Conversion to the Holy Spirit
We believe God is just One! Yet there is the spiritual mystical appreciation of the Trinity. Three “persons” Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. When we follow my chart we see four categories of conversion: Heart, Soul, Mind, and Strength.
When the Heart is converted to the Holy Spirit it is expressed in the Fruits.
Love, Joy, Peace, Patience,Kindness,Goodness, Gentleness, Faithfulness, and Self Control. Paul’s letter to the Galatian Church 5:22.
Love
The English language is limited to only one word for love. We can expand it a bit by using an adjective. That is to say for example, erotic love or friendship love. In New Testament Greek there are Philios, and Agape. Philios is love of a friend. It is the food word for Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love.
Agape is the unconditional love of God. Without the Holy Spirit it is probably impossible; although parents might disagree when it comes to their children or grandchildren. However, for the rest of us probable not possible on our own.
Yet, with the in filling of the Holy Spirit our love can increase in this way by Grace!
Joy
There is a happy song currently popular on the internet that goes something like this..
“Its a beautiful day! Thank you God for Joy. Thank you God for sunshine. Thank you God for pain!”
This is a Holy Spirit inspired song when we can put Joy along side pain. It is right there with my favorite verse from Paul, All things work together for good for those who trust the Lord Romans 8:28.
Peace
The peace that passes understanding Philippians 4:17 is certainly only possible when the Holy Spirit guides us. Often it is knowing that others are with you with their prayers during the trouble. Our lives can produce a lot of stress. We can minimize its effects with some quiet time with the Lord in Prayer.
Patience
Many of us find this fruit the most difficult to accept and practice. Prayer is again a good avenue to peace. However, an old piece of wisdom suggests one might not want to pray for patience. Rather let us pray for the situation and let patience be the fruit. My late wife who suffered from chronic illness used this method to help. She had a large envelop labeled “God”s Business.” When thing were troublesome she would write it down on a piece of paper and put it in the envelope. Then she would not look at them again for at least a year. By then they were mostly long gone.
Kindness
Henry David Thoreau observed, “Most people live lives of quiet desperation.” Turning agai. To my late wife for an example; she would say “It takes so little to make someone’s day so we should do it.” A kind word, a compliment, even just a smile goes along way.
I enjoy origami, the art of paper folding. Some years ago I created a diamond ring out of a dollar bill. I enjoy folding them as tips. The waitresses are always very pleased and walk away as if they have received a great treasure.
Goodness
It could be said that we are good simply because God created us as we read in Genesis 1: 31 God saw all he had made and it was very good. Goodness seems all encompassing. The fruit of the Spirit is good. We say “He or she is a good man or woman.” We know what we mean. They have all the other fruit too! They are honest, virtuous, etc.. Yet, we also know with Paul that “ all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”Romans 3:23 Thus when we are acting in a good way it is the Spirit who helps us decide and to do it.
Faithfulness
Like Integrity, faithfulness is “seen” when no one is looking. Faithful people are true to their word. They depend on God for all, in all, always. They are faithful to their commitments and relationships, by the Grace of God and the exercise of their will.
Gentleness
Gentleness is often mistaken for weakness. In truth, it is easier to be gentle when we are strong. The bully acts out of his weakness and fear, not from inner strength but from outer forces upon this who seem weaker. One of the most important gifts we can give mother is to really listen. Good listening is usually accompanied by a gentleness of spirit. Although a gentle touch is also a powerful message too.
Self-Control
This is by far, with the exception of Agape love, one of the most difficult and paradoxical. Yet we can see it clearly in 12 Step recovery programs. They begin with “powerless over” that is to say with no self control. Then by following the steps and turning to God they are able to stop the negative behavior!
Against these there is no law
Literally there are no legal reasons to not use the Fruit of the Spirit!
Spiritual Gifts
The gifts of God, when expressed as the Lord intended them to be, are beautiful, and needful in order that the body of Christ may grow and develop. They are not merely to be tolerated, but greatly to be desired. We should be forewarned against two mistakes frequently made in the past miss use of the gifts by lack of scriptural order, and rejecting or quenching the Gifts of the Spirit. The second mistake is often a reaction against the first one.
We are not going to study the gifts in the same order they are presented in one Corinthians 12, but will group them into three classes as follows:
Inspiration (The Power to Say)
- The gift of tongues.
