MESSAGE BEARER MEMO

By Ryan Shaw

These bi-weekly memos are to provide encouragement, exhortation, and spiritual nourishment in the lives of those who have signed the Message Bearer Creed as you prepare to serve the Lord globally, and are influencing your peers with this vision.

The Holy Spirit – Part # 2

Characteristics & Conditions of the fullness of the Holy Spirit

In the last Memo we looked at who the Holy Spirit is and what His works are in the life of a believer. I want to continue with this topic by narrowing it slightly to the characteristics of the Spirit-filled life and what are the conditions to walk in the fullness of the Spirit. If we believe the scriptures and want to obey God and serve Him according to His prescribed ways, we must seek a more thorough understanding of what these concepts mean. The body of Christ today has all the resources, training, and strategies to reach the world for the sake of Jesus Christ. What lacks is that so few believers are living in the fullness of the Spirit with a true dependence upon God’s power for their ministries.

A Definition of the Spirit-Filled Life

Billy Graham defines the Spirit-filled life as “being controlled or dominated by the Spirit’s presence and power.” He goes on to look at Ephesians 5:18 and analyzes the contrast between being dominated by alcohol or the Spirit. The presence and power of both of these override normal abilities and actions. Just as one who is drunk is “under the influence” so is one who is filled with the Spirit. Graham says, “Millions of God’s people do not enjoy the unlimited spiritual wealth at their disposal because they are not filled with the Holy Spirit.” He goes on to say, “True, they have been baptized with the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ and they are going to heaven. But they are missing so much of what God wants them to have in this life.” Another author says it this way, “The Bible distinguishes between “having” the Holy Spirit, which is true of all believers, and being “filled” with the Spirit, which is true of very few.” (Graham, The Holy Spirit)

Consciously or unconsciously such believers are committed to imitating the world system in which they live. Their spiritual gifts go unused and spiritual fruit is absent from their lives. Their love for the lost is cold, their commitment to obey Jesus’ commands weak, their devotional life inconsistent at best, their prayer lives dutiful and dull, and their sensitivity to sin numbed. These believers work in the energy of the flesh, striving in human strength to accomplish things for God. This inevitably leads to disappointment, frustration, and burn-out. Anything short of a Spirit-filled life is less than God’s plan for each believer. Sadly, many have never been told or taught about the Spirit-filled life and how to lay hold of it.

Characteristics of the Spirit-Filled Life

Though there are a host of characteristics that accompany the Spirit-filled life, I want to emphasize seven. These are not in any particular order based on importance. First, those who are Spirit-filled are becoming more and more possessed by the Spirit Himself. They are yielding areas of life to His Lordship continually as He reveals them. Author A.W. Tozer asks probing questions regarding a person’s willingness to be “full” of the Spirit. “Are we willing to be “full” of someone who will insist on being Lord of our lives?” “Are we sure we want our personalities taken over by One who will require obedience to the written word?”  “Who will not tolerate any of the self sins in our lives: self-pity, self-love, self-indulgence?” “Who will not permit us to strut or boast or show off?” “Who will take the direction of our lives away from us?” “Who reserves the sovereign right to test and discipline us?” “Who will strip away from us many loved objects which secretly harm our souls?”(Tozer, Keys to the Deeper Life)

Second, there is power over sin exuded in the Spirit-filled life. Soon after a person is born again they become conscious of the very real battle within. This is the clash between the flesh and the Spirit and each is seeking to gain the upper hand. What becomes evident quickly is that the flesh frequently wins the clash. Frustration builds as it seems impossible to overcome the sinful nature. In Romans 7 & 8 we find Paul recounting his own struggles with this battle. Chapter 7 highlights his anguish and failure and then chapter 8 introduces the Holy Spirit who gives victory through Christ and that victory is sure! Paul had tried fighting sin by himself in chapter 7 and in chapter 8 he recognized the Holy Spirit’s ability to deliver from sin and he yields to Him. This is God’s only prescribed method of walking in victory over the sinful nature.

Third, they will glorify Jesus and draw attention to Him. As we know, it is the Holy Spirit’s purpose to exalt and glorify Jesus. If we are being filled with the Spirit we too will seek to do this in all of our endeavors. This will include a growing humility and selflessness while boasting in Christ alone.

