THE HOLY SPIRIT (cont'd)
The diagram above represents
a Christian that is full of the Spirit and walking in the Spirit.
His/her spirit is in constant communication with the Holy Spirit and
is constantly feeding his/her soul. The soul in turn is telling the
body what to do but is totally ignoring all information coming in
through the body. The body in this case is mortified with all that
pertains to its members.
The diagram on the right illustrates the carnal Christian. The body
is constantly feeding information to the soul which in turns tells
the body what to do. Although the spirit is still in constant communication
with the Holy Spirit because they are a Christian, the soul is totally
ignoring all input from the spirit. Ignoring the communication from
the Holy Spirit which is in constant fellowship with our spirit is
to quench the Spirit. I Thess. 5:19 tells us, “Quench not the
Spirit.” The word translated “quench” means to quench
or to suppress. When we suppress the information our spirit is trying
to give us that the Holy Spirit gave our spirit, we quench the Spirit.
Also, to stay in a carnal state (as depicted by the right diagram)
is to grieve the Spirit. Ephesians 4:30 says, “And grieve not
the Holy Spirit of God.” We are not to constantly yield to the
flesh and ignore the Spirit. Doing so grieves the Spirit. We are also
not to refuse to grow thereby remaining a carnal child and grieve
the Holy Spirit.
All that is needed to live a life with the fullness of the Spirit
is for us to maintain a constant yielded position to the Holy Spirit,
bathing in the light of the Word of God, and refusing the requests
of our flesh (body) which is to mortify our earthly members. Walking
in the Spirit is not some unreachable, super-mystical experience reserved
for the super Saint. It is available to all who would desire it, by
simple faith. As we believe and act on the Word of God (acting is
a part of believing), we bathe in the light and ignore the earthly,
giving the Holy Spirit all. Yield all areas of our life to the Holy
Spirit for no greater joy can be had in the Christian life than to
walk in the Spirit or be filled with the Spirit.
