that concept is negated by the fact that many of those same Christians constantly say to others, "You are not supposed to

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fornicate because the bible says your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit." and they would even say this to believers who have never spoken in tongues before! For obvious reasons, stating these two concepts together is a contradiction. Nevertheless, it is not my desire to tell you what is not the truth as much as it is my desire to tell you the truth. So here it goes: Everyone who receives Jesus Christ also receives God and whereby also receives His Holy Spirit. Remember, we stated there is one God who exists in three forms and that God's Spirit is Himself in a different form (just like your "spirit" is yourself in a different form: She has a meek spirit). The same way we do not separate the spirit of a person from their actual state of being is the same way we do not separate God's Spirit from His actual state of being. Once you receive God- once you receive Jesus, you receive the Holy Spirit. What I'm trying to say is this: They are all the same God! There is only One God! He just is manifested in three different ways. Why Was the Holy Spirit Given to Man? You will further understand this concept once you understand the purpose of the Holy Spirit. The reason we were given the Spirit is because Jesus, anticipating His death, did not want to leave the people without a teacher, advisor, & form of God. Jesus' name, Emmanuel literally means "God With Us" (God in Heaven is now with us- Notice that Jesus' name Emmanuel is literally saying that Jesus is God; the form of God that is with us). So after Jesus died, does that mean God is not with us anymore? No. Jesus took care of that potential problem in John 14:16-18 when He promised the Holy Spirit. Here, a little while before His crucifixion Jesus says:

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16- And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—17- the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.

Let us first pay particular attention to the last line, verse 18. Jesus says, I will not leave you orphans. Up until the coming of Jesus Christ the only way God communicated with His people was through prophets, high priests & God's appointed leaders such as Moses. However after Jesus/Emmanuel came, God became present here on earth and began to dwell with all His people (not just appointed leaders): God with us. Jesus, knowing He was leaving the earth said, "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you". Here again, you see the forms of God being used interchangeably. Jesus is referring to himself as the Holy Spirit, saying, "I will come to you". He is saying that "God With Us" will still be with the people, but this time not in the form of a man. He will be with us through the form of the Holy Spirit. In verse 17 Jesus refers to Himself as the Holy Spirit again when He says, "for He dwells with you and will be in you". Examine this line carefully. Do you notice that the Holy Spirit technically wasn't dwelling with them at that time? The Holy Spirit officially did not come until the day of Pentecost in Acts 2. So why did Jesus say He dwells with you (present tense) and will be in you (future tense)? Jesus was saying I am with you now and after my death I will come back to dwell in you

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through the form of the Holy Spirit. This is why He then says, "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you". (This concept can be confusing to grasp because of the fact that Jesus refers to Himself interchangeably as the Holy Spirit throughout this passage. Nevertheless, please take time to read these verses over so you can see what I am attempting to explain. Also, read over John chapters 14-16. These chapters contain Jesus' promise of the coming of the Holy Spirit and will further show you the purpose of the Holy Spirit and why Jesus wanted the people to have the Spirit.) So now we see, the Spirit of God was not promised so that people can prophesy or speak in tongues or have power. These are benefits that are inevitable to manifest among people who have the Holy Spirit because this is the Holy Spirit's character. Nevertheless the purpose of the Holy Spirit is for God's people to have God dwelling with them even though Jesus Christ/"God With Us" is not here anymore. This is why teachers of the Word can tell Christians that once they become saved the Holy Spirit is dwelling in them. Just because the Holy Spirit isn't speaking in tongues, prophesying, working miracles through you doesn't mean you do not have the Holy Spirit.

