The Gifts of the Holy Spirit (BIBLESPEAK)

0:00 Hey, everybody. Welcome to the Faith and Mission podcast. I'm your host, Steve Hannett, and this is a ministry of the Gospel Mission Network. We're really happy to be part of the Charisma Media Podcast Network, and we're here today to do part three of our series in the Holy Spirit. in the podcast. Now, today, we're going to be hitting a topic that actually is probably one of the most controversial topics of the Holy Spirit. You see, in part one, we spoke about who the Holy Spirit is. We spoke about what His ministry is. In part two, we spoke about how He desires to develop the character of Christ in us through the fruits of the Holy Spirit.

0:41 But in this session, we're going to be talking about His gifts. And you see, the gifts are all about the empowerments, the supernatural flowing of the Holy Spirit's ability in the life of a believer. And unfortunately, this is very controversial. In fact, depending on your background of being a Christian or even seeing Christianity at a distance, you may see many different expressions of the faith. Well, I want to explain that there really isn't just one flavor of Christianity. that people say, well, I'm this and I'm that. Actually, there's only one truth with one God. And you see, it's the truth that we need to connect with. And it's from that truth that comes the expression of authentic biblical Christianity.

1:29 And so we need to ask the question today, in that truth, in that authentic expression of Christianity, what's the role of the gifts of the Holy Spirit? Which ones are active today? Which ones are not? And can we really experience supernatural power in our own life, ministry or marriage? The answer is yes. Now, if you're somebody who doesn't really know much about Christianity, we welcome you because this is a great topic for you to hear to really understand the heart of God to empower us with His love and also with His gifts. If you've been walking with Christ for a long time, This is wonderful because you're able to grow and come more deeply into the fullness of what God desires for your life. Now, if you're a church leader, this is especially important for you because the church needs to be carrying the power of God in order to do the mission of God. And especially as church leaders, we can feel tension sometimes as to what is and what isn't. God's will concerning the gifts. So we're gonna try to cover a bunch of topics today about the gifts of the Holy Spirit to touch each of these areas.

2:42 So I wanna welcome again, Pastor Pat and Steve Paul and Jeff. I wanna welcome you guys. These are some leaders and friends in our ministry. Pastor Pat and Steve Paul lead house churches in our ministry. And for those who don't know, we are not just going after... The teachings of the Bible, we're also going after the patterns and the practices. So we literally have a church filled with house churches and we love breaking bread from house to house teaching and making disciples. So, well, let's open up our Bibles and I encourage you to get your Bible or phone someplace that you could look at the scripture. And I encourage you to get some coffee and get comfortable, a notepad, and let's dig into this conversation together. So we're going to turn to 1 Corinthians chapter 12, beginning with verse four. And the very first verse reads this way.

3:35 It says, there are diversities of gifts, but the same spirit. Well, I think first, this is describing that there still is one Holy Spirit, but it describes this idea different from our previous episode, not the fruits of the spirit, but gifts of the spirit. Let me throw this question out to the table. What does the Bible mean by gifts? What should we be thinking about when it's describing that God is giving gifts of the Holy Spirit? I believe he's giving specific supernatural ability to individuals to do the work of ministry, to propagate the gospel, to let other people know what God is like, how he behaves, what his character is, his nature, so that there's a demonstration of who he is. Ah, that's interesting. A demonstration of who he is. So in the fruits of the Spirit, we get to see his character. Right. And it sounds like you're saying that the gifts of the Spirit are demonstrating his work. Yes, his work, yes.

4:49 Through us. Through us. Yeah. Other thoughts about the gifts of the Spirit? It's a gift that keeps on giving. It equips us with all these gifts so we can share these gifts with other people to give them peace and understanding of Jesus. Sometimes we talk about people who are gifted in certain things that they can do, certain competencies that they have, and there's a lot to be said about that. There's some people very gifted with numbers, and maybe that's not my strong point. That's not mine either. But if you refer back to the last session on the Spirit, you see that it's very important that we are operating according to God's way of doing things, because man's way is not God's way. God has his own way. So in other words, there's a special giftedness that's required for the gifts that God wants to distribute and make clear in the world. I can't rely on my quote -unquote natural giftings. I need a gifting from God to be able to act out and to work out and to demonstrate, as you were saying, what He wants demonstrated.

