The Spirit-Filled Christian

Volume II

The Way Of Enoch

__________

by

Thomas M. Mitchell

The Spirit-Filled Christian – The Way of Enoch Volume II

Copyright © 2015 by Walk With God Publishing

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Blue Bit Media (www.bluebitmedia.com)

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from the author.

ISBN Printed: 978-1502951632

Visit: www.WalkWithGod.org to read more books on this topic and get access to free study materials.

Walk With God Ministries adopted these Chinese characters that are part of a course created by Pastor Archie Parish as a symbol of the message that is at the heart of our vision. Over the years these characters have been used by many believers to introduce the Gospel.

2500 years before the birth of Christ and 2100 years before the first recorded crucifixion, the Chinese language gave us the secret of how to live forever… the secret to eternal life.

Cross

The first character depicted is a cross.

Man

Next is a man placed on a cross… a great man dying.

Two Men

Two men are crucified along side of this great man. The full character depicts Jesus dying on the cross with the two thieves crucified alongside Him. One thief rejected Him (Luke 23:39) and the other one believed Him (Luke 23:40-42). This is the character Lai, which means Come.

Mouth

The second character begins with a man’s word coming out of his mouth.

Standing

This character represents a man standing by his word. Combined this is the character Xin, which means Believe.

Lai Xin

When these two characters are taken together they represent Come and Believe. The circle surrounding them represents eternity.

2500 years before the birth of Jesus the Chinese language clearly stated the Gospel message and depicted the only road to eternal life… Jesus. Come to Jesus and Believe that He died for your sins, that you might have eternal life. Here we are some 4,500 years later and His Word is still true:

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.

The opportunity is before you and all that you need to do is visit http://www.walkwithgod.org/the-first-step/ and learn How to Take the First Step.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction

CHAPTER 1 Who Is the Spirit In You?

CHAPTER 2 Who Is He The Spirit Of?

CHAPTER 3 What Is His Nature?

CHAPTER 4 Why Is He Here?

CHAPTER 5 What Does He Do?

CHAPTER 6 Who Has Him?

CHAPTER 7 How Do We Get His Presence And Why?

CHAPTER 8 Empowering Of The Holy Spirit

CHAPTER 9 Why the Gift Of Tongues?

CHAPTER 10 Gifts and the Fruit of the Spirit

CHAPTER 11 What Is Our Responsibility?

CHAPTER 12 What Are the Results?

CHAPTER 13 What A Difference He Makes In Our Life

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About The Author

Other Books By THOMAS M. MITCHELL

INTRODUCTION

Jesus has but one desire for His brides' relationship with Him—for her to trust and love Him like He trusts and loves her. But she needs to know Him in order to develop that relationship, which requires an investment on her part…TIME. If it’s a valuable possession then it’s worth working for and an abiding relationship with Jesus is the most valuable possession she can ever hold. It pales everything this world attempts to compare to it and promises a hope that will be there long after this world is gone.

To know and walk with Jesus in this way entails a wonderful journey that will take you through every human emotion and stretch your character until you think you can’t stretch anymore. In between the times of stretching, however, are wonderful interludes filled with His presence and love in ways you never imagined.

However, the price is one that is dear to each of us and one we are not easily convinced to pay. But what of the price He paid for us; the one He didn’t have to pay? He asks each of us to give ourselves up and release all that we are to Him. He asks us to allow Him to rebuild us from the ground up according to the unique blueprint the Father drew up before creation for each of us. Our price is trusting in Him so far that we abandon all of our fears to Him, release all of our cares to Him, relinquish all of our plans and preconceived ideas regarding our lives to Him, wait in patient obedience for the sound of His voice, and love Him with all our heart.

The journey for each of us is totally individual as we are uniquely and wonderfully made. There are, however, many common truths in His Word that will help us along the way by challenging our mind and our spirit. This journey will shake the very foundations of any belief systems you may have established on your own. There will be a tearing down of those incorrect beliefs you are holding onto before the rebuilding begins. I have lived through this progression (and continue to) and have come to realize that there is always a part of my foundation that is in need of repair—it’s an ongoing process. Just when I think my foundation is solid and I start to build on it the added pressure causes a little crack somewhere. When those times come, you need to stop and ask God what He is trying to say. Be patient, wait for His answer and act in obedience to His Word. If you press on without correcting that little crack it will only get bigger and weaken your foundation.

God didn’t design us to take on more than He intended and the construction of the foundation, walls, and roof of our life must take place on His schedule. I pray what is contained here will challenge you and cause you to pause and reflect on your relationship with your bridegroom. Remember that your walk with Jesus continues in both the good times and the bad times, that's why He gave you His Holy Spirit. He is always there waiting on you and you only need to reach out to His open arms because He knows exactly where you are and exactly what you need every moment of your short time on this earth.

But if you don’t know Him, and I mean “intimately” know Him; you will be walking through this life without the greatest gift man has ever been given. To know Him is to understand His very being and the purpose of His presence in your life. It is to be gifted, developed, matured, and empowered to be about the work of the ministering the Gospel of Jesus Christ and making disciples. It's about being fulfilled in life to a measure that would otherwise be unknown. Sadly, however, there many of the bride of Christ to whom He is almost a stranger; misunderstood and ignored. They continue to stand in the Holy Place and never take the Holy Spirit’s hand and move into the Holiest Place.

In writing The Dangers to Rest – The Brides’ Warning, I was deeply impressed that the message Jesus gave to each of the seven churches embodied the very essence of His Spirit. Five out of the seven messages involved a failed relationship with The Holy Spirit but the other two reflected a beautiful relationship with Him. For that reason this book is going to deeply explore the Holy Spirit and why it is so important for each of us—at this most critical time in history—to be intimately connected with the Third Person of the Trinity. We won't be able to fulfill our individual calling here on earth if we aren’t. We’ll find ourselves impotent and without the power to withstand the attacks of the enemy, let alone become the living member of the bride that we were created to be.

In the Old Testament the Spirit “came upon” man (Judges 14:19), when Jesus walked on the earth the Spirit “dwelled with” man (John 14:16), but after the Day of Pentecost the Spirit now “dwells within” believers (1 Cor 6:19). And this is quite often where many of the bride get confused when they hear the term “filled with the Holy Spirit.”

Let’s be clear that when you made the decision to give your life to Jesus, the Holy Spirit immediately came to live “within” you; He became resident and began the work of drawing you ever closer to Jesus. But there is a difference between His just residing within you and His leading and controlling you. There is an old expression that says when you became born again you made the Holy Spirit “resident” but when you totally yield your will to Him you make Him “president.”

That’s what being filled with the Spirit really means. You have made the commitment to allow Him to release His power within you to empower you to walk out the sanctification process. He, as we will learn, is a gentleman and will never force Himself or His will upon you. If you want to be “filled” then that is going to require action on your part, and that is what this book is all about.

There is no way you can really be filled with the Holy Spirit unless you know what He is, who He is, why He is here, and what He wants to do in your life. With that in mind let’s begin our relationship with Him by committing ourselves afresh to His love, His truth, and His teaching. We have so very much to learn and the best place to start is at the beginning.

CHAPTER 1

WHO IS THE SPIRIT IN YOU?

How many of us are “performing” the Christian life? Is being a Christian a real experience for you? Has it changed your life-style? Have you made the wonderful discovery of supernatural life? Or have you felt something is missing from your Christian life? Do you know the joy and power of the Holy Spirit? Are you a victorious, fruitful witness for Christ? If not, I have good news. You can be!

Bill Bright

These questions were posed by Bill Bright, the father of Campus Crusade for Christ, in his book The Holy Spirit—The Key to Supernatural Living. They made me ask myself if I was just living in the Holy Place, just one step past the Outer Court; at the foot of the Cross; just slightly beyond being saved. Have I failed to enter into His Rest? These are great questions to keep in mind as we move into the reality of the Holy Spirit; the one who is always with us.

God told the Israelites on many occasions that He would never leave them (Gen 28:15; Deut 31:6; Josh 1:5; 1 Sam 12:22; 1 Chron 12:22; Ps 37:25; Ps 37:28; Isa 41:10, 17). For Israel these scriptures were a constant reminder of the God’s promise, but how much more they mean to us in light of the incredible price Jesus paid on Calvary; the price that brought us His personal guarantee to dwell with each and every believer in the form of His Holy Spirit.

Heb 13:5 Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."

Yes, God promised us that He would never leave us, but have we promised never to leave Him? Are we allowing the world with all its influences, temptations, and chaos to distract us from the very presence of the one who was sent to help us? If so we’re taking a step in that direction. We therefore shouldn’t forget verse 6:

Heb 13:6 So we may boldly say: "The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?"

The Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the Trinity. He is fully God, eternal, omniscient, and omnipresent. He is a person who is alive, has a will of His own, and can speak. But who, really, is the Holy Spirit? That is where we need to begin our journey to understand the one Jesus sent in His place. So, let’s start at the top and at the beginning.

HE IS GOD

Gen 1:2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

Or as it appears in the Living Version:

Gen 1:2 And the earth was a shapeless, chaotic mass, with the Spirit of God brooding over the dark vapors.

The earth was “waste and void” (tohuw waabohuw), or as the Living Translation says, it was a "chaotic mass yet to be ordered." But in the midst of this statement something unique is revealed to us. The translation of the Spirit of God (ruwach elohim) is “God is a Spirit.” Here in the midst of this we have God’s testimony that His Spirit was with Him at the moment of creation. He was active in the creation process as a demonstration of the power of God. This is the same Spirit that we find on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:2), who is described as a Mighty Rushing Wind.

In Gen 1:2 the reference is not to the breath of God but rather to the creative Spirit of God; Ps 33:6; 104:30. It means to flutter, move, or shake; implying a brooding over like an eagle watching over her young.

Deut 32:11 As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings.

Not only does the eagle flutter over but she also “bears up” or puts her young on her wings to teach them to fly. In other words, she takes an active role in their development. We see this process continued throughout the Old Testament as Jehovah—by His Spirit—continued to brood over, protect, and lift up Israel, making her into a nation.

Here in verse 2 we have a beautiful picture of the Holy Spirit moving over the face of the waters, taking an active part in the creation process. There are a number of theories as to what “the waters” means; from limited to total coverage of the earth. One view sets forth a dense atmosphere of water vapor surrounding the earth, which through condensation provided the moisture that created life required. Whatever the physical process it was being empowered and directed by the Holy Spirit. In loving care the Spirit brought life to all that God had previously sown with His Word, and He does the same today every time He brings spiritual life to someone.

HE IS ETERNAL

Nelson’s Dictionary defines eternity as an infinite or unlimited time; time without beginning or end. The Bible speaks of the eternity of God in many passages like Ps 90:2, Isa 57:15 and Rev 1:4… and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come. As Creator, He brought the world into being, even before the beginning of time itself; Gen 1:1 In the beginning God. These are the four most important words in the Bible; everything else follows. Consider Jesus’ sacrifice for us.

Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

His sacrifice was physical and spiritual; eternally spiritual. He was without spot (1 Pet 1:19) and yet He gave His life for us. To be spotless refers to His sinless state of perfection, unlike sacrificial animals that were only physically unblemished as measured by Levitical standards. Jesus was divine and yet He was a man empowered by the eternal Spirit of God. We see in the words of John just how much the Holy Spirit empowered Him:

John 3:34 For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure.

Because of Jesus’ sinless state in His humanity we are able to see the fullest expression (without measure or limit) of the eternal nature of the Holy Spirit. Matthew Henry describes it this way: The Spirit dwelt in him, not as a vessel, but as in a fountain, as in a bottomless ocean. As we saw in Gen 1:2, He was there in the beginning, He was there when Jesus walked this earth, and in Revelation we see that He will be here for eternity.

As a final note, look back at the last part of Heb 9:14. The sacrifice Jesus made on our behalf has given us a way to purge our conscience from sin—by His Blood. When we receive the Holy Spirit, as the result of “grace through faith in Jesus,” His eternal nature takes up residence within us. This takes us out of “dead religious works” whereby we used to think we earned our way to heaven. We understand that in our spirit but in our mind we find a lot of stumbling blocks remaining, and that is why Paul admonished us to continue the process of renewing our minds—purging our consciences from dead works—by the Spirit of God (Rom 12:2).

The Holy Spirit is eternal and His presence within us empowers us into eternity the moment we receive Him by constantly leading us to Jesus. For it’s by the blood of Jesus that we are without spot in the Father’s eyes. Jesus is the one who freely gave up the His Spirit and died a spiritual death for us. But He received that same Spirit once again (1 Pet 3:18) so that we would be justified to receive Him as well. Spiritual death is not the perfect judgment for a sinless Christ, it is for sinful man (the second death). How blessed we are that the Eternal Spirit of God is available to us because Jesus chose to “give Him up” (Luke 23:46). Yes, the Holy Spirit is God, the Third Member of the Trinity and He is everywhere present.

HE IS OMNIPRESENT

Ps 139:7-10 Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? 8 If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. 9 If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, 10 Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me.

God is everywhere at the same time; He is omnipresent. It’s a mind-boggling thought and if we try and understand it outside the realm of the spirit and faith in the Word of God we're in trouble. He accomplishes it through His Spirit who is present with the conscience of every person in the world. Many, who would never admit to the Holy Spirit being present, will readily acknowledge a guilty conscience. However, for the bride of Christ His presence is within each and every saint. No matter where we go the Holy Spirit is there.

How comforting it is to reflect on verse 7 above in which David uses the word “presence.” Presence is an interesting Hebrew word (paniym), which means face in the plural. As a result, many translators have inferred thy presence (thy faces) refers to the all three persons of the Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Listen to the words of Jesus:

John 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

I certainly don’t understand how His Spirit can be everywhere at the same time but I take great joy in the fact that He Is!

HE IS A MEMBER OF THE TRINITY

Father (God Invisible)

John 1:18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

The literal Greek translation for the first part of this verse is God hath no man ever seen. His presence has been manifested in many ways but His divinity has never been seen (Ex 33:20). For example, God showed Moses only His backside (Ex 33:23). Jesus, on the other hand, has given us a view of God’s divine nature as it is declared in the Word and Jesus’ ministry.

The Greek word “declared” (exegeomai) indicates the revealing of divine secrets. Today the Holy Spirit declares those divine secrets to us by revealing God just as He did to Elijah in the cave (1 Kings 19:11-12). Elijah only found God in the still small voice and it’s that same still small voice that is with us today, revealing the invisible God.

Son (God Revealed)

Heb 1:1-3 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 2. Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; 3. Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;

The author of the letter to the Hebrews (who I believe was Paul) makes the bold statement that God has spoken to us in these last days by His Son. He goes on to qualify that even further by saying Jesus “is” His express image. In other words, if we have seen Jesus we have seen the Father. We often think how wonderful it would have been to see Jesus face-to-face, but God, by the inspiration of His Spirit, has made that possible for us by His Word.

The expression brightness of His glory is a wonderful description of the Father being revealed in the Son. Brightness means “reflected splendor,” like the rays of light emanating from the sun. We don’t actually see the sun, we see its brightness or its rays. In a similar manner God Himself isn’t seen but we see Him in His radiance; in His Word - in Jesus. Jesus is part of the Father but yet separate, just as the sun’s rays are a part of the sun yet separate. They are each essential to the other yet they are distinct. As we allow the Holy Spirit to reveal the Father through His Word (Jesus) we will see the Father’s express image. Remember that Jesus “is” the Word of God:

John 1:1-3 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

The Greek word for “express image” used in Heb 1:3 is charakter from which we derive our word character. It reflects the image of the engraver who etches an exact copy. Jesus’ character and divine nature are an exact copy of the Father’s. Robertson’s translates this as the very image of His substance. A similar use of the word is found in Matt 22:20, referring to Caesar’s image on the Roman coin. As we study the Word the Holy Spirit will, in His capacity as teacher and revelator, show us the face of God in the character of His Son.

Spirit (God in Man)

John 16:7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

The Father is God invisible, the Son is God revealed, and the Spirit is God in man. The first thing we notice in verse 7 is that it is expedient (sumphero: good or profitable) for us that Jesus went away. The expression “go away” (aperchomai) carries with it the meaning to “pass away” or to “be passed.” Jesus told His disciples that unless He died the Holy Spirit would not—could not— come. Notice He said that "after" He died He would send the Holy Spirit; an action after death. If he were “dead” then He couldn’t possibly fulfill His promise. Awesome… He did it so He must live!

Now we are all familiar with the word “comforter” (parakletos: intercessor; consoler; advocate), but I like the way Matthew Henry describes Him as the “Envoy” (representative, diplomat, or attaché):

It is congruous (appropriate) enough that the Ambassador should be recalled before the Envoy comes; the one that is to constantly reside.

Let me put it another way. If Jesus would have stayed here He could only be in one place at a time, and therefore in order for the Envoy (Holy Spirit) to reside with each and every believer the Ambassador (Jesus) needed to return to His kingdom where He rules. Therefore, how can we ignore His presence when He comes with all the blessings of the Father?

I can’t express strongly enough that God’s power here on earth is embodied in His Spirit. Without the power of the Spirit we would be left in our own weakness to deal with the fallen world we find ourselves wandering through. However, there is a caution here; if we only view the Spirit in that capacity then we will never fully enjoy His presence.

We need to first and foremost understand that He is a “person,” and as such we have been invited to have a personal relationship with Him. This is the message (Rev 2-3) that only the churches at Smyrna and Philadelphia understood, and Jesus commended them for it. Ephesus, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, and Laodicea missed it completely and suffered as a result.

The Spirit of God is known by many names and in the next chapter we will examine who He is the spirit of. I think you will discover that we have “greatly” underestimated the One that we have been given.

CHAPTER 2

WHO IS HE THE SPIRIT OF?

In the last chapter we looked at what “is” the Holy Spirit and now we'll take that foundation to the next level and examine just “who” He is the Spirit of and what that means to each one of us. It’s only then that we can begin to understand the power of God that is at work in our lives; at work to reveal to us all those things within each of us that are hindering our relationship with Jesus. Let’s begin with a quote from Oswald Chambers:

When, by the reception of the Holy Spirit, I begin to realize that God knows all the deepest possibilities there are in me, knows all the eccentricities of my being, I find that the mystery of myself is solved by this besetting God.

THE SPIRIT OF GOD

As we saw in the last chapter, first and foremost, He is the third person of the Trinity.

Gen 1:2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

Remember from that the name used for God in this verse is Elohim; the plural form of the word. It implies the Supreme God, the Triune God or the Trinity.

The Spirit of the Father

Mt 10:20 For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.

Here we see that the Father speaks to us and to others through us by His Spirit. The Father’s voice in us is His Spirit and He is the one who speaks for the Father. How important is it then that we focus on hearing His voice since His Words impact those around us. Haven’t you had a brother or sister in Christ say just the right thing to you at just the right time? He will use us as His voice under the leading of the Spirit of the Father, and so we always need to be ready (2 Tim 4:2).

The Spirit of the Son

Phil 1:19 For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,

Gal 4:6 And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.

Notice that Paul told the Philippians that they were supplied with the Spirit of Jesus; the Messiah, the Spirit of the Son of God. He is the very same One who is supplied to us. In the midst of prison (Gal 4:6) Paul relied solely upon the Spirit to supply all of his needs. He reminded the Galatians that because they are also the sons of God, He has placed the Spirit of the Son into their hearts crying (krazon; proclaiming, exclaiming, screaming or shrieking) Daddy (Aramaic to the Jews), Father (to the Greeks).

THE SPIRIT OF GLORY

1 Pet 4:14 If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.

The word used for Spirit in this verse is the same one used in Phil 1:19 (pneuma), and it means wind, life, or breath. Glory comes from the word doxa meaning dignity, honor, praise, or worship. The Spirit of Glory, which is the Spirit of God, rests upon us and through Him our praise and worship bring glory to God. True praise and worship, coming from The Spirit through our spirit, is a sweet offering to God. You can literally take this scripture to mean that the breath of God’s worship rests on us.

We need to remember that the next time we are “reproached” (oneidizo; upbraided, defamed or taunted) for our witness of Jesus. By His Spirit, God is always glorified because in those times our praise and worship are His glory. Or more simply put, when people persecute us we need to let the Spirit of Glory in us respond with the very breath of God; bringing Glory to the Father.

Spirit of the Lord God

Isa 61:1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

Looking at this expression in Hebrew gives us a much more dramatic feeling for the relationship between God and His Holy Spirit. The word for Spirit is ruwach (breath) and the word for God is (adnoay), which is the proper name for God only. The Jews probably substituted the word adonay to avoid pronouncing Yahweh (Jehovah, the self-existent, eternal or Jewish national name of God). In other words, the Spirit is the breath of the one and only God of Israel. This Spirit, Isaiah said, was the power by which the Messiah would preach and set the captives free. Jesus quoted this verse when referring to Himself as the Messiah in Luke 4:18-21.

THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM AND UNDERSTANDING / COUNSEL AND MIGHT / FEAR OF THE LORD

Isa 11:2 And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;

The Holy Spirit, in all His gifts and graces, not only came but He also rested upon and abided within Jesus (Col 1:19 and 2:9). Jesus spoke of this verse from Isaiah in Luke 4:18, quoting it in relation to Himself. Let’s take a look at the names spoken above that collectively identify the Spirit of the Lord:

The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, of counsel: By the Spirit, Jesus had everything He required to thoroughly understand what the Father had called Him to do; to make known to man the purpose and will of God.

The Spirit of might: Jesus was given a spirit of courage. He was courageous in His teaching of the truth of God without concern for man.

The Spirit of fear of the Lord: This was Jesus’ reverence for His Father, which through the Spirit He displayed with zeal and great affection.

With this same Spirit living in us, how can we walk in confusion, fear, worry, and anxiety? These same qualities were endowed upon two of Jesus’ predecessors, Moses and David. In them we see the characteristics of a servant of the Lord as described by David McKenna in his work on the Book of Isaiah (my paraphrase):

- Wisdom – Seeing things whole.

- Understanding – Sensitivity to relationships.

- Counsel – Willingness to listen and to advise

- Power – Ability to influence by example.

- Knowledge – Knowing the facts.

- Fear of the Lord – Centering upon the will of God.

In today’s world these leadership characteristics have very often been traded for a charismatic personality. We, as Jesus’ bride, have this same Spirit and with Him come these same qualities. But rather than using them to “puff” ourselves up, they are there to keep us, as His ambassadors, from becoming wise in our own eyes and failing to follow the example set by Jesus. Remember that as leaders in His kingdom God has given us a special responsibility and accountability. We need to be mindful that He has given us His Spirit with the expectation that we will minister that responsibility.

THE SPIRIT OF JUDGMENT AND BURNING

Isa 4:4 When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.

