Years ago I was preaching on the subject of being filled with the Holy Spirit, the fullness of the Holy Spirit, and how if we are to experience this filling, this fullness, we must meet the Scriptural conditions and then plead with God constantly for His mighty power.
 Someone came up to me afterwards and made the statement that he believed that we do not have to ask for the fullness of the Holy Spirit. He stated that he believed that all we have to do is claim it by faith, and it will be ours. Though he was sincere, I was inwardly saddened that he would make such and over-simplification of this vital life-changing truth. You see, he overlooked Luke 11:13, "If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:13) In this verse the word "ask" is in the linear or durative which means we are to ask and ask and ask and ask… What a dangerous thing it is to misunderstand the fact that God insists that we pay the price for the fullness of His power - the kind of price that George Fox paid when he was alone with God for two weeks in prayer and fasting for the power of the Spirit, the kind of price that Dwight Moody paid when he pleaded with God for His mighty power, the kind of price that Jacob paid when he wrestled with the angel of God throughout the night, the kind of price that the New Testament church paid during the ten days preceding Pentecost! We pay the price, not by meritorious works, but by our hunger! Hunger is the currency of the Kingdom! One of the major causes of this type of misunderstanding is caused by the omission of a truth which I call "the reception of the Holy Spirit." Let’s take a look at this for a moment. The first thing we need to settle is the fact that every believer receives the Holy Spirit at salvation. "You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him." (Romans 8:9) "Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own," (I Corinthians 6:19) But even though we all have received Him in the initiatory sense, there is a deeper sense available to us, and that is the reception of the Holy Spirit. Do not confuse this reception of the Holy Spirit with the indwelling, the anointing or the fullness of the Holy Spirit. Allow me to offer some illustrations. A man realizes that his mother-in-law is not able to continue living on her own. Because of his love for his wife he invites her to come and live in his house. She agrees and comes to live with him, but he finds it difficult to accept her. He pays her little attention. He does not accept her as a part of the family. Then one day he realizes what he has been doing. He goes to his mother-in-law and says to her, "Mom, please forgive me. I haven’t accepted you as part of this family and I was wrong. I want you to know that today I accept you as part of our family." Now understand, she has been living in the house for some time, but he had not accepted her yet. Beloved, there are many born-again believers who have been indwelt by the wonderful Person of the Holy Spirit, but, like this man and his mother-in-law, they have not accepted Him and acknowledged His Presence and, as it were, His being a member of the family. A woman loses her husband in a premature death. After a period of time she remarries. Her new husband moves in with his new wife and her children. Though he is living in the house, the children do not accept him; perhaps they are bitter; perhaps they are suspicious or perhaps they are jealous. Now they are living in the same house with their stepfather, but they have not accepted him as being part of the home. Over time, however, they learn to love him and one day they suddenly accept him as a member of the family. This illustration describes millions of Christians who when they were converted they became the temple, the dwelling place as it were, of the Holy Spirit. However, they never acknowledge him; they never speak to Him! They trusted Christ as their Savior. When Christ came, the Holy Spirit came with Him, and He indwells them, but they have never come to the place to where they say, "Holy Spirit, just as I accepted Christ, I accept You. You are a member of the family. I will acknowledge you, and treat You, as such." Now understand, the Holy Spirit has been there all along to lead, strengthen and to comfort, but He awaits His acceptance. The stepfather provided for his stepchildren. He may have comforted them, taught them and loved them, but they did not accept him as their own and acknowledge his presence and membership in the family. Notice John 7:37-39, “On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ ” Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified." (John 7:37-39) Now compare that with John 20:22, "And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit." (John 20:22) John 20:22 is a fulfillment of John 7:37-39. In John 7 Jesus promised the Holy Spirit would be available to indwell believers. In John 20:22 the glorified Jesus instructed His disciples to receive the Holy Spirit. This verb "receive" is not passive but active. It could be translated, "accept the Holy Spirit" (just as you accepted Christ). You see, Jesus is the Savior of the world, but we have to accept Him personally in order for Him to be our personal Savior. The Holy Spirit indwells all true believers, but we still need to come to a time when we acknowledge Him and receive Him, or accept Him, even as the stepchild received the stepfather and the son-in-law received the mother-in- law. Get it? This explains Acts 19:1,2, "And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” (Acts 19:1-2) These disciples, though they were indwelt by the Holy Spirit, had not heard about the Him Who lived in them. This is true in the lives of many Christians today. The One Who indwells us receives no attention, no conversation, no expression of love, and in many cases no awareness of His Presence. Notice Galatians 3:2, 14, "Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?...so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith." (Galatians 3:2, 14) My purpose tonight is to acquaint you with a Glorious Person (the Holy Spirit) so that they you will accept Him Who came in at your salvation and yet Who is being ignored and treated like an unwanted stepfather or an unwanted mother-in-law! I had been teaching and preaching for many years. I knew that the Holy Spirit lived in me. The Bible said so. I even taught this fact as doctrine, but I had never one time spoken a word to the Holy Spirit. Though I realized He lived in my body, and I knew my body was His dwelling place, I had never accepted Him as a Person. Yes, He provided; yes, He assured; yes, He comforted; yes, He strengthened; yes, He taught. Though I was the recipient of His marvelous works in my life, still I had never accepted Him as a Person or received Him as such. One day as I was studying and praying the light came on. I began to tremble. I realized for the first time that He was a “real” Person. I fell to my knees, lifted my voice to God and looked heavenward and I said, "Dear Holy Spirit, forgive me. I have never spoken to You. Doctrinally I knew you lived in me, but I have never accepted You as a Person, just as real as any other person. I have never treated You like I treat any other person in my life in a practical way. I accept You today. I receive You today!" My life has never been the same since that day! I include Him in the decisions that I have to make. I ask Him to lead me in every area of my life. To me He is a Person. He not only lives in my body, but I accept Him as such. I acknowledge His Presence. I talk to Him. I seek His guidance in even the smallest of decisions. In summary, Beloved, when you accepted Jesus and asked Him to come into your life, He had brought with Him another member of the Godhead. When Jesus entered, this other member silently entered as well. Perhaps you did not realize it, or perhaps you realized it and have never taken time to accept this other member for Who He really is. My desire for you is that you will become acquainted with Him. May we begin by accepting Him. Bow your head with me now and say, "Holy Spirit, I know You have been living in me. I now receive You, accept You." Beloved, would you do what I did so many years ago? Your life, like mine, will never be the same. Accept Him now; receive Him now; include Him in everything. Ask Him to help you find the bargains when you go shopping. Ask Him what route to take as you take even the smallest and most insignificant of journeys. Ask Him where to sit on the airplane. Ask Him to help you as you wash the dishes and clean the house. He yearns to be accepted by you. Yes, He does come in at salvation. Romans 8:9, "You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him." (Romans 8:9) Yes, we are to plead with God for the fullness of the Holy Spirit. "And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit" (Ephesians 5:18) "If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (Luke 11:13) Yet, in between His moving in at salvation and His filling us for service there needs to come a time in our lives where we receive Him or accept Him Who very quietly and without fanfare has been doing His glorious work in us, through us and for us. Without any attention or gratitude He has been strengthening you, comforting you, teaching you, exhorting you, helping you and guiding you. He longs for you to know that He is there. He longs for you to fellowship with Him as a Person. This moment could be the dawning of a new day, the beginning of a new era and a day of gladness for the Holy Spirit. He is in you. He is your guide. He is your teacher. He is your comforter. Bow your head now and accept Him as such and tell Him that you will never again live a day without fellowshipping with Him, expressing your love to Him and acknowledging His Presence in your life.
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