Copyright © S P Townsend
For many weeks now since late August we have been concentrating on the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit. We have recognised that He is a person, not an impersonal power or influence. He is the one who anointed and filled Jesus, empowering him for his earthly ministry. He is the one whom the Father sent, at the request of Jesus, to be with Jesus’ followers as another paraclete – another one coming alongside to help. He guides, instructs, motivates, teaches, supports and encourages in the same way that Jesus did. And although Jesus was constrained to one physical location by his physical body, the Holy Spirit is not so constrained, and is able to strengthen and encourage every single follower of Jesus, wherever they are and at all times. He is the one who brings new life; he is the one who produces fruit that pleases God; he is the one who provides ability beyond our natural resources; he is the one who gives to believers gifts of grace; he is the one who opens the eyes of our understanding; he is the one who fills our hearts with the love of God; he is the one who anoints us and equips us for God’s service; he is the one who renews us and refreshes us; he is the one who opens our ears to hear God’s voice; he is the one who takes our hesitant words of testimony and faith, and burns them as the very fire of God into the minds and hearts of the hearers. And last week Bishop Bob reminded us that the Holy Spirit anoints us and makes us each one into a house of God. God has come down to dwell in Westhill and Kingswells, and he does so in you and in me. And he does so corporately in our church as we meet together. Here is a gathering where people in our community can meet God and come to know him and love him, because he lives here with in our midst.
Now in all this we have to remember that the Holy Spirit does not aim to promote himself or lift himself up. His desire is to point us to Jesus, to reveal to us the wonderful saving work of Jesus, to lift Jesus up and give him glory. And that’s what he encourages us to do, too. And that is why Jesus is the focus of our praises, in this service and every time we meet together. That is why the main focus of our witness and evangelism is Jesus. That helps us understand Paul’s question to the disciples at Ephesus when he arrived there. Something about their worship and witness puzzled him. They were clearly seeking after God and worshipping him. But something was missing. What was it? Some have surmised that this congregation lacked manifestations of spiritual gifts such as speaking in tongues and prophesy. Others have suggested that they lacked the joy of the Lord, and that their worship was dour and miserable. But I think what Paul noticed was a total lack of praise and honour of Jesus in their coming together. Jesus said of the Holy Spirit, “He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you” (John 16:14). That is just what the Holy Spirit energises us to do when we gather together. And I think this is what Paul immediately realised was lacking in these disciples. And I think he must have said to himself something like this, “If the Holy Spirit were here they would all be full of thanksgiving and praise to Jesus. So why is it this isn’t happening?” And so he asked the question, and discovered that they had neither heard about Jesus nor the Holy Spirit, and so was able to lead them into a wonderful experience of God’s grace.
And this brings us to the main topic for today – receiving the Holy Spirit. Do I need to receive the Holy Spirit, and if so how can I receive the Holy Spirit?
Perhaps we should answer another, easier , question first. Do I need the Holy Spirit? And the answer is, of course, emphatically, “yes!”. I can do nothing that will please God or count anything for his kingdom without the Holy Spirit. Remember God’s word to Zerubbabel: “Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord” (Zech 4:8).
A movement of God’s grace that has blessed many churches in recent years, including our own, has been characterised particularly by the prayer, “Come Holy Spirit.” Some may be tempted to think this is a new type of prayer for Christians to pray, but in fact it is a prayer with a very ancient tradition. I think I have mentioned before that all graduation ceremonies at the University of Aberdeen commence with prayer, and this is part of the prayer that is prayed:
Veni Sancte Spiritus, reple tuorem corda fidelium et tui amoris in eis ignem accende.
The translation from Latin to English reads:
Come Holy Spirit. Fill the hearts of your faithful, and kindle in them the fire of your love.
Not all are comfortable with praying this prayer. Of course, those attending the ceremony who are not Christians may well be baffled or perplexed by it. But even Christians sometimes question the theological basis of this and similar prayers.
Some have observed that the Holy Spirit came once and for all at Pentecost, and there is therefore no sense in now asking him to come. Some have argued that since we receive the Holy Spirit when we first come to Christ, it is inappropriate to seek to receive the Holy Spirit again. Other have said that at confirmation the Bishop lays hands on you that you may receive the Holy Spirit, and that there is no need to repeat this prayer. Maybe such arguments have held you back from seeking God for more of His Spirit.
