John 16:13 “When he, the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth.”
The Holy Spirit is a Person, not an abstract force. If we simply think of him as an influence, we’ll be keen to have more of ‘it’; but if we rightfully recognize him as a Person, we’ll desire that he has more of us. Back in the 1st and 2nd centuries, a group of believers experienced great blessings through the Holy Spirit. They became known as the Montanists. Sadly things unraveled when they began claiming to be the embodiment of the Holy Spirit, to reject all other Christians, and to refuse to have their teachings submitted to the Scriptures. What started as a clear move of the Spirit ended with everyone losing, as both the mainstream Church and the Montanists wrote one another off.
Within a few months of Jesus saying the above words, they were fulfilled. He died, was resurrected, ascended, and then the Holy Spirit came in power at Pentecost. And He, not ‘it’, as the Spirit of truth, guided the disciples into all truth. J.B.Phillips, after months of painstaking research and immersion in study, wrote upon completing his translation of the book of Acts: “These men did not make acts of faith, they believed; they did not say their prayers, they really prayed; they did not hold conferences on psychosomatic medicine, they simply healed the sick… The Spirit of God found what he must always be seeking – a fellowship of men and women so united in love and faith that he can work in and through them with the minimum of hindrance.”
From the time of the Montanists until now, Christians have argued and debated and often created more friction than light in this area, but let’s agree on one thing: we want to be a part of that ‘fellowship of men and women so united in love and faith that he can work in and through them with the minimum of hindrance’. Agreed?
Spirit of truth, guide me into all truth today, for your glory. Amen!
Leave a Reply