The Deeper Christian Life

"And he said unto him, Son, you are ever with me, and all that I have is yours." — Luke 15:31

The words of the text are familiar to us all. The elder son had complained and said that though his father had made a feast and killed the fatted calf for the prodigal son, he had never given him even a kid that he might make merry with his friends. The answer of the father was: "Son, you are ever with me, and all that I have is yours." One cannot have a more wonderful revelation of the heart of our Father in heaven than this points out to us.

We often speak of the wonderful revelation of the father's heart in his welcome to the prodigal son, and in what he did for him. But here we have a revelation of the father's love far more wonderful, in what he says to the elder son. If we are to experience a deepening of spiritual life, we want to discover clearly what is the spiritual life that God would have us live; and to ask whether we are living that life; or, if not, what hinders us from living it out fully. This subject naturally divides itself into these heads: (1) The high privilege of every child of God. (2) The low experience of too many of us believers. (3) The cause of the discrepancy; and lastly, (4) The way to restoration of the privilege.

The High Privilege of the Children of God

We have here two things describing the privilege. First, "Son, you are ever with me" — unbroken fellowship with your Father is your portion. Second, "All that I have is yours" — all that God can bestow upon His children is theirs. "You are ever with me; I am always near you; you can dwell every hour of your life in My presence." In these promises, we have the rich privilege of God's heritage.

A father never sends his child away with the thought that he does not care about his child knowing that he loves him. The father longs to have his child believe that he has the light of his father's countenance upon him all the day. If it be so with an earthly father, what think you of God? Does He not want every child of His to know that he is constantly living in the light of His countenance? This is the meaning of that word, "Son, you are ever with me."

That was the privilege of God's people in Old Testament times. We are told that "Enoch walked with God." God's promise to Jacob was: "Behold, I am with you, and will keep you in all places where you go." And God's promise to Israel through Moses was: "My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest." The presence of God with Israel was the mark of their separation from other peoples. And if so in the Old Testament, how much more may we look for it in the New? Thus we find our Saviour promising to those who love Him and keep His word, that the Father also will love them, and Father and Son will come and make their abode with them.

Let that thought into your hearts — that the child of God is called to live every moment of his life in fellowship with God. He is called to enjoy the full light of His countenance. Many Christians seem to regard the whole of the Spirit's work as confined to conviction and conversion — not so much that He came to dwell in our hearts, and there reveal God to us. He came not to dwell near us, but in us, that we might be filled with His indwelling. We are commanded to be "filled with the Spirit"; then the Holy Spirit would make God's presence manifest to us. That is the whole teaching of the epistle to the Hebrews — the veil is rent in two; we have access into the holiest of all by the blood of Jesus; we can live all the day with that presence resting upon us. "Son, you are ever with me."

The true reason of the absence of God from us is rather to be found in our sin and unbelief, than in any supposed sovereignty of His. If the child of God is walking in faith and obedience, the Divine presence will be enjoyed in unbroken continuity. Then there is the next blessed privilege: "All that I have is yours." Thank God, He has given us His own Son; and in giving Him, He has given us all things that are in Him — Christ's life, His love, His Spirit, His glory. "All things are yours; and you are Christ's; and Christ is God's."

The Low Experience of Too Many of Us

The elder son was living with his father and serving him "these many years," and he complains that his father never gave him a kid. Why was this? Simply because he did not ask it. He did not believe that he would get it, and therefore never asked it, and never enjoyed it. He continued thus to live in constant murmuring and dissatisfaction. O beloved, is not that the life of many a believer? Every believer has the promise of unbroken fellowship with God, but he says, "I have not enjoyed it; I have tried hard and done my best, and I have prayed for the blessing, but I suppose God does not see fit to grant it."

Some think these rich blessings are not for them, but for those who have more time to devote to religion and prayer. They, like the elder son, throw the blame on God. Thus many are saying, when asked if they are enjoying unbroken fellowship with God: "Alas, no! I have not been able to attain to such a height; it is too high for me." Take care! Take care! Take care!

Dear reader, we have such wrong thoughts of God. What is God like? I know no image more beautiful and instructive than that of the sun. The sun is never weary of shining — of pouring out its beneficent rays upon both the good and the evil. You might close up the windows with blinds or bricks; the sun would shine upon them all the same. And my God — would He not delight more in creating a beauty and fruitfulness in me such as He has promised to give?

The Cause of This Discrepancy

The elder son thought he was serving his father faithfully "these many years" in his father's house, but it was in the spirit of bondage and not in the spirit of a child, so that his unbelief blinded him to a conception of a father's love and kindness, and he was unable all the time to see that his father was ready, not only to give him a kid, but a thousand kids, if he would have them. He was simply living in unbelief, in ignorance, in blindness, robbing himself of the privileges that the father had for him. So, if there be a discrepancy between our life and the enjoyment of all God's promises, the fault is ours.

God's word teaches us, in the story of the Israelites, that it was unbelief on their part that was the cause of their troubles, and not any limitation on God's part. As Psalm 78 says: "He split the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths." Yet they sinned by doubting His power. When they got to Kadesh-Barnea, only two men said, "Yes; we can take possession, for God can make us conquer." But the ten spies and the six hundred thousand men answered, "No; we can never take the land; the enemies are too strong for us." It was simply unbelief that kept them out of the land of promise.

