Three Requirements for Receiving the Spirit
Posted by: biblenotes <biblenotes@...>
From: Martin M Overfield
Date: Sat, 25 Mar 2000
(Please be sure to read the following two Bible Notes, if you have not yet
done so: "Have You Received the Holy Spirit?" & "The Gift of the Spirit
Purifies the Heart". If you are new to the faith or to the teachings of
Bible holiness I recommend that you read these two titles before this one.)
Three Requirements for Receiving the Spirit
Many, including myself, can give a much longer list of requirements.
Here, however, I am attempting to keep it simple. The Bible, and therefore
God, is far more concerned with wholeheartedness than with the
complexity of our theology. Some of the greatest minds have missed the real
heart of Bible religion, while many simpleminded folk and children with
little understanding have plunged into the realities of the deep things of
God.
First, just a brief word of what I mean by "Receiving the Spirit": I
mean the receiving of the Holy Spirit in His fullness as a second definite
work of grace, by which our heart is purified, or cleansed, from all sin so
that nothing contrary to the perfect love of God remains.
There are three simple requirements that I have found in the Scriptures
that I believe cover the territory quite well. Each one of these may
involve various stages of progress until they are perfect, and they may
involve some particular requirements not specifically mentioned in this
note.
Ask, Obey, and Believe
Ask - "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your
children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to
them that ask him?" (Luke 11:13)
Asking here is a progression. This promise comes on the heels of other
promises for answered prayer: "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye
shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that
asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it
shall be opened." (Luke 11:9, 10). This shows us an increasing intensity in
the seeking of God for what is needed. This asking, praying, earnest
desiring of an answer becomes an all-consuming hunger for God and holiness.
The attitude of the seeker must become something like this, "I cannot and
will not go on without the fullness of the Spirit; I cannot and will not go
on without a holy heart."
Are you hungry for the Gift of the Spirit, which is He Himself? Are you
hungry for a holy heart, which is the resulting condition of receiving Him
in His fullness? Act on that hunger. Ask the Father to give you His
promise until He does. Seek Him until you find "that second rest". Knock
until He opens the door of Heaven and pours out the Spirit upon your soul in
a mighty cleansing torrent. "Blessed are they which do
hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled." (Matthew
5:6).
Obey - "And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy
Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him." (Acts 5:32) "But if we
walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one
with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all
sin." (1 John:1:7).
The obedience part I like to refer to as TOTAL ABANDONMENT. This
involves the negative term DEATH ROUTE and the positive term
CONSECRATION. It is only when a seeking soul fully obeys God in dying
out to sinful self and the spirit of the world that he may receive the
baptism of
the Holy Ghost. Also, the complete consecration of everything that is not
sinful is necessary, which involves the placing of everything and everybody,
especially one's self, upon the altar, which is Christ. If one truly
abandons
himself to the Holy Ghost, he will be willing for God to bring up any issue,
for he has already promised that he will say "Yes" to the will of God.
Believe - "And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving
them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us; And put no difference
between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith." (Acts 15:8,9) "That
we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith" (Galatians 3:14).
"...and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me."
(words of Christ in Acts 26:18).
This matter of faith can become greatly complicated by some things:
1. Disobedience absolutely prevents the proper exercise of faith, and may
lead to deception. We dare not presume that God will give us the Spirit
while we actively disobey Him. At the realization of disobedience on the
part of the seeker, he should repent, and seek and find forgiveness, before
floundering in the darkness and confusion of pretending to be a candidate
for receiving this second work of grace.
2. Imperfect groundwork will not allow faith to take hold of "the promise
of the Father" (Acts 1:4). By this I mean that any deficiency in the first
two requirements mentioned will hinder this last requirement. One may seek
for this experience of grace with great energy and for a long time and not
really seek with all his heart. Remember that God says, "And ye shall seek
me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." (Jeremiah
29:13).
Furthermore, one may have yielded ALMOST everything over to the
blessed Holy Spirit's control, and yet have one more thing -- maybe more
-- that the Lord will yet show him that must be surrendered.
3. The great tendency of the "evil heart of unbelief" to put up a fight,
even to the very last moment before victory comes -- this can hinder one's
faith. For many souls it seems that, though they may be seeking God with
all their heart and may have obeyed Him in every detail up to this point,
they have a struggle when it comes to just taking God at His Word.
Even in this there is another aspect of "death to self" and of
"consecration".
The seeker must take sides against carnal unbelief and say, "I WILL
believe God." "Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief." (Mark 29:24).
But, oh the joy of finding "the rest of faith", "For we which have
believed do enter into rest" (Hebrews 4:3). It is when the seeker has
finally done, not only all that he KNOWS to do, but all that there IS to do.
It is when the Holy Spirit Himself suggests that final step of faith, which
is taking God at His Word right now, and believing Him to do what He has
promised. It is the opening of our heart's door and letting the Holy Ghost
(or Guest) come in and take control just as He pleases, with or without
feeling. It is the getting out of the driver's seat, if you please, and
entrusting the keys, the driving, and the whole car of one's heart and life
in the hands of the Comforter, the mighty Spirit of the living God. This is
when one will receive the Holy Spirit of God in His fullness!
Yours In Christ,
Martin Overfield
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