6:07 So you bring up a good point that there is a difference between a natural gift and a supernatural Holy Spirit gift. So what would be examples of natural gifts that we may have? I mean, you mentioned one, I think, was if we're good with numbers. Yeah. Yeah. Aptitude for music. Yeah. Playing an instrument. Yeah. Athletic ability. Mm -hmm. Dancing. Yeah. Some people have two left feet. Artistic ability. Yeah, that's true. Left feet. Yeah. Yeah, artistic ability. Some people can't draw more than a stick figure. That's right. That's me. And like me, I'm not, yeah, I'm not sure if I can do that well. Yeah. So we all have natural gifts. People can even have a gift for public speaking too, right? And many different things. But the gifts of the spirit are not actually something that we're born with in the natural.

7:00 They're given, that's kind of a crazy thought when you think about it, they're literally given by God, right? From the heavens into a person's life. very different from the fruits of the spirit we spoke about, because those were nurtured over time. But God says, you know, my daughter, I'm giving you this gift. And they're for purpose. You know, it reminds me, well, you know, you'd like to give your teenager who just got their driver's license, you'd like to gift them a car. Well, it's because there's something to be. done with that car. Something is to be accomplished. It's a tool for something else. So he gives gifts so that his purposes can be acted out on the earth. So that can only be accessed through his spirit. And I think that that point right there, and I'd like you all to remember that point, because there's a purpose behind the gifts. And I think that that is gonna help us navigate through some of the debates that come up with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Let's take a look at the text here. Jeff, could you read for us from...

8:12 Well, actually, let me start with verse five, and then, Joe, I'll have you read a little bit later. It says, there are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it's the same God who works all in all. So within these three verses, there's a repetitive truth that's being presented. Verse four, diversities of gifts. Verse five, differences of ministries. Verse six, diversities of activities. So we see gifts, ministries, and activities. And this is a little bit of what we were talking off camera about. You know, how they're different, but they're all given by God. So there's differences.

9:01 And I think that's very, very important to understand because there's only one God. And again, this brings us back to episode number one about who is the Holy Spirit, because it describes the gifts of the Spirit. Then it says the same God who works all at all. Holy Spirit is God. So we have these differences that are flowing. So, Jeff, why don't you start with verse seven. and read through so we can understand some of these diversities or ministries and activities of the Spirit. Go ahead. by the same spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one in the same spirit works all these things distributing to each one individually as he wills. Thank you. Yeah, so so powerful.

10:19 So kind of like a big focus of the unity of the Spirit, right? And verse 11 says, the same Spirit works all these things. So this is not a human being's work. This is the Spirit, just like the fruits in episode two. The Spirit's producing the fruits. The Spirit, the Holy Spirit, is doing the works and the Holy Spirit is distributing to each one. individually as he wills. So let's talk about these diversities here for a moment.

11:01 Let's talk through, we don't have time to talk through all of them in an exhaustive way today, but let's talk about verse eight. It says 421 is given the word of wisdom through the spirit. What is the word of wisdom? What do you understand that to be? That would be truth, understanding of truth. A supernatural understanding of truth that would come by revelation from the Spirit so that you wouldn't know that truth any other way but through Him. Through Him. It's good.

11:41 Listen, I almost can't explain. You know, there's been times where I've spoken with brothers of mine where in my flesh I can't respond and the Holy Spirit makes me respond. I mean, where did that come from? And then God blesses me with the wisdom to share with somebody. I didn't even know that it wasn't for me. And there are times, I believe, in my life where it seemed like there was no way forward. But the word says we can ask for wisdom. Now, it's not necessarily the same as the gift of wisdom, but there are times when the Holy Spirit himself will sometimes just drop a thought. How about if we do it this way? And it's not just information. but it's wisdom how to move forward sometimes. Yeah, and it's good that we're making this distinction. We could have wisdom, and a Christian is supposed to operate with wisdom, and we all can ask God for wisdom.

