by Glenice Mills
The Holy Spirit can be the most abused part of the Godhead. We are quick to call on Him in our time of need, and use Him as a means to a quick fix, on tap instant feel good. This may seem a bit ‘out there’ but in these days and times it is crucial we examine our hearts and see in what way we hurt, offend and grieve the Holy Spirit. I think we would all be surprised how we sometimes truly treat the Holy Spirit both individually and corporately. The Holy Spirit is often spoken of as a gentleman, One who does not push Himself on people, but rather stands back and waits until we reach out to Him. He desires us to call on Him in our time of need. He is always waiting for us to move toward Him, but unfortunately we often leave it until it is too late. This is usually when a crisis comes, then we call on Him with a ‘make something right as quickly as possible so we don‘t have to endure too much hardship’ attitude. We know the Holy Spirit is with us always, and that He abides on the inside of us. However we can take Him for granted, forgetting He is a part of the Godhead, a part of the Father and the Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
I often wonder what He is feeling as we go about our daily activities and then gather together for our church meetings. Sadly I think He is often added to the mix of what we want for ourselves, and then we expect Him to endorse what we are saying and doing. Now is the time to check our heart attitudes, seeking the Lord as to whether our day to day activities truly glorify Him, or whether they selfishly build us up and make us prideful. If and I want to emphasise the word IF we are coming into greater maturity we must seek the Lord as to whether we are truly growing up into Him or whether we are choosing to remain shallow, immature Christians. This is not a criticism but rather a challenge: where you are at in your walk with the Lord, examining where He is wanting to take you, to grow you up into Him in a greater measure?
The Holy Spirit is always with us to call on in our time of need, however there is a big difference between crying out to Him with a need and being needy. The Holy Spirit is with us to lead and guide us to grow in our relationship with the Lord, and to help us to change and grow into the men and women we are all called and destined to be. Neediness keeps us stuck in the same place, going over the same issues, without change in our life, character, and in our circumstances. In fact it denies the power and victory of the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross at Calvary. Neediness can be a lifestyle, which in no way glorifies the Lord, and in fact grieves the Holy Spirit, because He is the one who wants to change our hearts. Our day to day routines, our going through the motions, staying with set formulas because they work and keep us safe, is not helping us mature. In fact they keep us bound because of their false sense of security and safety. It may have worked in the past, but in the times coming this has the potential to have us fall to compromise setting us up to miss what is happening around and about us. If we are not careful deception could blind us to the truth of what is an enemy ploy to bind God’s people in an hour when we need to be on the alert.
The area of worship is an example of where we can often go through the motions and then add the Holy Spirit to the mix, when in fact He is often not even there. The Holy Spirit does remove His anointing when we decide to go down a certain path. This is when He leaves us to our own devices until we reach the end of the road, and we have to call out to Him to bring us back on course, back on the path He originally wanted us to go down. I think this happens often in our time of worship. We need to ask ourselves how much worship is of the Spirit and how much is our soul? We can easily assume the verse that says where two or three or more are gathered He is in the midst, which is true, but it doesn’t necessarily mean He is actually Lord of the meeting. The Holy Spirit is with us but is He leading the proceedings? Are we giving Him opportunity to have His way among us, to speak to us, to show us His heart, to lead us to repentance? Do we give Him time to pour out His love upon us? He does not work on a set timetable but yet we expect the Holy Spirit to work in with us rather than us submitting to His timings.
Matthew 15:8, 9
"These people draw near to Me with their mouth,
And honour Me with their lips,
But their heart is far from Me.
And in vain they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men."
Unfortunately we can praise and worship appearing to be doing the right thing, but be far from Him. This is going through the motions for appearances sake. This does not produce change in the hearts and lives of God’s people. The Lord knows our hearts, He knows whether we are open to His leading or just going along with the façade. Praise and worship is not a formula. The Holy Spirit does not want to be boxed in, but rather have a freedom to minister how He so pleases. That will come in as many diverse ways as He so chooses. All He is looking for is an opportunity and a people prepared to wait on Him, seek His will for what He wants to do, and then willingly go with His leading. True praise and worship is a heart attitude, about coming before the Lord, yielding our lives to Him, and asking for His Holy Spirit to come and have His way among us. When the Holy Spirit moves among His people there will be change. People will experience an encounter with Him, not an emotion based experience, but rather a ministering in a deep and profound way that leaves a person knowing they are not the same as when they came in the door.
Ephesians 4:30 - 32
"And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.
And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you."
Do not grieve the Holy Spirit is an instruction. Clearly we can grieve Him, particularly by our sin and wrong deep heart attitudes. When we consider the above verses, it is truly by His grace that His Holy Spirit would even want to come and abide with us and have His way among us! The reality is we can so easily be far away from Him, often unknowingly. It is truly a fine line that we walk: the natural man versus the spiritual man. It is time in the body of Christ to consider in what ways we grieve the Holy Spirit. It starts with us as individuals, but it is also important that those in church leadership seriously pray into this matter. Religion has us doing the same things over and over again, with set formulas and ways of doing things and being with one another. The Holy Spirit is ever changing, He is the change agent, and He is looking for a people who are willing to go along with His leading. It takes courage and faith but He is faithful to do all He plans and purposes to do whether that be individually or corporately.
Discernment is crucial in these days so we know what is of God and what is not. The Holy Spirit is the one who will alert us and show us if we are going astray. However He can only come if we give Him opportunity and are available for Him to come and move among His people. That takes time: that is giving up our framework of time, and being prepared to allow Him to do what He wants to do. That is what will bring change in people’s lives, and that is what will draw people to Him. The Holy Spirit is looking for a people who love Him wholeheartedly and are willing to move with His leading. The enemy hates praise and worship and targets this area because it knows that is what brings freedom and breakthrough into people’s lives. Sadly discernment has been lacking in the body of Christ. It is the Holy Spirit Who alerts us to error and we need this gift of discernment like never before. It is about the contending between the natural man, with his sin, and the Spirit of God.
1 Corinthians 2:14-16
"But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one.
For who has known the mind of the Lord that he might instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ."
Respect and honour are being lost in these days. Sadly this on flows into the church and it has crept into the way we treat the Lord and the Holy Spirit. It is in fact mocking and dishonouring of Who the Holy Spirit is and it grieves Him.
It is time to return to Him, to His ways and be the people we are meant to be: one’s who walk in the reverential fear of the Lord. That pleases God and blesses the Holy Spirit!!!
Help us Lord to come back to You and Your ways!!! We need You. Forgive us for any way we have dishonoured and disrespected the Holy Spirit by taking Him for granted, assuming He endorses what we say and do. Teach us to walk in the reverential fear of the Lord, that we would be quick to confess our sins in obedience to the leading of the Holy Spirit. Continue to show us where we have grieved the Holy Spirit particularly in the areas of praise and worship. Change our hearts Lord as we learn what it is to worship You in Spirit and in Truth. Let it not be done with wrong hearts but rather as a living sacrifice to You.
In Jesus Name,
Amen
So Be It!!!
(Prophetic Word given on 5 April 2011)