It is indeed true that when we first put our trust in Jesus as God’s way of salvation, and submit to him as Saviour and Lord, that we then receive the Holy Spirit. We are at that time born again of the Holy Spirit, and from then on begin to live in the Spirit. But if I were to say to you that when I became a Christian I received God’s forgiveness for all my sins, that I am consequently destined for heaven, and that I therefore no longer again need to ask God for forgiveness, how would you react? I am quite sure that you would want to quickly put me right. Yes, you may be saved and destined for heaven, but right now if you have sinned you need to put right your relationship with God. If you have grieved him in any way then you must repent and seek his forgiveness, and be cleansed by the blood of Jesus. And you would be right so to say. But when we grieve God, do we not grieve the Holy Spirit, too? And when I grieve him he may not leave me entirely, but I am quite sure there are rooms in my life that he quietly gets up and leaves whenever I rush in and seize control. For most of the time my anger room is occupied by the Holy Spirit. I like to think that he has a very comfortable armchair in that room, and is fully in control. But then something happens to get me hot and bothered, and I rush into the anger room and announce that we are going to pull out all the stops and let rip. Some poor soul suffers, and afterwards when the dust has settled I look around and discover that the Holy Spirit is no longer there. When I took control, he left the room and let me get on with it. So in much the same way as I need to receive afresh God’s forgiveness, so too I need to receive afresh the filling of the Holy Spirit, and invite him back to take control. The blood of Jesus cleanses me, and the oil of the Spirit anoints me, and both are needed regularly as I follow the path of faith.
This truth is expressed in the liturgy for our communion service today. We have already confessed our sins before God and received his forgiveness. And in a few minutes we will pray that our heavenly Father will send the Holy Spirit upon us so we may be kindled with the fire of his love and renewed for the service of his kingdom.
Jesus himself encourages us to ask and receive, seek and find, knock and have the door opened, for our Father in heaven delights to give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him (Luke 11: 9-13). So too Paul, writing to the very Ephesian Christians we have already read about, encouraged them and us to keep on being filled with the Holy Spirit (Eph 5:18). However much I have known his filling and anointing in the past, I still need more of his presence and power for today and tomorrow. There are new situations facing me for which I need his power and grace to equip me. There are new choices for which I need his guidance. There are newly discovered areas of my life that I need to submit to his control.
Peter explained this to the Jews he preached to on the day of Pentecost. "Repent and be baptised, 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." (Acts 2: 38,39)
Firstly turn away from anything that you know grieves God and separates you from Him. Receive the forgiveness and cleansing provided through Jesus’ death on the cross. The Holy Spirit is holy; he dwells in houses that are cleansed and set apart for God’s purpose.
Secondly, believe the promise of God to give you the Holy Spirit. When writing to the church at Galatia Paul said, “by faith we receive the promise of the Holy Spirit” (Gal 3:14). It is not by our effort, not by any particular methodology, not on the merit of any person other than Jesus alone. It is by grace through faith. Do not chase after this or that famous Christian leader, thinking that if they pray for you they will impart some greater gifting or impartation of power. Perish the thought that we should depend on any other merit than that of Jesus alone.
Thirdly, ask. Jesus said, ask the Father and you will receive (Lu 11:13). He will give you the Holy Spirit because you are his child. Yes, it is only because of the merit of Jesus that you are his child, and we only have the right to ask because Jesus himself has asked first: “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another counsellor to be with you forever – the Spirit of Truth” (John 14:16). But if you are his child then nothing in the world will prevent him from granting your request.
Fourthly, be prepared to receive the prayer support of your brothers or sisters in Christ. There are many accounts in scripture of how God used the prayers of his people and the laying on of hands to bestow his gifts to others. There is nothing strange in this. God has not called us to be individual Christians in isolation; he has called us to be members of the body of Christ. And just as in our physical bodies one part may receive support, strength and provision from other parts, so too in Christ’s body God may provide for you through the ministry of your brothers and sisters.
Finally, I can think of no better time or place to ask God for the filling of his Holy Spirit than the communion service we are about to take part in. We will pray, “send your Holy Spirit upon us so we may be kindled with the fire of your love and renewed for the service of your kingdom.” As you receive the bread and the wine, why not also receive by faith the filling of the Holy Spirit to renew you for those works of service God has planned for you this week.
Copyright © S P Townsend