Is the church taming the Holy Spirit?

I mean this in the classic sense of the word: "Make less powerful and easier to control."

It is easy to slip into depersonalizing the third member of the Trinity, God the Holy Spirit.

I see today's church, and I wonder if we still value baptism in the Holy Spirit. When we ignore baptism in the Holy Spirit, are we quietly taming God?

We place great value on who the President of the United States should be. We place great value on who the next Supreme Court Justice will be. Why? Because of their power to effect change is immediate and permanent. Does the Holy Spirit not carry this same weight (and more) in our ability to carry out the plans He has for us both today and tomorrow?

Paul prays in Ephesians 1:17-23 (NKJV):

That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

When reading this passage of supernatural power for the believer, we see the value of the relationship with God, our Father. We know the value of the price that was paid by God's only begotten Son, but we often miss the extravagant work of God the Holy Spirit.

You attract what you value.

Do not allow anything or anyone to devalue the baptism of the Holy Spirit in your life.

The word "value" seems so small when writing about the Holy Spirit. He is beyond my puny, insufficient and inferior words. When praying to God the Father, I may run out of words, but the baptism with the Holy Spirit allows me to speak to God in a language from deep within my soul.

Here are just 10 of the things Holy Spirit is:

1. God (Acts 5:3-4).

2. Spirit of Revelation (Eph. 1:17).

3. Breath of the Almighty (Job 33:4).

4. Counselor and Comforter (John 14:16, 26; 15:26 and Rom. 8:26).

5. Power of the Highest (Luke 1:35).

6. Spirit of Might (Isa. 11:2).

7. Spirit of Adoption (Rom. 8:15).

8. Spirit of Christ—Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:9; 1 Pet. 1:11).

9. Spirit of Judgment (Isa. 4:4, 28:6).

10. Spirit of Glory (1 Pet. 4:14).

They could not tame the believers of the New Testament church. They could not be stopped or controlled. The promise and the power of almighty God had birthed in them supernatural fearlessness.

Deep hunger will grow until God reveals, "what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power" (Eph. 1:19).

Again, do not allow anything or anyone to devalue the baptism of the Holy Spirit in your life.

You are beautiful; I see Jesus in you.

Have an awesome week!

Mikel French has challenged spiritual awakening all across America, where many celebrations extended into multiple weeks, and has conducted celebrations in France, Sweden, Russia, Romania, Poland, Ukraine, Moldova, Serbia, Germany, South Africa, Malawi, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Haiti, Japan, Singapore, India and Thailand. He conducted an outreach celebration in Manila, Philippines, reaching 200,000 teenagers with the Book of Hope. Through the generous support of partners, he has presented the message of Jesus Christ to millions of people in the nation of Russia through televised citywide soul-winning celebrations. Mikel considers it an honor to assist in conducting the annual pastor's conference, where thousands of pastors from Russia's 11 time zones come for training, teaching and equipping. Mikel and his wife, Marsha, reside in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

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