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The immediate, experiential work of the Holy Spirit and the expectation of spiritual gifts.
Key question: “How does this text reveal the present-day work and power of the Holy Spirit?”
25,762 sermon illustrations through the Pentecostal lens
"Do you have this faith? Not just belief ABOUT God but trust IN God? Faith is personal—it's YOUR substance, YOUR evidence. No one else can believe for you. This faith saves, sustains, and guarantees your eternal home with God." — Billy Graham.
"Present your bodies—entirely, unreservedly. This is entire consecration, the gateway to entire sanctification. As you offer all to God, He transforms all. The renewed mind grows in holiness. Transformation is progressive, beginning with decisive surrender." — John Wesley. Wesleyan: consecration unto sanctification.
"'If anyone is in Christ—new creation!' This is definitive, not progressive. The moment you are united to Christ by faith, you ARE a new creation. Sanctification follows, but the fundamental reality is settled: old gone, new come. This is the...
"When YOU don't understand, remember: God's thoughts are higher than YOURS. YOUR confusion doesn't mean God is confused. In YOUR darkest moments, His ways are working. Trust Him when YOU can't trace Him. His plans for YOU exceed YOUR imagination." — Billy Graham.
"Mission requires courage—to cross cultures, to face rejection, to persist when results are invisible. Joshua needed courage to enter new territory; we need courage to engage new contexts. 'Do not be afraid'—fear is the enemy of mission. God goes before us." — Lesslie Newbigin.
"Jesus was a Jew, a member of a marginalized group under Roman oppression. When He says 'I am the way,' He speaks from below. The way of Jesus is liberation, dignity, hope for the disinherited.
"The gospel—Christ died for sinners—is the message we take to the nations. Not 'become good enough and God will love you' but 'while you were sinners, Christ died.' Mission announces good news to those who know they don't deserve it.
"We are renewed by looking to Christ—His death and resurrection pattern our experience. What is unseen is Christ at God's right hand; what is eternal is life in Him. Our afflictions share in His sufferings; our renewal participates in His resurrection.
"Fear is a tool of empire—fear of the other, fear of scarcity, fear of change. Perfect love dismantles fear's power. Love creates welcome, not walls; abundance, not hoarding; solidarity, not suspicion. The beloved community is fearless because it is grounded...
"The exiles were sent—not abandoned. 'Where I have sent you' transforms exile into mission. God's plans include our displacement. Every strange land is a mission field; every exile is a sending. Hope and future come as we embrace our sent-ness." — Lesslie Newbigin.
"Work for the Lord means work that honors God—which includes just wages, fair treatment, dignified conditions. We cannot 'work heartily for the Lord' while exploiting workers. The employer who pays unfairly cannot claim to serve Christ. Work justice IS worship." — Jim Wallis.
"NOTHING can separate you! Not your past, not your failures, not the enemy's attacks! Devils cannot snatch you; death cannot claim you; hell cannot hold you! You are LOVED with an unconquerable love! Shout it: NOTHING can separate me from God's love!" — T.D.
"Missionaries face trouble: rejection, persecution, cultural resistance. Jesus doesn't promise easy mission; He promises victory. Take heart—the world that opposes the gospel is already overcome. We plant seeds in conquered ground; the harvest is certain even when present results are discouraging." — Tim Keller.
"More than we ask—our prayers are too small! More than we imagine—our dreams are too limited! Immeasurably more—God exceeds all measurement! His power works in us; His glory fills the church. Dream big; pray bold; expect abundantly above all." — Charles Spurgeon.
"When we read 'The Lord is my shepherd,' we must hear Jesus saying 'I am the good shepherd.' Christ is the fulfillment of Psalm 23. He is the one who leads, feeds, protects, anoints, and prepares the table. Every line...