BYM ONLINE DESK Blessing English E-magazine Aug 2019 | Page 4

best ministers for missionary work? Is the Holy Spirit
not speaking to us these days or are we not obeying His
voice?
The Holy Spirit not only sends us to the
fields but also guides us in the work. His guidance can
be either through open doors or closed ones (Acts
16:6-9). He also creates irresistible desires in the
hearts of missionaries about specific places or
peoples. An example: "Paul purposed in the Spirit... I
must also see Rome" (Acts 19:21). Though the
message is the same to all peoples, the methods will
have to be changed to suit the cultures (1 Cor 9:20-22).
The Holy Spirit as "The Spirit of wisdom and
understanding" leads us to behave prudently
according to the situation (Isa 11:2).
4. He inspires us to GIVE
Money is not primary in missionary work
but it is necessary. Pioneer missionary work is more
expensive than the maintenance of established
Churches. Though tithing is a healthy practice, if
Christians won't give more than one tenth of their
income, world evangelisation will continue to be far
from realisation.
4:14). When He possesses us He grants us glimpses of
eternal glory. As a result our grip on earthly gold and
possessions is loosened. When Abraham was satisfied
with the bread and wine received from Melchizedek,
King of Salem, he despised the material wealth offered
by the King of Sodom (Gen 14:18-24). This dimension
of the ministry of the Holy Spirit must be restored in
our life and teaching. That alone would usher in the
long awaited revival giving.
5. He helps us to REAP
Reaping the harvest is the most exciting
part of missionary evangelism. The end time in-
gathering of souls is accelerated by the last days
outpouring of the Spirit. Quoting Joel's prophecy Peter
in his Pentecostal sermon said, "It shall come to pass in
the last days, says God, that I will pour out My Spirit on
all flesh... And it shall come to pass that whoever calls
on the Name of the Lord shall be saved" (Acts
2:16,17,21). The Holy Spirit mobilizes the entire
Church - not just its full-time ministers - "sons...
daughters... young men... old men... menservants...
maidservants" - for gathering the grains (vv 17,18).
Aggressive evangelism is a natural outflow of the Holy
Spirit revival. When God pours out showers of blessing
on His people dwelling on His hill, they invariably
become a blessing to those all around (Ezek 34:26).
The Spirit of Pentecost released a spirit of
liberality in those who received Him. According to the
Biblical record, there was no direct orders or indirect
hint from the apostles to get the disciples sell their
belongings and pool the money for common
enjoyment, especially to bless the have-nots. The
spontaneity of the act is the miracle of miracles! (Acts
2:44,45; 4:34,35). Not only the Church as a community but
also each Christian becomes a mighty soul-winner
through the fullness of the Spirit. It is told of Barnabas
that "he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit... and a
great many people were added to the Lord" (Acts
11:24).
Fresh outpourings of the Holy Spirit are
reported worldwide. People speak in tongues, shout,
jump, dance, fall, roll and so on and so forth. But do we
hear of anyone sharing his wealth liberally with the
poor and the needy as a direct result of being baptized
with the Holy Spirit? Which will be a more practical and
convincing evidence of Spirit baptism - Acts 2:4 or
2:44? Missions Researcher David Barrett reports that
of the top twenty American Churches in giving, not one
is charismatic. Where have we gone wrong? In our mission fields we have frequently
witnessed outpourings of the Spirit on the hearers of
the gospel even before they were formally initiated
into Christian life by a mouth confession or water
baptism. In such instances the Church growth has been
phenomenal. The case of Cornelius is illustrative of this
sovereign act (Acts 10:44-48). After all it is the Holy
Spirit who baptizes (inducts) people of any culture and
status - Jews or Greeks and slaves or free into the one
Body of Christ! (1 Cor 12:13).
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of glory (1 Pet At the same time we cannot conclude
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