Strange Fire and Prophecy

The recent Strange Fire conference (and book) has attempted to restate an old argument of cessationists re the gift of prophecy, that there was only ever one type, and that it was inerrant and totally authoritative and the basis of the Word itself, and therefore all other prophecy is false and such prophecy and people should be rejected.

The problem with this view is that it totally ignores the fact that there was prophetic activity of what might be called a secondary nature in the Old Testament. Such prophecies didn’t find there way into Scripture (apart from the mere reference to it’s activity), and they weren’t considered inerrant and totally authoritative, i.e. the Spirit coming on the 70 in Numbers 11: 24–27 with the result that they prophesied, plus the two who weren’t in the right place (Moses response interestingly was that he wished that all of the Lord’s people were prophets); the schools of the prophets mentioned in Samuel and Kings, and Saul’s particular experience, and then we have Joel’s prophesy (inerrant and authoritative and part of scripture) that the Spirit would be poured out on all flesh and they would prophesy.

Turning to the New Testament we find second level prophecy as a very real and necessary part of church life. It’s there in the book of Acts, and in the letters we find Paul writing to the church in Corinth and strongly encouraging them in it, and again in his writing to the Thessalonians he tells them not to despise it.

Though it is to be encouraged and not despised nevertheless Paul makes it clear that all prophecy is to be weighed, meaning that it may not all be of the Lord, but in doing so, in no way does he suggest that if turns out not to be of the Lord and therefore not to be accepted should the person giving it be rejected or stoned. And even if it were accepted as from the Lord, the individual still had the choice as to their response, i.e. Paul’s response to the word not to go up to Jerusalem, but he went.

Even so the fact that it is ‘second level’ doesn’t mean that when it occurs it is any less ‘of God.’ This is truly an activity inspired of the Spirit and is to be treated as such, and for this reason Paul writes, “Don’t stifle the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies,…”

In my own personal experience I have been blessed, encouraged, helped and guided by the prophetic word, churches that I have been involved with likewise, and I can’t imagine a Christian and Church life without it. Hearing God is vitally important. Taking heed to the prophetic word is as well. Too many churches are living in the past because they are not willing to hear God today.

If you are someone who has been thrown off course on the things of the Spirit due to Strange Fire (the conference or the book) I would encourage you to go back to the Word to see whether these things are so, and also to find out and talk to those who are experienced and have integrity in these things. Please don’t allow the enemy to rob you of the gift(s) that the Father gives through his Spirit for the benefit of his people.

Have you ever been blessed by the gift of prophecy?

Have you ever prophesied?

How seriously do you take prophecy?

When was the last time you responded to such a word?

Christianity is Supernatural

The recent debate over Strange Fire has made me think again about what it means to be a Christian, and for the church to be truly Christian.

One of the dangers of the debate over Strange Fire, and a danger for those who call themselves Reformed (I don’t particularly like labels as you are not always sure as to what they mean to others, but if you are wondering I guess I’m reformed with a small ‘r’), is the reducing of Christianity to that which is cerebral, solely of the mind, an intellectual exercise, something which we have power and control over.

But, one thing that stands out with just a cursory reading of the Bible is that being a Christian is far more than assenting to the truth (though there is and must be that), it is supernatural, there’s no two ways about it, and you can’t be one without it!

• To be a Christian involves a supernatural new birth.
• To be a Christian involves the supernatural baptism and continual filling of the Holy Spirit.
• To live as a Christian requires daily dependence upon God, a life lived in the Spirit.
• To be a Christian is to be resourced by the Spirit with all his wonderful gifts.
• To be a Christian involves mortifying the flesh, the old passions, by the Spirit (not strength of mind or will).
• Our praying is to be in the Spirit.
• Our worship is to be in the Spirit.
• Our meetings are to be led and enabled by the Spirit.
• Our witness is to be empowered by the Spirit.
• Etc.!

Christianity is then an experience, a powerful supernatural experience, and without it we end up with sterile form – cold, disciplined religion. For Paul it wasn’t simply a case of giving mental assent to the truth, it was what do you know of the Spirit’s presence. In Reformed circles it has been traditional to speak of justification by faith alone, through grace alone, in Christ alone, as the foundational truth of the church – lose it and you have no church, and there is a measure of truth to that. The problem is it’s not the whole truth, and on it’s own it’s like a plane with only one wing. Paul’s great challenge to those who professed belief at Ephesus was ‘did you receive the Spirit when you believed?’ According to Paul then there is another fundamental and foundational truth to the church – the reception of and experience of the Spirit.

