Pastor Stan Mons
Sermon Transcription:
Lord, we thank you, and Father, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart this morning. Lord God, with the congregation and with those that are with us online, Father, I want to thank you that you have fulfilled every portion of the promise you made me years ago. Lord God, in the country of Norway, when you, Holy Spirit of the Living God, visited me, Lord Jesus, and you said, "I’m going to give a safe house for my people." Lord, we didn’t know the country, we didn’t know the road, we didn’t know the way, and we never sought to make a thing happen. But, Father, you have built a safe house for your people. You have paid the price, literally, for everything that we have to build this church. You have paid the price for the forgiveness of every person in this church. You have paid the price, Lord God, for the education of every person in this church. You’ve sent your Spirit, who teaches us in the heart, Lord God.
You have made a way. You have built for yourself a safe house, Lord God. You’ve sent us person after person that has been discipled and tested and tested and tested so that when they were a safe person, tested to be a safe person, you’ve shown us who is to be put in authority and influence and leadership over the people, that there may be safety. Lord God, for you are building yourself a safe house for sinners, for the lost, for children, Lord God. Lord, I thank you. Lord God, that you are building the building blocks and bringing them to us. Lord God, thank you, Lord, that you’ve brought every person—every individual, everyone, Lord God—in need of a safe house to grow and learn and be taught, to grow up and be discipled and be launched into their call and ministry. Lord God, to every person that is supposed to be part of the structure that provides the safety, Lord God, you are building yourself a safe house for your glory. And we are the recipients, Lord God. We receive the benefits, Lord.
Lord, I want to say thank you, Lord, that you have always kept every promise—every promise, Lord God, you ever made in this word, every promise you’ve ever whispered to my heart. Lord, there’s not one that has gone unfulfilled—not one, Lord God. Lord, every prophetic word you’ve given, you have fulfilled and established it. Lord, I pray that today, Lord God, on this first Sunday, where you are seeking to set a new pace for this year, Lord, I pray that our hearts and our minds may be able to receive. Lord, for every person online, I pray there may be no distraction for them, Lord God, but that their heart and their mind may be able to receive from the Spirit of the Living God. Lord, for every person that is here in the congregation, I pray, Lord God, that their hearts may be teachable and moldable, that your word may shape us, that your desires may shape us, Lord God.
That what you're doing in building your own church, a body in different places, Lord God—Lord, that we would submit to your plan for your church, Lord God. Lord, I pray that we may receive from you today and that we may adjust ourselves to you and not try to adjust you to us, Lord God. Lord, I pray that you be glorified today and that your power may rest upon each and every single one of us for the glory of God, Lord God, and for the benefit of the souls of men. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen, amen, amen. We're going to go into the word of God. Thank you, worship team. I am so excited to remind you and also to rejoice with you over all the Bible reading plans that were sent out this past week. Your deacon would have sent it to you and made sure you have it. If you have any questions, you can contact your deacon. If you need any help, you can contact your deacon. If, for whatever reason, you feel left out or you didn’t get it, or it got sent to the wrong email address, or you never submitted your email address, feel free to contact any of the hospitality team. They’d love to get you plugged in and make sure that you get your Bible reading plan.
Now, I’m also partaking in one of them. See, I figured that I would be in tune with what you are reading throughout the week, and so when that brings up questions or opportunities for teaching, we’re all on somewhat of the same page. Whichever reading plan you’re on, it may be a little different. I’m not going to tell you which one I’m on, but I think you will figure that out as we go throughout the year. Today, the Lord has given me a word, and I had a hard time—the media team knows because I switched the title three times last night—had a hard time settling on a title. Even though the word was so clear, I had a hard time capturing the one sentence I would want you to carry home. But in the end, we just made it as simple as possible: Jesus wants to give you power. That’s the title today: Jesus wants to give you power.
Let’s get straight into the word as we read in the book of Acts, chapter 1. If you have your Bibles, Acts chapter 1, verses 4 to 8. Acts 1:4-8"And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, which He said, 'You have heard from Me; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.' Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, 'Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?' And He said to them, 'It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.'"
Now, this is an amazing scripture portion to me, and for a reason that you may not realize right away. But here’s what Jesus says to His disciples in verse 5: "For John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." Imagine being there for just a moment. Get with me on this, right?