12:39 But this is a special, specific operation where the Holy Spirit breaks in, and you're able to see a situation. And I love what all of you said, and I'm going to kind of put it together. The Holy Spirit enables you to see truth, not only of the word, but of the situation. And then he teaches you how to apply the truth into a situation. And that's what you said. It seems like there's no way out. Ah, here's how that truth would apply. And I've had People sometimes have asked, how did you know, like in a counseling session, you know, solving problems, people asking questions.

13:29 How did you know to answer like that? And I gently leaned over to him and said, I did it. And he said, what do you need? I asked God for help. And he presented it to me. Yeah. And people need this. What a beautiful need. in the church as a parent for your children, for your own life to be blessed by. And knowing who to go to that says, yeah, Steve operates in words of wisdom. Let me come to him and have him pray and seek guidance. Yeah. So good. It's like God gives you that gift where otherwise overwhelming situation.

14:19 becomes a navigational way to navigate through Him. He shows you how to navigate that. You couldn't do it in your flesh, but with Him, you could do it. And remember, this is God's wisdom, not man's wisdom. So I've encountered it, and I've kind of had as gently as I could correct people, because some beautiful people, even in our own church family, they mean very well. they'll go to people that have not been matured in Christ. They'll go to people who are not operating with wisdom or the gift of wisdom and they ask for counsel. And then they ask five, six, seven, 10 people. And they tell everybody about their problem. And then they get a multitude of answers and now they're more confused. And now they come to me. and they said people told me this and sometimes I have to gently not have any you know wrong expression on my face to say oh boy okay and then the Lord may present just one scripture just one truth and it just brings clarity to the situation yeah and uh it's special it's special when God does that yeah I mean the Bible says seek first the kingdom of God Go to him first.

15:37 Go to him first. So, you know, God teaches that wisdom is the principal thing. So as we look at this, would God want that wisdom to be taken away from the church? No. There's a purpose for it. Sure. God wants his children to be operating with wisdom. That's powerful. Yeah. God wants his sheep to be properly shepherded. He doesn't want them misled. Right. So, you know, this is one of them that I think most people would say that there is wisdom and God wants wisdom to continue. But I want to encourage, especially you who are listening right now, this is not normal wisdom. This is divine, heavenly, clear, breaking through wisdom that brings level of success. And it's game changing. It's a game changer. So it's something that I really, really value in the operation of the Holy Spirit. And not only just, you know, sometimes we can't see our situations clearly because we're in them, you know, so we need to go to each other. Right.

16:44 So I may have a word of wisdom for somebody else, but I'm a bit messed up myself about my own situation because I'm too close to it. Right. Right. So I can go to another dear believer and the Holy Spirit can speak to me. through them. Let's go to the next one here in verse number eight that says, to another the word of knowledge through the same spirit. So you have a word of wisdom, but you have a word of knowledge. I love this one. Oh, I love it. What is the word of knowledge, guys? I know you've had experience in seeing this and operating. Well, you have the wisdom, but then what do you do with it? What do you do with the wisdom? And that's the word of knowledge is, how do I actually apply what you've been showing me and see the situation change? Yeah, yeah, that's definitely... Steve, anything on that? The word of knowledge. Yeah, well, sometimes it is just one little piece of something that we need that will unlock. Sometimes it's a key, so a word of knowledge might be like a key. Like, you know, the real problem is such and such.

18:06 Yes, you're pulling off what Pastor Pat says, that there's something that's so specific, right? that God knows, and part of my favorite times is watching people encounter the reality that God loves them, God knows them, and God is here. And so there are times in which a word of knowledge will carry a supernatural knowledge of somebody's life that only God would know. And he breaks in with this understanding So the person's like, oh, God doesn't know me, God doesn't see me.

