Wind and Fire
Introduction...
Praise God Church!
God is Good Amen!?!
(Praise reports- God is so good that...)
God is so good that over 2000 years ago Jesus was born of a virgin into this world to be
Emmanuel which is interpreted God With us. Amen?
And He is so good that He gave his life on Calvary so that we might be saved. Amen?
Jesus is so good that He conquered death and rose from the grave on the third day. Amen?
And after appearing to many of his disciples for 40 days
He led a few of them out to the Mount of Olives near Bethany and
It was there that Jesus ascended into heaven. Amen?
How many know that in the same place where his feet left the ground, Jesus will return one day to
put his foot upon this earth once more?
He left this earth as victor and conqueror of death, hell and the grave,
and He will return soon as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
His power and majesty will be so great that when the foot of the Creator touches the Mt. of Olives
that He created, that mountain will split in two.
And how many know that right now Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father,
as our advocate against all the accusations of our enemy, Satan. Amen?
Praise God! Who says we can’t all agree on something?
Turn to Luke 24:49
How many came expecting and ready to receive tonight?
Good, because tonight, Church, is a night for greater expectations.
Tonight we need to be expecting the windows of Heaven to open up and pour out a blessing, Church!
But not just any blessing, Church!
A promise!
The importance of this blessing...
In order for us to understand the importance of this blessing or promise, Church
we have to know what Jesus had to say about it.
Let’s take a closer look back at the ascension of Jesus, Church.
Just moments before Jesus began to rise from the earth He had something very important to say to
the disciples that stood there.
After calming the fears of the disciples and opening the scriptures to their understanding, Jesus told
the disciples the reason that He was crucified;
the reason that He had suffered, bled and died was for a single purpose – That men could be saved
from sin. Amen?
In Luk 24:47 Jesus told His disciples... that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
It was a wake-up call to the disciples. They had a work to do, a message to share, and it was time
for them to get busy.
Jesus had commisioned them just like He has commisioned each and every one of us to harvest souls
for the Kingdom.
But as important as their mission was, and ours still is, we must note that Jesus delayed their work
for a little while.
Jesus went through all the trouble to come to earth and take on the form of flesh that men could see
God’s love in person. Amen?
He made that first step to bridging the gap between a Holy God and sinful men, so that man could
believe on him and be saved. Amen?
– but then He stopped the church from spreading the word.
Listen to this Church.
He was crucified; taking upon Him the weight of sin for the whole world,
so that we could be victorious over sin through His shed blood
– but then He delayed the message of forgiveness of sin for a little while.
Jesus was buried and lay in the grave,
then resurrected on the third day,
so that he could destroy the power of death, hell and the grave,
for the purpose of giving you and I, and all men and women, eternal life
– yet he delayed the preaching of the gospel to anyone for a while.
Why would Jesus go through all of that, only to tell his church to wait for a while before spreading
the word
Before winning souls that Jesus knew were hanging in the balance?
In those few days of delay, how many lost souls would leave this world without Jesus when they
could have been reached with the gospel?
What was so important for us that would cause Jesus to stop the preaching of the gospel even for a
few days?
There had to be some all-important business that was absolutely necessary before the church could
accomplish its mission to spread the gospel!
In Luke 24:49 Jesus gave us the reason for the wait,
He said "And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high."
Before they could accomplish their mission the church needed something else,
something that would bring them into a higher place in God where they could do mighty works for
the Lord Jesus Christ and build His church.
They needed to be endued with power from on high. Amen!?!
For 10 days, they held a prayer meeting in the upper room in Jerusalem.
They prayed for the promise of the Father to come as Jesus had said.
They prayed, they waited, they watched, and they wondered what that “Promise” would be?
How would they know when it came?
They really didn’t know, but they knew that it would come, just as Jesus had said, so they kept
praying.
I can imagine what may have been going through their minds.
When will the Promise come?
What will it be like?
What difference will the “Promise” make in me?
Will I feel any different, act any different or talk any different?
Can I really receive the “Promise”?
I want all that God has for me, but I don’t know what to expect!
Last night I talked about expectations and how to receive the things that we expect to come to pass.
Tonight I want us to look into God’s word and find out what we should be expecting.
I remember what Jesus said when he spoke of the words of the prophet in Joel 2:28-29, who said...
Joe 2:28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
Joe 2:29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.