Imagine being there, and Jesus—you believe He is the Son of Almighty God—Jesus says, "You are going to receive a different baptism from me than just what John gave you. Not many days from now it’s coming, and you’re going to receive the Spirit of God." Now, this is a people who knew exactly what He was talking about. They knew all the Old Testament stories. They knew that in the Old Testament only prophets would have the Spirit of God, sometimes only at specific times. Sometimes kings or people with a special call would receive it. They knew that Moses had said, "I desire a time where all should prophesy." They knew that there would come a time where the Messiah would come, and the Messiah would give the Spirit to all those that belong to the body. And here, Jesus tells them, "Not many days from now, I’m going to give you the Spirit of God." Incredible news. Incredible statement from the One they believe to be the Son of God. And here’s the next verse:"Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, 'Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?'"
They respond to Jesus as if they didn’t even hear Him! They say, "Um, Jesus, is this now the time where you’re going to kick the Romans out and give Israel back to Israel, restore the honor of Israel? Are you going to deliver us from the Romans about now?" They just move on from the incredible statement that Jesus has made.Then Jesus, you know, slightly rebukes them and tells them, "You’re waiting for the wrong thing." He says:"It is not for you to know the times or the seasons which the Father has put in His own authority." In other words, "Not for you to worry about. I just told you incredible news, you switched the conversation, and I’m correcting you. This is not for you to worry about." And then He tries to bring them back to what He’s talking about. He says:"But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
So, what Jesus is telling them, in other words, is: "You are called to walk in power in this season of your life. You’re not supposed to be focused on waiting for what I will eventually do. I’m not even going to share with you the details. I’m not even going to tell you the when, the where, and the how exactly. This is what I’m telling you: I’m telling you that I’m going to give you the Holy Spirit. I’m telling you that I’m giving you the Holy Spirit in power. I’m telling you not to live a life of waiting for the day that you’re going home or that I come into this world to bring you home." Now, we know that the Word tells us to stay focused on that very biblical truth: Jesus is coming soon. He’s taking me home. And also, my life is fragile. I have to live and stay ready at any given time, be about the Father’s business in the Kingdom, so that I am found to be a servant doing the work faithfully when Jesus calls me home or when He comes into this world. We know that is the truth, but there is an attitude in the churches and in the believer's life.
The disciples even walked around with it already, where they said, "We're just waiting for things to get better. We're waiting for you to do the final thing. I'm living this life, but really, I'm waiting for you to restore the kingdom. I'm waiting for you to fulfill the final promises." Jesus tries to snap them out of it. Instead of just waiting, right now, He says, "I'm calling you to walk in power. I'm going to give you my Spirit. You have a purpose in this season of waiting, and it's not only just to wait for this final thing that I am going to be doing." There are a lot of sounds, if you will, in the churches today that are exactly like that belief system the disciples had: "We're just waiting for the day." There's nothing wrong with staying focused on that day. Let me say that again—every day that I walk with the Lord, I focus on the return of the Lord, and I focus on the frailty of life. But I'm not just waiting my time out until Jesus calls me home or until I come to Him or until He finally establishes His kingdom.
In the midst of our today, He has called you, and He has called me, to walk in power. So, He calls His disciples and tries to snap them out of it: "You should be walking in power instead of walking in waiting." There is a heart attitude of expectancy. We are waiting for things because we know God is going to do them. At the same time, we know our identity and what God is doing currently in us and through us. Amen. But here’s what 2 Timothy 3:1–5 says: "But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come. For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away."
Denying the power of godliness—what does that mean? Godliness is being made godly, being made more and more like God by the power of the Holy Spirit, by everything that the cross has purchased, and by the blood of Christ that has paid for us. Denying that power—what does that power do? That power is what changes you and changes in you what cannot be changed. That power causes you to become the person—the kingdom-minded person—that builds up the Church of the Living God in a way that only God's power could have done. That power causes you to forgive when, in the past, you would have never forgiven. It causes you to apologize, take ownership of your mistakes, and say sorry for the things that wounded or hurt others, even when they were in your best interest but were a distraction or difficult for others.
It is the power of God that causes you to love God, love others, and be transformed—slowly but surely—from glory to glory into the image of Almighty God. It is the power of the Spirit, the power of godliness, that reveals through you what Christ has accomplished on the cross.
