what if you are not spirit filled?

Should a person go to the mission field if he is not filled with the Holy Spirit?

Not to be disrespectful, but you shouldn't even go to bed tonight without being filled with the Holy Spirit!

The Holy Spirit comes to everyone who asks Him to come, and in my reading of New Testament theology, being baptised in the Holy Spirit is the normal experience of believing in Jesus for Salvation. Jesus never said "some of you will be filled with the Spirit..."

The infilling of the Spirit is every believer's assurance that the covenant for salvation is absolutely real. How many people have you heard say something like,

"I think I'm saved. I accepted Jesus as my savior on _______"(fill in the date.)?

It is not presumptuous to expect that He will give you powerful witness that He is really there, is it? If a child asks for bread, his father will not give him a stone, will he?

Since the death and resurrection of Jesus, the Holy Spirit has been given to His church. Scared out of his wits, Satan has done everything he can to keep that knowledge away from you.

Maybe you should go to the mission field, maybe not. But for sure you should lay hold of the promise of God to be filled with His Spirit before you even approach the other decisions in your life!

Yes. It is that important.

PS I am not of that school that believes you can't go to heaven if you haven't been filled with the Spirit, that doctrine only serves to feed the pride of its adherents, and frighten new believers into thinking their confession of faith "didn't work."

All who accept Jesus as savior in faith are in the kingdom, and those who receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit are in a position to fully enjoy their salvation and service to a much greater degree. "That they might have life, and have it abundantly!"

Sidewalk said, "Not to be disrespectful, but you shouldn't even go to bed tonight without being filled with the Holy Spirit!"

Best quote I've read all day. Thank you!

sidewalk wrote:
Not to be disrespectful, but you shouldn't even go to bed tonight without being filled with the Holy Spirit!

Sidewalk,
You said,' I am not of that school that believes that you can't go to heaven
If you haven't been filled with the Spirit,..........

Please, don't think that I am trying to be smart, ..But this is what the Scripture says:

Rom.8:9,...now if anyone have not the Spirit of Christ,he is none of His.

May we all grow in Him,
Elizabeth

Elibeth, you are certainly right that those without the Spirit of Christ are none of His.

My reference was to another doctrine stream that insists you must speak in tongues to be saved. It is not the same as the people who have genuine faith in Christ, but have never been taught to ask for an infilling of the Spirit.

I was raised in the Presbyterian denomination, and those things were dismissed as for a different people in a different time. For a time I was satisfied with that, I didn't know any better.

But then in the early 60's, an Episcopalian priest named Dennis Bennett shook the denominational world upside down with a book he wrote called "Nine O'clock in the Morning." Within a few months, the baptism of the Holy Spirit became a raging conversation across denominational lines as the Spirit of God ripped through the nation's congregations. Dr. Bennett's electrifying book was both warm and scholarly, brilliantly telling the story of how this prominent clergyman was brought to his knees and came away changed with this unorthodox experience. It made the cover of Time magazine but more importantly, it made Godly people in the major denominations go onto their faces to receive a blessing they hadn't known was waiting for them.

Catherine Marshall also wrote a book about her experience being filled with the Spirit called "Something More" and suddenly the welcome mat she had all over the country was snatched away. She came into a whole new circle of friends, many of them outcast from their former prominent churches. There was a price to pay.

Up in Minnesotra where I lived at the time, the pastor and others got Spirit baptisms, and it split the church in a loud and ugly crash. One of the things I remember from those days- I was in high school- was that Leonard Ravenhill came to speak.

Need I say more? Yikes- I was with other youth group friends sitting in the front row and before the service and Ravenhill was sitting alone on the platform. I had no clue.

"Pigs." I heard him mutter.

He spoke of us- the smug, the self righteous, the lost Presbyterians before him. His preaching was breathtaking, calling the the spades as it were, filthy shovels! He was not one to hold back.

Boy it got messy after that, but he sure planted a seed in me. I knew then, years before I had my first infilling, that I wanted what he had!

For me, the Spirit of Christ is that thing I recognize in others, a spark of humility, a zeal for righteousness, a willingness to sacrifice time and money- the things that tell me Christ is living in that one. But there are genuine believers who don't know how much God wants to bring them closer, deeper, and happier with this infilling.

Hey, I'm nowhere near full yet, and my first taste was in 1964! I want more.... before I go to bed tonight, and more tomorrow!

