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The HELPER Depending on the Spirit in all of life Unless otherwise noted, scriptures are taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org) ©2007 Randy Hurst Available from GOSPEL PUBLISHING HOUSE 1-800-641-4310 The HELPER Depending on the Spirit in all of life RANDY HURST CONTENTS Chapter 1 The Promise of Power ....................................7 Chapter 2 The Helper ..................................................15 Chapter 3 What “Power” Means ..................................23 Chapter 4 Power for Purpose ........................................31 Chapter 5 The Spirit’s Instrument ................................39 Chapter 6 The Spirit’s Voice..........................................45 Chapter 7 Tug of War ..................................................57 Chapter 8 Spiritual Gifts..............................................63 Chapter 9 Four Purposes of Tongues ..............................73 Chapter 10 Seeking ......................................................81 7 C H A P T E R 1 The PROMISE OF POWER LIVING A TRULY CHRISTIAN LIFE ISN’T DIFFICULT—IT’S IMPOSSIBLE. We need help. And God knows it. He made us and understands us. He created us with certain innate abilities. He also designed us to need him. We were designed to be dependent. There are two great moments in life, when we are born—and when we are born again. Physical birth doesn’t happen in an instant, of course. It is a process. On that day there are special moments that will never happen again—the first breath and the first cry. The miracle of new life in Christ is similar. In a moment, life changes. In our second birth, there are sacred, wonderful moments—when we confess our sins and ask God for forgiveness. 8 Then there’s the moment when, for the first time, we experience God’s assurance that our sins are forgiven and we belong to Him. That assurance comes from the Holy Spirit. As with physical life, our spiritual birthday opens the door to the future. Salvation is not just a matter of receiving Christ; it is following Him—for a lifetime on this earth and into the next life for eternity. Forgiveness and salvation are God’s free gifts to us. But there are requirements for following Him. Jesus said, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.”1 That statement alone should help us understand that following Jesus will not be easy. But, though the Christian life is not easy, in the most important ways, it is a simple one. DISCIPLINE AND DEPENDENCE Following Jesus involves both discipline and dependence. We must discipline ourselves to do our part while depending on God to do what only He can. These principles characterize 9 much of Paul’s teaching in the New Testament. This truth could be summarized in the following statement: God will do for us what we can’t do for ourselves, but He will not do for us what we can do ourselves. Paul expresses this divine/human interaction in his letter to the Colossian believers: “I labor, striving according to his power, which mightily works within me.”2 Notice that Paul advocates human effort—discipline (“I labor, striving”) that depends on God (“according to his power”). This combination of discipline and dependence is essential to effective Christian living. We can’t follow Jesus Christ and live the life to which He has called us merely by selfdiscipline. We don’t have the natural capabilities to live a truly Christian life. We need God’s supernatural help. That’s why the Holy Spirit came to us—to be our Helper. In the last days before Jesus’ crucifixion, He gathered His followers to give them His final instructions. They had been with Him for three years during His public ministry. He knew they were troubled and afraid when He told them that He would be leaving them soon. 10 He had patiently taught them. He said, “All things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you.”3 He had instructed them concerning how to live as His witnesses in the world. But they were overwhelmed. How could they possibly obey all the commandments He had given them? It was one thing to understand what Jesus required of them. It was another to accomplish the purpose for which He had called them to follow Him. Jesus knew that fear would overcome their best intentions. But He had chosen them. He had prayed for them. He knew that in spite of their human weaknesses, they loved Him. And after three years of teaching, He shared a wonderful promise with them. He said, “I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.”4 It is incredible that He told His disciples it was to their advantage for Him to leave them. He was implying that they would be more effective with the Spirit’s presence in their lives than when Jesus was physically present with them. 11 Jesus’ last words recorded by Luke are these: “That repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”5 It would seem that a task so great— proclaiming Christ’s message to all the nations—should commence immediately. But Jesus told the disciples to wait in the city to be “clothed with power from on high.” Remember the American Express Card commercial? A person is on a trip away from home without the necessary resources and is advised, “Don’t leave home without it!” Jesus was telling His disciples essentially the same thing—that they should not begin their mission without being equipped to accomplish the task. Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He spoke one last time to His disciples: 12 “He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, ‘Which,’ He said, ‘you heard of from Me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’ So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, ‘Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?’”6 Jesus’ answer was clear and direct: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”7 Jesus directed His disciples’ focus to the task before them of being witnesses to a lost world in the power of the Spirit. He redirected their attention from the concerns of time to those of eternity. Understanding the future was insignificant compared to experiencing the Holy Spirit’s empowerment to fulfill the 13 purpose for which He called them—being His witnesses in the world. The promise of the Holy Spirit’s power is for every believer. The apostle Peter said, “The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”8 The fulfillment of our Lord’s promise of power for His followers happened on the day of Pentecost. And that promised power is granted through a Person—the Holy Spirit. Mark 8:34 Colossians 1:29 3 John 15:15 4 John 16:7 5 Luke 24:47-49 6 Acts 1:4-6 7 Acts 1:7,8, NIV 8 Acts 2:39, NIV 1 2 15 C H A P T E R 2 The HELPER THERE IS ONE TRUE AND LIVING GOD. GOD IS THREE PERSONS: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Each are distinct Persons, and each is God. They are not three gods but one God in three Persons— usually called the Trinity. The Bible speaks about all three members of the Trinity from the beginning of Genesis to the end of Revelation. Jesus clearly taught about all three in John 15 and 16. Our minds can’t fully understand how one God can be three Persons, because the Trinity has unity that is much greater than any unity people can have. God is three distinct Persons. But God is one in perfect unity of purpose and love. God the Father is our Creator. He is the maker of the universe and the giver of all life. 16 God the Son (Jesus Christ) is our Savior. He became a man to show the world what God is like. He paid the penalty for our sin and offers everlasting life to anyone who will receive Him. God the Holy Spirit is our Helper. He is always with us because He is in each person who has received Jesus Christ as Savior. He helps us receive God’s forgiveness and obey God’s commands. Each member of the Trinity is working in the world and in our lives. Though God the Father is our Creator, the Bible teaches that Jesus and the Holy Spirit also had a part in creation. Jesus, God’s Son, is our Savior, but the Father and the Holy Spirit also are involved in the work of salvation. And the Father and