The Christian Foundation, Or, Scientific and Religious Journal, June, 1880

by Various

The Work of the Holy Spirit. What Is It? What Are Its Relations And Uses?

I know of no religious people who intentionally deny his agency in creation, providence or redemption. But men differ widely in their opinions concerning it and its relations and uses. Many honest-hearted persons have been educated in the theory of an immediate and direct operation of the Spirit upon the hearts of sinners in order to their conversion, which they often call the baptism of the Holy Spirit. On this account thousands of prayers are offered up continually to induce the Lord to pour the Spirit upon sinners and convert and save them. And happy meetings are attributed to wonderful outpourings of the Spirit. What is his work? It is said that he moved upon the face of the great deep, and that God said, Let there be light, and there was light. This operation upon physical nature gave to our planet cosmic light, and the darkness, which had shut out the light of the heavenly bodies through the long lapse of time extending back from Moses' first day to the beginning in which creation took place, was removed. Activity having begun in matter, periods of light and darkness alternate until the conditions of our planet are so changed that the light of the heavenly bodies becomes the light of this world; and the great work of the Spirit having accomplished its purposes, is classified with the extraordinary efforts of God in bringing into existence this beautiful planetary [pg 202] system of ours. It is, consequently, a work of the past. But the work of the Spirit is not over.

There must be a moral and spiritual system, as well as a physical. As the material system would be unworthy of its creator, were it not for the fact that it is governed by law, which is equivalent to saying, it is a system, so the moral and spiritual must be under law, in order to the accomplishment of the ends of its creation, which is equal to saying, it is God's moral government. But how is this system to be brought into existence? And how is it to be perpetuated? In answering these questions let us remember the law of analogy, based upon the simple axiom that God is a God of order. In the use of the analogy about to be instituted we simply pass through the outer court of the temple of God in order to behold the beauties of the inner. Then, as the world of matter existed as an inactive, confused mass, surrounded by an envelope of darkness which shut out the light of the heavens, so the human family, without the knowledge of God, without the light of knowledge, left to its own mental and moral wanderings, without law or system or order, would present all the horrors of pagan darkness and woe. Then the Spirit of God must move again in obedience to the mandate of the Most High. And as the object to be accomplished is now connected with mind, the Spirit now moves upon the face of the great deep of the human heart or mind. But shall he move upon all hearts throughout all time in order to dispel moral darkness, and so the extraordinary become the ordinary? Or shall he move in an extraordinary manner and cause the light of revelation to flash across the world and dispel the darkness consequent upon the mental and moral condition of the children of men, and give us a glorious lamp of light, along with law, order and system? And has the extraordinary given place to the ordinary? And what is the use of the ordinary if we have the extraordinary, or the use of the extraordinary if we have the ordinary?

As the operation of the Spirit upon the face of the great deep was to dispel the surrounding darkness and reveal the [pg 203] sun in the heavens, with all the lesser light bearers, which are dependent upon the sun for the light they give to our planet, so the extraordinary movement of the Spirit upon the world of mind was to give us light in the place of darkness and reveal the Son of God, who is the “Sun of Righteousness,” who rose “with healing in his beams.” This work of the Spirit upon the world of mind is doubted by no Christian, for “holy men of old spake as they were moved upon by the Holy Spirit.” The knowledge thus communicated was given to the prophets of old, without action upon their part—that is to say, they did not attain unto it by taking thought what they should speak or say, for in the proper hour, when it was needful, it was given to them. This grand procedure was kept up until the “Mystery of Christ” was revealed, or until the light of the knowledge of the glory of God, in the face of Jesus Christ, burst upon the vision of the world. Now, he being the brightness of the Father's glory and the express image of his person, and it having pleased the Father that in him all fullness should dwell, he is the “Light of the World”—God's great light bearer. Along with the revelation of Christ comes a revelation of all the lesser lights that shine out in the mental and moral heavens, who have been, and are, dependent upon him for their knowledge, or light. In order to give the world this revelation of Christ, Jehovah selected his own men, and confirmed their mission, and the Spirit moved upon their hearts to give light until the Christ, himself, with all his satellites, should shine forth in the light of life. These men were the ancient prophets of the “High and Holy One.” They were teachers sent from God. Their mission was confirmed by the wondrous works which they were enabled to perform. Nicodemus understood this matter when he said, “Rabbi, we know thou art a teacher sent from God, for no man can do these works which thou dost except God be with him.”

The little Jewish maiden who waited on Naaman's wife understood it, for she said to her, “Would to God my Lord were with the prophet in Samaria! for he would cure him of his [pg 204] leprosy.” It is said of the disciples of Christ that they “went everywhere preaching the word, the Lord working with them and confirming the word with signs following.” And also, that the great salvation, “which at the first began to be spoken unto us by the Lord, was confirmed unto us by those who heard him, God also bearing them witness both with signs and wonders, and divers miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit.” And that the apostles preached the gospel with the Holy Spirit sent down from heaven.