The Spirit of Judgment punishes evil; sifting as He sweeps it away. God, in His judgment, will use His Spirit as a purifying fire to separate His people like a silversmith separates the dross (impurities) from the pure silver; the bad from the good.

Isa 30:27-28: Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire: 28 And his breath, as an overflowing stream, shall reach to the midst of the neck, to sift the nations with the sieve of vanity: and there shall be a bridle in the jaws of the people, causing them to err.

The refiner first judges the state of the metal and then determines the heat required to purify it. When He can see his own reflection in the metal, all the purities have been removed. That’s how Jesus sees us, but on our side we see all the impurities that need to be drawn off.

The expression to sift the nations with the sieve of vanity refers to using a sieve to separate the grain from the chaff, after which the chaff is burned up. The sieve is their own vanity by which He will judge them. Look at this same subject as described by Malachi:

Mal 3:2-3 But who may abide the day of his coming? And who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: 3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.

Who will abide the day of His coming doesn’t ask a question, it makes the statement that “no one” will endure. The Holy Spirit will burn out all the corrupt ingredients, leaving only pure silver and gold. The reference to the Levites is because they were the priests. He spoke to their corrupt nature in leading the nation of Israel in its religious life. This could well apply to the church since His bride are the priests of today.

God, by His Spirit, desires to burn off in every believer all that is earthly, leaving only that which has been purified in the Spirit. The purity of Jesus rests within each of us and needs only to be revealed by the Spirit of Judgment and Burning. This requires us, however, to stay in the crucible when the fire gets hot and we begin to see a lot of junk start coming to the surface that we didn’t even know was there.

In times of testing (purifying), haven’t we all had something rotten rise up within us? If your response was like mine, the first words out of your mouth were: “Where did that come from?” That is the Spirit of Burning at work, making that which was invisible rise to the surface to be drawn off. The concept laid out in Mal 3:2 is one of cleansing by both harsh and not so harsh methods. The use of fire is harsh but “fullers soap” (lye) is not so harsh; albeit still severe. Whatever the method God uses, don’t make the mistake of allowing the dross to stay in your vessel. Recognize it for what it is and let the Holy Spirit cleanse you of it. You can’t get clean if you run every time the scrub brush and soap show up.

THE SPIRIT OF GRACE AND SUPPLICATION

Zech 12:10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

The term used for grace in this verse is the Hebrew word chen, meaning favor or precious. Combine this with supplications (tachanuwn: earnest prayer) and we can see the meaning a little more clearly; precious prayers without ceasing. God poured out the Spirit of precious favor and earnest prayers on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Remember in his letter to the Romans (8:26),Paul told us that it is the Holy Spirit that intercedes for us when we don’t know how to pray as we should.

Here Zechariah said that God was going to use His Spirit to bring forth their earnest prayers for the restoration of His divine favor as they realize whom they have pierced (Jesus). Today that is seen when the Spirit of Grace falls upon a sinner, and through confession and repentance he or she is able to see whom it is that their sins have pierced.

While we're at this point, let me suggest that we often, in our zeal to serve the Lord, overlook the very ones about whom Zechariah prophesied. The Spirit of Grace and Supplication will bring to us those who only need to be shown the way. We just need to point out to them the One that they have pierced. Because the Spirit of Grace is working within us, all we need to do is "minister" the Gospel and let the Lord take care of their bitterness as He works in them through His Spirit of Grace. I don’t remember where I first heard this expression but it has always stuck with me: GRACE (God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense). That was His price, our price is to “be available.”

The Spirit of Holiness

Rom 1:4 And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:

The reference is to the “Spirit of Sacredness” (morally blameless; consecrated; or most holy) by whom God declared Jesus to be the Messiah. The Holy Spirit, being the very Spirit of God, is holy as He is holy. Matthew Henry, in his commentary on Romans 1:4, refers us to the fact that the Spirit of holiness is the divine nature of Jesus. The proof of this is the last part of verse 4: by the resurrection from the dead.

Another way of reading this verse would be that Jesus was declared to be the Son of God with power by His divine nature (His Spirit) and proved by His resurrection. There is some disagreement among the scholars as to the meaning—whether it is Jesus’ spirit or the Holy Spirit—but it was the power of the Holy Spirit that resurrected Jesus from the dead and I believe the context of this verse refers to the Holy Spirit. What a powerful thought, that we have the Spirit of Holiness within each of us as believers in Jesus; the Spirit who is morally blameless, consecrated, and holy. With that Spirit we have all the assets we need to become just like Jesus, which is exactly what God designed the body of Christ—His bride—to become; a living example of His life here on earth.

THE SPIRIT OF LIFE

Rom 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

The law of the Spirit of life refers to the law of our new being (Amplified Bible). In other words, the law that governs us now, under the new covenant, is the Holy Spirit. The comparison inferred is that the spirit of death was the Law of Moses that convicted man of his sin and therefore brought with it the penalty for that sin. Now Jesus brings us the Spirit of life, which is eternal life as opposed to sin and death. Another way of saying this would be that we are made free from that law of sin and death by the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.

We have been made free from the law of sin and death for the purpose of being ministers of the Gospel (2 Cor 3:6). There is a very close correlation between the Spirit of Life and the Living Water promised by the Gospel (John 7:38). We are to minister that living water under the direction of the Spirit of Life Eternal. It is by Him that we have been adopted into The Family; the source of all Living Water.

The Spirit of Adoption

Rom 8:15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

While the Spirit of Adoption reflects our adoptive status as sons and daughters, it also reflects the adoption of the nature of a child whereby we receive the love of a son or a daughter for their Father. We delight in Him and develop a dependence upon Him, and as we grow we begin to reflect His character and His image.

Because of this I believe Paul is quick to show us that we respond like a child; we "cry out" (krazo) or call out loud. And what do we cry out: Daddy, Father. The use of the words Aba (Hebrew for father) and Pater (Greek for father) indicate that He is Father to both the Jew and the Gentile, for in Jesus there is neither Jew nor Gentile. Jesus used these same terms in His prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:36).

As a note of interest, Matthew Henry points out that according to Hebrew law, a slave was not permitted to call his master Abba or His mistress Imma. He suggests that the apostles, being brought out from bondage under the Law, are now expressing the new language of their new position in Christ. Whatever the reasoning, the result is the same. We are His adopted sons and daughters through the new covenant in Jesus; being filled with His Spirit. What a joy to be able to cry out to our Daddy our gratitude for His adopting us into His Family as joint heirs with Jesus, where we each share the inheritance of the first born—a double portion!

The Spirit of Prophesy

Rev 19:10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellow servant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

The word prophecy comes from the root word prophetes, which expresses the meaning of an “inspired speaker.” In this context, the angel is saying that for us to prophesy the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. We, as fellow servants, are to be speakers inspired by the Holy Spirit to prophesy that testimony and be a witness for Him just like the angel. The witness of the Holy Spirit always points to Jesus (Mark 1:10-11); the Truth.

The Spirit of Truth

John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

Let’s look at the end of the verse first. Jesus is speaking here and He clearly refers to the Holy Spirit as “He.” The Holy Spirit is a distinct person who is given the title Spirit of truth. Furthermore, Jesus tells us that He (the Holy Spirit) comes from the Father and will testify (marteuro: witness, give a good report or give evidence) of Jesus (John 16:14). The word truth comes from the Greek word althes, which means true or not concealing. The Holy Spirit comes without concealing anything concerning Jesus. He brings the truth about the Son directly from the Father. Therefore, if this is His job, then by the very fact that we have elected to make Him resident within us it becomes our job; a job which He is prepared to assist us with.

THE SPIRIT OF COMFORT

John 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter that he may abide with you forever;

We often think of a “comforter” as someone that makes us feel better in a troubled situation. The meaning used here is somewhat different and conveys a much more powerful characteristic of the Holy Spirit. Parakletos means intercessor or advocate (1 John 2:1), and indicates an active role on our behalf (John 14:16). The Holy Spirit is the one who is summoned to come along side or is “called” to the side of the believer “to aid.” He is another or the second comforter; Jesus being the first. Vincent’s puts it this way (emphasis mine):

The Holy Spirit is, therefore, by the word (parakletos), of which "Paraclete" is a transcription, represented as our "Advocate or Counsel," "who suggests true reasonings to our minds, and true courses of action for our lives, who convicts our adversary, the world, of wrong, and pleads our cause before God our Father." It is to be noted that Jesus as well as the Holy Spirit is represented as Paraclete. The Holy Spirit is to be another Paraclete, and this falls in with the statement in the First Epistle, "we have an advocate with God, even Jesus Christ."

Looking at these two words (intercession and advocate) in the Greek gives us a much better definition of His role in our lives. Intercession is the act of a righteous person petitioning God on the behalf of another. Jesus is the great intercessor for the church (Heb 7:25) and the Holy Spirit is the intercessor for each of us (Rom 8:26-27); both are referred to as Comforters.

Heb 7:25 Wherefore he (Jesus) is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

Rom 8:26-27 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

In turn we, as Christians, are urged to take their example in hand and intercede for all people (1 Tim 2:1).

An advocate is one who pleads another’s case before a court. God has given us an advocate who defends us against the accuser of the brethren (1 Ptr 5:8; Rev 12:10). In Revelation we are told that Satan is accusing us before the Father day and night. Remember that Satan is not in Hell at this time, he is wandering on the earth and in the heavens, seeing whom he many consume (1 Pet 5:8). Read the first chapter of Job; the only thing that has changed is Job’s absence and our presence.

While we are here let me clear up something that has confused many, believers as well as non-believers. Hell has been created for Satan, but He will not see it until Jesus returns and His millennial reign here on earth is complete. So many times we hear people talk about him being in Hell when in fact he is right in their back yard; seeing whom he many consume. It totally amazes me that God allows him to come and continually accuse us. He boldly comes and goes now just as he did in the days of Job. However, how encouraging it is that every time he comes and accuses me of another sin, my advocate is there to plead my case with the Judge. And it’s very comforting to know that my advocate has never lost a case! He uses the same defense every time, and the prosecuting attorney will never be able to overcome it; the Blood of Jesus!

THE FREE SPIRIT

Ps 51:12 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.

There is a very important message within this verse as it relates to “who” is holding us up. Is it the Lord or our own strength? The following paragraphs from Matthew Henry, while a little wordy, make the point very clear, that it is His Free Spirit that we need to support us. He is writing about David and the impact his sin had upon him (emphasis is mine):

… it had made him weak, and therefore he prays, "Uphold me with the free Spirit: I am ready to fall, either into sin or into despair; Lord, sustain me; my own spirit" (though the spirit of a man will go far towards the sustaining of his infirmity) "is not sufficient; if I be left to myself, I shall certainly sink; therefore uphold me with thy Spirit, let him counterwork the evil spirit that would cast me down from my excellency. Thy Spirit is a free spirit, a free agent himself, working freely" (and that makes those free whom he works upon, for where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty—"thy ingenuous princely Spirit." He was conscious to himself of having acted, in the matter of Uriah, very disingenuously and unlike a prince; his behavior was base and paltry: "Lord," says he, "let thy Spirit inspire my soul with noble and generous principles, that I may always act as becomes me." A free spirit will be a firm and fixed spirit, and will uphold us. The more cheerful we are in our duty the more constant we shall be to it.

Various commentators have also translated “free spirit” to mean David’s “willing spirit;” supposing the word “thy” to have been added from the original. In either case, freedom flows from the Holy Spirit, without whose presence we would still be bound to the curse of the Law. It's the joy of salvation that makes us a free and willing spirit. Let’s back up one verse (11) and see who David was talking about.

The Holy Spirit

Ps 51:11 Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy Holy Spirit from me.

The Hebrew word quodesh (holy) carries with it a variety of meanings, which define the concept of holiness: consecrated, dedicated, hallowed, and sanctified. Its root is found in qadash, meaning ceremonially or morally clean. The word for Spirit is once again ruwach meaning breath or life. Here David plead with God not to be cast out of His presence or to have the very holiness of God—the breath of God or the life of God—taken from him. If we look back in 2 Samuel we can see the Word of God David stood on.

2 Sam 7:15 But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee.

The Lord told David, through Nathan, that He would not take His mercy from him. The one thing David could not stand was the thought of losing the very presence of God in his life. As we opened this chapter we noted that God has spoken these wonderful words to His people throughout time: I will never leave thee nor forsake thee. He spoke them to Jacob (Gen 28:15); to Israel (Deut 31:6, 8); to Joshua (Josh 1:5); to Solomon (1Chr 28:20); and to us for today (Heb 3:5). God’s presence in His Holy Spirit will never depart the believer.

THE SPIRIT OF THE POWER OF THE HIGHEST

Luke 1:35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.

This verse always reminds me of Gen 1:2, where we see the Holy Spirit brooding over the earth. He carried the power of the Highest (the Supreme God), which is the same power that created the world. It is the miracle working power of God (dunamis) that He directs and uses for His glory. He used this power to create within Mary the miracle of the virgin birth, bringing about His greatest miracle, His physical presence here on earth as a man (Heb 10:5). Think about that for a moment—think about it for a long time!

The greatest power in the universe, an awesome power that can create or consume, was to overshadow a young virgin in the mildest and most gentle way. Only God Himself could create the pure and holy body necessary for the human nature of the Messiah; the one who would redeem humanity. That power was embodied in the Holy Spirit; the Power of the Highest, the same power that has established the Temple of God within you. The Greater One (1 John 4:4).

What a testimony directly from the Word of God to the awesome nature of the Holy Spirit, and to think that we as the bride of Christ have His very presence residing within us. It makes us pause and reflect on all those times we’ve felt so weak and impotent in the face of the trials and tribulations this fallen world imposes on us.

We opened with a quote from Oswald Chambers, and I think it only appropriate that we let him sum it up for us:

When we are filled with the Holy Spirit, he unites us body, soul, and spirit with God until we are one with God even as Jesus was. This is the meaning of the Atonement—at-one-ment with God.

Now that we have examined several of the many characteristics of the Holy Spirit, to get a better understanding of who He is let’s next examine His nature as a person. After all, He is the third “person” of the Trinity.

CHAPTER 3

WHAT IS HIS NATURE?

I think the Scripture we have explored up to now has made it clear that the Holy Spirit is a person; the Third Person of the Trinity. In this chapter we will explore that fact in more detail as we examine His attributes to learn what are the characteristics that represent His character; the character of Jesus. The more we learn and appreciate just how awesome a gift He is, the closer He will bring us to Jesus. The more we learn to recognize His personality and allow it to become ours, the more useful we will become in the kingdom of God.

The [Apostles] Creed confesses three persons as comprehended in one divine essence, each one, however, retaining his distinct personality… to the Father we ascribe the work of creation; to the Son the work of redemption; to the Holy Spirit the power to forgive sins, to gladden, to strengthen, to transport from death to life eternal.

Martin Luther

Webster uses a number of descriptive terms to define nature: character, personality, temperament, disposition, and make up. But underneath all of these terms is the common thread of humanity, and we will see that they all apply to the person of the Holy Spirit.

HE IS A PERSON

John 14:17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

The word Jesus uses here—autos; him or himself—defines the Holy Spirit as a person. He has a personality of His own and we ought to know Him because His home is in us. I once used the example of inviting someone to permanently take up residence in your home without acknowledging their presence. Imagine for a moment that every day you constantly walk past that person without saying a word or looking in their direction. Now add to that one further thought; He knows everything there is to know about everything.

Here you are, with all that uncertainty in your life, all your problems, fears, and anxieties, and you’re ignoring the only one who has all the answers; the one who wants to give them all to you if you will just ask. Doesn’t make much sense does it? But then if you don’t see Him for who He is, then for all intents and purposes He might just as well not exist. Jesus Himself isn’t here but His Spirit is, the link to our relationship with Jesus.

Would you bring someone into your home to live with you if you didn’t know anything about their background or who they really were? Me either! So we need to spend some time learning about the Holy Spirit. He was there in Genesis at the beginning, will be there in Revelation when it all comes to a climax, and He will be there for the rest of eternity. The Lord has painted a beautiful picture of who He is for us so let’s step back and take a look.

HE SPEAKS TO MAN

Act 13:2 As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost [pneuma] said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.

Acts 10:19 While Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him Behold, three men seek thee.

Acts 8:29 Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot.

Acts 16:6 Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost [pneuma] to preach the word in Asia,

We can be assured that the Holy Spirit—spirit and ghost are both the same word—is always speaking the Father’s words to us. It may be “by man” but more likely it will be by the Spirit or in the Word. However, the problem in all cases is our ability to hear what He is saying, and for that reason we always need to work at sharpening our hearing. We do that through prayer and fasting so our spirit can rise above our flesh and receive the voice of His Spirit. That is why we are admonished to be still and know that I am God (Ps 46:10). In 1 Kings 19:11-13 Elijah found out that God wasn’t in the earthquake, the wind, or the fire, but after them all He was found in the “still small voice.”

It’s interesting that earthquakes, wind, and fire are natural events in the world and, as such, they each masked the voice of God. It’s during the times of great outside interference in our lives that we need to get away into our prayer closet, be still, and listen. Look at Peter in Acts 10:19; when did the Holy Spirit speak to him? It was when he “thought on the vision”—when he was focused on God. It’s no different today because everything around us makes so much noise that we are unable to hear His voice unless we listen very carefully and pay attention.

From personal experience I can attest to the fact that the more involved you are in the world, the more difficult it becomes to hear His voice. This is a continual struggle, which the Word confirms:

John 17:14 I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

James 4:4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

Our relationship with the world requires a fine balance, as the amount of influence we allow the world to have has a dramatic impact on our ability to hear His voice.

HE HAS INTELLECT

1 Cor 2:11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.

Man may well know the things of himself—all the things that pass through his mind—but only the Spirit of God knows the things of God. The word knoweth (eido) means to be aware of, have knowledge of, to perceive, or to understand. By its direct inference, each of these definitions reveals an underlying intellect or ability “to know.”

Only the human spirit under the influence of the Holy Spirit can recognize the things of God. If our spirit hasn’t been regenerated (if we are not born again), then it’s impossible for us to know God. In other words, only God’s Spirit knows His deep thoughts, plans, or intentions. And the bride can know the deep things of God by the revelation of the Holy Spirit because His Spirit will reveal them to her spirit. Let’s go forward two verses and see how.

HE TEACHES

1 Cor 2:12-13 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. 13 Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

The spirit of the world represents the wisdom of the wise men of the world, which is the wisdom of the world or the spirit of the antichrist. This is the same spirit that we are naturally born with (John 8:44). But, by the spirit of the world, we aren’t able to know those things freely given to us by God, which are the privileges of the Gospel that can only be revealed by the Holy Spirit.

The teaching of the Holy Spirit makes these privileges known to us. He is the only one who can compare spiritual things with spiritual. Paul is talking about the Holy Spirit revealing the Old Testament with the New Testament, or the types and prophecies of the old with the Gospel of the new. Not only does He give us knowledge of these things, He also gives us the words to speak concerning spiritual matters, making them plain to understand. It’s impossible for us to describe the spiritual things of God with the language of the spirit of the world. The deep things of God are foolishness to the world because the world is unable to comprehend them (1 Cor 2:14). Now let’s go back and see how the Holy Spirit does this.

HE SEARCHES ALL

1 Cor 2:9-10 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. 10. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

God most often reveals Himself to us by His Spirit through the still small voice of revelation while we’re in prayer or reading the Word. We acknowledge that God’s Word is inspired but we shouldn’t forget that our “thoughts” can also be inspired. Here Paul stated that God reveals to us the things He has prepared for us by His Spirit (9). Natural man is incapable of understanding these things because he doesn’t have the Spirit in him. On the other hand, working in us the Spirit searches the deep things of God; His attributes, character, and divine nature, which the Spirit delights in revealing to us for our benefit, so we might know who God is.

HE HAS A WILL

1 Cor 12:11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.

Paul is about to describe the gifts of the Spirit, but first he sets the groundwork by showing us where the gifts come from and how they are administered. The Spirit is free to administer the gifts as He wills or as He chooses. Matthew Henry states it a little more directly:

The Holy Ghost is a divine person. He works divine effects and divides divine gifts, as He will, by His own power and according to His own pleasure, without dependence or control.

We can also see this in Paul’s letter to the Hebrews:

Heb 2:4 God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will.

He does it according to the plan the Father has established, which the Spirit carries out according to His perfect will. He gives at least one gift to every believer and often times several. They are uniquely administered as part of God’s perfect will for each believer and they are given for the benefit of others and not the holder of the gift. We'll to take a more detailed look at these gifts a little later.

HE HAS EMOTIONS

Rom 15:30 Now I beseech you, brethren, for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake, and for the love of the Spirit, that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me;

The love of the Spirit is that love He stirs up inside each of us for God. It’s the love (agape) we experience from Him that we are to share with others. God created love and therefore who better understands it than His Spirit. And when we’ve once experienced the love of the Spirit we can’t help but return that love to Him. Let’s look at another example showing us that He has emotions.

HE CAN BE GRIEVED

Eph 4:30 And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

How do we grieve the Holy Spirit? In Acts 7:51 Stephen rebuked the Jews with some very harsh words concerning their resistance of the Holy Spirit. In Isaiah 63:10 we see the Holy Spirit turn away from God’s people when they vexed Him (displeased, hurt, or grieved). In the Greek, to grieve means to make exceedingly sorrowful or to afflict with sorrow. We should apply this concept to the Holy Spirit just as we would to the grieving of a close friend. The nation of Israel was guilty of this time and again as they wandered in the wilderness:

Ps 78:40 How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!

Today we grieve the Holy Spirit by giving into sin. When we do He withdraws His light and presence in our lives, and the more we give into sin the further He withdraws. We need to be mindful that we don’t begin to harden our hearts against Him. When hardness of heart sets in we become unaware of our backslidden state and we cease to see and feel His absence. The answer for this state is to ask for forgiveness and repent (1 John 1:9). If we do, His presence will return. Just remember to put the emphasis on “repent.” How do we know that?

Eph 1:13: In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise.

Here, as in the last part of Eph 4:30, we are reminded that His seal is valid unto the day of redemption or until our body and soul are delivered to His presence (Rom 8:23). We are sealed but we can get out of fellowship, and when we’re out of fellowship with the Lord we often react in two ways, we sin or we attempt to live the Christian life in the flesh. Neither of these options is acceptable because sin grieves the Holy Spirit and energy in the flesh quenches the Holy Spirit. One of the most common ways we sin today is with our mouth through our corrupt conversation or words of judgment. To learn more about what grieves the Holy Spirit keep reading Paul’s letter to the Ephesians as he builds on verse 30.

HE STRIVES

Gen 6:3 And the LORD said, My Spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.