Son work in our lives to help us as the Holy Spirit does. Each member of the Trinity is an individual Person, but the three Persons think and act together and can’t be separated. Because of how clearly the personalities of God the Father and God the Son are seen in the Bible, they are usually better understood than the Holy Spirit. We can vividly see the 17 personality of God the Father (Jehovah) revealed throughout the Old Testament and clarified even further through Jesus’ teaching in the New Testament. God the Son is foretold in the Old Testament and revealed throughout the New Testament in the person of Jesus. Jesus taught about the Holy Spirit, and we see the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts and in the teaching letters of the New Testament writers, especially the apostle Paul. But, because a significant part of the Holy Spirit’s work is to glorify the Son, many have difficulty understanding the Holy Spirit as a Person rather than merely a “power” or a “force.” The Bible clearly teaches that the Holy Spirit is a distinct Person with attributes of personality. He corrects, helps and intercedes. He inspired the prophets to speak. His works are clearly described as being done by a Person. The Holy Spirit is also divine. Characteristics only used of God are attributed to the Holy Spirit. He is present everywhere. He knows all things, is all powerful and is eternal, without beginning or end. He is described as 18 working in creation and doing miracles. And Jesus commanded that believers are to be baptized in the Holy Spirit’s name along with those of the Father and the Son. In Jesus’ final hours before His crucifixion, while giving His last instructions to His disciples, He taught them extensively about the Holy Spirit, whom He would send from the Father to be their Helper: “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.”1 Jesus was revealing a great mystery about God. Jesus had been with the disciples, and they knew how He had helped them. Now He promised them “another Helper.” He was introducing them to the third Person of the Trinity—the Holy Spirit. The Old Testament writers taught concerning the Spirit of God, but the people could not understand the Holy Spirit 19 until Jesus came and, even more, after Jesus returned to heaven and sent the Holy Spirit as the Father had promised. Jesus promised two things concerning what His followers’ relationship with the Holy Spirit would be. First was His permanence—the Spirit would be with them forever and abide (or remain) with them. Second was His presence—the Holy Spirit would be in them. This was certainly a mystery revealed. The Old Testament spoke often about the Holy Spirit coming on prophets, priests, judges and kings. But Jesus revealed that the Holy Spirit would come to be in His people. God was with Adam and Eve in the Garden. In the Old Testament, God was with His people as they wandered in the wilderness, showing His presence in the cloud by day and fire by night. But when Jesus, God the Son, became flesh and took on human form, God entered another relationship with man. The apostle John wrote, “The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only 20 begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.”2 Jesus was God not only with His people but also among them. Now Jesus was teaching His disciples that God the Holy Spirit would come and be in them. God’s relationship with His people progressed from being with them to being among them to finally being in them! The Greek word used in the New Testament to describe Jesus’ teaching concerning the Holy Spirit, parakletos, has been translated “Comforter.” The title originally was used to describe a person who was called in to help someone, which is why some Bible versions translate the word as “Counselor” or “Advocate.” But the simplest translation is “Helper.” Jesus described the One who would come to spiritually strengthen us. In Jesus’ final instructions to His disciples, He repeatedly interjected teaching regarding the Holy Spirit: “Jesus answered and said to him, ‘If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and we will come to him and 21 make our abode with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father’s who sent Me. These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.’”3 “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me, and you will testify also, because you have been with Me from the beginning.”4 “And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.”5 “I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the 22 truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you.”6 The teaching Jesus gave to His disciples concerning the Holy Spirit in the final hours before His death prepared them for life without His physical presence with them. The Holy Spirit—the Helper—will be the empowering presence to help us in everyday living. 1 John 14:15-17 John 1:14 3 John 14:23-26 4 John 15:26-27 5 John 16:8-11 6 John 16:12-15 2 23 C H A P T E R 3 What “POWER”MEANS PEOPLE OFTEN THINK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT’S EMPOWERMENT only in terms of signs and wonders and spiritual gifts. But the word translated “power” in Acts 1:8 (dunamis) is wonderfully comprehensive. It simply means “ability” and applies in practical ways to everyday life. The power Jesus promised His followers is for every aspect of Christian living, enabling us to do and be whatever our Lord has purposed in our lives. Each individual is unique. We struggle with different personal weaknesses. The Holy Spirit knows our hearts, our motives and our personal flaws. When we depend on Him, He will help us in our uniqueness to live in obedience to our Lord. The help—the power—that we need varies with each 24 individual. The shy, inhibited person may need courage to speak up. The outgoing, impulsive person may need restraint to shut up. The Holy Spirit’s power will provide whatever help we need. We need the Holy Spirit’s working, not just in church on Sunday, but every day—in our homes, at school, in our neighborhoods and in the workplace. SPECTACULAR OR SUPERNATURAL When people think of the power of the Holy Spirit, visible, spectacular works usually come to mind. Most of the time, the kind of power we need in everyday life is neither spectacular nor sensational, but it is supernatural. Accomplishing God’s purposes in the world requires divine help beyond our natural abilities. Supernatural living is not always outwardly dramatic. After the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts, spectacular miracles took place. The sick were brought into the streets and laid on beds and couches so that the 25 shadow of Peter might touch them. Likewise, Luke records: “God was performing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that handkerchiefs or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out.”1 Notice that Luke describes these miracles as “extraordinary.” Other translations use the words “special” or “unusual.” Placing the sick where Peter’s shadow would touch them or taking Paul’s handkerchiefs or aprons were not regular practices of the church. Instead, the sick were instructed to call for the elders of the church and be anointed with oil. In recent years, much has been taught concerning signs and wonders. Those two words are frequently used in the Book of Acts. But Jesus only spoke about signs and wonders in two ways. He warned His followers not to be deceived by false prophets in the last days who would show signs and wonders. And when the official at Capernaum whose son was sick came to Him, Jesus said, “Unless you 26 people see signs and wonders, you simply will not believe.”2 But, when Jesus taught His disciples about what would convince people they were His true followers, He did not talk about signs and wonders but about love. He said, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”3 The fruit of the Spirit in the believer’s life—love, joy, peace, patience and all the other characteristics Paul describes in Galatians 5— may not seem spectacular. But they certainly can be supernatural—beyond our natural