They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
John 17:14
During His last night, our Lord took great
effort to make clear to His disciples the impassable gulf between Him and the
world, and between them and the world. He had said of the Spirit, “whom
the world cannot receive, because it sees Him not, neither knows Him” (John
14:17). “Because ye are not of the world…therefore the world hates
you” (John 15:19).
One great characteristic of the disciples was
that they were to be as separated from the world as Christ had been. They and
Christ had become united in the Cross and the Resurrection; they both belonged
to another world, the kingdom of heaven. This separation from the world is to
be the mark of all believers who long to be filled with the Spirit.
Why is faith in the Holy Spirit so seldom
preached and practiced in Christendom? The world rules too much in the lives of
Christians. Christians rarely live the heavenly life to which they are called
in Christ Jesus. The love of the world the lust of the flesh [pleasure
in eating, drinking, ease, and comfort], the lust of the eyes [delight in
all that the world offers of beauty and possession], and the pride of
life [the self-exaltation in what the wisdom and power of man has
accomplished]” (1 John 2:16) robs the heart of its desire for the true
self‑denial that enables a man to receive the Holy Spirit.
If you wish to pray the Pentecostal prayer for
the power of the Holy Spirit, examine yourself. Is the spirit of the world the
reason that you do not love to pray the prayer that is absolutely necessary to
receive the promise of the Father? May the Lord write this thought deep in
every heart: the world cannot receive the Holy Spirit!
No comments:
Post a Comment