If there is to be any deepening of the spiritual life in us, we must come to the discovery and acknowledgment of the unbelief there is in our hearts. Unbelief is the mother of disobedience, and of all my sins and shortcomings — my temper, my pride, my unlovingness, my worldliness, my sins of every kind. They all come from the one root: we do not believe in the freedom and fullness of the Divine gift of the Holy Spirit to dwell in us and strengthen us, and fill us with the life and grace of God all the day long.

Dear fellow believer, if you are not living in the joy of God's salvation, the entire cause is your unbelief. God is omnipotent in love, and He is doing His utmost to fill every heart. You must remember that God has given you a will, and by the exercise of that will, you can hinder God, and remain content, like the elder son, with the low life of unbelief.

The Way of Restoration

We all know the parable of the prodigal son. "He came to himself and said, I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight." This is the first step in a changed life. But as this is the first step for the prodigal, we must remember that this is also the step to be taken by all of God's erring children. Those Christians who do not understand how wrong their low religious life is must be taught that this is sin — unbelief; and that it is as necessary that they should be brought to repentance as the prodigal.

There are many children of God who need to confess that though they are His children, they have never believed that God's promises are true, that He is willing to fill their hearts all the day long with His blessed presence. Have you believed this? Will you not say, "By the help of God, I will begin now a new life of faith, and will not rest until I know what such a life means. I will believe that I am every moment in the Father's presence, and all that He has is mine"?

May the Lord God work this conviction in the hearts of all cold believers. The unconverted man needs conviction before conversion. So does the dark-minded Christian need conviction before sanctification. He must be broken down under that conviction; then there is hope for him. May the Father of mercy grant all such that deep contrition, so that they may be led into the blessedness of His presence, and enjoy the fullness of His power and love!

"And Peter went out and wept bitterly." — Luke 22:62

These words indicate the turning point in the life of Peter — a crisis. There is often a question about the life of holiness. Do you grow into it? Or do you come into it by a crisis suddenly? Peter had been growing for three years under the training of Christ, but he had grown terribly downward, for the end of his growing was that he denied Jesus. And then there came a crisis. After the crisis he was a changed man, and then he began to grow aright. We must indeed grow in grace, but before we can grow in grace we must be put right.

In God's Word we read very often about the difference between the carnal and the spiritual Christian. The word "carnal" comes from the Latin word for flesh. In Romans 8 and in Galatians 5, we are taught that the flesh and the Spirit of God are the two opposing powers by which we are dominated or ruled, and we are taught that a true believer may allow himself to be ruled by the flesh. That is what Paul writes to the Corinthians. In the third chapter, the first four verses, he says four times to them, "You are carnal, and not spiritual." A believer can allow the flesh to have so much power over him that he becomes "carnal." If he gives way, as the Corinthians did, to strife, temper, division, and envy, he is a carnal Christian. But if he gives himself over entirely to the Holy Spirit so that He can deliver from the temper, the envy, and the strife by breathing a heavenly disposition, then God's Word calls him a "spiritual" man.

The message I want to bring to you is this: that the great majority of Christians, alas, are not spiritual men, and that they may become spiritual men by the grace of God. What is wrong is just one thing — allowing the flesh to rule in you, and trusting in the power of the flesh to make you good. There is a better life, a life in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Peter in the Carnal State

What are the marks of the carnal state in Peter? Self-will, self-pleasing, self-confidence. When Christ said, "The Son of Man must be crucified," Peter said, "Lord, that can never be!" And Christ had to say to him, "Get behind me, Satan!" Then you remember how Peter and the other disciples were more than once quarreling as to who was to be the chief — self-exaltation, self-pleasing. Then again, remember the last night, when Christ warned Peter that Satan had desired to sift him and that he would deny Him; and Peter said twice over, "Lord, if they all deny you, I am ready to go to prison and to death." What self-confidence! He loved Jesus, but he trusted himself. Do you not see that the whole of that life of Peter is carnal confidence in himself? And what did it all lead to? The flesh led not only to the sins I have mentioned, but last of all to the saddest of things — to Peter's actual denial of Jesus. Three times over he told the lie; and once with an oath, "I do not know the man." That is what it comes to with the life of the flesh.

Peter as a Spiritual Man

Christ had taught Peter a great deal. If you count carefully, you will find some seven or eight times Christ had spoken to the disciples about humility. He had taken a little child and set him in the midst of them. He had at the last supper washed their feet; but all had not taught Peter humility. All Christ's instructions were in vain. A man who is not spiritual, though he may read his Bible, though he may study God's Word, cannot conquer sin, because he is not living the life of the Holy Spirit. God has so ordered it that man cannot live a right Christian life unless he is full of the Holy Spirit. I must be full of the Holy Spirit if I am to be a wholehearted Christian.

Then note what change took place in Peter. The Lord Jesus led him up to Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came from heaven upon him, and what took place? The old Peter was gone, and he was a new Peter. Just read his epistle, and note the keynote: "Through suffering to glory." Peter, who had said, "Of course, Lord, you never can suffer, or be crucified" — Peter becomes so changed that when he writes his epistle the chief thought is the very thought of Christ: "Suffering is the way to glory." He was so weak that a woman could frighten him into denying Christ; but when the Holy Spirit came he was bold, bold, bold to confess his Lord at any cost.

