THE PURPOSE OF BEING FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT

Often as our kids begin to mature and they begin to have an interest in sports, much patience is needed. They often have a short attention span, and many do not fully understand the rules or how to play the game, so it is necessary to stick with them until they do. Growing in God often entails the same process. When we are first born again, we don’t fully understand what God wants to do in our lives, but we must stick with it. Jesus instructed us to be filled with the Spirit, but why? In Romans 12:2 we are told to renew our minds to prove what the will of God is. There are 3 levels mentioned, the good, the acceptable, and the perfect will of God. Of course, we would all agree that of the 3 degrees, perfect would be the best or the highest achievement.

When considering the will of God, we must stop seeing ourselves apart from God. It is hard to fathom that the God of the universe lives in us, but if you are born again, He does. Our lives have a purpose, and God has a plan. How then do we find God’s will? We must look first to the Word of God which is God’s general will for all, but after that we also have the Spirit of God, the Holy Ghost, who knows the perfect will of God for each of us. He is in us so that our steps are ordered by the Lord. He gives us the mind of Christ, and for those who seek, He will let us know exactly what God wants us to do.

Moving on to Romans 8:26-28 we discover that the Holy Spirit helps our infirmities or weaknesses. Help means that God’s Spirit takes hold with us, strives to help us, and joins His strength to ours. We can never discover God’s plan from our natural mind; it is found by and through the Spirit. The Holy Spirit helps us to pray. “Likewise, the Spirit also helps our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” (Romans 8:26-27)

How important is prayer? Prayer is an essential part of our relationship with our Father, and the Holy Spirit is our helper. John Wesley said it this way, “It seems God is limited by our prayer life, that He can do nothing for humanity unless someone asks Him.” If God is going to do something in the earth, it will be through us. Lilian B. Yeomans stated, “God has tied Himself irrevocably to human cooperation in the work of redemption. He has made man’s faith a determining factor in the execution of Divine purposes.” How important is prayer? It is God who works in us and through us! (Philippians 2:12-13) In Ezekiel 22:30 we find God looked for an intercessor, someone to pray, but He could not find one to stand in the gap. We find Abraham interceding for Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 18, and there were many times Moses interceded for Israel. Even Jesus taught us in Matthew 6:10 to pray for the will of God in the earth.

This seems like a big responsibility. What if we don’t know what to pray for? How are we to ensure that God’s will is done in the earth? Let us return to the title of this message. What is the purpose of being filled with the Spirit? The Holy Spirit was sent to fill us, to live in us, to help us, and to pray through us! When we are baptized in the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5) and allow Him to pray through us, our prayers work! We may not know what is going on, but the Greater One does! We have someone on the inside who knows how to pray. God becomes a partner in our labor. He sees the big picture. Many times, our own words are inadequate, but being filled with the Spirit allows us to speak the language of Heaven. (Acts 2:4) Praying in the Spirit makes ways, builds roads, and allows us to pray out God’s perfect will. We speak so that the will of God can be so, and soon our lives begin to look exactly like the Word of God. We are filled with power from on high (Acts 1:8), and we will walk as Jesus walked (John 14:12).

“We are assured and know that [God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [fitting into a plan] for good to and for those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose.” (Romans 8:28 AMPC)