- The gift of interpretation
- The gift of prophecy
Gifts on Knowledge (The Power to Know)
1 Discerning of Spirits
2 The Word of Knowledge
3 The Word of Wisdom
Gifts of power (The Power to do)
1 Gifts of Healing
2 The Working of Miracles
3 The Gift of Faith
Michael Green, rector of Saint all Aldates, Oxford, followed Bennett’s lead in his book for the I believe series, “I believe in the Holy Spirit”. Robert Benjamin Hall, another high school priest, also wrote during the early 70s. His book is a treatise on the fruit and gifts of the spirit. Hall also takes up the topic that is of interest to the study. Who gets what gifts?
“ Not all of these gifts are given to all people, but everyone who receives the Lord Jesus, is given the ability to manifest some of them. Some gifts are much more common than others, and their distribution seems to indicate something about their relative value, for the most precious gifts are only most rarely given. None of the gifts are given for the personal satisfaction of the believer, but are to be used in his ministry. The gifts appear only when the believer does his part to manifest them.”
Bill Bright razes another and central issue to the study. What is the difference between spiritual gifts and natural ability? Bright rigntly recognizes that, for most people, it really isn’t important to know the difference. Both are given by God.
“ Whether a certain ability you have is the result of being spiritually gifted or naturally talented really is not that important. What matters is that you develop that gift or ability to its fullest potential through the control and empowering of the Holy Spirit and through much hard work, and that you use it according to God‘s will, and for his glory.”
Yet Bright does make distinctions as he defines the individual gifts.
“ Wisdom is a natural ability that is generally developed over a long period of time by all people. The gift of wisdom, however, while usually acquired as a believer matures spiritually, can also be instantaneous in nature. That is to say, did a Christian who has this gift can clearly discern the mind of Christ in applying specific knowledge to specific needs that arise within the body of Christ.”
It is precisely the exercise of spiritual gifts that theologically marks the difference between Charismatic and traditional Christians. If there is no distinguishing difference between natural abilities and spiritual gifts, then the only difference is the use of tounges. Frederick Dale Brunner, in the “Theology of the Holy Spirit: the Pentecostal experience of the New Testament witness”, explains:
“ Pentecostalism believes that it has always been God’s intention to clothes his church, as he did his Messiah, with power adequate for mission. The source of this power is the Baptism in the Holy Spirit: the medium of his power is the gifts of the Holy Spirit.”
The November 1992 issue of charisma and Christian life magazine focused upon the topic “The gifts of the Holy Spirit: nine gifts that can change your life.” J. Rodman Williams says.
“ spiritual gifts are not talents or trained abilities brought to Houghton the expression. The new Medicare is Monte aren’t simply more or what is already present, no matter how elevated. They are endowments, not enhancements.
Thus, a manifestation of the Holy Spirit, and occurs through someone, regardless of background, experience or education. A word of wisdom, a prophetic utterance, gift of healing, and so on, they operate through those least expected. The highly trained intellectual is not always the one to expressed a word of wisdom. The talented order, not typically the one to speak prophetically, the train physician, not the most likely to exhibit gifts of healing. The Holy Spirit is free to use – or not use – would you find present.”
Living Word
When we are converted to the Holy Spirit scripture, sermons, other books and even nature come alive for us in new and personal ways. Often a familiar verse of scripture will stand out for me in a new and meaningful way.
Here is a humorous example from a former parishioner. Eddie was a common man, a regular attender and a hard worker. He “got saved” at a local tent revival. The next week after service he said to me, “”Father Geoff, isn’t the Holy Spirit wonderful. The same time I got saved you started to preach better!”
Another parishioner, Alice, world get a “living word” in her gardening. One day she found an old worn penny. When she asked the Lord what it might mean she “heard” Him say that she was like the penny and he was doing a work in her to polish and make her shine!
There are many other ways and means Gods “living word” speaks to us. For example, consider the movie Pay it Forward. There is no mention of God. The characters are not Christians. However, the story is like a parable. It is Jesus who has paid it all forward for us and so we can pay it forward for others.
Ministry
When we are converted to the Holy Spirit we are able to exercise the other Spirit Gifts mentioned in the New Testament. Preaching, Teaching, Administration, Apostle, Prophet, and Pastor. Some of these might be done without the Holy Spirit. However, when “anointed” the effectiveness is increased.
Thus to be fully converted in Heart, Soul, Mind and Strength is to experience the Holy Spirit in these ways
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