St irr ing Up The Holy Spiri t

Don’t Let the Holy Spirit Be Dormant in You Even if a person is saved, sanctified and receives the Holy

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Spirit, if they want to see Him move supernaturally in their life they must call on Him and seek after Him for the manifestation of His presence. Take into consideration, the young disciple in the bible named Timothy. In the beginning of Acts 16, the Apostle Paul meets Timothy and takes him to help spread the gospel in different cities. Now, although Timothy already received and was filled with the Spirit, Paul told Him to still seek after and call on Him when necessary. Paul says to Timothy in 2 Timothy 1:

“I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

Based on the way this scripture is phrased, we see here that the gift from God Paul was referring to was the Holy Spirit. (We can also use Acts 19:6 to understand that Paul was referring to the Holy Spirit because in this account the scripture says, “Then when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them.”) Even though Timothy already had the Holy Spirit, Paul was telling him to “stir” the Holy Spirit up. The Spirit was already present inside of Timothy, but Paul was telling him to not let the Spirit lay dormant. He was telling Him to stir up the Spirit, because if he did the Spirit would manifest his “power, love and sound mind”.

Spirit of Power Paul further explains how the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of power in 1 Corinthians while telling of the Spirit’s gifts. (Disclaimer: a

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lot of times when we see people operating in the gifts I am about to mention we say things like "Pastor Bob has the gift of prophesy. It is important to understand that is not the case. The biblically correct way to put is "Pastor Bob has the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit has the gift of prophecy) The nine gifts of the Spirit, or the Holy Spirit's gifts are mentioned in chapter 12:7-11 of 1 Corinthians when Paul says to the church at Corinth,

7- But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8- for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9- to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10- to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11- But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.

Here Paul lists nine supernatural gifts of the Spirit and says when these gifts are worked through men; this is how the Spirit manifests Himself. That is why, even though Timothy already had the Holy Spirit, Paul was telling him to stir Him up. It is one thing to have the Holy Spirit with you, but it is another thing to have the Spirit manifest Himself through you. Paul was telling Timothy to stir up a manifestation of the Spirit that was already inside of him. When the Spirit of God manifests Himself through His gifts there is no disputing whether it was the strength of man or the

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Spirit of God at work. Take Ezekiel, for example. Throughout the book of Ezekiel the Holy Spirit manifested the gift of prophesy to the people through him. We know there is no way in the natural that man can tell the future. However, the gifts of the Spirit are all super-natural. This allows for there to be no confusion on whether the Holy Spirit is truly present; hence the term “manifestation of the Spirit” used by Paul when listing the gifts. We know there are certain things men simply just cannot do! So when we see these supernatural things, like the gift of prophesy, being worked through men we know it is actually the Holy Spirit at work. Another example of the supernatural manifestation of the Holy Spirit through His gifts is seen in the story of Samson. There is a story in the book of Judges where Samson broke out of the ropes he was tied up in because the Spirit of God weakened the ropes' solidity. Judges 15:14 states:

Then the Spiri t of the LORD came mightily upon him; and the ropes that were on his arms became like flax that is burned with fire, and his bonds broke loose from his hands.

In this account, we see the supernatural gift, working of miracles at work. Samson could not have charred the ropes on His own because he was tied up. We know the Spirit of God was at work here because there was no one who could have weakened the ropes for Samson. As the scripture states, the ropes only weakened when the Spirit of the Lord manifested Himself through His gift of the working of miracles. The gifts of the Spirit are all supernatural. (This even includes

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the seemingly natural ones. Which will further be explained later on.) These nine gifts can be broken down into three categories; gifts that supernaturally reveal facts (revelations) that don't necessarily need to be spoken, gifts that are spoken by the Holy Spirit, and gifts that empower impossible change:

Revelation Gifts Spoken Gifts Gifts that Change Word of Wisdom Prophecy Faith

Word of Knowledge Different Kind of

Tongues Gifts of Healings

Discerning of Spirits Interpretation of Tongues

Working of Miracles

Gifts of the Spiri t Explained: Wisdom

A Word of Wisdom When the Spirit gives a word of wisdom it supernaturally aids in helping us make a decision. It is not our own wisdom that we rely on. Instead it is a portion of the wisdom of God; which we know is infinite. Just as a word is a fragment of a sentence, so is a word of wisdom a fragment of God’s unlimited wisdom. A word of wisdom is given by the Spirit to help us know, beyond our own wisdom, the most beneficial things to say, do or perform. Some describe this gift (as well as the gifts of discerning of spirits and a word of knowledge) as briefly being able to see the world from the perspective of God; who knows everything.