It was communicated to the prophets and apostles by the Savior, and to the world at large through them. As proof of this proposition Peter says, “The prophets searched diligently with reference to the time which the Spirit of Christ, that was in them, did signify when it testified beforehand of the sufferings of Christ and of the glory which should follow.” It was an important work for Christ to teach his apostles, and when they had heard him through all his toils they were not suffered to go forth, or shine as stars in the church's crown, until they were moved upon by the Spirit of God to bring to their remembrance those things which Jesus had taught them. But one other course could have been pursued, and there were insurmountable difficulties in the way of its adoption, and that was to make the extraordinary ordinary by causing the Holy Spirit to move upon all hearts throughout all time, and give to each member of the race, regardless of his character and the manner in which he might abuse it, the entire revelation. The first difficulty is in the fact that wicked men who wilfully deceive would have confronted the best men upon the earth, and confusion without remedy would have been the result of leaving our world without a common and infallible test.

Another difficulty appears, in the fact that it would have compromised the purity of God through the presence of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of all the vile and abominable sinners of earth. There was one way to avoid these results, and that was to irresistibly destroy all disposition in human hearts to have their own way, and so remain unworthy of the presence [pg 205] of the Divine Spirit; but this would have been a complete destruction of moral freedom along with all the principles of accountability, and consequently a destruction of God's moral government. Moral freedom was so sacred with God that “the spirit of the prophets was subject to the prophet.” Hence, the importance of the searcher of hearts choosing his own prophets out from among men. “God, who in ancient times and diverse manners, spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath, in these last days, spoken unto us by his son.” The Lord of Hosts guarded this great work with reference to the deliverance of man by the most severe penalty. The law governing the prophets was in these words: “And that prophet which shall speak a word in my name which I commanded him not, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die.” He guarded his own infinite and spotless purity. While he was “in the generation of the righteous, he was far from the wicked.” So there was always, from the time of Adam's offense till the present such a thing as being “without God.”

When the Jewish people became apostate in the times of Malachi, who was the last Old Testament prophet, the Holy Spirit left the world. The proof is in the Savior's words to his disciples: “If I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you.” And one of the witnesses said, “The Holy Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified.” During the long night of apostacy between Malachi and Zechariah, there was a time when “all were gone out of the way;” “when there were none that did good, no, not one;” “when darkness covered the earth, and gross darkness the people;” when they had not so much as “the dayspring from on high, to give knowledge of salvation by the remission of sins.” “The temple of God was a den of thieves.” The commandments of God were made void through the traditions of men, and there was not a people upon the earth prepared for the Lord, worthy of his introduction among them as the Son of God. The dignity of his person, consequent upon his being the Son of God, along with his purity, rendered [pg 206] it improper for him to be manifested, in his introduction as the Son of God, to a den of thieves. So a people must be prepared for the occasion. Hence John the Baptist was sent from God to prepare or make ready a people for the Lord. He was the “dayspring from on high,” sent to give knowledge of salvation unto the people by the remission of their sins, but the ultimate of his work is expressed in these words: “But that he, Christ, might be made manifest unto Israel, therefore came I baptizing with water.” Which was as much as to say, He will not be made manifest to Israel unless a people in Israel is made ready for him. Therefore John was his forerunner, to prepare the way before him.

In doing this work he proclaimed the kingdom of God is at hand, and “preached the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.” And many people were prepared for the Lord, and finally he is acknowledged, from the eternal world, as the Son of God, while he is yet in the presence of all those who were present at his baptism and heard John say, “Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world.” The Savior now calls about him twelve disciples, and they make and baptize many more disciples. John the Baptist and Jesus Christ, as prophets, were under the influence of the Holy Spirit, and were engaged in the grandest work ever known among men. But, so far as a wicked world was concerned, it must be redeemed from moral pollution first, and then await the day of Pentecost for the gift of the Holy Spirit. Thus keeping before our minds his relations to men, we ask what was his work and relations from Pentecost and onward? On that day he came upon the disciples, who were already converted and pardoned; so it was not for those purposes that they were baptized in the Holy Spirit. Jesus had said to them, long before this, “Now ye are clean through the words which I have spoken unto you.” And the wicked Jews had “closed their eyes and stopped their ears, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their hearts and be converted and healed.” And Satan himself [pg 207] took the word out of the hearts of some “lest they should believe and be saved.”

And all this took place before the Holy Spirit was given to any, whether good or bad. So we must look outside of sinners for the presence and wonderful work of the Spirit of God, and also outside of their conversion for its immediate and direct agency. Jesus said to his disciples, “If I go away I will send you another comforter, even the Spirit of Truth, whom the world can not receive.” And again, he said, “Howbeit, when he, the Spirit of Truth, is come, he shall guide you into all truth.” “He will show you things to come.” “He shall take of the things of mine and shall show them unto you.” “He shall testify of me.” Does this look like extraordinary work? Was it to be continued? Did it not belong to a creative period, that was to be followed by the existence of a system, or government, in which law and order would take the place of the extraordinary operations of the Spirit of God?