18:47 And sometimes I'll be praying for people and I'll say, are you having a relationship problem? And they look at me like, what? What? Who told you? And I said, and there's abuse and it isn't there. And it's been happening a long time. God wants you free. And the person just starts to cry and break down because they know that God was the one. who brought that to light. So it's really, really important because God gives us supernatural knowledge to be able to minister. And sometimes I don't even mention what God chose me. It just means now I know how I can talk with them, or I know what they may need. But we've heard people in supermarkets and gas stations and all of a sudden saying like, You know, God sees that you've been addicted to such and such for 10 years and the person's like, how could you know that? Right. You know, and then you pray for him and there's breakthrough. Sure.

19:52 Yeah. Do we need this today? Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. Yeah. Why? Why do you think we need it today? People are wondering who God is and does he really care? Does he really know who I am? You know, I'm just one of millions of people. He pinpoints. His attention and they know it so that they they see clearly that yeah, he knows he knows who I am and You know, whatever I thought was hidden He knows he knows And it's very timely because it's becoming very obvious that man's wisdom only has a certain point, right? Man's knowledge can only get us a certain point. Yeah, and we're seeing areas that only God can solve these situations. So it's critical that we have the wisdom and the knowledge of God to really get to the root of things. We have a supernatural wisdom. We have a supernatural understanding of circumstances and the dynamics happening in them. And this next one is interesting. It says in verse number nine, to another faith by the same spirit. Now this is an interesting one because it kind of touches, Steve, what you were saying.

21:09 You can have wisdom and everybody's supposed to have faith, but there's something specific called the gift of faith. So anybody want to take a stab at what the gift of faith is? Well, I don't know who is specifically the gift of faith, but I saw a dynamic example of faith just today when my brother Jeff was included here in this. who you've been with the Lord for a couple of years now, right? I've been with the Lord a few more years, but Jeff really, really demonstrated faith, I believe, because he jumped right into this. And I think the reason you did it was because you knew that God was going to be there to give you the grace. I mean, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for God. He's such a blessing in my life. with the gifts that he does give.

22:06 He's able to use what I've went through in my life to help others. Just the other day I was driving home from Master Kim's and I was able to pull over on the side of the road at 10 .30 at night, Patterson, and pray for a homeless man who was addicted to drugs. I asked him, can I pray for you? He said, absolutely, I need it. He said that, he needed it. And I knew that I needed to pull over on the side of the road. Well, let's hear from you, Pastor Pat. Supernatural faith is definitely a gift because there are circumstances that come into your life where it's impossible. I had this situation in my body where my hip was deteriorating and I was having difficulty walking, doing normal activities.

22:55 and I knew that I was going to need a hip replacement and I didn't want that, but I believed God because I had studied the Word, I had known and read the Word and knew that He was my healer and I did not want surgery. I wanted a supernatural hip replacement and God gave me supernatural faith, gift of faith, to receive that. In an instant all the pain was gone. And you've seen in Africa, where in Africa have you been? in Kenya and in Tanzania and in Nigeria. And so you've seen mass crusades, right? With thousands receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit, salvation and healing. And the ministry of God, the gift of faith is often seen there. And you're right, it's a supernatural movement of the Spirit on the person ministering. that's even above and beyond their cultivated faith. It's above and beyond their personal faith. It's not something that they grew in. It's not something they cultivated in. It's a movement of the Holy Spirit that wants to use that person. And I've had a couple of instances where it felt like a, where everything got clear and it was like a whole nother level.

24:15 And then I step off the platform and I'm back to my cultivated faith. It's an awesome experience. I experienced something like that when I was in the Dominican Republic on mission work. I had just given my testimony. That's what I was planning on doing. But the Lord moved me to wash the feet of the entire congregation. It was just mostly children. And I don't speak Spanish, you know? I'm praying for them, washing their feet. I'm praying the Spirit and praying for them just in English. And I'm just in the Holy Spirit the whole time. And I go back and watch the footage and I just see each children, they're in tears.

