 I have a prophetic word for you. There is coming to the church a fresh emphasis on the person of the Holy Spirit. Listen, we need the Holy Spirit. We are helpless without Him. We need His power. We need His nature. We need His guidance. We need the Holy Spirit. And today that's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna remind you that we need to depend upon the Holy Spirit. We need to be reminded of our dependency upon who He is. So that's what I'm doing today. On this edition of Spirit Church, I'll be challenging you in that area. First, Stephen Maktizuma is here with me. He's gonna lead you in some anointed worship. And then we're gonna get right into this lesson here is Stephen Maktizuma. The fear of God is not passion. It's not hype. It's not emotion. The fire of God is not even revival. The fire of God is a person. And that person is the Holy Spirit. And first Thessalonians chapter five, beginning at verse number 15, this portion of scripture I'm about to read gives us a encouragement that I wanna give to you today. I wanna refresh your memory. I want to really emphasize our need on the person of the Holy Spirit. And first Thessalonians chapter five, verses 15 through 22 say, see that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people. Always be joyful, never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. Verse 19, do not stifle the Holy Spirit. Do not scoff at prophecies, but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good, stay away from every kind of evil. Now, what's being said here is that we should not quench the person of the Holy Spirit. The Greek word there means to extinguish or to suppress or to thwart, to quench as in to quench a fire. The same word is used in Ephesians chapter six, verse number 16 where the Bible says, in addition to all these hold up the shield of faith to stop that same word there or quench or thwart or suppress the fiery arrows of the devil. So the word here is implying that whatever is being suppressed, whatever is being thwarted is fiery in nature. So the Holy Spirit has a fiery nature. He can consume us, he can cleanse us. He can bring judgment to the wicked. That same fire that cleanses us judges the wicked, but we are told to not quench the Holy Spirit. We are told to not suppress his work. Now, I wanna tell you that we're living in a sad reality today and I'm not trying to be negative. I'm not trying to be critical. I'm just being honest with you and I don't bring this to your attention with joy. I don't take pleasure in pointing out these negative things and I'm about to give you a solution to point out a problem without pointing on a solution is just complaining, but I do need to warn you. I do want to warn you that there is this philosophy or attitude. I'll even go as far as saying this spirit that is coming against the church, that is coming against the source of the church's power. This spirit is affecting many parts of the body of Christ and this spirit is drawing attention away from the person of the Holy Spirit. This is a religious spirit. This is a worldly spirit. This is a secular spirit. This attitude, this idea, this mindset is like I said affecting the church and many pastors and many Christians are getting away from emphasizing the work of the Holy Spirit. They're treating the Holy Spirit like a liability instead of the source of all power to make true impact. They act as if he's trouble or he's too weird or he makes us look bad in front of the world and they are switching to relying upon superficial encouragement instead of supernatural empowerment. And so just an example of this, I received a phone call from a pastor and this pastor asked me to come and minister at his church and so I'm agreeing to some of the terms that he's giving me. We will make arrangements as far as dates and times and see if it works for both parties' schedules. So I'm going through this phone call and this pastor's talking to me and then he tells me something that really caught me off guard to be honest with you when he first spoke it. He said, I'm glad that you're coming. He said, all of the people are new converts so I think it's time that you're coming in which was odd to me because sometimes people act as if the Holy Spirit is for the advanced learner when really the person of the Holy Spirit should be introduced to the new convert the day they get saved. He is not a reward for the super spiritual. He's the only chance that we have it to be coming spiritual but that's a digression. He went on to say, I want you to come to the church but when you come, make sure you don't do any of that dramatic diga stuff. He said, I don't want people falling out drunk or slain in the spirit or don't let it get too crazy. He said, you can preach, encourage, he will give maybe a few words here and there. He said, but don't really let it get out of hand. Now, if you've seen the way my ministry works you know that