When the Holy Spirit comes upon a man he becomes a spiritual man, and instead of denying his Lord he denies himself. As long as a man, a Christian, is under the power of the flesh, he is continually denying Jesus. You always must do one of the two — you must deny self or you must deny Jesus. On the other hand, when the Holy Spirit came upon Peter, he could not deny his Lord, but he could deny himself, and he praised God for the privilege of suffering for Christ.

How the Change Came About

"And Peter went out and wept bitterly." The Lord led Peter to come to the end of himself, to see what was in his heart, and with his self-confidence to fall into the very deepest sin that a child of God could be guilty of — publicly, with an oath, to deny his Lord Jesus! When Peter stood there in that great sin, the loving Jesus looked upon him, and that look, full of loving reproach and loving pity, pierced like an arrow through the heart of Peter, and he went out and wept bitterly. Praise God, that was the end of self-confident Peter! That was the turning point of his life.

Are there not many just living the life of Peter, of the self-confident Peter as he was? Are there not many mourning under the consciousness, "I am so unfaithful to my Lord, I have no power against the flesh, I cannot conquer my temper, I give way just like Peter to the fear of man; circumstances get the mastery over me, and I then say and do things that I am ashamed of"? Like Peter, you love Jesus; like Peter you have tried to work for Jesus; but under it all, the flesh is too strong, and sin gets the better of you.

Just as the Lord Jesus gave the Holy Spirit to Peter, He is willing to give the Holy Spirit to you. Are you willing to receive Him? Are you willing to give up yourself entirely as an empty, helpless vessel, to receive the power of the Holy Spirit, to live and dwell and work in you every day?

What helped Peter? "Peter went out and wept bitterly." It must come with us to a conviction of sin; it must come with us to a real, downright, earnest repentance, or we never can get into the better life. What will help you? That you go down in despair to lie at the feet of Jesus, and that you begin with a very real and bitter shame to make confession: "Lord Jesus, have compassion upon me! For these many years I have been a Christian, but there are so many sins from which I have not cleansed myself — temper, pride, jealousy, envy, sharp words, unkind judgments, unforgiving thoughts." Bow before God and ask Him by the Holy Spirit to make you more deeply ashamed, and to work in you that Divine contrition. May God give us grace that, with Peter, we may bow very humbly and cry very earnestly: "O God, reveal to me the carnal life in which I have been living. Bring me in helplessness to wait for the power of the Holy Spirit, to take possession and to fill me with a new life given all to Jesus."

"And He brought us out from there, that He might bring us in, to give us the land which He swore unto our fathers." — Deuteronomy 6:23

I have spoken of the crisis that comes in the life of the man who sees that his Christian experience is low and carnal, and who desires to enter into the full life of God. Some Christians do not understand that there should be such a crisis. I want to deal with those Christians whose life since conversion has been very much a failure, and who feel it to be such because of their not being filled with the Spirit, as is their blessed privilege. I want to say for their encouragement that by taking one step, they can get out into the life of rest and victory and fellowship with God to which the promises of God invite them.

Look at the elder son in the parable. How long would it have taken him to get out of that state of blindness and bondage into the full condition of sonship? By believing in his father's love, he might have gotten out that very hour. If he had been powerfully convicted of his guilt in his unbelief, and had confessed like his prodigal brother, "I have sinned," he would have come that very moment into the favor and happiness of his father's home. Remember too what we saw in Peter's case. In one moment, the look of Jesus broke him down, and there came the terribly bitter reflection of his sin — a contrition which laid the foundation for his new and better life with Jesus.

God's Word brings out the idea of the Christian's entrance into the new and better life by the history of Israel's entrance into the land of Canaan. In our text we have these words: "God brought us out from there (Egypt), that He might bring us in" to Canaan. There are two steps: one was bringing them out, and the other was bringing them in. So in the life of the believer, there are ordinarily two steps quite separate from each other — the bringing him out of sin and the world, and the bringing him into a state of complete rest afterward.

It was the intention of God that Israel should enter Canaan from Kadesh-Barnea, immediately after He had made His covenant with them at Sinai. But they were not ready, on account of their sin and unbelief and disobedience. They had to wander for forty years in the wilderness. At conversion, we get into liberty, out of the bondage of Egypt; but when we fail to use our liberty through unbelief and disobedience, we wander in the wilderness for a longer or shorter period before we enter into the Canaan of victory and rest and abundance.

My message is to ask this question of the believer: Since you know you are converted and God has brought you out of Egypt, have you yet come into the land of Canaan? If not, are you willing that He should bring you into the fuller liberty and rest provided for His people? Are there many hearts saying: "I believe that God brought me out of bondage twenty, or thirty, or forty years ago; but alas! I cannot say that I have been brought into the happy land of rest and victory."?

Are You Ready to Leave the Wilderness?

You know the mark of Israel's life in the wilderness — the cause of all their troubles there — was unbelief. They did not believe that God could take them into the Promised Land. That has, perhaps, been your life, beloved; you do not believe that God will fulfill His word. You do not believe in the possibility of unbroken fellowship with Him. Are you willing now to leave that wilderness life? Sometimes you are perhaps enjoying fellowship with God, and sometimes you are separated from Him; sometimes you have nearness to Him, and at other times great distance. Are you now going to give up your whole life to Him? Are you going to say, "My God, I do not want to do anything that will be displeasing to you; I want you to help me to live like Peter after Pentecost, filled with the Holy Spirit, and not like carnal Peter"?