Here the Hebrew word duwn is translated “strive,” and it means to judge, contend, or execute judgment. This is the only place in the Old Testament where it's used in this context. In this instance God was contending with the taking of wives by fallen angels and the birth of children by the “daughters of man.” This is a very controversial topic for some and volumes have been written about it. This is not the place to delve into it, but to keep our subject in perspective we will assume the facts as God wrote them.

It was this act that precipitated God’s judgment and the destruction of man with the exception of Noah and his family. The original Hebrew reads: My Spirit shall not be made low in man or shall not descend from heaven and dwell with him forever. Another translation says: My Spirit shall not judge or rule in man forever. Whichever interpretation may be more correct, the implication is that God’s Spirit will not continue to convict man forever and, indeed, the world was destroyed save for Noah and his family. His Spirit won’t always contend with us by the conviction of our consciences. If we argue with the Spirit He will strive with us only up to a point; He won’t violate our free will. Listen to the words of the prophet Hosea:

Hosea 4:16-17 For Israel slideth back as a backsliding heifer: now the LORD will feed them as a lamb in a large place. Ephraim is joined to idols: let him alone.

The picture if one of a cow that is loose and running wildly around the pasture. If we put her back in the yoke she will rebel and pull back, bent on going her own way. She won’t follow the furrow and therefore is in total rebellion. That was Israel as they pulled away from God and fell into idol worship. He states further that Israel is already joined to the idols and therefore God will just “leave him alone;” the Lord will feed them as a lamb in a large place.

This is better translated: can the Lord feed her like a lamb? The cow needs to be tied up to be fed rather than roam free like the little lamb. Israel needs to be tied up because of her desire for evil. There comes a time and a place when, because of our commitment to our old nature, God will leave us alone and stop striving with us. Listen to Paul and consider that at some point God turns those who stubbornly rebel over to their “reprobate” (morally worthless) mind:

Rom 1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

What is Paul talking about here? Look at verses 29-32 and you will get the idea that what was going in Noah’s time was still going on in Paul’s time and, sadly, is going on today.

Rom 1:29-32 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, 30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 Without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: 32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

The Holy Spirit will not touch our free will; if we persist He will just leave us alone. I used to tell the kids in my Sunday school class that a good definition of the hand of God in our life is when He leaves us in the sin we are so dead set against getting out of. We need to be aware of the Holy Spirit when He “contends” and “strives” with us. Our response should be like David’s; confess, repent, and turn away.

Now, how long will the Holy Spirit strive with us? We don’t know and I suspect that it's different with each one of us. But this much I do know; thank God He has a lot of patience. Look at how long He waited for the people of Noah’s day. It took Noah 120 years to build that ark and the Holy Spirit continued to strive with man until God shut the door. Is the 120 years some definitive time frame wherein He will continually strive with man? No, but it clearly infers that there is a limit to the time He will. The more important issue, however, is that each time we pull away our heart gets a little harder, until we reach that point where we no longer hear His voice. That’s a point in time that we don’t know and we don’t want find out!

HE IS TRUTH

John 14:17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

John 16:13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

He is called the Spirit of Truth because, through the Word of God, He applies the truth and exposes the false. He will teach us the truth and enlighten our minds with the knowledge of Jesus. Jesus isn’t speaking of the truth in general but the whole truth of the Word of God. The Spirit is the one who guides us (shows the way) like you would a little child. Guiding us into all truth means a great deal more than just knowing it. The Word implies that He has control of the truth and will make us intimately acquainted with it. Not only having it in our head but also revealed to and locked up in our heart; rhema, the revealed word. He will lead us from the truth that we know into the truth that we don’t know; line upon line, precept upon precept (Isa 28:9-10).

John 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

Many just quote the second part of John 8:32; the truth shall make you free. Let me challenge you that it is not the truth that makes you free in and of itself. Look at the first part of that verse. It tells us that, you shall KNOW the truth. We need to know the truth and have it set deep in our spirit before it will bring us freedom. To know is ginosko in the Greek, and it means to be resolved, to be sure, to understand, or to speak. In other words, it's the truth that you really have set down inside you makes you free.

You may acknowledge that faith overcomes fear in your head but it will never happen in your life until you know it in your heart. We need to have a fleshy heart (Ezek 36:26) or fallow ground (Jer 4:3) in which to have the Word sown. If we do, then the Word will take root and grow rather than being plucked out by the enemy (Mark 4:4, 15).

This is what the Holy Spirit does for us. He gives us fleshy hearts and fallow ground into which He sows the truth of God’s Word by revelation. Remember that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks (Mt 12:34). What we place in our heart is going to come out of our mouth: faith or fear, truth or lies, life or death.

The Holy Spirit guides us into one (truth) and the devil deceives us into the other (lies). While the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth the devil is the father of lies and there is no truth in him (John 8:14). Now go back and read John 15:26; the truth He always reveals is Jesus, and it is Jesus that makes you free!

Yes, the Holy Spirit is a person and He is what America desperately needs at this hour. We will see more of why in our next chapter as we ask the question: Why is He here? Let me shed part of the reason in a quote from one of my favorite teachers, Dr. Bill Bright:

America is a modern day Laodicea as many have lost that first love and become lukewarm… God have mercy on us if we, like the harlot of Babylon, continue to turn our back on God and continue to follow lustfully after material things until we find ourselves in the very clutches of anti-Christian tyranny. Who is to blame? The government? Big business? Let me tell you where the blame lies. America is where she is today because too many Christians have quenched the Holy Spirit in their lives. Too many Christians have put out the fire of the Holy Spirit within themselves because they never knew and understood the Spirit-filled life.

I would not be so bold as to add to Dr. Bright's words, but let me just say that it's time for the bride of Christ to Wake Up And Rest (Visit http://bit.ly/1CMgNtB)

Saints, let us not be guilty of quenching the Spirit. We need to know Him and be empowered by Him to stand for the truth of the Gospel. Let’s not cause Him to strive with us, let’s not go down that slippery slope.

CHAPTER 4

WHY IS HE HERE?

No matter what a man does, no matter how successful he seems to be in any field, if the Holy Spirit is not the chief energizer of his activity, it will all fall apart when he dies.

A.W. Tozer

HE BRINGS THE NEW BIRTH

John 3:3-7 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 4. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? 5. Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

In John 3:3-7 Jesus was talking with Nicodemus about being “born again” and the discussion centered on comparing the natural birth (flesh) with the spiritual birth. In verse 5 Jesus made it very clear that if we are not born of the Spirit we are not entering into the Kingdom of God. Note the word Spirit.

There is a big distinction between the Spirit (heavenly) and the flesh (earthly). Note in verse 6 that our spirit (little “s”) is only born of the Spirit (capital “S”) and the result is spirit not flesh. Our old nature stays the same but our spirit is reborn. Look at John 6:63 and notice that if the “words spoken” were mere flesh they would be utterly meaningless and would have no power at all. But, being quickened (zoopoieo; given life) by the Spirit they are life. The main ingredient in the new creative process is the Holy Spirit because He is the regenerating power. Look at Titus 3:5 (emphasis mine):

Titus 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done [flesh], but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost [Spirit].

Without the Holy Spirit our spirit cannot be reborn. It’s impossible to grow a pine tree if you sow an apple seed, no matter how hard you try. Reproduction is always after its own kind (Gen 1:11, 21, 24, 26-27).

Jesus left us by sowing His spirit (seed) into the ground. The springing forth of His spirit (resurrection) paved the way for us to avoid suffering spiritual death. We symbolically sow our spirit when we accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Saviour. Our spirit then “springs forth” into new life by the power of the Holy Spirit; the bearer of “new life.”

HE SHOWS US THE TRIUNE RELATIONSHIP

We have discussed this before but consider once again the fact that the Holy Spirit is a member of the Trinity:

The Father Witnesses to and Glorifies the Son

John 8:18 I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me.

John 8:54 Jesus answered, If I honor myself, my honor is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me of whom ye say, that he is your God:

The Son Says Only What He hears From the Father

John 12:49-50 For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. 50 And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.

The Father and Son Honor the Holy Spirit

John 14:16-17 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever; 17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

The Holy Spirit Honors the Father and Son by Helping Us

Rom 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

The last three verses, John 14:16, 26, and Rom 8:26 speak to the nature and the role of the Holy Spirit in the Trinity. Verses 16 and 26 show us that the He comes from the Father and the Son while Rom 8:26 gives us a glimpse of His role in our lives. The word used for infirmities (asthenia) refers to feebleness of mind and body in the form of disease, sickness, or weakness. Looking a little deeper we find that the root word from which it is derived is asthenes, which means strengthless or without strength.

The Father knows that left to ourselves we are “without strength” and we suffer many “infirmities” of mind and body. His answer is to send the Third Member of the Trinity to helpeth, even when we don’t know what is wrong or how to pray for help. The word translated as helpeth is sunantilambanetai; it’s a compound word meaning “to take hold of opposite together.” I don’t want to get too deep here but let’s take it just one step further and look at what Clarke’s Commentary says (emphasis mine):

The word sunantilambanetai is very inadequately expressed by "helpeth." It is compounded of sun, together, anti, against, and lambanomai, to support or help, and signifies such assistance as is afforded by any two persons to each other, who mutually bear the same load or carry it between them. He who prays, receives help from the Spirit of God; but he who prays not receives no such help. Whatever our strength may be, we must put it forth, even while most implicitly depending on the strength of God himself.

The key point here is that God sends Himself in the form of His Spirit to cooperate with us in dealing with our infirmities. Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown in their commentary note that: as the Son came in the Father’s name, so the Father was to send the Spirit in the Son’s name, with like divine authority and power. But, in order for Him to cooperate with us we must be putting something into it as well.

Let me suggest that what God desires us to put into it is all the faith we have. We need to turn to Him in prayer, believing His Word is true. When we do, Rom 8:26 tells us that we have someone along side of us “mutually bearing our load” and praying (interceding) for us in a manner we can’t even express let alone understand. Sometimes we have emotions that are just too big for “utterance” (2 Cor 12:4; 1 Pet 1:8) and in those times we can count on the Holy Spirit to lift us up. We will look at this later when we look at the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

HE IS THE COMFORTER

John 16:7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

Can you imagine how the disciples felt? There they were, being told that it was for their benefit that Jesus, the One who has been the total focus of their lives, was going to be taken away. If it were me, I would have been asking myself, “How could losing the best thing that has ever happened profit me in any way?”

We can reflect back on the last section in which we saw how the Holy Spirit mutually bares our load and helps us with our infirmities. We noted earlier that parakletos means one who comes alongside as an advocate or intercessor, but what it doesn’t mean is one who sits by our side and holds our hand while we complain about how unfair life is or how bad our situation is. He doesn’t have the time to let us spiral down into a big pity party. He comes alongside to work “with” us as we exercise our faith.

It’s the omnipresence of God in His Spirit that Jesus promised to the disciples. Read the very last part of verse 7 above. Jesus not only told them that He had to depart but that He would send the Comforter. Now think about that for a minute. They were getting the message that Jesus was going to die and yet here He told them that after His death He was going to be sending them the Holy Spirit. In order to get the impact of this continue reading in verses 8-15 and note how Jesus described the role of the Spirit. Study this section slowly and carefully.

John 16:8-15 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9. Of sin, because they believe not on me; 10. Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; 11. Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. 12. I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. 13. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 14. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. 15. All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

Let what Jesus said sink deep into your spirit. This is a beautiful description of the whole Gospel that resides within each one of us. He is going to lead us into all truth about sin, righteousness, and judgment. No wonder John wrote greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world (1 John 1:4).

HE IS THE EARNEST OF OUR EXPECTATIONS

2 or 1:21-22 Now he which establisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God; 22. Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.

Romans 8:11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

The earnest is the down payment on the promise. In the Greek (arehaphes) it means a purchase money pledge like the down payment on a house. You make that payment with the promise or pledge to deliver the balance when it is due. Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit to hold onto until His promised (pledged) return. But, unlike an inert promissory note, this pledge is active and alive inside us; the same powerful Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead. The word sealed (sphragizo) implies a promise signified by a stamp or signet ring. It is solemnly attested to and confirmed by Jesus and therefore by the Father; it's carried out by the Spirit. Note that it is not a pledge of the Spirit but the Spirit Himself as a pledge of God’s promises.

As part of the Jewish wedding ceremony the bridegroom, after the wedding contract has been signed and the bride’s price has been paid, gives his bride a gift in pledge of His return. Our bridegroom paid our bride price on the Cross and has pledged His return for us by giving us the Holy Spirit. He will fulfill His promise the day that He returns and takes us as His wife.

Another thing to consider about a pledge is that it is sealed with a stamp; it can’t be opened and attests to the validity of that which is inside. We have God’s promises and the enemy can’t open up the pledge and take them away. You might also say that the Holy Spirit is sealed within every believer and the enemy can’t enter and steal Him. It follows then that where He is, God’s promises are also; so they can’t be stolen either.

Finally, a seal set on something denotes authenticity, genuineness, authority, or ownership. Let’s look at a couple of scriptures that define this for us:

Eph 1:13-14 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, 14. Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

Eph 4:30 And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

The Holy Spirit is also given to us to confirm that we belong to God. In His Spirit we are renewed, sanctified, and adopted into His family. Our salvation is made sure and we only have to look to the Holy Spirit as evidence that Jesus has redeemed us. On the last day the Father is only going to look at the seal upon us that signifies we are one of His. I would hope, however, that there is a record of evidence beyond the seal that we are His, such as the fruit of love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance (Gal 5:22).

Think about this, we have the same fruit of the Spirit here on earth that we have in heaven. The only difference is the degree to which we have them; the word fruit is in the plural and means “all.” What the Holy Spirit starts in us here on earth will be completed in heaven.

Why is He here? We have seen a few of the reasons but perhaps we can wrap it up in its simplest terms. God has given us a part of Himself. We don’t deserve His presence but nevertheless He has made His home within each and every believer. And His Spirit not only seals every promise He has made to us, the Holy Spirit is truly the earnest of our expectations; the promise of eternal life.

Let me close this chapter with a word from Billy Graham in his book The Holy Spirit:

The most important point I can make is this: there is nothing that God is that the Holy Spirit is not. All of the essential aspects of deity belong to the Holy Spirit. We can say of him exactly what was said of Jesus Christ in the ancient Nicene Creed: He is very god of very God! So we bow before Him, we worship Him; we accord Him ever response Scripture requires of our relationship to Almighty God. Who is the Holy Spirit? He is God!

How can we ever take the presence of the Holy Spirit lightly? How can we fail to pause and listen for His every Word? How can we ever fail to remember that we are His Holy Temple? How can we fail to rejoice in His presence with every breath? We can’t!

CHAPTER 5

WHAT DOES HE DO?

Our world is fast becoming a madhouse, and the inmates are trying to run the asylum. It is a strange time when the patients are writing the prescriptions, the students are threatening to run the schools, the children to manage the homes, and church members—not the Holy Spirit—direct the churches.

Vance Havner

We’ve looked at who the Holy Spirit is, who He is the Spirit of, what is His nature, and why He’s here. Now we’re going to take a look at what He's doing in this world in these “earthen vessels.” In reflecting on the quote from Vance Havner there is a sound reliance on the guidance of the Holy Spirit. He was all about the task that the Lord has set before us: We are the salt of the earth, mind you, not the sugar. Our ministry is to truly cleanse and not just to change the taste.

And we surely can't cleanse if we don’t stay in an intimate relationship with the one who has been sent here to see that the task is accomplished. The Holy Spirit has a job to do and we're not only blessed to be part of it, we're blessed by His presence in the process.

HE MOVES US FROM THE OLD TO THE NEW—FROM THE NATURAL TO THE SPIRITUAL

2 Cor 3:13-17 And not as Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not steadfastly look to the end of that which is abolished: 14. But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same veil untaken away in the reading of the Old Testament; which veil is done away in Christ. 15. But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the veil is upon their heart. 16. Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the veil shall be taken away. 17. Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

The meaning here is the symbolic change from the Law to the Spirit. The Old Testament Law brought with it the conviction of sin, which is now the job of the Holy Spirit (John 16:7-15). Just as it was true for the Jews in Paul’s time, it’s true for us today. Only the Spirit can lift the veil of the Law when we turn to the Lord and replace it with the Spirit of the Lord; liberty/freedom. This is why no man can come to Jesus by intellect. It’s only by responding to the gentle urging or unction of the Spirit that we learn that it’s the Word (Jesus) that takes away the veil. It’s only in total submission to Him that we find the total freedom that we all so desperately hunger for and seek after.

Paul had in mind in this scripture the veil over Moses face in Exodus 34. After Moses came down the mountain from meeting with God, carrying the 10 commandments, he covered his face with a veil because it was glowing with the Glory of God, but that glow would begin to fade the moment he left God’s presence. All the people, including his brother Aaron, were afraid to come near him. Moses put on the veil when he was talking with the people but removed it when he went into the temple in the presence of God. The brilliance of the Glory of God on the face of Moses was lost in the Glory of Jesus in the New Testament. The taking away of the veil of Moses was a shadow of the taking away of the veil in the temple when Jesus died on the cross.

There was a veil in the temple that separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple. It was approximately 6 inches thick and hung from the ceiling to the floor. It kept sinful man out of the presence of God (the Ark of the Covenant) with the exception of the high priest who would enter two times once each year to make a sacrifice (atonement) for himself and for Israel. Should man enter at any other time he would instantly die because sin cannot exist in the presence of God. When Jesus died that veil was torn from top to bottom by the hand of God (from heaven to earth), symbolizing that man could now enter into His very presence. The final sacrifice had been made and man would forever have access to God through Jesus Christ. It is symbolic of the veil that it is removed from man’s spirit when the Spirit of God takes up residence within the heart.

Moses’ veil represents sin and a barrier between God and man (death) while Jesus represents sacrifice and an open door to God (life). Moses only gave us a partial and temporary view of God (the glory faded), but through the Holy Spirit we see God in His fullness (Jesus). Verses 15-17 give us a good picture of this.

Without Jesus the Jews can read the Law all day long and never understand its full meaning. But when the nation believes in Him the veil will be lifted and they will read the Law and the Prophets and see Jesus as their Messiah. It’s the same for unbelievers today when they try and read the Bible; it makes no sense to them. There is a veil over their eyes because their spirit is dead to God. But when they, by faith, make a decision to follow Jesus, the veil is lifted by the presence of the Holy Spirit. They have made the step from the natural to the spiritual, from the old to the new, and from darkness to light. No longer is there a veil over the Word of God because Jesus has given them the Holy Spirit to reveal it.

To put this in perspective, we should look at the Holy Spirit as the Glory of God. We have all seen the countenance of someone who has been spending time with the Lord. But just like Moses, if they don’t stay in His presence the Glory will fade. That is why the scripture tells us to be filled with the Spirit. The Greek translates it as “be being filled;” active in nature. We are to be filled constantly in order to keep the Glory shining from within. And if we’re living the life Jesus intended we’re sharing Him with others and therefore we “leak” the Spirit all day long and need a refill.

HE REPROVES THE WORLD

John 16:8-11 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9. Of sin, because they believe not on me; 10. Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; 11. Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.

We looked at this verse previously but in a slightly different context. The word reprove (elengxei) means to admonish, convict, convince, or rebuke. The following defines just what He reproves or convicts man of:

- Of Sin—Rejection Of Jesus (John 3:18,36; 5:24)—The Sin

- Of Righteousness—The Resurrection (Rom 8:33-34)—The Answer

- Of Judgment—Satan Is Defeated (Col 2:15; Heb 2:14; 1 John 3:8)—The Victory

The Holy Spirit comes to convince the world of the Gospel. He bares the simple message that man is a sinner, his salvation is in the resurrected Son of God, and there is now freedom from the chains of the enemy. To some, His conviction will bring freedom and hope by their response to the message and to others, their lack of response will only bring hopelessness. Jesus convicted the world of sin before His death (John 7:7) and now that's the responsibility of the Spirit.

HE GUIDES US INTO ALL TRUTH

John 16:13-15 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 14. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. 15. All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

A little earlier we looked at the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Truth. He also is the one who gives us understanding and illumination of that truth; the truth of Jesus. We, like the disciples, will have no idea what God requires of us without the guiding of the Spirit. He illuminates the truth for us in every situation. Verse 13 tells us all we need to know; He is truth, He will guide us into truth, and He speaks only what He hears from the Father—the truth. In other words, He is going to guide us into the very specific truth that God wants revealed to us in the very center of our circumstances. On the other hand, the enemy’s voice is counterfeit and, as the father of lies, he only bring deception.

In Acts 8:26-38 we have the account of Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch. Look at what happened when Philip responded to the message from God. The eunuch summed it all up when he said: How can I understand unless someone guides me? We, likewise, can’t understand apart from the Spirit guiding us into the truth. Roger Fredrickson, in his study on the book of John, put it very well:

It is the Father who takes all things that are the Son’s—wisdom and truth for all His people—and points them out through the Paraclete that Jesus may be glorified.

The Holy Spirit always points back to Jesus as The Truth.

HE TEACHES

John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

We come back to this verse once again and notice that He will first teach all things and then bring them to your remembrance. For the disciples this meant that the Holy Spirit would bring to their remembrance something Jesus had said that they did not understand at the time. Today the Spirit will reproduce in us those same teachings of Jesus.

Reflect back on the previous section and note that Jesus made provision for our finding out what He said; He will guide you into all truth (John 16:13). But this still requires submission and study on our part, and that is why we are admonished to meditate on the Word day and night as our joy (Ps 1:2). We can’t recall what we don’t know, so it falls upon us to learn what He teaches us. And He will teach us everything we need to know pertaining to the Gospel.

1 John 2:27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.

The anointing, unction, or that special endowment of the Holy Spirit we received from Jesus is what teaches us. He is the ointment that is rubbed in that consists of His presence and gifts. He is the anointing oil of the Old Testament, which was symbolic of the gifts and graces of the Spirit (Ex 30:23-25). It was used to anoint kings, priests, and prophets to set them aside into their offices with God’s blessing (1 Sam 16:13).

Matthew Henry calls the anointing an inward confirmation of the divine truth we have imbibed. I like that because I can understand the feeling you get when you have just taken a drink of cool water on a hot day. The Holy Spirit is like that for us, He satisfies our thirst for the Word of God. His anointing sets us aside as one of the saints, the redeemed in Christ, kings and priests (Rev 1:6, 5:10; 1 Pet 2:5, 9). Look at Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians in which he spoke of the anointing we received from God that abides within us: Now He which establisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God . (2 Cor 1:21). It can’t be any clearer than that! The Anointing (the Holy Spirit) is God!

HE REVEALS SPIRITUAL INSIGHT

1 Cor 2:9-10 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. 10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

Many believers approach evangelism as though all they have to do is tell the story of what God has done in Jesus and watch the person get saved. They assume that people understand the message and receive it. But look at the entire context of what Paul is saying here as he refers to Isa 64:4.