25:02 They're moved by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is moving you. There's no language barrier when it comes to the Spirit. That's right. Amen, amen. So there's a lot of text here in 1 Corinthians. And we have different kinds of movement of the Holy Spirit. There's what's called a five -fold ministry, the apostolic ministry, prophetic ministry, the evangelistic, the teaching, the pastoral. We also have administrations, a working of miracles, and different things that the Bible is describing. But there's one that I do want to talk about, which we could dedicate two hours alone just to discuss it, and it's the gift of tongues.

25:43 It's probably, I think in my experience, I don't know yours, but the most controversial one of this idea of the Glossier, the language of the spirit, the supernatural language. And I'd like to just share a little bit about what it is, because some people may not be aware of that at all, or maybe it's something that you've heard about, but never really understood. To be really, really brief about it in this episode, the gift of tongues is a supernatural empowerment to speak a supernatural language that speaks directly to God. And there is a gift of tongues that you're able to pray in. And the Bible describes this.

26:31 This prayer is edifying our spirit. It's been for personal edification. and it is strengthening us and we're having this deep communion with God in a language we didn't learn. And so it is a miracle. It's an amazing thing. And a lot of people wonder, is that real? Is that not real? And they sometimes hear people speaking in this unknown tongue or this unknown language and they think that it's just gibberish or something like that. And you know, there are people that I guess may try to just you know, mock or try to pretend something, but no, there's really a supernatural gift. In fact, Paul, he speaks that he speaks in tongues more than all the people that he was even writing to in Corinthians. Paul the apostle spoke in tongues. The early church spoke in tongues.

27:28 In fact, Paul had to write Corinthians to kind of like give some some instruction around the gifts so that they didn't misuse them. And tongues was one of them. Everybody was speaking in this. It makes me think like, why was the early church so flowing in some of these gifts? And today there are Christians who say, wait, I don't even know what tongues are. So I would just like to hear just for very, very briefly because of time, but You all do speak in what we call a heavenly language or that spiritual gift of tongues. And, you know, how did it happen? What happened to you? Why don't we start with you, Pastor Pat?

28:14 Well, I had heard about tongues and I knew that it was something that the Spirit of God did. And I was a little bit afraid of it because I knew God was powerful and I didn't know if I really wanted... to do this thing and then one day I was in a worship service setting and everybody was up on their feet and with their hands up praising the Lord and I loved to worship. I was a worshiper and I just was entering in and all of a sudden I was worshiping in another tongue. That's how it happened to me. Wow, powerful, powerful. Steve, how did you encounter it? Yeah, well I had seen people around me. you know, exercising this gift and praying, you know, in the unknown tongue, praying with groanings that are 2d4s.

29:00 And it's something that kind of attracted me. I wanted that, but there was almost like a mental block that I had. And I think what happened was I was trying to figure it out with my natural mind. And it's, God, I think God showed me, no, you don't figure this out in your natural mind. you simply ask and receive. I remember having almost an argument with myself until I just said, God, if you want me to have this, I want it. And I was actually all by myself out in the wilderness, the place you like to be from time to time. And it just started flowing and it hasn't stopped since. But it's a way, like you say, Pastor, it's a groaning. that's too deep for words sometimes can only be expressed with a groan or sometimes, you know, with the other. And we actually find that language communicated by the apostle Paul in his letter to the Romans that there is a prayer that We don't know how to pray, but the spirit itself makes intercession through us. And then there's our groanings and things. Jeff, how did you encounter the gift of tongues? I was one of those guys that wasn't sure about tongues at all. I was like having a conversation literally the night before Pentecost with a brother. I was like, what's up with these tongues, man?