capacities. When people look at our lives and see love (especially for those who have wronged us), overflowing joy in the midst of sorrow, peace in the crises of life, patience in tribulation, and gentleness in response to hostility, these can be supernatural evidences that we are not merely subject to our own natural emotions. We are empowered by the Holy Spirit to live the life to which our Lord has called us. The supernatural working of the Spirit will not always be spectacular or sensational, but it is convincing evidence of the 27 presence and life of the Spirit within us. The Holy Spirit helps us in a wide variety of ways—in every part of our spiritual lives. For example, one of our greatest personal needs is motivation. The Spirit works in our desires. He moves us to do what we don’t have the internal motivation to do. He inspires our passion. The Spirit also helps us when we pray. The apostle Paul wrote, “In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should.”4 He encouraged believers to “pray at all times in the Spirit…with all perseverance and petition for all the saints.”5 Praying in the Spirit enables us to seek the Lord and intercede beyond our own understanding or wisdom. A CONTINUING INPOURING In the Old Testament when the Israelites were fleeing Egypt for the Promised Land, God gave them bread from heaven, called manna, to feed them during their wilderness journey. It was not a supply to be stored up and 28 carried with them. It was given to them as they needed it. A life overflowing with the fullness of the Spirit is much the same. When Paul exhorted the Ephesian Christians to be filled with the Spirit, the tense of the verb means to “keep on being filled.”6 The infilling of the Spirit should be ongoing. We must keep praying in the Spirit, loving in the Spirit and living in the Spirit. The Holy Spirit baptism—as wonderful as it is—is not just a one-time experience. We need to keep being filled. We need a continuing inpouring of the Spirit daily in our lives. We don’t need signs, wonders and miracles every day. But we do need the Holy Spirit’s help in everyday living. We need the power of the Holy Spirit in our spiritual lives, in our emotions and in our relationships. We are not naturally capable of being all God wants us to be without His divine help. It is the difference between ordinary living—and living with power. 29 1 Acts 19:11,12 John 4:48 3 John 13:35 4 Romans 8:26 5 Ephesians 6:18 6 Ephesians 5:18 2 31 C H A P T E R 4 Power FOR PURPOSE JESUS CLEARLY STATED THAT THE ESSENTIAL PURPOSE of the Spirit’s empowerment is to be His witnesses. The Holy Spirit baptism is a promised gift to all believers. But receiving the gift is not a guarantee that the promised power will be used for its intended purpose. I heard an intriguing fact on the radio: 95 percent of all sport utility vehicles sold in the United States are never taken off the road. Of course, during Minnesota winters, four-wheel drive is a great help in snow and even on city streets. But why would someone need fourwheel drive on the freeways of Southern California? These vehicles were equipped for a purpose for which most are rarely, if ever, used. This reminds me of many people’s experience concerning the Holy Spirit 32 baptism. They receive this wonderful gift, yet they don’t put it into action or may not even fully understand the purpose for which this equipping power was given. Jesus’ promise to His followers was that they would be His witnesses wherever they went. Unfortunately, many equate being a witness with only our speech, or what has come to be termed “witnessing.” But effectiveness in reaching the spiritually lost requires a witness beyond words. Paul wrote to the believers at Thessalonica: “Our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.”1 Paul’s witness was not merely what he said (“not…in word only”), but also how he said it (“in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction”) and who he was (“you know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake”). 33 Our witness is comprised of what we say, how we say it and who we are. WHAT WE SAY Our message is Jesus. It is the Christcentered message the Spirit will honor and use. Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would glorify Him. After the Day of Pentecost, the first Christians boldly and clearly witnessed about Jesus as He promised they would. In Acts 2, the multitude was amazed because they heard those who had been filled with the Holy Spirit speaking in the languages of the unbelievers who were gathered. When they asked what was happening, Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, stood and explained that this was the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy in the Old Testament concerning the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Then he clearly and boldly preached Jesus Christ, and about 3,000 people were added to the Church that day. In Acts 3, Peter and John were going to the temple to pray, and a man lame from birth was healed. Peter again used the opportunity to 34 proclaim Jesus, and about 5,000 believed the message. In Acts 4, the priests, captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees were so disturbed that they put Peter and John in jail. The next day the rulers, elders, scribes and high priests challenged the two men, saying, “By what power, or in what name, have you done this?”2 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, spoke boldly about Jesus: “There is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”3 When the Early Church was born, the message of the believers always focused on the person Jesus Christ. As they boldly and clearly proclaimed Jesus, great numbers believed. Today this same message—Jesus—must be clearly communicated to the spiritually lost of this world. He is thought of by many as a teacher, a philosopher or even a prophet, but every person must be confronted with the reality of who Jesus truly is—the sinless Son of God who gave His life to pay the penalty for our sins. They must be given an adequate 35 witness and opportunity to accept His offer of forgiveness and everlasting life and personally submit to His lordship. As He did for the New Testament Christians after the Day of Pentecost, the Spirit gives us the internal motivation to speak about Jesus, confident in the Spirit’s convincing work. The early Christians prayed for that kind of help: “Grant that Your bondservants may speak Your word with all confidence.”4 HOW WE SAY IT How we say things communicates as much as what we say. Passion is contagious. It is not necessarily conveyed by volume, but rather through evident sincerity and conviction. To be convincing we must first be convinced. If we’re not moved by our message, it’s unlikely we will move anyone else. Our emotions, attitudes and actions are as much a part of our message as our words. In his letter to the Colossians, Paul said, 36 “Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.”5 Peter wrote, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.”6 Notice that both Paul and Peter emphasize a witness that includes more than mere words. Paul says our speech should “always be with grace.” Peter says we should speak “with gentleness and respect.” The Holy Spirit helps us communicate Christ as Paul did, “in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.” The Spirit moves us in our witness with a sincere, compelling passion. 