Supporter’s Extra: A Second Blessing!
Friends, I do thank you for your kind donations and support of my work. I love doing this - these devotions and all the music I do - and it's your kindness that enables me to do it. Thank you!
I love Philip, in the book of Acts! Now, remember, he went off to Samaria to do God's work, breaking boundaries by reaching out to the people the Jews so despised. But something interesting happens during his time there. People are brought to faith, but they somehow missed the infilling of the Holy Spirit. Let's read it:
"When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit." (Acts 8:14-17)
What Is the Second Blessing?
This is one of the reasons that we Nazarenes - and a host of other denominations - teach what we call the second blessing. The phrase comes from John Wesley himself, who encouraged people to seek this second blessing… read or listen to this full devotion on my Patreon page here – for a monthly amount of your choice.
Paul's words about women learning in silence make far more sense once we understand the pagan culture of Ephesus he was addressing. Take time today to test what you're being taught, by Scripture, rather than by culture.