“Repent and let every one of you is baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Acts 2:38
God did not give the gift of the Holy Spirit to His church carelessly; it had a specific meaning and purpose. There are nine gifts of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:4-10) and they are grouped in three: the gift of revelation – words of wisdom and knowledge and discernment; gift of power – faith, healing and miracles; and the gift of inspiration – prophecy, speaking in tongues and interpreting it.
The first purpose is to reveal the secret of God. What is it? It is that the church is the body of Christ on this earth. There is one single body of Christ because, in Him, all believers from every nation are renewed by the Spirit and become a holy nation – God’s own chosen people.
The second purpose is to expand and strengthen the spreading of the gospel. The gospel must be spread to all the earth. This is Jesus’ Great Commission that must be completed. We know there are a lot of challenges in spreading the gospel. Without the gift of the Spirit through His church, the gospel would not attract anyone – there will be no healing, no miracles and thus, no new souls will repent.
The third purpose is to strengthen the faith of God’s Church. History proved the faith of the Church cannot be broken. Even if it means to be persecuted and die as a martyr, the Church’s faith is unshakeable. What is the secret? It is because of the power of the Holy Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit that work within the Church, casting out every lie of the devil.
The gift of the Holy Spirit is given us to bring blessings to God’s people, not for our own importance. As Apostle Paul explained, we know that the ones who can receive the gift are believers who are confident with the truth of God’s Word. The gift of the Holy Spirit is also given for the Church’s growth, for the Lord’s glory and honor and for the growth of the body of Christ.
Imagine if every congregant in the church we are planted in is filled with the Holy Spirit and serve with the gifts of the Spirit that move so amazingly. There will be healing, miracles, prophecies and etc. All of these things will attract many souls to come to the Lord.
Let us open up our hearts for the gifts of the Holy Spirit to work in our lives so that many souls will come to the Lord and our lives will glorify the Lord. God bless.
Source: Article from GBI Gatot Subroto, Jakarta