Are you willing to give up your sins, to walk with God continually, to submit yourself wholly to the will of God? I believe in a life of perfection — not entire freedom from wrong-doing and all inclination to it, for while we live in the flesh the flesh will lust against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh; but the perfection spoken of in the Old Testament as practiced by some of God's saints, who are said to have "served the Lord with a perfect heart." What is this perfection? A state in which your heart will be set on perfect integrity without any reserve, and your will wholly subservient to God's will. It is the devil tempting you to think it will be too hard for you. Will you not give up your guilty will for that blessed will of God? A man can do it in one moment when he comes to see that God can change his will for him.

Believing the Better Life Is Possible

Then comes the second step: "I must believe that such a life in the land of Canaan is a possible life." Many a one will say, "Ah! What would I give to get out of the wilderness life! But I cannot believe that it is possible to live in this constant communion with God. You do not know my difficulties — my business cares and perplexities; I have gone out in the morning braced up by communion with God in prayer, but the pressure of business before night has driven out of my heart all that warmth of love that I had." But take care, dear reader, that we do not repeat the sin of the unbelieving spies, and provoke God as they did. He says it is possible to bring us into the land of rest and peace; and I believe it because He has said so, and because He will do it if I trust Him. Your temper may be terrible; your pride may have bound you a hundred times; but there is victory for you if you will but trust the promises of God.

Just study the first half of Romans 8. Have you noticed the expressions there — "The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death"; to walk after the Spirit; to be led by the Spirit; to be spiritually minded. These are all blessings which come when we bind ourselves wholly to live in the Spirit.

How Does God Bring Us In?

By leading us in a very definite act — that of committing ourselves wholly to Him, entrusting ourselves to Him, that He may bring us into the land of rest and keep us in. You remember that the Jordan at the time of harvest overflowed its banks. The priests walked right into the water, and as they stepped into it, the waters rose up on the upper side into a high wall, and flowed away on the other side, and a clear passage was made for the whole camp. Now, it was God who did this for the people; and it was because Joshua and the people believed and obeyed God. The same God will do it today, if we believe and trust Him.

Friend, you have the same God now who brought you out of bondage with a high hand, and He can lead you into the place of rest. Look to Him and say, "O God, make an end of my wilderness life — my sinful and unbelieving life, a life of grieving you. Oh, bring me today into the land of victory and rest and blessing!" He can take you through the swollen river this very moment — yes, this very moment.

And He can do more. After Israel had crossed the river, the Captain of the Lord's host came to encourage Joshua, promising to take charge of the army and remain with them. You need the power of God's Spirit to enable you to overcome sin and temptation. If you are to venture today, say by faith: "My God, I know that Jesus Christ is willing to be the Captain of my salvation, and to conquer every enemy for me. He will keep me by faith and by His Holy Spirit; and though my condition seem hopeless, I will walk forward, for God is going to bring me in today, and I am going to follow Him. My God, I follow you now into the promised land." Oh! Come, beloved soul; come at once, and doubt not.

"Be filled with the Spirit." — Ephesians 5:18

I may have some air, a little air, in my lungs, but not enough to keep up a healthy, vigorous life. Everyone seeks to have his lungs well filled with air, and the benefit of it will be felt in his blood and through his whole being. And just so the word of God comes to us and says, "Christians, do not be content with thinking that you have the Spirit, or have a little of the Spirit; but, if you want to have a healthy life, be filled with the Spirit." Is that your life? Or are you ready to cry out, "Alas, I do not know what it is to be filled with the Spirit, but it is what I long for." I want to point out to such the path to come to this great, precious blessing which is meant for every one of us.

Before I speak further of it, let me just note one misunderstanding which prevails. People often look upon being "filled with the Spirit" as something that comes with a mighty stirring of the emotions, a sort of heavenly glory that comes over them, something that they can feel strongly and mightily; but that is not always the case. I was recently at Niagara Falls. Suppose the river were doubly full — how would you see that fullness in the Falls? In the increased volume of water pouring over the cataract. But go to the lake, where the very same fullness is found, and there is perfect quiet and placidity; the rise of the water is gentle and gradual, and you can hardly notice that there is any disturbance as the lake gets full. And just so it may be with a child of God. To one it comes with mighty emotion and a blessed consciousness, "God has touched me!" To others it comes in a gentle filling of the whole being with the presence and the power of God by His Spirit. If you come and give yourself up as an empty vessel and trust God to fill you, God will do His own work.

Now, the simple question as to the steps by which we can come to be "filled with the Spirit." There are four steps in the way by which a man can attain this wonderful blessing. He must say: (1) "I must have it," then (2) "I may have it," and then (3) "I will have it," and then, last, thank God, (4) "I shall have it."

I Must Have It

The first word a man must begin to say is, "I must have it." He must feel, "It is a command of God, and I cannot live unfilled with the Spirit without disobeying God." It is a command here in this text — "Be not drunk with wine, but be filled with the Spirit." Just as much as a man dare not get drunk, if he is a Christian, just as much must a man be filled with the Spirit. God wants it; and oh, that every one might be brought to say, "I must, if I am to please God, I must be filled with the Spirit!"

