2022 – 2032: "A Decade of Supernatural Growth and Multiplication of the Church." We embarked on a 10-year human capital campaign to train, equip and send out 360 Christian ministers to reach out to less reached communities and people groups to bring up the harvest for Christ.
“Following Jesus will cost you your popularity, friends, leisure time, traditions or family. The cost of following Jesus may be high but the value of being Jesus’ disciple is even higher. Praise God!” Cleto Mhuru
The following synonyms describe sacrifice: to give up; to let go; to offer, renounce, endure, surrender, kiss goodbye and part with.
DICTIONARY DEFINITIONS OF SACRIFICE
To sacrifice may mean to give up something valuable to you to help another person (Examples – (a) Many women sacrifice interestingcareersfortheirfamilies. (b) Many parents make sacrifices to give their children a better education and life.
To sacrifice also means to kill an animal and offer it to a god or gods(In the Old Testament the people sacrificed animals on the alter as a sacrifice for their sins. In the New Testament Jesus Christ was offered as a sacrifice for the remission of our sins. As children of God, Jesus was our sacrifice therefore we don’t need to shed any blood anymore!
God is pleased when we sacrifice to follow Jesus Christ. In Matthew 8:19-20 we read, “One of the teachers of religious law said to him, ‘Teacher, I will follow You no matter where You go!’ But Jesus said, ‘Foxes have dens to live in and birds have nests, but I, the Son of Man, have no home of My own, not even a place to lay my head.’ Also in Luke 9:23 – 24 we hear our Lord Jesus saying“If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it”. We can see from these Scriptures that following Jesus is not always easy or comfortable.It will cost you your popularity, friends, leisure time, traditions or family. The cost of following Jesus may be high but the value of being Jesus’ disciple is even higher. Praise God! Jesus made this promise to His followers: “No one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God will fail to receive many times as much in this age, and in the age to come eternal life” (Luke 18:28-30). Following Jesus Christ promises 100% of this life and life to come. There is no greater blessing than this promise. Hallelujah!
God is pleased with a sacrificial attitude that puts everything we have at His disposal. In Matthew 19:21 “Jesus told him, ‘If you want to be perfect, go and sell all you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” Should all believers sell everything they own to follow Jesus? No. We are responsible for caring for our own needs and our families’ needs so we will not burden others. We should, however, be willing to give up anything if God asks us to do so. This kind of attitude acknowledges that all we have belongs to Him and is graciously given for our use or enjoyment. We are stewards, not possessors of it.
God is pleased with a sacrificial attitude that shows real love for others. In Romans 9:1-3“In the presence of Christ, I speak with utter truthfulness; I do not lie; and my conscience and the Holy Spirit confirm that what I am saying is true. My heart is filled with bitter sorrow and unending grief for my people, my Jewish brothers and sisters. I would be willing to be forever cursed — cut off from Christ! — If that would save them.” Are you ready to sacrifice your time, money, energy, comfort, and safety to see others come to Jesus? Are you willing to bear others’ burdens, pray for them, fast for them and forgive even if it seems like swallowing a bitter pill? This is a sacrifice of love and obedience needed by God.
God is pleased with sacrificial living because it shows obedience and gratitude for His grace. Paul in Romans 12:1 exhorts believers to give their bodies to God as a living and holy sacrifice acceptable to Him.
God requires us to offer ourselves, not animals, as a living sacrifice. He wants us to lay aside our own desires and follow Him. He wants us to put all our energy and resources at His disposal and trust Him to guide us. We do this out of gratitude that our sins have been forgiven, not to earn our salvation or His favour.
“Live a life filled with love for others, following the example of Christ Jesus, who loved us and gave himself as a sacrifice to take away our sins. And God was pleased, because that sacrifice was like sweet perfume to Him.”
“The most comforting thing is that each time I pray in tongues, I speak mysteries that cannot be understood by anyone even Satan and his demons. The joy of it all is that the conversation I am having in tongues is only between God and myself. Praise God!” – Cleto Mhuru
Speaking in tongues is a gift from the Holy Spirit. There are many Scripture references to speaking in tongues following the Holy Spirit baptism. In Acts 2:1-4, we are told that the disciples were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in new tongues. In Acts 10:44-46, the Gentiles spoke in tongues exalting God after the Holy Spirit was poured out upon them. In Acts 19:1-7, the disciples in Ephesus received the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues and prophesied. In Corinthians Chapter 14, Paul explained the importance, benefits and order of speaking in tongues. Verse 2 says “for he who speak in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.” On verse 4 he said that those who speak in tongues build themselves up in the Lord. What can we learn here about speaking in tongues?
1. The person who speak in tongues speaks directly to God not to people and no one hears him (even demons and Satan).
2. The person who speak in tongues speaks mysteries in the spirit.
3. The person who speak in tongues edifies or builds himself or herself in the LORD.
There are two different types of tongues:
1. The first group of tongues are known languages which we all speak. The tongues spoken by the disciples in Acts 2:1-4 were literally the languages of other nations. They spoke the native languages of other nations without learning them (Acts 2:6-11). For example, it’s like speaking Chinese, Ndebele, Swahili, English, or Korean without taking any lessons to learn such languages. This is what happened on Pentecost.