My question is do you know Him? Have you truly encountered the Saviour? What do you know of the Spirit’s presence? You can’t have One without the Other. If you don’t then you don’t have to wait to go to church, you can meet him now. Recognise your sin and need of a Saviour, turn from your sin and helplessness to Christ, believe in Him and receive the gift of his Spirit.

And if you do know him, what place does the Spirit have in your life? Do you know what it is to be filled? Do you know his Presence and Power? If not, why wait, open up your heart afresh to him, seek his renewal and filling….

What place are we giving in our churches to the Spirit?

What place are we giving in our churches are we giving to the Word?

We need both Word and Spirit, without them we are in trouble, but with them, wow! who knows!

Strange Fire and Speaking in Tongues

Speaking in tongues is a big issue for John MacArthur and Co. and it was also for the apostle Paul, except that their take on it is completely different.

Part of MacArthur’s problem, a major part, is one of hermeneutic, how you interpret the Scriptures. MacArthur works within a moderate dispensational framework, a framework which tends to divide human history into particular periods of God’s activity, so within this framework the baptism and gifts of the Spirit were for the founding of the church, after which they were withdrawn as they were no longer needed.

The problem with such an approach is that you have nowhere to place any demonstrations of the Spirit today, so you are left with no other course of action than to describe them as false, gibberish and at worse demonic. Sadly this was seen at the Strange Fire Conference, yet perhaps we shouldn’t have been surprised as it can be seen in John MacArthur’s Study Bible (a huge amount of which is very good) where in regard to tongues in Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians MacArthur appears to be at a complete loss in how to deal with them and in order to win his point must argue that Paul is actually dealing with counterfeit tongues and not the real thing.

MacArthur says in commentating on chapter 4:2 “he who speaks in a tongue. This is singular, indicating that it refers to the false gibberish of the counterfeit pagan ecstatic speech. The singular is used because gibberish can’t be plural; there are not various kinds of non-language”, and again in chapter 14 v. 14-17, “Paul continued to speak sarcastically (cf. v. 16; 4:8-10) about counterfeit tongues, so he used the singular “tongue”…, which refers to the fake gift. He was speaking hypothetically to illustrate the foolishness and pointlessness of speaking in ecstatic gibberish.”Again in 14:26 MacArthur says “each of you has… a tongue. In the singular, this refers to the counterfeit.” Now nowhere in the context is there any suggestion that Paul thinks they are uttering false tongues or speaking in gibberish! Absolutely nowhere. That is simply being read into the text.

The first thing to note is that MacArthur trys to make a difference between a ‘tongue’ and ‘tongues,’ the “singular ‘tongue’” he says “refers to the fake”, the latter plural “tongues” the genuine. Again this is being read into the text, and it should be noted that you can only speak in one tongue at a time, so Paul’s terminology, his Greek, is quite correct. Paul is not saying the gift is false, and he is certainly not saying they should stop it, rather he is saying, look, this is one of the gifts of the Spirit and it is of great benefit, but only if it is interpreted.

Secondly, Paul’s problem then is with their use and abuse of the gift, and his great concern is not in stopping it but getting them to exercise it in the right way.  In chapter 14:13 he says“Let him who speaks in a tongue (note the singular) pray that he may interpret.” Not for one moment does he say, “stop, it’s gibberish, don’t you know, it’s of the devil,” rather, what he says is that unless an interpretation is given what they say will not benefit those who are listening, so pray for the interpretation.

Thirdly, as Paul goes on there is no way that he is being sarcastic, “For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful. What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding.” This is not sarcasm, that is being read into the text by MacArthur to suit his own belief and experience, something that we all need to be aware of – reading the text from where we are.  Rather Paul says when I pray in a tongue my spirit is praying, not my mind, and so I don’t understand what I’m saying, so I will do both, pray in a tongue and pray with my intellect/understanding – the argument is for one of balance and edification.

Paul said that he himself welcomed the gift and spoke in tongues more than all of them (14:18). What about you?

Strange Fire and the Corinthians

Reflecting on the Strange Fire Conference and Scripture one can’t help but wonder how John MacArthur would have written to the church at Corinth.

