 I want to minister this word, and then I believe the power of the Holy Spirit is going to hit this place like electricity. I believe it, and I know that he's able to do exceedingly, abundantly above all that we could ask or even think. Or even imagine, the Scripture says. More than we could imagine, he's able to accomplish. He is able. No matter what you face today, he is able. You may have tried every other option. You may have looked at every other direction. But he makes a way where there seems to be no way. And the power of the Holy Spirit is going to begin to move all throughout this room in just a few minutes. And when the power of the Holy Spirit begins to move across this room, the sick will be healed. When the power of the Holy Spirit moves across this room, demons are coming out of people tonight. When the power of the Holy Spirit begins to move, you go to new depths in the Spirit. I don't know about you, but I don't want anything without substance. I want the presence of the Holy Ghost. And so I'm talking to you tonight about the ultimate church growth expert. This individual has sold more books than any author you can think of. I don't care how big the name. I don't care how big the crowd. This one individual has influenced more just through his writing. And he used ghost writers. I call them Holy Ghost writers. He influenced more people through his work than anyone individual has ever influenced through a work. This individual has influenced more influencers than any top leadership name that you can think of. This one individual has the longest track record of success. And the most experience of all who have ever planned to the church started a ministry or preached the gospel. He is the wisest when it comes to navigating the difficult circumstances that surround ministry. He is the wisest when it comes to navigating the hearts of men. And he has the most effective strategies that we are to implement today to see what we want. And that is multiplication because multiplication is more than just numbers. Multiplication is an individual multiplied times many who receives Jesus as Lord. This one individual was there at the beginning. He was the breath that began the church. This one individual is the one who is continuing to build his church today. And against it the gates of hell shall not prevail. This individual is the Holy Spirit of God. I don't care how clever you think you are. I don't care how gifted you think you are. I don't care how intellectual you think you are. It matters not because when it comes to being used by God there is only one thing that matters. And that is how surrendered you are to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit raised the church. The Holy Spirit sustained the church in the face of persecution. And the Holy Spirit has plans for the church even today that are going to far past anything we have seen all throughout history. He is going to move in a way that we never could imagine possible. He is going to exceed your expectations. That church expert stands alone untouched, unparalleled, the person of the Holy Spirit. You can't do it better than the Holy Ghost can. Now I'm going to be in the book of Acts and I like people using their Bibles. I didn't give them slides on purpose. Also because then you look at the slide and you don't look at me. And I need you looking at me because this is how we communicate face to face. I came here to deliver a message and I'm going to deliver that message. And then I'm going to minister the power of God to you. And if you have a need start praying now. Let your faith be stirred even in this moment because something is happening even as I'm talking. When you talk about the Holy Spirit he shows up. And I can feel him already stirring me. So I'm going to be in Acts chapter 2 to begin. We're going to look at the track record of church growth in the book of Acts. And really while I'm not criticizing those who put together the scripture. I mean their intelligence far surpasses mine and their understanding of the depth of the scripture far surpasses mine. But I really do believe that it should not have been called the Acts of the Apostles. I think it should have been the Acts of the Holy Spirit. Because ultimately you can see his invisible hand influencing people and moving them along the planes of purpose toward their destiny. We see in Acts chapter 2 verse number 41. Acts chapter 2 verse number 41 and we're only going to be in Acts as far as the references go. And I want you to think of what we're about to read. We're about to read about Peter standing upon a place and preaching to multitudes. The uncompromised gospel of Jesus Christ. Fearless and bold, focused and anointed. This man begins to deliver a message that pierces the hearts of the individuals who heard him. But I thought this is the same Peter. Who when many challenged him and tried to find who he was and dug into his identity he cowered. And he shied away and denied ever having known Jesus. Yet this same individual who was struck with fear and the fear of man especially. This very same individual stands up in front of the multitudes and boldly proclaims the repentance from sin. Salvation through Jesus Christ alone. And there is no compromise in what he says. It was like a sword going into the souls of his listeners. Now in Acts chapter 2 verse 41 we read. Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added. To the church that day about 3000 and all. Pastor Fernando how would you like to add 3000 members in just one day? That was the kind of sermon he preached. He just preached and 3000 added. I thought about that and I realized that that was a thousand people for every time that he denied the Lord. Talk about redemption. When he denied the Lord he didn't really have this power that rested upon him. Sure it rested in him but it didn't rest upon him. And many believers have the Holy Spirit within them but they haven't released him to work in their outer circumstances and used him as a vessel. And so we see the results of souls. He won a thousand people to the Lord for every denial. What was the key? It was the baptism with the Holy Spirit. There was no special program he applied. There was no one method he thought to enact. He did not have a special public speaking ability. He didn't even plan the salvation of those 3000 people. It simply was his obedience to the Holy Spirit and as he spoke under that anointing 3000 people were added to the church that day. Now if you go down to Acts chapter 2 and you go all the way to verse number 46 we see some growth here in the church at Jerusalem. The scripture says they worship together at the temple each day verse 46. Met in homes where the Lord's