Be Filled with the Holy Spirit? ~ Christine Malkemes
How to be filled with the Holy Spirit?
You could google this question and get many different answers. The professionals will say one thing, while a novice may give her uninformed opinion.
The Pentecostal will see it one way and a Quicker another.
But one thing we cannot deny is the call to be filled with the Spirit is Scriptural:
…but be filled with the Spirit.
Ephesians 5:18b
Being filled with the Spirit is life-changing. It is having great joy in God. This joy brings power to overcome besetting sin, boldness to witness, new insight into Scripture, and a prayer language.
Even without the command “to be filled”, wouldn’t anyone want the joy of the Lord and the benefits of knowing Christ? Being filled with the Spirit is a joy that flows within the Holy Trinity and empowers us to live according to our calling in Christ.
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.
John 1:8 (ESV)
If you were to ask individuals how they were filled with the Spirit. They might say at the altar (as someone laid hands on them) or in the privacy of their bedroom. We seek but the Lord fills.
Every Sunday, since this COVID-19 crisis, my pastor has encouraged us to be filled. We are closely coming to Pentecost Sunday when the first generation Christians were filled in the upper room (Acts 2).
But empty altars, silent pews, and social distancing leave the question in the air, “Then how am I suppose to be filled with the Spirit.”
Before going to bed Sunday night I whispered a prayer to the Lord for answers. Then He gave me three dreams to help me understand:
Dreams
In the first dream, a man I did not know approached me with three items on a silver tray. He told me one of them was the Holy Spirit. I only had to choose. If I made the wrong choice then I lose. While I was reaching out to pick one I woke up.
I shook my head and said, “Lord! What does this mean?”
I fell back to sleep and had another dream. The same man, this time in an expensive car, told me that the car had millions of dollars and the Holy Spirit inside. Still the choice remained: choose one or lose. Before I stepped forward, I woke up.
“Lord, what does this mean?”
I fell back to sleep again. This time for the last and final dream. The same man approached me and we wore at a harbor. On the dock was a mighty container ship with hundreds of containers. He assured me the Holy Spirit was in there, I only needed to choose. Before I took a step on the deck, I woke up.
“Lord, what does this means?”
I did not go back to sleep this time. I ran to the guest bedroom and closed the door. I know the Holy Spirit was not on the silver tray, the expensive car or the massive ship. It is not something we work for or obtain on our own.
We do have to do something to be filled. We choose the Lord alone. We come, yield, and abide.
Come
Jesus calls us to come to Him. When we heed that call we enter into the new life – life everlasting with the Holy Spirit. Day-by-day, we come to Him, and we’re complete in Him.
Coming is a matter of the heart.
Come to Me…
Matthew 11:28b
The wandering heart never lets grass grow under her feet. On the other hand, the yielded heart comes to the Lord and basks in His faithful love.
The wandering heart doesn’t stay long enough to feel God’s love or know who He is. The yielded heart comes and waits on the Lord.
In the coming, yielding, and abiding, we find our rest. In the presence of the Holy, the one who comes breathes the air God breaths.
Yield
The union of Christ and the Christian begins with yielding to Him.
Etched in the folds of the yielded heart is the Word of God. Each page and passage reveal His will and nature. The Holy Spirit is welcome there. The one who yields leans in to learn and stays to be filled.
The yielded heart knows the voice of the Lord and in His presence is given divine and infinite love. The link that binds us is real. The Holy Spirit is real, close, and holy.
The Holy Spirit delights to fill the yielded soul. Eternal assurance and steadfast love come in the filling.
Abide
The wandering heart is a rolling stone and abides nowhere. The yielded heart abides and in this choice she finds the secret in dwelling with the Holy.
Abide in Me, and I in you…
John 15:4
Come what may, the yielded heart abides.
Troubles come and troubles go. Sorrow visits us for a short while as sickness and pay stay for a few moments. The yielded heart is not immune to trouble, sickness, or pain. She walks through the valley of the shadow of death.
But the Holy Spirit fills her and she never walks alone.
In abiding we empty our selves of self and sacrifice our will for God’s. The yielded heart depends on the Lord, submits to His call and walks in obedience.
The Holy Spirit fills the one who trusts in Him wholeheartedly. The yielded heart is entrusted with the Holy Spirit. He dwells there and no other vessel is sufficient for His divine work.
So, how can I be filled?
Come… Yield… Abide…
- Want to be filled with the Spirit? Come.
- Want to know Christ intimately? Yield
- Want to abide in Christ? Set your heart still in His presence and gaze into His eyes until the light from heaven falls gently into your soul.
Oh, wandering heart, stop and abide in Christ. Be filled with the Spirit and live. Come, taste and see that the Lord is good. In His provision of forgiveness we find mercy and in His faithfulness we find grace.
In Conclusion.
My dreams pointed me in the right direction. If I what was offered on the silver platter, the expensive car and the massive ship. None of them contained the Holy Spirit. No matter what choice I took in their direction I would lose.
To be filled with the Spirit we come to the hand that gives good gifts to those who ask – Father God.
Are you ready to be filled?
The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your request to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Phil 4:4b-7
Blessings,
