I can never estimate what the Baptism of the Holy Ghost has been to me these past fifteen years. It seems that every year has had three years packed into it, so that I have had forty-five years of happy service since 1907. And it is getting better all the time.
It is a luxury to be filled with the Spirit, and at the same time it is a divine command for us, not to be filled with wine wherein is excess, but to be filled with the Spirit.
No Pentecostal person ought to get out of bed without being lost in the Spirit and speaking in tongues as the Spirit gives utterance. No one should come into the door of an assembly without speaking in tongues or having a psalm, or a note of praise. We emphasize that at the incoming of the Spirit He should so fill us that the last member in the body is yielded to Him, and that no one is baptized in the Spirit without speaking in tongues as the Spirit gives utterance; and I maintain that, with a constant filling, you will speak in tongues morning, noon and night. As you live in the Spirit, when you walk down the steps of the house where you live, the devil will have to go before you. You will be more than a conqueror over the devil.
I see everything a failure except that which is done in the Spirit. But as you live in the Spirit, you move, act, eat, drink, and do everything to the glory of God.
Our message is always this, “Be filled with the Spirit. This is God’s place for you, and it is as far above the natural life as the heavens are above the earth. Yield yourselves for God to fill.
– Smith Wigglesworth
[Ever Increasing Faith, p. 96-7]
Related:
A Gift that Will Set Many Free! (A Death Warrant is Out for Your Souls)
holyyoly
God’s greatest gift is giving us the gift of praying in tongues
Craig
Not Exactly Holyyoly. His greatest gift is the Gift of the Holy Ghost. Speaking in other Tongues is the Sign we usually get first upon Receiving the Holy Ghost because we are usually praying to receive the Holy Ghost and we are speaking to the Lord in our native Tongue and when the
Tongue changes into a full Language then that is when we can say we are Spirit-Filled. The Gifts of the Spirit are something to usually be done in public (whether at church or on the streets). They Demonstrate the Power of our Lord Publicly.
The Sign of Tongues is for Private Worship (i.e. in the Closet for example). When the Lord sees what you do in Private he rewards you openly. The Vocal Gifts (Tongues, Interpretation and Prophecy) are always done in the Meetings of the Church because the Heathen who come along can see “there’s something different here” and then Interpretation and Prophecy are for the members of the Church to be edified by. It is very important to be exercising the Signs, Wonders and Miracles in the right way so the Heathen can see the Power of our Lord and wonder at what is going on. Then they can take the right steps to find our Lord, in Spirit and in Truth. HFTC.
Jeff Fenske
I added a link to this post, which has many other links to what I believe is an incredibly useful, misunderstood and underused gift, that Paul used A LOT outside of the church (1 Cor. 14:18). It’s a gift that can set many free! But we need to use it for it to work.
The Devil hates this gift, and wants to discredit and dismiss it, because it directly attacks his minions.
We pray perfectly when we pray in tongues.
Go, go, go, go…!!!!!!!
Craig
Hello Jeff, the difference between the Signs and the Gifts is this: The Signs are for every believer (Mark 16vs15-17) and the Gifts are not used by every believer. As an example, I have had the Signs following for 34y4m20days and have never done a Gift in Tongues. So that the Assembly can receive edifying, I choose to either Interpret the Tongues or Prophesy. We have a specific time in our main meetings when we operate the Vocal Gifts. Also we don’t distinguish between the Baptism or filling or receiving the Holy Ghost or Spirit as many churches do. Once you have it, you have it for Life and you’ll have the Signs following. We are considered a cult (the True Church is a cult) because the Lord has given us this Vision and we will not change His Vision for us. HTRH.
Jeff Fenske
The main thing is that we speak in tongues regularly. Whether you want to call it a sign or a gift isn’t a big deal.
Craig
Amen Jeff, I am a bit exacting and (i’m sure) OCD. Once I learn something important, I really stick like glue to it.
Thanks for raising the Subject of this article though because there are precious few of us in the Vineyard. See you
and gbptl (god bless praise the Lord). HFTC.
Jeff Fenske
“HFTC?”
http://www.acronymfinder.com/HFTC.html
Craig
I’m sorry Jeff, Have Fun Take Care. I do all sorts of Acronyms that aren’t the usual fare.
Jeff Fenske
Craig, I had some awesome times at the Evanston Vineyard in ’89-90. This is part of my story, if you’re interested: http://onecanhappen.com/2011/01/22/francis-frangipane-holiness-precedes-power-more-of-my-experience-at-trinity
And then when I got back to Anchorage, I was so excited to hear that a Vineyard was starting here too, but it wasn’t at all like what I experienced at Evanston.
But then when I returned to seminary in ’93, Evanston was dead too.
Regarding tongues, teaching spiritual gifts without hardly even mentioning tongues had its appeal to some. So people were getting visions and words of knowledge without having ever spoken in tongues. I liked that aspect of it. However, hardly anyone then learned how to speak in tongues, which ended up helping the church movement become powerless — to the degree that John and Chris even died.
I actually talked to the head pastor in about ’90, about the ignoring-tongues problem. They clearly weren’t biblical in emphasis. He then preached an entire sermon on praying in tongues.
I am still interested in finding out more on why specifically the movement died, if you have any ideas.