This person could never be changed—yet here they are, fully changed. This person could never walk free from sin—yet here they are, walking free from sin. This person was easily offended and held grudges when things didn’t go their way, when they weren’t recognized, or when they weren’t honored. The power of God comes in, and suddenly, you can’t offend a person anymore. Leonard Ravenhill used to say, "A dead man has no rights." Someone who has crucified themselves daily with Christ Jesus—who has made themselves a living sacrifice unto the Living God and a servant to all people—cannot be offended.
Whatever they can do to serve, they will do. Whatever they can do to humble themselves, they will do because Jesus always, no matter the season of life, made Himself lower. He always got under us to bring us back up. Those who have been forgiven, washed, and cleansed by the power of godliness, making themselves more and more like Him, will get under people. They will humble themselves, serve others, and refuse to be offended. They won't feel wronged because they count it a privilege to be around people who are potential children of the Lord or already followers of Jesus Christ. What an honor! What a privilege! Denying the power of godliness—see, the Word says in the last days, there will be people who deny that God gives that ability and that power to them. There will be people who believe that God gives that power to some, just like He did in the Old Testament. They will have a form of godliness, yet they will deny its power.
They are not transformed, and they are not launched into their kingdom identity or purpose. They don't have a completely new life. They deny that power. Yet, they wait for the time when God will restore the kingdom. They believe He's coming. They believe the Bridegroom is knocking—just as in the parable of the five wise and five foolish virgins. They believe the Bridegroom is coming, but they aren't doing what they should be doing in that season.
This is that same kind of person. They deny the power. They believe, they honor, they seek in measure, but they deny the power. As they wait for God to finally restore His kingdom, they live as if they never heard what Jesus said—just like the disciples. They move on as if they didn't hear, "I’ll give you my Spirit. I'll give you power so that you can be transformed, so you can become Fishers of Men, so you can be witnesses to Me and to the ends of the Earth." They live as though that was for others. They think, "I’m waiting in my little place for God, and when He restores the kingdom, I’ll be ready for it because I’m waiting for Him to do exactly that."
God told you, every single one of you. He told you that you will receive power. Jesus highlights every single one of us individually. He singles you out. He says, “You will receive power.”
The Greek in this passage implies that this is miraculous power. That’s another way you could translate it: a granted power that God gives—a miraculous, heavenly power. Jesus wants to give you that miraculous power. It’s the power to be His witness. The power to be changed, to be in relationship with Him, to understand the scriptures when you read them. It’s the power that causes this book to be understood and come to life by the Spirit of the Living God to your understanding. It’s the power to work through the most impossible things in your life. God gives you the power to work through it—not to get swallowed by it or be overcome by it. God seeks to give you—Jesus wants to give you—the power so that you can do miracles in His name.
Do you believe that? That Jesus wants to do that through you? Or do you deny that in your heart?
Because there are a lot of people today, in what calls itself the Church of the Living God, who say, “I believe this,” but they don’t believe it for themselves. They do not believe, and you can tell by the way they live. You can tell by what they spend their time on. You can tell by the way they rebel, or they still take offense, or they still feel wronged—all these ways that show they are denying the power, the access to their heart. They are denying God’s power to accomplish inside of them what God said He was so willing to give and do by His Spirit, by His effort—not by ours. All He is asking for is simple, childlike faith that says, “Lord, I believe You. Go ahead, Father. I’m going to give You my life.” Do you believe that Jesus wants to give you this power, or do you deny it in your heart? I believe the church really needs this. I believe God really calls people and gives them power by His Spirit, but I deny that He’s giving it to me. I deny that He’s going to give it to me.
You see, there’s an incredible and great, mighty purpose to this miracle power: to bear witness to the risen Lord. Often in words, yes, bearing witness happens in words. But this power is given from heaven to bear witness in miraculous ways. This is why God calls the lowly. This is why God calls those who don’t know how to speak to speak. This is why God calls those to love who used to be hard as a rock and didn’t care for people. This is why God calls you in the area of your greatest weakness, your greatest brokenness, to demonstrate through you what God’s power is able to accomplish. So that God may show to this world what He is able to do for anyone who comes to Him and is willing to believe Him at His word. That’s all He requires—that we believe Him at His word, turn away from our lives, turn away from our sin, and believe in Him. Believe Him at His word.