I fear there is a terrible self-satisfaction among many Christians — they are content with their low level of life. They think they have the Spirit because they are converted, but they know very little of the joy of the Holy Spirit and of the sanctifying power of the Spirit. Oh, friends, do not be content with that half Christian life that many of you are living, but say, "God wants it, God commands it; I must be filled with the Spirit." And look not only at God's command, but look at the need of your own soul. Sunday school teachers, do begin to say, "I must be filled with the Spirit of God, or I must give up the charge of those young souls; I cannot teach them." Think of the need of the world. If the church is to come right, and the mission field is to come right, we must each begin with himself. Begin with yourself and say, "O God, for your sake, for your church's sake, for the sake of the world, help me! I must be filled with the Holy Spirit."

I May Have It

Then comes the second step, "I may be filled." Alas! So many have grown accustomed to their low state that they do not believe they actually can be filled. My right to say that you may have it is this — God wants healthy children. Do you think God in heaven does not care for His children, and that God wants some of His children to live a sickly life? I tell you, it is a lie! God wants every child of His to be a healthy Christian; but you cannot be a healthy Christian unless you are filled with God's Spirit. They were poor heathen Ephesians, only lately brought out from heathendom, to whom Paul wrote this letter; but Paul said to every one of these, "Be filled with the Spirit." God is ready to do it; God wants to do it.

Who will dare to say, "I cannot be filled with the Spirit"? If any of you speak thus it is because you are unwilling to give up sin. Is not His promise for all, "He that believes in me, rivers of water shall flow out of him"? This is more than fullness — this is overflow; and this Jesus has promised to everyone who believes in Him. Oh, cast aside your fears and doubts and hesitation, and say at once, "I can be filled with the Spirit; I may be filled with the Spirit. There is nothing in heaven, or earth, or hell that can prevent it, because God has promised and God is waiting to do it for me."

I Will Have It

And then we get to the third step, when a man says, "I will have it." Dear friends, are you going to say, "I will have this blessing"? What does that mean? It means, first of all, that you are going to look around into your life, and if you see anything wrong there, it means that you are going to confess it to Jesus and say, "Lord, I cast it at your feet; it may be rooted in my heart, but I will give it up to you; I cannot take it out, but Jesus, cleanser of sin, I give it to you." Let it be temper, or pride; let it be money, or pleasure; let it be the fear of man; let it be anything — but say to Christ at once, "I will have this blessing at any cost." And it means not only giving up every sin, but — what is deeper than sin and more difficult to get at — it means giving up yourself: self, with your will and your pleasure and your honor and all you have, and saying, "Jesus, I am from this moment going to give myself up, that by your Holy Spirit you may take possession of me, and take entire command of me."

This looks difficult so long as Satan blinds us and makes us think it would be a hard thing to give up all that; but if God opens our eyes for one minute to see what a heavenly blessedness it is to be filled with the Spirit out of the heart of Jesus, then we will say, "I will give anything, anything, ANYTHING, but I will have the blessing."

I Shall Have It

And then comes my last point. Say, "I shall have it." Praise God that a man dare say that, "I shall have it." Yes, when a man has made up his mind; when a man has been brought to a conviction and a sorrow for his sinful life; when a man, like Peter, has wept bitterly or has sighed deeply before God, "Oh, my Lord, what a life I have been living!" — when a man begins to feel that, and when he comes and makes surrender, and casts himself upon God and claims the promise, "Lord, I may have it; it is for me" — what think you? Has he not a right to say, "I shall have it"? Yes, beloved, and I give to every one of you that message from God, that if you are willing and ready, God is willing and ready to close the bargain at once. You can have it now! As a quiet transaction of the surrendered will, you can lift up your heart in faith and say, "O God, here I do give myself as an empty vessel to be filled with the Holy Spirit. I give myself up once for all and forever." You can say it now if you will take your place before God.

Will you not take the step and say, "I will have it"? Say it, not in your own strength, but in self-despair. Never mind though it appears as if the heart is all cold and closed up; but as an act of obedience and of surrender, as an act of the will, cast yourself before Jesus and trust Him. "I shall have it, for I now give up myself into the arms of my Lord Jesus. I shall have it, for it is the delight of Jesus to give the Holy Spirit from the Father into the heart of everyone. I shall have it, for I do believe in Jesus, and He promised me that out of him that believes shall flow rivers of living water. I SHALL have it! I will cling to the feet of Jesus, I will stay at the throne of God; I shall have it, for God is faithful, and God has promised."

"But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, Be of good cheer, it is I, be not afraid." — Matthew 14:27

All we have had about the work of the blessed Spirit is dependent upon what we think of Jesus, for it is from Christ Jesus that the Spirit comes to us; it is to Christ Jesus that the Spirit ever brings us; and the one need of the Christian life day by day and hour by hour is this — the presence of the Son of God. God is our salvation. If I have Christ with me and Christ in me, I have full salvation. We have spoken about the life of failure and of the flesh, about the life of unbelief and disobedience, about the life of ups and downs, the wilderness life of sadness and of sorrow; but we have heard, and we have believed, there is deliverance. Bless God, He brought us out of Egypt, that He might bring us into Canaan, into the very rest of God and Jesus Christ. He is our peace, He is our rest. Oh, if I may only have the presence of Jesus as the victory over every sin, as the strength for every duty, then my life shall be in the full sunshine of God's unbroken fellowship, and the word will be fulfilled to me in most blessed experience, "Son, you are ever with me, and all I have is yours."

I want to speak about the presence of Jesus, as it is set before us in that blessed story of Christ's walking on the sea. Come and look with me at some points that are suggested to us.

