Ok, so you’ve prayed the Lions Roar salvation prayer…now what?
Firstly, I’m very excited for what God has in store for you!
So here are the five things you need to do next:
- Get plugged into a local church
- Be Water Baptized
- Receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit
- Read your Bible every day
- Commit to a regular prayer life
Number 1: Get plugged into a local Church
It’s imperative you get plugged into a local vibrant church that believes in the power of God and honors the Holy Spirit in services. Get plugged in, not only as an attendee but as a volunteer. There are no spectators in the Kingdom of God; we are all participators in spreading the Gospel. There are no ‘sideline saints’, you must be about your ‘Fathers business.’
The Bible says, “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” (Heb 10:25). What is the approaching day? The return of Jesus Christ. The internet is a powerful tool, but I can’t step out of this monitor and minister to you right now, you need to attend a church so people can minister to you, one on one. Technology by no means, replaces the local church body.
Number 2: Be Water Baptized
Baptism is an outward expression and public demonstration of an inward commitment to serve Christ. It’s an act of cleansing and unity with the Body of Christ. It’s also a ceremonial service for the death of your old sinful nature and entrance into newness of life, “Therefore; we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” (Rom 6:4).
Christ commanded His disciples to baptized in water, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” (Matt 28:19). Paul and Silas also baptized in water (Acts 16:29). Phillip the Evangelist baptized the Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8). Clearly the disciples followed Christ’s mandate and we must continue this baptismal practice today. Jesus is our example for all ministerial service. Interestingly He was also baptized with the Holy Spirit shortly following His water baptism in the river Jordan (John 1:32-33). This ceremonial water and Spirit baptism was the inauguration of His public ministry. In an ideal word the Holy Spirit baptism should occur simultaneously or shortly following water baptism.
You might say, ‘I was sprinkled with water as a child; so do I really need to be water baptized as an adult?’ Yes, because there’s a difference between dedication to God as a child and full submersion in water as an adult. An adult’s decision to be baptized is a demonstration of their willful desire to walk in ‘newness of life.’ An infant baptism is akin to dedication and the child has no say in the matter.
Is water baptism requisite for salvation? No, but that doesn’t mean it’s not important. Scripture admonishes us to ‘believe on the Lord Jesus Christ‘ (Acts 16:31) for salvation. Christ did not tell the thief on the cross to find a bathtub after his commitment to him (Luke 23). We are saved by grace through faith (Eph 2:8-9), not ceremony.
Number 3: Receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit
Now this my friend is a comprehensive and somewhat controversial topic, which I cannot cover fully here, suffice to say there’s another baptism described throughout the Book of Acts. It’s a fundamental doctrine of the Bible called, ‘the baptism of the Holy Spirit’. Do you need it to get to heaven? No, you certainly do not. You can get to heaven without being water baptized or baptized in the Holy Spirit, but this specific baptism is for the application of power in ministerial service. It’s an empowerment to do the works of Christ on earth.
If you want it, you will get it, if you don’t; you won’t. God’s not going to force anything on anyone. In this baptism, you are equipped with a greater measure of the Holy Spirit and empowered to do mighty works in His name (Acts 1:8). The initial evidence of this spiritual baptism is ‘speaking in tongues’ along with prophecy, mentioned occasionally, throughout the book of Acts. The outpouring of God’s Spirit has not passed away because some crusty theologian deemed it so. Only unbelief will hinder God’s manifestation in the earth and unbelief is our fault, not God’s.
Notice I said ‘greater measure’ of the Holy Spirit because Holy Spirit inhabits every believer when they’re saved. With the Spirit baptism, you’re not getting Holy Spirit for the first time, but you’re getting a ‘greater measure’ of what’s already deposited within you. This second outpouring of the Holy Spirit is referred to in scripture as the ‘Gift of the Holy Ghost’ (Acts 2:38, Acts 10:45) or the ‘Baptism of the Holy Ghost’ (Mark 1:8, Acts 11:16) and ‘the promise of the Father’ (Acts 1:4).
The Holy Spirit baptism is not to be confused with being ‘baptized into Christ’ which occurs at the time of salvation. Holy Spirit baptism usually follows water baptism. I was water baptized and received the baptism of the Holy Spirit, simultaneously in 1999. Since then I’ve laid hands on the sick, seen them recover, cast out demons and prayed in tongues (Mark 16:17-18). I still go to work every day, pay taxes, and do all the normal things of life. I consider myself to be ‘normal’ (but my wife might have something to say about that ;).
So, what’s the qualification for being baptized with the Holy Ghost? You must be saved firstly, and water baptized. The Apostle Peter reveals, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:38). If you want to receive this gift you should seek a local church that administers it.
Number 4: Read your Bible every day
I can’t stress the importance of this enough because God’s word is food to your spirit-man. Jesus said, ‘I am the bread of life’. We should eat of Jesus every day. Jesus also said, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matt 4:4). If you don’t eat food, you will eventually wither and die. Spiritual food is equally, if not, more important. Meditating on God’s word is crucial to maintaining an active fellowship with our Heavenly Father. The onus is on us to do it. We must take the initiative; If we don’t, we’ll lose our passion for the things of God.
As food nourishes our physical body, God’s word nourishes and strengthens our inner man. Notice also, when Christ was tempted (Matt 4), Jesus quoted the word of God extensively. He didn’t ‘get into a conversation’ with the devil. Jesus is our example in spiritual warfare. If we’re to successfully resist satanic influence, then we must not only, know the truth, but most importantly, verbalize God’s Word. God’s word needs to abide within us (Jn 15:7), so it’s available to be spoken at the opportune time.
By meditating on the truth, we will appropriate the full manifestation of what Christ won for us on the cross. If our brain is the hardware, think of the Holy Spirit as the software, who will bring it (the word) to our remembrance at the right time. However, the word must be stored up in our memory firstly. I’m a big proponent of scripture memorization. People who aren’t, are generally too lazy to do it. If we don’t diligently store up the word in times of peace, there will be nothing for the Holy Spirit to draw upon in our time of warfare.
Number 5: Commit to a regular prayer life
In private assembly, ‘praying in tongues’ or ‘praying in the Spirit’ is for personal edification. Praying in tongues is primarily direct communion with God for edification and comfort (1 Cor 14:2). We are also told to pray in a known language (that’s English for me), so that our understanding is fruitful. The bottom line is, we’re supposed to do both i.e., pray in English and pray in an unknown tongue.
Prayer is a two-way street. We should listen as well as speak (that applies to marriage too :). By practicing pauses in our prayer time, we give Holy Spirit an opportunity to communicate. Personally, it’s hard for me to pray more than ten minutes or so in English as I simply don’t have all the words. Neither do know exactly ‘how’ or ‘what’ to pray for. After praying in my known tongue for a few minutes, I often switch over to praying in the Spirit until I get a manifestation of joy, laughter or peace.
By praying in the Spirit, we are able to ‘pray without ceasing,’ (1 Thess 5:17). This is very hard to do in a known tongue. Get into the habit of praying on a daily basis and taking time to listen to God’s Spirit. By doing so, you will enjoy a rich relationship with your Heavenly Father, who will guide you through the issues of life.
Do these five things and you will succeed in your Christian walk.
Have you believed on the Lord Jesus Christ? If not, click here to find out more…
Author – Carl G.M. Joseph