It is miraculous power to bear witness in miraculous ways. Not strange miracles. Not confusing miracles. Not things the enemy does to draw our attention away from the message of the Gospel. We know there are many churches today that have made room for other spirits. The Bible tells us to test every spirit, whether it is of God. The Word says those who confess Christ—if you look in the Greek, that means this is a Spirit that causes your heart to see what Jesus has done for you. That Spirit confesses that Christ has come to your heart personally, individually.
There are a lot of spirits in the churches today—for entertainment, to make you fall over, to make you lose self-control, or to take away things that the Bible says are fruits of the Holy Spirit.
The Bible tells us the Spirit sets us on our feet. The Bible tells us the Spirit brings order. The Bible tells us the Spirit builds you up, gives you dignity again, gives you honor again, and seeks to make you more and more into the likeness of the Father, created with dignity.
Other spirits seek to make a laughingstock of the body of Christ, to really get at the heart of God who loves these people and has given His life for them. A power is given from heaven to bear witness in miraculous ways. It is a miraculous power that is sent to accomplish the impossible—not to entertain Christians, not to make a church service more entertaining—but to accomplish the impossible. To break away bondage, to break away guilt, to break away shame, to break away self-awareness that says, “I’m still guilty before God. I’m still not good enough before God,” all of which is true. That’s why miraculous power has been sent into this world—to do a miracle, to change what could never be changed, and to break open prison doors that could never have been opened. We can narrow the character of this miraculous power down to recognize it.
We can narrow it down to the character of the Holy Spirit and His work, and very few scriptures summarize it as well as Jesus did in Luke 4:18–19. This is what Jesus said: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”
The power of the Spirit of Jesus miraculously brings about preaching, healing, delivering, giving sight to the blind, and setting people free. This is what the power of that Spirit is sent to do. Jesus says, “You will receive this miraculous power.” He says, “When the Spirit comes upon your life, you will receive power.”
That heavenly power—you may preach, you may heal, you may deliver, you may give sight to the blind, you may set people free in the name of Jesus. Do you believe, or do you deny that in your heart? If you struggle, if your heart denies it, that this is going to be your life as Jesus says, all you need to do today is repent. Repent of the feelings, repent of the unbelief, and believe what Jesus says over your tomorrow. He says, “Not many days from now.” That’s what He told His disciples. They moved on because they were full of waiting for other things. Jesus tries to bring their attention back: “No, I’m seeking to give you power while you live in this world. I’m seeking to do through you—what did Jesus say?—‘Many more miracles I will do through you, through the followers. Many more things through you.’” Do you believe that, or does your heart deny it? “Oh, not me. Not through me. Don’t call me to duty, Lord. Don’t enlist me in the armies of the Living God.”
I just—I want to show up as if it's optional. I want to attend, but I don't want to be enlisted. I don't want to be drafted. I don't—I don't want to have to show up when I have to. I don't want to actually take responsibility in the Kingdom. I don't want to have to walk in this power. I don't want to have the responsibility of this power. I don't want my life to be defined by this power. I already know what I want to spend my life on. If your heart denies that this power is for you, you may still have a form, the Bible says, of godliness. You're still waiting, and you believe you're waiting for the time Jesus fulfills the final promises unto His people. You're waiting for heaven. You're waiting for Him to return. You believe all these things, and yet you can deny the power of godliness—being made more and more like the Lord, not only in your words, not only in being able to stop cursing, not only in being able to treat others nicely and not hurt people, but also in your deeds.
Walking by faith, living out what Jesus showed us and went before us to show us what the life is supposed to be spent on once the Spirit comes upon a life. So many are behaving as if they didn't hear what Jesus said, just like the disciples. They just moved on. "You shall be baptized with the Spirit not many days from now," that's what the Lord told His followers. Jesus wants to share His good news through you. He wants to use you to heal. He wants to deliver people through you in His name and in His power. But He wants to do it through you. Do you believe? Do you believe what Jesus says? Let's look at an incredible aspect of the purpose of God's power that He seeks to give. Just a little later, in Acts 2:1-8: "When the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together and were confused because everyone heard them speak in his own language."