Here was a church where things were out of order – here was charismatic chaos! And what is Paul’s answer, what you are doing is of the devil? Or/and, I don’t think any of you are saved? No, his answer is to recognise the Spirit’s activity among them, and their responsibility in it.

And so he speaks to them about the fact that you can only confess that Christ is Lord by the Spirit, of being members of a body and everything being done for the benefit of the body – not selfish edification or enjoyment. About God being a God of peace and not of disorder, and of the spirit of the prophets being subject to the prophets – that even though they are moved upon by the Spirit they are responsible for the when and how – but one thing he just doesn’t say is that it’s not the Spirit and that they are not saved.

Rather he goes on to stir them up for more, not to hold back, or stop it, just make sure you do it well, in a way that honours God, and blesses all, and is not a stumbling block to the lost.

Strange Fire

This week has seen the Strange Fire Conference in the United States hosted by John MacArthur, a conference accusing those in the Pentecostal and Charismatic movement of being in error, of wrongly dividing Scripture and encouraging experiences and ministries that are false and so leading the church of God astray.

The big questions being asked and answered are, should people be experiencing the baptism in the Spirit today? Should they prophesy and speak in tongues today? Should we lay hands on the sick and expect healing today? All answered in the negative, because it is argued Scripture says so, and they want those who believe otherwise to know and be corrected.

The fact is, it doesn’t, you have to draw lines where there are non, read things into rather than out of Scripture. Yes they may call Calvin to their defense, but please Calvin’s word doesn’t have the same authority as Scripture. And yes they may call the lack of such experiences at some periods in church history as evidence, but that is not to argue from Scripture, but experience or the lack of it.

I was brought up a cessationist, I know the arguments, I encountered Pentecostals, was impacted by their life and witness. They spoke in tongues and believed God heals today. I wrestled with the Scriptures. Was encouraged to believe that it was of the devil. But I had never seen such devotion and passion for Jesus, such a desire to know him and witness to him, such passion in worship and prayer, and no they weren’t speaking in tongues all the time and neither were they swinging from the chandeliers!

Yes, frequently the stories and objections were based on hearsay, frequently generalisations – yes there are some that do the movement no good, but please that applies across the whole church. Such arguments are false and misleading and sadly this seems to be the approach of this conference.

Praise God I came to see that I was reading Scripture through the lens of my own tradition, and my, how tradition can be blinding. Praise God for the witness of those I encountered. And oh, I wanted God, not just words. I wanted reality, not just form. Praise God I met him, I was powerfully baptised in the Spirit and suddenly my Christian life took on a whole new dynamic, a dynamic that was rooted in Scripture itself.

Hearing the Prophetic

Last time I wrote about being open to the prophetic and it’s importance. In this blog I want to raise the challenge as to how we can hear the prophetic.

Having grown up in a cessationist church with no expectation of hearing God except through a Scripture and the preached word, then getting saved in a Pentecostal Church and experiencing the baptism in the Spirit, followed by involvement in a charismatic denominational church, then independent charismatic, followed by new church charismatic churches/streams I’ve been on a journey of what it means to hear God.

Two or three years ago while leading a church open to and committed to the things of the Spirit, I found myself provoked as to whether I was really as open to the prophetic voice of God as I thought I was. It wasn’t that anyone said it, in fact it had more to do with someone who struggled with the whole idea of prophecy, and it set me on a journey. A journey that was to have a dramatic twist.

I’ve heard and responded to God over the years, I thought I was doing it, but there are situations and circumstances that can make us blind.

I began to read, study and reflect afresh on what it means to hear God.

Then I went to a conference and while there attended a seminar on the gifts of the Spirit in a worship service – something I’ve always been keenly interested in. Little did I know God was setting up an ambush! Following the teaching we were encouraged to get into groups, preferably with people we didn’t know, then wait on God and see what he might say. When people began to share, a lady shared a simple picture about a father and son walking on a beach, the boy had a balloon in his hand, but he had lost it, and was now upset.

Simple, but loaded!

We had been encouraged to discuss what any word might mean and pray for any who it might apply to. Strangely we focussed on what wasn’t in the picture, then prayed. As I left that room I found myself thinking about what had just taken place and in a  matter of moments, God spoke to me saying I was the boy on the beach, the balloon I had been holding was gone and it wasn’t coming back. Then the thought, what would you do if you were that father, and this was your son? I found myself responding that I would get him another balloon, and with that God I felt God say that’s what I’m going to do for you!