2. The second type of tongues are “unknown tongues” OR “tongues that cannot be uttered” OR “unfathomable tongues” as explained by Paul in 1 Corinthians 14. These are tongues of angels and tongues of the Holy Spirit which when uttered, speak mysteries of God. These tongues are what we call glossolalia in Greek meaning unintelligible utterances. When we talk about praying with words that cannot be uttered, we talk about glossolalia. We should not mistaken glossolalia for battologeo. Battologeo is a Greek word meaning bubbling nonsensical repetitions as we see in Matthew 6:7. Glossolalia is a language of angels and the Holy Spirit which we use to speak mysteries and exalting God with. Through glossolalia, we edify and build ourselves in the Lord. Glossolalia has benefits whereas battologeo is detrimental or damaging.
What about interpretation?
Not all tongues can be interpreted. However, some can be interpreted. Tongues which can be interpreted are like the gift of prophecy, these are tongues meant to edify, strengthen, encourage and comfort other believers. When we speak in tongues in the church, we should do so to edify the church. Therefore, we should pray to interpret them (1 Corinthians 14:13). Interpretation of tongues is a gift of the Holy Spirit given to believers, and we should desire it (1 Corinthians 12:10; 12:31). We should not forbid believers from speaking in tongues in the church. During personal prayer or devotion to God or praise and worship time, believers should feel free to pray in tongues just as others can do so in their mother languages. It is only when one is addressing to the congregation that we need to communicate in a language that can be understood by all. If one speaks in a tongue, it should be interpreted so that all benefit.
Why speak in tongues?
When you pray in the Holy Spirit, you build yourself on your most holy faith (Jude 1:20). In Ephesians 6:18, the apostle Paul exhorted believers to “pray in the Spirit at all times, with every kind of prayer and petition.” How do I pray in the Holy Spirit? I do this by praying in tongues. Romans 8:26 tells us that “we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercessions for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” Groanings are not intelligible words, instead, they are incomprehensible and unfathomable. This is glossolalia – speaking in unknown tongues of angels and the Holy Spirit. This is when the deep calls to the deep (Psalm 42:7).
– When I do not know where to start from in prayer; I pray in the tongues. It is true that I do not know how to pray, but the Holy Spirit will helps me to pray. There is no better prayer than praying in the Holy Spirit (speaking in tongues!)
– I feel revived, refreshed, strengthened and recharged after praying in the Holy Spirit (speaking in tongues).
– The Holy Spirit removes all fear and assures me all is well after praying in tongues.
– I feel edified and my faith strengthens by speaking in tongues. Praise God!
– Most comforting is that each time I pray in tongues, I speak mysteries that cannot be understood by anyone even demons and Satan. The joy of it all is that the conversation I am having in tongues is only between God and myself. Praise God!
I am encouraging you to develop this habit of praying in the tongues of angels and the Holy Spirit, building yourself up in your most holy faith. Amen!
2 Corinthians 13:14 “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. Amen.”
This Scripture shows the triune of God in which we see the grace of Jesus Christ, the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit. Romans 5:8 says “God demonstrated His love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Also John 3:16 tells us that “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” This is God’s love. On the other hand, we are saved by Jesus Christ’s grace not by our own doings or works of righteousness. Salvation is a free gift given to us by Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8; Titus 3:5, Romans 6:23).
Let’s return to our main topic. What is communion with the Holy Spirit? Communion in Greek is koinonia which means partnership, fellowship, participation or intimacy. On our faith journey, we need this partnership with the Holy Spirit. We are on a spiritual journey, therefore, without the Holy Spirit we cannot make it. Scripture teaches us to live and walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:25). Those led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. That’s what Scripture says (Romans 8:14). To live and walk in the Spirit means allowing the Holy Spirit to take control of our lives and lead the way.
Koinonia with the Holy Spirit produces fruit in us. Love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control all come through fellowshipping with the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).
Moses is one God’s servant who understands what it means to partner with God. From the very beginning, Moses told God that he was unable to deliver the people of Israel on his own. He told God about his weaknesses. But God assured him “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest” (Exodus 33:14). God worked in partnership with Moses to liberate Israel from Egypt. Throughout the Old Testament, we see God working in partnership with His servants. All the remarkable acts done by the prophets in the Old Testament were accomplished through their partnership with God’s Spirit. In the Old Testament, God’s Spirit came upon people and caused them to do God’s work. In the New Testament the Holy Spirit indwells the believer (John 14:16). The Holy Spirit does not come and go. He lives in us. Our bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19).
It is our partnership with the Holy Spirit that causes things to happen. The disciples in Acts had a partnership with the Holy Spirit. The result was that many people were saved daily. On one day, 3000 people came to Christ, and on another day, 5000 people were saved. Miracles, signs and wonders happened and the Word of God grew mightily. The love of God was evident among believers. Saints of God, we need koinonia with the Holy Spirit on our faith journey. If you desire to be used by God with tangible fruit, have koinonia with the Holy Spirit. You will see the results. Our time to rise and shine has come. It comes with koinonia and fellowship with the Holy Spirit. Let’s embrace Him. Amen!
Break Free Ministries International 