The Senior Pastor of The Fountain of Life Church, Pastor Taiwo Odukoya, has enjoined believers to desire more intimacy with God. He made the comment during the service on April 2, 2023.
Speaking from John 7:37–39, the preacher noted that when a believer is filled with the Holy Spirit, He helps them represent Christ in every area of their life. He continued by saying that believers have the ability to dispense life due to the infilling of the Holy Spirit in them. “There is a kind of hunger in your life that only the Holy Ghost can satisfy,” he said.
Also citing Acts 2:32–33, the man of God stated that the early disciples changed the world through the help of the Holy Spirit, and as such, every Christian must desire that deeper level of relationship with God to do exploit.
He added that Christians should continually yearn for a deeper relationship with God to fully maximize that trait. “You would never be left a minute without the Holy Ghost. You can be the best that God wants you to be, and nobody can stop you,” Pastor Taiwo said.
He therefore urged the congregation to put their trust in God and develop a close relationship with the Holy Spirit so as to have their thirst satisfied. “Are you thirsty? Then come to Him. Don’t let anyone hinder or distract you; just come to Him and you will be filled. I pray for the hunger of God for you,” he said.
“THE DICTATES OF THE SPIRIT”
The March 30 Thursday Showers was a power-packed service as worshippers experienced the presence of the Holy Spirit from the opening prayer led by Pastor Dapo Williams, the praise and worship session, and the testimonies of Brothers Seyi Sowemimo and Kunle Alabama, which showed the intervention of God in various aspects of their lives; it was evident that the Holy Spirit was present at the service.
Pastor Soji Bukola from Grace Baptist Pentecostal Church, Mushin, thereafter encouraged the worshippers from Romans 8:26–27, saying that a believer should not be obsessed with the dictates of the flesh but with those of the Spirit. He said, “The role of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer cannot be overemphasised because we are not saved to live this Christian life on our own natural strength.”
Titling his message “The Dictates of the Spirit,” the clergy noted that believers cannot live a fruitful Christian life outside of the Holy Spirit. “The subject of the Holy Spirit is so important because everything that God will do in your life and through your life will be done by the power of the Holy Spirit,” he said.
Citing Romans 8:9 and Ephesians 1:13, Pastor Soji said that the sonship of the believer is validated by the Holy Spirit and by the presence of the Holy Spirit, adding that believers are sealed by the Spirit of God when they believe and accept Christ into their lives. He then urged them from John 5:30 to maintain deep intimacy with the Holy Spirit, just as Jesus did while on earth.
Pastor Taiwo Odukoya, while exhorting the worshippers, also enjoined believers to always live in surrender to the Holy Spirit. He said, “The best life you can ever live is to live in surrender to the Holy Ghost; we live life in collaboration with the Holy Spirit.”
He admonished believers to never neglect the Holy Spirit, as “God never created you to just watch you; He created you for His own habitation… yet He never ceases to show us His mercies.”
Pastor Taiwo added that a believer should always back off once the burden has been handed over to the Holy Spirit, instead of having to conclude on the matter before praying. “If you are going to God, believing Him for something, and before you begin to fast and pray, you have concluded that it is the one for which you will be waiting forever, you have gotten your answer before you prayed,” he said.
Also, while sharing from John 16:13, Pastor Taiwo said that the Holy Spirit can never confuse nor deceive, but that He will always guide and give advice when needed with sure results, adding that the reality of the Christian life is to be guided and led by the Holy Spirit that is within. “Trial and error will be minimal in your life the more you depend on the Holy Spirit,” the senior pastor said.
In conclusion, Pastor Taiwo cited Romans 8:14, saying, “Nobody has the monopoly of the Holy Ghost; as God is leading that big man, and God will lead you too; the same attention, same focus of the divine.”
