Holy Spirit

 June 23, 2022

It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if l depart, I will send him unto you. —John 16:7

“Have you been filled/baptized with the Holy Spirit?” I remember the first time I heard these words. Having been raised in an independent, fundamental Baptist church, we believed in the Holy Spirit, but were less than comfortable with what we considered the excesses of the Pentecostals. It wasn’t until I was in my first full-time appointment as a United Methodist pastor that I was confronted with the Pentecostal/Charismatic teachings about the Holy Spirit. 

The church to which I was assigned (I found out after I arrived) was within a single Sunday of splitting because of the disagreement over the gifts of the Spirit, specifically, speaking in tongues. The previous pastor had gotten quite deeply involved in the Charismatic Movement, and while there was a strong contingency in the congregation who agreed with him, there were others who were very uncomfortable with it all. I guess I was expected to somehow bring the two sides together, which is exactly what happened.

At first, I didn’t know how to answer that question. I hadn’t spoken in tongues, which seemed to be the touchstone of authenticity. I bought books, talked with the charismatics, listened, and did my best to bring the two sides together. The strange thing about it all is that in terms of devotional life, I was in the Charismatic camp, but in terms of the “demonstrations of Holy Spirit power,” I sided with the traditionalists. It wasn’t until one evening when I sat down with the leader of the Charismatic contingency that things began to fall into place. I am forever indebted to Everett Scofield for his understanding and wisdom as we talked together.

He said to me, “Pastor, you have the gift of preaching. You don’t need to speak in tongues. Accept your gift for what it is and use it for Christ.” He continued, explaining how speaking in tongues worked for him: “I was pretty wild before Christ, and he had to hit me over the head with a two by four just to get my attention. You didn’t need that.” This wasn’t the kind of talk that was coming out of the mouths of some of the folks I knew, but Everett was recognized as the leader, and as we blessed each other’s ministry, the church began to heal.

This morning’s Scripture reading came from Our Daily Light, a devotional Linda and I have used on and off for fifty years. As I read those words, the memories came flooding back. How do we know we have the Holy Spirit? It’s not necessarily speaking in tongues, performing miracles, or even anointed preaching. How do we know? Simply because He was promised to us by Jesus. He told his disciples, “if I don’t go away, the Comforter won’t come unto you; but if l depart, I will send him unto you.” Guess what? Jesus did go away. As the Creed says, “he ascended to the right hand of the Father.” He said, “If I go away, I will send him.” That was a promise from Jesus Christ himself, and he always keeps his promises. 

Don’t look for signs, don’t lean on ecstatic feelings. Those things come and go, and can be faked and manipulated. Lean on the unchanging Word of God, the promises that are as certain as God himself. Do I have the Holy Spirit? Well, Jesus ascended, so there’s no debating it! End of discussion. Now, if I can just live out what is in me…