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

Faith carried forward

By One Spirit is a lasting home for Holy Ghost ministry, preserving the teachings of Lary R. Hale and the memories of the people whose lives he touched.

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The Apostles Were Human

Peter speaks with wonder to Cornelius and his household in a luminous Roman courtyard.
© By One Spirit Ministries

I’m going back today to Peter, Cornelius, and water baptism, to point out something that a lot of folks need to seriously consider. I’m not going to re-write other posts that have been done on the subject, but in short order this is what we're looking at: The Lord sent Peter to preach the Gospel to Cornelius the Roman centurion and his household, who just happened to be the first Gentiles to hear the Gospel preached. As Peter had barely begun with his preaching, the holy Ghost fell on these Gentiles, and the Jews with Peter were amazed that God had poured out his Spirit on the Gentiles. And it is needful for me to add that the way they KNEW that these Gentiles received the Spirit is because “they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God” (Acts 10:43-46). Well, up to that moment everyone who had received the Spirit had first been water baptized as Peter prescribed on the day of Pentecost after the Spirit first came: “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:38). So the prescribed method was that you first get baptized in water, and AFTER that you should receive the holy Ghost. But in the case of these Gentiles, Jesus beat Peter to the punch and baptized them with the holy Ghost BEFORE Peter had a chance to baptize them in water. Now to any honest heart it is evident that Jesus was making a statement by doing this. Otherwise we would have to charge the Lord with orchestrating confusion in regard to Peter's instructions on the day of Pentecost. Again, I've written a number of articles about this, but the statement that Jesus made by baptizing Cornelius and company with the Spirit by means of faith in him alone, was that he had fulfilled the law, which included water baptism, and that faith in him that produces the SPIRIT baptism is all that is needed and all that is of worth.

To baptize those who believe with the holy Ghost is the entire reason that Jesus came from heaven to fulfill the law, suffer, die, and raise from the dead. That is what the only man sent from God to introduce Jesus and and his mission, had to say on the matter; and I think we would be wise to trust his divine message rather than to accept modern Christian tradition instead (Mk. 1:6-8; Jn. 1:33). Now after Cornelius, etc. received the holy Ghost, Peter asked the now famous question: “Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?” (Acts 2:47). So why was the apostle who instructed all on the day of Pentecost to be water baptized, now ASKING whether he should baptize these Gentiles in water after they had received the holy Ghost? Again I say that to any honest heart it is evident that he was confused and bewildered about what had just happened in front of his eyes. I mean, the scripture DOES say that they were “ASTONISHED… because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.” That is where the gasps come in, that I would have the audacity to say that an apostle of Christ did not understand something that God had done. But I AM saying, and with authority from God, that he did NOT understand the process of what had just taken place; and that is why he was confused on whether to baptize them in water or not. Well, he did go ahead and water baptize these Gentiles, to be on the safe side; but it is certain that it was not needed. According to the apostle that God raised up to teach the Gentiles, we are “complete” simply by being “in Christ” (Col. 2:10). And the same apostle Paul made it clear that it is the baptism of the holy Ghost that puts ANYONE “into Christ” (I Cor. 12:13; Gal. 3:27; II Cor. 3:17). So Jesus was SHOWING that spiritual reality at Cornelius’ house that day, but no one understood what had taken place.

The truth is that NOBODY understands ANYTHING about the truth of God unless Jesus REVEALS it to them, including the apostles (Jn. 14:26). Oh, I know I have surely by now appalled some of the fine folks who are reading this article. But bear with me just a moment here and I will let the scriptures confirm this to you. In fact we don’t even need to leave our text chapter to do so. Before Peter came to preach to these first Gentiles, God gave him a vision of animals that were pronounced unclean by the law, and told Peter to “Rise, kill, and eat” (Acts 10:13). What was Peter’s response? “Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean” (Acts 10:14). And what was God’s response to Peter’s response? “What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common” (Acts 10:15). Now the scripture says that God repeated this process three times before Peter accepted it. No doubt Peter thought God was testing him to see if he would go against the law and agree to eat these unclean meats. Seriously, you don’t think he was just being defiant and rebellious against God, do you? The point is that the law was fufilled by the coming of the holy Ghost, and Peter did not understand that. But God DID understand it, and he conveyed the same to Peter, letting him know that these animals were no longer unclean to eat. The fulfillment of the law was also what Jesus was showing forth by filling these Gentiles with his Spirit without them being baptized in water. Water baptism was fulfilled by the baptism that Jesus suffered, died, and rose again to establish; and nothing can be added to that experience other than more of the same, meaning the Spirit (Mat. 3:15). What happened at the house of Cornelius is what the apostle Paul eventually came to understand: “For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel” (I Cor. 1:17). And that is why the same apostle whom God sent to teach the Gentiles wrote in a later epistle that there is now only “one baptism” (Eph. 4:5). I think that settles the issue. Amen.

From the Preserved Writings of Lary R. Hale

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In loving memory

Lary R. Hale

Lary smiling with his beloved dog Champ
Lary with Champ

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

A life in pictures and film

Watch the tribute video shared with Lary’s obituary. It brings together moments from his life and footage of the man so many loved.

Video hosted by Tribute Slides through Newcomer Kentuckiana.

Original obituary at Newcomer Kentuckiana

Memories of Lary