I don't allow things to get chaotic. It's a very, there's a very reverent flow to the move of the Holy Spirit in our ministry but I was surprised that he had said that and I said, you know pastor like then you want another speaker because that's not me. You might as well call somebody else. I want to let the Holy Spirit do whatever it is he wants to do. I can't promise you he's not gonna leave me in one direction or another and to be honest, if it comes down to choosing between obeying a man or obeying the Holy Spirit I'm gonna obey the Holy Spirit. So if you don't want that risk, just get somebody else. You know, I had several conversations like this where people tell me not to be so sensitive to the Holy Spirit and they're not saying that outright they're saying it in their own ways. In fact, they have these clever sounding excuses that sound persuasive, they sound convincing. I'll give you an example. I heard one pastor defending the fact that miracles didn't take place in his church. So we're talking about a church where healing was not common. Deliverance, the casting out of demons was not common. I mean, you talk about the church or the sad thing is is that we're no longer the source. We're sending them to the hospital. We're sending them to psychiatrists and therapists. We're sending them to get counseling and there is nothing wrong with any of those things but our first attempt should be the power of God. And so we are sending people to counselors because we can't drive the devils out of them. We're telling people your only hope is in medicine which they should take medicine because we don't have the power to heal the sick. And the reason that is is because many of the churches reject the person of the Holy Spirit. So we're talking about one of these churches, this pastor is defending the fact that he doesn't allow those, and he was very proud about it. You know, we don't have that slain in the spirit stuff here, we don't really pray for the sick. We put that in the background, we're almost bragging saying, you know, we're very culturally engaged. This makes the visitor more comfortable to come and visit us. And I thought that was very odd that they would be more welcoming to a visitor than to the Holy Spirit. And so I'm asking about this, I said, but don't you want the Holy Spirit to move? Don't you want the Holy Spirit to have his way? And he tells me something to the effect of, well, I do want the Holy Spirit to move and he does move. And then he began to point out the fact that people got saved because people get saved in my church. Lives are changed, families are restored. He said, all of that happens in my church, so therefore the Holy Spirit moves. And a thought came to my mind as soon as he said that. And I thought, pastor, that's like saying to the Holy Spirit, thank you for saving them. Now we'll take it from here. Thank you for restoring that person's life. Now we'll take it from here. We know how much we needed the Holy Spirit. We'll let you move up to a certain point. We'll let you move up to the point where our visitors are comfortable, where the worldly culture still thinks we're cool or hip or relevant, whatever that means. I mean, there are so many subcultures today. I don't even think any culture's making as big of an impact as they think they are. It's just the gospel. That's the biggest impact you can make. And so what's happening is these clever sounding excuses make it seem as though we're allowing the Holy Spirit to move, but really we're wanting the Holy Spirit to move on our terms, within our culture, within our agenda, in a way that doesn't offend the people we don't want to offend. And we're judging the church's success by the world's standards instead of the Holy Spirit's guidance. The standard for success should not be the world accepts us, the world likes us, the world listens to us, the world gives us influence. The world really thinks we're great, we're cool, we're awesome. The standard for success should be, I obeyed the voice of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the ultimate church builder. The Holy Spirit is the ultimate ministry worker. He knows how to build the church. He founded the church. How sad that we're living in a time where the one who founded the church is limited in how he works in that same church he founded. We don't want to give the control anymore. We're sipping from the river instead of diving in. And so that's the state we're living in. And again, people make clever sounding excuses and they sound good, but the truth is the Holy Spirit is being suppressed. Now I have a passion to do what God placed in my heart. People tell me, you talk about the Holy Spirit so much. You talk about him a lot. And they say, shouldn't you focus on Jesus or this or that? And I say, of course. Jesus is the Holy Spirit's emphasis. The gospel is our primary message. But when it comes to me ministering to the