Bruce continues his message from last week.

Matthew 3:10-12 - We must develop more of a holy hunger for God. Holy - Nelson’s Christian Dictionary - 2. Of human beings, spiritually perfect and pure in heart; of unimpaired (not weakened or damaged) innocence and proven virtue (morality). 3. Set apart or dedicated to the service or worship of God. 4. Moral and spiritual excellence.We cannot pray for revival if we don’t prepare for revival - revival will be marked by a deep call to repentance and holiness. What are some of the first signs God is visiting a church and preparing them for revival - God’s presence, people will begin to shake uncontrollable, people will begin to fall out under the power of God and even shake, people will start to weep, laugh, and even begin to yell, and then will have slurred or uncontrolled speech. As the Holy Spirit is allowed in over time, people will begin to hate sin and love purity, and also begin to win souls for the kingdom. Our scriptures speak about preparing the way for Jesus and it is the same today - it is the entrance of the Holy Spirit to bring the baptism of fire to a people group. The Holy Spirits fire is a holy fire; it is unquenchable and burns away the sin inner lives. It also separates the people of God (wheat) and the religious (chaff). For those who do not submit to His fire, they will be utterly burned up, like the chaff. His fire will either burn in purification or in judgment.When God’s Fire comes, there will be theological tensions between those living in different neighborhoods (much like intercession today). When the Holy Spirits fire come, people will begin to fast - fire is not a touch but a transformation. We must expect the unexpected or the Lord does not regard church agenda. The Holy Spirit will not fit into our patterns of life or we cannot have an outpouring of the Holy Spirit and keep our same old wine-skins. But new wine-skins are different because they stretch. The Lord will impart to many of us a flexibility for the Holy Spirit.Most Christians have the baptism of the Holy Spirit, but they don’t have the fire. Is there room in our hearts for this baptism of fire?The anointing is sweet, and can be described as God’s deposit of gifts and grace within us. It is the tangible presence of God to do ministry. But the fire is abrupt; it will consume all you have! The fire adds fuel to the anointing and empowers us to even greater levels of holiness. The fire purifies and equips; the anointing empowers.

We are a non-denominational congregation based in Arlington Texas. We are presence-driven and devoted to the transforming love of Jesus Christ. You can attend one of our services every Saturday night at 6pm. churchinoneaccord.org