37 WHO WE ARE The validity of our witness is related to the credibility of our lives. Effective witness depends on character. This has always been true. But in a culture that is increasingly skeptical of Christianity, it is even more critical. The content of our message will be greatly hindered if our manner and actions are inconsistent with our words. With many people, especially those we know personally, our testimony of the difference Christ has made in our lives and its consistent proof through our actions will be what compels them most. In many countries, Christianity is not a prominent religion. The Christian population is small, and Christian media do not exist. This can offer a great advantage in evangelism, because the first witness unbelievers in those countries receive is from someone they know personally whose life has greatly changed after receiving Christ. They do not have to overcome negative perceptions that come from knowing people who communicate a Christian message but whose lives do not affirm it. 38 In a society in which people are rapidly losing faith in the integrity of leaders in government and the business world, the personal credibility of Christians is not merely an added blessing in witness, it is an essential requirement. The Holy Spirit enables our character to become what God has called us to be, as the fruit of the Spirit—the nature of Jesus Christ—becomes evident in our lives. 1 1 Thessalonians 1:5 Acts 4:7 3 Acts 4:12 4 Acts 4:29 5 Colossians 4:5,6 6 1 Peter 3:15,16, NIV 2 39 C H A P T E R 5 The SPIRIT’S INSTRUMENT “THE WORD OF GOD IS THE ONLY INSTRUMENT THE HOLY SPIRIT HAS.” That statement made a profound impact on my life more than 35 years ago during Dr. Stanley Horton’s theology class at Central Bible College. I had heard the word “instrument” used many times in relation to us as believers—that we are God’s instruments. But what Dr. Horton went on to explain is that really we are agents, God’s representatives in the world. An instrument is something unchanging that is used to change something else. The Holy Spirit uses God’s unchanging Word to shape and mold us into God’s will. Jesus taught that the Word (or Message) is like a seed. The New Testament reveals four kinds of power the “seed” of God’s Word has to 40 work in and through our lives. First is the power of regeneration—the power to give us new life. The Greek word translated as “regeneration” simply means “beginning again.” The apostle Peter wrote, “For you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.”1 Second is the power of sanctification, which means “cleansing.” The Holy Spirit uses the Word to purify our lives. Paul wrote, “Christ also loved the church and gave himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word.”2 The third power is transformation. This comes from the Greek word metamorphoo, from which we get the word “metamorphosis.” Metamorphosis is a radical kind of change that takes place in nature. The Christian life is not merely making psychological adjustments or modifying behavior. It is a change from one kind of a thing to another kind of a thing, much like the caterpillar that transforms into 41 the butterfly—a creature that bears no resemblance to what it used to be. Paul said, “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”3 Our minds are renewed as the Holy Spirit uses God’s Word to change the way we think, which in turn changes our behavior. The fourth power of the seed is multiplication. When we become channels of God’s message, that message multiplies in the lives of other people. Jesus taught, “Other seeds fell into the good soil, and as they grew up and increased, they yielded a crop and produced thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.”4 OUR GUIDE INTO TRUTH God used human writers as His messengers, but it is God’s message they have given to us. The Holy Spirit moved men to write, and He “breathed” the truth of God through what the writers said. The writers did not write God’s Word from their own initiative 42 or from their own natural knowledge and wisdom. Peter said, “No prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.”5 Jesus said that God’s Word is truth and promised that the Holy Spirit would guide us “into all the truth.”6 The Holy Spirit helps us understand the truth beyond our natural ability. The apostle John said, “But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.”7 The Bible provides abundant evidence that it is God’s Word. But a person is thoroughly persuaded of the Bible’s divine authority through an inward work of the Holy Spirit, who convinces our hearts of the truth. A wonderful thing happens when a bornagain believer reads God’s Word. The same Holy Spirit who inspired the writers is with us when we read it. The Holy Spirit guided the writers of His Word by inspiration. The same Holy Spirit guides us when we read God’s Word and helps us understand it. Three regular practices provide guidance in our lives through the truth of God’s Word. 43 1. Bible reading. The person who has a Bible but does not read it is no better off than the person who has no Bible. Daily Bible reading is a source of spiritual strength to the Christian. We are not just physical beings, but spiritual as well. Jesus said, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.”8 Most of us eat food every day; otherwise, our physical bodies become weak. We also need daily spiritual bread. 2. Bible study. We need to study the Word. The Jews at Berea believed that Jesus was the Christ because their minds were prepared for the truth. They examined the Scriptures daily and received the Word with eagerness. It was a habit of their everyday lives. This is why Luke refers to them as being “nobleminded.”9 3. Meditating on the Word. Meditation is giving time for God’s Word in our thought life. When His Word is already planted in our minds, it is available for the Holy Spirit to bring to our remembrance. Paul said, “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you.”10 This means the Word should live within us. 44 “Richly” speaks of abundance, both in quantity and quality. Jesus taught His disciples that His words should remain in them. We are to be full of God’s Word, not just turning to the Word in times of crisis. The Word of God is the Holy Spirit’s instrument in our lives. Invariably, people testify that after experiencing the Holy Spirit baptism, the written Word of God came alive to them in a fresh way. The same Holy Spirit who inspired the writers of God’s Word works in our minds and hearts to bring us understanding and activate faith in our hearts. 1 1 Peter 1:23 Ephesians 5:25,26 3 Romans 12:2 4 Mark 4:8 5 2 Peter 1:21 6 John 16:13; John 17:17 7 1 John 2:20, NIV 8 Matthew 4:4 9 Acts 17:10-12 10 Colossians 3:16 2 45 C H A P T E R 6 The SPIRIT’SVOICE ON ONE OF MY JOURNEYS, A WELLKNOWN CHRISTIAN AUTHOR sat next to me on a plane. I immediately recognized him and introduced myself. After he learned in conversation that I am a Pentecostal, he said, “May I ask you something personal? Since you are a Pentecostal, does God really speak to you?” I replied, “Of course.” He asked, “How does He speak to you?” I answered, “The same way He speaks to you.” That startled him until I explained that I have never heard an audible voice, but the Holy Spirit speaks to my heart as He does to every believer—through the inner witness. 46 THE CONSCIENCE God created us with a conscience. Our conscience is the ability to know right from wrong. Even nonbelievers have a conscience. The Bible teaches that our conscience is a “witness” within us. The Greek word translated “witness” means an inner confirmation. The Christian life is one of spiritual growth. God intends for us to learn to make right and wise choices. The Christian’s conscience should continually be developing an increasing sensitivity to God’s will. We are not just physical beings, but spiritual as well. God wants us to use and develop our spiritual senses, not just our physical senses. If we don’t use our physical senses of sight and hearing, they lose their effectiveness. This is also true of our spiritual senses. Unfortunately, our human conscience is not completely trustworthy in itself. The Bible teaches that a person’s conscience can be good or pure, or it can also be defiled, evil or weak. It can even be damaged and left insensitive. Our conscience can be trusted only as far as it is submitted to and instructed by God’s 47 written Word—the Bible. Some people confuse the conscience with the voice of the Holy Spirit. They are not the same. The witness of our developing conscience alone is not always sufficient for the guidance we need. THE INNER WITNESS In Old Testament times God spoke through the prophets to His people. But since the Holy Spirit was poured