Creating an Atmosphere of Faith
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And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Greet Aunt Brenda, Janet and Hadassah
Greet Aunt Brenda, Janet and Hadassah
Other family.
Introduction.
Introduction.
An Atmosphere is “a surrounding influence or environment”.
When a bird lays an egg, the egg must be kept in a certain “atmosphere” to hatch.
As an eagle stirreth up her nest, Fluttereth over her young, Spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, Beareth them on her wings:
Fluttereth means to hover or brood.
The same Word is used in Genesis 1.
And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
The Creator making an atmosphere for life. Brooding over the seeds that were planted.
A bird may lay lots of eggs, but if she doesn’t brood over them, they will never come to life, so she creates an atmops here for the egg to be born.
You are a creator.
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
Now, let me tell you something: Each man that’s borned again with the Spirit of God in him is a miniature creator. Now, that might shake you a little, but that’s the truth. We’re in the image of God. God is a Creator.
That’s the reason that you can believe that God could heal a person, because God is in you, and God made this world. He just spoke it, and His Word become material. The very ground that you’re setting on is the Word of God made manifest.
He just spoke it, and it turned into existence. He believed in His own Word. And if a man’s borned of the Spirit of God, he’s an offspring of God; and that part of God is in him, and he believes every word that God says will materialize. And so, that makes him part of God. The Holy Spirit in the man makes him a part of God.
And now, did you ever see people, nice people, but you just couldn’t hardly stand to be around? Sure you have. You don’t have nothing against them, but you can’t stand to be around them. Then you seen some person that’s, oh, maybe a little old scrawny fellow, or a little old woman bent over a washtub, but you just love to be around that person.
You just love them, somehow. It’s the atmosphere that they’ve got around them, the way they live; they create an atmosphere that you like to be into. That’s lovely people to be with.
(Bro. Branham tells about the chaos in his home. This is the famous apron story)
Now, my wife setting there, and she was crying, so I said, “Now, the only thing for me to do now, heavenly Father,” in my heart, I said, “is to create a different situation here.”
How did he do it?
By touch. He put his arms around her.
By example. He put on an apron and helped.
By words. He begin to to speak positive things.
Sometimes work for God can be overwhelming. Be a creator.
You just keep believing, create the atmosphere. Never let doubt come around you. Believe all the time. Don’t accompany any of that doubt at all. No, sir. No matter what the circumstances is, push away doubt. Walk right on through it. Just refuse it. Yes, sir. Don’t give no grounds at all. 55-0610 - Do You Now Believe?
With his words and his actions he was creating an atmosphere of faith.
It is because of the atmosphere that you create. For you as a son of God are a miniature creator, because you are a part of God. And that’s the reason you can believe the Bible for anything It says, for the Word is God’s Word. You being a part of God, will agree with the Word.
Then do you understand that the reason that people said, “This was not inspired, and that is not inspired, and this is for another day,” it’s because that they have never become in contact. Oh, no matter how many degrees they can show, that has nothing to do with it. But they have never become in contact with God to be borned again.
Oh, they may have jumped; and they may have did this; they may be a Ph.D. They may have spoke in tongues; they may have danced in the Spirit; but Jesus said, “By their fruit, you shall know them.” For where the Spirit of God is, there is love; there’s understanding; there’s something that you like to be around. 57-0126E - When Divine Love Is Projected, Sovereign Grace Takes Its Place
But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
This is what Pentecost was all about. The Promise of the Holy Spirit had been given to the disciples by Jesus Christ, but they were told to tarry until the promise came, so during that time they made ready for it by creating a right atmosphere.
And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
God still is the same that He ever was. The people gets away from God, but God remains the same. His nature, and His power, and His desire is always the same through every generation. It never changes. It’s always the same.
It’s the people that gets away from God and not God from the people. They lose their faith. God covers all space, all everywhere. He’s omnipresent. So He’s everywhere, and He’s always has been everywhere, and He always will be everywhere.
But it’s the attitude of the people that brings the results. That’s the reason at Pentecost they had to go to an upper room and pray until the Holy Ghost came, ’cause they got in one place and one accord. It’s the atmosphere what brings the results.
Let every man and woman in this building this morning, boy or girl, get everything from their minds but the Lord Jesus, and believe that He’s standing present right now, and you’ll see something happening that’ll cause headlines in newspaper in the morning. 56-0129 - The Supernatural
Right this night while we’re sitting here, if this right atmosphere would take place, this entire group would be refilled with the Holy Ghost, every sick person would be made well. It’s the atmosphere that does it.
You can take a hen egg and put it in a incubator and keep the atmosphere right it’ll hatch out a chicken not an incubator. See? Because that it’s the atmosphere that counts. Put a chicken egg under a dog. It’ll hatch a chicken. It’s the atmosphere.
And that’s what it takes in the church today, not so much starchy creed and theology, but the Spirit of the living God pouring down upon His people to bring a spiritual atmosphere.
Do you know when the Holy Spirit first came? It was on the day of Pentecost, when they were in all in one place and one accord. And then there came from heaven a sound like a rushing mighty wind. They had to get the atmosphere right. 60-0329 - It Is I, Be Not Afraid
How did they get the atmosphere right? How did the eleven disciples, let alone over 100 other Jews, create an atmosphere of faith for the Holy Ghost to come?
1. Obedience to the Word
1. Obedience to the Word
And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.
Until. He didn’t ask them to stand on their head, just tarry.
(Naaman)
And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to hearken than the fat of rams.
Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, And bow myself before the high God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, With calves of a year old?
Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, Or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; And what doth the Lord require of thee, But to do justly, and to love mercy, And to walk humbly with thy God?
God loves obedience.