church, I've been given a mandate by God. I have felt it upon my heart so heavy to introduce my generation to the person of the Holy Spirit. I don't want us to lose his power. I don't want us to lose that sensitivity to his voice and not just the modern interpretation of sensitivity to the Holy Spirit where we have gifts in operation but the glory never shows up. I'm talking about a fully surrendered life to the person of the Holy Spirit to where we say whatever it is you want us to do, however it is you want us to flow, however that may look to everyone else, we're going to obey the Holy Spirit. Why? Because we need the Holy Spirit. Now think about this. Jesus needed the Holy Spirit. Jesus by his own words said that it was by the Holy Spirit that he drove out devils. Jesus cast out demons by the Holy Spirit. Jesus preached the gospel by the Holy Spirit. Isaiah the prophet tells us that he was anointed of the Holy Ghost. Jesus healed the sick by the Holy Spirit. Acts chapter 10 verse 38 tells us so. Jesus drove out devils. Jesus preached the gospel. Jesus healed the sick all by the Holy Ghost. Do you know that Jesus was even resurrected by the person of the Holy Spirit? Romans chapter 8 verse 11 tells us the Spirit of God who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you. And just as God raised Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. Hebrews chapter 5 verse 7 says, Well, Jesus was here on earth. He offered prayers and pleadings with allowed cry and tears to the one who could rescue him from death. And God heard his prayers because of his deep reverence for God. So Romans 8 11 tells us it's the Holy Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead. Hebrews 5 7 tells us that Jesus set out pleadings to God who raised him from the dead. So the Holy Spirit is God. And the Holy Spirit was the one who raised Jesus from the dead. But I want you to really think about what that means. Now, if I can use this terminology because whenever you start talking about eternity, the terminology gets a little confusing. But let me just for our understanding sake and communication sake communicate it in this way. I'm gonna word it in this way. For all of eternity, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Father, the Word and the Spirit knew perfect fellowship. And for all of eternity, had never once known separation. They lived in an eternal state, a constant state of being united. When Jesus died on that cross, when he surrendered his life on the cross, when he subjected himself to death willingly, he put his full trust in the person of the Holy Spirit. Now really think about this. Imagine this, God, the Word, who had never known separation from God, who had never known separation from the Spirit, who had never known death, submitted himself to death. Eternity himself dying. Eternity himself subjecting himself to the grave. Life itself allowing itself to die. Now really think about that. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? That's a separation from his Father. Then he says, Father, into your hands, I commend my spirit. That's a separation from the Spirit. And the Son, the Word, Jesus, demonstrating ultimate faith, fell backwards into the grave, trusting that the Holy Spirit would catch him. Jesus relied upon the Holy Spirit. Jesus placed everything he had totally counted upon the person of the Holy Spirit. If Jesus needed the Holy Spirit, how much more do we? If Jesus trusted the Holy Spirit, how much more should we? You see, no believer, I should say most believers, don't knowingly reject the Holy Spirit. If a believer is going to reject or stifle or quench the Holy Spirit, he or she is going to do it usually unknowingly. Most believers don't say, how can I disobey the Holy Spirit today? Most believers don't say, I don't need the Holy Spirit. We all acknowledge that we need him. We all acknowledge that we should obey him. Therefore, if a believer were ever to quench the Spirit of God, he or she would most likely do it unknowingly. So you must humbly open yourself to this question, as must I. This question, this pressing question, and we must honestly answer it, am I quenching the Holy Spirit? Now how do you allow him to move? It's very simple. The power of the Holy Spirit is often found in a simple pause, a moment of reflection, a moment of quiet and stillness to where you stop and consider, that's all I'm saying today, stop and consider the Holy Spirit. Be responsive to his voice, be sensitive to his voice, like a reflex we should react with obedience to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Just pause and be quickened. He's gentle, he doesn't shout, so you have to pause to listen to him. Now I have this prophetic word because we're living in a time where gifts are demonstrated, but the glory is not seen. I prophesy. There is growing a hunger in the church. People will grow tired of the superficial. Even the world will