I like to keep the doctrine simple-

"If it's from God- I want it!"

timg, I see you are asking a yes/no question. Are you referring to yourself? Is another person asking you for guidance? Or is it merely a rhetorical question. If so, this may give you some food for thought - regarding the meaning of "spirit-filled" and its relationship to life choices:

The Filling of the Spirit:

When the Spirit births new life in us, our very being becomes “God’s temple”. 1 Cor. 3:16 This means that God’s Spirit resides and operates - not in religious buildings - but in living flesh-and-blood people. What does that mean – practically speaking?

Consider the instruction: “Do not get drunk on wine, which [ruins your life]; Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Eph. 5:18 This is talking about influence: Instead of letting alcohol influence and dominate us, we are to let the Spirit influence and dominate us – our way of thinking and living. We submit ourselves to the Spirit (that is, God) to convict, to teach, guide, comfort, and transform us.

As our habits of thinking and living become dominated by God’s Spirit, we grow in spiritual maturity. Our abilities and gifts become freely available for God’s purposes, rather than for our own ends.

As the Spirit fills and dominates our lives, God, the giver of our gifts, becomes our centre of focus, not the gifts themselves. Through the Spirit’s influence in our lives, everything about us becomes more and more available to God, and our lives become consistently honoring to God, and in harmony with his purposes.

It is God who “has put his Spirit in our hearts”2 Cor. 1:22, but it is our duty to allow the Spirit to fill and dominate our lives.

Diane

Sidewalk wrote:
You said,' I am not of that school that believes that you can't go to heaven if you haven't been filled with the Spirit,..........

Please, don't think that I am trying to be smart, ..But this is what the Scripture says:

Rom.8:9,...now if anyone have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His.

Just my two cents worth, God bless,
Lisa

I finally had a chance to read all the comments. As usual I am thankful for your well thought out answers and concern for your brothers and sisters in Christ. My question about going to the mission field if you are not filled with the Spirit does pertain to me. After the resurection jesus told the disciples to wait until they received the power of the Holy Sirit and then go. I have always been taught that the day of pentecost was a one time thing, but I have been having my doubts after reading and listening to the accounts of the revivals and the experiences of some christians in the books that have been recomended on this site.
Sometimes it seems as if all I do is based on my own strength. I mean what is the diffrence between me and what I do and what a devout follower of another religion can do? Are we not supposed to have super natural love, joy, peace ect.?
I know there are many views on these things and I have been searching the scriptures for an answer from God.
I appriciate all of your feed back, and especially those who can back up what they say with personal experience. I am tired of living and hearing a theory.
Please forgive me if it seems as though I am covering ground already discussed. I am thick and am small of faith.
When I listened to the account of Paul Washer throwing stones in the woods and wondering where God is, and the struggles of some of the others, I can so much understand and relate. It is the point where they have victory that seems to elude me.
Please pardon my poor grammer and spelling. I need to rush to work, and it is definetly not my strong point.
Grace and peace to all and may He receive all glory due His name!
In Christ,
Tim

God's Word is very clear in telling us that being born of the water (baptism) is only one step to salvation. It is very clear that we must be born of the water AND the spirit (Holy Ghost). If this were not so, then God's Word would not mention the Spirit so much. If it were not so, then His Word probably would not mention the upper room experience. Here are a few scripture references:

John 3:1 - 7
Acts 2
Acts 10:43 - 48
I John 5:6

The infilling of the Holy Spirit/Holy Ghost is not a new thing. Acts chapter 2 gives the account of the upper room experience in which many were filled with the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is for all individuals who truly desire it. You don't have to ask for it because it is ours to receive. You just have to be willing to accept it.

I received the Holy Ghost at our state camp meeting when I was 14 and have had many more experiences since then. It is an amazing experience. When you submit yourself to the Lord wholly and without reservation, it is amazing what happens. Some people shout, some people dance, some people leap for joy, and some people become drunk on the "new wine", but one thing that is common amongst all who are filled with the Holy Ghost is that they speak in tongues when it happens.

Some churches believe you can teach a person how to speak in tongues. It is not possible. They are simply teaching them to repeat the same thing over and over again very fast until they literally sound like they are speaking a different language. A person cannot be taught to speak in tongues. Churches who teach this are deceiving people just as those that teach only the partial truth about the requirements for salvation are deceiving people.

You are correct in that the Holy Ghost experience was not a one-time thing. It is just as much for us today as it was for those who were in the upper room. People today receive the Holy Ghost just as people back then did and it is amazing. It is a blessing not only to receive it yourself, but to also see others as they do.