The Presence of Christ Lost

The disciples loved Christ, clung to Him, and with all their failings, they delighted in Him. But what happened? The Master went up into the mountain to pray, and sent them across the sea all alone without Him; there came a storm, and they toiled, rowed, and labored, but the wind was against them, they made no progress, they were in danger of perishing — and how their hearts said, "Oh, if the Master only were here!" But His presence was gone. They missed Him. Once before, they had been in a storm, and Christ had said, "Peace, be still," and all was well; but here they are in darkness, danger, and terrible trouble, and no Christ to help them. Ah, is not that the life of many a believer at times? I get into darkness, I have committed sin, the cloud is on me, I miss the face of Jesus; and for days and days I work, worry, and labor; but it is all in vain, for I miss the presence of Christ. The presence of Jesus lost is the cause of all our wretchedness and failure.

The Presence of Christ Dreaded

They were longing for the presence of Christ, and Christ came after midnight, walking on the water amid the waves; but they did not recognize Him, and they cried out in fear, "It is a spirit!" Their beloved Lord was coming near, and they knew Him not. They dreaded His approach. And ah, how often have I seen a believer dreading the approach of Christ — crying out for Him, longing for Him, and yet dreading His coming. Because Christ came in a fashion they expected not.

Perhaps some have been saying, "Alas! I fear I never can have the abiding presence of Christ." You have heard what we have said about a life in the Spirit, about abiding ever in the presence of God and in His fellowship, and you have been afraid of it, and you have said, "It is too high and too difficult." You have dreaded the very teaching that was going to help you. Or, perhaps, God has been speaking to you about some sin — temper, or unlovingness, or unforgivingness, or worldliness, or that love of man's honor, or that pride and self-confidence. God has been speaking to you about it, and yet you have been frightened. That was Jesus wanting to draw you near, but you were afraid. Oh, believers, it is all misconception. When God's word comes close to you and touches your heart, remember that is Christ in His love coming to cut away the sin, that He may fill your heart with the blessing of God's love. Beware of dreading the presence of Christ.

The Presence of Christ Revealed

Bless God! When Christ heard how they cried, He spoke the words of the text, "Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid." Ah, what gladness those words brought to those hearts! The presence of Christ revealed! I want to tell you that the Son of God is longing to reveal Himself to you. Listen! Listen! LISTEN! Is there any longing heart? Jesus says, "Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid." Does God want me to have Christ every moment? Without doubt, God wants the presence of Christ to be the joy of every hour of my life. Are you willing to come and claim this privilege? He can reveal Himself. I cannot reveal Him to you; you cannot grasp Him; but He can shine into your heart. Let not one heart doubt, however dark it may be — at midnight, whatever midnight there be in the soul, Christ can reveal Himself.

The Presence of Christ Desired

What happened? Peter heard the Lord, and yonder was Jesus, some thirty or forty yards distant. Bless the Lord, Peter's heart was right with Christ, and he wanted to claim His presence, and he said, "Lord, if it be you, bid me come upon the water to you." Yes, Peter could not rest; he wanted to be as near to Christ as possible. He saw Christ walking on the water; he remembered Christ had said, "Follow me"; and without argument or reflection, all at once he said, "There is my Lord manifesting Himself in a new way, and I can go to my Lord; He is able to make me walk where He walks." He wanted to walk like Christ; he wanted to walk near Christ.

Friends, would you not like to have the presence of Christ in this way? Not that Christ should come down to where you are — that is what many Christians want; they want to continue in their worldly walk, in their old life, and they want Christ to come down to them with His comfort and His love; but that cannot be. If I am to have the presence of Christ, I must walk as He walked. His walk was a supernatural one. He walked in the love and in the power of God. Near Christ, and like Christ — the two things go together. Walk like Christ, and you shall always abide near Christ. The presence of Christ invites you to come and have unbroken fellowship with Him.

The Presence of Christ Trusted

The Lord Jesus said, "Come," and what did Peter do? He stepped out of the boat. How did he dare to do it against all the laws of nature? He saw Christ, he heard Christ's voice, he trusted Christ's presence and power, and in the faith of Christ he stepped out of the boat. Here is the turning point. Peter saw Christ in the manifestation of a supernatural power, and Peter believed that supernatural power could work in him, and he could live a supernatural life. Christ had supernatural power — the power of heaven, the power of holiness, the power of fellowship with God, and Christ can give me grace to live as He lived. If I will but, like Peter, look at Christ and say to Christ, "Lord, speak the word, and I will come," I, too, shall have power to walk upon the waves. The Christian life compared to Peter walking on the waves — nothing so difficult and impossible without Christ, nothing so blessed and safe with Christ. There is only one thing that can enable you to live it — you must have the Lord Jesus hold your hand every minute of the day.

The Presence of Christ Forgotten and Restored

Peter got out of the boat and began to walk toward the Lord Jesus with his eyes fixed upon Him. But all at once he took his eyes off Jesus, and he began at once to sink, and there was Peter — his walk of faith at an end, drenched and drowning and crying, "Lord, help me!" Someone may say, "Suppose failure comes, what then?" Learn from Peter what you ought to do. What did Peter do when he began to sink? That very moment, without one word of self-reproach or self-condemnation, he cried, "Lord, help me!" I wish I could teach every Christian that. My work is, the very moment I fail, to say, "Jesus, Master, help me!" and the very moment I say that, Jesus does help me. If failure comes, at once, without any waiting, appeal to Jesus. He is always ready to hear, and the very moment you find there is the temper, the hasty word, or some other wrong, at once the living Jesus is near, so gracious, and so mighty. If you learn to do this, Jesus will lift you up and lead you on to a walk where His strength shall secure you from failure.

