Category: Print Newsletter Archive

Bill Bailey Ministries was the name of Dr. Bill’s ministry before Word of Faith Ministries.

“Prayer”

“The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” (James 5:16b)

What is effectual prayer? It is prayer that is effective. It works! It does something that changes your circumstances. When you pray you don’t change God. He is unchangeable (Mai. 3:6). You pray to change circumstances. You can change things through prayer! There are four types of prayer that change things: the Prayer of Agreement (Matt. 18:19,20), the Prayer of Binding and Loosing (Matt. 18:18), the Prayer of Petition and Supplication (Phil.4:6, 1 Tim. 2:1), and the Prayer of Intercession (1 Tim. 2:1, Rom.8:26, Col.2:1). These types of prayer are like tools – if they are used properly they will get the job done. You don’t use a saw to drill a hole. You use a drill. That is the proper tool. In the same way, you wouldn’t use the prayer of Agreement in a situation in which the prayer of Intercession is appropriate. There are different kinds of prayer. Eph. 6:18 says that we should pray always with all prayer (the Greek says, “all different kinds of prayer”). God has given us the proper tools to do the job. Jesus taught his staff to pray,”. . . (God’s) will be done in earth, as it is in Heaven…” (Matt. 6:10). In other words, pray that things be done on earth in the same way that they are done in Heaven. Is there sickness in Heaven? Any pain? Any lack? NO!

Well then, we can see from what Jesus said that it is not God’s will that pain, sickness, and lack exist in our lives here on earth. He has given us these prayer tools to allow us to change circumstances to line up with His will. God’s will is His Word! If it is in His Word, it is His will. He desires that we prosper and be in health (III John 2). Therefore, we can pray and change things to get them to line up with what God’s will is. But if it’s God’s will, won’t it come to pass automatically? NO! Isn’t it God’s will that all accept the free gift of salvation? Yes! (II Peter 3:9) But it’s not happening automatically is it? WE must do something. We must pray in order to cause things to get in line with God’s plainly stated will, His Word!

Items of Interest in This Issue

Invitation to the Word of Faith Seminar (See poster at right)… List of September Spirit of Faith Broadcast Radio Topics

Bill Bailey Ministries was the name of Dr. Bill’s ministry before Word of Faith Ministries.

“The Human Spirit”

“And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body, be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thess. 5:23) In this verse of scripture Paul says that the whole man is spirit and soul and body. You are made up of three different areas. The spirit of man is what is born again. “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit (the Holy Spirit) is spirit (the human spirit).” (John 3:6) The human spirit is what God deals with. (John 4:23, Prob. 20:27)

Some people are known as “soul-winners”. These folks are spreading the Gospel and people are being born again through their instruction. But the term “soul-winner” is a misnomer. As we’ve seen man is born again in the spirit. What then is the soul? The Greek word for “soul” is “psuche“, meaning, “the seat of feelings, desires, affections and aversions, the animal sentient principle only”. In other words, the mind, will and emotions. To say one is a soul-winner is to say that one is a “mind-winner“.

As you can see, we need a clear understanding of the difference between the spirit, the soul and the body. We tend to think of ourselves as bodies (as we look in the mirror) with the ability to think and reason. We think that that is the real “us.” It is not! I think that Brother Kenneth Hagin says it best, “We are a spirit that possesses a soul, or mind, and we live in a body.” If we could begin to see ourselves this way, we could get a much more exacting and fuller understanding of spiritual things. You are not your mind; you are not your body. You, the real you, is a spirit man. You possess a mind. You live in a body.

Think of your body as an astronaut thinks of his space suit. If an astronaut is walking around on a planet where the environment is hostile to him, he must wear his space suit to live there. Your body is your “earth-suit!” You must have it to live here. When you leave your body it will be just a lifeless thing of meat and bones, but you, the real you, the spirit man, will go on to be with the Lord (if you are born again.)

Our whole man is spirit, soul and body! This is what we’ll be talking about this month on the Spirit of Faith Broadcast. I pray that you will listen to every program on this subject! We need a thorough understanding of this subject to understand spiritual things.

Items of Interest in This Issue

Invitation to the first Sunday Service at Word of Faith Fellowship, in Salisbury, NC on June 8, 1980. Guest minister to be Beechard Moorefield. Letters from listeners… List of June Spirit of Faith Broadcast Radio Topics

Bill Bailey Ministries was the name of Dr. Bill’s ministry before Word of Faith Ministries.