You expressed a desire for feedback from people who can back up what they say. I can. I am speaking from experience. I have been filled with the Holy Ghost and the Lord gives me a fresh touch often. It's also not something that happens just one time with people. The Lord will renew His Spirit in people daily if they are submitting their lives to Him wholly and are faithful in prayer and reading of the Word.

Not looking for anything "mysiical", just seeking the truth and all that God has for me.

but you shouldn't even go to bed tonight without being filled with the Holy Spirit!

I don't completely agree with this quote. Is it important to be filled with Holy Spirit? answer is Yes. And 'Yes' God has promised it to us and we can all be filled with Holy Spirit. But being filled and the general receving of Holy Spirit are totally different. We all receive Holy Spirit when we are born again and this is what causes us to receive the nature of Jesus, to hate evil and to seek Righteousness( Hebrews 1). If we did not receive it means we did not repent truely or did not believe that Jesus is son of God (or both). So if someone did not receive Holy Spirit he should not even go to bed but keep seeking it.

To be filled with Holy Spirit, means that the Holy Spirit will take complete control of all (known) areas in our life. It is not possible to have this right from day one. I did not have it and many men of God including Brother Zac did not have it from day one. Receiving Holy Spirit is like we joining school as a kid, but that does not mean we are immediately educated and become a PHD. It takes time, same way even coming under the complete control of Holy Spirit takes time and this is what Paul explains in Romans 7 when a young believers tries to come under control of Holy Spirit. But after lot of struggle, we get broken and decide to completely give all control to Holy Spirit. This is when we start getting filled, and it is everyday process like how brother Krispy mentioned. It is not a thing of past, but it is a thing of daily life.

Coming back to the original question, should someone go to mission field without being filled with Holy Spirit? The answer is not straight forward, as some posters have given. It is like asking:- when can a student who started studying medicine start treating patients? The answer is not immediately, but one does not need to be fully qualified doctor to start treating patients. It is a stage at which the medical student will start feeling that he can successfully treat a patient to some degree.

So - are we to understand that being born again (by the Spirit) is synonymous with being FILLED with the Spirit?

Did Paul not exhort believers to be filled with the Spirit? It sounds like they had some responsibilities in this process.

What does it mean to "be filled"? Is it something one must assume by faith because they "asked Jesus in to their heart?"

Is evidence needed to prove it?
What evidence?

Oh - and might Scripture use the word "filled" in different ways - depending on context?

Pardon my torrent of questions. It's just that an appropriate answer to original question would require this clarification. Wouldn't it?

It is a stage at which the medical student will start feeling that he can successfully treat a patient to some degree.

Diane

Amazing. Moses thought he was ready at 40 and was quite confident.

God said he was ready at 80, when Moses lost all confidence in himself.

At the burning bush, God asks Moses, "What's that in your hand?"

Why, it was Moses' staff. What he used for his livelihood. His security, his tool.

God says, "Throw is down, Moses". And he threw it down. Moses was allowed to pick it back up, but only when God told him too.

Dear Saint, what's that in your hand?

Pilgrim

You said: If you do not have the Holy Spirit then you can not even possibly be saved.

Are you kidding us? where in the Bible does it say that your salvation is dependent on the Baptism of the Holy Spirit?

The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is an experience separate and apart from the initial salvation experience. and is always received after one is saved. Then the individual is to ask the Lord to baptize him/or/her with the Holy spirit.
LK. 11:13

We cannot not merit or deserve the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. It is a gift from God.
Peter spoke of receiving "Gift of the Holy spirit", Acts 2:38

Jesus my Lord and Savior said in Luke 11:13 If you then, with all your human frailty, know how to give your
children gifts that are good for them, how much more certainly will your Father who is in Heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” Wymouth translation

The Holy spirit is a gift to be received by all that are in Christ, however it is not mandatory in order to receive salvation, only believe.

by sonsigns
You said: If you do not have the Holy Spirit then you can not even possibly be saved.

Are you kidding us? where in the Bible does it say that your salvation is dependent on the Baptism of the Holy Spirit?

Perhaps that is what he meant but let it be known now that I am NOT putting words into his mouth....he gets testy when he thinks people are doing that, as do we all!!

God bless,
Lisa

Thanks Lysa for your comment. I don't believe that you were speaking for Krispy. I some times forget that other denominations do not believe that the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is for Christians today.

I should remember this especially since I was saved and Baptized in a southern Baptist Church.