Isa 64:4 For since the beginning of the world Men have not heard nor perceived by the ear, Nor has the eye seen any God besides You, Who acts for the one who waits for Him.

The Gospel makes no sense to them unless the Holy Spirit is involved. The Holy Spirit must open their hearts to receive the Gospel; He works on the spirit man, not the natural man. He is the revelator or the one who takes the cover off and discloses (Rom 11:33).

Before we had the Holy Spirit we didn’t see or hear the things that God had for us. Like the veil we spoke of earlier in reference to the Law, only God is all knowing and only His Spirit can reveal His mind to us (Rom 8:27). The Word tells us that we have the mind of Christ (1 Cor 2:16), but only because we have the Spirit of Christ within us. The entire second chapter of 1 Corinthians builds this case.

With the Spirit we have the capability of receiving the teachings of Jesus and, more importantly, we are able to teach them to others whose heart God has prepared. There is a world to be evangelized and it begins in our immediate vicinity. Jesus told His disciples: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth (Acts 1:8). Notice that He told them to start right where they were, Jerusalem, before moving out to the state, the country, and the world.

The Holy Spirit has moved on hearts that are very near to us that are ready to hear, even if they don’t realize it. He wants to use us to reveal Jesus to them at His appointed place and time. Therefore we need to remain instant in season and out of season (2 Tim 4:2). We who are the bride of Christ already have true wisdom in the Holy Spirit concerning the wonderful plan of salvation. In verse 10 above the word “revealed” is past tense, indicating this wisdom is not for some future time, it’s to be shared with the world here and now. This is what is prepared and revealed to them who love Him.

Before we move to the next section, let me throw a personal thought your way. This is only my opinion, but see if it doesn’t hold water for you. We are told to share the Gospel with the world but we are cautioned not to cast our pearls before swine (Matt 7:6). I have, many times, watched a dear brother or sister try and force the Gospel down someone’s throat with the best of intentions but to no avail. Let me suggest that without the work of the Spirit it may be driving that person farther away.

Without the Holy Spirit there is no salvation. If that is true, then we need to be listening to Him for direction. There is no one better to “cast your pearl” to than the one the Holy Spirit brings to you. If, however, you aren’t listening for His voice you may just be too busy with a good thing and miss a God thing. He gives you everything you need but it takes submission to His leading if you are going to be part of the process.

HE EMPOWERS FOR SERVICE

Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Let’s look Acts 1:8 a little more closely as it relates to the power that Jesus gave to His disciples. There are two words I want to focus on in this verse: power and witnesses. The first, power, is our old friend dunamis. This represents potential miracle working power that is to be released at some future time. The second word, witnesses, is the Greek word martus that we know is our word martyr.

When we look at the empowering of the Holy Spirit we also have to consider timing. What Jesus is saying here is that the power of His Spirit will be entrusted to those who can accept His authority over timing.

Acts 1:7… and he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.

Jesus talked about two kinds of time; Times and Seasons (chronos and kairos). Chronos means duration of time while kairos means an event-oriented time. For example, chronos is the time it takes to germinate, sprout, and cultivate a crop, while kairos is the actual time of harvesting the crop. We need to understand that both the times and seasons are under the Lord’s control and He is always on time and never late. Now let’s go back to verse 8.

The Holy Spirit empowers us to become witnesses. To be an effective witness we need to share what we have seen, heard, or know. We need to be martyrs and die to ourselves, our control, and our schedules, becoming available to share by our words, lives, and actions what Jesus has done for us and what He can do for others. We need to be aware of both the time of “planting” and “harvesting” and be led by the Holy Spirit who does, indeed, empower us to be witnesses.

And note one very important fact about witnessing. Jesus told His disciples to start in Jerusalem; start at home and then proceed outward—city, county, state, country, and the world. But it all must begin right where you are, with those around you each and every day. But we won’t be able to accomplish that task unless we are leaning on and trusting in the one who was sent to help us get it done.

What does He do? Perhaps when it comes to us as individuals it’s “what we allow Him to do.”

CHAPTER 6

WHO HAS HIM?

Have you ever worried about whether or not you really are a Christian? Do you have the Holy Spirit? You won’t know that the Holy Spirit has come if you are waiting for a certain feeling; you will know He has come because Jesus promised He would.

Stephen Eyre

In the Old Testament the Holy Spirit did not “indwell” man but “came upon” man, except in certain instances where specific tasks were required; like Mary’s giving birth to Jesus, Elizabeth’s declaration that Mary carried her Lord, etc. It was not until after Jesus rose from the dead that man received the infilling of the Holy Spirit (John 20:22).

I want to pause in our study here and take a quick look at just who has the Holy Spirit and just how we get His presence. Both of these issues are foundational to our understanding of what His presence means. Without Him, as we have seen previously, we are totally lost as there is no relationship with God. So, without a good understanding of who He indwells, we're subject to all the doubt with which the enemy showers us. So, who has His him?

THOSE WHO ASK

Luke 11:13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?

Taking this in context we note that Jesus was responding to His disciples' request regarding prayer. He had just given them the Lord’s Prayer and here He gave them the power behind it; the Holy Spirit. How faithful God is to give His children the perfect gift when they ask. The Word tells us that ye have not because you ask not (James 4:2). In this passage from Luke it’s evident that we are “to ask” for the Holy Spirit because He is a gift that we are to earnestly pray for. Our heavenly Father is eager to give us this wonderful blessing if we will but ask. But does that mean that everyone who asks for the Spirit will receive Him?

THOSE TRUSTING IN CHRIST

Eph 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

The word trusted (elpis) may better be translated "hope." This is not wishful thinking, its steadfast confidence, the kind of confidence that stands without wavering and is rock solid. In other words, we place our steadfast hope in Jesus; The Rock. And that trust bears the promise of being sealed with the Holy Spirit, which is our promise (our surety, down payment) from Jesus that He is coming back. The Word promises that those who trust (hope in) the Word will be sealed by the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Those who trust in Jesus as the Christ are those who are born again and receive the Holy Spirit. Anyone in the entire world may ask, but only those believing and trusting in Jesus will receive Him. Look at the preceding verse:

Eph 1:12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.

It is Christ in whom Paul trusted and in whom the Ephesians had first trusted. Because they first trusted in Him they received and were sealed with the Holy Spirit. It isn’t some secondary act, because when you ask Jesus to be your Saviour you are asking for His seal at the same time. Look at this another way.

THOSE BORN OF THE SPIRIT

John 3:5-6 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

The word Spirit here is pneuma or “The wind of His Spirit;” the one through whom God shares His life with all those who will receive Him. When we’re born again we receive that very same Spirit. As previously discussed, the ceremony of baptism in water symbolizes the circumcision of the heart; an outward display of an inward change. John is using water here as a symbol of the Holy Spirit in reference to the Jewish ceremony of baptism with water through which a Jew took the God of Israel for his own. The washing of the water to cleanse the body was symbolic of the Spirit cleansing the soul. He is contrasting this with the real meaning of water baptism, which symbolizes true repentance and the forgiveness of sin.

When John the Baptist came on the scene he made it clear that this Hebrew practice would suffice no longer; it had been replaced.

Matt 3:11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:

John pointed to receiving the Holy Spirit as being the result of a submission to Jesus (the Messiah) and a symbol of one's acceptance of Him as their Lord and Saviour. In other words, water baptism is symbolic of joining Jesus in His death and receiving the Holy Spirit in His resurrection. It announces to the world the change that has taken place within you because of the circumcision of your heart. Today, as it did in John's day, it means a change in direction away from sin toward the one who forgives all sin; repentance.

In these verses Jesus acknowledged to Nicodemus that the physical ceremony of water baptism is an obligation, but He also wanted him to understand that with that ceremony comes the creation of new life in the Spirit.

The ceremony is actually complemented by the real thing. Apart from the bearer of new life—the Holy Spirit—the rite of baptism is just an empty ceremony. It’s sad that in many cases man is ceremonially baptized into the church fellowship by water without ever being baptized into God’s family. He doesn’t enter into the kingdom of God and partake of it by the Spirit. There is no relationship without the Spirit and without a relationship there is no life. Without salvation there can be no baptism; it always follows the commitment to follow Jesus:

Titus 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

Being born of the Spirit is an issue of the heart and not of the body (flesh). And while we are on the subject of the Spirit versus the flesh, let’s look at what it means to “not be in the flesh.”

THOSE NOT IN THE FLESH

Rom 8:9-14 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. 12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. 13 For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

Look at verse 9 and see the contrast between “in the flesh” and “in the spirit:”

In the Flesh: Godet defines the flesh as the inclination to seek self-satisfaction in everything; the sinful propensity from Adam. Simply put, it’s an attitude or inclination that operates in complete rebellion to God’s divine will for us; our flesh seeks only self-gratification. So, being in the flesh means the same as being in Adam who was un-regenerated man (not made new).

In the Spirit: This is the actual fact of His indwelling presence. This is the birthright of all believers and the seal of their redeemed status; the proof of the promise of eternal life.

Now look at verses 10 and 11. The human body is subject to death from a dying world because of sin, but the reborn spirit of man, through the presence of the life-giving Spirit of God, has eternal life; the justification of Christ. To add power to verse 10, Paul stated that this very same Spirit—the one who raised Jesus from the dead—dwells in you!

In verses 12 and 13 we hear Paul tell us that there are three things by which we can identify the part we play in all of this:

1. We must consider first the “things of the Spirit” rather than the flesh.

2. We must choose to “walk according to the Spirit.”

3. We must put to death “through the Spirit” the deeds of the body (die to our self-controlled self-righteous desires); the soulish desires that still want what our old nature wanted and had.

When we get to verse 14 he sums it up by saying that either we aspire to the things of the Spirit or to those of the flesh. Either we have considered, chosen, and put our flesh to death or we haven’t. And if we have, we still must be on guard as the world in which we live continually tries to draw us into the old desires of the flesh. The enemy constantly preys on our individual weaknesses in this area—he knows them all! What desires do we see presented in most television programming; flesh or spirit? The only response is to stand on the Word and in the Holy Spirit’s presence and power; against which the enemy cannot stand.

If we set our mind on the things of the flesh (the soulish desires of our old nature), things to which we who are alive in Christ are now dead, our relationship with Jesus will most certainly suffer. It all comes down to a daily choice—every hour, every minute, and every second of every day. Consider the words of Joshua:

Josh 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

Everyone’s body will die and decay but their spirit is eternal, and in the end the only distinction between a believer and a non-believer is where your spirit will spend eternity; with God or separated from God. As the bride of Christ we have the promise of His presence, and we need to constantly remind ourselves of that fact and choose to follow the Spirit rather than our old nature that was crucified on the Cross with Christ. And it’s only by the power of the Holy Spirit that we are able—on a moment-by-moment basis—to keep our flesh on that Cross.

The world is pulled and pushed by, and follows after, “feelings” because it’s by them that the flesh is satisfied. As believers in Jesus we can’t afford to let ourselves operate that way. We know who it is that we “have,” but we need to constantly remind ourselves that feelings are not a part of the equation.

I mean that it is not sensations that are the real thing. The real thing is the gift of the Holy Spirit which can’t usually be—perhaps not ever—experienced as a sensation or emotion. The sensations are merely the response of your nervous system. Don’t depend on them. Otherwise when they go and you are once more emotionally flat (as you certainly will be quite soon), you might think that the real thing had gone too. But it won’t. It will be there when you can’t feel it. May even be most operative when you can feel it least.

C.S. Lewis

CHAPTER 7

HOW DO WE GET HIS PRESENCE AND WHY?

The human intellect even in its fallen state is an awesome work of God, but it lies in darkness until it has been illuminated by the Holy Spirit. Our Lord has little good to say of the unilluminated mind, but He revels in the mind that has been renewed and enlightened by grace. He always makes the place of His feet glorious; there is scarcely anything on earth more beautiful than a Spirit-filled mind, certainly nothing more wonderful than an alert and eager mind made incandescent by the presence of the indwelling Christ.

A. W. Tozer

So how do we unlock His presence and potential in our life? How do we illuminate our intellect? The answer and results are all built upon the two steps we all took in becoming the bride of Christ.

BY ASKING IN PRAYER

Luke 11:13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?

As we noted previously, the key to receiving the Holy Spirit is to ask, and the same holds true with respect to having His active presence in our life. He is always resident in the bride of Christ, but his activity is in direct proportion to her asking. Remember, the key to hearing His voice is to “be still” because His voice is quiet and peaceful, and it's hard to hear in the noise-cluttered environment we live in. Have you ever noticed how you don’t even have to work at creating it? The world takes care of that for us all by itself. How convenient.

We receive Him when we’re born again but we need to continue to ask for His manifested presence every moment thereafter. The life of the Spirit stands in bold contrast to the life of the enemy: light versus dark, peace versus confusion, faith versus fear, and joy versus depression. He is the resident power of God within us, but that power is only potential (dunamis) and we are the ones who have to light the fuse. And as we use that power in ministering to others we need a fresh filling. That’s why we noted earlier that “be being filled” is an ongoing event; Eph 5:18. Think about how Jesus must feel when He sees so many of His bride living a defeated life; we have not because we ask not (James 4:2; John 15:16).

BY REPENTING

Acts 2:38 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.

To repent (metanoeo) mans to think differently, reconsider, or change direction. Baptized (baptizo) means the ceremony of ablution; washing. Remember that we saw earlier that the ceremony of baptism is an outward sign of an inward change; repentance. The key is that we purpose or determine in our heart to change direction. Our baptism is a clear, public demonstration of the repentance that has occurred on the inside and our identification with Jesus as our Lord and Saviour. His name is the only one in which there is the total remission (forgiveness) of all sin. To be baptized in His name is to identify with Him and be set apart or consecrated in His service. I like to see it as being totally devoted to Him in every part of my life. I'm not there yet but I'm working on it, and that’s why I need the Holy Spirit. He is the one who leads us into repentance for the sin that He has revealed to us. He is a gift that can never be taken away. He's the invited guest who never leaves us. But remember, our actions can cause Him to withdraw if we grieve Him.

BY BEING GOD IN-DWELT

The Temple

2 Cor 6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

The word agreement (sugkatathesis) means an accordance of sentiments and elaborates the thought by questioning what sentiments (beliefs) are in agreement with God. As we have been seeing, the Holy Spirit is resident in us and Paul stated the fact that we are therefore the temple of the living God. To dwell in is to live in, and it is God’s promise that as part of being our God He will do just that.

The question to be answered, however, is how are we treating the temple of the living God in our everyday lives? Are we treating it in the same way that the Israelites treated the temple that God gave them? In some respects I imagine that we do, but do we really understand the reverence for God that they had? Remember that nothing was more of an abomination to the Jew than the thought of an idol in the temple, yet in their history this happened several times (2 Chr 29:5-16; Ezek 44).

We need to consciously remind ourselves that we are His temple and that His presence is always with us; I will never leave thee nor forsake thee (Heb 13:5). God created each one of our hearts individually and He has promised to reside in each and every one through His Spirit. In doing so He alone has made us His people by choosing to live among us in the flesh by His Son and now in us by His Spirit. All other gods are dead and they only have graves, but our God is living and we are His living temples, making us His Glory here on earth.

The Greater One

1 John 4:4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

The little children here are baby Christians who received the Greater One the moment they were born again. The reference to “them” in this verse is understood in a couple of different ways. First it is assumed to refer to the false prophets mentioned in verse 1. Secondly it is assumed to refer to the spirits that don’t confess Christ; the spirit of the antichrist. While I am no authority in determining the exact meaning I can actually see no conflict in either translation.

If it is the false prophets then they are being controlled and led by the god of this world just as he controls his spirits. So whether it is the spirit led prophet or the spirits of the antichrist themselves, the answer is still the same. The Holy Spirit within every believer is greater than the one in world. Remember that the next time the devil shows up dressed as a deliveryman with a “thought” to deliver. We have the power of the Holy Spirit, which is greater than that of the enemy because Jesus has already defeated him (Rev 1:8), and we have the power to decline his delivery.

Bearing Witness To Ourselves and Others

Rom 8:14-16 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. 15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. 16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:

We need to recognize that being God In-dwelt means that we are a witness to others by the way we lead our lives. What we are, who we are, and who we follow become readily apparent to the non-believer. The Holy Spirit is constantly bearing witness with our spirit that we are God's sons and daughters, and if we heed the message, our witness will change and become more and more like Jesus as we grow from teknon to huios; from the adopted sons of God to the fully mature sons of God.

I once shared with a group of young adults that we can’t really evangelize without witnessing, but we are always witnessing without evangelizing. We all have an individual sphere of influence, God has given us spiritual authority over it, and our witness has far more effect on that sphere of influence than we can imagine. There are spiritual things going on around us all the time that we are usually unaware of. Sadly, the opposite should be true because we have the Holy Spirit.

Our relationship with Jesus is wide open for the spirit world to see, just as our natural life is open for man to see. We are charged with the responsibility of bringing the light that resides within us into a dark world and letting it shine brightly. This causes problems for us because the world that rejects that light is going to reject us also. Haven’t we all had that person who, for no apparent reason, really dislikes us? It’s just like the times when our spirit, through the leading of the Holy Spirit, warns us about someone or something of the world. We get that little check down inside that cautions us about that person or situation. Those of the world witness to our spirit by the spirit of the one who is in them, the spirit of this world; Satan.

In summary let me put it this way. Our witness will affect a response from those of the world in one of two ways. Either they will be drawn to the light within us or they will be repelled by it. Their response is a direct result of what is going on inside them. We need to pay close attention to the ones that are drawn to the light in us because it reflects the working of the Holy Spirit in their lives. It may be a beginning interest or it may be a full-blown hunger for what they see in us. We need to be ready with the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony (Rev 12:11). The blood of the lamb is the Gospel and our testimony is the witness of what Jesus has done in our life. For this we need to be instant in and out of season (2 Tim 4:2), and that can't happen unless we're tuned into the one who has come along side to assist; the Holy Spirit.

The Power

2 Tim 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

Luke 24:49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Here is that word again, let’s look at the whole definition:

Dunamis (doo'‑nam‑is); force (literally or figuratively); specially, miraculous power (usually by implication, miracle itself): ability, abundance, meaning, might, worker of miracles, power, strength, violence, mighty (wonderful) work.

This is the miracle working power we have in Jesus that is to be unlocked as we yield to the control of the Holy Spirit. Let’s look a little deeper at the word and note one very powerful thought. Dunamis is the very miracle itself just waiting inside us. Listen to the way Adam Clarke described the word as it is used in 2 Tim 1:7... to work miracles, to confound enemies, to support us in trials, and enable us to do that which is lawful and right in His sight.

Now in Luke 24:49 we get a view of just how that power is received from the Lord. The word “endued” (enduo) reflects the meaning of being clothed with power as a stamp of authority from heaven (Rom 13:14; 1 Cor 15:53; Gal 3:27; Col 3:9-10). The following paraphrases the comments made by Matthew Henry concerning why we are given this power:

- That the Holy Spirit might reside within us ever bringing Jesus to our remembrance;

- That our sharing of the Gospel might be accompanied by a demonstration of His power to the hearts of those hearing the message; and

- That we might be able to work miracles as a testimony of the truth that we speak.

When do we get this power? The moment we receive the Holy Spirit, the very moment of our salvation; read Acts 1:8 again.

Before we leave this subject let me be sure that we all understand how this power fits into the bigger picture. Satan’s power is dunamis, which we also have, but more importantly we have exousia; jurisdictional power. We have the delegated, governmental authority to control the enemy that has been given to us by Jesus, a power that Satan doesn’t have over us.

Manifesting What—The Anointing

The Holy Spirit's activities in a believer's life are pictured in terms associated with anointing. In the New Testament, anointing is frequently used in connection with healing. Jesus' disciples anointed the sick (Mark 6:13), and James instructed the elders of the church to anoint the sick with oil (James 5:14). It also refers to the anointing of the Holy Spirit, which brings understanding (1 John 2:20, 27).

This anointing isn't only for kings, priests, and prophets, it's for everyone who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ. The anointing occurs physically with a substance such as oil, myrrh, or balsam. But it is also a spiritual anointing, as the Holy Spirit anoints a person's heart and mind with the love and truth of God. It is the anointing that brings wisdom and understanding (revelation).

1 John 2:20 But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.

1 John 2:27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.

In verse 20 the word unction is charisma, and it’s the same word used in verse 27 for anointing. It speaks of a special endowment (ability) of the Holy Spirit. The meaning is to be rubbed in as an ointment or anointed with oil as in the Old Testament (1 Sam 16:13). Verse 20 tells us this special ability comes from the Holy One, Jesus. And it’s because of this unction (His Spirit) that we know all things (the truth), and the truth is the Gospel as opposed to the false teachings of the world (spirit of the antichrist); verse 27.

As priests and kings for the Lord (Rev 1:6; 5:10), every member of the bride of Christ has been anointed with the Spirit. Jesus called us and gave us the Holy Spirit to minister in these offices, and just as the Levites in the Old Testament we too are set apart and anointed for God’s service. We are given the unction to understand all we need to know about Him, not to understand all the things of this world.

Some believe that we have been given the Holy Spirit to make us wise in the things of the world; look once again at 1 Cor 2:14-15. We are spiritual beings that have a mind and live in a body, but our real home is the spirit realm. The Holy Spirit abides within us and we know the truth. Therefore we do not believe the lie, the message of the antichrist.

John 16:13: Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

And for us guys, it’s critical to remember that the kingdom into which we have been called to be priests, and kings is right there within the four walls of our very own castle. We have been called to be the spiritual head of our families, and it isn’t an option to defer that responsibility to our wives. When we do it puts our wives in a very difficult position, one in which they were not designed to operate. The result is an upside down castle with all the inhabitants in a spiritually confused state. The problem isn't that our wives can’t or won’t take on the role we have abdicated; the problem is that we have gotten things out of order and are requiring our wives to take on responsibilities for which they were not designed. The responsibility is ours and we have Jesus as our leadership example, and He has given us the anointing to lead in love; Eph 5:21-33. Men, the underlying ingredient is found in verses 25 and 28 of chapter 5—check it out. Next we'll look at the releasing of the anointing that resides in the bride of Christ; the Baptism of the Spirit.

CHAPTER 8

EMPOWERING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

The disciples represented a wide range of backgrounds and life experiences, but apparently they had no more leadership potential than those who were not chosen. The one characteristic they all shared was their willingness to obey Jesus. After Jesus’ ascension, they were filled with the Holy Spirit and empowered to carry out special roles in the growth of the early church.