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Jesus speaks about the Holy Spirit’s ability to give a word of wisdom in Mark 13:11. He says to the disciples, “When they arrest you and deliver you up, do not worry beforehand, or premeditate what you will speak. But whatever is given you in that hour, speak that; for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit”. Here, Jesus is referring to the Holy Spirit’s perfect ability to give people the right things to say at the right time. The wisdom of the Holy Spirit empowers us to make advantageous choices that will be of the best benefit to us. In this scripture, Jesus specifically tells the disciples not to depend on their own wisdom or understanding, but to rely on the unlimited wisdom of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit knows everything and uses supernatural wisdom to lead us to the right place at the right time while giving us the right understanding needed to say and do the right things in order to get the best results possible. His wisdom is boundless in comparison to our own wisdom, which is limited. We can assume the most logical things to do and say in order to get the best results, but because our wisdom is not infinite like the Holy Spirit’s the results will not be as perfect. Let’s take 1 Kings 18:12 for example: In this scripture Obadiah finds Elijah who King Ahab had been looking for and is worried that if he leaves, Elijah will be led by the Holy Spirit to a hiding place where no one will be able to find him. So Obadiah says to Elijah

“it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from you, that the Spiri t of the LORD will carry you to a place I do not know; so when I go and tell Ahab, and he

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cannot find you, he will kill me”. Here, Obadiah is acknowledging the Holy Spirit’s ability to reveal to Elijah a place unknown to Obadiah. Elijah, by his own wisdom, would not have been able to know what hiding places he can go to that are known or unknown to Obadiah. However, Obadiah knew that if the Spirit of the Lord guided Elijah to a hiding place it would be so perfect that no one would be able to find him.

Gifts of the Spiri t Explained: Knowledge

A Word of Knowledge A word of knowledge is given by the Spirit to supernaturally impart information to us. It is similar to a word of wisdom except it is more arbitrary. A word of wisdom is usually given when a person needs to make a decision. On the other hand, a word of knowledge is given to inform people of spontaneous facts about people, places, things, situations, etc. The information given by the Holy Spirit through words of knowledge is not confined within the boundaries of our own human knowledge. It is infinite and supernatural. For example, in the book of Acts, the multitude was said to share everything they had with each other for the sake of being of one heart and one soul. However, in Acts 5 there was a man named Ananias who kept back part of his goods for himself and his wife, but the Holy Spirit supernaturally revealed this fact to Peter. Verses 2 and 3 says,

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“he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife being aware of it, and brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spiri t and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself?”

Once again, we see Peter had no natural way of knowing Ananias kept back part of the goods for himself. However, notice the term Peter uses: “why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit”. It was the Holy Spirit, One who knows everything, which supernaturally revealed Ananias’ lie to Peter. If we look at the entire passage we would see that Peter had no way of using his own knowledge to come to that conclusion. The Holy Spirit’s ability to reveal facts to man through words of knowledge is also seen in Luke 2:25-27. The bible says:

25- And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spiri t that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27- So he came by the Spiri t into the temple.

Here Simeon is told about his future and destiny through a word of knowledge from the Holy Spirit. (We also see the Spirit reveal a word of wisdom to Simeon, which prompted him to make the decision to go to the temple in verse 27.)

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Gifts of the Spiri t Explained: Discernment

Discerning of Spirits: This gift is the last of the three revelation gifts (gifts that reveal). It is the ability to differentiate, through knowledge given by the Spirit, whether a person is operating through promptings of the Holy Spirit, an evil spirit, or the flesh. Malachi 3:18 describes one use of discernment as being able to “discern between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him”. This is seen in the bible in the book of Acts 13. Here Paul is able to discern the unspoken evil intentions of a man. Verses 8-10 say:

8- But Elymas the sorcerer (for so his name is translated) withstood them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. 9- Then Saul, who also is called Paul, filled with the Holy Spiri t , looked intently at him 10- and said, “O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?