These were the most religious people you could have found on the face of the planet at that time. "And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together and they were confused because everyone heard them speak in his own language. Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, 'Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born?'" You see, this is a power that causes the body of Jesus Christ, however few they may be—just like on this day—it causes the believer to be able to reach those that are stuck in religion. It is a power that causes a realization, an awakening in the heart and the mind of those that have given themselves to lifeless religion, year after year, trying to serve God, trying to be good enough for God but never really getting anywhere. But they can't stop because they're still not good enough for God. They haven’t accomplished it yet.
And if I stop trying, my life will spin out of control. I'll become a devil running around, and I cannot let go of trusting that somehow, someday, some way, this law is going to keep me and transform me and make me into the man that I feel in my heart I should be. This is a power that Jesus sends into His body that, somehow, in a miraculous way, is able to reach those that have given themselves to lifeless religion, that are stuck in lifeless religion—those that hate the liberty of Christ, those that crucified Him, those that turned against Him, those that persecuted Him.
It is a power that is able to reach the unreachable. Without you having the right words, the Spirit will give you the right words. The Spirit will give you words that those stuck in religion are able to hear. They'll be confused, and they'll say, "How come I can't get this sentence out of my heart? How come I'm able to hear this person? They're not educated. They're not a pastor. They're not anybody special. Aren't they all Galileans? Aren't they all not significant people?"
The power that God gives causes the body of Christ to be able to reach beyond any barrier, beyond any spiritual boundary that the enemy thinks he's been able to set up or blind people with.
This is a power that pulls away the blindness, and it gives sight to the blind. This is a power that causes people that are still stuck in their sin to begin to hear something and to say, "How am I able to hear something? How come I'm able to begin to hear something in, if you will, my own language? I'm understanding this. This is speaking to my heart. This applies to my situation. I can hear this." And then the preaching of the Word came. Acts 2:14 tells us this: "But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, 'Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem let this be known to you and heed my words." He began preaching now under the anointing and the power of the Holy Spirit, the preaching being brought about. And now this is the result of those that do not deny the power. This is the result of those that do not deny the power of God, that do not deny what God is seeking to do through you as a vessel.
You see, you can't get the power but in your heart not be ready to let your vessel be used for the rest of your life, only for the things that God would like to do. You will not receive. God tests the heart. But those that follow Him and trust Him with all of their heart—He says, not many days from now, you won't be waiting for something in the distant future. You'll have something to do today. There will be power in your life so that I may do through you what I seek to do in the lives of those that still dwell on this earth and do not know that I have paid for their forgiveness. They do not know; they can't hear it. I'm going to give you miraculous power that is going to cause the deaf to hear, the blind to see. It's going to awaken something.
Acts 2:41—this is the result: "Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about 3,000 souls were added to them." Here you have the result of a man or a woman who says to God, "Lord, have Your way now in my life. I lay my life down. No longer I, Lord. No longer my way. No longer do I live for myself. Lord, if I never get to live a day again for me, Lord, I'm fully fine with it. All I want, all I trust, is Your direction for my life. All I want is what You want to do through my life. Lord, I know I'm going to need the power—that's not a problem. You've already promised that. But here, here I am, Lord God, a living sacrifice unto You. Lord, have Your way." All of a sudden, in that day, 3,000 souls were added because someone said yes to God. Someone made room for what God wanted to do. Someone stopped waiting for the distant promise while still living their life on Earth and said, "I'm going to live and be spent according to the power, according to what God desires to give."
Jesus wants to give you miraculous power that is able to reach those in deception, able to reach those in religion. He wants to give you the power to be a believer bearing miraculous witness to the Risen Lord. He wants to give that to you, which means He has a plan for how to spend your life. He wants to give you that power. Do you believe that today—the power to be a believer at any time and not waver, all the time? The power to be a believer in the storm and not cower and run back to God in the storm, and then play a believer during church and while life is going well? To be a believer at any time, to be a witness at any time, at the worst, most pressing, unexpected, crushing moments of your life—the power present to be a witness unto the resurrection of Christ and not to be a witness to the flesh. When you are under pressure, when you have the unexpected, unplanned, unwanted pressing things happen in life, does your life bear witness to the flesh that is still present, or does your life bear witness to the power that God has poured out into your life?
