Have You Made the Wonderful Discovery of the Spirit-Filled Life?
Every day can be an exciting adventure for the Catholic who knows the reality of being filled with the Holy Spirit and who lives constantly, moment by moment, under His gracious direction.
The Bible tells us that there are three kinds of people.
1. NATURAL MAN (One who has not received Christ)
"But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolisness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised"(1 Corinthians 2:14)
2. CARNAL MAN (eg. A confirmed Catholic who lives in defeat because he trusts in his own efforts to live a Catholic-Christian life)
"Brothers, I could not talk to you as spiritual people, but as fleshy people, as infants in Christ. I fed you milk, not solid food, because you were unable to take it. Indeed, you are still not able, even now, for you are still of the flesh. While there is jealousy and rivalry among you, are you not of the flesh, and behaving in an ordinary human way?" (1 Corinthians 3:1-3).
3. SPIRITUAL MAN (One who is directed and empowered by the Holy Spirit)
"But he who is spiritual appraises all things . . ." (1 Corinthians 2:15)
1. God has provided for us an abundant and fruitful life.
Jesus said, "I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly" (John 10:10).
"I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me, and I in him, he bears much fruit; for apart from Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5).
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control; against such things there is no law" (Galatians 5:22,23).
"But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth" (Acts 1:8).
The Spiritual Man- Some personal traits which result from trusting God:
The degree to which these traits are manifested in our lives depends upon the extent to which we trust the Lord with every detail of our lives, and upon our maturity in Christ. One who is only beginning to understand the ministry of the Holy Spirit should not be discouraged if he is not as fruitful as more mature Catholic-Christians who have known and experienced this truth for a longer period.
Why is it that so many Catholics are not experiencing the abundant life?
2. "Carnal Christians" cannot experience the abundant and fruitful life in Jesus Christ.
The carnal man trusts in his own efforts to live a Christian life:
A. He is either uninformed about, or has forgotten, God's love, forgiveness, and power (Romans 5:8-10; Hebrews 10:1-25; 1 John 1;2:1-3; 2 Peter 1:9; Acts 1:8).
B. He has an up-and-down spiritual experience.
C. He cannot understand himself--he wants to do what is right, but cannot (Romans 7:15-24).
D. He fails to draw upon the power of the Holy Spirit to live a Christian life. (1 Corinthians 3:1-3; Romans 8:7; Galatians 5:16-18).
The Carnal Man- Some or all of the following traits may characterize the Catholic who does not fully trust God:
(The individual who professes to be a Christian but who continues to practice sin should realize that he may not be a Christian at all, according to 1John 2:3; 3:6,9; Ephesians 5:5).
The third truth gives us the only solution to this problem . . .
3. Jesus promised the abundant and fruitful life as the result of being filled (directed and empowered) by the Holy Spirit.
The Spirit-filled life is the Christ-directed life by which Christ lives His life through us in the power of the Holy Spirit (John 15).
A. One becomes a Christian through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, according to John 3:1-8. From the moment of baptism, and especially in confirmation, Catholics are indwelt by the Holy Spirit (John 1:12; Colossians 2:9,10; John 14:16,17). Though all Catholics are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, not all are filled (directed and empowered) by the Holy Spirit.
B. The Holy Spirit is the source of the overflowing life (John 7:37-39).
C. The Holy Spirit came to glorify Christ (John 16:1-15). When one is filled with the Holy Spirit, he is a true disciple of Christ.
D. In His last command beore His ascension, Christ promised the power of the Holy Spirit to enable us to be witnesses for Him (Acts 1:1-9).
How, then, can one be filled with the Holy Spirit?
4. We are filled (directed and empowered) by the Holy Spirit when we put our entire beings at the disposal of God, fully submitting to His will and denying our own.
You can obtain the fullness of the Holy Spirit if you:
A. Sincerely desire to be directed and empowered by the Holy Spirit (Matthew 5:6; John 7:37-39).
B. Confess your sins through the Sacrament of Confession. Be truely sorry for hurting God, repent from your sins, and sincerely resolved to reform your life.
Afterward, thank God that He has forgiven all of your sins.
C. Present every area of your life to God (Romans 12:1,2). "If a man wishes to come after me, he must deny his very self, take up his cross, and begin to follow in my footsteps." (Matthew 16:24)
D. In faith ask Jesus for the fullness of the Holy Spirit, remembering: "And this is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him" ( 1 John 5:14,15).
Faith can be expressed through prayer . . .
How to Pray to be Filled with the Holy Spirit
The following is a suggested prayer:
"Dear Father, I need You. I acknowledge that I have been directing my own life and that, as a result, I have failed. I thank You that You have forgiven my sins. I now invite Christ to again take His place on the throne of my life.
Fill me with the Holy Spirit as You promised in Your Word that You would do if I asked in faith. I pray this in the name of Jesus. As an expression of my faith, I now thank You for directing my life and for filling me with the Holy Spirit."
If this prayer expresses the desire of your heart, trust God to fill you with the Holy Spirit right now.
How to know that you are filled by the Holy Spirit...