Here Paul was able to discern through the Spirit the evil prompting a person’s actions. The gift of discerning of spirits can give people supernatural knowledge from the Holy Spirit that determines if a person is demon-possessed, filled with the Holy Spirit or just operating “in the flesh”. You can read the full story about Paul using the gift of discernment in Acts 13.

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Gifts of the Spiri t Explained: Faith, Healing, & Miracles

Faith, Gifts of Healings & Working of Miracles As stated in the "Stirring Up The Spirit" blog post, faith, healing and working of miracles are the three gifts of the Spirit that inspire supernatural change. They are not spoken gifts or revelation gifts, but they are gifts that cause people to be healed or cause miracles to happen. Faith from the Holy Spirit is by and large what prompts the manifestation of healings and working of miracles. This is seen on countless occasions throughout the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John and in the book of the Acts of the Apostles. In the bible, healings and miracles from God’s Spirit are seen many times manifested in those who received knowledge of God’s power and consequently began to stand in faith. Consider the number of times Jesus is quoted as telling people who heard of Him and believed in Him that their faith resulted in a miracle:

• “Be of good cheer, daughter; your faith has made you well.” -Matthew 9:22

• Then He touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith let it be to you.” -Matthew 9:29

• Then Jesus answered and said to her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.” And her

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daughter was healed from that very hour. -Matthew 15:28

• And He said to him, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.” -Luke 17:19

The bible says in Hebrew 2:4 that God bears witness of himself both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit. So although, these gifts of the Spirit can be used to benefit others (for example healing the sick), their purpose is to allow God to "bear witness of Himself", according to the above verse. Remember, the manifestation of the Spirit comes through these nine gifts. This is how God manifests his presence to people.

Gifts of the Spiri t Explained: Prophecy & Tongues

Prophecy Prophecy is the first of the three Spoken Gifts of the Spirit. The literal definition of prophecy is to foretell by divine inspiration. 2 Peter 1:21 says, “prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spiri t”. This is seen many times throughout the bible, as we mentioned earlier while looking at the life of Ezekiel. When men prophesy, the words they speak about the future are given to them directly by the Holy Spirit

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Different Kinds of Tongues Speaking in tongues is the second of the three Spoken Gifts of the Spirit. Mark 16:17-18 says “these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues”. The gift of tongues was first seen in the bible in Acts chapter 2 when the Holy Spirit came swiftly into the room where the disciples were gathered. Acts 2:4 says, “they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (this passage will further be explained in the next Chapter). Although most of the times, the words being uttered through the gift of tongues cannot be understood by men, we can be assured that what is being said is of the Holy Spirit. Therefore whatever is being spoken is sure to be within the will of God. Romans 8:26-27 describes tongues as the Holy Spirit making intercession for us through “groans” that we ourselves cannot utter:

26- Likewise the Spiri t also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27- Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God

One of the benefits of the gift of tongues is that although we may not know how to design our own prayers to always be for what the Father planned specifically for our individual lives, the Holy Spirit uses tongues to intercede for us according to the will of God in that way.

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Another benefit of tongues is that it builds our faith. It is arguably the hardest of all the gifts for people to dispute within themselves. If a person who just starting out in faith receives a word of prophesy, a word of knowledge or wisdom, the interpretation of tongues, discernment or faith from the Holy Spirit it can be very hard for them to differentiate whether it is the Holy Spirit or their own imagination that generated the thoughts, ideas and words. Sometimes, even when the Holy Spirit performs a healing or a miracle, the human mind thinks so logically that we can tend to sometimes question the science behind what was done to determine whether it was truly the Holy Spirit or just a rare coincidence. However, when a person receives the gift of tongues it is extremely evident to them that the Holy Spirit is present. To be extremely descriptive here, the person literally is able to feel their tongue and mouth moving; knowing that they themselves are not moving it! For this reason, there are a lot of people who still don’t ever believe a person is filled with the Holy Spirit unless the person speaks or has once spoken in tongues! It is extremely hard to dispute that gift, especially from the perspective of the person who receives it. So much so, Jude 1:20 says that when we pray in the Holy Spirit we build up our most holy faith. (According to the book of Corinthians, praying in the spirit means speaking in tongues. See in context 1 Corinthians 14:15-16)