out at Pentecost, He now lives within the believer. The Holy Spirit in us speaks to or “bears witness” with our spirit. The Bible uses the word “witness” to describe how the Spirit speaks. It is an inner confirmation the Holy Spirit gives. The Bible teaches about different ways the Spirit speaks to us: THE WITNESS OF CONVICTION Probably the first time you received the inner witness was when the Spirit brought conviction to your heart. It might have been when you 48 heard a sermon or when someone shared the gospel with you. The message penetrated your heart so you knew you were a sinner. It was not your imagination or a human guilt complex. God’s Spirit spoke clearly to your heart. Jesus promised concerning the Holy Spirit: “And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin, and righteousness, and judgment.”1 Our own rebellious sinful nature blinds us from understanding God’s truth. It is only when the Holy Spirit reveals God’s truth to us that we can even understand it. If we sin, the Holy Spirit will faithfully convict us of that specific sin so we can deal with it, much like a physician diagnoses a disease so it can be treated. THE WITNESS OF ASSURANCE When we confess our sins, the Lord is “faithful and just to forgive us our sins.”2 How do we know we have been forgiven? The Bible says, “For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a 49 spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’ The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God.”3 The Puritans called this assurance “heaven on earth,” because it is the promise God’s Spirit puts in our hearts to make us certain of our eternal home with Christ. It is celebrated in the famous hymn, “Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! O what a foretaste of glory divine!” THE WITNESS OF PEACE Another way the believer receives the inner witness is when the Spirit gives us the peace of God. Paul said, “And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”4 Circumstances around us may be threatening, but no matter what our mind perceives or our emotions feel, the peace of God guards and protects both our hearts and minds in Christ. God’s peace brings a supernatural calm, even though it appears there is no reason to be calm. The peace of God cannot be counterfeited. No human 50 friend or counselor can bring divine peace. It is given by God alone. HOW THE HOLY SPIRIT “SPEAKS” The first Christians did not hear audible voices from heaven for every decision they made. An example of how the Spirit guided them is found in Acts. Luke states, “It seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us.”5 When the Early Church was seeking God’s will in Acts 17, they received the guidance of the Holy Spirit, even though it is clear from the language used that they were not hearing audible voices from heaven. But it is also clear there was a consensus among the group of believers concerning the Spirit’s guidance. Sometimes we are strongly impressed to do something, or we may be hesitant about something. These inner promptings can be the witness of the Holy Spirit. At times we are not even consciously aware that the Spirit is guiding us, but later we can look back and see how God led us beyond our own natural knowledge and wisdom. 51 KNOWING THE INNER WITNESS Unfortunately, even sincere Christians can mistake their own thoughts and inner feelings for the voice of God. Our own desires and imaginations can deceive us. The prophet Jeremiah warned of those who call themselves prophets but who “speak a vision of their own imagination, not from the mouth of the Lord.”6 How can we be sure that we are hearing the Spirit’s witness and not just our own desires and imagination? First, a witness from the Holy Spirit will always agree with the written Word He inspired. Any inner impression that conflicts with the Bible must be rejected. Just as our conscience must be tested by Scripture, so must any prompting from within us that we think comes from the Holy Spirit. We must be filled with God’s Word to be able to hear His voice. This is why daily Bible reading is so important. The written Word is the instrument of the Holy Spirit. Much of the time the Spirit will speak to us through the Word of God by calling it to our remembrance. 52 Second, the Bible teaches that receiving God’s guidance depends on our first being surrendered to His will. This requirement is essential for being able to spiritually hear God’s voice. Otherwise our own desires will mislead us. Third, a daily prayer life will cause us to grow in our relationship with God and help us become increasingly sensitive to His guidance. Our prayers should be instructed and directed by His written Word. If we read the Bible before we pray, what we have read will guide our prayers. We must remember that serving God is a relationship. All important relationships depend on open and regular communication. A Third World country was given a communication satellite dish by the United States for international telephone service. The dish was constantly in motion, run by electric motors as it tracked the satellite in space. A government official unplugged the satellite dish one night, believing the motors would last longer if they were not in constant use. When he reconnected it in the morning, the satellite dish scanned the heavens listening for the 53 satellite’s beam and burned the motors out. It was not designed for intermittent contact, but for constant contact. We were not created to hear God’s voice only in times of need and crisis, but to have an ongoing relationship with Him. But, we cannot expect God to speak through the inner witness of His Spirit for all of our decisions. This would ignore His commands to study His Word and grow spiritually to discern right from wrong— the way a compass always turns to the north. The inner witness is not on call whenever we desire. God does not speak to us by His Spirit as we want. He speaks to us as He wills, when He knows we need to hear His voice. At times God wants us to depend on our conscience, which the Spirit teaches with the Word. But our conscience is not always sufficient for the guidance we need. God also wants us to hear and know the voice of His Spirit. My friend, missionary David Grant, was traveling in India some years ago as a young evangelist. Exhausted after preaching several times a day for many weeks, he scheduled two 54 nights and a full day to rest in the city of Trevandrum. Early the next morning he was awakened with the compelling urge to travel to Madras immediately. He woke the missionary in whose home he was staying and insisted he had to leave for the airport. It was not David Grant’s conscience that prompted him to leave the city of Trevandrum early. There was nothing morally right or wrong about which flight to take. David was obeying an inner witness of the Holy Spirit. When David arrived in Madras, his hotel reservation was for the following day, but the hotel manager gave him a room. A couple of days later, the manager stopped him in the lobby and asked, “Mr. Grant, I remember that you arrived before your reservation. Why did you come one day early?” David said, “Why do you ask?” The man replied, “Have you seen the newspaper?” The front-page story was about a flight from Trevandrum to Madras that crashed into a mountain with no survivors. It was the flight on which David had been scheduled to travel. 55 God has a plan and purpose for each of our lives. We need to hear and know His voice to fulfill His will for our lives. Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”7 1 John 16:8 1 John 1:9, KJV 3 Romans 8:15,16 4 Philippians 4:7 5 Acts 15:28 6 Jeremiah 23:16 7 John 10:27 2 57 C H A P T E R 7 TUG OF WAR AS CHILDREN, MOST OF US HAVE PLAYED THE GAME “TUG OF WAR.” Two teams pull on a rope that has a handkerchief tied at its midpoint. Two lines are drawn on the ground. The “tug of war” continues until the handkerchief crosses one of these lines. Then the game—the “war”—is over. Something like a tug of war is going on in our hearts. At the center of the problem is our desires. Desires are what motivate us. We basically do in life what we want to do. The problem is that within us we have conflicting desires. More than 25 years ago when my wife, Ruth, and I were pastors in Fairview Heights, Illinois, a young man began attending the church. Dennis was a new believer, and we became good friends. As a young Christian, Dennis struggled with that internal battle. As he left church one 58 Sunday, I asked, “How is it going, Dennis?” He answered, “It’s like I’ve got a fight going on inside of me, man. It’s like two dogs are fighting inside me—a good dog and a bad dog.” I asked, “Which one’s winning, Dennis?” He replied, “The one I feed, man.” Dennis described the inner conflict very well. Paul clearly addresses this human condition in his letters to the early Christians, especially to the churches in Rome and Galatia. To the Romans, Paul wrote, “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.”1 The power of the flesh—our physical desires—is strong. In the Garden of Gethsemane, when Peter was overcome by his body’s desire for sleep, Jesus said, “The spirit is 59 willing, but the flesh is weak.”2 Feeding desires only temporarily satisfies them. Anyone who has battled a physical habit knows this. The person bound by alcohol, drugs or any other sin knows that indulging those sinful desires brings only temporary satisfaction. Soon the desire comes back even stronger—like an animal that grows as it is fed and requires more food the larger it becomes. This problem of sinful desire within the heart of man is a focus of most world religions. Even people who have never read a Bible understand the problems our desires cause us. The objective of some religions is to gratify those desires. Other religions try to repress desire or eliminate it altogether. But the Bible teaches that our desires can be changed by God’s power. Paul wrote to the church at Philippi: “It is God Himself whose power creates within you the desire to do His gracious will and also brings about the accomplishment of the desire.”3 The only power that can defeat the desires of the flesh is the power of the Holy Spirit. Paul told the Galatians, 60 “So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.”4 Notice that Paul does not talk about the works of the Spirit or the fruit of the flesh. We can naturally perform all of the works of the flesh he describes. But love, joy, peace, patience and the other characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit 61 cannot be performed by us, even if we have the right intentions. They can only be produced through the Spirit who lives within us. This is why the fullness of the Spirit must be maintained in each of our lives. The fruit of the Spirit Paul describes is not a list of “works” we can perform naturally. They are spiritual attributes that are really a description of Jesus’ character. The indwelling Holy Spirit produces that fruit in our lives. In my youth I remember a precious elderly woman in my home church, Alice Reynolds Flower. She used to say, “Be naturally spiritual and spiritually natural.” That results when the fruit of the indwelling Holy Spirit changes our character and lives. Living in the fullness of the Holy Spirit will empower us to win the internal battle—the “tug of war”—in our hearts. 1 Romans 7:15-18, NIV Matthew 26:41; Mark 14:38 3 Philippians 2:13, Weymouth 4 Galatians 5:16-24, NIV 2 63 C H A P T E R 8 SPIRITUAL GIFTS JESUS SAID, “I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH.”1 Our Lord did not just lay the foundation for the Church; He is still actively building it. Jesus Christ is the Baptizer, and sent the Spirit, as the Father promised, to empower His people. Part of that empowerment is that He imparts spiritual gifts to the Church. If you have attended a Pentecostal church service, you may have heard a person speak in a language you don’t understand, followed by someone interpreting what was just said. Or you may hear someone from the congregation speak out with a special message for the church. These are noticeable workings of the Holy Spirit, but they represent only a portion of the spiritual gifts the Spirit gives to believers. Several lists of spiritual gifts are provided in Scripture by the apostle Paul—1 Corinthians 64 12-14, Romans 12:1-21 and Ephesians 4:1-16. In each case, Paul’s primary concern is not to provide a catalog of spiritual gifts but to address the motives and attitudes of those who receive and experience the gifts. The most extensive passage concerning spiritual gifts is in 1 Corinthians. Paul was responding to the Corinthian church’s emphasis on certain gifts, particularly tongues, while they neglected more essential gifts. Though he was dealing with a specific problem in a particular time and place, the truths he taught apply in all times and places and provide insight for other issues concerning spiritual gifts. POWER OF THE GIFTS Paul mentions all three members of the Trinity working through spiritual gifts: “Now there are varieties of gifts but the same Spirit. And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. And there are varieties of effects, but the same God works all things in all persons.”2 65 God calls us, not merely to work for Him, but to work with Him. He is working in and through us, and He empowers us through the gifts. In 1 Corinthians 12, the gifts are manifested in these two powerful ways: First, the power of the gifts is seen in their unity. Paul uses the human body as an example of the Church. The body is not merely an illustration of the Church; it is a divinely inspired representation of what God intends the Church to be. God designed both the physical human body and the spiritual body (the Church). A body can’t function if its parts don’t work together. The Early Church was a living example of the power of spiritual unity. After the first Christians were filled with the Holy Spirit, they “were of one heart and soul.”3 Paul taught that God has so composed the Body that each member is dependent on the others. If one member suffers, so do the rest. And if one is honored, the others are honored too. Second, the power of the gifts is seen in their variety. God has a purpose for each of the gifts. The Corinthian church focused on a few 66 gifts (especially tongues). Consequently, the church’s strength suffered because believers did not fully appreciate all the gifts God has given. The very nature of the church is that it is “not one member, but many.”4 God knows what the church needs. Each part of the Body and each spiritual gift has an important purpose. If we don’t recognize the beauty and power in the variety God has provided, we might make two misjudgments. We might devalue our own place in the Body. Or we might devalue someone else’s place. PLACEMENT OF THE GIFTS Twice in 1 Corinthians 12, Paul emphasizes that spiritual gifts and ministries are given by the will and action of God himself. Spiritual gifts are not imparted by man’s initiative. God acts through people, but by His own will. Paul mentions that a gift was within Timothy through the laying on of Paul’s hands, and also through prophecy with the laying on of hands by the presbytery. But he clearly shows that God has placed each gift in 67 the Body “as He desired.” He also shows in verse 28 that “God has appointed” the various ministries in the church. We are to “earnestly desire” spiritual gifts. But we are not to pursue them. Spiritual gifts are not rewards or achievements. They are gifts or graces that are undeserved and imparted by the will of God for the good of the whole church. We are to pursue love, but we are only to desire spiritual gifts. Spiritual gifts are not trophies of spirituality; they are gifts God has placed in the church to work His purposes. PERSPECTIVE ON THE GIFTS Paul never intended 1 Corinthians 13 to stand alone as a beautiful piece of prose about love. He didn’t write it to be framed in flowers and hung on a wall. Rather, it is the center of Paul’s teaching concerning spiritual gifts and provides perspective. To understand this passage, remember what the Corinthian church was like. Their problem was not a lack of spiritual gifts, but rather their wrong attitude toward the gifts. 