Yes, Christ stretched out His hand to save him. Remember, Peter walked back to the boat without sinking again. Why? Because Christ was very near him. It is quite possible, if you use your failure rightly, to be far nearer Christ after it than before. Let every failure teach you to cling afresh to Christ, and He will prove Himself a mighty and loving Helper.

Remember what has taken place since that happened with Peter. The cross has been erected, the blood has been shed, the grave has been opened, the resurrection has been accomplished, heaven has been opened, and the Spirit of the Exalted One has come down. Do believe that it is possible for the presence of Jesus to be with us every day and all the way. Your God has given you Christ, and He wants to give you Christ into your heart in such a way that His presence shall be with you every moment of your life. Who is willing to cast himself into the arms of Jesus and to live a life of faith victorious over the winds and the waves, over the circumstances and difficulties? Listen! Jesus says, "Come." Every moment by His Spirit Jesus whispers that word; and every moment He lives to make it true. Accept it now! Oh, come, believers, and let us claim — claim it, claim it, CLAIM it.

Some time ago I read this expression in an old author: "The first duty of a clergyman is humbly to ask of God that all that he wants done in his hearers should first be truly and fully done in himself." These words have stuck to me ever since. What a solemn application this is to the subject that has occupied our attention — the living and working under the fullness of the Holy Spirit! If we understand our calling aright, every one of us will have to say, that is the one thing on which everything depends. What profit is it to tell men that they may be filled with the Spirit of God, if, when they ask us, "Has God done it for you?" we have to answer, "No, He has not done it"?

Look at the Lord Jesus Christ; it was of Christ Himself, when He had received the Holy Spirit from heaven, that John the Baptist said that "He would baptize with the Holy Spirit." I can only communicate to others what God has imparted to me. If my life as a minister be a life in which the flesh still greatly prevails — if my life be a life in which I grieve the Spirit of God, I cannot expect but that my people will receive through me a very mingled kind of life. But if the life of God dwells in me, and I am filled with His power, then I can hope that the life that goes out from me may be infused into my hearers too.

The same writer says elsewhere: "The first business of a clergyman, when he sees men awakened and brought to Christ, is to lead them on to know the Holy Spirit." How true! John the Baptist preached Christ as the "Lamb of God which takes away the sin of the world," but he also said that Christ would "baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire." And what did Jesus do? For three years He was with His disciples; but in His farewell discourse on the last night, what was His great promise? "I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, even the Spirit of truth." Christ's constant work was to teach His disciples to expect the Holy Spirit. Look through the Book of Acts; you see the same thing. Peter on the day of Pentecost preached that Christ was exalted, and had received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit. Paul was converted by the mighty power of Jesus, and yet he had to go to Ananias to receive the Holy Spirit. If we look into the epistle to the Ephesians, the doctrine of the Holy Spirit is mentioned twelve times. The apostle Paul takes great pains to lead Christians to the Holy Spirit as the consummation of the Christian life.

Why Is the Spirit So Little Acknowledged?

Why is it that there is in the church of Christ so little practical acknowledgment of the power of the Holy Spirit? The answer is because of its spirituality. It is one of the most difficult truths in the Bible for the human mind to comprehend. God has revealed Himself in creation throughout the whole universe. He has revealed Himself in Christ incarnate. But the mysterious indwelling of the Holy Spirit, hidden in the depths of the life of the believer — how much less easy to comprehend! In the early Pentecostal days of the church, this knowledge was intuitive; they possessed the Spirit in power. But soon the spirit of the world began to creep into the church. The Reformation in the days of Luther restored the truth of justification by faith; but the doctrine of the Holy Spirit did not then obtain its proper place. But now God is awakening the church to strive after a fuller scriptural idea of the Holy Spirit's place and power.

Brethren, let each of us say: my great work is, in preaching Christ, to lead men to the acknowledging of the Holy Spirit, who alone can glorify Christ. I may try to glorify Christ in my preaching, but it will avail nothing without the Spirit of God. I may urge men to the practice of holiness and every Christian virtue, but all my persuasion will avail very little unless I help them to believe that they must have the Holy Spirit dwelling in them every moment, enabling them to live the life of Christ.

What to Expect When the Spirit Is Received

I sometimes hear men praying earnestly for a baptism of the Holy Spirit that He may give them power for their work. Beloved brethren, we need this power not only for work, but for our daily life. Remember, we must have it all the time. In the church of the Corinthians, the Holy Spirit came with power to work miraculous gifts, and yet they had but a small measure of His sanctifying grace. There was carnal strife, envying, and divisions. A man may have a great gift of power for work, but very little of the indwelling Spirit. Don't let us put in the first place the gifts we may possess. We should seek, in the first place, that the Spirit of God should come as a light and power of holiness from the indwelling Jesus. Let the first work of the Holy Spirit be to humble you deep down in the very dust, so that your whole life shall be a tender, broken-hearted waiting on God, in the consciousness of mercy coming from above. We should seek therefore not only a baptism of power, but a baptism of holiness; we should seek that the inner nature be sanctified by the indwelling of Jesus, and then other power will come as needed.