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The Holy Spiri t in the Upper Room

I hope through breaking down the nine gifts of the Spirit or the nine ways the spirit manifests Himself you are able to understand that these gifts are how God proves to people that He is present. Otherwise we only believe blindly that God exists and that we are saved. However, when these gifts manifest, its as though we can now believe in something tangible. Remember Hebrews 2:4 states God bears witness of himself both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit. These gifts are how God bears witness of Himself. Understanding this concept can give us a better understanding of why the one hundred and twenty people in the upper room spoke in tongues in Acts Chapter 2. God was revealing Himself to the people for the first time through the Holy Spirit and wanted it to be clear to them that the Holy Spirit was now present. Remember we said in the previous chapter about the gift of tongues that tongues is arguably the hardest gift of the Holy Spirit for Christians (especially Christians struggling in faith) to dispute within themselves. This is why Jude says in Jude 1:20 that we build up our most holy faith when we pray in tongues. Acts Chapter 2 Explained In Acts Chapter 1 verses 4 through 8 Jesus tells those who followed Him not to leave Jerusalem until after the Holy Spirit came upon them. He then tells them after the Holy Spirit does

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come upon them they will receive power and that they will be able to bear witness of Him not only in Jerusalem, but also in Judea, Samaria and all the earth. Jesus commanded those people to bear witness of who God is. Of course we know, a very effective way to do so is by allowing the Spirit to bear witness of Himself through the nine gifts. With the knowledge we have of the gifts of the Spirit, that their role is to bear witness of God (because it is how God manifests Himself through people), we understand it was not probable that the Holy Spirit was going to come upon them without manifesting one of the nine gifts. First and foremost, if the Holy Spirit came without manifesting Himself how would the disciples have really known He was there? It's not like nowadays where we have a New Testament that tells us the Holy Spirit comes upon every one who follows Jesus Christ. This was the first time the Holy Spirit came after the departure of Jesus so the gift of tongues was manifested as a means of the Holy Spirit bearing witness of Himself so the people would know He was now inside of them. However, in Acts 2, speaking in tongues didn't only allow the Holy Spirit to bear witness of His presence to the one-hundred and twenty people who were there in the upper room. As prophesied by Jesus, it bore witness of God to those in Jerusalem as well! The scripture states that the people in the region (Jerusalem) were shocked because some of the men and women who were speaking in tongues were supernaturally speaking in foreign languages that the unbelievers could understand. Knowing that it takes months, sometimes years to learn a language and the followers of Jesus were speaking

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another language instantly by the Holy Spirit, it made them believe that God was present. Human beings, on their own could not do such a thing. Is the Gift of Tongues the Only Gift the Spiri t Uses To Manifest Himself When People Are Saved? The gifts of tongues isn't the only gift that manifests when people receive Jesus and consequently receive the Holy Spirit. For example in Acts 19, there were a group of twelve people who were saved who had never even heard of the Holy Spirit (now we know this still happens in our time!) and Paul laid hands on them and the Holy Spirit began to manifest Himself and bear witness of His presence through two of the gifts of the Spirit. Acts 19:6 says: And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied. Here, we see the gift of prophesy as well as the gift of tongues operating in order for the Holy Spirit to manifest His presence to those twelve people who did not even know He existed much less that he was dwelling inside of them. (Refer back to the "Stirring up the Spirit" chapter to understand that the Holy Spirit can be present in people without being manifested.) Another instance where a gift of the Spirit, besides tongues, is manifested in people who are saved is in Mark 2 when a paralytic goes to Jesus for healing. Jesus says to him "your sins are forgiven" meaning the man received Jesus and became a "Christian". Then the gift of healing manifests in the man's life and Jesus tells Him to pick up His bed and walk. Here the gift of the Spirit, healing manifested as a means of God bearing witness of Himself. Jesus then explains: anyone who has faith

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that God is able to manifest Himself and heal is also able to have faith that God can manifest Himself and save. There is one Spirit who works all the gifts. And remember, faith is what inspires the gifts of healing and miracles to manifest. So after the man got saved He also became healed. It does not always happen that the Holy Spirit manifests one of His gifts through a person who is saved. Like the group of twelve in Acts 19, the manifestation of a gift can come afterwards. Or like the man in Mark 2, it can come instantly. However, the fact that it can come at any time shows that the Holy Spirit is always there on the inside as Jesus promised in John 14.