68 Paul begins 1 Corinthians 13 with two powerful arguments: First, he shows that as great as spiritual gifts are, love is even greater. Second, he shows that as wonderful as the gifts are, they become ineffective without love. Paul does not in any way depreciate spiritual gifts. Before he begins his instruction concerning love, he says, “I show you a more excellent way.”5 The gifts are excellent. But love is more excellent. Love is not in competition with the gifts. Love is what makes the gifts effective. PURPOSE OF THE GIFTS The purpose of the gifts is to edify, which simply means to build up. It is related to the same word Paul uses when he tells Christians that we are God’s “building.” Jesus is building His church, and He graciously uses us in His work. The gifts of the Spirit build up in two ways. Believers are spiritually built up as individuals, and the church is built up as a group. Because tongues was a major issue in the 69 Corinthian church, Paul uses tongues as an example. He makes a distinction between tongues that are interpreted in church gatherings and tongues that are only for personal edification. In church gatherings, tongues result in the building up of the church only if they are interpreted. Paul uses a very strong argument to show that when believers assemble together, the priority should be the building up of the whole church. To assure the Corinthians that he is not depreciating the value of tongues for personal edification, he says, “I thank God I speak in tongues more than you all,”6 but he goes on to say that in the church he would rather speak five words that are understood and instruct others, than 10,000 words in a language that is not understood. He is not devaluing tongues. He is establishing a priority. At the close of the passage concerning spiritual gifts, Paul makes sure he is not misunderstood by saying, “Do not forbid to speak in tongues.”7 The priority is to “seek to abound for the edification of the church.”8 70 PROPRIETY OF THE GIFTS God has chosen to manifest His gifts through people, but it is possible for people to misuse the gifts. Divinely directed order is needed for their proper use. The purpose of the gifts (edification or building up) is the foundation for determining the propriety of the gifts. Paul says, “Let all things be done for edification.”9 He then gives practical teaching concerning the proper exercise of the gifts in church. Paul’s last instruction concerning spiritual gifts is, “all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner.”10 God does not control us as though we are puppets. We have a will. God’s Spirit is working in us, but our human spirit is still active and is subject to us. We can choose to control our spirit. The perspective of godly, selfless love in 1 Corinthians 13 requires that each person submit to the common good of the rest of the church. There is a proper time and place for each manifestation. God has not given us a complete list of exactly what is proper in each 71 situation. What is proper and orderly in a prayer meeting might not be appropriate in a Sunday morning worship service. And what is in order at one time in a particular service might not be at another time in the same service. There is a time for personal edification and a time for edification of the whole church. God has given us leaders who are accountable to Him to make those judgments. God has appointed “administrations” in the church. This word originally was used to describe steering a ship. It meant to govern by active guidance and direction. Leadership involves making judgments. When the leader of a service makes a decision concerning the propriety of a manifestation, that decision is under the guidance of the Spirit and is just as necessary as a message of prophecy or other gifts. And because the nature of “administrations” is “governing,” the leader’s judgment has authority over the exercise of the other gifts. The leader is accountable to God to be sensitive to what the Spirit wants to accomplish in a service and to be responsible that everything be proper and orderly. 72 Propriety in the use of the gifts is essential to their ongoing effectiveness. Tragically, misuse of spiritual gifts eventually results in their disuse. The gifts are essential to the building of Christ’s church. They are not intended merely for intermittent use, but as an ongoing means of empowering the church to accomplish God’s purposes. When Paul tells the Ephesian Christians to “be filled with the Spirit,” the Greek verb he uses means to keep choosing to be filled. The infilling of the Spirit was not intended to be just one event. It should be a way of living. We need to do as Paul exhorted the Corinthian church twice in this passage, to earnestly desire spiritual gifts. 1 Matthew 16:18 1 Corinthians 12:4-6 3 Acts 4:32 4 1 Corinthians 12:14 5 1 Corinthians 12:31 6 1 Corinthians 14:18 7 1 Corinthians 14:39 8 1 Corinthians 14:12 9 1 Corinthians 14:26 10 1 Corinthians 14:40 2 73 C H A P T E R 9 Four PURPOSES OF TONGUES THREE DRAMATIC SIGNS ACCOMPANIED THE OUTPOURING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT on the Day of Pentecost: a rushing mighty wind, tongues of fire appearing on the believers’ heads and speaking with other tongues (languages). The wind and fire were not repeated in Acts, but speaking with tongues continued to occur when people were filled with the Spirit. To fully understand the significance of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, we must remember that the Book of Acts is a sequel to the Gospel of Luke. Luke and Acts are actually a two-volume work of the lives of Jesus and His followers. To really understand the first part of Acts, we must go 74 back to the last part of Luke and remember Jesus’ final instructions and commands to His followers. He said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”1 Jesus’ command was that a message of “repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations.” It is difficult to imagine a more convincing sign to assure the disciples that they had truly been “clothed with power from on high” than speaking in languages they had never learned. A few sincere Christians have interpreted this to mean that missionaries who are filled with the Holy Spirit would not have to learn other languages. I know two missionaries who temporarily received the miracle of being able 75 to speak in another language, but it happened only once in their lives under very unusual circumstances and was never repeated. Such miracles could be termed “extraordinary,” much as Luke described the healings that happened when Paul’s handkerchiefs and aprons were taken to the sick. We don’t totally understand why God uses the manifestation of speaking in tongues, but it certainly is a sign that what God is doing is supernatural. On an airplane, I conversed with an anthropologist who was skeptical about Christianity and especially Pentecostals. When I shared with him several specific examples of Spirit-filled believers speaking in languages they didn’t know and others being present who understood those languages, he was amazed. I grew up in East Africa where my parents were missionaries. I remember well an incredible testimony concerning someone speaking with other tongues. An African man and his wife came forward in a church service to receive Christ. When the pastor prayed for them, the woman was filled with the Holy Spirit. She began to worship and praise God 76 eloquently in English. After her time of worship and prayer the pastor, who was fluent in English, spoke to her in English and she didn’t understand a word. Praying in tongues has several purposes in the lives of Spirit-filled believers. 