Unknown

The issue of The Baptism of the Holy Spirit has often been confused within the bride of Christ and has even become a doctrine unto itself. While the controversy will continue until Jesus comes again it's my intention to look at the issue in the context of God’s Word. If we examine the subject as we should by the Word of God it ought not to be confusing. However, what seems to confuse the subject is not “the baptism” but “speaking in tongues.” So let’s start with what the “baptism” is and what it isn’t.

RECEIVING HIS POWER—MAKING HIM RESIDENT (BEING BORN AGAIN)

John 3:5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

Water Baptism has been thoroughly discussed previously; it’s the outward display of an inward change of the heart. The immersion in water represents our identification with Jesus’ death and the rising out of the water with His resurrection to eternal life. It further signifies that we have already received the gift of the Holy Spirit just as Jesus promised. He entered our heart the moment we asked Jesus to forgive our sins and take control of our lives. We DO NOT receive the Holy Spirit as a result of water baptism. We receive Him as a result of our decision to accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour; we do not receive Him at some later date. Water baptism is not getting something from God but in reality, giving something to God—the public notice that we have given Him our heart.

RELEASING HIS POWER IN YOU—MAKING HIM PRESIDENT (BAPTISM OF THE HOLY SPIRIT)

Acts 10:44-47 While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. 45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. 46 For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter, 47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?

Baptism of the Holy Spirit is a separate issue and it can occur at any time after we are “born again;” even before water baptism. It represents the unlocking of the power of the Holy Spirit within us for the work of the ministry to which each of us has been called; the ministry of reconciliation (2 Cor 5:18-19; Acts 20:24); spreading the Gospel (good news) to man in order to reconcile man to God.

We need the power of the Holy Spirit in order to complete the call that God has put on our lives. The baptism of the Holy Spirit represents our asking for the release of that power in our lives. We are, in fact, submitting ourselves to His leadership and total control of our lives. We will look at speaking in “other tongues” and speaking “in tongues” in a moment but for now go back and read Acts 10:44-47 and see that speaking in tongues was just “one” evidence of having been baptized in the Holy Spirit. Also, as a side note, look at when they did speak in other tongues; it was before they were baptized in water, but it could just as easily have been after.

TONGUES AND OTHER TONGUES

Now let’s look at the issue of speaking in other tongues and speaking in tongues for they are quite different and are often confused. I should note here that there are many varied views on this subject and what follows is my own understanding of the subject from reading the Scripture. I believe that it is a gift for today for all believers, but it’s a gift that is misunderstood and often abused. With that in mind let’s see if we can determine what the Word of God has to say.

Peter said (Acts 10) that The Holy Ghost fell on those who heard the word and believed. It was evidenced by the fact that they began speaking in tongues. This is speaking in a heavenly language that is not of this world, which is often referred to as a prayer language in that it is given to us to worship God. When we pray in tongues it is a perfect prayer from God—through us by the Holy Spirit—and back to God. We do not get our mind (our old soulish nature) in the way in this type of prayer. We are just the vessel uttering that prayer, which is generated by the Holy Spirit. And we are built up by it as our voice is lifted up to God in worship with the utterance of the Holy Spirit. And at the same time our faith is being built up, making us stronger. Look at the following verse from the book of Jude:

Jude 1:20 But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost.

Jude 1:20 But you, dear friends, must build up your lives ever more strongly upon the foundation of our holy faith, learning to pray in the power and strength of the Holy Spirit. TLB

Praying and speaking in tongues is a gift from the Holy Spirit for “all” that ask. It’s given to help us glorify God, build up our faith, and make us strong in our walk with the Lord. Today many refer to the Baptism of the Holy Spirit as “being filled with the Spirit.” This is incorrect and is misleading. We were filled with Him the moment we were born again. We are just releasing His power—being baptized in His power—for the work of the ministry.

- I made Him resident when I was born again.

- I made Him president when I yielded to His authority.

Now I'm going to come back to speaking in tongues in a moment, but first we need to contrast it with speaking in other tongues.

The first example of this came on the Day of Pentecost when the disciples were baptized in the Holy Spirit. Pause here for a moment and read Acts 2:1-21. Here are some important verses to consider:

- (4) And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

- (6) Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language.

- (7-8) And they were all amazed and marveled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?

- (11) we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God.

- (12)And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, what meaneth this?

- (13) Others mocking said, these men are full of new wine.

- (15) For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.

- (16) But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;

- (17) And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: 18. And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:

We first need to note that what the disciples received was the baptism of the Holy Spirit in power; they did not receive the Holy Spirit. That had already been done before Jesus’ resurrection:

John 20:22 ... And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost.

Now notice that it is clear the disciples were speaking in tongues that were “unknown” to them. The tongues were the various languages of all those present; languages that were completely unknown to the disciples but know to those listening.

Here we have an example of the miraculous power of the Holy Spirit in demonstration to others for purpose of validating the Gospel. Those present marveled that they heard the message, each in his own tongue; from these uneducated men. Notice that they asked the very question for which the “demonstration” was intended; what meaneth this? Yet some thought they were drunk.

Peter was quick to answer the question by pointing out that they were under the power of the Holy Spirit as was predicted by Joel to occur at the time of the Messiah (the last days). Joel said that your sons and daughters shall prophesy (Joel 2:28). To prophesy here means to “speak by divine inspiration and with divine authority” and that is what the disciples were doing.

Look at verse 11: we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. It should be noted that the audience was comprised of Jews who had some understanding of the wonderful works of God from their history (Luke 1:49; Ps 71:19, 26:7; 66:3, 92:5, 104:24). Whether or not they spoke of the miracles of Jesus is not clear but, after Peter’s preaching the Gospel there were 3,000 souls added to the kingdom.

The difference here is that the Holy Spirit gave them utterance in earthly languages, albeit ones which they didn't know or understand. In contrast, speaking or praying in tongues is a language that is not known by man unless God has given the gift of interpretation of tongues to someone present when the message is given.

Let’s look at an example of this from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians; chapter 14. Within the church at Corinth there had been disorder in the services due to speaking in tongues by members of the body. The issue was not about speaking in tongues however, it was about keeping everything decently and in order during the service. Look up 1 Cor 14 so you can refer to it as we look at a couple of key points.

Paul differentiates between prophesying and speaking in an unknown tongue. He tells us that when we speak in an unknown tongue we are speaking to God and not to man; we are worshiping Him and edifying or building up our faith in the process. When we prophesy the Word of the Lord in a known tongue we are speaking to man in order to edify him. Look at 14:2: For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to man but to God.

Without launching into a lengthy discussion let me just say that this is not to be confused with the gift of prophecy. That gift is for man to be used of God to speak to man. Prophecy (preaching the Word) is for the edification of the church; see verse 3. Today this is always associated with advancing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Now verse 4.

Edifieth (oikodomeo) has the meaning of building a house. One who speaks in an unknown tongue builds up his faith and his spirit by strengthening and building his relationship with God. I find this especially to be true in the area of praise and worship as well as prayer. He goes on to say that the one who speaks in “unknown tongues” should pray that he be given the interpretation by God that those who hear him would be edified and not left to wonder what was said and for what purpose. He notes that we should be praying and singing both in unknown tongues and known tongues (understanding). Beginning in verse 18 Paul summarizes the issue that was facing the church; should we edify ourselves in church or others? In verse 19 he shares his personal desire that he would rather speak clearly and teach others in church than to speak in unknown tongues to God.

1 Cor 14:18-19 I thank my God I speak with tongues more than you all; 19 yet in the church I would rather speak five words with my understanding, that I may teach others also, than ten thousand words in a tongue.

Understanding (nous) refers to the intellect, the mind or meaning. He reasons in these verses that speaking in unknown tongues is a gift from God that he cherishes and he sees its purpose in church as a sign and a witness of the Holy Spirit to the believer; if there is an interpretation. This is not prophesying in a known language (understanding), which is for the non-believer. He cherishes speaking in tongues but because of the unbelievers present in church he would rather speak so that they can understand the message.

The problem in the Corinthian church was that everyone was trying to get into the act with psalms, doctrines, tongues, revelations, and interpretations. The issue was disorder, not the speaking in tongues.

Now the key to those speaking in tongues comes in verse 27; let there be an interpretation. Why? Because the unlearned in the audience will not have a clue without it, and if they can’t hear the message how will they ever be converted? We all know that confusion comes from the devil because God is not the author of confusion (33). Through confusion the message of the Gospel is lost on those who can’t understand. In order to prevent this, the Lord has given the gift of interpretation (1 Cor 12:10) so that decency and order in the service can be maintained (40) and the unbeliever—and believer as well—can be edified. Now finally, before we summarize this section we need to read verse 39 very carefully:

1 Cor 14:39 Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues.

Paul tells us all to covet (zeeloute; have a warm feeling about or zealously desire) to prophesy (profeeteuein; speak under divine inspiration) and not to forbid (kooluete; to hinder or keep from) speaking in tongues (gloossais; a language not naturally acquired).

The issue of speaking and/or praying in tongues is one that has divided the body of Christ for thousands of years and is not likely to go away in our lifetime. What I am about to say is based upon my study and understanding of God’s Word. I believe all of it and not just part. If we start eliminating certain sections that we don’t agree with then we might just as well throw it all out. I firmly stand on all or nothing!

Speaking in tongues is for all saints and it is for today. God has given us this gift by His Holy Spirit for the purpose of worshiping Him and building up our faith in His Word. It is also given as a sign and a wonder to the believing world that the power of God rests within us in the presence of the Holy Spirit. Paul, quite correctly, admonished us that we must not let our services get out of decency and order by everyone trying to exercise the gifts at one time. It is clearly the responsibility of not just the leaders but all of us to insure that this doesn't happen. The Holy Spirit doesn’t bring confusion into a service; that is clearly the realm of the enemy. We always need to remember the unbelievers in our midst and what message they receive. Is it one of self-edification or is it the Gospel of Jesus Christ?

The gift of speaking in tongues is yours for the asking. God is not a man that He should lie (Num 23:19), and He is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34). Paul said that he was glad he spoke in tongues more than all those at Corinth. I, too, am glad that I speak in tongues for it has lifted me up at those times when I have been so far down I didn’t know which way was up and I didn’t even know how to pray (Rom 8:26). It has also helped me at those times when I was so filled with the joy of the Lord that I couldn’t even come up with the words to praise Him (1 Pet 1:8).

Receiving this gift requires nothing more than simply asking God for it in faith; believing. It's as simple as it sounds, just ask the Holy Spirit to lead you and begin to speak. The Word tells us that they began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance (Acts 2:4). It is the same for unknown tongues; He gives us the gift and administers it. How many times do we see in the Bible that it took action on the part of the individual to receive their healing or the answer to their prayer? God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

So, what is speaking in tongues? It’s just one form of evidence that you have received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. There are other gifts of the Spirit as well as the fruit of the Spirit that evidence His presence in you. You have asked for and received the releasing of His power in your life. Does that mean that if you don’t speak in tongues that He has not released that power in you? No, speaking in tongues is just “one” evidence of the Holy Spirit in you. You’re asking Him and authorizing Him to take control of your life to manifest the power of God in you so that you can live a victorious life releasing that power. The Holy Spirit is a gentleman and He won’t force you to do anything that you don’t want to do. He is the power of God, here for our benefit as the one who comes alongside to help, but it’s up to us to ask for His help. Ask for His presence (be born again), be baptized in water (be circumcised), and be Baptized in the Spirit (relinquish control to Him), releasing His power in you.

Finally, let me be very clear. I know many brothers and sisters in Christ that do not speak in tongues or other tongues and their lives are fully indwelled by the presence of the Holy Spirit. He manifests His presence in their lives in many ways. I also know many who speak in tongues but they choose to limit that gift to their prayer language. And I know many who have been given the gift of interpretation.

It's all very simple when you think about it. God has given us His Spirit, and when we fully submit to Him—exchanging “our” control for “His” control—we experience the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. It may or may not result in speaking in tongues, but that is not the issue. The issue is our allowing Him to empower us for the ministry of reconciliation. It is His power in and through us that advances the Kingdom of God here on earth.

Have I spoken in tongues… yes. Have I had the blessing of being able to interpret a message in tongues… yes. But I will tell you that the greatest blessing I have is to come to the Lord in those difficult times when I don’t know how to pray and allow the Holy Spirit to pray for me. Or those times when I am so full of love for Him that I just want to worship Him and the Holy Spirit takes control and takes me to a level of worship I can’t comprehend. Here is a little something to help you put it in perspective:

- Tongues is for Adoration

- Prophecy is for Explanation

Next let’s look at the result and the benefits of being empowered by the Spirit to speak in tongues. What an awesome God we love and serve!

CHAPTER 9

WHY THE GIFT OF TONGUES?

“Tongues” is a heart language. As a baby lies in his mother’s arms and babbles to his mother—they both understand what he means. So we lie in God’s arms and babble to him. And we both understand.

John Harper

Last chapter we looked at what the Baptism of the Spirit is and how the gift of tongues fits into the equation. This time let’s look at just a few of the reasons why God has given the gift to us. What does it do?

IT EDIFIES (CHARGES UP)

1 Cor 14:4 He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself; but he that prophesieth edifieth the church.

One of the greatest benefits of speaking in an unknown tongue is the closeness it brings to your relationship with Jesus. It is yet another facet of this wonderful relationship we call the Christian walk. It’s not something forced on an individual, quite the contrary it is only given if asked for. One of the greatest benefits is found in this verse is that we “edify ourselves.” Now let’s look at some of the benefits outlined in the Word.

IT BUILDS FAITH

Jude1:20 But ye, beloved building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost,

In this verse Jude encourages us to build up our faith by praying in the Holy Ghost. God has given us spiritual weapons to be used in building and growing to spiritual maturity (Eph 6:12). One of the greatest of these is prayer, which is an essential requirement for spiritual vitality in our daily lives. Prayer shouldn’t be something we do in the flesh; we’re to be guided by the Holy Spirit who desires to empower us to pray. As we saw in the last chapter, this can be done in both known (understanding) and unknown tongues. Jude encouraged us to build ourselves up by praying in the Holy Ghost; building up our faith. Matthew Henry said that prayer is the nurse of faith; that paints an interesting picture.

Praying in the spirit and in the natural both build up your faith, but the difference for me is that in the spirit I get “me” out of the way. There are times when my mind and heart are in sync and my prayers are right on and flow perfectly. At other times I am disjointed and out of sorts. When I am like that my prayer doesn’t seem very effectual; energeo - mighty in work (James 5:16).

We need both kinds of prayer in our life and I am especially thankful for the option to pray in the spirit during those Rom 8:26 times. There are also those wonderful times when the joy just seems to overpower us and we can’t even speak… the words just don’t come.

IT GIVES THANKS

1 Cor 14:15 What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also:

Paul says that he prays with the spirit (s; his spirit) and with understanding (his mind). He sings with the spirit (s) and with understanding. Understanding here is the Greek word nuos, which means intellect, mind, human thought, or feeling. Or, put another way, Paul prayed in both an unknown tongue and a known tongue. He told us that he sang and prayed in both the understanding and the spirit and that should encourage us to do the same. To rejoice in spiritual prayer and song to the Lord is a wonderful blessing and gift from God.

YOUR SPIRIT DOES THE PRAYING—YOUR MIND IS CUT OUT OF THE LOOP

Communing With God

1 Cor 14:2 For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries.

Many times today we see people speaking in tongues with the purpose of drawing attention to them. We must remember that we are speaking directly to God by the leading of His Spirit. Anyone who overhears us doesn’t understand us unless they or someone present has the gift of interpretation of tongues (1 Cor 12:10). If we pray in tongues, whether in public or in private, we are worshiping God and edifying or building up our faith; it’s a wonderfully precious time. It takes your mind out of the picture and for me that’s a great blessing.

1 Cor 14:14 For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful.

To have “unfruitful understanding” means that you don’t understand what you’re saying. I like to think of it this way. The Father speaks a special prayer to the Holy Spirit; the Holy Spirit speaks that same prayer to my spirit; and my spirit, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, speaks that very same prayer (John 16:13) back to the Father. Tom didn’t get Tom’s attitude, opinion, or two cents worth into the prayer. As I mentioned previously, this type of prayer is wonderful for those times when we just don’t know what to pray.

IN LINE WITH GOD'S PERFECT WILL AND PRAYING FOR THE UNKNOWN DESIRES OF GOD

Romans 8:26-27 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

This is the kind of prayer that incorporates only God’s perfect will. It’s for those times when we are overcome with confusion or pain (mental or physical). It’s for when we're seeking the perfect will of God and we need to let God do the asking for us. There is no more powerful prayer than to pray for His perfect will in a given situation. I can tell you from the hard learned lessons file that if we seek His perfect will it takes out all the guesswork.

We have already seen that God is only interested in our good and He desires that we are blessed abundantly. Our problems come when we start interjecting our agenda into His perfect plan. The secret lies in setting aside our personal desires and seeking His. If we will do that He is faithful to make His perfect will the “desire of our heart.” Let me give you a personal example.

At the age of 54 the last thing on my mind was to start another family. Our children were grown and the house was quiet. Diane and I made a decision a long time ago however, to focus with all our heart on God’s perfect will for our lives. That was certainly centered in the area of business because we knew that He had asked us to do some things for Him that would open the door for ministry to orphans in China.

For almost a year there was a simple little thought that would enter my mind, which I would immediately dismiss; Would you bring one of my children into your life? My response was always the same; Now that’s one weird thought. Finally I decided to find out if it was my head, the empty nest syndrome or perhaps it might just be God. In turning this over to the Lord I prayed in the natural and I prayed in spirit; I wanted God’s perfect will. The result was quite astounding in that He completely changed my heart without my asking Him to. One day it was not a question of whether it was God or not… it was a burning desire in my heart. When I finally shared it with Diane I found out that she had the same burning desire although we had “never” discussed the idea.

If we don’t yield to the urging of the Spirit we are going to miss some wonderful blessings. I firmly believe that attaining God’s perfect will is aided greatly by praying His will back to Him in the spirit. In this case we both had a burning desire (from God) to see little Amanda in our home. The odds were totally against us and the cost was prohibitive, but God knew who she was, what orphanage in China she was in, and He brought it all to pass with miracle after miracle after miracle.

But there were those moments when the enemy came to tell us that it couldn’t possibly be, that we were too old, that there wasn't enough time, or that we would never have the money required. That was when it was so comforting to be able to lift up our hearts to God in a language that only He understands. The enemy and his words of doubt and fear were short-circuited right out of the loop. A sure way to align ourselves with God is to pray His desires back to Him. But praying in tongues is more than that as in the process we get something very important and very immediate… it builds up our faith. And with nothing more than a dream in our hearts and a burning desire in our spirits we turned it all over to the Lord in prayer.

There was not a single “need” that He didn’t meet in the most miraculous way—every penny was provided out of thin air at just the right time. Every barrier was torn down at the last moment, when it appeared that our dream was over. But the most beautiful part was how God used His children in so many different ways to be a part of the process. And we know that each and every one was blessed not only here on earth but will be blessed again when they go home.

It was an amazing five-year journey during which I spent many hours praying in both the understanding and in tongues; mostly in tongues. We were challenged like we had never been at any other time in our lives, and the enemy provided many opportunities to give up. But God was faithful to His promise, and through His Spirit and His gift that allowed me to cry out to Him with the perfect prayer we were able to persevere to the end. And every morning since the day we brought Amanda home, that little smile has been a blessing that we can’t explain in the natural. Amanda represents not only the heart of God but living proof that He will use miracle after miracle to bring about His perfect will for your life if you will just get out of the way and let Him lead. And when the task at hand seems overwhelming and impossible, He has given us a wonderful gift to keep us in the game; tongues.

Yes, the gift of tongues is for today and it's for you. Don’t be quick to dismiss this wonderful blessing, don’t take my word for it, seek God’s Word and ask Him to show you. Praying in tongues when I didn’t know what to pray for has gotten me through some very dark days, weeks, months, and years.

When God asks you to do something He will always make provision for your every need. And the exciting part is that it is never how or when you expect it; it's always enough and never too late. The enemy can never tell me that God isn’t faithful—even when my faith is weak. All that God truly asks for is a willing, submitted, and believing heart. He will take care of all the rest.

Truly finding His will for your life isn’t that hard, but walking it out is sure to be challenging. For that reason He has given us this wonderful gift to communicate our deepest needs with Him—especially when we don’t know what they are.

We have covered a lot of ground in the past two chapters with this subject but it’s important to understand tongues by what the Word of God says. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is different from water baptism and is a separate event. But it is not receiving the Holy Spirit because that occurs the moment you repent and ask the Lord for forgiveness. At that very moment the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in you and He won’t leave you because Jesus said He will never leave you nor forsake you (Heb 13:5). This happens when we make that personal decision to let Jesus sit on the throne of our life in the form of His indwelling Spirit.

Speaking in tongues is nothing more than one evidence that you have given the Holy Spirit control of your life. Paul made it very clear that speaking or praying in the spirit is a gift that is available for ever believer. We must remember however, that it isn’t a requirement of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. We have the choice to ask God for this gift, but if we choose not to ask we still have the Holy Spirit. Remember, there are many evidences that the Holy Spirit is working in your life; how about the fruit of the Spirit or the other gifts of the Spirit? Just like praying in tongues, the fruit (karpos; plural; picked fruit) of the Spirit are evidence that He is actively working within us. In the next chapter we'll look at the gifts and fruit in detail and, if the truth were known, I would rather see the fruit more evident in my life than the gift of praying in tongues.

Praying in tongues draws us closer to God as individuals and edifies or builds up our faith. It’s also true that prophesying in tongues with the interpretation is a sign and wonder of the presence of the Holy Spirit. But without the interpretation it is of no value to the unbeliever and believer alike. Here are some thoughts to ponder:

- The Holy Spirit becomes resident within us when we are born again (Salvation).

- He becomes president when we make the conscious decision to let Him take control (Baptism of the Spirit).

- Speaking or praying in tongues is a gift for all from the Holy Spirit. We only need to ask for it.

- Praying in tongues is NOT a requirement of salvation or for receiving the Holy Spirit.

- Tongues is just one evidence that we have given the Holy Spirit control of our life. There are many others; more importantly the Fruit of the Spirit.

- Speaking in tongues is different from speaking in other tongues, which is speaking in another known language by someone who does not know that language (Acts 2).

- Tongues is a beautiful way to pray God’s perfect prayer back to Him by letting your spirit be led by the Holy Spirit.

- Tongues helps us to pray when we don’t know what to say in those times of great pain or of great joy.

- Tongues is a wonderful way to praise and worship the Lord; it ushers in the presence of the Holy Spirit is a way we can’t understand.

Every believer needs to experience the Baptism of the Holy Spirit because without releasing control to Him we are leading far less than the power filled lives that Jesus intends us to live. It’s the first step in the Dying-To-Self process because without His empowerment you will only be able to make momentary changes in your life, which are destined to fail. Only the power of the Holy Spirit can effect the changes required in our walk with the Lord as His presence brings both His gifts and His fruit.