The balloon represented who we were connected with and a change in relationship.

Over the next few weeks as I shared with fellow elders we felt that God was clearly leading us to merge our church with another in another ‘stream’ – in fact it turned out that God had already dropped the idea into the mind of one of the elders. Over the next few weeks we began to explore it with the church. Again we found God had been preparing people. Time and again we found God speaking and confirming. In just over six months we had processed the detail and merged the church, and it has been proven over and over that it was of God – PTL!

Had I not felt challenged as to how willing I was to hear God through the prophetic, we would not be where we are today. If I/we hadn’t, would God be blessing? I think he would. Would it be God’s best? I don’t think so. God had something else in mind and he was working to get us there, and I’m so glad he did.

Over the last few weeks my wife and I have been reading through the Acts of the Apostles and we have been reminded again and again of the dynamic of the early church, and dynamic that needs to be recovered and maintained.

Through the journey I learnt again the need to hear the prophetic voice; to not dictate how God should speak, and to be willing to respond to it.

Was there risk? Yes, but if you want to serve God’s purpose and keep engaging with his will that will always be the case.

How willing are you to hear God? How open to the prophetic? Are you as willing as you think you are?

Open to the Prophetic

As people and churches we need not only an ongoing experience of the Spirit and the ministry of the Word we also need the prophetic – the now voice of the Spirit speaking expressly to us as God’s people.

Several times in Scripture we are exhorted to hear what the Spirit is saying – in Revelation it wasn’t the same message to every church.

When those words were written there was no completed Canon of Scripture so it can’t have been hearing what God has to say through scripture, though certainly there is a place for that.

The early disciples and church were very much led by the prophetic voice of the Spirit. As they worshipped the Spirit spoke and they responded. The result was a constantly developing and flexible movement that would impact the nations.

Today, as much as then, we as God’s people both personally and as churches need to be open to and willing to hear that voice, and when we hear it not quench it but respond in obedient faith.

It is the willingness to hear that voice that will save individuals and churches from religious formalism, stereo typing, inflexibility and stagnation.

Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is there is abundant life and glorious liberty.

Whoever has ears to hear let them hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches.

Are you Spirit Baptised and Filled?

Pentecost – what a day, what an event!

Before Jesus went back to heaven he said that he was going to send One just like himself, One who would be in us and remain with us. Now sat down at the right hand of the Father he sends the Spirit, and my, how he came! I’m not sure they new what to expect, but when he came it was evident, a mighty rushing wind, tongues of fire, speaking in other tongues… church had never been like this!

Throughout the book of Acts the Spirit turns up again and again, in similar and different ways, and as the story unfolds you get the sense of a real dynamic at work – God present speaking, guiding and empowering…..

We need to remember, they didn’t have the Bible as we have it, they didn’t have the structures we have, they didn’t have the programs we have, they didn’t have the technology we have…. but what a church, and what a missional impact.

Today in the church at large we have the Word (in multiple versions), various structures, an endless array of programs, and a powerful array of technology.

As a young person I sat in chapel and wondered about the disconnect between what I saw and experienced and what I saw in the Bible – something was missing. Then I encountered Pentecostals. Well this was different, and they still believed in and experienced the Spirit in ways I had never known – but was it really for today? were they of the devil?

Over time a hunger grew…. then one day God met me, the Spirit came, he filled me and I spoke in tongues (even tough I was still struggling to believe in all these things due to the cessationist theology I was brought up with). The Christian life took on a new and powerful spiritual dimension – what I believed, became real and powerful, suddenly I was energised and enabled to witness like I had never done – God was present with me.

This shy and retiring guy felt the call of God, and the Spirit enabled. The guy who wouldn’t speak unless he was spoken to, suddenly found himself empowered to lead worship, preach the Word, go out door to door…. all because He had come. The Spirit made the difference.

Then over the years I found that I backed off due to the abuse of the gifts and some of what was being said and done in the name of the Spirit. I found myself becoming sceptical even cynical, and my experience began to dry up. At one point I felt like going back to straightforward evangelicalism, only to come under the conviction that I would be denying what I knew to be part of God’s Word. I couldn’t do it. God had to get me through, and he did. Abuse and mis-use should not lead to no-use.

I wonder where you are today, maybe you’ve seen some stuff that turned you off, maybe seen or been on the end of the abuse of gifts and today you are in a backwater?

