Sword of the Spirit

The Full Blessings of Pentecost By Andrew Murray How it is obtained by us - Part 2 of 7 "And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;" EPH. v. 18. I do not as yet have this blessing. This is the second step towards it. You may perhaps put the question why it should be necessary to cherish this conviction. I will tell you briefly the reasons why I consider it of importance. The first is that there are many Christians who think that they already have the Holy Spirit, and that all they require is to be more faithful in the endeavour to know and to obey Him. They think that they are already standing in God's grace, and that they only need to make a better use of the life they possess. They imagine that they have all that is necessary for continued growth. On the contrary, it is my deep conviction that such souls are in a sickly state and that they have need of a healing as divine and effective as that which the blind and lame received from the

The Full Blessings of Pentecost By Andrew Murray How it is obtained by us - Part 1 of 7 "And be not drunk with wine,  wherein is excess;  but be filled with the Spirit;" EPH. v. 18. The full blessing of Pentecost is the inheritance of all the children of God.  This is the first principle we have to enunciate.  There are many of God's children who do not fully believe this.  They imagine that the day of Pentecost was only the birthday feast of the Church,  and that it was thus a time of blessing and of power which was not destined to endure.  They do not reflect on the command to be filled with the Spirit.  The result is that they never with earnestness seek to receive the full blessing.  They take their ease and remain content with the weak and defective life in which the Church of the day exists.  Is not this the case with you, my reader?  Far be it from us.  In order to carry on her work in the world, the Church requires the full blessing.  To please your Lord and to li

*** A Message for this Day of Pentecost 2024 *** You MAY HAVE GOD By John G. Lake The baptism of the Holy Ghost was the incoming of God in personality in order that the man, through this force, might be moved by God.  God lives in him,  God speaks through him,  God is the impulse of his soul,  God has His dwelling place in him. You may have God.  That is the wonder of the baptism of the Holy Ghost.  It is not a work of grace;  it is God possessing you.  Oh, your heart may have been as sinful as the heart of man ever was sinful.  But Christ comes to your soul.  That spirit of darkness that possessed you goes and in its stead, a new Spirit comes in, the Spirit of Christ.  You have become a new creature, a saved man, a God-filled man. A Transformation Sin manifests itself in three ways:  in thought, in act, in nature.  Salvation is a complete transformation.  God takes possession of man, changes his thoughts, in consequence his acts change, his nature is new.  A Christian is not a reforme

The Full Blessing of Pentecost - The One Thing Needful By Andrew Murray How the blessing is hindered (Excerpts) "Then said Jesus unto His disciples, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." MATT. xvi. 24, 25. There are many who seek the full blessing of Pentecost long and earnestly and yet do not find it. Often the question is put as to what may be the cause of this failure. To this inquiry more than one answer may be given. Sometimes the solution of the problem points in the direction of one or another sin which is still permitted. Worldliness, lovelessness, lack of humility, ignorance of the secret of walking in the way of faith these, and indeed many more causes, may also be often mentioned with justice. There are, however, many people who think that they have come to the Lord with what of these sources of failure s

The Full Blessing of Pentecost - The One Thing Needful By Andrew Murray How little it is enjoyed (Excerpts - continued 6) "My speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." 1 COR. ii. 4, 5. Think how little preparedness there is for self-sacrifice in behalf of the extension of the kingdom of God. When the Lord Jesus at His ascension promised the Holy Spirit, it was as a power in us to work for Him. "Ye shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit is come upon you, and ye shall be My witnesses unto the uttermost parts of the earth." The aim of the pentecostal blessing from the King in heaven was simply to complete the equipment of His servants for His work as King upon the earth. No sooner did the Spirit descend upon them than they began to witness for Him. The Spirit filled them with the desire and the impulse, wit

The Full Blessing of Pentecost - The One Thing Needful By Andrew Murray How little it is enjoyed (Excerpts - continued 5) "My speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." 1 COR. ii. 4, 5. Think how little there is of power for service amongst the unconverted. What an immense host of workers there is in Christian countries. How varied and unceasing is the preaching of the Word. Sunday-school teachers are to be numbered by hundreds of thousands. How great is the number of Christian parents that make their children acquainted with the Word of God and would fain also bring them to the Lord as a Saviour. Yet how widespread is the acknowledgment of the little fruit that springs from all this work. How many there are who, notwithstanding all they hear, and in spite of the fact that they are by no means indifferent, are yet nev