(Peter and the fish. At thy Word Lord)
He knew there were no fish there. His reason told him no, his experience told him no, but by obeying the Word of Christ he created an atmosphere of faith so that fish would be created in the net.
(Man who was born blind.)
When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay,
And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.
We have come today in Obedience to the Word.
Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.
Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:
And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
We don’t obey to earn grace, we obey because of Grace.
2. Unity of Purpose
2. Unity of Purpose
They were with “One Accord”. One mind.
Somehow all these different people came with one mind to the meeting.
Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.
This was not forced. (Paul and Peter) They both had the same guide.
The Guide isn’t going to take one over this way, and one over that way, and send one east and the other one west. See, He’s going to keep you together. And if we’ll just let the Holy Ghost keep us together, we’ll be one.
If we just don’t let the devil pull you off on the wrong road, we’ll be one heart, one mind, one accord, by one Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Guide of God that will guide us to all Truth. That’s right. But you got to follow your Guide. 62-1014E - A Guide
We need the fire of God’s love in our hearts. We can’t get warm by some historical doctrine. We’ve got to have the Holy Ghost now. The same Spirit that sent Pentecostal fire in the first day is got to be the same Pentecostal fire today, that’s burning their hearts, their love; they’d die for one another. They went forth with only one objective: win souls to Christ, one motive: love. 59-0424E - Hear Ye Him
And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,
The Bride must be unified, unified together by the Word. “My sheep hear My Voice.” And This is His Voice on printed Word. All right. Unified by the Word, She makes Herself ready, not with the regular creed.
Like Esther, when Esther was to be chosen to stand before the king, she didn’t adorn themselves with all the things, but she adorned herself with a sweet, meek spirit. That’s what the Bride is adorning Herself with, with all of the fruits of the Spirit following it.
What She got? Assembling together in the fellowship of the Word. “Amen.” Fellowship of the Word. That’s right. Fellowshipping, setting together in Heavenly places in Christ Jesus, tonight: one accord, one place, one Spirit, one mind, one hope, one God, one purpose. “Amen.”
Every time the Bible says anything, we say, “Amen.” Punctuating every Word with, “Amen.” “Jesus Christ, same yesterday, and forever.” “Amen.” “Repent, and be baptized, the Name of Jesus Christ.” “Amen.” See, everything, just, “Amen, amen, amen,” right on down, see, in fellowship.
3. Unity of Place
3. Unity of Place
They were in one place. It wasn’t a zoom call or a live stream. They weren’t in their individual homes, they were together.
Ever since the garden of Eden the people of God have come together to be one body.
For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked:
That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.
And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it.
And when the Holy Spirit came in the upper room, it said, “There came a sound as a rushing mighty wind (now, nothing was blowing, it was just like a sound like it was), and it filled all the house where they were setting, and then, cloven tongues set upon them, like fire.”
And how did this great Pillar of Fire, the Angel of God, the Logos that went out of God, that led the children of Israel through the wilderness…When It come among the people, It separated Itself, and great licks of fire begin to come upon each one as the Pillar of Fire begin to break up,
God dividing Himself among His people…Oh, that ought to tear the heart out of anybody. God tearing Himself apart, that He might divide Himself a little bit with each one of us, that all together…You see what it means?
Can you see now why I’m standing for unity of every church, every full gospel church, every believer? We ought to be one heart, one mind, and one accord. No matter how much we different in the Scriptures; that might be…One might see this that way, that has nothing to do with it.
(We stand on principle not on ideas)
Oh, how I think of God separating Himself that He might dip down into His big soul and pour out a little spoonful in me, and reach over and pour out a spoonful in you, and in you, and in you, and you, and you, dividing Himself, the fire, the cleansing power of God.
Then, if you have a spoonful, and I have a spoonful, and we both get together, we got two spoonfuls. And if fifty of us are together, we got fifty spoonfuls. Where there is unity, where there is gathering, there is safety and what-more. 60-0304 - Thirsting For Life
(Broken Bread- Broken Body)
The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
But now when we come together in this way, there God comes down. And the communion table is, actually, break, broken, bodies of the Body of the Lord that we separate among us.
Did you notice on the Day of Pentecost, what a great thing we have there? That, God, Who led the children of Israel through the wilderness, He, that great Pillar of Fire. And on the Day of Pentecost, this great Fire fell, and then divided Itself among His people.
Oh, to think how that He wants us to sit together in Heavenly places, then, each one enjoying that warmth of the Fire of the Holy Spirit. “Cloven tongues set upon them like Fire, licks of Fire,” God dividing Hisself amongst the Church. Oh, wouldn’t that, though, just set our hearts burning. That’s when we can come together in Heavenly places.
Now, we know that His table, where the people set together and commune with Him, is like an oasis in a desert. And an oasis, in the desert, where there’s a great spring, where weary travelers come and set around this oasis in the desert, and refresh themselves, and then remembering how it got there.
And that’s the way it is in the Church, that, this table of communion where all the blessings of God, the full Gospel, everything that God has for His Church, is brought out, laid out among us. And it’s like an oasis in this hot, burning, sinful desert that we’re traveling through.
And then when we come in, and talk of, read the menu, and then we see that He turns back around, and He’s not fresh out of this, or fresh out of that, or this struck off, but He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever. He’s got everything on the menu, ready to give it out. That’s the good part. Then we can just look over the menu and just take the whole thing.
And while we are enjoying these blessings, each one feeling His Presence, and saying, “Amen. Praise God! Hallelujah!” so forth, in that we can remember the One that brought it to us and made it possible, the death of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Remember Him. 63-0122 - Remembering The Lord
Conclusion.
Conclusion.
Lame man at the gate Beautiful. Woman in Benin prayer line.
The Holy Spirit is brooding over the promise today. Take Him at His Word.
(Prayer for Aunt Brenda)