The Fruit of the Holy Spiri t Now, I don't want to be misleading. Although the nine gifts of the Spirit are how God bears witness of Himself, we can tell that the Holy Spirit is present in people through a far simpler way. We can be deceived by a person who is pretending to speak in tongues, a false prophet or a person who is lying about experiencing a miracle of healing. Jesus warns of this in Matthew 7:15-20 and implies there is a far simpler way to tell when the Holy Spirit is present in a person. He says:

15- “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16- You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17- Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18- A good tree cannot

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bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19-Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20- Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

Here Jesus says a good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit… Therefore by their fruit you will know them. A person who is saved and truly has the Holy Spirit bears the fruit of the Spirit. Their character is molded and shaped by the Holy Spirit who is living inside of them. What are the Fruit of the Holy Spirit? Galatians 5:22-23 states:

22- But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23-gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

When, you see people who "bear these fruits", even if they are not delivering the bound, healing the sick, speaking in tongues and prophesying you can theorize that the Holy Spirit is present in that person. Likewise, how do you know that the Holy Spirit is in you? You bear the fruit of the Spirit. Love, peace, and joy begin to manifest themselves in and through you. You don't have to try to have peace. Peace abides on its own. You do not have to try to have self-control. Self-control manifests itself when necessary. Some of you might be able to witness to the fact that when you spend time in the presence of God or when you read the Bible (which is described as the sword of the Spirit) these fruit abide in you almost effortlessly. Yet when you are away from the Word of God or when you don't spend time with God or when you're not engaging in the actions that

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“categorize people as saved”, it is much harder for gentleness and patience or joy and peace to effortlessly abide through you. (But, if you are not baring the fruits of the Holy Spirit that does not mean you are not saved anymore. As described in the blog post about Stirring Up the Spirit, it just means the Holy Spirit is lying dormant inside of you.)

"Seek Ye First the Kingdom" Explained

30- …your Father knows that you need these things. 31- But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you. 32- “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s

good pleasure to give you the kingdom. -Luke 12:30-32

The Bible says in Luke 12, it is your Heavenly Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom and if we seek the kingdom of God, all things that we need would be added to us. Now we know, according to the model prayer given by Jesus, one chapter prior, in Luke 11 that when the kingdom comes “God’s will” will be done on earth as it is in heaven. So what is this will that comes with the kingdom of God that we are supposed to be seeking after? Jesus expands on it in the rest of the prayer. He says: 1. Give us day by day our daily bread (This means daily

provision for our needs, but also is a metaphor that we would hear God daily- For man shall not live by bread

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alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God).

2. And forgive us our sins BECAUSE we also forgive everyone (It is the will of God for us to forgive others and for us to be forgiven of our sins).

3. Do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

These three things are things God wills on earth, as it is in heaven. That is why Jesus prayed for these things. The Bible says Jesus always prayed for and sought after the will of God. However, how do we receive the word daily, always forgive and get delivered from the evil one who leads us into temptation? That’s simple. God is in heaven and we are on the earth. If God wants His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven (which is how the Kingdom of God is according to the model prayer), He will have to make Himself present here, right? Well, He did so by sending His Holy Spirit to the earth. If we want to seek after the kingdom of God, we have to seek after His Holy Spirit. This is how God is present on earth as He is in heaven. This, actually, is how we seek the kingdom of God: by seeking after the Holy Spirit. After all, Paul does say in Romans 14:17 that “the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” And how else are we supposed to receive our daily bread, always forgive, be delivered from evil, and perfectly live in the will of God without the Advisor Jesus promised us in John 15?

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Therefore, seek righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit and everything else will be added to you! Righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit are what the bible says the kingdom of God is.

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