In this sermon, the speaker uses the biblical account of King David dancing before the Ark of the Lord and the scorn of his wife Michal to illustrate a principle for contemporary believers: do not apologize for or hide the visible, spectacular moves of the Holy Spirit. He argues that many churches and leaders suppress charismatic expressions in the name of “balance,” which often reflects personal preference rather than biblical truth. The speaker emphasizes that the Holy Spirit’s power is meant to be loud, vibrant, and even offensive to natural human sensibilities, and that true biblical balance can coexist with powerful, demonstrative manifestations of God’s presence. He calls pastors and believers to double‑down on bold, unapologetic worship, likening them to David’s willingness to look foolish for the sake of praising God. The message concludes with an invitation to explore the book “Holy Spirit: God Within You” and the website encounterthespirit.com for further teaching on the Holy Spirit.
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 even 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 by my own eyes. But those servant girls you mentioned will indeed think I am distinguished. 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 and spectacular. When someone gets healed, that's a reason to celebrate. When a miracle happens, are we to keep it secret? When we feel God's presence and power, are we just to remain stoic just because some 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 to 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.
