Now let us consider 1:20-22: “For as many promises of God as there are, in Him is the Yes; therefore also through Him is the Amen to God, for glory through us to God. But the One who firmly attaches us with you unto Christ and has anointed us is God, He who has also sealed us and given the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge.” We often expound these verses in a shallow way, but Paul’s words were very deep in meaning. It was not until this time that he experienced how God had anointed him and had given the Spirit in him as a pledge. It was in the depths, in the Holy of Holies, that he experienced God’s anointing ointment and the Spirit as a pledge. At this point in time he was one who truly lived in the spirit.
Brothers and sisters, please bear with me for coming back to speak about the Pentecostal practices and, in particular, speaking in tongues. Please consider: When you were involved with the so-called gifts and were speaking in tongues, did you have the sense of the anointing deep inside of you? Did you have the sense of enjoying the Spirit as a pledge? You could not have had such sensations because those were superficial experiences, and you therefore could not sense the anointing or the Spirit’s pledging in your depths. This is not to say that these charismatic experiences are all false (of course, some of them are false). However, even if they were real experiences, they would still be outward and superficial. It is not until you have been forced by God into the spirit, utterly burdened beyond your power, that you can begin to experience the Holy Spirit not superficially but in your depths. Only then will you know what the anointing within is all about. You will also know that it is not only a matter of the working of the Spirit within but that fundamentally the Spirit Himself within you is the pledge. What you experience is the Spirit Himself and not merely the working, the moving, the power, or the gift of the Spirit.
Chapter two shows us that we are captives of Christ. A person who is a captive has lost everything. He has no more opinions or views. If I were your captive, what opinion would I still have? If I would completely hand myself over to the Lord, surrendering my body, my will, my feeling, and my all, then I would be a person who has been delivered from the soul. Today, however, we are still living in the soul and unwilling to surrender all, so how can we be captives? We stand on the same level with the Lord Jesus; we negotiate with Him and deal with Him as if doing business transactions. Sometimes we ask Him, “O Lord, I have given you so much, and what will You give me?” Other times we ask, “Lord, You have given this to me, so how much do you want from me?” It is as if we are asking, “How much does it cost?” The Lord’s answer is, “I want you.” Then you may say, “No, I cannot pay such a price, so let us forget about it!” This is the story of a man in the soul. If we truly have been captured by the Lord, we will have no ground to negotiate with Him. We have been defeated, we have surrendered unconditionally, and we have become captives. What kind of persons are those who live in the Holy of Holies? They are those who have been completely captured by Christ.
Now we may come to chapter three. People say that Romans 8 is a chapter concerning the Holy Spirit, but I would like to tell you that the speaking of Romans 8 concerning the Holy Spirit is shallow and introductory. The deepest and highest speaking concerning the Holy Spirit is in 2 Corinthians chapter three. No one knows how much deeper 2 Corinthians 3 is than Romans 8 in speaking concerning the Holy Spirit. Romans 8 shows us only that we must walk according to the Spirit and that the Spirit is in us praying and groaning for us. It tells us only this much, and what we understand is that we are children of God to be His heirs. But 2 Corinthians 3 shows us that the Spirit within us is the letter-writing Spirit, who writes Christ into us over and over again. This writing of letters is through the environment. Romans 8 is like an elementary school, while 2 Corinthians 3 is like a college. In Romans 8 the experience of the Spirit within us is at the initial stage, while in 2 Corinthians 3 it has reached the peak. The Spirit is not only writing in us but also doing a constituting work in us. He not only gives us gifts but also makes us ministers.
May I ask you, that day when Balaam’s donkey was able to speak a human language, was it a gift or a ministry? No doubt, that was a gift. Let me ask another question; when you speak Chinese, is it a gift or in the principle of a ministry? Your speaking Chinese today is in the principle of a ministry. Why? It is because since your childhood the Chinese language has been constituted into you.
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