supper and shared their meals with great joy and generosity. All the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added say added to their fellowship those who were being saved. What was the key? Well the scripture tells us that God inhabits the praises of his people. You see praise brings God into your world. Praise allows God to influence your surroundings. And so the church praising God daily actually allowed the Holy Spirit to move among them. So what was it that brought this addition? Church it was the presence of the Holy Spirit. Now go to Acts chapter 5. I'm going to read verses 14 and 15 where the scripture says this. Acts chapter 5 verses 14 and 15 and this I'm reading in the New King James version now. And through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were done among the people. And they were all with one accord in Solomon's porch verse 13 of Acts chapter 5. Yet none of the rest dared join them. But the people esteemed them highly. And believers were increasingly added to the Lord. Multitudes of both men and women say increasingly added. You notice the acceleration of the growth now. First they were added. Then they continued in their praise and in their worship and in their fellowship. And then the apostles began to do many signs among them. It wasn't anything that they could do on their own. It wasn't a marketing strategy. And I used marketing. It wasn't a system and I used systems. It was the power of God. What good does it do to have a system if you don't have substance? What good does it do to promote anything if not for the message of the gospel? And so now they're increasingly added to the Lord. What was it that increased this addition? What was it that accelerated this growth? It was the power of the Holy Spirit. Now they begin to pick up momentum. They move to multiplication in the next couple of verses. Acts chapter 6 now. Now this is powerful. Acts chapter 6 verse 1. I saw this and I said, Lord, you moved upon them in accordance to how they treated what you had given to them. One of the keys to multiplication is stewardship. If you don't take care of what you have, like it's what you want, God won't give you what you want. And so you take care of what he's given you. You cultivate that presence. You treasure and value and protect and reverence the anointing. Acts chapter 6 verse 1, the scripture says, And in those days when the number of the disciples was multiplied. And then under the direction of the Holy Spirit, the church begins to grow and what do they do? They appoint leaders now. And you can see that in Acts chapter 6 verses 3 through 4. I won't read it for the sake of time, but they appoint leaders. One of them was given a place of authority in the church so that the apostles could commit themselves to the work of the ministry, specifically prayer and the word. And when they implemented that leadership system under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Look what happens in verse 7, Acts chapter 6. And the word of God increased and the numbers of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly. And a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith. What was the key here church? It was the wisdom of the Holy Spirit. From beginning to end, in every fine detail, it is the power of the Holy Spirit. It's not by power, nor by might, but it's by my spirit, says the Lord. You know when I began in ministry, and believe it or not, I'm 29 years old and I've been in the ministry for 16 years, if you can believe that. I started full-time ministry at 13, like traveling, preaching. You know why I implemented good systems directed by the Holy Spirit? And systems are good. If you're not organized, you don't believe in what you're doing. Excellence is a mark of the spirit filled. This is why I love passage of Psi of Silva. Excellence is a mark of the spirit filled. He does things with excellence because he's filled with the spirit. People criticize guys like us, passage of Psi of Silva, because we have systems, because we have marketing strategies, but it's under the guidance of the Holy Ghost. It's by the Holy Spirit. I think of Daniel, the scripture says in him was the spirit of excellence. That's the Holy Ghost. Excellence is a mark of the spirit filled. So I implemented those things. I went in the ministry full-time, 13 years old. And I did not begin in the ministry as a great speaker. In fact, I don't imagine myself to be one now. In fact, I started doing broadcasts for YouTube and it took me, I kid you not, I'm not, I'm not, this is not an evangel. I'm not exaggerating for the sake of the story. It literally took me three hours to do a one-minute video. Don't say anything. I've known him since I was 10, so he's got stories and he's seen all that. It wasn't anything that I had that was special. I remember saying, I want to know Jesus. I want to touch the glory. I wasn't looking for a big ministry. I wasn't looking for influence. I was looking for Jesus. I was looking for the presence of God. And it was in that place that a burden was placed in my heart. A heart for souls to win the loss. And when that burden was imparted into me, it overflowed into every aspect of my life. My prayer life was guided by the Holy Spirit. My reading of the Word was guided by the Holy Spirit. My obedience to His voice was guided by the Holy Spirit. And I remember founding the ministry based upon the power of the Holy Spirit. I didn't have a recognizable name. I didn't know any famous preachers. I didn't have any connections with wealthy businessmen or influential politicians. I had nothing but a love for Jesus and a surrendered heart. And God today has multiplied His ministry. It's not mine. I just take care of it. I steward His ministry. He has multiplied the influence. He has multiplied the reach. You cannot forget the Holy Spirit. Without the presence of the Holy Spirit, our preaching is just coaching. Our churches are just clubs. Our worship is just entertainment without the power and the presence of the Holy Spirit. So how do we involve Him? How do we involve the Holy Spirit? Number one, we have to preach His gospel. Not our message. Let me just break it to you straight. The gospel is not about self-help. The gospel is about self-abandonment. Not about what I can get from God. It's about what He's asked me to surrender, to lay at the cross, to crucify my flesh. It is the crucified life that is the most powerful one. It is the surrendered heart that becomes the most anointed. Let me ask you something. Are you preaching the cross or are you preaching a message of comfort, pastors? No. You know, I hear a lot of preaching on breakthrough today and I preach breakthrough. I'm not criticizing the