grow tired of the superficial. Here's the thing about the move of the Holy Spirit. It always comes full circle. There are many movements that come and go. There are many themes that are preached and then stop being preached. There are many ideas and cultures that rise and fall, but this one thing remains. No matter what, we always come full circle to an outpouring of the Holy Ghost and nothing can top that. Now it's going to look in some ways new, but in principle it's going to be the same thing, the power of the Holy Ghost, the healing of the sick, the preaching of the gospel, the burden for lost souls coming upon the church, a great time of repentance. These are all signs and marks of a move of the Holy Spirit. The church, look at the church in Acts. They honored their leaders. They honored each other. They gave generously. They preached boldly. They lived holy. They prayed consistently. They worshiped sincerely and they walked in power, giving their lives to the sake of the gospel, that cannot go out of style. That never becomes irrelevant. That move of the Holy Spirit is coming again. It comes in cycles. It comes in waves. Yes, I know we are moves of the Holy Spirit ourselves, but there is also an overall sovereign move of God that comes and that is coming. In fact, I believe it's now here and a fresh emphasis on the person of the Holy Spirit is coming to the church. We're going to get off the topics like leadership and church building and encouragement and all of these topics that are good and they are for a season and we do need them. Every gift is needed, but there is coming a fresh emphasis on the person of the Holy Spirit. You just watch. I know I've been faithful to preach it. The Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, we need him. And I know God will honor our faithfulness to him. So remember not to quench him. We need him in our lives and in our ministries. With everything that you are, from the bottom of your heart, from the depths of your spirit, say today, welcome Holy Spirit. We need your power again. We need your anointing. We need your guidance. We need you to teach us how to win this world. And he will. We need the Holy Spirit. Well, that's it for the lesson. I want to pray for you now. And I want to believe God that he'll stir within you the fire of the Holy Ghost. Come on, stretch your hands toward mine. Let's believe. Father, in the name of Jesus, I pray for that one receiving this prayer now. And I ask, Lord, you would stir that fire. Reveal to us, Lord, the areas in which we are quenching the Holy Spirit. Lord, we're not clever enough to win this world. We're not gifted enough to win this world. We are not intelligent enough to win this world. Lord, we will never be relevant without your power. Give us your power, Holy Spirit. We welcome you. We welcome you, Holy Spirit. Stir again the fires of evangelism. Stir again the fires of faith that see miracles. We ask it in the precious name of Jesus. I thank you for it, Lord. Jesus' name. Amen. We need to repent for getting about the Holy Spirit. Well, that is it for the lesson. I want to welcome now the new members of Spirit Church. There you are up on the screen. We love you. We are praying for you. I always say that because I always mean it. If you like information on how you can join Spirit Church, use the information at the bottom of the screen. It's free. I'll send you a brand new teaching every single week and you can reply to that email for prayer support from our staff. Now, if you're wondering why I'm sitting down today, it's because I'm actually in about 40 minutes or so. We're getting ready to go live from here, the studio. So we're gonna go live. So we actually are filming this on a Thursday night. And by the time you see this, the live broadcast will have already happened. But now I want to read your comments. And these are comments from How to Heal the Sick Part 5, which was on Setting the Atmosphere. I just closed out my series on How to Heal the Sick. And so these are some of the comments from last week's teaching. Natish Sinha writes, Blessings to all. I'm a physician. Jesus is healing ministry. I pray daily that I may bring his healing power to people through medical knowledge imparted onto me through his grace. That is powerful. I believe that the medical profession is of God. Anything that works in conjunction with the will of God is godly. Shannon Malachi writes, I want to say thanks for your prayer. I was having chest pain. Then you started praying I am healed. Well, all glory belongs to Jesus. That's one of the reasons I love this channel. It's not my channel, it's the Holy Spirit's channel. I love this channel because his power just flows and a lot of people comment that they feel his presence and power just watching the content. And that's because we welcome the Holy Spirit here. Christopher Slaughter the second writes, Oh my goodness, I am so happy for you