0817. Obedience and the Holy Spirit

Obedience and the Holy Spirit

"And we are His witnesses of these things; and so is the Holy Ghost, Whom God hath given to them that obey Him" (Act_5:32).

This passage does not mean that those who obey Christ are indwelt by the Spirit. The indwelling Spirit is the lot of every believer. It is because we are sons that God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts (see Gal_4:6).

This passage does mean that those who obey Christ will be filled consciously with the Spirit. That is, in the obedient soul the Spirit will dwell in His fullness.

Again we refer to Joh_14:15, reading this time also Joh_14:16 : "If ye love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you for ever."

This verse as well as our key verse means something beyond the indwelling of the Spirit. In what sense does God give the Holy Spirit to those who obey Him? In what sense does obedience secure the Comforter? We have two answers to give and both of them are true to the Word.

1. The Lord gives the FILLING of the Spirit to those who obey Him. All believers are indwelt, but not all believers are infilled. In Eph_5:18 the word is written: "Be filled with the Spirit."

Certainly all believers are not Spirit-filled, or else they would not be given a command to be filled. Our conclusion is this–God gives the fullness of the Spirit only to those who obey His will. Read through the Book of Acts, and find the men who are spoken of as full of the Holy Ghost and they are the men who were walking all the way with God. Peter and Stephen and Philip and Paul were Spirit-filled men, they were also obedient men.

How can God fill a man with His Spirit if His life is not yielded to His will?

The Epistle to the Galatians recognizes two things as distinct. In Gal_4:6 the "indwelling" of the Spirit is recorded. This is the result of being sons. In Gal_5:16 the command is given, "Walk in the Spirit." This is something additional. All sons are "indwelt" by the Spirit, but all sons do not walk in the Spirit. What then is our conclusion? This, that only those who walk in the Spirit are filled with the Spirit. Ephesians and Galatians both see something beyond the Spirit indwelling. One speaks of that which lies beyond, as "filling" and the other as "walking." Ephesians emphasizes the filling, which is the result of obedience, or, of yielding; Galatians emphasizes the "walking," the obedience to the Spirit, and then gives the result–the fruit of the Spirit.

2. The Lord gives the Holy Spirit as a Comforter to those who obey Him.

While Joh_14:15-16 have particular reference to the twelve, it certainly has its application for us. If we keep His commandments, we will have the promise of the Father made real in our lives. We will have the Comforter, the Paraclete, One at our side.

Of course, the Comforter has come. He is here and will abide for the age. However, only those who are obedient to Christ, will ever enjoy the manifestation of His presence, and the blessings of His aid.

Autor: R.E. NEIGHBOUR