As we look at the power of the Holy Spirit available to us who believe, we must be sure to always test the spirits. This also means knowing the voice of our master. If we do not know His voice we will not recognize His words. This also means we are in the word of God and we compare everything to God’s word, as the word of God sheds light onto any situation. True worshippers will always worship in Spirit and in Truth. As you read the whole counsel of God you will see the same Spirit operating from beginning to end.
I wanted to give you an example of the power of the Holy Spirit from the Old Testament and from the New as both are saying the same thing. We must understand that the Spirit of the Lord is the Holy Spirit. The first example is about Saul. He had been chosen to be King over Israel following Samuel’s leadership. Samuel then anointed Saul king and gave him instructions. His obedience would make or break his kingship. Later Samuel would say, “To obey is better than sacrifice.” Samuel said to Saul, 1 Samuel 10:6 “The Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully upon you, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. 7 Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you. 8 “Go down ahead of me to Gilgal. I will surely come down to you to sacrifice burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, but you must wait seven days until I come to you and tell you what you are to do.” Notice the Spirit would come powerfully upon him but also notice that he was told to wait 7 days. This was crucial.
The next example also talks about the Spirit coming in power. Jesus said, Luke 24:8 “You are witnesses of these things. 49 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” Acts 1:4 “On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” So when the Holy Spirit comes on us we will receive power. But also notice they were told to wait. Do not go anywhere but stay in the city. Once you have been clothed with power then you can go out into all the earth.
It is pretty obvious that when talking about the Holy Spirit being present also means power is present. 1 Corinthians 12:4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.
7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.” Remember when looking at something counterfeit you must look at the original to know the truth. The Holy Spirit always includes power, whereas the counterfeit spirit of which so many have been deceived does not include power. When testing, the enemy is so arrogant it will always tell you what the problem is. And yes they tell you God does not do that anymore, power was just for the early church. That is not scriptural. Even the ones who think there is power flowing have been deceived into thinking the manifestations are of the Holy Spirit but these manifestations do not line up with scripture. They are all show. For example people are slain in the spirit backwards and they get up unchanged and they do this week after week. It is a high they need to continue. What a shock it will be when they find out who really was present. If only they had checked scripture and tested the spirits.
The key here is to wait. If you do believe keep waiting and seeking as Jesus promised he would clothe you with power as needed. You will not wait for the Holy Spirit if you do not believe. It is that simple. The same power that came upon Saul “1 Samuel 11:6 When he heard their words, the Spirit of God came powerfully upon him, and he burned with anger” is available today whether you have seen the power or not. We believe because the word of God tells us so.