Zech 4:6 Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.

Is tongues for today? I consider it one of the most precious gifts God has given to His bride in order to share those most intimate and personal moments. It is just one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit that we will look at next.

CHAPTER 10

GIFTS AND THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT

The Christian should resemble a fruit tree, not a Christmas tree! For the gaudy decorations of a Christmas tree are only tied on, whereas fruit grows on a fruit tree.

John R.W. Stott

We spent the past couple of chapters examining the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and the gift of tongues. Now let's take some time to look at not only the other gifts of the Spirit but also ay the all important evidence of His power operating in us; the fruit of the Spirit. First let’s take a look at the rest of the gifts that Paul tells us are manifested to all.

1 Cor 12:7-11 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. 8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; 9 To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; 10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: 11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.

The gifts are for all of us and are given as the Holy Spirit wills. Different gifts are given to each of us and they are primarily to be used for the building up of the bride of Christ. Each member of the bride supplies his or her gift(s) for the perfection of the bride; to profit the body. These gifts are in reality the manifestation of the Holy Spirit; His making Himself known to others. So as we have already looked at tongues so let’s briefly look at the other gifts (graces):

Word of Wisdom: (sophia; both worldly and spiritually) The revealed truth (wisdom) or the knowledge of God Himself. It is speech full of God’s wisdom under the influence of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 2:7).

Word of Knowledge: (gnosis; science) The practical application of wisdom to human life, which is often very specific. It’s commonly seen as “insight” (1 Cor 2:13).

Faith: (pistis; religious truth or truthfulness of God) The attachment of God’s faith to yours; the kind of faith that turns vision into reality. This is the miracle working faith as seen in Matt 17:20.

Healing: (im; cure) The ability to be a conduit for the healing power of Jesus; healing in His name like in James 5:14.

Working of Miracles: (dunamis; workers of power, strength or mighty works) The wonderful works that aren't necessarily just associated with healings. They are usually greater than the healing of diseases; creative miracles, casting out demons, or raising the dead (Mark 6:5; Acts 19:11).

Prophecy: (propheteia; prediction; scriptural or other) This is both in the prophesying and communication of the Word of God. It is related to both spiritual and natural events and is utterance under divine inspiration delivering exhortations, instructions, or warnings (Acts 11:27-28).

Discerning of Spirits: (pneuma; the human soul or mental disposition) The ability to search out and recognize the real from the unreal; to determine if a gift is from the Lord or from the enemy (1 John 4:1 and Acts 5:1-10).

Different Kinds of Tongues: (glossa; a language not naturally acquired) This can be both a known and an unknown tongue; an earthly or heavenly language.

Interpretation of Tongues: (hermenia; translation of glossa) This is the gift of interpreting a message that has been delivered in an unknown tongue.

All these gifts are a manifestation (phanerosis; exhibition, expression, or a bestowment) of the Holy Spirit in believers that are given to the bride of Christ. Some have been given more than one gift but every believer has at least one (1 Cor 12:7), which is (are) given and put in operation by the Holy Spirit as He wills.

WITHOUT LOVE THEY ARE NOTHING

1 Cor 13:1-4 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. 4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

Charity (agape; the God kind of love) undergirds every gift of the Holy Spirit and their operation. Charity, as contrasted with the extraordinary gifts, is both the most ordinary and by far the most important gift. No matter what other gifts we use for the Lord, they are in vane without love. Men have fought and died for centuries over Christianity and yet we still fail to live the Spirit of Christianity; God's love. Paul told us why the power of love in the manifestation of the gifts of the Spirit is so important:

1 Cor 13:4-6 Love is very patient and kind, never jealous or envious, never boastful or proud, never haughty or selfish or rude. Love does not demand its own way. It is not irritable or touchy. It does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice when others do it wrong. It is never glad about injustice, but rejoices whenever truth wins out (TLB).

If we understand this definition of agape then we can understand Jesus’ response when He was asked which is the most important commandment?

Matt 22:37-40 Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets

Look at this from Plato, concerning love as used here:

Love is our lord—supplying kindness and banishing unkindness; giving friendship and forgiving enmity; the joy of the good, the wonder of the wise, the amazement of the gods; desired by those who have no part in him, and precious to those who have the better part in him. In every word, work, wish, fear—pilot, comrade, helper, savior; glory of gods and men, leader best and brightest; in whose footsteps let every man follow, sweetly singing in his honor that sweet strain with which love charms the souls of gods and men.

LOVE COMES BEFORE THE GIFTS

1 Cor 14:1 Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy.

Paul doesn’t tell us to desire the gifts and love, he says to love and desire the gifts. But note in part (b) of this verse that prophesying or preaching the Word (sharing the Gospel) is more highly regarded than the spiritual gifts.

THE GIFTS ARE FOR THE BRIDE OF CHRIST

Eph 4:12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

In the original Greek there is no comma after saints. This will help us to better understand the intent of the statement; for the perfecting of the saints for the work of the ministry. The gifts are to perfect the bride of Christ to do the work, not to perfect the work. Perfecting (katartismon) means to correct that which is deficient. It intends the purifying and uniting of the bride by instruction and the building up of her faith. God has given us gifts so that we will be able to minister to each other and thereby strengthen one another for the individual and corporate battles the bride faces.

THE GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT ARE NOT THE FIVEFOLD GIFTS

Eph 4:11 and he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

The fivefold gifts, or oracle gifts, are administered by Jesus and are for the instruction of the bride. We need to be careful not to confuse them with the gifts of the Spirit. Jesus is the One who chooses some to become apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers.

THE GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT ARE NOT THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT

Gal 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

The fruit of the Spirit (plural) should all be evident in our lives as we walk in the Spirit. The word fruit in the Greek is karpos and it means fruit that has been picked from the tree or plucked from the vine that is evident in our life. Remember that Jesus told us He is the vine and that we are the branches (John 15:5), and if we will abide (remain, dwell, and stand) in Him we will bear much fruit (karpos). To contrast the difference between the gifts of the Spirit and the fruit of the Spirit we need to examine each of the fruits individually:

Love: (agape; the love of God; literally a love feast) This is the love that God has shed abroad within us (1 John 4:8, 16). It’s the love that underpins all of the gifts of the Spirit and sets us apart from the love of the world.

Joy: (chara; gladness, cheerfulness or glad delight; to be exceeding or greatly joyful) This word carries the meaning of rejoicing or great delight (Luke 2:10). Sometimes during times of sadness we are being prepared (enlarged) to receive the greatest joy (John 16:20; Rom 5:3-4; 2 Cor 7:4/8:2; Heb 10:34; Jas 1:2). Vines Expository Dictionary tells us that joy also comes from persecution for: Christ’s sake (Matt 5:11-12; Acts 5:41); faith (Rom 15:13; Phil 1:25), hope (Rom 5:2), and the joy of others (Rom 12:12).

Peace: (eirene; quietness or being set at one again) Peace is an interesting word. As used in the New Testament it describes a close and harmonious relationship between men (Matt 10:34; Rom 14:19) and nations (Luke 14:32; Acts 12:20; Rev 6:4). The underlying foundation, however, is the peace between man and God through the Gospel. We can see this in two scriptures, Acts 10:36 and Eph 2:17. In both cases the key to achieving peace is Jesus. This is the kind of peace that Jesus speaks of in John 14:27. It’s also the peace that brings about contentment and rest like we see in Phil 4:7. It truly means the peace that is: supreme or more excellent than all divine or human intellect (thought, feeling or will).

Longsuffering: (makrothumia; forbearance, fortitude or patience) This fruit is one that God demonstrated for us throughout the entire Bible. We can repeatedly see this in the Old Testament as He continued to forbear with Israel. One example with which we are all familiar took place during the time of Noah. From the time God told Noah to start building the ark until the flood came 120 years passed by, during which Noah preached repentance. But during that entire 120-year period he didn’t see one convert. That is the patience the Lord has given to us in the Holy Spirit, but like Noah we have to appropriate it in order for it to be evident in our lives.

Gentleness: (chrestotes; usefulness, goodness or kindness) Gentleness refers to the righteousness we have in Jesus. Look at Eph 2:7 and we see that God’s goodness comes to us through Jesus and therefore we have the fruit of gentleness within us. The meaning infers parents taking care of trying children. When we encounter someone who is gentle we almost always associate kindness with them. Look at some of our words that are readily associated with kindness: humanity, sympathy, charity, and compassion. Of all people in the world, the bride of Christ ought to be a shining example of gentleness.

Goodness: (agathosune; virtue or beneficence; coming from the word “good” and implying good things) Goodness in this sense refers to the moral quality that is found in those who have been born again in Christ. One commentator differentiates the goodness inferred in chrestotes (gentleness) as that of a gentle nature. It also means a goodness that may be harsh if necessary because of the moral condition that is within us as believers. In other words, doing good to others does not always mean that it will be done by the gentlest means. Matt 21:12-13 is an example in which Jesus cleans out the temple, as is Matt 23:13-29 where Jesus condemned the scribes and Pharisees. Our use of this word carries with it the understanding of rightness, decency, morality, and honesty.

Faith: (pistis; assurance, belief, moral conviction of truth or constancy) This is an assurance that is based upon hearing and is always associated with faith in God. In the Bible it’s used in a number of connections: trust (Rom 3:25; 1 Cor 2:5/15:14, 17; 2 Cor 1:24); trust-worthiness (Matt 23:23; Rom 3:3); the faithfulness of God (Gal 5:22); and faith (Acts 6:7/14:22; Gal 1:23; 3:25). This is faith in God and not in man; we will always be let down when our faith is set on man because man, in and of himself, is incapable of being faithful apart from Jesus. Faith, as a fruit of the Spirit, means that we have a firm grasp on God’s truth, that we have surrendered our will to His, and that we are demonstrating it in our lives. Vines gives us a good example of the difference in the faith of a believer and that of a non-believer: Abraham’s faith was in God ... not in God’s promise. The world puts a lot of faith in the promises of God from a selfish perspective while ignoring the more important source of the promises. They may pray to God but it’s only for some selfish need or desire.

Meekness: (prautes; mildness or humility) The contrast of the world’s view of meekness is clearly one of the outside versus the inside. Meekness refers to the inward mildness and humility of a believer as opposed to the world, which relates meekness to a person’s outward behavior towards others; how he relates to his fellowman. This fruit of the Spirit reflects our heart’s attitude toward God. Here is a good perspective from Vines:

Meek and lowly; it is only the humble heart which is also the meek, and which, as such, does not fight against God and more or less struggle and contend with Him. This meekness, however, being first of all a meekness before God, is also such in the face of men, even of evil men, out of a sense that these, with the insults and injuries which they may inflict, are permitted and employed by Him for the chastening and purifying of His elect..

Meek does not mean weak but rather humility grounded in the strength of the Greater One inside us. Because of His strength we need not be strong in and of ourselves... I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Phil 4:13). Anything God asks us to do we are fully equipped and capable of doing in Christ. Our meekness toward God is fruit of that understanding and it becomes evident to our fellowman.

Temperance: (egkrateia; self-control) Temperance comes from the word kratos, which means strength. It refers to one’s self-control; moderation, restraint, or prudence. In the context of the fruit of the Spirit it refers to the believer’s response to righteousness. Peter told us (2 Pet 1:6) that we need to add to our faith virtue (manly energy and moral excellence), to our virtue knowledge, and to our knowledge temperance (self-control). In other words, in our knowledge of God’s will we are to exercise self-control over our desires. And from Adam Clarke:

Putting a proper and limited use of all earthly enjoyments, keeping every sense under proper restraints, never permitting the animal part to subjugate (overcome) the rational.

One way of putting the fruit of the Spirit in perspective is to go back and read Gal 5:16-21 and see what they aren’t. Our renewed spirit, on the other hand, not only abstains from these but also has and bears spiritual fruit. Because He lives in us the fruit of the Holy Spirit resides in us. I like Matthew Henry’s summary:

Love - To love God and each other for His sake.

Joy - A constant delight in God shown in our cheerful attitude towards each other.

Peace - A peaceful conscience because of a peaceful relationship with God.

Long-suffering - Our ability to patiently set aside our anger.

Gentleness…Sweetness of temper.

Goodness - Kindness and willingness to do good to all.

Faith - Honesty in what we promise to others.

Meekness - Humility to govern our passions.

Temperance - Moderation in our enjoyments of life.

But remember, the first and foremost of the fruits is love. Reflect on that and re-read Matt 22:37-40.

I think it’s appropriate we sum up this brief study by listening once again to Bill Bright from his book The Holy Spirit—The Key To Supernatural Living:.

The fruit of the Spirit is love. Only as we live in love can we fulfill the will of God in our lives. The believer must become love-inspired, love-mastered and love-driven. Without the fruit of the Spirit (love), we are just a religious noise. The fruit of the Spirit is love, and it is manifested in joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control… The secret of a Spirit-controlled life is found in dedication to God. Put our all on the altar (Rom 12:1), and the Holy Spirit will fill your heart with the love of God.

In the next chapter time we will buckle down and consider What Is Our Responsibility To Him?

CHAPTER 11

WHAT IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY?

Sometimes it seems that our many words are more an expression of our doubt than of our faith. It is as if we are not sure that God’s Spirit can touch the hearts of people: we have to help him out and, with many words, convince others of his power. But it is precisely this wordy unbelief that quenches the fire.

Henri J.M. Nouwen

As we’ve seen, the Holy Spirit is a blessed gift from our bridegroom, and He isn't just interested in our spiritual growth, He's fully ready to supply all we need to draw us closer to Jesus. On the other hand, He's a gentleman and will never force Himself or His desires upon us. Where we walk, how we walk, and with whom we walk are our choices, and they're choices that have consequences.

BE “BEING FILLED” (A CONTINUAL PROCESS)

Eph 5:18-21 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; 19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; 20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; 21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

We touched on this earlier but it’s a very key ingredient in our successful walk. Being filled with the Spirit (pleerousthe; to continue to fill; be being filled) is to be a continual process, always requiring more of Him because we are to continually empty out to others; God designed us to be leaky vessels. Therefore we need to be continually filled so that we have the wisdom to understand the will of God. Note that this is contrasted with being drunk with wine wherein there is excess; loss of control. Being filled with the Spirit brings about exactly the opposite in our lives.

Paul used the example of drunkenness here because it related to a common practice used by the gentiles in pursuing their gods, which usually led to other sins. He made an interesting comparison to the festivals/orgies of the pagan god Bacchus, during which the people would get drunk and run through the streets singing loud songs. Against this practice he proposed that they worship in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord. Instead of being drunk with wine he encouraged them to be filled with the Spirit. Instead of raucous singing for themselves he suggested praise and worship for the Lord.

Not much has changed today has it? Man still associates drunkenness with his idols: sports, parties, self, etc. Those who are full of wine are certainly not going to be full of the Spirit and those who are full of the Spirit have no room for drunkenness. But when we read this verse we shouldn’t limit it to drunkenness, we need to open it up to all excesses. It’s the excesses in our lives that draw us away from our Lord and fill up those places that should be overflowing with His Spirit; the excesses that everyone notices. What are they seeing in us? Are we so full of the Spirit that He is overflowing in excess?

BALANCE THE WORD AND THE SPIRIT

Col 3:16 let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

Keep the Word and the Spirit in balance in your life. Too much Word opens up the door for legalism and too much Spirit opens the door for flakiness. My dear friend and brother Pastor Dave Baker put it well... he lived, taught, and preached it:

Too much Word and you dry up—Too much Spirit and you blow up—Balance the Word and the Spirit and you grow up.

If we will just trust in the Holy Spirit He will see to it that we don’t get out of balance. But it’s our responsibility to be vigilant concerning what we subject our spirit to. There are churches that are so hung up on the legal issues of the Word that the Holy Spirit couldn’t get in the front door if He tried. Then there are churches that are so super-spiritual and fixated on the manifestation of the Spirit that there is seldom time for the Word of Truth. God has given us both His Word and His Spirit, and the two—balanced together—will give us all we need.

I once heard Miles Monroe teach on living our lives in the perfect will of God. He used the illustration of buying a new video recorder. I’m dating myself and perhaps I should substitute a Smart Phone or a Tablet, but the message is the same. Without the owner’s manual we are destined to total frustration in trying to get it to operate correctly. Even with it we sometimes need to call customer service to get help understanding the instructions. No manufacturer in his right mind would send out a piece of equipment without enclosing an operating manual.

When God invented the human spirit He also prepared the owner’s manual and the associated customer service. When used together the Word and the Spirit will keep us running smoothly, if we read the owner’s manual and heed the directions! Men, when we get some new piece of equipment we always read the directions first don’t we? No? Then no wonder we always have to come back to the owner’s manual full of frustration after a lot of wasted time. Pride can be a painful thing!

God knew what He was doing in giving us both His Word and His Spirit because they both point to the same thing. The balancing of the two gives us stability in an unstable world, just what the rest of the world is looking for—Jesus.

DON’T QUENCH HIS PRESENCE

1 Thess 5:19 Quench not the Spirit.

Jesus gave us His Spirit after He departed as a gift that is present and active within each believer, a gift that is designed to lead us back to Him. The Holy Spirit is often portrayed as fire and it's interesting that Paul used the word “quench” in this verse. To quench in this case is abennumi, which means to extinguish or go out. Look how Paul, in contrast, gave direction to Timothy; I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up (kindle or cause to burn) the gift of God (2 Tim 1:6). Anything that cools or dampens the Spirit within us is rightfully referred to as quenching the Spirit. Look at some of the things we do that quench Him according to Albert Barnes:

Neglect of cultivating the Christian graces, or of prayer, of the Bible, of the sanctuary, of a careful watchfulness over the heart, will do it. Worldliness, vanity, levity, ambition, pride, the love of dress, or indulgence in an improper train of thought, will do it.

We quench Him when we deny or resist His gifts working in our lives. This is often done in ignorance of the manifestations of the Spirit and the operation of His gifts. We have all experienced those times when the Holy Spirit is moving in a service and, because of man’s schedule, we pour a bucket of water on the fire the Holy Spirit has kindled. I have been in services where the Holy Spirit was moving mightily in worship but was cut short so that the “full schedule” could be accomplished. The fire went out and was never rekindled for the rest of the service. The same thing happens in our own lives when we refuse to wait on His timing or for His Word.

We need to slow down and live more in the spiritual realm. It’s not only possible but it’s the very Will of God that we live in the spirit 24 hours a day. This doesn’t mean that we are on some weird spiritual high. No it means that we are so in tune with the Holy Spirit that we hear His every word. I have experienced those days and how different they are from the ones in which I have chosen to ignore Him and take control of things myself.

The difference is how we start our day and the attention we give to the fire that burns within us. Do we rekindle the coals first thing and watch and tend it throughout the day or do we throw a bucket of water on it before we go to work? Or, worse yet, do we fail to rekindle it from when we let it go out: yesterday, last week, last month, last year, or ...?

For a number of years Diane and I lived in the mountains in a cabin that had no central heat. Our main source of heat was a huge fireplace that heated the den, dining room, and kitchen. The bedroom and bathroom; well let’s just say they weren’t always warm (Diane might have more to say on the subject reflecting on those cold winter nights). So in the wintertime we kept a bed of coals in that fireplace 24 hours a day. The first thing every morning we would stir up those coals and add new logs to heat up the house once again. The Spirit is just like that. He is a bed of hot coals just waiting to be stirred up in your fireplace every morning. But remember that you need to bank up those coals before you go to bed. Then in the morning you can stir them up, put on a few logs of Praise, Prayer, and the Word and get rid of the world’s chill. But just like in that little cabin, we needed to add more logs throughout the day or the flames will burn down. That brick fireplace needed to be being filled all day long.

DON’T REJECT HIM

Mt 12:31 Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.

Blasphemia is evil speaking, railing, or vilification, and here it’s against the Holy Spirit. God has given us His only begotten Son (John 3:16) as the ultimate expression of His love for us. If, however, one completely rejects what God is doing by His Spirit in and through Christ and despises His word, that person places himself outside the avenue of forgiveness. Look at Numbers 15:31 and then re-read Mt 12:31. Jesus said that those who blaspheme the Holy Spirit are, in doing so, cutting themselves off from the only power that can bring them to repentance and God’s forgiving grace.

This is not a one-time act but an attitude or a state of willful sin. It involves closing one’s mind and conscience to the convictions of the Spirit until the conscience becomes so hardened that it can no longer hear the voice of the Spirit calling them. This sin is not simply an act that makes God so disgusted with us that He cuts us off. It’s a sin that so changes a person’s stance toward God that they place themselves outside the possibility of pardon; they “refuse” to be pardoned—it’s apostasy.

Mark 3:28-29 tells us that there are blasphemes that are forgiven, but the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is not. The language in Mark is even much stronger: but he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation. Jesus was talking about the Pharisees who were attributing works they had the knowledge to know were from God but they rejected them as being of the devil. They were directly rejecting God; blaspheming the Holy Spirit.

So what is the unpardonable sin? It is speaking against the Holy Spirit, crediting the miracles of Jesus, performed by the power of The Spirit, to the devil. It is the absolute denial of the power of the Holy Spirit and His triune relationship with the Father and the Son. Go back and read Matt 2:24. Jesus had just healed a demon-possessed man and the scribes and Pharisees said it was by the power of Satan. To deny the power of the Holy Spirit in this way and to call Him Satan is to be so blind that it puts the person beyond hope.

Now we all either have or will wonder if we may have committed the unpardonable sin. The answer is that no man who truly believes in Jesus can commit that sin. The unpardonable sin is not believing in Jesus as your personal Lord and Saviour. That is the one sin He cannot forgive. Man has been given a free will and God will not violate it, no matter how much it grieves Him to see man reject Him.

If we have recognized Him as the Son of God, acknowledged Him as our Saviour, and made Him Lord of our life we have not committed the unpardonable sin. In rejecting the calling of the Spirit, man rejects salvation and therefore can’t be saved. There is only one door to salvation and it leads to Jesus by the calling of the Holy Spirit.

KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS

1 John 3:23-24 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. 24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.

There are two things we need to remember in studying these verses: we are to believe in Him and we are to love one another. Note that the one who keeps His commandments is the one who dwelleth in Him, and the one in whom Jesus dwells. Dwelleth means to abide or actively remain in. It's an action of the Holy Spirit confirming Jesus’ presence in us. Simply put, our desire to war against our old nature in order to keep His commandments is a sign of His indwelling presence. That love we have for Jesus is a fruit growing out of His presence in our life; fruit on the vine. The fruit of our love to one another is yet another confirmation of the abiding presence of Jesus.