I wish to present the promise of God which relates to the baptism of the disciples in the Holy Spirit upon Pentecost, that we may discover, upon an analysis of its terms, its nature and place in the reign of favor. It is in these words: “And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophecy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; and on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my spirit; and they shall prophesy.” Jesus gave his disciples the great commission to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature, but said, “Tarry ye in Jerusalem until ye be endued with power from on high.” After the Savior ascended it is said that he received the promise of the Father and shed forth that which was seen and heard on the day of Pentecost. What was the result? They spake with tongues. They prophesied. They healed the sick. They raised the dead. They bestowed spiritual gifts. They were guided into all truth. They “preached the gospel with the Holy Spirit sent down from [pg 208] heaven;” and in this fact we have the beautiful figure of rivers of living water flowing out of their hearts, for Jesus said, “He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly (From the Heart, inward part) shall flow rivers of living water.” This, the historian says, “He spake of the spirit which they that believed on him were to receive, because the Holy Spirit was not yet given, for Jesus was not yet glorified.” Hence, we are authorized to look for its fulfillment at Pentecost, and also in the preaching of the gospel of Christ. Paul says, “My speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.” Here is the basis of our faith.

All those who believe on Christ through the words of the apostles have a faith that stands in the power of God. The apostle further adds, “Now we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Spirit teacheth, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.” Before the Savior left the world he breathed upon his apostles and said, “Receive ye the Holy Spirit,” adding, “Whosesoever sins ye remit they are remitted unto them, and whosesoever sins ye retain they are retained.” So it pleased the Father to “save men through the foolishness of preaching.” And Paul said, “We preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus's sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.”

The mystery of Christ was revealed to all nations for the obedience of faith. Paul says, the mystery of God's will was made known according to his good pleasure which he purposed [pg 209] in himself, and that he was “made a minister according to the dispensation of God which was given to him for us, to fulfill the word of God, even the mystery which had been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints. To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory, whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.” “Whereunto,” he says, “I also labor, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.” From all that we have before us it appears that all things in the gospel of Jesus Christ constitute, simply, “the ministration of the Spirit written upon the hearts of New Testament apostles and prophets, or teachers, by the Spirit of the living God, and that we have in their preaching and teaching the rivers of living water, flowing out from the throne of God to slake the thirst of a famishing world, and that all this is attributable to the descent of the Holy Spirit upon them.” Such being the case, “the gospel is the power of God unto salvation unto every one that believes.” And in it Jesus Christ, the Sun and Lord, in the moral and spiritual universe, shines forth with all his satellites as the light of the world. The creative period is now past. The extraordinary efforts of the divine Spirit are past. “The darkness is past and the true light now shineth.” The ordinary has taken the place of the extraordinary. What good would it do to have a repetition of the extraordinary? Would it give us another gospel, and confirm it by signs and wonders and divers miracles? Would it give us another Christ? Would it give us other rivers of living water? or another word of reconciliation? What good would be accomplished by a repetition of the energies of the Divine Spirit, as they are known in the history of the new creation? Do we need these to dispel the darkness? “The darkness is past.” Do we need them to give us light? “The true light now shineth.” Do we need them to give us more truth? Jesus said of the Spirit: “He shall guide you into all truth.” The [pg 210] Roman Catholic priest, in his discussion with Mr. Chillingworth, planted himself upon this promise, made by the Savior to his apostles, as the proof of the claim of Romanists to the attribute of infallibility. Said he: “If the attribute of infallibility is not in the possession of the church, the promise of the Savior has failed.” To this Mr. Chillingworth replied: “It would be well for us to determine who is meant by the pronoun ‘you,’ found in the language, before we put up the high claim to infallibility.” The promise was fulfilled to a jot, and we have the “all truth” in the teachings of the apostles. Let those who extend that promise to themselves meet the Catholics' argument upon it and save themselves if they can. We now enjoy the Spirit of God through faith along with all the beneficial, practical and comforting and redeeming results of the baptism of the apostles and first Christians in the Holy Spirit. What more do we need? Faith lays hold upon Christ; upon the Holy Spirit; and upon God. The just live by faith, and drink of the rivers that flow from the great fountain of the Holy Spirit, which was created in the hearts of the apostles and New Testament teachers. The effects of their baptism in the Spirit are ours through faith. And all the world may have them through faith. They are free to all. The government of God is now set up. Order and law reigns throughout. Jesus said, “So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground, and should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how, for the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.” The kingdom of God now bringeth forth fruit of herself, the good seed, the word of God, having been cast into it. Its glorious blessings are open to all men. The prophet says: “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money, come, ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labor for that which satisfieth not? Hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is [pg 211] good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Incline your ear, and come unto me; hear, and your soul shall live.... Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto the Lord and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” “The Spirit and the bride say come, and let him that is athirst come, and whosoever will let him take of the waters of life freely.” Yes, freely. There is no obstruction. All are without excuse.