“Praying The Price For The Supernatural”
John 16:20-21
20 Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy.
21 A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.
Leonard Ravenhill penned these words in his book “Revival Praying”
“Every church without a prayer meeting condemns us, every Bible daily unopened condemns us, every lost neighbor condemns us, every lost heathen condemns us, every dry eye among us condemns us, every wasted minute of our time condemns us, every unclaimed opportunity for God condemns us…
Next year is not ours. Tomorrow may be too late. Unless we repent now, unless we return and fire the prayer altars now, unless we fast and weep now, woe unto us at judgement!”
I am hungry for the supernatural!
I am more than ready to see God move in this hour in ways that we have never dreamed possible.
I want to see miracles take place in this building.
I want to see hundreds come to the Lord in this building!
I am like MLK, I too have a dream!
I believe that the Bible has something to say about end-time dreams.
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:
It is not only God’s Word that we dream, It is also His Will!
But before the dream can become reality…
And before the thought come into being…
A PRICE MUST BE PAID!
The supernatural only comes when the price is paid!
Churches all across our county are missing the presence, and power of the very one they claim to know.
Jesus is absent in too many churches today!
And there is good reason…
Many churches have forgotten how to pay the price!
The Supernatural is not welcomed in many denominations…
And, if I can be honest with you, it is not welcomed in many Pentecostal churches!
Why would someone not want to be a part of church that sought after the face of God?
Why would individuals be satisfied with little or no prayer in their lives?
Why would a church-goer be satisfied with just a knowledge of the Word but yet no Holy Ghost activity in their life?
Why would individuals look holy, and even come to church regularly, but never tap into the supernatural?
Many years ago there was a young man in India who while sitting during a lecture noticed an electric light in the room. This young man was so intrigued by this light that he asked if he could borrow the bulb, and the teacher obliged.
Days later the young man returned downcast for the bulb was useless, he said. So the teacher went to the young mans room and found the problem.
The innocent young man had taken the bulb and tied it with a piece of string to the ceiling of the room. He did not realize that he needed an electrical current to light the bulb.
How many people today in churches all across our city have a string with a light bulb attached to the ceiling?
Without the proper connection, THERE IS NO POWER!
Love is an attribute of God. And anyone can experience the love of God!
The Grace of God is extended to everyone… it doesn’t cost us a thing.
God’s Mercy free to all!
And when it comes to salvation Jesus Christ paid a price at Calvary!
But, the experiencing the Supernatural Presence of God IS NOT FREE!
IT COST SOMETHING!
GOD’S POWER ONLY COMES WHEN THE PRICE IS PRAYED!
Over 30 years ago a Christian leader from India by the name of Bakht Singh wrote these words in an article…
“The churches in India have a great burden for America just now… and are praying that God will visit your country with revival… You feel sorry for us in India because of our poverty in material things. We who know the Lord in India feel sorry for you in America because of your spiritual poverty. We pray that God will give you gold tried in the fire which He had promised to those who know the power of His resurrection…
In our churches we spend five or six hours in prayer and worship, and frequently our people wait on the Lord in prayer all night; but in America after you have been in church for one hour, you begin to look at your watches.
We pray that God open your eyes to the true meaning of worship… To attract people to meetings you have a great dependence on posters, on advertising, on promotion, and on the build up of the human being; in India we have nothing more than the Lord Himself and we find that He is sufficient.
Before a Christian meeting in India we never announce who the speaker will be. When the people come, they come to seek the Lord and not a human being or to hear some special favorite speaking to them.
We have had as many as 12,000 people come together just to worship the Lord and to have fellowship together. We are praying that the people in America might also come to church with a hunger for God…”
These so called poor, poverty-stricken Indians were not so poor after all…
For you see, they knew how to PRAY the price!
While some live under the curse of convenience, someone else is doing without and getting more of God!
The curse of convenience is killing churches in North America!
