Write The Vision And Make It Plain Issue 6

The Enduement of Power

John 7:37-39-“In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. But He spoke this of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet glorified.” (See also John 16:7)

**There are several Greek words that are translated “receive”, among which are LAMBANO and DECHOMAI. Both words are rendered “receive”, yet their true meaning in the Greek is far more detailed than in English. DECHOMAI: (pronounced deck’-o-my) means to receive in a passive manner; to accept. For example, at your birth, you “received” a name. It was given to you, with no responsibility or action required on your part. LAMBANO: (pronounced lahm-bah’-no) means to get hold of; to take. For example, to “receive” a telephone call, you must pick up the receiver. To “receive” a ball, you must make some effort to catch it. Acts 8:14-15 exhibits the difference between the words. In verse 14: “Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received (dechomai) the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John, (vs. 15) who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive (lambano) the Holy Ghost.” (Paraphrased, that verse says, “Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem became aware that people in Samaria had heard the Word of God preached and were born again of the Holy Spirit, they sent unto them Peter and John. When Peter and John arrived among them, they prayed for them, that they might be clothed with the power of the Holy Spirit, with the evidence of speaking in tongues.”)**

Jesus said that they that believe on Him should receive (lambano) the Holy Spirit. “Have you received (lambano) the Holy Spirit since you gave your heart to the Lord? Or did you not know that the enduement of power is for today?”- Acts 19:2 (paraphrased).

Luke 24:49 “And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you; but wait in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued (clothed) with power from on high."

Acts 1:8 “But you shall receive (lambano) power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you; and you shall be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part or the earth.”

Acts 2:38-39 “Then Peter said unto them, ‘Repent, and be baptized (washed), every one of you, in (GR.= unto) the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and you shall receive (lambano) the gift of the Holy Ghost (lambano the power of eternal life, Hebrews. 7:16; or be clothed with the power of eternal life). For the promise is to you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

 Has God called you to repent?

If you say “yes”, He has called you to lambano the Holy Ghost also, or to lambano the enduement of power from on high. The action to be shown in receiving (lambano) is for you to speak with other tongues, as the Holy Spirit gives you diction (Acts 2:4). When Peter and John went to Samaria to pray for the believers there to receive (lambano) the Holy Spirit, Acts 8:14-19 tells us that Peter and John laid hands on them and they received (lambano) the Holy Spirit, the evidence of which was that they spoke in “other tongues” when hands were laid upon them. (Witnessed by Simon).

Acts 10:44-47 “While Peter (a believing preacher) spoke, the Holy Spirit fell on Cornelius, his kinsmen, and his near friends (Acts 10:24). In verse 45, the Jews with Peter were astonished because that the Gentiles were clothed with the power of eternal life that God had given them. Peter and the other Jews knew it, because they heard them speak with other tongues, which is the action or manifestation that God wants shown when one receives (lambano) the Holy Spirit. In verse 47: “Can any man forbid water that these should not be baptized, which have received (lambano) the Holy Spirit as well as we?” (They had received (lambano) the Holy Spirit and had shown the evidence of the same by speaking with other tongues before they were baptized in water.)

Acts 19:2-6 “Paul said to the believers he found in Ephesus, Have you received (lambano) the Holy Ghost since you believed?” They knew the Holy Spirit was to come, but did not know that He had come already. They received (lambano) the Holy Spirit in the sixth verse: “And when Paul had laid his hand upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spoke with tongues, and prophesied.”

**The initial evidence of having received (dechomai) the Holy Spirit is found in I Corinthians 12:3: “No man can say that Jesus is Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.”; the receiver speaks in other tongues---by the power of the Holy Spirit---speaking or praying “in the Spirit”, to which others standing by are witnesses.**

More on the subject of speaking by means of the Holy Spirit may found in the following scripture. I Cor. 14:2 “He that speaks in an unknown tongue speaks not unto men, but unto God, for in the Spirit, he speaks mysteries.”

This type of “speaking with other tongues” is simply a manifestation of the presence of the Holy Spirit that believers are commanded to practice in their private prayer life. The conversation is between God and man and no interpretation of tongues is required or even to be expected, as “He that speaks in an unknown tongue speaks not unto men, but unto God, for in the Spirit, he speaks mysteries.” (I Cor. 14:2). While my mind does not understand the words I speak as I pray in “other tongues”, my spirit does understand. The words I speak by the Holy Spirit are mysteries--- the deep secrets of God from the foundation of the world. As the Holy Spirit speaks these mysteries through me, my spirit listens and understands and grows in the things of God. This is the “edification” or building up of my spirit that praying in an unknown tongue brings to the body of Jesus Christ. This is the “hearing” by which my faith comes, as in Romans 10:17: For faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.”

