“Have you received the Holy Spirit since you’ve believed?”
*”If I didn’t have the Spirit I couldn’t have believed. ”
“How about the 120 believers on the day of Pentecost or the others Paul met and asked?
*”Well I don’t know but I know without the Spirit, I couldn’t have gotten  saved”

All of that is true we receive a measure of faith and the Spirit, when we are saved but there is the Baptism of the Holy Spirit available to whosoever will.

Are you a whosoever will? Do you want all the the Lord has for you? Do you long to see signs and wonders following?  Do you think Jesus wants to heal the affected, comfort the brokenhearted, give sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, make the lame walk?

(Without the Spirit we are like these boats in dry dock…not providing the. Service we were meant to).
I  believe Jesus is disappointed in His Church,  His representatives on earth.  His words once again in:

John 14:12-18
” Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.  And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.  If ye love me, keep my commandments.   And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.  I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.”

(He wants us prepared and ready to launch out into the deep, to collect His harvest ).

He promised those who believe. …(is that you?), that they would do greater works, then He,  whatsoever we ask He will do.  If we love Him… (do you? ),  we need to keep His Commands.   (Love God, Love each other).  Jesus will pray the Father to give us the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth.  We should know Him for He dwells within us.

So what happened?  Why is today’s Church so weak?  We have misunderstood Matthew 25.

The Master in the story left money (Talents ) according to their abilities. They were to invest  (or use) these Talents to increase their Masters wealth.  They received praise or scorn.

Jesus went to a far Country,  and left us something,  The Holy Spirit.   He expects us to invest or use it to increase His wealth.
(Save Souls).

He gave us the tools to use.  The Gifts…the 9 in 1 Corinthians 12 and others.  What have we done with them?

Excess and abuse mostly,  just like the Corinthians.  What should we do now?

Ask forgiveness, for our lack of Faith. Ask to be filled  with the Holy Spirit.   Ask for the gift of the the Word of Wisdom and Word of Knowledge.

He gave out the gift of Tongues first because that is the easiest to use….it is the one that scares people the most. (” I don’t think we should have to speak gibberish.”)  When the Lord tells us it is our spirit talking directly to Him.  (1 Corinthians 14 :4,28).

That’s filling your lamp with oil, finding the Faith to do His will.

That is where I’m restarting.  I  expect The Lord to bless any that come to Him in obedience and Faithfulness.

Thank You Jesus for filling us with Your Spirit of Love.
Watch for third installment,

Thanks for visiting,
The Fix-it Shop-Filling Station
bill theunfetteredpreacher cote.
Know you are loved.