A biblical understanding of Holy Spirit encounters
The bible teaches us to test the spirits, whether they are of God.
Course description
11hr 57min of video content
This course provides a biblical framework for understanding encounters with the Holy Spirit. Maher distinguishes between the first encounter (being born again, where the Holy Spirit indwells the believer) and the second encounter (the baptism of the Holy Spirit, which empowers believers with supernatural gifts, including speaking in tongues as the initial evidence). He examines five New Testament accounts of Spirit baptism, noting that it can occur directly from heaven or through the laying on of hands, and that it seals believers as God’s own.
The lecturer then addresses subsequent manifestations—both scriptural (healing, deliverance, trembling, weeping, holy laughter) and unscriptural (convulsions, drunken behaviour, animal sounds, uncontrolled shouting). He warns that while God confirms His Word with signs, the devil can counterfeit some supernatural displays. Key discernment markers include: manifestations that are consistently reproducible at will, those that occur without faith or the preaching of God’s Word, indiscriminate laying on of hands, and disorderly conduct. Maher emphasizes that genuine Holy Spirit encounters always align with Scripture, require faith, and produce order, not confusion.
This course is meant for all audiences. No previous theological study is required or expected, for it is meant to give a basic understanding of what the bible says about the subject of the Holy Spirit.
Michael Maher will lecture from the bible, to walk the student through the subject of the Holy Spirit, and how that doctrine impacts the life of the believer.
This course focuses on explaining the biblical view of our encounters with the Holy Spirit. As a supplementary resource, this course can be taken in tandem with the reading of Michael Maher’s book, Holy Spirit Encounters.
I trust that the material and the dialogue with other students will be encouraging and enlightening for all.
INSTRUCTOR
From childhood, Michael E.B. Maher has always known that the Lord's call was upon his life for the ministry. When he was saved at the age of twenty-two, almost immediately the Lord Jesus began to deal with him about entering the ministry. However, it was only many years later that he committed to the Lord to answer the Lord's call to the ministry. And so, in 2014 Michael Maher Ministries was begun. From the beginning, the mandate given to Michael from the Lord Jesus was to preach the word. And so, this ministry preaches the word of God on every available platform around the world.
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Course curriculum
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1Introduction
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2Holy Spirit Encounters
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3Conclusion