Pastor Mac Hammond | April 11, 2021

Recap:
God has a specific plan for your life. He has a vision for how your gifts, talents, and personality will work together to bring more people into the kingdom of God. He knows what jobs will fit you best, the people you need in your life, and the path to walk to fulfill the dreams He has placed in your heart.

God won’t show you everything He knows at once, but He will show you glimpses of your future as well as your next steps. How does He tell you this? He will reveal these mysteries to you as you pray in the Holy Spirit.

Dive Deeper:
The generic will of God for your life is found through reading the Bible. It tells us to choose love and wisdom on a daily basis. It lays out the plan of redemption and tells us that church is important.

What you won’t find in the Bible is the specifics of God’s will for your life. That’s why Pastor Mac spent this past week’s message talking about the mystery of God’s will.

Understanding the will of God starts by understanding the Holy Spirit, for His ministry is the ministry of revelation. He is the one who makes God’s Word come alive in our hearts, and He is the one who helps each of us pray out the plans and purposes of God through speaking in tongues.

Speaking in tongues is our avenue to letting the Holy Spirit into our lives. It is a source of edification. It is how we pray about God’s will without the enemy understanding what we are praying. It reminds us that our power for living well comes from the Spirit of God, not our own doing.
Tongues need to be a daily event for us. We need to set aside time to pray in the Holy Spirit throughout each day, for as we pray in tongues, God will provide ideas and moments of inspiration in our minds that will direct us in our next steps as well as provide glimpses of the future He wants us to fulfill on this earth.

Read More:
Acts 19:2 KJV
He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost.

1 Corinthians 14:2 KJV
For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries.

1 Corinthians 14:4 KJV
He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself; but he that prophesieth edifieth the church

Romans 8:26–28 KJV
Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

1 Corinthians 2:6-13 KJV
Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual..

1 Corinthians 2:13 Amp.
And we are setting these truths forth in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the [Holy] Spirit, combining and interpreting spiritual truths with spiritual language [to those who possess the Holy Spirit].

Discussion Questions:
1.    What’s the difference between the generic and specific will of God?

2.    How does the Holy Spirit reveal things to us?

3.    If you met someone who didn’t understand the role of the Holy Spirit in a Christian’s life, what would you tell them? How would you explain His role to reveal God’s Word and God’s will to us?

4.    What difference has the Holy Spirit made in your life?

5.    How can tongues become a more consistent effort in your life?

Rewatch or catch up on the full sermon with the link below!

Recent Sermon Notes

A Father to the Fatherless | Jim Hammond

Pastor Jim celebrated fathers with his message entitled, “A Father to the Fatherless.” He hit us with some hard-hitting facts about fathers. Did you know children who feel close to their fathers are twice as likely to continue their education after high school and find stable employment as opposed to those who do not feel close to their fathers. Furthermore, they are 75% less likely to have a child in their teens… 80% less likely to spend time in jail… 50% less likely to experience multiple depression issues! He went on to expound on the importance fathers have in their ability to influence their children, molding them into healthy and productive human beings.

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Light Be | Russ Kalenberg

This past Memorial Day weekend, the Living Word congregation was blessed to hear special guest minister Russ Kalenberg preach his message entitled, “Light Be.” In the beginning, Genesis says the world was a chaotic mess, a scene of disorder and confusion. Does that sound familiar? The world today is very much a chaotic mess, a scene of disorder and confusion. What is the answer? It’s the same as it was in the beginning! “Light be!”

Grace Unveiled, #10: Credited to Your Account | Jim Hammond

Pastor Jim preached the 10th installment of his series entitled, “Grace Unveiled,” a study of the book of Romans. This message subtitled, “Credited to Your Account,” finishes up the study of the sin problem and then begins a study of the solution to man’s sin problem—which is Romans 3:21–22, “…faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe.” Pastor Jim said, “The reason why Paul spent so much time talking about the sin problem is because you can’t understand the solution if you don’t understand the problem.”