“Applying the Word”

We, as Christians, need to apply God’s Word in prayer specifically. Too many Christian’s are praying “scatter-shot” prayers. That’s like a shot gun being pointed in the general direction of what you are shooting at and hoping that when you fire you’ll hit something. Most Christians don’t pray specifically. James 5:16 says,”… The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” Now, in recent months on the radio program, and in this newsletter, we’ve seen that we, as Christians, are righteous according to 2 Corinth. 5:21.

Notice that James says, “the effectual fervent prayer,” not just the fervent one. I’ve seen a lot of fervent pray-ers! They yell and scream and ball and squall, but they aren’t effective when they pray. Being effective is what its all about! How do you become effective? Base your prayer specifically on God’s Word. Pray in line with the Word. Start with the answer from God’s Word and take it to the Father in Jesus’ Name. Your prayers will be effective!

Items of Interest in This Issue

Announcement of the founding of Word of Faith Fellowship, a local Word Church in Salisbury, NC Photos of the building that was leased for the church… List of May Spirit of Faith Broadcast Radio Topics

Bill Bailey Ministries was the name of Dr. Bill’s ministry before Word of Faith Ministries.

“Agree With God!”

God’s Word is true! He is not a man that He should lie. (Num. 23:19) Indeed, the Word says that it is impossible for God to lie! (Heb. 6:18) This being the case, when God tells us who we are in the light of His Word, we should believe Him! If He says that we have been made the righteousness of God in Jesus, we should agree with Him. (2 Corinth. 5:21) If He says that we are the healed and that Jesus bore our sicknesses and diseases, we should agree with Him. (1 Peter 2:24, Matt. 8:17) If He says that we have been given the power to get wealth so that God can establish His Word in the earth and that Jesus became poor so that we might be made rich, then we should agree with Him. (Deut. 8:18, 2 Corinth. 8:9)

All of our theological arguments against these things fall short when we simply understand that God hasn’t lied about it! He has said these things about us and we need to accept them and get in line with them. But how do I get in line with what God has said? I don’t feel righteous, I don’t feel healed, I don’t feel prosperous. The key word here is feel, you don’t feel this way or that. What has your feelings, or lack of them, have to do with whether or not God’s Word is true? Nothing at all! We are to walk by faith not by our five physical senses, which includes our feelings! (2 Corinth. 5:7) Well, Brother Bill, what should I do? Simple! Agree with God! God is watching over His Word to perform it! (Jer. 1:12) We have heard for some time the scripture in Matt. 18:19 quoted often, “…if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.” If any two of you agree.. Who better to agree with than God! Agree that His Word is true!

Items of Interest in This Issue

Tape Offer “How to Be A Doer of the Word”… Itinerary: The NC Area Campmeeting in Winston-Salem, NC… List of April Spirit of Faith Broadcast Radio Topics

Bill Bailey Ministries was the name of Dr. Bill’s ministry before Word of Faith Ministries.

“The Great Exchange”

Most Christians do not fully realize what Jesus’ sacrifice and what He did in the following days after His Crucifixion, have on them. We need to see the fullness of what was provided for us. A great exchange took place on Calvary. Let’s look at 2 Corinth. 5:21, “For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.” Notice, He, Jesus, was made sin for us! The perfect, sinless, Son of God became sin! It also says that He knew no sin. Well, whose sin was He made to be sin with? OURS! He took our sin unto Himself on the cross and became our sin! Praise God! But, look at what else 2 Corinth. 5:21 says, “… that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.” Not that we might earn the righteousness of God in Him, but that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. Whose righteousness were we made righteous with? Jesus’! Can you see the exchange here?

We didn’t earn righteousness, we didn’t even deserve it, but we have been made righteous because of Jesus! An exchange took place! Notice this exchange in action in Isaiah 53:4,5, “Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.” Notice, all of these things He bore for us are ours! We then received something in exchange that was His. For grief we received joy (Nehemiah 8:10), for sorrow, rejoicing, for transgression, forgiveness and cleansing, for sin and iniquities, the righteousness (or rightstanding) of God in Him! For sickness we received health!

This exchange is the masterwork of God’s plan of redemption! This truth can also be seen by picturing Jesus on the cross, He was cast out of the presence of God to make us welcome there! (Matthew 27:46, Hebrews 4:16) He became weak that we might be strong! He became poor that we might be rich! (2 Corinth. 8:9)

Jesus was made the perfect substitute for us. Everything we were, Jesus became! And everything He is now, we have been made that! “…because as He is, so are we in the this world! (1 John 4:17)

Items of Interest in This Issue

Letters from listeners… What is Partnership?… Itinerary: Meetings in Bennettsville, SC at Word of Faith Christian Assembly, and the NC Area Campmeeting in Winston-Salem, NC… List of March Spirit of Faith Broadcast Radio Topics

Bill Bailey Ministries was the name of Dr. Bill’s ministry before Word of Faith Ministries.

