Or could your spirit be demonic?

Since I began writing this blog, I have developed a love and renewed respect for God’s word. The more I study the Bible, the more revelations He imparts to me.

There are so many misconceptions and false teachings in the Church that it grieves my spirit. If I can become so upset with all the foolish behavior in the Church how much more the heart of God? He chose us as His people, and He grieves when we are led astray by the deceitfulness of Satan.

The Holy Spirit has become one of the most controversial topics in the Church. Not many people understand the anointing and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Unfortunately, most churches do not teach this subject properly.

Who is the Holy Spirit?

He is the spirit of the almighty God who is holy and righteous. He is part of the divine Godhead – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The old English formerly used the term Holy Ghost, but the word Ghost is no longer used since it can create a negative connotation.

We were introduced to the Holy Spirit at the beginning of creation where the Spirit of God covers the waters as He began to create (Genesis1). Throughout the Old Testament, we are told of people who were anointed with the Spirit of God such as King Saul (1 Samuel 10:10); Zechariah (2 Chronicles 24:20); Isaiah (Isaiah 61:1); Daniel (Daniel 4:8-9).

The spirit of the Lord God came upon John the Baptiste, the forerunner of Christ while he was in his mother’s womb (Luke 1:15). The Lord Jesus Christ was filled with the Holy Spirit when He was baptised (Matthew 3:16).

Christ also released His Spirit on the disciples before He ascended into heaven (John 20:22). But He promised that they would receive power when the Holy Spirit officially came upon them. Therefore, they should tarry or wait in Jerusalem until He came.

On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples and other believers who were present in the upper room (Acts 1-2). The coming of the Holy Spirit was a fulfillment of the prophet Joel (Joel 2:28-32). The anointing of the Holy Spirit empowered all of the believers so that they began to speak in tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

As a result of the manner in which the Holy Spirit came, many churches adopted it as a ritual.

When I was a child growing up in Jamaica, we use to visit churches that we called ‘hot.’ We described them as hot because they had loud music.

The congregation danced, jumped, shouted and praised the Lord, and they were very ‘spirited.’ Unfortunately, as children, we did not understand about the Holy Spirit so we used to laugh at the members when they rolled on the floor. Some of them spoke in tongues, and we were quite amused by it. (I know God has forgiven us because we erred in ignorance).

One of the rituals that these church folks used to do was to kneel at the altar for many days because they claimed that they needed to tarry for the Holy Spirit. The tarrying became a doctrine and speaking in tongues became a sign of receiving the Holy Spirit.

These traditions were created and released into many churches, and most people did not question their validity at that time. In recent times, people are studying the Bible carefully and are beginning to understand the Holy Spirit and His functions.

On the Day of Pentecost, God united the Church through language. There were many Jews from different countries who were in Jerusalem for the event and these Jews spoke different languages other than Greek or Hebrew.

The Holy Spirit united everyone by giving the disciples the ability to speak in their languages. This miracle was different from the miracle at the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1-9). God created confusion and disunity through language. The Lord is unpredictable.

After the initial outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the disciples needed confirmation that the believers received the Holy Spirit when they laid hands on them. Hence, the evidence was speaking in tongues at that time because the Holy Spirit was new to everyone. Of course, it was from this evidence that they realized that the Gentiles could also receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 10: 44-48).

The Samaritans believed and received the word of God but even though they were baptised, the Bible stated that they did not yet receive the Holy Spirit. So they sent for Peter and John, who prayed and laid their hands on the new converts and they received the Holy Spirit. Evidently, they received the power of the Holy Spirit, and this came with a sign (Acts 8: 14-25).

The Holy Spirit is no longer new to our society. He is well documented in the Bible, and we know that when we accept Christ as our Savior, it is the Holy Spirit who will dwell in our hearts to teach, admonish and guide us. Thus, we need to obey the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit gives us gifts so that we can edify the Church and work together in unity. You may need to stir up the gifts and power of the Holy Spirit within you by the laying of hands by genuine men or women of God. You will also need the anointing of the Holy Spirit to speak boldly.

The Holy Spirit is your rights as a believer because you cannot live a holy life unto God without Him. Therefore, when you ask the Lord to cleanse and come into your heart, you are essentially asking Him for His Spirit, who will dwell in your heart.

I was a member of a church in Jamaica, and the leaders claimed that I did not have the Holy Spirit because I was unable to speak in tongues. So they decided to lay their hands on me and pray for me, but nothing happened.

The pastor’s wife encouraged me to open my mouth and said anything that came into my thoughts. I remembered thinking, “what if it was a bad word.” I became annoyed with them, and I could not get my mind into this supernatural place where the unknown language would flow.

I am not disputing other people’s experience. I personally refuse to speak any gibberish, as my church brethren suggested, until the real language came. To this day, I cannot speak in tongues.

I asked the Lord why I was unable to do this, and He told me that speaking in tongues is not critical to my development as a Christian. Instead, obtaining His spirit of wisdom and revelation to know Him and have a relationship with Him is far better and He has empowered me with these gifts.

You do not need to ‘tarry’ for the Holy Spirit as the disciples had done by Christ’s instructions. You do not need to sing, shout and work yourself into a frenzy to receive or feel Him.

The Spirit of God is not a particular feeling such as goose pimples on your arms, shaking or your head raising.

It is by faith that you know that Jesus dwells in your heart, and He does so through the Holy Spirit. If you sing, shout, shake and jump so hard that you lost consciousness on the floor, possible writhing and frothing at the mouth, it has nothing to do with the Holy Spirit. A spirit may possess you but I can assure you it is not holy.

Many people have picked up demonic spirits right in the church so be careful.

Worship and praise have nothing to do with exaggerated performances in church. God does not see the flesh. He sees the spirit.

Your praise and worship to God are a way of life.

When your mind is constantly on the Lord and His word, you are worshipping Him. When you are obedient to the Holy Spirit, and you live an exemplary life that attracts non-believers to the Kingdom of God, you have become a praise unto God. When you surrender your time, possessions, body, spirit and soul to God you are worshipping and praising God.

Many people believe that you can only worship and praise God in the visible church tabernacle, so they put on an angelic face, raising their hands to heaven as they sing, shout and pray. Yet, these same people are Jezebels in the workplace and community. The Lord said that He will hide His face from you when you perform in church (Isaiah 1).

The meeting in the church tabernacle should be a time of rejoicing and thanksgiving to God. The praise and adoration to God will flow naturally out of you from a life that has become a worship and praise to God.

Personally, I do not shout in church because I do not like a noisy environment. I ensure that my whole life has become a praise and worship to God, and I live daily in His presence.

If you like to jump, dance and scream by all means knock yourself out but ensure that your entire life becomes a praise and worship to God. Otherwise, you are wasting your energy because the Lord is ignoring you.

Note the definitions of holy: It means pure, righteous, sanctified, orderly, humble, clean, good, moral, virtuous, faithful, devoted, dedicated, godly, proper, upright and perfect. Any behavior that is not aligned with those definitions is coming from a demonic spirit.