What we need to be expecting in this revival is a mighty outpouring of God’s spirit upon us.
And this is what it will be like.
At the first Church revival they prayed for 10 long days.
Every one of those 120 would gather every day in that upper room.
There they would spend their time in prayer and waiting, tarrying before the Lord, desiring that
the Promise would come, and knowing not when it would come or what to expect.
They only knew that they wanted all that Jesus had promised and they had to have God’s best
before they could spread the gospel.
Then on the 11th morning, the morning of the 50th day after the Passover, the Promise came and
there was no doubt about it!
Acts 2:1-4,
Act 2:1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
Act 2:2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
Act 2:3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
Act 2:4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
There He was, the Promise – He had come at last! At the time appointed, and in the manner
prescribed by God, the Holy Ghost came!
Those who were there that morning had stayed the course and new the Promise was theirs.
As they all came together, anticipating, waiting, wondering and praying for the Promise to come,
their hearts and minds were knitted together in prayer for one single purpose – to see the Promise
come.
No one was praying for anything else, or for anyone else – only for the Promise to come.
They weren’t concerned about where to go for lunch, what to cook for dinner, what business they
had to take care of that day, or what they were gonna wear tommorrow.
They were in one mind – trying to find the Mind of Christ and desiring only God’s Promise.
They were in one accord – everyone agreeing together that they wanted the Promise to come above
all else.
In Matthew 18:18-20 Jesus said,
Mat 18:18 Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Mat 18:19 Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 18:20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
If it only takes two of us agreeing together to see God move and here we see 120 agreeing together.
No wonder the Holy Ghost fell!
What could we see in the church today if we could just get all of us on the same page, with the same
mindset, all thinking and praying and believing for the same thing at the same time?
We all want to see the Holy Ghost fall! We all want to see the wind and the fire in the church, but it’s
just so hard to get us in one mind and one accord.
I’m convinced that the reason the Holy Ghost doesn’t move in here the way He moved that day is
because we are too divided or distracted.
Instead of being a tool for God to use we’ve become a hinderance to the ministry of the spirit.
We come to church many times with no expectation, with no real anticipation of a mighty move of
the Holy Ghost in our midst.
We come wondering if so-and-so is going to be there.
We come wondering if the music will be right,
or if the preaching will be boring,
or if the air conditioner or heater will be set right,
and a thousand other things.
We aren’t in one mind. It often takes half the service just to get the majority into “one mind” of
worship.
I sometimes think that we need an hour of worship just to get us to enter in like we should.
But then we couldn’t all agree on that either.
We’ve forgotten how to tarry before the Lord.
We live in an instant gratification society where we want it right now.
We don’t have time to wait.
There’s too much to do, too many places to go, too many people to see, and we can’t wait for 10
minutes, much less 10 days.
We’re content with what we have because we don’t want to wait on God,
But then we complain when things go wrong knowing that it’s because we’re out of His will.
The time and manner in which God works depends upon several factors.
The first thing we have to remember is that it’s God’s time. That’s why we have to tarry.
Second is the condition of our heart and our willingness to receive Him.
So many times people pray for something and when it doesn’t come to pass they sit and wonder
why.
Never realizing that there is sin in their lives.
Never examining theirselves.
Wanting something from God without offering their faith and obedience.
Third, we need to yield our will to the Holy Ghost.
and allow Him to fill our heart’s and soul’s with God’s mighty power.
Most of the time, it’s that “Yielding” part that delays the promise of power from coming upon you.
He can be all over you.
He can be so close that you can feel His presence and His power,
but if you don’t allow Him to enter in then He won’t force His way into your heart.
He’s standing at the door knocking, but it’s up to us to open it and let Him in.
He’s a free will God not a slave master. Amen?
On the Day of Pentecost, every one of those 120 who received the Baptism in the Holy Ghost gave an
outward sign that He had baptized them.
They all spoke in another “tongue” or language that they had never known or learned before.
The Holy Ghost spoke through them, speaking to those who stood around from other nations,
preaching to them the wonderful works of God.
Now I know that this is a touchy subject in the Church, today.
Some of us believe that speaking in other tongues is the outward sign of the Baptism of the Holy
Ghost,
And some of us don’t.
It’s that simple.
I didn’t come here to debate that issue tonight.