Are you reliant on an intellectual knowledge of the Word?

Are you reliant on your own personality, abilities and or strength?

Are you reliant on your own ability to make music, turn up the sound, create an atmosphere?

Are you still doing it like you did yesterday, afraid to listen to the fresh wind of the Spirit?

Are you dependent on the structures of your church, the way you’ve always done it, afraid to listen to the Spirit?

Don’t settle for false fire, don’t settle for no fire and don’t settle smouldering embers.

It’s time to open up again to the fresh wind of the Spirit, don’t allow the enemy to rob you of what God wants to give you – why don’t you stop and take time to open up to God, to welcome afresh the gift of Spirit.

A Spirit-filled Life

A Spirit-filled life

Our tendency in the West is to make everything a matter of the mind, and therefore a matter of comprehension, rationalism, security and safety that manifests itself in utter predictability.

I find myself wondering why some want to say that to be filled with the Spirit is to be filled with the Word as what Paul says in Ephesians 5:18 “be filled with the Spirit” and Collossians 3:16 “let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly…” are one and the same thing. Are they really?

There may be parallels, but they are not the same.

Christianity was never meant to be about a mere intellectualism – a rational comprehension to a certain number of facts faithfully believed. Now please don’t hear me wrong or read the wrong thing into this the Word is vitally important, studying it is important, without it we have no sure foundation or compass, but are we really hearing what it saying when we say that both the texts above are one and the same thing?

Christianity is about a spiritual dynamic….

To be a Christian is to be born from above, of the Spirit (John 3).

To be a Christian is to be possessed by God – without him dwelling in us we are not Christians (check out Romans 8).

To be a Christian is to know the Spirit witnessing with our spirits that we are the children of God (Romans 8).

To be a Christian is to experience the love of God being poured into our lives by the Spirit.

To be a Christian is to be sealed by the Spirit.

To be a Christian is to know the Spirit giving us access to the Father.

To be a Christian is to know real fellowship with God by and in the Spirit.

To be a Christian is to know righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

To be a Christian is to know that I am joined to the body of Christ – a dynamic living community who corporately experience the presence of God by the Spirit (Ephesians 2:22)

To be a Christian is to be led by the Spirit – a supernatural dynamic of relationship with God.

To be a Christian is to know that I am not limited to my ability to comprehend the text as God is able to reveal and teach me by his Spirit (Ephesians 1:17).

To be a Christian is to know the power of the Spirit enabling us to live brand new lives.

To be a Christian is to know that when we fall short the Spirit will also convict us of sin.

To be a Christian is to know the Spirit continually pointing us to Christ.

To be a Christian is to know that we can also quench the Spirit as he seeks to work through our lives.

To be a Christian is to know that whatever our creation gifts maybe we are not limited to or by them as he gives gifts of the Spirit.

To be a Christian is to know that the Spirit can give us songs in the night.

To be a Christian is know the power of God’s Spirit taking us beyond our fears and limitations to do things way beyond us.

To be a Christian is to know that in my weakness in prayer his Spirit comes through.

To be a Christian is to be open to dreams and visions and prophecy and miracles and tongues and interpretation.

To be a Christian is to be able to hear God speaking to us in a way we understand.

To be a Christian is know that I need to be filled and filled again (Ephesians 5:18).

When the Christian life is not working

I’ve been continuing to think about different aspects of Christian life and growth.

On the evangelical spectrum, it can be all about the Word – just believe it, confess it, act on it and everything will be all right.

On the charismatic front, it can be all that we need is more of the Spirit – get filled, get anointed, and everything will be all right.

Well, you may have been there, I certainly have, and though both have there place, both can miss it, leading to disappointment and discouragement and even to departure from Christian life and the church.

You see each can miss the dynamic of our own interior lives, and end up with a super-spiritual and superficial Christian experience.

God in the business of saving us, isn’t simply interested in getting us to heaven, but transforming us here on earth, and no amount of believing the Word or anointing of the Spirit will do anything for us if we are not prepared for God to get on the inside of us, and deal with our interior lives.

For years I ignored my internal life, I believed the Word, I experienced the Spirit, I served, I ministered, but something wasn’t working, and the fault wasn’t God’s. Then I hit the wall. Got got my attention. I was a perfectionist. I was angry – it was suppressed. Most would never have known.

