I was baptized in water when I was twelve years old. I was baptized in the Holy Spirit at nineteen. But there were more spiritual experiences including one I call the “Baptism of Love”. That term doesn’t appear in the Bible but it is what it felt like to me–a baptism of love. The Lord reminded me of it in a conversation with Him just last week. Can I share the story with you?
We had just left the mission in Alaska that we worked with. We were in such a family transition…new city, new schools, rental house for six months then….new city new schools, new house, new church…
While finding a new church we changed our theology. We decided to renounce the lie of cessationism.
Definition of cessationism: click on the arrow.
Cessationism is a Christian doctrine holding that miraculous spiritual gifts, like prophecy, speaking in tongues, and divine healing, ceased after the apostolic era (the first century) because they served to establish the early church and confirm apostolic authority, with the completed Bible now fulfilling that foundational role. While cessationists believe God still works miracles and answers prayers, they maintain these specific, revelatory “sign gifts” are no longer active, contrasting with “continuationists” who believe all spiritual gifts are for today. (A.I. summary)
We decided to go to a church that believed the gifts of the Holy Spirit were operative in a christian’s life. When we did that, the first sermon series preached was on that very topic! What a confirmation!
Just after those transitions and that sermon series, I experienced a baptism of love. It was so powerful!!
I felt like I was walking, sitting, living in a bubble of God’s love, warmth, glow, sweetness, peace, deep joy, smiles, no matter where I went or what I was doing. I could clearly hear the Holy Spirit’s voice and prompts. It was a very special season! Such love! So much love from Jesus!
I’ve heard testimonies and met a number of people who have had this–a type of baptism of love. The one that stands out is Joe (pseudonym). Joe was in a emergency rescue type job. He had seen so much trauma that he began to be depressed. In his depression he lost hope and his health. He was in a wheel chair. He turned to suicidal thoughts and accepted them. I can’t remember if he prayed, “God, if You are there, please help me?” Maybe he did. Maybe he didn’t. But he was going to take his own life. Suddenly, without any notice, he received a baptism of love from God. It lasted for hours. It was so strong and embraced all his senses. Love was essentially poured out on him and washed all over him weighting him down. He sensed Light, heat, and a righteous love. He knew it was from God. His eyes poured tears hours upon hours in this liquid love. When it ended, he stood up and he was healed and valued his life. It had been a healing love. He didn’t need the wheelchair now–he could just walk. Before he was confined to less than one hundred steps but now there were no limitations. He had gone through a healing baptism of love. Months later Joe read a Bible verse from 1 John in front of hundreds of people at our church, telling them how much God loved them.
Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 1 John 4:8-10
The Bible says that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. He, Jesus, took our sins on the cross and paid the price so we could have peace with God. Jesus death and resurrection was a sacrifice of Love. He did this because He loves us.
So many of us struggle with not feeling loved by God. We believe intellectually in Jesus’ love for us but we can’t seem to feel it emotionally. I understand. I was there in my teen years.
Don’t you think we all need an experience of a baptism of love? I was so thankful that the Lord said to me this week in a conversation with Him…“I want to talk to you about My love for you. So much love. I have so much love. Remember when you had the baptism of love? Wasn’t that beautiful? It is still there. All there. Feel it!”
I encourage you to have a conversation with God this week, or right now, about His love for you. He loves to talk about His love for you.
If you have never been water baptized, I encourage you to do this.
If you have never been prayed over to move in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, baptized in the Holy Spirit, I encourage you to do this second.
Then, if you still are not able to feel God’s love for you, I encourage you to go through deliverance. Our team has found that the enemy’s biggest, mean and evil strategy is to keep you from truly knowing, experiencing and feeling how much Jesus loves you, and knowing your identity as a child of God.
If you connect with this blog episode, and desire a freedom in the area of finances, we encourage you to go to Amazon and purchase our book with personal activations and engagements to help you heal and deal with these issues. Financial Healing: A Spiritual Journey by Richard and Jackie Nalos is available in soft cover or Kindle on Amazon.
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