1. Confirmation. Speaking in tongues is the first outward sign of the Holy Spirit baptism. This is found in Acts 2:4 and also in Acts 10 and 19. Acts 10 is especially instructive, because Luke records that the Jewish believers were convinced that the Gentiles had received the gift of the Holy Spirit when they heard them “speaking with tongues and exalting God.”2 2. Adoration. Our finite minds are incapable of comprehending and our own language is inadequate to totally express our hearts’ worship to God. Speaking in tongues, in what many refer to as a “prayer language,” frees us to communicate the worship of our hearts that is inexpressible in our limited vocabulary. Having been a missionary, I can converse in more than one language, but I still run out of words in worship to God. But when 77 I pray in tongues, the Holy Spirit bears witness with mine that the worship of my heart that I could not adequately express has been communicated with the Spirit’s help. 3. Edification. Praying in the Spirit edifies—builds up—in two ways: It edifies the individual who prays in the Spirit, and if interpreted, it edifies the church. Paul stated that he spoke in tongues more than all of the Corinthians, yet he reminded them that in the church setting tongues should be interpreted so that all could be edified. This does not restrict the private use of tongues for personal edification, because praying in tongues builds up the believer spiritually. With the stresses, pressures and challenges of life, we have the blessing of praying in the Spirit beyond our own wisdom and understanding. The best way to begin every day is with prayer. The gift of praying in tongues enables us to pray beyond ourselves for each day, not knowing what we face. The Holy Spirit will pray through us to effectively seek God’s divine help in everyday living. 4. Intercession. “The Spirit also helps our 78 weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should.”3 When we pray in the Spirit, He enables us to pray beyond our understanding. Paul said, “With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints.”4 God uses us to work His purposes in the lives of others through the ministry of intercession. Many years ago, my uncle Bud Abbott was leading the regular Wednesday night Bible study and prayer meeting at the Assembly of God in Superior, Wisconsin. During the prayer time, a godly deacon who worked for the railroad began praying quietly in tongues. The group fell silent and listened as he prayed in the Spirit for about 10 minutes. When he finished praying, a visiting woman stood and gave this testimony. Passing through town, she had seen a light in the church and slipped in the back. A missionary in Tibet for 20 years, she told the congregation that the deacon had been praying in the Tibetan dialect she knew. The deacon prayed for a Christian in China by name who was 79 suffering under tremendous persecution. He eloquently petitioned the Throne of Grace on the persecuted Christian’s behalf. When we pray in the Spirit, we are not puppets, nor do we enter into a trance. We do the praying as the Spirit enables us. Praying in the Spirit is a wonderful part of the Holy Spirit’s empowerment. It confirms the experience of the Holy Spirit baptism, empowers us to effective worship, builds us up spiritually and enables us to intercede for others beyond our own intelligence and wisdom. Speaking in tongues continued to occur throughout the Book of Acts when people were filled with the Spirit. The same is true today. This experience is for everyone who receives the Holy Spirit baptism. 1 Luke 24:46-49 Acts 10:46 3 Romans 8:26 4 Ephesians 6:18 2 81 C H A P T E R 1 0 SEEKING MANY YEARS AGO, AN IMMIGRANT FAMILY FROM EUROPE WAS TRAVELING ON A SHIP to the United States to begin a new life. The family was of very limited means, and the parents had packed a large supply of crackers and cheese to sustain them on the journey. The entire family stayed together in one cabin and at each mealtime ate crackers and cheese together. Most of the journey was over. Only a few days remained. As the family was walking along the deck before lunchtime, the wonderful aromas of food cooking in the kitchen adjacent to the dining hall wafted out onto the deck. Tired of eating crackers and cheese, the children of the immigrant family savored the delicious smells and pleaded with their father for some of the food. After getting his family back to their cabin, 82 the father approached the ship’s captain privately and asked, “How much would it cost for my family to have one meal in the ship’s dining room?” The captain replied, “I don’t know what you mean. Haven’t you been eating in the dining room?” “No,” the father replied, “we have been eating food we brought with us in our cabin.” The captain said, “Didn’t you know that when you bought your tickets, the price included all of your meals in the dining room?” The crackers and cheese sustained the family on their journey, but they did not enjoy the plentiful feast that was available to them and had already been purchased. A person can live a Christian life without experiencing the Holy Spirit baptism. But why should anyone settle for less than what God has promised and wants for us? Even many who know this promise are hesitant to seek. Some feel they don’t deserve this blessing. But the Holy Spirit baptism is promised to every believer. The apostle Paul taught that we receive the promise of the Spirit 83 by faith. It is not something we earn. It is a gift. If you have received Jesus Christ as your Savior, you are already qualified to receive the Holy Spirit baptism. On the Day of Pentecost, Peter said, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”1 You don’t have to become better than you are to deserve the gift He has promised you. Paul compares our spiritual lives to clay jars. He says, “We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.”2 Clay has imperfections. So do we. God knows that. He receives us as we are and will fill us with the Holy Spirit, who will enable us to change. Recognize your need of His power. Many believers speak of needing more of God. The issue for most of us is really that God needs more of us. Make “room” for His fullness by 84 surrendering every area of your life to Jesus’ lordship and invite Him to fill you with the Spirit to empower you to live for Him. Jesus’ disciples had to wait for God to pour out His Spirit as He had promised through the prophet Joel. You need to seek the Spirit baptism, but you do not have to wait in the same way the disciples did. The Spirit’s outpouring took place on the Day of Pentecost once and for all. Now we seek His inpouring— individually. We don’t know why God chose speaking in tongues as a sign of the Spirit’s empowerment. Some believe the reason is found in the teaching of James, who says that “no one can tame the tongue.”3 But that idea can actually be misleading to people who are seeking the Holy Spirit baptism, because they might expect the Holy Spirit to take control of their tongue. Acts 2:4 states that: “All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.” The Spirit “enabled.” He did not control. The Bible is very clear that, although the Holy Spirit enables us, we do the speaking. The 85 Holy Spirit doesn’t take control of our tongue and speak through us. He enables us to speak in tongues. When you seek, don’t worry that you will have a false experience or that when you speak in tongues it will be from your imagination. Jesus taught, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it will be opened. Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he? Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”4 If you sincerely seek the Lord for what He has promised, He will give you what you ask for. Shut the door on outside distractions. Center your mind and heart on Jesus. He is the Baptizer, and He will fill you. 86 Some seekers find it helpful to have other Spirit-filled believers pray with them. Others are more comfortable seeking alone. If you don’t receive the Baptism immediately, continue to seek the Lord Jesus in faith. God’s promise and desire is to baptize each believer with the Holy Spirit. Jesus told His followers to ask, seek and knock. In the original Greek language, these words describe a continuous action. A more accurate meaning is to keep asking…keep seeking…keep knocking…and you will receive. 1 Acts 2:38,39, NIV 2 Corinthians 4:7, NIV 3 James 3:8 4 Luke 11:9-13 2