“Why Speak in Tongues?”

Speaking with other Tongues is perhaps the most misunderstood gift of the Holy Spirit. Let’s look at two common misunderstandings.

First, that the gift of speaking in Tongues has passed away. Now I ask you, where does it say that in the Word of God? Not what your preacher says, not what any denomination says; what does the Word say? I realize that in 1 Corinth. 13:8 it says,”…whether there be tongues, they shall cease…”, but before someone proclaims, “ah-ha, see, look at what it says!” Read the whole chapter, read it in context! In 1 Corinth. 12:31 Paul tells us that he is about to show us a more excellent way to the best gifts, he proceeds in 1 Corinth. 13 to tell us that this way is through love. If we read the chapter carefully we’ll see clearly that Paul says that prophecy, tongues and knowledge will pass away when “that which is perfect is come.” (vs. 10)… for “then, (when the perfect comes) we will see face to face.”

Paul also said earlier in the same letter, “…so that you come behind in no (spiritual) gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinth. 1:7) It’s very plain that the “perfect” spoken of is none other than our Lord Jesus Christ! He is the Perfect! Indeed, then there will be no need for prophecy, knowledge, or tongues, for then we will see Jesus and talk to Him face to face!

Some say that the “perfect” spoken of here is the Bible, the Word of God. Well, God’s Word is perfect, praise the Lord! But if this reference is to the Word then knowledge, prophecy, and tongues has already passed away and today’s Church is perfect and without any spiritual problems. Ephesians 4:11-12 tells us that the ministry gifts and spiritual gifts are given “for the perfecting of the saints… till we all come in the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect (mature, in the Greek) man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, (vs. 13) No brethren, we have not yet fully attained that goal! Rather as Jesus told the Church at Thyatira in Revelation 2:25, “…that which ye have hold fast till l come. ”

Now, let’s look at a second common misunderstanding, that is, that Tongues is merely some kind of “ecstatic utterance”, as I’ve heard it called. That Tongues is of no useful purpose. Well, once again, what does the Word say? Paul, addressing himself to this question in 1 Corinth. 14 said, “he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries.” (vs. 2) So then, speaking in Tongues is speaking directly to God! (the Greek here says, “…speaking divine secrets to God.) Tongues is not for preaching or teaching, it is for prayer! Since when is prayer of any kind not important? But, I can pray just as well in English, one might say. Then why does the Word say in Romans 8:26 and 27, “…that the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings which can not be uttered, (the Greek says, words that can not be uttered in articulate speech) In other words, the Spirit helps us pray by making it possible for us to speak in a language that we have never learned and do not understand, which is Tongues. (1 Corinth. 14:14) So then, praying in Tongues is always in line with what the Spirit wants us to pray. Can you honestly say that you always know how to pray with your understanding? So then the need for Tongues! Paul continues in 1 Corinth. 14 that, “He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself…”(vs. 4) edify in the Greek means to be “built up”, We say that a battery is being “built up” when we are charging it. The meaning is the same here! We are being spiritually “charged up” in our faith by speaking in Tongues.

As Jude verse 20 says, “But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost…” We feed our body and exercise it, we study and feed our mind and use it; so also do we need to build up and exercise our spirit man. Speaking in Tongues accomplishes this. Paul goes on to ask for balance in the use of Tongues; endorsing its use but saying that in the church (an assembly of believers) that prophecy or Tongues with interpretation is better for the group as a whole’s edification while Tongues as a private prayer language is better for an individual believer. However, the use of Tongues in group praise is acceptable. Paul tells us in this same chapter of 1 Corith. 14 that he will continue to pray and sing with his understanding and he will pray and sing in Tongues, (vs. 15) He does not say that speaking in Tongues is useless! Far from it! He says, “I want you all to speak in Tongues.” (vs. 5, Greek rendering) And, “I thank my God, I speak in Tongues more than ye all.” (vs. 18) He spoke in Tongues more than all of the so-called “over zealous” Corinthian Church he was writing to! Paul must have spent a lot of time building up his spirit man by praying in Tongues! He obviously thought that it was important in his life. We can easily see why he said, “Forbid not to speak with tongues.” (vs. 39)

