Real Power

By Tim Bell

There was a very famous commercial back in the day, when the new, up-and-coming form of audio recording called the cassette began to kick the latest and greatest eight-track tape aside. In 1971 the Memorex brand of magnetic cassettes launched with a fury of commercials and a very memorable tagline in the form of a question: “Is it live, or is it Memorex?” If you could afford them, which was a struggle for me, nothing on the market sounded clearer or performed better than that popular brand. Now, after dominating the market for decades, the cassette is now nearly obsolete.

Being the son of a “hyper-charismatic,” all I ever knew was what I saw my father model week-in and week-out. Signs, wonders and healings were the norm for me. Casting out devils, demons, oppressions and the like. In fact, non-charismatic believers showing up by the cover of darkness to meet my dad and me after hours was a regular occurrence. And just as in the days of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit (or “Holy Ghost” power, as it was known in those days) delivered and set free time and time again.

My point is this: We are living in one of the most challenging times in church history. It took a global pandemic to reveal what most leaders knew for years but were afraid to confront. And that is that we need the power and presence of the Spirit to convict the culture like never before. To draw, empower and deliver those held captive by strongholds—strongholds that can only be broken by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Don’t misunderstand me. I’m quite sure the days of walking the pews and other charismatic expressions are a distant memory, but we still need the power. The power that renews, refills and emboldens the church to keep pushing forward while not being held captive to cultural relevance.

It’s commonly known that you attract what you respect, and what you disrespect moves away from you. Intellectualism seems to be a requirement in the modern church culture. While it is not wrong, intellectualism can be a curse if it robs you of the authentic.

Now, in this age of apostasy, we need the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to help us—and to help those who have been deluded by euphoric experiences and environments that stimulate the senses but may not last much farther than the parking lot.    

Call me old fashioned if you like, but most in the church world identify me as a modern charismatic, one who may not completely understand all the new worship expressions of today’s church culture. But one who also recognizes that, as delivery methods come and go, it’s not so much about the method or the music, but the sound—the sound of that “rushing mighty wind”—the Spirit who empowers the church and its believers the world over from that day to this one to do what Jesus desires of us: “greater things.”