By One Spirit — Holy Ghost Ministry

Lary and his beloved dog Champ welcomed by Jesus into a radiant garden of flowers, waterfalls, and golden light — Remembering the ministry and teachings of Lary R. Hale

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Legacy · Writings

The Power of the Old Testament

By Lary R. Hale

Raphael-inspired painting of thoughtful readers studying an open sacred book beneath a classical loggia. — © By One Spirit Ministries

"For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for OUR learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope" (Rom. 15:4).

I would like to take a few moments here to plainly demonstrate to you why the study of the old testament scriptures are so vitally important to you and I, and to all who would learn how to be led by the blessed Spirit of God; the one guide that God has provided for us to lead us from here to eternity. First of all let me say that there is no question that the importance of thoroughly studying and understanding the old testament has been greatly devalued to this modern generation of the body of Christ. I want to explain to you why this is so, and how that the explanation for why the OT scriptures are disesteemed, is also the explanation of why they are so important.

First of all, the misunderstanding within the body of Christ about the new birth experience, which is the baptism of the holy Ghost, certainly lays the foundation for this lack of esteem for the OT writings. Now I realize that I just inflicted confusion upon almost everyone reading this article, but I can assure you that this confusion is for your good, because most likely you are believing the wrong thing about the new birth; and finding out that you are wrong is really more conviction than it is confusion. The real confusion is in believing that something apart from the Spirit baptism with the evidence of speaking with other tongues is the new birth experience. Maybe you would like to read a few of our articles that explain detail about the new birth, which articles are absolutely and positively totally consistent with new testament scripture. A good place to start would be with this short FAQ's page Q & A: "When and how is a person born again?" When the new birth is properly understood, then anyone reading the old testament can understand that Israel, and those who were the patriarchal fathers of Israel (Seth, Noah, Abraham, etc.), are a shadow type of people who are now in the one worldwide Congregation of God through the experience of being baptized with the Spirit (I Cor. 12:13).

With these things in mind, we can understand who the "we" are in our text scripture, wherein the Apostle informs us that the OT scriptures "were written for our learning." In fact, our text scripture alone should be enough to boost the old testament scriptures right to the top of our study and learning priorities, if we actually believe what we are reading. The significance of understanding that the holy Ghost baptism is the the new birth experience, is that when we receive this glorious experience, what we actually receive is the old testament itself, written or engraved upon our hearts (Heb. 10:14-16 with II Cor. 3:3). This is what the Apostle Paul was saying in Rom. 8:4: "...That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." In short order let me just say that the Spirit baptism is the law, or testament of God, infused into our spiritual being. Actually the law was and is the true will of God which comes from the heart and mind of God; and the holy Ghost is in fact that which constitutes the heart and mind of God! Praise God, how I feel that statement! Everything that was contained in the law; all of the commandments written in stone, and on the pages of the scribes; as well as all of the ordinances of worship and service which were in carnal, ceremonial, and symbolic form; are now engraved into the hearts and spirits of everyone who receives the holy Ghost baptism. So when we read the old testament, we are reading the details about what we have received into our hearts. So naturally (or spiritually I should say), when we study the old testament, we get to know the "new creature" that we've become, because the new creature that we've become is one who is made according to the law, or will of God that has been instilled into our spirit. Again the apostle confirms this to us: "And [we] have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:" (Col. 3:10).

With these things in mind let's consider the following words of Jesus: "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled" (Mat. 5:17,18). And the Apostle Paul echoed these things in his epistle to the Romans: "Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law" (Rom. 3:31). So seeing that the law, which in reality is the old testament, has not gone away, but rather has become empowered in us; it makes good sense that the study of the OT is very significant and vital to our faith, as our text scripture also states. And let me note here that the entire OT writings revolve around the law, and God's dealings with Israel, in regard to how they valued or devalued His law. This is where statements like the following sobering new testament warning come from: "So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it" (Heb. 3:19 & 4:1). The apostle was warning us to not repeat the pattern of Israel, who failed to enter the promised land after being delivered from Egypt, because of unbelief. And another statement exactly like this one is in I Cor. 10:5,11: "But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness...Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come."

I would like to make just a couple of final points, in an effort to give you some more motivation to study the old testament. It would be wise for us to consider that the Apostles preached the gospel of Christ strictly from the old testament writings. There were no new testament scriptures to preach Christ from, because these men were the ones who wrote the new testament scriptures, from revelation knowledge about the old testament scriptures, from which they preached Christ. In fact a large portion of the NT writings are either quotes from the old testament, or direct references to it. In other words, the new testament is the old testament, and vice versa. And last but certainly not least, we are left with the proven fact that throughout history it has been well documented that history repeats itself. The reason for this is very simple: Man is still the same creature he's always been, God is still Who and What He's always been, and God has always governed and judged the affairs of men. Man has yet to learn one of the most proven lessons of all time - 'You can't continue to do things the same way, and expect to get different results.' And it is certain that God's dealings with His people today, and His people's dealings with Him, are mirrored by the relationship between God and Israel in the old testament writings. And in all reality the truths of the doctrine of Christ can still be more effectively established through the old testament writings and events, than by new testament scripture alone. In conclusion, I feel that just the little bit that we've set forth here shows us that the old testament is as relevant as it gets for the faith and understanding of God's people today. May God bless you richly in your studies and prayer to seek His glorious face! Amen.

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In loving memory

Lary R. Hale

November 13, 1954April 21, 2024

Lary smiling with his beloved dog Champ — Lary with Champ

Obituary

A Hero Finally Rests.

Lary Redman Hale of Louisville, KY entered into his greatest joy, the presence of King Jesus himself, welcomed by the cheers of angels and the saints of God on Sunday night, April 21, 2024.