The Holy Spirit never points to Himself but always points toward Jesus. Listen to this from Adam Clarke:

As the wind bloweth where it listeth, and we cannot tell whence it cometh and whither it goeth, so is everyone that is born of the Spirit: the thing is certain, and fully known by its effects; but how this testimony is given and confirmed is inexplicable. Every good man feels it, and knows he is of God by the Spirit, which God has given him.

To believe is to have faith, and we know that faith is fundamental to keeping His commandments and is one of the conditions of answered prayer (1 John 3:22). If we have faith in Him we have His Spirit dwelling in us, and we desire to keep His commandments, which is outwardly displayed in our love for one another. I guess we could say that a fair judge of our faith (commitment) is that love.

BE OBEDIENT TO HIM

Rom 8:14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

Remember that the Greek word huios refers to the mature sons of God, and we get that way by following the Spirit of God into spiritual maturity. As we mature, we gradually move from being the adopted sons of God (teknon) to become more like him until, at His Second Coming, we will be as He is. That is what all of creation is waiting for; our growing up spiritually:

Rom 8:19 For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.[huios]

This verse opens with the very key to becoming a son of God—as are led. To be led is to be submitted and influenced by the Holy Spirit, which is evidenced by a willingness to be led. When we’re led by the Spirit we have a strong tendency to yield to His influence in dealing with our selfish and prideful nature. Another way of looking at this is from the negative aspect. Once again Adam Clarke (my emphasis):

As Christ, by his sacrificial offering, has opened the kingdom of God to all believers; and, as a Mediator, transacts the concerns of their kingdom before the throne; so the Spirit of God is the great agent here below, to enlighten, quicken, strengthen, and guide the true disciples of Christ; and all that are born of this Spirit are led and guided by it; and none can pretend to be the children of God who are not thus guided.

We are all obedient to something or someone. The one who maintains he or she is their own person is being obedient to their flesh—I did it my way. Every day we are wooed by the world and when we submit to its calling we are being obedient to the enemy. That is part of the battle that rages every day of our lives and is the very reason that Paul told us to put on the full Armor of God (Eph 6). We look at the armor in Volume Six—Spiritual Authority—but for now just remember that God would not have given us His armor if we didn’t need it.

I wonder if I would be out of line to suggest that Rom 8:14 could also be read—for as many as are led by the spirit of the world, they are the sons of the world. We see it every day, lost souls that struggle through life trying to get what the world says is important while having to deal with the next thing the world throws at them. What is even more tragic are the number of believers that go through this evolution every day. Rather than submitting and being obedient to the Spirit they struggle through life, trying to keep one foot in church and one foot in the world.

I think the founder of Young Life, Jim Rayburn, put it very clearly: There is no fence to sit on because there is no fence! You are either for Jesus or you are against Him because you are for yourself. Mixing the world with the Spirit is simply mixing idol worship with Christianity; they are oil and water. You can shake them together in your life if you want but they will always separate. No matter how hard you try you can’t make them one. The end result is that without obedience to the Spirit, man will never find God or be reconciled to Him. There are many who pretend but in the end their charade is exposed.

MINISTER THE GOSPEL UNDER HIS UNCTION

2 Cor 3:6 Who also hath made us able ministers of the New Testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.

We are to minister the Gospel by the leading of the Spirit and not by the letter of the Law. The Old Testament (old covenant) convicted us of sin by the Law, but the New Testament (new covenant) frees us from the Law by the Spirit. This means that the Spirit, who was the foundation of the old covenant, is revealed in the new covenant. Remember that the Law came into existence to prove Israel guilty of their sins; to bring about condemnation. Without the Law there was nothing to convict man of sin and therefore man had no guilt. Because of Jesus’ sacrifice we can now be free from the guilt and sin exposed by the law; not by the Law of Moses (given to Israel alone) but by the law that has been written on our heart. But we must accept that law and respond to His sacrifice.

The Ten Commandments haven’t disappeared nor have they become null and void. On the contrary, because of our relationship with Jesus under the new covenant, we desire to live by them out of a Spirit of love rather than by their letter. The Law and the Spirit go together under the covering of the blood of Jesus. His blood purchased the forgiveness for our trespasses against the Law.

The New Testament gives us the proper meaning of the Old Testament; the old was founded on the new. For example, the Law calls for water baptism for the cleansing of the soul but without the Spirit there is no purification. The sacrament of communion calls for bread and wine but without the Spirit there is no recognition of the atonement of Jesus’ death; flesh and blood.

In this letter to the Corinthians, Paul stated that we are “able” (sufficient or fit) ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Let’s look at some of the characteristics of an able minister as outlined in the Wycliffe Bible Commentary:

We are a new man

(Eph 2:15; 4:24)

We are a new creature

(2 Cor 5:17)

We have a new name

(Rev 2:17)

We observe a new commandment

(1 John 2:7-8)

We sing a new song

(Rev 14:3)

We look for the new heavens and earth

(2 Pet 3:13; Rev 21:1)

We look for the New Jerusalem

(Rev 21:2)

It now falls upon us as the bride of Christ to minister the Gospel under the direction of the Holy Spirit because we are, in fact, Jesus’ able ministers (servants). He has made us able or qualified to minister by the power of and under the direction of His Spirit and the message we are to minister is that the Law is not the path to salvation, Jesus is! Salvation is a free gift and not something to be earned by being obedient to a set of laws. Another way to view it is that the Law didn't speak of forgiveness while Jesus constantly talked about forgiveness. The one speaks of condemnation and death while the other speaks of conviction and life.

Rom 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

And there it is—the key is to walk after the Spirit. That is our calling, our responsibility. And if we are obedient to our calling there are some awesome results that we'll look at in the next chapter.

Acts 8:1 And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.

CHAPTER 12

WHAT ARE THE RESULTS?

A true and safe leader is likely to be one who has no desire to lead but is forced into a position of leadership by the inward pressure of the Holy Spirit and the press of the external situation.

A.W. Tozer

We have been slowly working through just who the Holy Spirit is and how He works in our life. In this section we're going to take a more in depth look what His presence should mean in our life; what are the results of His indwelling presence. So, with that goal in mind let’s look at a few of the manifestations of His presence and work in us that we should be seeing.

BOLDNESS

Acts 4:31 And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.

We need to go back and read verse 29 to see what they had been praying for: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word. They asked God for boldness to speak His Word. This is one prayer that we don’t need to wonder if God will answer—all we need do is utter it. Look how powerfully He answered them and what He gave them.

We think of someone that is bold as being outspoken. The word used for boldness here is pararhesia and, while it means outspokenness, it encompasses much more. It denotes a freedom of speech and an unreservedness of utterance or plainness. There is an absence of fear and therefore a confidence that only comes from that which has replaced it; faith. It actually comes from a root form of the word that means rage.

Note that when they had prayed they received a fresh filling of the Holy Spirit. They already had His presence and here they demonstrated their (our) need for subsequent fillings. It is because of His presence that they spoke with boldness. We can have that same boldness when we speak by the Spirit because we are speaking the un-compromised Truth. God always comes through for the moment, but we can’t stand on past glories. If we do, when the time comes we won't have the boldness required to accomplish the task at hand. He will teach us not only what to say but how to say it; continually (Acts 17:28; Luke 11:13). Perhaps they were reminded of the words of Isaiah the Prophet:

Isa 50:7 for the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.

LOVE

When we reflect on His presence in our lives the one thing that always rises to the top is love. Love is what everyone is searching for, often without even recognizing it. There is a hole in everyone’s heart and that hole can only be filled by Jesus. The cement that holds it all in place is His love for us.

When I was going through college I worked as an apprentice cabinetmaker and the man I worked for used some white glue he called the cabinetmaker’s friend. That glue was unbelievable (I still use it). If you prepared the pieces to be glued correctly and allowed the glue to set you couldn't break them apart. I once tried to repair a mistake I made in a cabinet drawer by prying apart the pieces I had glued. The drawer broke in pieces but the two pieces that were glued never came apart.

That’s just like Jesus’ love for us. It's like super-super glue that bonds things together immediately when applied and you can’t tear them apart. It's the same love (glue) He's put in our heart. Let’s look at that love; what it is and what it isn’t.

There are many Greek words representing the various forms of love, but for our purpose we'll focus on just two kinds of love.

AGAPE AND PHILEO

The following is an excerpt from Nelsons Illustrated Bible Dictionary that I believe gives us a good foundation for our discussion of these two kinds of love.

Love is not only one of God’s attributes; it is also an essential part of His nature. "God is love," the Bible declares (1 John 4:8, 16) the personification of perfect love. Such love surpasses our powers of understanding (Eph. 3:19). Love like this is everlasting (Jer. 31:3), free (Hos 14:4), sacrificial (John 3:16), and enduring to the end (John 13:1). Two distinct Greek words for love appear in the Bible. The word phileo means, "to have ardent affection and feeling"—a type of impulsive love. The other word agapao means "to have esteem" or "high regard." The warm word agape is the characteristic term of Christianity. This word for love is used several different ways in the Bible.

- Agape love indicates the nature of the love of God toward His beloved Son (John 17:26), toward the human race generally (John 3:16; Rom. 5:8), and toward those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ (John 14:21).

- Agape love conveys God's will to His children about their attitude toward one another. Love for one another was a proof to the world of true discipleship (John 13:34‑35).

- Agape love also expresses the essential nature of God (1 John 4:8). Love can be known only from the actions it prompts, as seen in God's love in the gift of His Son (1John 4:9‑10). Love found its perfect expression in the Lord Jesus. Christian love is the fruit of the Spirit of Jesus in the believer (Gal. 5:22).

The love that Nelson's describes is like oil to the wheels of obedience. It is what enables us to follow God's perfect will for our life without the burden of the Law (Ps 119:32). When we think about agape we should always associate it with the Cross; where there was no greater love (John 15:13). And the only way to obtain that kind of love is through the Holy Spirit, because He is the only one that embodies it and can teach it to us. The disciples never displayed agape love, even though that is the only kind of love Jesus displayed/gave to them. That was the love He always displayed for and from the Father in front of the whole world. The disciples didn't understand what it was until Jesus sent them the Holy Spirit. After that point in time we see them displaying agape love just like He did. Look at the contrast in the following scripture; I have added agape and phileo for emphasis.

John 21:15-17 So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest (agape) thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love (phileo) thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs. 16 He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest (agape) thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love (phileo) thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. 17 He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest (phileo) thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest (phileo) thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love (phileo) thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

The first two times Jesus asks Peter if he loves Him he uses the word agape (love of God). Each time Peter replies with the word phileo (affectionate brotherly love). The word agape seems formal to him and so he substitutes the more affectionate phileo. He doesn’t understand the true difference in meaning because the Spirit has not yet come to teach him. Note that the last time Jesus asks him if he loves him He uses phileo; as if to say: Peter I know how you love me; affectionately as a brother. Three times Peter had denied the Lord and three times, lovingly, Jesus returned the denial with love.

What an experience for Peter. I'm not sure I can put myself in his place but I can relate a similar revelation of the same issue in my own life. It was absolutely impossible for me to love Diane the way God intended until I first learned to receive His love. The way He taught me that lesson was much like Peter because I also didn't understand the concept of God’s love.

Like many husbands, I had been a failure in trying to be the husband I knew I wanted to be. It was like Paul said in his letter to the Romans; I was always doing what I didn’t want to do and not doing what I wanted to do (Rom 7:15-16). Every time I would make Diane and myself a promise that I was going to start putting her first in my life I just set myself up to fail. How many times have we done that in our lives and wondered why we continue to fail? The answer was that I made the promise to change in MY power. It just won’t work that way no matter how good our intentions are.

As the Lord began to deal with me in my failure to be the husband I wanted to be I slowly started to understand that: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Phil 4:13); Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world (1 John 4:4); it is not by might, not by power but by My Spirit says the Lord (Zech 4:6). I saw the light but it took a rather unorthodox move on God’s part to tie it all together.

When we were living in the mountains I was spending my days training working retrievers and trying to find out who I was; those three years of my life is the subject matter for another book the Lord has asked me to write. During that time, and even to this day, I am a very early riser and in the wintertime it's dark at five in the morning when the trusty clock radio comes on.

One particular morning I was awakened just before the alarm clock came on and the cabin was dark and quiet. I heard a voice down inside me say, Listen to the words. I heard nothing! Again it said, Listen to the words. As I lay there in the dark thinking that the mountains were getting to me the radio came on, just a little louder than usual. As I listened a song came on that I had heard many times, but like so many other songs I just listened to the music, not the words. Once again that voice said, Listen to the words.

The Lord showed me that this song is very symbolic of many in the world, and even many of His bride. I knew I wasn’t alone. Interestingly enough, the song was performed by Foreigner; how appropriate—I Want To Know What Love Is. As you read the words see if you don’t see God’s hand in writing them. I could only lie in bed with the tears flowing like never before. Jesus knew my heart, He knew what I was searching for and He knew my pain:

Gotta take a little time,
A little time to think things over.
I better read between the lines
In case I need it when I’m older

This mountain I must climb,

Feels like a world upon my shoulders.
Through the clouds I see love shine,

It keeps me warm as life grows older

In my life there’s been heartache and pain,

I don’t know if I can face it again.

I can’t stop now, I’ve traveled so far,

To change this lonely life

I’m gonna take a little time,
A little time to look around me.
I’ve got nowhere left to hide,
It looks like love has finally found me

I want to know what love is,

I want you to show me,

I want to feel what love is

I know you can show me

I bought the CD and by the time I had listened to this song several times I realized that my problems with trying to be a loving husband were only symptomatic of a much deeper problem. Right then and there I made myself a promise; I would let the Holy Spirit change me because I was totally unable to do it myself. And when I yielded to Him my life began to change in a most dramatic way. I realized that I didn’t know the first thing about love and had no idea how to receive the love of God (agape). It took a long time and a lot of tears to begin to understand the depth of the love that Jesus has for me. As I read His Word I found examples on every page in scriptures I had read many times before, yet never seeing this way.

Only after I began to understand His love for me was I able to begin to share that love with Diane. I didn’t consciously change but she noticed that I was changing. I remember asking Jesus at one point how would I know if I was loving Him and He gave me a surprising answer; Judge how you love me by how you are loving Diane... Judge your relationship with Me by your relationship with Diane. From that point on I have never looked back and our relationship has blossomed. Have I made mistakes and messed up? You bet! But the difference is that the Holy Spirit shows me immediately and, like David, I am quick to repent.

The love of God is the most important part of my life. He has shown me that it has to start with Him, and then my wife, my family, and then others; in that exact order. So often we treat those outside better than we do our family, and that isn’t the way God designed it. Remember, He told the disciples to start in Jerusalem before they went to the world. We can never love our mates, children, parents, friends, strangers, or ourselves without loving Him first. But that isn’t going to happen until we learn how to be loved by Him.

Everything in our life starts with Jesus as the cornerstone. When the Holy Spirit is bringing about change in your life, make sure that you keep your eyes on that cornerstone and conform to His standards. He is always faithful and His grace abounds when His bride reaches out from her heart, no matter where that heart is or has been. This is one of the Golden Elements in Walking With God—I want to know what love is; I know you can show me.

WE KNOW GOD'S GIFTS FOR US

1 Cor 2:12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

Even at his very best, natural man can't comprehend the things of God because he doesn't have the Spirit of God. Just like the example above, it is impossible to know and understand agape Love without the Holy Spirit. He leads us into the deeper things of God that our salvation has given us. The neat part is that He shows them to us as we just walk through life, hand in hand with Him. Many, many times in my life the revelation of the deeper things of God have come in the simplest examples.

One of the ways which God chose to teach me about love was during a period in my life when I was training working retrievers on a full time basis. I was looking for God and He found me just like He found Jonah on the ship to Tarshish; I may have been doing a little running while I was looking.

During that period the Lord taught me about faithful love through my business partner, a yellow Labrador retriever named Buck. Every day I was teaching all those dogs the foundations they needed to be successful at what they did Buck was teaching me about unconditional love.

I remember one particular day in which absolutely everything I had done either failed or was wrong. I had finished the last training session and sat down by the lake to mope. As was his usual practice Buck was headed for a late afternoon swim. He stopped, looked at me and came over to where I was sitting with my hands on my knees and my head down. He gently pushed his nose under my hands and laid his head in my lap and just looked up at me. At that moment I heard the gentle voice of the Holy Spirit, look into his eyes and know that is how the Lord wants you to look at Him.

In that one small instant of time I realized for the first time that just like I would never let anything happen to that faithful dog, the Lord would never let anything happen to me. There was nothing that could ever separate me from Him and that He was always there with unconditional love for me no matter whatever else was going on. I saw in Buck’s eyes the devotion and total commitment that Jesus has for me, the love that purchased me on the Cross and would forever be mine to hang onto. And while Buck was only to share his love for me for but a brief time, the love of Jesus is eternal.

I came away from that time in my life with a ream of notes for a future book and a much deeper appreciation for my Lord’s voice. Look for Him to speak to you in the simple things around you all day, every day. What He is showing you in His Word He will show you in your life. He can be trusted to make sure that you get the message if you will just look and listen.

Boy how I miss that dog. When I picture his face and those soft brown eyes I see the love that Jesus has for me. Take time to let Him love you; you will make His day. Take time to read a short story entitled Born To Serve that is posted on our website—it's a personal favorite... http://www.walkwithgod.org/born-to-serve.

WE ARE RENEWED

Tit 3:5-6 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; 6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;

Our good works simply can’t achieve salvation. It's a completed act that we appropriate by faith. It's all God’s doing from beginning to end. This verse suggests both the past and present tense of God's grace and love:

- Washing of Regeneration: This refers to the laver (loutrou) or the bath outside the tabernacle, which was for washing the priest's feet after making the sacrifice. It represents the act of cleansing the past; baptism. It's the symbol of regeneration or salvation; the laver of regeneration.

- Renewing of the Holy Spirit: This is the process by which we receive and experience the continual cleansing of our sins by God. It's the Holy Spirit who does the renewing while man demonstrates the fact by baptism.

The meaning is the baptism of spiritual rebirth by the cleansing and purifying of the Holy Spirit. Regeneration is a one-time event but “renewing” is an on-going process. Renewing comes from the word anakainosis, which means renovation. Look at the way the verse is structured: washing is connected to regeneration and renewing is connected with shed on us abundantly. It's the Holy Spirit that leads us to baptism and He is the one who continues to renew us.

WE ARE INDWELT

1 Cor 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

If we really could get a hold of this we wouldn’t think some of the things we think, go some of the places we go, or do some to the things we do. Remember that there isn't a tent or brick and mortar temple in the Christian world in which God lives or dwells. We are the temple and it is a living, spiritual one. The temple in Israel was the place of sacrifice and so it should be for us, a living sacrifice unto the Lord. The temple was not a house of prayer because prayer was silent and individual. Verbal prayers and reading of the scripture was done in the synagogue. It was the temple where God dwelt in the Holy of Holies, and He has made our hearts the Holy of Holies today (Mal 1:11, Matt 18:20; 1 Pet 2:5).

The word temple (hieron) as used in the Old Testament literally means “sacred place.” It meant the entire temple from the porticos to the Holy of Holies. In this verse the word for temple is naos, which directly speaks to the Holy of Holies and comes from the root word “to dwell.” One of the derivatives of that word gives us our word “sanctuary” or “church.” Believers are referred to as the Church of Jesus Christ, which readily translates to sanctuary and further points back to Holy of Holies. We have within us the Holy of Holies where the very presence of God resides (1 Cor 3:9/6:19, 2 Cor 6:16, John 14:23; Eph 2:20-22).

We are to be set apart for His service and not common service. Listen again to Matthew Henry:

If we are the temples of God, we must do nothing that shall alienate ourselves from him, or corrupt and pollute ourselves, and thereby unfit ourselves for his use; and we must hearken to no doctrine nor doctor that would seduce us to any such practices. Note, Christians are holy by profession, and should be pure and clean both in heart and conversation. We should heartily abhor, and carefully avoid, what will defile God's temple, and prostitute what ought to be sacred to him.

We have been filled with the presence and power of the Holy Spirit and if we aren't seeing evidence of that every day we need to pause and take stock of just where we are. We're not meant to transit this world on a daily basis without leaving footprints of the Gospel behind us. The path we need to be on is the one the Holy Spirit lays out for us each and every day. We too often make the mistake of not looking for that path because we are focused on the one that leads further down the road. When we do we often find ourselves hurrying by the places where the Holy Spirit wants us to pause and share the love that is within us, the love of God (agape). That's the true manifestation of the Spirit that Jesus wants the world to see and the very thing that our brothers and sisters in Him need the most.

Just like everyone that came to Jerusalem saw Solomon’s Temple standing out boldly as the house of God and the presence of His glory, so everyone that comes near us needs to see our temple. The question is whether or not our temple reflects His presence and is it bringing Glory to Him? Let paint a picture that will help you keep the fact that you are the temple of the Holy Spirit firmly planted in your spirit.

I said earlier that there is no physical temple where God lives today because the Word says very clearly that God's temple is not in heaven and we are His temple here on earth. But consider what that means. Before there was a temple God traveled with Israel in the wilderness and His presence resided in a tent; the tabernacle. Then Israel built a permanent temple. When Jesus died on the Cross, the glory of God (His presence) left the temple.

Jesus' body had served as the tabernacle of His deity while He was here on earth. He was God's presence wandering with His people in His humanity. But now that Jesus has taken His presence to the heavenly temple, we have become His tabernacle here on earth. Our bodies are the tabernacle (the tent) containing His presence here on earth; His Holy Spirit.

That's why it's important for us to remember that while we journey through this world—as Israel wandered through the wilderness—we bring His presence with us and it's our calling as His priests here on earth to reveal His glory to a lost and dying world.

We are simply fleshly tents on the outside, but on the inside is the fullness of the glory of God. No wonder Paul admonishes us to know (eido; be sure to understand) that we are the temple in which the presence of God resides here on earth in the form of His Holy Spirit.

CHAPTER 13

WHAT A DIFFERENCE HE MAKES IN OUR LIFE

In our private prayers and in our public services we are forever asking God to do things that he either has already done or cannot do because of our unbelief. We plead for him to speak when he has already spoken and is at that very moment speaking. We ask him to come when he is already present and waiting for us to recognize him. We beg the Holy Spirit to fill us while all the time we are preventing him by our doubts.

A.W. Tozer

With this chapter we will conclude this brief look at the Holy Spirit. We have just scratched the surface of His eternal presence in the life of every believer. I think that the words of Tozer sum up where we often find ourselves… We ask him to come when he is already present and waiting for us to recognize him. That is really the secret to having a relationship with Him. When we do remember that His presence is here with us, the blessings and benefits He imparts are beyond measure. Let’s finish up by looking at just a few more.