I Corinthians 14:14-15 explains: “For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit by the Holy Spirit within me prays, but my mind is unproductive---bears no fruit and helps nobody. Then what am I to do? I will pray with my spirit---by the Holy Spirit that is within me; but I will also pray intelligently---with my mind and understanding; I will sing with my spirit (by the Holy Spirit that is within me) but I will sing (intelligently) with my mind and understanding also."

Ephesians 6:18 “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching (that is, lying awake) while I pray with all perseverance and supplication for all saints."

Jude 1:20 “But you, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost.”

Colossians 3:16 “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” “Spiritual songs” are songs sung in tongues, either in group praise and worship or in private prayer, as in I Cor. 14:15.

There are also times that (one at a time, decently and in order, at appropriate times, and by the specific direction of the Holy Spirit) there may be a “message in tongues” during a gathering of believers for praise and worship. A message in tongues in such a setting always requires interpretation; otherwise none would understand the message, and it must needs be set aside and ignored. Such a message should never interrupt or disrupt the service or cause confusion. A message in tongues, followed by an interpretation of tongues, is equal in importance to prophecy, because the hearers are edified, or built up, by what they hear and understand.

**There is another issue of extreme importance in the matter of speaking in other tongues. In Acts 2:2, “And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as a rushing, mighty wind, and it filled the house where they were sitting.” In other words, the breath of God blew upon them with force, creating a sound much like that of a rushing mighty wind. Acts 2:4 says, “And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance (diction).” Who did the speaking? “They” - the people who were gathered together with one accord - did the speaking. Where did the words come from? The words proceeded from the Holy Ghost, “as the Spirit gave them utterance.”**

The people received (lambano) the Holy Ghost and opened their mouths to speak. By listening to and trusting in the Spirit of God, the sounds they formed with their mouths were NOT in their usual, learned language. They were, instead, languages they had not learned, and the diction---the order and rhythm of the sounds formed in their mouths and throats to constitute a language---came from the Holy Spirit, Himself. They were not FORCED to speak at all, in any language. THEY did the speaking. They began to speak when they chose, and they ceased to speak when they chose. (Perhaps they were praising the Lord in the only language they knew when the Spirit entered the room, and they gave honor to Him in language which was higher than what they had learned.) The Word does not specify precisely what happened. However, the Word does record that they (the people) “spoke in other tongues, as the spirit gave them utterance.”

**It is also essential to understand that I can pray in my usual language any time I choose, and, in the same manner, I can pray “in the Spirit” any time I choose. The Holy Spirit of God never forces me to pray in tongues. It is always by my own choice that I do so, as well as when I choose to stop.**

I Cor. 12:1 Paul said, “Now concerning the things which proceed from the Spirit of God, I would not have you to be ignorant."

I Cor. 14:1 Paul also said, “Follow (be led) after Godly love and earnestly covet spiritual (pneumatikos) things.” The Greek word, “pneumatikos”, means things determined, influenced, or proceeding from the Spirit. (The word “gifts” does not appear in the Greek.)

I Cor. 12:3 No man speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost. God does not want you to be ignorant of His will.

Corinthians 12:7 says, “The manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.” If you are a believer, the information in I Corinthians was written to you. It is in I Cor. 1:2 that this information is given “Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours...” The command in Ephesians 6:18 (Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit…) is to the saints at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus. If you are faithful, it is also for you. The command in Jude is “to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called.”

When will be gifts and manifestations cease?

I Corinthians 13:10 “But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away."

I Cor. 1:6-7 “Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, see that you come behind in no gift, waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (that is, the Perfect One who is coming.)"

Acts 19:2 “Have you received (lambano) the Holy Ghost since you believed?”

Other scripture you may want to reference:

Genesis 2:7 Breathed means to blow with force, “breathe that is life” (Soul in Hebrew is “Nephesh”. Ezekiel 37: 4-13 "Breathe", in verse 9, means to blow with force.

Luke 24:49 "Endued" means to be clothed with POWER. Acts 2:2 Rushing mighty wind in Ezekiel 39:9 means to “blow with force".

John 7:37-39 receive = lambano John 20:22 receive = lambano

Acts 1:8 receive = lambano

Acts 10:44, Acts 11:1-18

Acts  19:1 receive = lambano

Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16; Jude  1:2: John 4:22-24

I Corinthians 12:1 Spiritual = Greek pneumatikos: Spiritual things, determined, influenced, or proceeding from the Spirit- The gift of God.

I Corinthians 12:11 severally, one by one; one’s own. I Corinthians 14:1 spiritual (pneumatikos)

I Corinthians 14:1 spiritual (pheumatikos)

**Scripture references from the King James Version of the Bible. Other references from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance**

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