Morning Moments

The Work of the Holy Spirit

Obviously, the work of the HOLY Spirit is pure, holy, blameless, and completely consistent with the character of God.  He is GOD, the third person of the Godhead, equal to and one with the Father and the Son.  No person of the Godhead does anything independently of the other "persons" of the Godhead, for "these three are one" we are told by John.

WHENEVER there is a "party" or "divisive" spirit among true believers, it is NOT the HOLY SPIRIT!  Hence we are instructed to KEEP the UNITY of the SPIRIT in the bond of peace.

Through the years, I have had to deal with believers who wanted to make their "experience" the basis upon which all other believers should be measured.  I guess maybe it is one reason for denominations, whether good or bad.  The truth is that we tend to exclude those who do not "believe" just as we do in areas that are really non-essential.

Let's face it, Southern Baptist Churches have been split over many things, but over "Predestination and Election"?  Give me a break!  It is no longer just Calvin by now it is Spurgeon!  They were men of God, no doubt, but they were only MEN.  But that is how so many believers deal with differences - "Let's just pull out and start another "church" (as if we needed another).  We can't get along where we are, so let's start another one so we can get along until another party spirit develops.

What causes all this stuff?  A party spirit!  Is that of God?  Of course it is NOT!  It is NOT working at keeping the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  It is the Calvinist/Armenian approach as opposed to the Wesley/Whitfield approach.  Don't talk to me about being full of the Holy Spirit if you let some divisive doctrine break the "fellowship with the Father and with His Son..."

When someone wants to cram down my throat something that is going to drive a wedge between others who love Jesus and me, I'm not having it.  I remember talking with a couple of preachers of the Free Will Baptist persuasion once, and one made the statement that he didn't think Charismatics were even saved.  I said, "Brother, you are treading on DANGEROUS ground when you call "unclean" what God has cleansed.  It was obvious to me that HE knew nothing of the fullness of God's Spirit.

This is the kind of stuff that just drives me crazy about Christianity!  We have all sorts of different Bible Studies with this literature or that study guide, by this teacher or that group, when we might just be better served if we would throw it all away (or at least put it aside), and learn to STUDY the BIBLE ITSELF with the Holy Spirit as our Teacher and Guide.  Sometimes I wish we didn't have anything but our Bibles.

The HOLY Spirit is JUST THAT!  He sets US apart to be cleansed and filled and prepared for the Master's use - THAT is holiness unto the Lord and the fullness of the Holy Spirit, that makes us realize that the BODY of Christ is more important than my BELIEF in some COMMENTATOR.

It is the Holy Spirit who guides me into truth, leads me into maturity, takes of Christ's and gives to me, enables the Word to dwell in me richly, enables me to love the brethren and esteem the other better than myself, and WORK at keeping the UNITY of the FAITH as He conforms me to the image of God's dear Son.

BLESSINGS!