WE HAVE POWER, LOVE, AND A SOUND MIND

2 Tim 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

This is one of my favorite verses in the entire Bible. It reminds me that I don't have to stand in fear or shrink back from the threats of the enemy. I have faith, and where faith is present fear can’t be! Not only has He given me a sound mind but He has given me the sound mind of Christ (1 Cor 2:16). And that's a sound mind that is full of common sense and it’s mine every time I put on the Helmet of Salvation (Eph 6:17).

Look at verse 7 and note that He also gave us a spirit of power. Once again that word is dunamis and it represents potential miracle-working power. But, lest we use that power in a devastating or destructive manner, He gave us the Holy Spirit controls of love (agape) and a sound mind (self-control). These two, taken together and mixed with faith, are the perfect antidote for fear. But look at the meaning of the word fear as used here.

Deilia comes from the word deilos, which means timid or faithless (cowardice). We haven’t been given a faithless or timid spirit; we're not spiritual cowards. We've been given a bold spirit to stand in faith when the enemy walks around like a roaring lion seeing who he may devour (1 Pet 5:8). Note that it doesn’t say he “is” a roaring lion, only that he acts “like” a roaring lion. There is a big difference and whether you buy into his act or not is determined by you and you alone. Your spirit isn’t timid and you don’t need to be fooled by his roaring in your face. You have the power to turn him away, the power exercised in love and self-control.

In simple terms: God didn't give us a coward’s spirit, He gave us a spirit with power to encounter the enemy, bear up under trials and persecutions, and speak the truth. We have a spirit that loves God and man with the same love that God has for us, a love that casts out fear (1 John 4:18). We have a spirit of soberness and common sense that is well balanced and keeps things in perspective while making sound judgments.

Consider the servant of Matt 25:25. It was out of fear that he buried his talent and didn’t invest it in the kingdom to make a return for his master. The enemy wants us to do that with the Gospel so the world will be robbed of the blessing. Charles Spurgeon understood investing in the kingdom:

Brethren, it is not ours to hide in holes and in corners; our Gospel is like the sun, whose line has gone out through all the earth. Let us not speak timidly; for we have not received the spirit of fear, neither will we hide our candle under a bushel. We are to publish the tidings of that life from the dead which has brought life for the dead.

WE BECOME MORE LIKE JESUS

2 Cor 3:18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

We all (the bride) draw a contrast between the Jews who are behind the veil over their hearts and Christians who have had the veil removed in Christ (open face). The expression beholding as in a glass means to “reflect” the glory of the Lord like a mirror. We each reflect the Lord (His Gospel) in one degree or another and are changed into His image as we behold Him or look upon Him. We accomplish this by the Holy Spirit as He reveals Jesus to us. As a result we become more like Him every day, until that day when will be glorified like Him.

The word for change (metamorfoumentha) is where we draw our word metamorphosis. It means a change from within like a caterpillar changing into a butterfly within its cocoon. One is literally transformed into the other. This is what happens to us as the Holy Spirit brings us from glory to glory or from one degree of glory to another; one level of spiritual maturity to the next. The psalmist said it another way; they go from strength to strength (Ps 84:7) or one degree of holiness to another. To us it means that there is one degree of holiness followed by another until we are ultimately in the perfect glory of heaven. Somewhere I ran across a list of the following attributes of Jesus’ ministry. They were given as an example of how Jesus lived out His life here on earth:

- He loved without limits.

- He was primarily concerned with people.

- He only communicated the truth.

That last quality really hits home for me as it ties directly in with the first and second. He communicated God’s truth, which resulted in the healings that followed His ministry; a ministry that was all about healing the mind, body, and emotions of those He came in contact with through Foot Washing Practical Service. My guess is the exact same thing would happen to us if we followed His example:

John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

Works (ergon), as used in verse 12, means to toil by occupation or labor/hard work. Some have taken this to mean miracles and healings. That may very well be the result, but it only comes about as we put forth effort in what God has called us to do. Believe in Jesus and submit to foot washing practical service and we might just experience “great works” in our life. Jesus only washed 24 feet, how many more can we wash by following the Holy Spirit? And I am not talking about the works of “legalism”—it’s about the “fruit” of our works.

THERE WILL BE FRUIT

Gal 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

This is the work that His presence in you accomplishes when you yield to His authority. Take a moment and go back and review the fruit of the Spirit in Chapter 10. This is the result of making the Holy Spirit President and not just Resident. This is the real power of the Baptism of The Holy Spirit.

THERE WILL BE HEALING

Mark 16:17-18 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

The key here is that these things are done in the “name” (authority) of Jesus, and they follow those who believe. This is the same name by which we are protected and by which we lay our hands on the sick. Our hands are His hands and through them we see His power to heal manifested. These signs follow (accompany) those who believe and are to lead the way to Jesus; not become the focus. They are for primarily for the believer and as such are for the building up of the bride so that she can be about the ministry of sharing the Gospel. We walk around every day with more power inside us than we can ever dream of. If we could only develop the faith to light the fuse and bring it forth in our lives we would be amazed at the results.

God has provided us with protection from the traps of the enemy but we often ignore those warnings and continue to fall into those traps at every turn. Consider for a moment that serpents mentioned in verse 18 may represent those around us who are intent upon doing us harm, and that poison may be symbolic of the world and its system. Not only has God given us protection from them but also the ability to help others by the laying on of hands.

There is something very symbolic about the laying on of hands. It seems to release your faith and stir up faith in the one being prayed for. I have always looked at it as Jesus reaching out with my hands, the impure and powerless hands He has made pure with His blood and empowered with His Spirit.

Before we leave this thought let me make a couple comments about healing. First we must remember that God has given us a remarkable body that in many instances simply heals itself with proper rest and care. He has given us doctors with wisdom and understanding concerning the body and the diseases that attack it. These are natural and yet are spiritual in their origin. He has also given us the healing power of the His Spirit.

Personally, I look at healing as inevitable in all situations. But wait, Tom, what about those who die without ever getting healed? Well, let’s consider that as the bride of Christ we are going to be healed one way or another:

- Our bodies will heal themselves;

- The doctor will help our bodies to heal themselves;

- The power of the Holy Spirit will heal us; or

- We will give up our earthly body for the ultimate healing.

In each of these instances we impact our healing by our faith. Faith is powerful and you will learn more about the power of faith in Volume Three – The Foundations of Faith.

Ultimately it’s our faith in Jesus that provides the final healing. But that is not to downplay the healing power of the Holy Spirit here on earth. God has provided many avenues for our healing and how He packages them and uses them will remain a mystery until we get to heaven. We just need to remember that behind healing is faith and it’s the foundation upon which healing is built. But, does that mean that someone who doesn’t believe can’t get healed?

Jesus healed many who didn’t believe, but their healing was accomplished to bring them into faith in the One who healed them. Remember blind Bartameus:

John 9:25, 33… all I know is that once I was blind but now I see… if this man were not God he could not do this thing.

We, as believers, have that faith within us and when we mix that with the laying on of hands it becomes a point of contact for the Holy Spirit to impart healing. I have seen many who wouldn’t give God the time of day but were instantly healed of sickness and disease, and I have seen the same thing happen to believers. I have also seen some walk away without an instant healing only to receive it later, and yet there have been others that never got the physical healing they wanted. But whether the healing is instantaneous or not, whether it’s in this life or not, the key element is faith in the One who brings the healing.

In the end I only know that Jesus commanded us to lay hands on the sick and by faith impart the healing power of the Holy Spirit; and they shall recover. That is all we are responsible for, we aren’t to take on the responsibility for the healing as that job belongs to God. We just need to remember the first part of verse 17: These signs shall follow them that believe. That’s where it all starts and ends.

THERE WILL BE AUTHORITY

We will tackle the Authority of the Believer in more detail in Volume Six, but here let’s just focus on spiritual authority as displayed in the Book of Acts.

Acts 4:33 And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.

The power given here was miracle working power (megalee dunamei) or, as one translation puts it: striking miracles brought by the Holy Spirit to give proof of the resurrection of Jesus. It was a witness (testimony) to man by the authority of the resurrection. The word witness as used here (marturion) means like the evidence given in the tabernacle. That power was to be given back by the apostles by their testimony of His resurrection. It was authority that brought with it great courage to stand firm on the truth of salvation and the great grace (great unmerited favor) of God.

The great vigor, spirit, and courage, with which they published and avowed this doctrine; they did it not softly and diffidently, but with liveliness and resolution, as those that were themselves abundantly satisfied of the truth of it, and earnestly desired that others should be so too.

Matthew Henry

He goes on to discuss the pouring out of God’s grace on them as follows:

- Christ poured out abundance of grace upon them, such as qualified them for great services, by enduing [providing] them with great power; it came upon them from on high, from above.

- There were evident fruits of this grace in all they said and did, such as put an honor upon them, and recommended them to the favor of God, as being in his sight of great price.

- Some think it includes the favor they were in with the people. Everyone saw a beauty and excellency in them, and respected them.

We too have been given that miracle working power in the person of the Holy Spirit. We have tremendous power in the spiritual realm when we operate as the disciples did; under His direction and control. Are we using that power to witness his resurrection?

ALL OUR NEEDS ARE MET

Acts 4:34 Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold,

Here we see an additional benefit afforded the bride by the Holy Spirit; all their needs are provided for. We need to look at this carefully because so many incorrect interpretations of verse 34 have been taught.

The Jews generally provided for the poor from the sacrifices made to God, however they were so against Jesus that the poor who believed in and followed Jesus were being excluded and were going without. The church stepped forward and, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, made provision from what they had for all. It was intended from the beginning that the church should fill this role:

2 Cor 8:14-15 But by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may be a supply for their want, that their abundance also may be a supply for your want: that there may be equality: 15 As it is written, He that had gathered much had nothing over; and he that had gathered little had no lack.

While this is how it is supposed to work, for the most part the church has left the job up to the government and the result has been far from acceptable. Giving from what we have been given is the foundation of agape... we are to freely give the Gospel that has been freely given to us. How can we do that without giving of all that we have? Read the book of James and see what he had to say about just praying for someone in need.

Now, more directly to the point of our needs being met through the Holy Spirit, we read in the 6th chapter of Matthew that God knows all of our needs and He is more concerned about them than we are. Look at the following verses that have become the foundational Scripture for my life on earth—words that have forever changed my life.

Matt 6:25-34 Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall not drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32 For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

Now the key to this verse often gets overlooked and, at the risk of repeating myself, the basis is found in verse 33. Right after the “seek ye first” is a very pronounced “and,” which indicates that something precedes what follows. Our priorities are not to be the things of this world (God already knows we need them; after all He made us), rather we are to make His coming Kingdom and His Righteousness our priority. The Lord’s Prayer underlines our commitment to seeing His Kingdom become a reality here on earth. But how can we expect that to happen if we don’t take our calling seriously and seeking after His righteousness? Remember, we are the righteousness of His Kingdom here on earth.

The Lord never calls us without empowering and equipping us for the task. Remember that our God is Jehovah Jireh (our provider), and if we spend our time focused on Him all our needs will be met. What needs? All those needs required to fulfill the plan that He has laid out for each of us, not the least of which are food, drink, and clothing. The problem comes when we focus on “all these things” in verse 31. But if we're focused on the Lord first He will be faithful to provide all those needs. We here in the West get so focused on the quality of life that we neglect life itself. In the underdeveloped world (the majority of the world) the focus is on life itself.

The Lord has called each of us to walk with Him every day and along the way He has a number of things for us to do. We need to be about His business and not be concerned with the things of this world: 26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Thank God that He has given us His Spirit to help us stay in focus.

WE GAIN SPIRITUAL STRENGTH

Eph 3:16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;

The word strengthened (kratos) means manifested power or power put into action. God wants us to have active power in our inner man, the ability to channel and direct our life through the pressures and obstacles that Satan imposes through the world’s system. We accomplish this by exercising the faith that God has given us, the faith that stabilizes us and allows us to rule over the circumstances.

The word “by” in verse 16 (by His Spirit) carries the meaning of “through His Spirit” (Zech 4:6). The next key word is “in” which means “infused into” our inner man (our spirit man). It’s in our spirit man that the Holy Spirit is linked to us and thereby we are linked to God. He is the seat from which the delegated strength comes.

Our spirit is our link to God and our soul (mind, intellect, thought) is the link between our body and our spirit. This is why we’re concerned with two very important aspects of spiritual strength: 1) our body is not regenerated when we are born again, only our spirit is; and 2) because of #1 we need to keep our spirit strong so that our soul (mind) can be renewed. Our body used to rule our soul but now—since our flesh was crucified with Jesus on the Cross and its power over us was broken—we need to allow our spirit to reign over our soul.

Therein lays the daily battle, between our spirit and our old nature. And the battleground is our mind. Our old soulish nature (what the body used to crave) and spirit are constantly at odds over who will control our mind and thereby direct how we live our lives. Our soul makes the choice because Adam’s chose the way of the flesh, and man’s soul has struggled with the way of the flesh ever since. And that way is directly opposed to God’s ordained path for our spirit. Therefore it’s Paul’s prayer for us that we should be spiritually strengthened:

Eph 3:17-19 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, 18. May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; 19. And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God.

This battle rages within us and is the foundation of the struggle of the flesh. We must constantly fight that battle, but without the strength of the Holy Spirit we'll lose every time. On the other hand, just having His strength doesn’t ensure that we will win the battle; it takes the exercising of our faith.

IT ALL GETS DONE

Zech 4:6 Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.

Let’s take one more look at Zech 4:6 because it’s so foundational to our everyday walk. God is literally saying that “by my breath” (ruwach) it shall be done. The word carries the meaning of a violent exhalation; a blast, a tempest, or a whirlwind.

Zerubbabel was the head of the tribe of Judah and led the first captives back to Jerusalem from Babylon to rebuild the temple. He encountered great difficulty in the construction process and was forced to stop for a period of 17 years. Verse 6 is an exhortation by God (through Zechariah to Zerubbabel) to press on in the face of opposition and finish that which God had ordained him to accomplish.

If you read this verse in context (verses 1-5) the lamps being fed oil continually by the olive trees is a clear type of the Holy Spirit in each of us. Man didn’t make the olive trees that fed the lamps and he didn’t make the Holy Spirit that feeds his spirit. So it is with us, our weakness doesn't have to be a stumbling block in accomplishing what God has ordained for us. We each have our calling and, like Zerubbabel, we can depend upon the Spirit of God to empower us to complete the task. He will also speak “to” us and “through” us if we will just let Him.

The combination of “might” and “power” expresses human strength of every description (physical, mental, and moral). In man these strengths are insufficient but they are abundantly available to the submitted bride of Christ through the Holy Spirit. I once heard it said that God is ready to marshal all of the assets of heaven and earth to support a submitted and committed saint in carrying out His will here on earth. All He asks of us is to be willing lamps and He will supply the oil. As we use it to burn brightly He will continue to pour more into us. Remember Eph 5:18: but be [be being] filled with the Spirit. As we give out we will be refilled so the flame will never give out.

SOME CLOSING THOUGHTS

This book has been devoted to learning about the person of the Holy Spirit. Until we really understand His personality we won’t be able to relate to Him and, ultimately, to Jesus. He brings to each one of us the full revelation of our Lord and Saviour in our own individual unique understanding.

So often we try to learn about someone through someone else’s eyes. We form opinions about that person based upon the other persons understanding, abilities, prejudices, weaknesses, etc. What I have tried to do in this book is open your eyes to the Third Person of the Trinity that you invited to live in your home. He is always present and is ever ready with the right answer, proper prayer, comforting word, gentle understanding, and loving touch. He is an equal member of the creation team and knew you before you were in your mother’s womb. That just boggles my mind!

How awesome that God has placed within every believer all the power of the universe, and yet that power knows me personally. He knows everything that I have ever thought, said, or done. He understands me better than I understand myself and yet He loves me anyway. How is it possible that I can forget He is there with me at every turn? How can I ignore the wisdom of the ages that sits at my right hand, ready with the Word that I desperately need? Unfortunately I know the answer.

I don’t spend my day communing with Him. I forget to ask for His opinion. I remain focused on what I think God wants in all the little situations that present themselves throughout the day. Many Believers wear the WWJD bracelets (What Would Jesus Do), but I wonder how many stop to ask their personal counselor for the answer?

Over the years my life has gone through many dark valleys and only in recent years have I truly learned that the Holy Spirit was there in every one of them. I just never bothered to talk to Him, and He, being the perfect gentleman, never interrupted my introspective and all too human approach to the situation. But thank God we don’t have to live life in that empty place.

God has shown me that He has a vital interest in this “walk” of ours. So much so that His Spirit is poised to respond to the smallest question we put forth. Nothing is too small or too large for God; the God who parted the Red Sea and who notices every sparrow that falls to the ground. We are the only things He created in His image and He takes a very personal interest in each one of us. We have been given special callings and giftings to enable us to walk in His Perfect Will. We each have a part to play in advancing His coming Kingdom and He has given us all the power we will ever need to accomplish it.

I urge you to take time to get to know The Holy Spirit. He is sitting in the living room of your heart, just waiting for you to sit down and share yourself with Him. He came in the moment you asked Jesus to forgive your sins and become the Lord of your life, and He will never leave you. He is walking with you every moment and will release His power within you to accomplish your God-given calling the moment you ask. I can tell you from the Word of God and personal experience that when you begin a relationship with Him, He will draw you closer to Jesus than you have ever been. He will be your light in all the dark corners and the lamp that leads you to the Word in all situations. He is a faithful teacher, a healer, a comforter, an advocate… and He is yours. Listen for His voice and by the faith within you, the very faith He has given you, trust and believe Him in all things. After all, He is the Spirit of the Father and the Spirit of the Son and everything says and does points to our bridegroom.

John 16:13-14 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

We have been given everything we could ever need or want in the person of the Holy Spirit. We need to get to know and trust Him!

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Pastor Tom Mitchell has spent the better part of his ministry years exhorting, challenging, and encouraging the bride of Christ to move ever deeper into her relationship with her bridegroom. Over the past 30 years through Walk With God Ministries he has authored 13 books, written numerous articles, and has taught the Word of God from the pulpit, in the classroom, and through his weekly blog at: http://WalkWithGod.org.

His published works include Wake Up And Rest – The Bride of Christ Sleeps at Her Own Peril, along with its four companion books, The Doorway to Rest; The Pathway to Rest; The Dangers to Rest; and The Battle For Rest that challenge Jesus' bride to wake up and fulfill the role He has given her in preparing the way for His Kingdom. By anyone’s clock, the time until His return is growing very short. Wake Up And Rest is a timely challenge the bride can ill afford to ignore, for if she does she does so at her own peril. This series reflects the urgency of the message the Lord has impressed upon Tom for His bride, to wake up and remember to whom she has committed herself and make herself ready for His soon return. The hour grows short and there is much at stake, both here and now and for all eternity. The question is… will she wake up?

His most recent work is the eight volume series, The Way of Enoch, that explores the foundation and sound scriptural doctrine that underlies God’s plan for our lives. It is a journey that begins with learning who God really is and culminates in discovering how we are to walk out a loving and obedient relationship with our bridegroom. The Way of Enoch is a great resource for both the bride of Christ and for those who have just begun their walk with Jesus. Each book is solidly based on the Word of God, looking at how it to be applied in the Christian life. The message is presented in a straightforward look at eight key areas of our Walk With God.

Volume 1—Your Life In Christ

Volume 2—The Spirit-Filled Christian

Volume 3—Foundations of Faith

Volume 4—The Word of God

Volume 5—Principles of Prayer

Volume 6—Authority of the Bride of Christ

Volume 7—Walk The Walk

Volume 8—The Obedient Lifestyle

OTHER BOOKS
BY
THOMAS M. MITCHELL

www.WalkWithGod.org

Wake Up and Rest Series

The Bride of Christ Sleeps at Her Own Peril… This book is a wakeup call to those who have made their personal commitment to their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. They are the ones who hold the key to survival the world is looking for and they cannot fail to share it. But to do so they have to overcome their human side and allow their spirit to take charge and lead them through this “wilderness” we find ourselves in. And the key to that is to stop and take a long hard look at their relationship with the One to whom they’re engaged to be married. Do we really know Him? What is He expecting of us? How can we find the answers? These questions and many more have to be answered if we’re going to be able to step up and become all that He created us to be. Wake Up and Rest is a guidepost to a fruitful walk with our bridegroom as we prepare ourselves for our wedding day.

The Doorway To Rest—The Brides’ Invitation… When we consider Solomon’s Song we can easily see the relationship between Christ and His bride portrayed in many ways. Think of the “sun’s” relationship with the moon being like our relationship with the “Son.” This book is a detailed, verse-by-verse study of the Song of Solomon, revealing the true view of bride of Christ through His eyes and a life changing view of the bridegroom through the eyes of the bride as she opens The Doorway to Rest.

The Pathway To Rest—The Brides’ Purpose… As we looked at the message of the Song of Solomon we were given a clear picture of not only who our bridegroom is, but equally important how He sees us and how we should see Him. His invitation opened the doorway to His Rest and now, as we walk out the days of our ketubah—our betrothal—we need to find out what that means and what it entails along The Pathway To Rest. For that we turn to the book of Hebrews, where we learn through each verse what sewing our wedding dress means and how important it is for us to be ready and watching for His soon return as we move up the path to spiritual maturity.

The Dangers To Rest—The Brides’ Warning… We have been inundated with not the shout of triumph but the incessant worldly scream of pending disaster. The country’s economics have been turned upside down and fear and panic have grabbed the headlines as the Middle East falls into chaos. The news is full of rampant pandemics, meteorological disasters, hopeless individuals committing tragic acts and families destroyed. And sadly, the majority of the bride of Christ is not prepared for His return. We have allowed the world and its supreme ruler to distract us from the path the lies in front of us. Now He has finally released me to write this verse-by-verse study—The Dangers To Rest—out of the book of Revelation that He put on my heart 18 years ago concerning His letters that not only deal with why He is coming back but also what we, His bride, are supposed to be doing and not doing as we wait and watch.

The Battle For Rest—The Brides’ Armor… Spiritual warfare is a war between the forces of God and the forces of rebellion led by Satan. And the bride is engaged in this spiritual war between light and darkness, good and evil, heaven and hell and Christ and Satan. But sadly, many aren’t even aware of the fact that they are in a spiritual battle every day of their life. As believing Christians we’re in a grim conflict and we’re not on a worldly cruise ship or a showboat; it’s a battleship. It’s a fight to the finish with no holds barred and we can’t be neutral and we can’t call a truce. This war is a personal one; very personal. In The Battle For Rest I have taken a detailed verse-by-verse study of the part of the book of Ephesians that deals with the enemy, his strategies and his goals and most importantly the battle orders we have been given to ensure victory over those personal strongholds.