Minister's Life & Ministry

Empower Resources

Articles for lay leaders

Book Review

Enrichment
The First Decade
Every issue (Fall 1995- Fall 2005) on 3 CDs.

Order Back Issues Online

Conflict Management
Two volume set now available.

Managing the Local Church/Leadership CD.

Order Paraclete CD
Includes all 29 years of the now out-of-print Paraclete magazine. An excellent source of Pentecostal themes and issues. Contains articles on theological topics concerning the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit. An indispensable source of sermon and Bible study material with a fully searchable subject/author index.

Advance/Pulpit CDs
Long out of print but fondly remembered, Advance and Pulpit magazines blessed thousands of ministers. Now the entire Advance/Pulpit archive--nearly 40 years of information, inspiration, helps, and history--is available to you on separate CDs.

Preserving Pentecost in the Larger Church:
Challenges and Opportunities

[Sidebar for "A Waterline Of Another Kind - Six Marks of a Pentecostal Church"]

As senior pastor, I must be the prime facilitator of the Spirit’s moving in my church. I must be the pacesetter and then expect my staff to follow. If large churches are to be spiritual powerhouses, evidenced by the Holy Spirit’s presence and manifested through Spirit baptisms, salvations, healings, and the charismatic exercise of the gifts, then it must come through the direct, intentional efforts of the senior pastor. I have instituted five areas of intentional focus at Cornerstone:

By preaching

A pastor once told me, “No one is being saved in my church.”

I asked, “Are you preaching on salvation?”

He answered, “No, I am preaching to believers.”

I replied, “There is your answer.”

Until we preach on the baptism in the Holy Spirit, people are not going to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. We underestimate the power of proclamation: “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word of Christ” (Romans 10:17).

Holy Spirit baptism is not only something that is taught, but is also imparted. Faith ignites the Word that is in the heart of the believer. We must constantly preach on the empowerment of the Holy Spirit for dynamic Christian living.

By practicing the power of the Holy Spirit privately

The power of the Holy Spirit must be experienced privately. With all the resources we have access to, we must be careful not to neglect the Holy Spirit’s resources at the expense of man-made resources. As pastors, we cannot lose the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. If He is not the source of inspiration — the fuel for passion in our personal lives — we will never truly demonstrate His power to our congregation.

By practicing the power of the Holy Spirit publicly

Pentecostal ministers must practice the presence of the Holy Spirit publicly. I must show my dependency on the Holy Spirit to the leaders I influence and the congregation I lead. My staff must know that a servant of God should not be led by his or her own knowledge or abilities, but by the Spirit. The leading of God’s Spirit is the greatest commodity I have. If the leaders in my church do not see me practicing that publicly, they will not understand my dependence on the Holy Spirit and will never see their need for Him.

By providing an opportunity for the Spirit to move

I facilitate the Spirit’s moving in my church by providing opportunities for people to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Pastors must regularly preach on the Baptism if they want their people to be filled. If people are not getting saved, pastors need to preach more evangelistic sermons and give more altar calls. If people are not receiving the baptism in the Holy Spirit, pastors must preach more on the Baptism.

By allowing the gifts of the Holy Spirit

We must give opportunity for our people to develop spiritual gifts in their lives. We spend time preaching about the baptism in the Holy Spirit, but we must spend even more time teaching on the gifts of the Spirit and how they work in the life of the church and believer. If we teach that the Baptism and gifts of the Holy Spirit are to be used only in church, we have missed the biblical mandate. If our people believe spiritual gifts are only used for an hour on Sunday morning or night, they will not have much use for them. Our congregants must see the gifts of the Spirit as pertinent to everyday living.

Pastors of large churches face the challenge of providing opportunity for the Holy Spirit to move in the lives of believers at every level of church ministry. At Cornerstone, we encourage all departmental ministry leaders — whether lay or staff — to allow the Holy Spirit to move in and through individuals in their meetings, whether they work with men, women, youth, or children. In these smaller services, believers are taught to overcome their fears and are encouraged in the use of spiritual gifts. The fires begin in smaller areas. When these same people come to our main services, it becomes natural for them to minister in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The main service is not merely consumed with expressions of the Holy Spirit, but is a synergy of empowerment in the lives of all believers.