Fourth, there is power for service. One of the purposes of the filling of the Spirit is for power to serve Him effectively. (Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 2:4) We find in Acts that those who were filled with the Spirit preached and thousands came to a saving knowledge of Christ. (Acts 4:4; Acts 4:8; Acts 4:31) Through one message given in the power of the Spirit, more fruit can be wrought than through a hundred messages given in the energy of the flesh. The power does not only refer to preaching, however. This could refer to any ministry God clearly leads us to including ministries of administration and helps. With the filling of the Spirit comes an added dimension of power to glorify Him through whatever type of ministry He gives. God gives power to proclaim the word of God in word and in deed no matter what role a person might have.

Fifth, those who are filled with the Spirit are growing in and understanding His gifts. The purpose of spiritual gifts is to provide a spiritual capability far mightier than the finest natural abilities could ever supply. Scripturally we find that the witness of the corporate life of the church was intended to be a supernatural witness. Acts 1:8 points out that the only effective power for being a witness is through the Holy Spirit coming upon us. God gives natural gifts to His children and expects us to use them for His purposes. Many message bearers rely solely upon these natural gifts, not receiving the spiritual gifts He wants to give them for added power and fruitfulness in their ministries.

Lastly, those who are filled know that something has happened to them and that a change has occurred. A.W. Tozer writes, “Neither in the Old Testament or the New, nor in Christian testimony as written by the saints as far as my knowledge goes was any believer ever filled with the Spirit who did not know he had been filled. Neither was anyone filled who did not know when he was filled.” (Tozer, Keys to the Deeper Life) Due to the power over sin, the power for effective witness, the growing in spiritual gifts, the overarching ambition to glorify and magnify Jesus and more that accompanies the filling of the Spirit we will know when this is taking place in our lives.

Conditions of Being Filled With the Spirit

So then what are the conditions I must meet to be filled with the Holy Spirit? I want to suggest that scripture advocates three specific conditions. First, there must be a hunger for more. Jesus believed that the most precious of gifts was the gift of the Spirit. He esteemed the person of the Holy Spirit taking control of a human being as incomparable. Such gifts are not given lightly therefore half-hearted and wishy-washy requests for such things will not be granted. Thus our hungering and thirsting after the fullness of the Spirit is critical to receiving. God is after hearts that recognize their barrenness apart from the Spirit, whose souls cry out for the Living God in an all-absorbing fashion. Does this hunger crowd out every other hunger and every other activity?

Next, we find ourselves called upon to empty ourselves and surrender all to the Spirit. (Romans 6:13) This is where we pour out our hearts to Him, telling Him of all our failures and attempts in our flesh to serve Him, about all the broken promises, and we offer our poor, broken, and defeated lives to Him. Ask Him to take control and lead you how He chooses. Ask Him to occupy the throne of your heart and to take His rightful place as Lord. Confess all known sin and renounce its power over you. This includes separating ourselves from the sin and doing whatever it takes to not allow it any mastery over us any longer. This is often where a person gets stuck. They are seeking God, pleading to be filled and yet there is sin which they are not willing to give up.

Third, we lay hold of the filling of the Spirit by faith. This we do, not based on feelings or emotions, or upon any particular manifestation, but based on the promises of the word of God. If there has been a true and deep hunger for more of God, a full surrender of ourselves to the Spirit, and repentance of all known sin, then we can believe that God accepts this and fills us with the Spirit. Actually it is the process of Him taking more control of us. Through the process of emptying and surrender, He is able to occupy more of our hearts and fill us with Himself. Too many of us are hindered, however, because we rely on feelings. Sometimes feelings do accompany such an experience, yet often they do not. Do not compare. Instead trust His word in faith. If we are relying always on feelings it is a sure sign that we are weak in our faith. As we grow, God often pulls back the feelings and emotions as He is seeking to mature us and build our ability to walk by faith and not by sight.

I invite us to plunge ahead in submission and yielding to the Holy Spirit. A life which has been filled with the Spirit and is regularly being filled again and again will never be the same. It is an adventurous journey that I want to see more and more of God’s people embarking on. Do not settle for less then all that God wants to give to accomplish His purposes.

Selected Bibliography

Graham, Billy, The Holy Spirit (Waco, TX; Warner Books; 1980)

Marshall, Catherine, The Helper (Waco, TX; Word Books; 1979)

Bennett, Dennis & Rita, The Holy Spirit and You (New Jersey; Logos International;

              1971)

Gee, Donald, Concerning Spiritual Gifts (Springfield, MO; Gospel Publishing House;

              1972)

Evans, Tony, The Fire That Ignites: Living in the Power of the Holy Spirit (Lifechange

              Books)