I slowly began to realise what was going on, and I didn’t like it, but I also began to realise that if I didn’t recognise and come to terms with my interior life, and allow God to deal with it, I was heading for a crash. For years I had lived as a kind of Christian ‘android,’ thinking and acting as a cool evangelical, knowing the power of God as a Spirit-filled Christian, but something was missing, something just wasn’t working.

Praise God that has changed, God is so gracious.

What about you, is your Christian life real and authentic and growing, or are you stagnated and frustrated and you don’t know why?

Have you ever checked your interior life?

Maybe the disappointment and pain you are experiencing is actually God wanting to get to you in order to change you -you’ve believed, you’ve prayed, you’ve been prayed for, you’ve sought more of the Spirit, but nothings changed – it’s time to let God speak and act through the disappointment and pain.

Communion - what is it?

Last week I preached a message on Communion. It was good to look at the subject again, I mean it begs a question, what place does it have in the experience of the Spirit-filled Christian/Church, after all, we seek and know the presence and power of God, why would we want to go through what appears to be a ritual?

Then again I think of being asked as a pastor by a Christian of many years, “What is meant to happen when we take communion? What am I meant to do?” I wonder how many others think the same?
As a boy I remember observing communion (or the Lord’s Supper as it was known) in the church I grew up in. The Christian adults at the end of the meeting once a month all got up and went to the front and had their own little meeting, while we children stayed quietly (and I mean quietly) in our seats… The Table was covered with a cloth, there was bread and wine, a reading, prayer. It was quiet, solemn, serious (not that quiet, solemn and serious is neccessarily wrong)… after that it was a mystery…

So what of it? What is it and what is meant to happen?

Real (Physical) Presence
Well there are those who think the bread and wine become the literal body and blood of Jesus once the priest has prayed – it’s now consecrated, holy, and when they take communion it’s at an altar where Christ is offered afresh.
For others the bread and wine don’t physically change but nevertheless there is a very real presence in and under the elements, much as a sponge dipped in water is a sponge with real water in it.
 
Spiritual Presence
Still others say, no, Real Presence is wrong, but there is a Spiritual Presence in the Bread and Wine, somehow Jesus is present in them, though not physically.
 
No Presence
And others reacting to both of the above say, no, there is no real physical or spiritual presence, they are only emblems, its just a means of remembering Jesus – his death and resurrection, and we shouldn’t be looking to experience anything.

Present at the Table
Now the fact that Jesus said ‘this is my body’ can mean no more than he intended it as a representation is revealed in the fact that he was sitting there in his body, and the bread he held was just bread – nothing had changed. Yes he was present to them and yes his desire is to be present to us. The drama was in the action. Jesus said elsewhere that when two or three are gathered in his name he is there among them. The same I think applies to communion, it’s a meal he invites us to partake of, its a table and not an altar – thats important as an altar separates and needs special people to officiate and offerings to be made, whereas tables put us all at the same level and are the place of fellowship. The presence then is not in the bread and wine but in the act itself when done in faith.

In a world where much of our worship can be about what we are doing, “I worship you,” “I give you my life,” “I trust in you…” (and theres a place for that) the communion table is solely about what he has done, and invites us to.

More to come…

Spirit-Filled? What does it Mean?

THE PROMISE
Jesus promised his people the gift of the Spirit. On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me as the Scripture has said out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." (John 7:37-38). What a promise! Nothing less than a mighty life giving river, yet sadly for many it seems like a stream, or even just a trickle and some wonder whether he's there at all.

THE PROMISE STILL REMAINS
The promise did not die out with Jesus or the apostles, but continues to this day - Peter said it was for “everyone who the Lord our God calls to himself.” Acts 2:39. The Bible teaches continuationism not cessationism. The idea that it all ended with the apostles or the completion of the canon of Scripture has to be read into it, and when it is it is frequently from our lack of experience and a seeking to justify it. The fact of the matter is we need all that God gave to the early church in the way of the out-poured Spirit and His gifts in every part of our personal and church life today.

THE COMMAND: TO BE FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT
Paul says in Ephesians that we should “Be filled with the Holy Spirit.” (5:18). This is not an option, the Bible commands it. It's as essential to the Christian life as fuel in the tank of a car, but more so! Much of Paul's teaching is about the place of the Spirit in the Christian's life and that you can't live the life without knowing his presence.

The question is what is it, and does it look like?  And do we, do you, know it? And is there enough evidence to convict you/me/us of that?

