01/26/2018
You have heard of the gift of the Holy Spirit, and you see the results of it in believers around you, but despite your desire for it, you remain barren and unfilled. Perhaps you have been a Christian for a long time, and in all those years have not received the Spirit. You may have consoled yourself by saying that it will never be yours and that you will suffer on without it, but listen as God tells you to take heart, and that it is your gift as well.
“If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"”
Luke 11:13 ESV
God wants us to have the Holy Spirit, and He promises through the words of Jesus Christ that if you ask Him He will send it. He refers to it as a matter of care, and love for you. Have you made the Father aware of your desire? I mean, have you prayed fervently, and repeatedly? Then, have you opened yourself to its provision? Is your hope full?
There is a cute movie called “The Christmas Story” that comes on many times during the Christmas season. It is about a young boy named Ralphie who wants one Christmas gift more than all others... he wants a Red Ryder BB Gun. He asks and asks but always gets the same answer... “You’ll shoot your eye out”, or in other words “No.”
Do you feel like Ralphie when it comes to receiving the Holy Spirit? Perhaps your church doesn’t put much emphasis in receiving the Spirit and its gifts, and responds to you “You’ll shoot your eye out.” or perhaps someone sees your desire, but tells you your faith is not prepared for such a gift... “You’ll shoot your eye out.” Then again, perhaps you have convinced yourself that God doesn’t want you to receive it, and you placate yourself by saying in your own mind “I would just shoot my eye out!”
I have seen all of these scenarios over the years, and more, but God does want you to partake of the Spirit. The key is in preparing ourselves for the gift. The disciples didn’t receive the Holy Spirit on the day that Jesus called them, they received it after Jesus had risen, and their having been with Him during His teaching. When Jesus told them to go to Jerusalem and wait, they did more than just sit there... they went to the Temple and prayed. They did this until the Holy Spirit was breathed upon them.
“And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high."”
Luke 24:49 ESV
So in “The Christmas Story” Ralphie was told “No!” many times, but on Christmas morning he still had hope... he still looked under the tree with expectation. Then when all of the gifts had been opened he resolved himself to the fact that there was no BB gun. It was at that moment, when his hopes had been dashed that he realized Christmas was wonderful despite not receiving his dream gift, and began to take hope in next year. At that moment his father tells him to look behind the desk, and he finds one last present... the Red Ryder BB Gun.
Are you Ralphie? Is the Holy Spirit your Red Ryder? Has your hope been dashed? If so, are you prepared to wait another year in renewed hope, and have you realized that living in Jesus is indeed the focus of your faith? Well if so, then take a deep breath, and continue to go to the temple. Pray to God, speak with our Lord Jesus, and when the time is perfect, and your faith has been brought to crescendo, then in a breath Jesus will say... look behind the desk.
The B.B. gun Ralphie receives has a couple of interesting features... on the stock it has a built in sun dial, and a compass. One so that he can tell the time, and the other so that he would know what direction to walk. Do you see any similarity with the Holy Spirit here? Then there is the absolute joy in Ralphie’s father’s face as the gift was being unwrapped, and prepared for use? Our God wants us to have His Holy Spirit, and even compares himself to worldly fathers in scripture.
We don’t give ourselves the Holy Spirit. We don’t perform some act, and by so doing earn it. It is not an obligation or a duty, but a gift of power that takes us further down our road of faith. It is a gift to us that teaches, gives us comfort, and gives us the ability to perform God’s will. Andrew Murray wrote of this in the late 1800s when he said...
“God takes upon Himself the responsibility of your being full of the Spirit, not as a treasure that you must carry and keep, but as a power that carries and keeps you.” - Andrew Murray
So ask and He will provide you with His Holy Spirit. God will indeed give us more than our earthly father, and His joy in it will eclipse all we have ever known. Wait upon the Lord, and trust in His provision; it is His promise, and He is faithful. He has one more gift for you, and it is like Ralphie’s... it is your heart’s desire.
“He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.”
1 Thessalonians 5:24 ESV
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for the gift of your Holy Spirit. I thank you for making it available to all believers, and for the power, instruction, and comfort it brings. I thank you for the Pleasure you take in providing for us Father, and the certainty of your gifts. I pray today that those who are seeking to receive your Holy Spirit will hear your voice in that perfect moment when as you breathe upon them, you will say “look behind the desk.” Holy Father, remove all forms of discouragement from before those who desire your Spirit. Don’t let the hopes of seekers be dashed, beliefs be relinquished, or faith relegated to less than you have designed and desired for us. Give each believer your Holy Spirit in its fullness, and fill them to overflowing with your blessings. We praise you Father, even in tongues that you have provided, and in joy your Spirit has brought to us. You are greater than we can imagine without your breath upon us, and Holy beyond our ability to fathom alone. Praised be your name for eternity!
Rich Forbes