Speaking in Tongues is also called the rest of God in the Old Testament scripture that Paul Quotes in 1 Corinth. 14:21. This scripture (Isaiah 28:11, 12) says, “For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people. To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear. ” What a telling indictment! We see today that many people choose not to hear about Tongues. Many desire the Baptism in the Holy Spirit but ask, “Can’t I receive it without those Tongues?” After all we’ve seen about the benefits of speaking in Tongues why would one want to reject this free gift from God? One example that I’ve heard about this attitude is this – can you imagine going out to buy a pair of shoes and asking the salesman, “Can I get a pair with the tongues cut out?” The salesman would reply, “But they wouldn’t be complete!” And so it is with the Baptism in the Holy Ghost, the experience wouldn’t be complete without Tongues!

Items of Interest in This Issue

Letters from listeners… Itinerary: Meetings in Winston-Salem, NC at New Covenant Church, Bennettsville, SC at Word of Faith Christian Assembly, and the NC Area Campmeeting in Winston-Salem, NC… List of February Spirit of Faith Broadcast Radio Topics

Bill Bailey Ministries was the name of Dr. Bill’s ministry before Word of Faith Ministries.

“Planting the Seed of the Word”

“The seed is the Word of God.” (Luke 8:11) The Word of God is the seed which must be planted in our hearts, or spirits. The Word is the power of God. (Rom. 1:16) If we will plant the Seed of the Word in our hearts, the power of God in His Word will empower our faith filled words and they will come to pass.

“Have God’s kind of faith (faith that calls those things that are not as though they were; faith that speaks. Rom. 4:17). For truly I tell you, that whoever will speak to this mountain, Be removed! Be cast into the sea, and if what he says with his mouth does not differ from what is in his spirit (not in his mind) in abundance, and he believes that those things that he has said will come to pass, he win have whatever he has said. Because of this I say to you, Whatever you desire, when you pray believe that you receive it. (That is, receive it at the moment you pray, not later.)” This is an expanded version of the actual Greek rendering of Mark 11:22, 23 and 24. I have written out the literal meaning in this way so you can see how faith works. Once we understand how this process occurs, we can then understand the real need to put the Word of God in our hearts.

The Word is the power source, if that is what is in our hearts, then that is what we will speak. “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.” Matt. 12:34 The question we must answer then is, “How do we plant the Word in our hearts?” Mark 4:15 says that the Word is sown in our hearts when we hear it and receive it. This is in agreement with Rom. 10:17 as well. “Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.” Praise God! This is the reason Jesus stresses our hearing only faith filled things in Mark 4, verses 23, 24 and 25. Notice He says, (You) take heed what you hear! Its our responsibility to take heed what we hear! The Word is planted by our hearing it, but so is unbelief and fear! We must not incline our ears to the word of Satan, we must rather incline our ear to the Word of God! Plant the Word in your heart and then speak it and act on it!

Items of Interest in This Issue

Photos of building the new ministry offices… Report on the Spirit of Faith Seminar held at Abiding Word Ministries in Fayetteville, NC in December 1979… List of January Spirit of Faith Broadcast Radio Topics

Bill Bailey Ministries was the name of Dr. Bill’s ministry before Word of Faith Ministries.

“Why Do Some Christians Fail?

“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge…” This scripture from Hosea 4:6 answers many questions that are bothering Christians today. Many ask the question, “Look, I have tried that “faith stuff” and it didn’t work for me, why not?”Well, according to this scripture, we fail or are destroyed for a lack of knowledge. The Hebrew meaning of the word “destroyed” in this verse literally is, “To be dumb or silent, hence to fail or perish.” In other words, God’s people are failing in their faith walk because they do not know what to say and are being silent. Or, even worse, they are speaking negative things. We have seen in our studies on the power of confession that the course of nature in our lives is determined by our words. (James 3:6) And Proverbs 18:21 says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue…”

We can choose life by choosing our words. If we remain silent or speak negatively we are placing ourselves at the mercy of Satan, and he has no mercy! We must make the quality decision to speak God’s Word! His Word will promote us and prosper us. Remember, its not enough to “try” that “faith stuff”, we must walk and live by faith and having done all to stand, stand! The scripture in Eph. 6:13, 14 doesn’t say stand in faith a week and then give up, it says to stand! Be determined to stand forever if necessary, you’ll find that when you assume that kind of winning attitude you won’t have to stand long! We need to receive revelation knowledge of God’s Word and act on it!

Items of Interest in This Issue

Announcement of the Fayetteville Spirit of Faith Seminar… List of December Spirit of Faith Broadcast Radio Topics