Moving in the Power of the Holy Spirit Is Needed for Christian Ministry

Summary: Miracles, healings, mighty deliverances, gifts of the Holy Spirit! These are the mighty acts of God that make the preaching of His Word effective. To win this nation to Jesus, we will need the demonstration of the Holy Spirit's power.

We have a nation full of great preachers, yet relatively few are being saved. We are a nation full of Christians. Yet, according to Christian researchers and pollsters, American Christians are almost indistinguishable from non-Christians! We are a nation careening towards destruction, yet so few Jonahs are prophesying in the public square. What is it going to take? — It will require MOVING in the POWER of the HOLY SPIRIT!

1 Corinthians 2:4-5  My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a DEMONSTRATION of the SPIRIT’S POWER, [5] so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.

1 Thessalonians 1:5  ...our gospel came to you NOT SIMPLY WITH WORDS, but also WITH POWER, with the HOLY SPIRIT and with deep conviction.

•• In America we’re “preaching to the choir,” because the unchurched are tuning out our words.

•• In 1971 I recall a Christian school principal asking a group of high school boys, “What will it take to help you guys serve the Lord?” I'll never forget their reply: “Mr. W__, we need to see a MOVE OF GOD!” These young people were hungry for a demonstration of Holy Ghost ministry and power.

•• Your friends, your neighbors, your coworkers — they need more than our words. They need to see the powerful moving of God’s Holy Spirit.

Numbers 11:24-25  So Moses went out and told the people what the LORD had said. He brought together seventy of their elders and had them stand around the Tent. [25] Then the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke with him, and he took of the Spirit that was on him and put the Spirit on the seventy elders. When the SPIRIT rested on them, they PROPHESIED...

•• Picture it — moved by the Holy Spirit, all 70 elders began to prophesy. Kind of a mini-Day of Pentecost!

•• Those who don’t know the Lord need to see whole churches of those who do know the Lord moving supernaturally.

•• When I attended my first services in a Pentecostal church in Anchorage in 1971, I was greatly impressed by the Holy Spirit moving in prophecy, tongues-and-interpretation, words of knowledge, healings, and the like.

Judges 6:33-34  Now all the Midianites, Amalekites and other eastern peoples joined forces and crossed over the Jordan and camped in the Valley of Jezreel. [34] Then the SPIRIT OF THE LORD CAME UPON GIDEON, and he blew a trumpet, summoning the Abiezrites to follow him.

•• Many enemies in our day have “joined forces” against the Lord and His Church — anti-family forces, anti-church, anti-marriage, anti-morality, anti-you-name-it!

•• We need some Gideons to be MOVED upon by the Holy Spirit.

• Some Gideons to rally God’s “300.”

• Some Gideons to act on some God-given dreams and to defeat the Midianites.

• Some Gideons to cry to the Lord like Isaiah: “Here am I, Lord, send me!”

• Not by man’s might or power, but by God’s Spirit, anointing, and power.

Judges 14:5-6a  ...As they approached the vineyards of Timnah, suddenly a young lion came roaring toward [Samson]. [6a] The SPIRIT of the LORD came upon him in power so that he TORE the lion apart with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat.

•• We need some Samsons tearing up some lions. How? The Spirit...came upon him in power.

•• The roaring lion represents Satan (1 Peter 5:8). Seek the gift of discerning of spirits. Seek the Holy Spirit’s revelation and enablement to drive out demons — Jesus Himself said: “I by the Spirit of God cast out devils.”

1 Samuel 10:6, 10  The Spirit of the Lord will come UPON you in POWER, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be CHANGED into a DIFFERENT person.... [10] When they arrived at Gibeah, a procession of prophets met him; the Spirit of God came upon him in power, and he joined in their prophesying.

•• I want to be changed into a different person. That happens through the moving of the Holy Spirit in us.

•• Saul was timid —> the Spirit changed him —> he became king.

•• Saul was a mere man —> the Spirit changed him —> he joined the prophets in their prophesying.

•• You may feel timid ... or unqualified ... or ungifted ... or even useless, then boom!

• The Spirit of God moves on you.

• The Spirit of God changes you into a different person.

• The Spirit of God enables you to prophesy ... to tear apart a lion ... to lead 300 men to conquer an entire foreign army.

Luke 1:34-35  “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” [35] The angel answered, “The HOLY SPIRIT WILL COME UPON YOU, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

•• The Holy Spirit was able to effect a birth through a virgin woman!

•• The Holy Spirit can give birth through you to:

• a vision, a dream

• a plan of action with His guidance and direction

• a miracle, a healing

As I said at the beginning, reaching our resistant nation will require the supernatural moving and power of the Holy Spirit — in us! We have some hostile Midianites to conquer. We have some lions to tear apart.

We have churches full of Sauls needing to be “changed into a different person.” Not the persons we are now. In one moment everything can be different. In one moment the Holy Spirit can move on you in power. In one moment you can say to the cripple, “Stand on your feet!” In one moment, knowing the power of the spoken word of God, you can command demons, “Come out, in the name of Jesus!”

By the Spirit’s moving, in the twinkling of an eye you can receive faith for physical healing. By the Spirit’s revelation, you can see into the spiritual realm. By the Holy Ghost anointing you can be a powerful, effective minister of the Gospel.

What must we do? — Live close to God. Stay open to the Holy Spirit and His power. Seek the Lord for the mighty baptism with the Holy Spirit. Continually have Isaiah's heart cry: “Here am I, Lord, send me!” Use me!

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©2005, James H. Feeney.
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