guys. God bless and counter TV as you guys reach the nations. I will be along with you in spirit. I love you guys so much. Congratulations. For those of you wondering, he's talking about our monthly partnership campaign. We reached it. I'll give more info on that in just a minute. Treasure Brown writes, Shalom hallelujah. This is why it's important to have a relationship with the Holy Spirit and be led by him. Anything else becomes complicated. That's so true. We need his guidance to help us set that atmosphere. And the final commenter writes, I lost my relationship with God two years ago and I just recently gave my life back to God this year in March. I believe that God led me to watch Encounter TV. Every time I watch Encounter TV, I feel peace and joy. I've learned a lot from Encounter TV and I'm looking forward to what God will do with the ministry. I know he will do something great. God bless you, brother David, praise God, hashtag partner, hashtag God is good. And we too are looking forward to what God will do with this ministry. And just to update you, those of you who have been wondering about our campaign, remember I told you we needed 1,000 new $30 month partners so that we could step out and have the monthly resources needed to get into a new facility. That campaign is done. We reached our 1,000 partners and now we have enough support to not only do what we talked about with the ministry facility, but now we can do even more events and you'll be seeing those events posted very soon. We are currently in search for a building. If you're looking for updates, listen very carefully, I will no longer be updating you on the campaign in Spirit Church. From now on, you can get your updates at davidhernandezministries.com slash projectetv, slash projectetv. Go there, that's where you'll see all the updates, all of the everything that's going on. Of course you can also always email the ministry, but the updates will be posted there if there's something significant, you'll hear about it there or I'll go live and update, but I just want you to know that. So I'm going to go back to regular ministry fundraising now for Spirit Church. So as far as the campaign goes, if you want updates on that facility, you got to go to projectetv and there's the link for you. So I want to encourage you now, if this ministry has blessed you in any way and you want to help us continue to take the gospel of Jesus Christ all around the world through media and events, help us do that today. You know, we're about souls, that's what we want to do. And I'm not, please hear me, I am not saying that there are no other ministries out there that do what we do. There are thousands of them, but even with the thousands of ministries like ours out there in the world doing what we do, there still is not enough of the gospel being preached. There, especially the gospel being preached in the power of the Holy Spirit. We need the power of the Holy Spirit behind the preaching of the gospel. Otherwise it's just a speech. We need his power. And so this ministry is dedicated to preaching the gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit uncompromised. Help us do that through events and media. So we're doing two things as a ministry, we're winning souls and we're building disciples, raising a remnant of Jesus loving spirit filled people of God. And when you support this ministry, it goes out through media and events. So support us today. If you sign up to become a $30 a month partner, I will send you either a copy of Carriers of the Glory or 25 truths about demons and spiritual warfare. The choice will be yours. I'll sign it. That'll be my initiation gift to you for signing up as a ministry partner. So do that today. If you're watching this on YouTube, wait until the end of the video. There's gonna be a red button that appears. You can click that. If you're watching this on the app, wait for the video to end and then you'll see a button that appears that says partner with David. If you're watching this from anywhere else, use the information at the bottom of the screen. Don't delay on this. Don't say all wait a week or wait. Listen, we say God bless me and I'll give, but God says give and I'll bless you. No one is beyond the challenge to give to the gospel. You can't do 30 a month, do five a month, do 10 a month, do 15. Some of you can do 100 a month, but whatever you can do, do it now. Do it today. Be sensitive to the Holy Spirit and say, I'm gonna do it right now. Partner with me. We'll really appreciate it. It'll help us continue to win souls which is what this is all about. And that is it for this edition of Spirit Church. Until next time, remember, nothing is impossible with God. Thank you for watching Encounter TV. Don't forget to subscribe. Also, help me win souls by spreading the gospel through events and media. Make a one-time donation or become a monthly supporter by clicking on the donate link now.