We have previously said that the Spirit of God descending upon man as power is for empowering, that man may be made competent for the work committed to him by God and that he may be used by God. Beginning in the Old Testament, whoever was really willing to be used by God obtained the descending of the Spirit of God upon him as power. Moses was such a person; so also was Samson, David, Elijah, Elisha, Ezekiel, and other prophets.
In the New Testament the principle is still the same. The first example in the New Testament of one upon whom the Holy Spirit descended was the Lord Jesus. The reason the Holy Spirit descended upon the Lord on the day He was baptized was that the Lord was testifying to heaven and earth through baptism that from that day He was going to be officially used by God. At the time when people in the world cared neither for God’s will nor God’s work, but lived only for themselves, Jesus of Nazareth stood forth before the whole universe, declaring that He desired to live for God, to be used by God, and to work for God. It was at this time that the Holy Spirit descended upon Him.
This was true also with the first group of Apostles. Originally they were fishermen, but they gave up both the fish and the boat, and with their whole heart were willing to be used by God. They desired to continue the work of the Lord to fulfill God’s work on earth. Their heart desire and attitude prepared the way for God to pour out the Holy Spirit upon them at Pentecost.
Examples of this kind are innumerable in church history. About two hundred years ago, the Moravian Church had a great outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Before that, they also were prepared to be used by God; therefore, at a meeting of the Lord’s Table, the Holy Spirit greatly filled them. After this they were used by God in a surpassing manner.
Actually, if from the beginning all those who are saved would be willing to abandon everything for the Lord to be used by Him, then upon being saved each one would be in a position to receive both aspects of the filling of the Holy Spirit simultaneously, as occurred in the house of Cornelius. We regret to say that today there are too few who are willing to be used by God upon being saved. Most people are satisfied with just possessing eternal life and not having to perish. They completely disregard God’s work and God’s plan; neither do they desire to have power to work for God and fulfill His plan. Although each one when saved has to some extent the move of the Holy Spirit and a desire to work for God, nevertheless, because they are not willing to give themselves up to be used by God, they suppress the Holy Spirit’s move and their desire. Even though the Holy Spirit within repeatedly moves them and puts demands upon them, yet they persist in refusing. When Rebecca was engaged to Isaac, she made no delay, but leaving her father’s house, she followed the old servant to give herself to Isaac (Gen. 24). Many people today have believed in Christ and are saved, yet they refuse to give themselves to Christ. They linger in their original position, unwilling to let the Lord use them. Hence, our Lord always seems to be cheated by men! He gave salvation to men, yet men turn their backs on Him, refusing to give themselves to Him. Such a condition renders men unable to receive the outward filling of the Holy Spirit after they are saved.
Since man is so unwilling to be used by God, few obtain the outward filling of the Holy Spirit, causing this experience to become mysterious and rare. In fact, the outward aspect of the Holy Spirit is by no means more precious or more difficult to obtain than the Holy Spirit within, the only requirement being that we be willing to be used by God.
Once we have offered ourselves and are willing to be used wholly by God, we must believe in the outward filling, the outpouring, of the Holy Spirit. This too must be taken by faith rather than by feeling. If we are so willing to be used by God and we believe in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, then the outward power of the Holy Spirit will be manifested upon us.
Therefore, there is no need to beg for the outward filling of the Holy Spirit. All we need to do is to rise in answer to God’s call, commit ourselves to the Lord to be at His disposal, and tell Him, “Lord, I know that You have saved me so that You can use me. Now I put my all in Your hands to be at Your disposal. I also know that according to my own strength I can do nothing; therefore, I need Your Spirit. Since I know that Your Spirit has already been given, I am here to receive it by faith.” In this way, the experience of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit is not a difficult matter. As to the manner of the manifestation of the outward filling, we need to allow the Holy Spirit to bear full responsibility. Some admire others’ outward manifestations, and insist that they also speak in tongues, cry or laugh as others do; if so, what they really desire is the speaking in tongues, the crying or the laughing, not the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Others insist not to cry or laugh, for they are afraid of being possessed by a demon. This also is a wrong concept. Our insistence often limits the free working of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, while we experience the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, we need to afford complete freedom to the Holy Spirit, neither insisting upon anything nor refusing anything.
In summary, the filling of the Holy Spirit within and without is a glorious blessing under the New Testament. It is also a fulfillment of the blessing promised to Abraham by God (Gal. 3:14). May we on one hand empty ourselves more that the Holy Spirit together with the fullness of the Godhead may fill us from within, thereby enabling us to live out the glorious image of God. On the other hand, we need to give ourselves more to the Lord to be used by Him, so that the Holy Spirit may descend upon us richly, giving us power and gifts; then we can serve God, deal with God’s enemy, and bring in the Kingdom of God!