Thriving in IsolationSample

BE FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT

Being filled with the Holy Spirit means to surrender to his control fully. One metaphor for understanding this process is a jar filled with stones and water. Although there is water in the jar, because there are still stones, there is not as much water as there could be. As stones are removed, more water can be poured into the jar. If stones are placed back into the jar, water is displaced. The goal is to have as many stones out of the jar as possible to allow for maximum filling of water.

In this oversimplified illustration, you are the jar and the Holy Spirit is the water. If you are a follower of Jesus, you have the Holy Spirit indwelling within you, but you may not be filled to the brim with his power. The stones represent our own will that we refuse to surrender. This could be a compartmentalized life, willful sin, or outright rebellion. When those things exist, the Holy Spirit is spending energy convicting us of our sin rather than filling us with the fruit of the Spirit that we all desire. As we surrender control to God, applying the gospel to our sin, and obeying his every prompt, we are filled with the Spirit of God and overflow in his love, joy, and power!

Here is a simple way to help you understand the process of being filled with the Holy Spirit. As you look at this, please remember that this is not necessarily a sequential process. For more information, we suggest reading the book Spirit Walk by Steve Smith.

• Surrender to Jesus as your king. Are you willing to do whatever Jesus tells you to do? Are you willing to lay your own control down and obey your leader? 
• Wait on God in prayer. The apostles waited and prayed for 10 days in Acts 1 before the Holy Spirit filled them in power in Acts 2. Jesus fasted for 40 days before being sent out to begin his ministry. Waiting often comes before action!
• Avoid sin and apply the gospel. God wants a holy vessel used for noble purposes. As we are surrendering to his every word, he will point behaviors and thought patterns out to us. When that happens, we need to turn from those behaviors and trust in Jesus, applying the forgiveness that he purchased on the cross.
• Promptly obey his commands. As we surrender to Jesus, wait on him in prayer, and actively apply the gospel to our lives, we will more clearly sense his Spirit prompting us to obey him. As that we sense those prompts, we must obey them or we slip right back into direct disobedience and defiance!

Today, do your SOAPS on the passage and spend time asking God to fill you with his Holy Spirit. Don’t expect a lightning bolt from the heavens, but keep on asking, keep on seeking his face, and keep on knocking!