What the outside world would see as the untimely passing of a humble, local minister, heaven saw as the triumphant finale of a valiant warrior's life. He fought the good fight, having kept the faith, and received what Christ himself called "The Champion's Wreath of Victory".

Lary was born November 13, 1954 to Marvin and Norma Hale. Being the youngest of his siblings ensured he had lots of time with his loving mother, from whom he undoubtedly developed his profound sensitivity, heartfelt sentimentality and emotional comfortability - characteristics that were trademarks of his life. He grew up surrounded by cousins and classmates that became his best friends.

At his 50 year class reunion he was overjoyed and excited to catch up with so many of them, smiling and laughing more than he had in a long time. He would often tell stories of how he treasured those times as a young boy riding bikes, shooting B.B guns and playing with his childhood dog Peanuts; all while getting into assorted harmless mischief. He cherished the time he spent living on his parents houseboat and helping his dad, a united states marine veteran, take care of the boat and dock.

His relationship with his dad was only strengthened in their later years as they watched boxing matches almost every weekend for the remainder of his dad's life. He admired his brother Gary for his athleticism and industrious attitude, and thought his sisters Vicki and Mila had hearts of gold just like his mother. In his teen years Lary developed three of his lifelong loves: swimming, cool cars and lifting weights.

Some people said Lary was part fish because of how well he swam, but Lary would correct them, he was actually part dolphin. As a young man he managed a health club where he helped multiple people lose weight and counted that a huge joy. He loved nature and taking photos of it, honing his skills and knowledge in cameras. His vocabulary was second to none and he enjoyed learning new words and using them especially in his writings.

Before he passed he still exercised as much as his body would allow and he longed to return to the ocean and the white sands of Destin, Florida.

Like most disenfranchised teens in the early 70s, Lary indulged in countless vices that left him empty and searching for more. Although his long black curly hair, loud clothes, muscles and muscle cars made him the envy of the boys and the heartthrob of the girls, none of these things satisfied his heart. He pursued a college education briefly, desiring to be a marine biologist or philosopher but found that this was not what he was missing either - he longed for true fulfillment.

Depressed, empty, and feeling hopeless, Lary heard about a particular beautiful girl he had a crush on that was attending a small church where the "Spirit of God" was changing people's lives. After wondering why someone like her would attend a church like that, he began to attend also.

After a few months, he made a simple prayer on his hands and knees, saying "God I can't stop smoking, drinking, raging or any of the other countless vices I have - but if you can set me free from these things, I'll know you're real and that you want me to serve you". The next morning Lary woke up and described the next few hours as "walking on air" realizing he was, in his words "delivered" and never going back to those vices.

This began his life long commitment to glorifying Jesus, the king of glory, for how he transformed Lary's life from darkness to light. Lary would marry that same beautiful girl, the love of his life, Fay Kustes, and they would have two sons together, Benjamin Isaac and Elisha Daniel. Lary's greatest joy in life was being a husband and father.

He was happiest when he was sharing what he was learning in the bible with his family, and teaching them that knowing God was simplistic and yet powerful - that God was not merely a religious concept, but a powerful savior on a day to day basis. As Lary made it his life's goal to find "the lost sheep", he would tap into his multifaceted creativity that went largely underappreciated.

Lary produced well over a thousand episodes of gospel presentations: self-producing, mixing, editing and encoding both a radio and television show. Between the two, he broadcast for over 30 years. All of this in the analog age, where self produced radio and TV shows were nearly unheard of, especially without any budget whatsoever.

Lary was an evangelist in Louisville and southern Indiana, being asked to preach and teach in multicultural and multi-generational churches across the city. The churches he was most loved and welcomed by were the African-American Baptist and Pentecostal churches that loved and welcomed his passionate, excitable and action packed style of preaching.

Once the dawn of the internet came, he immediately worked to have a website published, making his literature and gospel teachings available. Eventually he'd use social media to teach, preach and encourage believers all across the world. He would spend every night praying with and encouraging christians from every nation until the end of his life. Many of which saw him like a second father and all of whom greatly mourn his passing.

Even though he produced over a thousand episodes of media, taught in multiple churches, mentored in multiple countries, and had multiple printed works of literature, he considered his greatest life's work to be his two sons. One of their earliest memories is Lary saying "the most important job in the world is not preaching the gospel, it's raising kids in the gospel". This threaded through his entire life.

In his final week on earth, he reminisced on his life saying "I see my life as the highest success, because my life's work are my two sons, who I am so incredibly proud of - not for their natural achievements but for their love, humility and personal faith in Jesus that is not only evident in their lives but also in their love. Because of them, I know my life is a true success - and I credit Jesus for all of it".

His sons today see him as the most successful man they will ever know. He succeeded in loving them and never hurting them. Leading them and never controlling them. Being there for them and never leaving them. He was a man that would apologize quickly, forgive quickly, and always encouraged his sons to "get up and go from here". He succeeded in teaching them faith, hope and love in a world starving so badly for all three. His ministry lives on in them.

The lives of everyone touched by their lives are forever indebted to this humble, prayerful man of faith.

He is preceded in death by his father Marvin, mother Norma, sister Mila, sister-in-law Marlene, nephew Adam, aunts, uncles, treasured cousins, and his beloved dog of 18 years, Champ.

Until they are reunited in the glory of heaven, he is survived and will be missed by his sons, Benjamin and Elisha (Katrine), his wife of 30 years, Fay, his brother Gary, His sister Vicki (Dan), his cousins, nieces, nephews, his friends, and those that called him their pastor and teacher.

"The righteous perish, and no man lays it to heart: merciful men are taken away and no one considers that the righteous person is being spared from the evil to come. He shall enter into peace: he shall rest in his bed, having walked in uprightness." Isaiah 57:1&2

Remember him