Now it's not unusual to hear the question/statement, ‘if God were to withdraw his Holy Spirit from the church, would we notice the difference?’ or put to another way,‘if God withdrew his Holy Spirit everything would just carry one as before,’ the implication of both being that we don’t have the Holy Spirit or he is little involved in what we do. The question is, is that true?

I'm not sure it is.

The fact is that if the Spirit was not among us we would be in deep, deep trouble, personally and corporately - I would be and so would you, so would the church, but that doesn't necessarily mean that all we do is inspired and empowered by the Spirit, and it doesn’t necessarily mean we have the fullness of the Spirit. The fact of the matter is that Scripture (e.g. Acts 6:3; Eph. 5:18) and experience tells us that we are not all as Spirit-filled as we should be, but that doesn’t mean we do not posses the Spirit, it just means we are not as ‘filled up’ with the Spirit as we could be or should be.

A DIFFERENCE
The Bible speaks about receiving, or being baptised in the Spirit. This normally happens at conversion, (Acts 2:38), but by no means always, sometimes it comes later (see Acts). The baptism though is a one off experience. You do not need to receive or be baptised in the Spirit again and again.

On the other hand the Scriptures do talk about being filled with the Spirit as an ongoing activity (Eph 5:18),  something that is commanded and should be expected.

WHAT DOES A SPIRIT FILLED LIFE LOOK LIKE?
In trying to understand what it means to be filled with the Spirit it might be good to ask, what does it look like?

Here are five evidences that you can find in Scripture and in the lives who have been and are:
• Passionate – the early Christians were passionate about God, worship, prayer, the Word, the gospel.
• Power – there was a divine enabling that took them outside of or beyond themselves to speak and act for God.
• Purity – they were changed, he is the Holy Spirit, and produces his fruit in our lives.
• Purpose – there was a strong sense of purpose, it's not a self-serving end, but the blessing of others.
• Prophetic - a present experience of gifts and ministries of the Holy Spirit.

IT’S NOT ABOUT QUANTITY
I want to suggest that we make a mistake when we focus on the idea of quantity, as if we can have more or less of the Holy Spirit (of God), when the reality is we either have him or we don’t! As I said earlier, Paul says if we don't have the Spirit we are not his (Rom. 8). Thinking in terms of quantity begs the question 'does the baptism run out?' or, 'how long does a filling last?' This leads some to say that ‘The Baptism that you had ten years ago is no more use to you than the dinner you had ten years ago.’ That I'm afraid is nonsense, the Baptism and a dinner are two totally different things - one is a consumable, the other the person of the Holy Spirit! It helps to get our thinking straight.

A NEW ANOINTING?
Thinking and experience go hand in hand, the one impacting the other, so for example our experience is not helped when we sing songs that are Biblically incorrect, i.e. “O for a new anointing ...” which immediately suggests the one we had is past it's sell by date, or we've lost the one we had! Or Charles Wesley's hymn, Love Divine All Loves Excelling, which says, "never more thy temples leave." This suggests a coming and going, a possessing and a losing, whereas the Bible says that the anointing we have abides (1 John 2:20,27). And Jesus himself said that the Holy Spirit would abide with us forever (John 14:16).

The problem then is not the River! It’s there! "Out of your innermost being will flow rivers of living water..." said Jesus. He does not run out! Or to put it another way, the Gift does not melt away. The question then is not one of presence or quantity, but rather more one of flow, or his possession of us. This begs the question of grieving or quenching the Spirit, two things that are very important, but not very often talked about when it comes to the Spirit-filled life.

To return to Ephesians 5:18 the focus is not on our having more of the Holy Spirit but on him filling our lives and relationships, especially 'church.'  The problem in the West is reading these texts through individualistic eyes, thereby making it all about me and my experience, whereas this is is not Paul's focus. His focus is the church, a body of people, and so we could easily read it as "Be filled together with/by the Holy Spirit..."

The abuse of alcohol leads to abuse and disfunctional relationships. The Spirit's presence and fulness leads to unity, blessing and praise as he 'oils' our relationships, and so we experience the reality of the church becoming the dwelling place of God by the Spirit, and God revealing himself, walking in it and speaking to it - church was never meant to be a round of rituals but one of dynamic encounter.

So it’s not about receiving more of what we have already got, but discovering how he might more fully possess us and how we might live in what we have, and in doing so we will know more of his fulness.