church. But you know what some believers imagine breakthrough to be when they hear their preacher preaching. The preacher may mean one thing. They may be talking about breakthrough in your spiritual life. Breakthrough so you can do more for God. But what some people hear when they hear the word breakthrough, they think the day I finally reach comfort and there are no problems. So then every time they hear an encouraging word all that day is coming and all my troubles go away. Why? Because we're not focusing on His gospel. We're going to involve His power. We must involve His message. The Holy Spirit's power will always back His message. Let me, can I just get real with you guys now? The power of the gospel is so potent that a hypocrite can preach it and there's still power on it. Think about Matthew chapter 7. Lord, Lord, we prophesied in Your name. We cast out devils in Your name. He didn't deny that. He denied them. That's the terrifying thing about our Lord. He'll use you even if He doesn't know you. I've seen men fake the power of God. You were with me. And I have no fear saying this because I know for a fact what this man did. And don't ask me how I know. It's this whole story. We don't have time to get into it. But there was a false prophet. A false prophet. And I do mean false. Who was trying to give me a word. You remember how angry I got. I didn't even shake the man's hand. I knew he was getting my information from online. I've seen with my own eyes people fake miracles. They do pay people to come out of wheelchair. Some of you skeptics are right. You can fake the power but you can't fake the presence. Either you have the presence or you don't. But when you preach the gospel there's such power on it that even those fakes can preach it and miracles will happen. If there's no power behind what you're preaching it's time to start preaching the gospel. Some of you didn't hear what I said. If there's no power and I mean demonstrable power behind what you are saying it's time to start preaching the gospel. Let me ask you. When's the last time you cast out a devil? You think demons don't exist anymore? No. What we do now is we send them to counseling because there's no power to cast it out. The church becomes a referral program instead of the source of the power. When's the last time you drove a sickness out of someone? You know you have that power. It's time to start preaching his gospel, his message. So we preach his gospel. We must use his power. I was talking to a pastor about the power of the Holy Spirit and he tells me he says well I'm gonna have you come. This is his words exactly. He says but don't do any of that weird diga stuff. I said then you don't want me to preach. Pastor Fernando knew what he was getting into when he called me and he wants it. But this other pastor he called me in and he said you know I don't really I don't really think that we should do that. He said I think we should just kind of put some control on it. I said don't you want the Holy Spirit to move? He said I do want the Holy Spirit to move and the Holy Spirit does move. He says people are saved. Lives are transformed. They're given hope. They're given joy. Thought about what he said and it's a great point and it almost sounded convincing until I realized that he was basically saying Holy Spirit you can save them and then I'll take it from there. We only want so much of your power just enough to we can transform lives enough where we look good but not too much to where we look weird. You have to use his power. Not your own. Anything you build in your power is not going to last. In fact some of us are so reliant upon strategies that if the Holy Spirit were to ever leave your ministry you wouldn't even know it. Why? Because we are relying upon what we think is best instead of the ultimate church growth expert the Holy Spirit. Even if we try to compete with culture on their strategies and their presentations we will always be second rate compared to the culture. Always. It's just a fact of life but will never be second rate when it comes to the demonstration of power. They may have the presentations and presentations are good. They may have all the systems and systems are good. I'm telling you again I do both. When it comes to what they cannot duplicate that's the power of the Holy Spirit only you and I have that church. So what if they think we're weird? I want to see healing I want to see deliverance I don't know about you but I unashamedly still pray in tongues. Are we Pentecostal here church? Praying in the Holy Ghost is still something that God has for his church. I don't care if it looks weird to the world that's the only thing that will give me the power that will actually be able to help them. Just about three more minutes I'll talk and then I want to minister but I was sitting under a very anointed man of God he's my mentor he was telling me a story about how how many know who Catherine Coleman is. Yeah. He for about four years when after she had passed he actually was serving in that they were helping he actually was running it after she had passed away and he told me he was in the car with one of her staff members actually her right hand woman and he asked her what was the key to Catherine Coleman's ministry without hesitation that woman looked at him and said the Lord trusted her and then she said and if he can trust you he'll do more with you than he did with Catherine and then this pastor who told me this story began to tell me of how he allowed the fear of man and the opinions of men to overtake his ministry if I said the name you'd all know the name but for years he said the ministry was doing this the moment he allowed the fear of man to enter they allowed the opinions of others he said that's when it started to do this he looked at me and said David don't you make the same mistake I did who cares about what people say scripture says grieve not the Holy Spirit my question to you is can the Holy Spirit trust you to do it his way with his power preaching his gospel finally we have to surrender to his will we cry Holy Spirit I want you to fill me I want to be full of you the problem is some of us are too full of ourselves to be full of the Holy Ghost we have it our way and we have it in our agenda we need to seek his agenda and it's ultimately souls when it comes down to a church it's all the Holy Spirit's doing all he is looking for multiplication you want growth not just in your ministry but in your life in your prayer everything you want to go to the next level that is the key the greater the surrender the higher you will fly the greater the surrender the deeper you will go it's the presence of the Holy Spirit it's the power of the Holy Spirit