A Prayer for Pentecost 2023

O Holy Spirit,

Lord and Giver of Life,

Beloved of our souls,

Create a mighty Christian Revolution among us

and cast the fear of the unknown

out of our lives.

We acknowledge

on this Pentecost 2023

that You,

Holy Spirit,

are the promise of the Father

that Jesus said would be given to us.

You were the promise of the Old Covenant,

that You would dwell in us,

and write the Word and Law of God

on our hearts.

You were the fulfilment of the ministry of Jesus,

that we would be baptized in you,

and that through you we would be so connected to the Father

that the world would know that we are his disciples.

And Jesus said that because of You,

out of our bodies would flow rivers of living water,

and signs, wonders, and miracles

would follow us wherever we go.

For apart from You,

we can do nothing.

We acknowledge Holy Spirit,

that you are the presence of Christ in us,

the hope of glory.

Holy Spirit,

you help us in our weaknesses,

and pray through us when we do not know how to pray.

We acknowledge that five hundred years ago

grave errors came into the church,

in the hope of correcting great corruption.

We are again in an age

when great corruption has entered into the church.

We acknowledge that many believe that grieving you is biblical,

and that you stopped working after the apostles died.

Others are teaching and promoting doctrines of demons

and teaching the faithful to sin.

And still others have become nothing more

than the moneychangers in the temple.

We acknowledge that you have called us to this new thing,

in this season, in a new era of human civilization.

On this Day,

Belonging House as a community renounces the errors

from the past five hundred years,

and we sever all ties in the spirit to the doctrine of cessationism,

the reformation and related movements, 

liberal theology and related movements, 

the counter-reformation and related movements,  

and all the other ideas and offshoots of these doctrines that have kept us from the fullness of the Kingdom of God.

We acknowledge that St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Augustine attempted to use Greek philosophy, something St. Paul warned us about, to define you, and created vague, difficult doctrines that were hard to understand.  We acknowledge that Aquinas used Aristotle to explain your Real Presence in the Eucharist, and this error led to a great schism.  We acknowledge that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist by Your Word and Holy Spirit, and that when receive the Eucharist, we receive your eternal life. 

We acknowledge that the false teaching of the reformers has caused many to grieve and quench you Holy Spirit.  We acknowledge that many have taught that this is Biblical teaching and have instructed others to grieve you.  Some have even taught others to blaspheme You and say that signs, wonders, miracles, healing, and gifts are the work of the devil.  Forgive us for any agreement we have made with those who teach these things or believe these lies.  We acknowledge this is the unforgivable sin.  Forgive us Lord, for your mercy is great.

We renounce all agreements with these lies or those who teach them.

We acknowledge that there are many who have searched the scriptures thinking that in them they find life, when they refuse to humble themselves and turn to God.  You, Holy Spirit have spoken through the prophets, and are the author of Scripture. We acknowledge we cannot read and understand the Bible without your help.  We acknowledge that many of us have suffered in churches where prophecy was forbidden but they called it discernment, where prophets were persecuted, but it was called discipline, and when there was no word from the Lord the leaders chose to do whatever seemed right in their own eyes, often taking Bible verses out of context to justify their errors.   We renounce all these things and those who do them.

We acknowledge that in the absence of a relationship with You Holy Spirit, the church has turned to the academy and intellect to find truth. We acknowledge that the reformation was born in the universities of Europe; where all ideas were considered equal, and where those who were the best debators won the day.  We acknowledge that the best argument in the university is often considered the truth.  We renounce the lie that academic credentials can replace the anointing of heaven, and that the logical interpretations of man can replace the living word of power.  We acknowledge that the current crisis in the church over homosexuality, over the authority of scripture, and over the authority of the church is because of this error.  We renounce all these things, and those who do them.  We acknowledge that You, Holy Spirit, have spoken through the prophets and we will heed your voice.

We acknowledge that You, Holy Spirit, have given us Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers to equip the body of Christ and raise us up into fullness of maturity.  You Holy Spirit have given gifts to men and women, in order to establish the Kingdom of God on earth.  We have replaced them with man-made structures that you did not ordain or create.  We have seen many who were called kept from ministry, and other unfit hirelings promoted to positions of authority.  We have been told to come under the covering of those who did not honor or obey you, and we were told that the government of men was superior to the government of God.  We have watched as the Sons of Eli have taken the best offerings, and let your glory depart from your church.  Forgive us for agreeing with a form of godliness and denying the power.  Have mercy on us Lord, for your mercy is great.

Forgive us Lord for building temples of stone and neglecting the temples of our hearts.  Forgive us for the false teaching of Christian unity based on John 17:20 that has its roots in Freemasonry and not the gospel.  We acknowledge that You Holy Spirit are the source of unity, and the outward signs are baptism and the eucharist.  Forgive us for saying human agreement and institutional unity is more important that being one with the Father and the Son in the Holy Spirit.  We acknowledge that this is what Jesus was praying for. Forgive us for doing great things in your name, for every way we have tried to control, manipulate, or coerce people when you were in none of it, and you didn’t know us.  Forgive us for grieving You, Holy Spirit.

Forgive us for every way scholars and Bible teachers have twisted and corrupted Scripture to advance any doctrine made by man.  Forgive us for the ways that artists and creative people were subjugated through intentionally rewriting the Decalogue, mistranslating words, and leaving Bezalel out of commentaries.  We acknowledge You, Holy Spirit are the one who breathes the breath of life, you are the power that raised Jesus from the dead, you are the Author of Beauty, and you are the creator.  We acknowledge that the work of the artist and the creator is intended to be a revelation of your work to the world.  Release us from the bondage put on us by the traditions of men.

Forgive us for choosing man’s ways over God’s ways, and for man’s thoughts over God’s thoughts.  Forgive us for creating another law of condemnation to enslave people.  We acknowledge that there is therefore  no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, for the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus has set us free from the law of sin and death.

We acknowledge that all these teachings have put a veil on our hearts like the veil Moses put on the people of Israel.  Today we ask that you would remove that veil as we cut ties with all that we have carried in the last era of the church.  Lord, please remove the dullness, the spiritual blindness, and the all the false belief systems that have kept us from the kingdom.

We seek first your Kingdom, your righteousness.  We acknowledge that righteous, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit is the Kingdom of God.

Help us in Belonging House, to move into the new thing you have called us to do.  Help us to listen to your voice, and empower us to do the things you ask us to do.

All this we pray, in the name and power of Jesus.

Amen.