Rev 3:14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;
Rev 3:15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
Rev 3:16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
Rev 3:17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
Rev 3:18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
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The Revival that birthed the supernatural in North America took place in the early 1900’s… Listen to an early report of this awesome event…
A company of people under the leadership of Chas. Parham, were studying God’s word tarrying for Pentecost, in Topeka, Kan. After searching through the country everywhere, they had been unable to find any Christians that had the true Pentecostal power. So they laid aside all commentaries and notes and waited on the Lord, studying His word, and what they did not understand they got down before the bench and asked God to have wrought out in their hearts by the Holy Ghost. They had a prayer tower in which prayers were ascending night and day to God. After three months, a sister who had been teaching sanctification for the baptism with the Holy Ghost, one who had a sweet, loving experience and all the carnality taken out of her heart, felt the Lord lead her to have hands laid on her to receive the Pentecost. So when they prayed, the Holy Ghost came in great power and she commenced speaking in an unknown tongue. This made all the Bible school hungry,and three nights afterward, twelve students received the Holy Ghost, and prophesied.
The following clip is from the Apostolic Faith published by Bro. Chas. Parham at Baxter, Kan.
"A remarkable incident of God’s searching power was recorded in Melrose, Kan., during a revival which has been held by some of our young people at that place.
"The power of the Holy Spirit was greatly manifested in the meetings by the speaking in unknown tongues. This was much criticized by the town and vicinity, so the principal physician, who was familiar with several different languages, was prevailed upon to go to the meetings in order to denounce the whole as a fake. Miss Tuthill, in an unknown language to herself, but known to him as Italian, spoke his full name, which no one in the town knew save himself, telling him things that had happened in his life twenty years ago, and on up to the present time, until he cried for mercy and fell on his knees seeking God.
He found full salvation the next day, and is now a believer in ’the Gospel’ that Jesus taught, and also in the power of the Holy Ghost that was given unto us to witness to a living Christ. He now says he would rather pray for the sick than give drugs, and is seriously thinking of leaving his profession and going into the Lord’s work.
Many precious souls have been saved, sanctified and baptized with the Holy Ghost as a result of the preached word under the Spirit’s anointing power."
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The meetings in Los Angeles started in a cottage meeting, and Pentecost fell there three nights. The people had nothing to do but wait on the Lord and praise Him, and they commenced speaking in tongues, as they did at Pentecost,and the Spirit sang songs through them.
The meeting was then transferred to Azusa Street, and since then multitudes have been coming. The meetings begin about ten o’clock in the morning and can hardly stop before ten or twelve at night, and sometimes two or three in the morning, because so many are seeking, and some are slain under the power of God. People are seeking three times a day at the altar and row after row of seats have to be emptied and filled with seekers. We cannot tell how many people have been saved, and sanctified, and baptized with the Holy Ghost, and healed of all manner of sicknesses.
►Many have laid aside their glasses and had their eye-sight perfectly restored.
The deaf have had their hearing restored.
►A man was healed of asthma of twenty years standing.
►Many have been healed of heart trouble and lung trouble
"About 160 people in Los Angeles, more than on the day of Pentecost, have received the gift of the Holy Ghost and the Bible evidence, the gift of tongues, and many have been saved and sanctified, nobody knows how many.
People are seeking at the altar three times a day and it is hard to close at night on account of seekers and those who are under the power of God.
In the meetings, it is noticeable that while some in the rear are opposing and arguing, others are at the alter falling down under the power of God and feasting on the good things of God. The two spirits are always manifest, but no opposition can kill, no power in earth or hell can stop God’s work, while He has consecrated instruments through which to work.
The power of God now has this city agitated as never before. Pentecost has surely come and with it the Bible evidences are following, many being converted and sanctified and filled with the Holy Ghost, speaking in tongues as they did on the day of Pentecost. The scenes that are daily enacted in the building on Azusa street and at Missions and Churches in other parts of the city are beyond description.
In a short time God began to manifest His power and soon the building could not contain the people. Now the meetings continue all day and into the night and the fire is kindling all over the city and surrounding towns. Proud, well dressed preachers come into "investigate." Soon their high looks are replaced with wonder, then conviction came, and very often you will find them in a short time wallowing on the dirty floor, asking God to forgive them and make them as little children.
It would be impossible to state how many have been converted, sanctified, and filled with the Holy Ghost. They have been and are daily going out to all points of the compass to spread this wonderful gospel."
Our text…
John 16:20-21
20 Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy.
21 A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.
When the church truly PRAYS the price…
The SUPERNATURAL takes the place of the natural…
The ordinary is replaced with the EXTRAORDINARY!
Healings happen, Miracles are the norm and not the exception…
Babes are born into the church…
Backsliders come to the realization that they need God…
Cars passing this church will be compelled to turn in!
“Praying The Price For The Supernatural”
