In this sermon, the speaker uses the biblical account of King David dancing before the Ark of the Lord and the contemptuous reaction of his wife Michal to illustrate a principle for contemporary believers: do not apologize for visible, spectacular demonstrations of the Holy Spirit’s power. The speaker argues that many Christians, especially pastors and leaders, suppress or tone down manifestations of the Spirit under the guise of “biblical balance,” which often reflects personal preferences rather than Scripture. He urges listeners to be bold, loud, and unapologetic in celebrating miracles, healings, and any encounter with God’s presence, even if it looks foolish to the world. The message concludes with a call to “raise the volume” of spiritual expression and a promotional invitation to explore the resource “Holy Spirit: God Within You” at encounterthespirit.com.
Chapters
The Ark of God's presence entered the city, and King David danced in celebration. But his wife wasn't too happy about how foolish she thought he looked. But as the Ark of the Lord entered the City of David, Michal, the daughter of Saul, looked down from her window. When she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she was filled with contempt for him. When David returned home to bless his own family, Michal, the daughter of Saul, came out to meet him. She said in disgust, How distinguished the king of Israel looked today, shamelessly exposing himself to the servant girls like any vulgar person might do. David didn't apologize, back down, or attempt to adjust his attitude of praise. Instead, he doubled down. David retorted to Michal, I was dancing before the Lord, who chose me above your father and all his family. He appointed me as the leader of Israel, the people of the Lord. So I celebrate before the Lord. Yes, and I am willing to look even more foolish than this, even to be humiliated in my own eyes. Historical context considered, we can still find a takeaway principle. Don't apologize for that which is holy, even if others think it looks foolish. Far too many believers shy away from demonstrations of the Holy Spirit's power because others criticize them for being too showy. While I understand that sometimes people add unnecessary hype to moves of the Spirit, we must recognize that God's power is a spectacle. It's supernatural. Natural and spectacular. When someone gets healed, that's a reason to celebrate. When a miracle happens, are we to keep it a secret? When we feel God's presence and power, are we to just remain stoic just because some people have a personal preference for what makes them more acceptable to the world's intellect? When someone is delivered, should we just do a nice little golf clap so that we can be perceived as sophisticated? Often what people claim is biblical balance is actually just their personal preference. Claiming to want improvements to the move of the Spirit, many just want to create a movement in their own image. Listen, I get it. Sometimes what people call the Spirit is actually just the flesh, but we have to be aware of how subtle this is. Pastors and leaders especially, I encourage you, don't fall into this trap of stifling the move of the Spirit in the name of balance. You can be biblically grounded and filled with power. Balanced does not mean dull, lifeless, and powerless. The move of the Holy Spirit, the demonstration of his power, is loud, vibrant, wonderful, and perfectly offensive to the natural mind. So don't tone it down. Raise the volume. Now is the time to lean into the move of the Spirit, not to apologize for it or explain it away. Go all in. Double down. Be as David who said, yes, and I am willing to look even more foolish than this. Be bold. We are not ashamed of the power of the Holy Spirit. We say, welcome, Holy Spirit. To learn more about the power of the Holy Spirit, get Holy Spirit: God Within You at encounterthespirit.com.
