Gospel of John [Joh 16:12-15]. The Doctrine of the HS, part 22. Rom 8:9; 1Co 6:18-19; 2:12; Joh 7:37-39.

Title: Gospel of John [Joh 16:12-15]. The Doctrine of the HS, part 22. Rom 8:9; 1Co 6:18-19; 2:12; Joh 7:37-39.

 

Announcements/opening prayer: 

 

 

/The indwelling of the Holy Spirit: the Holy Spirit indwells everyone who is regenerated.\

 

In the coming period of the Millennial kingdom on earth this divine blessing will also be a prominent feature and everyone who is saved will be indwelt by the Spirit.

 

The filling of the Spirit is made universally available to those yielded to God by virtue of the abiding presence of the Spirit in every believer. The fact of His indwelling every believer is mentioned at least thirteen times in the NT.

 

Rom 8:9 However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.

 

Never in the dispensation of grace are Christians warned that the loss of the Spirit will occur because of sin or for any other reason. On the contrary we see the Corinthian church was exhorted to change their lifestyle because of the fact that they were indwelt by Him.

 

1Co 6:18 Flee immorality. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body.

 

1Co 6:19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?

 

/Joh 14:16

"And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever;\

 

/The Holy Spirit is a gift. A gift by its nature is bestowed without merit.\

 

1Co 2:12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things freely given to us by God

 

/As with every other aspect of the Spirit's work in salvation, efficacious grace, regeneration, the baptism of the Spirit, the sealing of the Spirit; the indwelling of the Spirit is not an experience. \

 

We closed with this point in our last meeting as we completed the baptism of the Spirit.

 

It is universal to all believers.

 

It is a part of something forever static because it is of positional truth. Experience is a process and it varies. The indwelling of the Spirit, just like efficacious grace, regeneration, the baptism and sealing of the Spirit, is instantaneous and unalterable. Experience is dynamic (changing) but these are static (unchanging).

 

The great realities of union with Christ and our position in Him are known only as they are taught by the Spirit in a heart that has yielded to Him. Therefore it is after the fact, though understanding from doctrine that we come to appreciate what the Spirit did and then it becomes a wonderful experience. The work of the Spirit itself is not an experience.

 

1Co 12:13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.

 

/"drink of one Spirit" - all participate in the ministry of God the Holy Spirit and He slakes all thirst.\

 

/Joh 6:35

Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.\

 

/Every believer is exhorted to live the high standard of life found in the epistles of the NT, therefore every believer is indwelt by the HS.\

 

Joh 7:37 Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.

 

Joh 7:38 "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, 'From his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water.'" 

 

Joh 7:39 But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

 

Christ prophesied that rivers of living water would flow from within the Christian rather than from some external influence.

 

There are several passages that are misapplied in the Church. Some time should be spent upon these so that every believer is prepared to defend this doctrine in the face of false doctrine.

 

/Misapplied passages:

A. In the OT the Spirit did not indwell anyone, but He did fill some of them temporarily. He could be lost, 1Sa 16:14; Psa 51:11.\

 

/Ex 31:1-5

Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. And I have filled him with the Spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all kinds of craftsmanship, to make artistic designs for work in gold, in silver, and in bronze, and in the cutting of stones for settings, and in the carving of wood, that he may work in all kinds of craftsmanship.\

 

/Deu 34:9

Now Joshua the son of Nun was filled with the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him [identified with Moses]; and the sons of Israel listened to him and did as the Lord had commanded Moses.\

 

While the Spirit's indwelling is permanent and eternal in the CA believer, the OT believer was never said to be indwelt by the Spirit and they could lose the Spirit's presence that was upon them.

 

/1Sa 16:14

Now the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord terrorized him.\

 

/Psa 51:11

Do not cast me away from Thy presence,

And do not take Thy Holy Spirit from me.\

 

The failure here is to assume that the work of the Spirit is the same in every dispensation. David's prayer is not fitting for the Christian to whom every assurance has been given that the Spirit is an abiding gift.

 

/B. Christ instructed His immediate followers to ask for the Spirit. This was only available during His ministry on earth, Luk 11:13.\

 

It is no longer necessary to ask for the Spirit since every believer receives the Spirit at salvation.

 

Luk 11:13 "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?"

 

In Luk 11:13 Christ said that the Spirit would be given to anyone who asks for Him. First, we have no record that the disciples ever acted upon this. Secondly, it is contrary to Christ's promise that the Spirit would indwell them after His departure, and third, this is never a command or even suggested in the NT epistles, but in fact the surety of the indwelling Spirit is mentioned several times.

 

/This blessing was available to any of Christ's immediate followers during His life on earth. \

 

The book of Acts is a transitional book and many things in the early Church were for building the foundation of the Church upon Christ while she was in her infancy. These include the temporary spiritual gifts of tongues, miracles, healing, prophecy, etc. The Church was also to be built upon the foundation of the apostles and not false teachers and because of this, not only did they possess the temporary spiritual gifts, but also powers of authority which came by the laying on of hands.

 

/C. The apostles in the early Church prayed for others to receive the Spirit. The Spirit was given after the apostles laid their hands on them, Act 8:14-20. \

 

Act 8:14 Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent them Peter and John,

 

This simply states that the gospel was being preached in Samaria.

 

Act 8:15 who came down and prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit.

 

Act 8:16 For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

 

Act 8:17 Then they began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Holy Spirit.

 

From this it has been falsely inferred that receiving the Holy Spirit is a work subsequent to salvation and requiring the laying on of hands.

 

The Samaritans who did not recognize the temple at Jerusalem, needed to recognize the authority of the church at that place, which only possessed such authority during the very early Church. Submission to the laying on of the apostles' hands thus healed the breach between those Samaritans and the Christian Jews, and identified the former with the Jerusalem church.

 

/In the very beginning of the Church, it was important that the gospel be closely identified with the apostles and not false teachers.\

 

The growing Church began to be a nesting ground for lustful, prideful people who desired only wealth and power. This was true after the apostles, but by then the foundation of the Church was firmly established and the canon of scripture was fully recorded. Now, false teachers can be identified directly from the word of God.

 

Act 8:18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money,

 

Act 8:19 saying, "Give this authority to me as well, so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit."

 

Act 8:20 But Peter said to him, "May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!

 

The apostles were a foundation of the Church and in Samaria the gospel was identified with them as opposed to charlatans like this Simon.

 

/D. The all encompassing ministry to the Gentiles began in Act 10 when the Holy Spirit indwelt at the moment of faith in the gospel, Act 10:44.\

 

It was made plain to Peter that the working of the Spirit from this time on was not conditioned upon any special act on his part, but only on faith in Christ.

 

Act 10:34 "I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality,

 

Act 10:35 but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right, is welcome to Him.

 

Act 10:36 "The word which He sent to the sons of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ (He is Lord of all) — 

 

Act 10:37 you yourselves know the thing which took place throughout all Judea, starting from Galilee, after the baptism which John proclaimed.

 

Act 10:38 "You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good, and healing all who were oppressed by the devil; for God was with Him.

 

Act 10:39 "And we are witnesses of all the things He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. And they also put Him to death by hanging Him on a cross.

 

Act 10:40 "God raised Him up on the third day, and granted that He should become visible,

 

Act 10:41 not to all the people, but to witnesses who were chosen beforehand by God, that is, to us, who ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead.

 

Act 10:42 "And He ordered us to preach to the people, and solemnly to testify that this is the One who has been appointed by God as Judge of the living and the dead.

 

Act 10:43 "Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins."

 

Act 10:44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message.

 

Act 10:45 And all the circumcised believers who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out upon the Gentiles also.


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