30:15 You know, like, I'm not sure if I understand this or whatever. And the Pentecost came and I'm worshipping and I'm in the Holy Spirit, got tears, you know, singing hallelujah. And you're coming by and praying for another brother. And all of a sudden I feel your hand pull me up towards the altar. The next thing you know, I'm just overwhelmed with this. I can't even explain it really, because I don't I feel like I wasn't there almost, you know, I have to go. I have to go back and rewatch the video. It's like it's like when I hear back and I'm like. What is that? It really just came out of me. I mean, between crying and speaking in tongues at the same time. And it was just, it changed my walk. It changed my relationship. There's an empowerment that comes to us when that happens. And that's why the realities... of the supernatural nature of Christianity have to be restored to the church.

31:14 We have to. And listening, if you're a pastor, you're a church leader, I am with you. There are so many wrong examples. There are so many abuses of things and stuff, but we have to go back to Scripture and just let the Bible speak, right? We have to allow that, the Scripture to speak for itself because we see in the Scripture that that it's there and it's included with all the other elements in here. And when we look at purpose, right, when we look at purpose, does God still want to release the same Holy Spirit gifts now that he did that? Yeah, sure. You know, the apostle Paul's, some people say, well, that was during Jesus' time. He only healed because when Jesus was on the earth. No, that's not true.

32:00 When Jesus was resurrected, the apostles were still working. the works of miracles. There were still healings. It's still Jesus' time. He's still alive. He's still alive. It's still his time. It's still good, Jeff. It's still good. It's still his time. And some people say, well, that was for the original church, you know, the early church. But so, you know, was wisdom only for them? No. You know, was administration and evangelism only for them? So what I've kind of heard is sometimes I hear people take one of the gifts and isolate it and say, That one's no longer active today. But, you know, Paul the apostle, he wrote some of his letters, like 1st and 2nd Timothy, scholars believe between around like 64 to 67 AD. He was still speaking in tongues.

32:50 Right. So that's almost 70 years plus of time that he was still speaking in tongues and the church still was. Did it stop at year 71? Right. Did it stop at 72 or maybe year 69? How would we reason through that scripturally? Some people say that they, you know, will quote that tongues will cease, but in the same verse it says that knowledge will cease. We still need knowledge on the earth now. Yes, very much so. So this is why I highly respect people as they're working through, even us at the table, we didn't understand.

33:35 Right? So we're compassionate about that. And our heart in speaking about this is not to point fingers of people who may have a different view, it's just to share and challenge our thinking to say, wait a minute, let's, maybe we have to rethink and return. And maybe we have to look at God's purpose for this because he's still desiring for his sons and daughters to be edified and communicate that intimately with. But we also have to appreciate. There's a diversity of gifts and the Holy Spirit gives to each one according to what he wills. We're not all going to have the same gifts. So I don't believe that there are second -class citizens in the kingdom of God. Like these are the important children.

34:16 These are the less important children because they have these gifts and they only have those gifts. That is a flawed understanding of scripture. Paul goes into this and he describes, you know, the unity of the body. and how the foot needs the arm and the eye needs the nose and the ear and it's one body. So you're getting this idea of the community, the family of God with one spirit, empowering us all in different ways to work together. Yeah, so very, very powerful. Same spirit, but we have different works. Yes. And this is why, you know, I have felt transparently to church leaders who are listening or just Christians, I have felt pressure to be like somebody else.

35:03 I felt pressure. I'm not enough of this. I'm too much like that. And you start to realize, no, I'm a workmanship. God made me as he made me, but he made you guys differently and I need you. I love you all. I need you and you need me. We got to do it together. Amen. God's masterpiece. God's masterpiece. I think ultimately I'd like us to go to Galatians chapter 2 verse 20 real briefly. I think this is the key to all of this conversation today. Paul said, for I have been crucified. I have been crucified with Christ. It's no longer I who live, but it's Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live, I live by faith through the Son of God, right? This is the key. Steve, you mentioned it, you surrendered.

35:58 Jeff, you mentioned in episode two, you surrendered. Pastor Pat, you were in a state of worship, just surrendering to God, just, you know, adoring God. I had the same thing happen by myself in an apartment. Lord, I desire. Even this past Pentecost, and for those who may not know, Pentecost is the 50th day from the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It's an awesome meaning through the gospel. Here in our local church in Abundant Grace, we had people coming up and saying, I want to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit. I want that activation of the gifts of God. People came up and there were a number of people that just received it.