And I sure don’t want to cause seperation the Church when our main goal tonight is to get into one accord.
I will say that I spoke with tongues the day that I recieved the Holy Ghost and that I know countless
men and women who had the same experience.
Including the saints of the early Church.
I also know countless men and women who’ve never spoke with tongues,
but the Spirit of God is evident in their lives.
In any case there is an outward sign of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
It’s our fruit. We as Christians should be known by our fruit in general.
Not just one single defining moment in our walk with Christ.
And our fruit will truly become evident once we receive His Spirit.
Gal 5:16 through 5:26 that we should... Walk in the Spirit, and should not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
Because the flesh and the Spirit are contrary to each other.
they clash and cause us not to be able to accomplish what we are called to do.
It says that if we are led of the Spirit, we are no longer under the law but live by grace.
If we walk in the Spirit we no longer take part in worldly things. We make a choice to put away sin
and worldly things and put on the things of God. Amen?!? We put an end to Adultery, fornication,
uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
Envy, murder, drunkenness and drugs, revelling, and such things.
We turn from being Kingdom outcasts to joint heirs with Christ.
Instead of being orphans we gain a Heavenly Father whose love is unfailing.
The Fruit of the Spirit which is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Meekness, temperance becomes evident in our lives.
We crucify our flesh and live and walk in the Spirit.
We no longer desire vain glory, but to give glory to God.
We don’t go around provoking one another, and envying one another,
But we are a help to our brother or sister in Christ.
When you are saved through repentance, confession of Jesus as Lord and surrendering your life to Him, you are given the Spirit of God. You are washed clean and saved, and given eternal life.
But you need to go on from there. That’s just the beginning of what God has in store for those that love Him.
In Matthew 12:43-45 we have the picture of where a Born Again Christian is at the moment of his
rebirth by the Spirit of the Lord,
Mat 12:43 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none.
Mat 12:44 Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished.
Mat 12:45 Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.
He was in a wonderful place, clean, new, fresh, with a new beginning and a new life.
But he was also at his most vulnerable place, because now he is a clean and empty vessel, ripe for Satan’s attacks.
That clean and empty heart must be filled with all that Jesus can put into it before the enemy comes
back to try to reclaim what he has lost.
The Lord Jesus Christ has moved in and taken abode in that heart.
His blood has washed away all of the sin and filth that filled this life, but something must take the
place of what was washed away.
What can we fill that emptiness with?
We can fill it with more of Jesus!
We can let God fill it with the Holy Ghost!
We can let God fill that heart with His power,
His mercy,
His grace
and His love
until there is no more place for the devil.
Satan cannot live where Jesus lives.
Jesus knew that the Baptism in the Holy Ghost, with the power that He brings into your life,
was so important for you to keep the victory and have the anointing that you need to spread His
Word and preach the gospel to every creature,
that he commanded the disciples to not make another move until they were endued with that power
and the coming of the Holy Ghost.
Shouldn’t we follow that example?
It was only after the Holy Ghost fell that Peter was endued with a power that he had never had
before to preach the gospel.
He was transformed from a scared man, hiding in the shadows behind closed doors, to a man on
fire for God
whose words carried an anointing and a power beyond anything that he had ever known.
The “Preacher” had come to Peter. He was doing the speaking, but the Holy Ghost was doing the
preaching.
His first message after receiving the Holy Ghost brought many others to the place where they would
receive Him too.
3000 people were saved that day; all because of the anointing power of the Holy Ghost on a scared
fisherman.
Here’s what the Holy Ghost preached through Peter that day.
Act 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Act 2:39 For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.
That’s the message for you tonight.
If you have already received the Baptism in the Holy Ghost, thank God for it.
You already know what to do – get in one mind and one accord and pray for those who haven’t
received it,
that the Holy Ghost will come into this Church tonight with wind and fire to fill everyone of us.
For those who haven’t received Him yet, the Holy Ghost is here right now.
He is waiting for you to yield to Him.
If you haven’t been saved or repented of your sin, the altar is here.
Come and get right with God tonight and let Jesus come into your heart.
Then ask the Holy Ghost to come.
I believe that He wants to fill your heart and life with wind and fire and great power right now.
Will you yield to Him?
The Lord is waiting. The Holy Ghost is here. Will you come now?
Wind and Fire by:
Rev. John Butler Jr. (Copyright © 2007)