Jesus wants to give you the power, church. He wants to give it to you. If you would stand with me for a moment this first Sunday of 2025, if you need a change before you really start off this year—this year in which God has a purpose for your life, this year in which God has things He seeks to accomplish in you and through you in His Kingdom—by the end of this year, there are good works He prepared ahead of you. There are miracles He desires to do through you this year. He's not planning to do them through another vessel. He's seeking to do them through you. He's promised you the power. But if you say, "I need something. Something needs to change today because I’m either not walking in that power, or maybe I’m not sure if I’ve ever received that power that Jesus promises." If you need a change, listen. Listen to His word. Don’t just wait for Him to restore the Kingdom. Listen to His word.
Jesus wants to give you power. That’s what He was trying to get through to His disciples: "I am now about to give My Spirit to you. I’m about to give My power to you." And they just went on talking about all the topics—they couldn’t hear it with their heart of hearts. Well, they got there. And when they could hear, and when they received, that power was able to reach beyond walls in the heart that nothing could reach. Some of you, you’ve desired somehow to be able to reach behind walls in your loved ones—people that maybe you think, "Oh yes, that’s the religious person in my life. Can I reach them? They’ll never change. They’re so stuck. They believe what they believe. They’ll never change." Jesus says, "I want to give you power, power that is able to make them hear something. I can give you a language that causes them to hear something. I can give you miracles that cause them to hear something that can bring about a change."
He wants to give that to you. If you turn your heart and you believe His word today—that Jesus wants to give it to you, not your neighbor—you turn your heart and you believe that Jesus wants to give you that power. "You shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now."
That’s the promise Jesus gives. This is what God speaks over your life: "You shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." Don’t deny it. Don’t deny the power of godliness. Believe. Believe and see God perform what He said He would do in the lives of those that trust Him at His word. I remember so vividly, church, when God gave me His power. I had never heard of the baptism with the Spirit. I did not speak in tongues. I operated in other giftings first. I did not speak in tongues. I’d never heard of speaking in tongues. Those that know the story of how Jesus saved me—you know that no person evangelized me. The Holy Spirit showed me just a measure of the Gospel. I believed God this much. I only knew Him as the God of the light. I turned to Him. I stepped into the light. I became honest about every secret in my life.
And the second or the third day that I was saved, God visited me as I was praying in my old little office in my own country. I was praying to Him about something completely different, and the Lord came into the room.
You couldn’t—nothing was more real. You could sense it in the air, so thick. And it was as if He got behind me with this big injection needle and just put it in my back and filled me. And all I could describe was He filled me with a power I did not need. That’s the only way I could have described it to you at the time. I didn’t understand any of this. But instantly, the Holy Spirit gave me two clear thoughts: "This is not for me. So either I’m going to suffer persecution and need this much to get through it as a believer—the power to believe—or I’m going to serve and work for Him the rest of my life." No person ever taught me what the power was for. I hadn't read these scriptures yet; the Spirit showed it to my heart. Jesus wants to give you the power. He wants to give you the Spirit—not many days from the moment that you have fully believed Him and given Him all of your heart. He's going to fulfill His promise. Jesus wants to give you the power. Do you believe that today?
If you say today, "God is..."—maybe you don't even want to—but if you say, "God is. I believe God is calling me to believe. I believe He's calling me to believe and to not deny this for my life anymore, to not deny the power. I'm not just waiting for Heaven. Jesus is calling me to believe Him at His word, to believe that He has chosen me to receive His Spirit, to believe that He has chosen me to receive power, to be spent by His plan for the benefit of many. He's calling me to believe and not to deny anymore, to not shy back, to not take a step back anymore, but to let Him have His way." If that is you today, I want to invite you to come forward, and we're going to pray for God to fulfill that promise—that not many days from now, you may receive the Spirit, and the power of God may rest upon you. If you need a refresher, if you need strength again, you say, "I've already received power, but I seem to be running out of strength." We see it in the Word, time and time again, throughout the New Testament, that people were filled with the Spirit again and again—not a one-time event in your life. And if you say, "I thirst, and I hunger for a new filling with the Spirit of the Living God," I also want to invite you to come forward.
If God is calling you to believe and not deny anymore, or if you desire the Spirit of God to fill you once again, I want to ask you to come forward and to pray together as we come before the Lord.
-Pastor Stan Mons