36:38 the gift of tongues, and now they're able to operate in other gifts because God desires it. God longs for it. And Paul says, he says to pursue and to desire after the gifts. But listen to verse chapter 14 of 1 Corinthians, verse 12. It says, even so you, since you are as zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel. So I'm going to put those two verses together for us. Galatians, it's not us who lives, we surrender. But what's our motivation? That God is going to utilize the Holy Spirit in our life for the building up of His people called the church.

37:26 Amen. That's so good. You guys think that that's going to accelerate the release of the gifts in people? Absolutely. It's just such a picture of wholeness. You know, before Christ, they needed all different manner of spirits. They had the spirit of this spirit or that spirit. But Paul said, no, it's all, everything pertaining to life and godliness is in the one true spirit of God. There's such a beauty to that. We don't have to look elsewhere. We don't have to search all different spirits. But first of all, we get the gift of eternal life. But now he gives us these gifts. in order to, as you say, to build one another up, to multiply that image throughout the earth, and it only can happen corporately.

38:16 We need the gifts of the Spirit have to function corporately, and my finger won't just go over here and get something done. I need my whole person to be involved. There has to be connectedness, and as we do, it shows the very nature of God. Yes. On that point, we need each other. and we need a good local church to belong to. I wanna encourage you, if you're even just seeking God, if you desire God, if you're already saved, and even if you're in a church that isn't teaching the Bible, in all cases, we need a good Bible teaching church. Why? You need to learn, you need to fellowship, and then you need to be able to find your ministry in the community of God's house. And so I want to encourage you. Number one, you receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

39:05 You cast all your care and you repent from your sin. You turn away and you declare Jesus as Lord. You really receive him into your heart. Number two, you've got to grow in the word of God. And God's going to show you your ministry and God is going to release his Holy Spirit to you. I'm even going to pray for you right now. Lord, I pray God that you would release God all that you desire. Lord, upon everyone listening, Lord, maybe there are people now who God are hungering after spiritual gifts, Lord, they want to serve you. They're like Isaiah, they say, Lord, here I am, send me. And so, Lord, I pray, Father God, for each person listening and watching that, Lord God, you would release exactly as the spirit wills upon their life, Lord. Lord, the gifts and the collection of gifts that are all meant for their calling. Lord, we ask this, Lord, you said in Luke 11, how much more will you give good gifts to those who ask you? So just ask him right now as I'm praying for you, ask the Lord to. release the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

40:13 He's good. He's good. He's gonna release them to you. He wants you to have them. You are his son or daughter. So Lord, I just thank you and ask this for your glory in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. Well, praise God. I hope you enjoy this. I had fun with you guys today. This is what we do in our house churches, guys, except we have more food, right? And fellowship and worship. We just so love that you've joined the Faith and Mission podcast. Tune in, subscribe, follow us so that you can find out all the other episodes coming because we're gonna help you live this life of following Jesus. God bless you, we love you much. Thank you for listening to the Faith and Mission podcast. If this episode blessed you, please like, subscribe and share it with somebody who needs encouragement today.

40:57 Stay connected with me on Facebook, at Facebook .com forward slash Steve Hannett for the latest updates, announcements and ongoing encouragements throughout the week. For resources, training and tools to help you fulfill the Great Commission, please visit us at gospelmissionnetwork .org where you'll also find the video podcast, our TV program, The Miraculous Life and my most recent books including Unleashing Heaven's Breath. Until next time, may Jesus Christ lead you guide you and establish you in the fullness of His grace and power. God bless you. planting churches, and raising up leaders around the world. If God has used this ministry to bless you, we invite you to partner with us. Your tax -deductible gift helps us continue this work. Simply visit gospelmissionnetwork .org and click the Give button. Every gift makes an eternal difference.

42:05 Thank you for your prayers and generous support. Together we are advancing the Kingdom of God.