13. MINISTRY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
MINISTRY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT on the path of the cross Experiences from the Time of Persecution In the Bible it is written: “For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also t o s u f f e r for His sake!” (Php 1:29). God gives us abundant life in Jesus Christ. He said: “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). We obtain this kind of life through His salvation. He won the victory for us by sacrificing Himself on Calvary. He also gives us His Holy Spirit. The fruits of the Holy Spirit are supernatural love, victorious faith and blessed hope. True believers are in the hand of the Almighty God and Jesus Christ. No one can snatch them out of His hand (John 10:28). They have also supernatural joy and peace which passes all understanding. But Jesus Christ also said: “In the world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Yes, we have temptations and many troubles and persecutions in this world. But we can also overcome the world by the power of God. The apostle Paul said: “We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 5:3-5). That’s the way into eternal life. If we have love of Jesus, nobody can separate us from His love (Romans 8:38-39). Yes,
God is with us in every situation of life. We need the love of Jesus Christ. Without His love we cannot suffer, we cannot bear tribulations or temptations. In these times when atheism reigned in our country many believers were persecuted. Students who protested against violence and outrageous acts carried out against believers had to leave schools. Others denied their faith and accepted atheism. But true believers held on, meeting in private houses and in the woods. Meeting any place was dangerous. Despite all the hindrances we were gathering and God was hiding us in His wonderful ways. Even at that time the revival began in our town. Many people converted to God. They repented and were baptized in water and many also into the Holy Spirit. I was 16 years old when I received baptism into the Holy Spirit. God was preparing us for difficult times so that we could be heroic witnesses of Jesus Christ and spread His Gospel without fear or doubts. It was not easy, but it was glorious. Many times the Lord warned us of the danger through the Holy Spirit. Nobody could touch us except with God’s permission. And when He allows persecution, then suffering for His sake is glorious. I heard about various experiences of believers. Here are some of them:
Once a group of non-believers was planning to attack believers as they were leaving their meeting at night. They hid behind trees. But as the believers were approaching, the enemies saw fully armed soldiers around them. Great fear gripped them and they ran away. God protected his people again, hallelujah! Later, one of the persecutors received Jesus Christ and told his experience in the church. In the same region lived an atheist who persecuted believers in various ways. He even killed one. But before long people heard the following news about him. It was after the Second World War and there were many mines left in the woods. One night as he was going home through the woods he stepped on a mine and it exploded... only a few pieces of his body were found hanging in the trees. So the word we read in the Bible was fulfilled: “For whoever touches you touches the apple of the Lord’s eye”! It is written in the book of Zechariah 2:8. The secret police were looking for us many times, but we always gathered at a different location. They couldn’t find us because God covered us. I remember, once I came shortly before a meeting and I heard the voice of the Holy Spirit. He instructed me: “Leave the house right now!” I didn’t know why, but I obeyed. I left the house and went away. About one hour later I heard the voice of the Holy Spirit again. He said: “Now you can return!” When I came back the landlady said to me: “Where have you been?” When I told her, she said: “Just after you left, the police came in, looking for believers. And just before you returned, they had gone away!” All of us thanked God for His protection and left the house. Then we had a blessed meeting at another place God showed us through the Holy Spirit
Many times I baptized new converts. We always prayed for God’s protection and help and then the Holy Spirit showed us where we should go. Once, when baptizing in the Danube River I experienced this: As we went down into the water I saw clouds and mist around us and in it were angels . Another time I was baptizing in Český Těšín, Czech Republic. There were about 100 people gathered in a large house and the secret police spied on the believers. The whole church prayed zealously to God and I had a vision. I saw a great angel standing at the entrance of the house. His wings covered the door and nobody could enter. The whole church sang and glorified God. Hallelujah. They couldn’t find us .
Many years ago we gathered in my parents’ house. In secret, naturally. Sometimes I had a vision of an angel sitting on the roof and guarding the house . But from time to time God allowed our faith to be tested. It is called the baptism into fire. To live according to the will of God and to suffer for Jesus’ sake brings us blessing. Jesus said: “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:10) The proverb says: “The bigger the cross, the nearer is Jesus.” That’s true.