When No Change Is Felt

Suppose someone says: "I have given myself up to be filled with the Spirit, and I do not feel that there is any difference in my condition. What must I think? Must I not think that my surrender was not honest?" No, do not think that. Retain the position you have taken before God, and maintain it every day. Say, "O God, I have given myself to be filled; here I am, an empty vessel, trusting and expecting to be filled by you." Take that position every day and every hour. Ask God to write it across your heart. Then take your position before God and say, "My God, you are faithful; I have entered into covenant with you for your Holy Spirit to fill me, and I believe you will fulfill it."

If you were to ask me of my own experience, I would say this: that there have been times when I hardly knew myself what to think of God's answer to my prayer in this matter; but I have found it my joy and my strength to take and maintain my position, and say: "My God, I have given myself up to you. It was your own grace that led me to Christ; and I stand before you in confidence that you will keep your covenant with me to the end. I am the empty vessel; you are the God who fills all." God is faithful, and He gives the promised blessing in His own time and method. Beloved, for God's sake, be content with nothing less than full health and full spiritual life. "Be filled with the Spirit."

Brethren, is it not the longing of your hearts to have a congregation of believers filled with the Holy Spirit? If you are willing for that to come, your first duty is to have it yourself. And then your second duty is to lead those who have been brought to Christ to be entirely filled with the Holy Spirit. Let us walk among the people as men of God, that we may not only preach about a book and what we believe to be true, but may preach what we are and what we have in our own experience. Let us go to our God; let us make confession and surrender, and by faith claim what God has for us as ministers of the gospel and workers in His service. God will prove faithful. Even at this very moment, He will touch our hearts with a deep consciousness of His faithfulness and of His presence; and He will give to every hungering, trustful one that which we continually need.

"But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? For all things come of you, and of your own have we given you."

To be able to offer anything to God is a perfect mystery. Consecration is a miracle of grace. "All things come of you, and of your own have we given you." In these words there are four very precious thoughts: (1) God is the Owner of all, and gives all to us. (2) We have nothing but what we receive — but everything we need we may receive from God. (3) It is our privilege and honor to give back to God what we receive from Him. (4) God has a double joy in His possessions when He receives back from us what He gave.

God Gives All

It is the glory of God, and His very nature, to be always giving. God is the owner of all. There is no power, no riches, no goodness, no love, outside of God. It is the very nature of God that He does not live for Himself, but for His creatures. His is a love that always delights to give. Here we come to the first step in consecration. I must see that everything I have is given by Him; I must learn to believe in God as the great Owner and Giver of all. I have nothing but what actually and definitely belongs to God. It is His and His only. And it is His life and delight to be always giving. There is nothing that God has that He does not want to give. It is His nature, and therefore when God asks you anything, He must give it first Himself, and He will. Never be afraid whatever God asks; for God only asks what is His own; what He asks you to give, He will first Himself give you.

We Receive All

Just as it is the nature and glory of God to be always giving, it is the nature and glory of man to be always receiving. What did God make us for? We have been made to be each of us a vessel into which God can pour out His life, His beauty, His happiness, His love. We are created to be each a receptacle and a reservoir of divine heavenly life and blessing. If we fully enter into this, it will teach us some precious things. One thing — the utter folly of being proud or conceited. Here it is the Everlasting God who owns everything we have; shall we dare to exalt ourselves on account of what is all His?

I have to do with a God whose nature is to be always giving, and mine to be always receiving. Just as the lock and key fit each other, God the Giver and I the receiver fit into each other. How often we trouble about things, and about praying for them, instead of going back to the root of things, and saying, "Lord, I only crave to be the receptacle of what your will means for me; of your power and gifts and love and Spirit." Come as a receptacle — cleansed, emptied, and humble — and God will delight to give. If you would but be emptied and low, nothing but receptacles, what a blessed life you could live! Day by day just praising Him — "You give and I accept. You bestow and I rejoice to receive."

We Give All Back

If God gives all and I receive all, then the third thought is very simple — I must give all back again. What a privilege, that for the sake of having me in loving, grateful intercourse with Him, and giving me the happiness of pleasing and serving Him, the Everlasting God should say, "Come now, and bring me back all that I give." David felt it. He said: "Lord, what an unspeakable privilege it is to be allowed to give back to you what is your own!" Just to receive and then to render back in love to Him as God, what He gives. Do you know what God needs you for? The reality of the enjoyment is in the giving back. Just look at Jesus — God gave Him a wonderful body. He kept it holy and gave it as a sacrifice to God. This is the beauty of having a body. God has given you a soul; this is the beauty of having a soul — you can give it back to God.

Will you do this now? Will not every heart say, "My God, teach me to give up everything"? Take your head, your mind with all its power, your property, your heart with its affections — the best and most secret — and lay it at God's feet and say, "Lord, here is the covenant between me and you. You delight to give all, and I delight to give back all." God teach us that. If that simple lesson were learned, there would be an end of so much trouble about finding out the will of God, for it would be written across our hearts: "God can do with me what He pleases; I belong to Him with all I have."

God Rejoices in What We Give

God gives all, I receive all, I give all. Now comes the fourth thought: God rejoices in what we give to Him. It is not only I that am the receiver and the giver, but God is the Giver and the Receiver too, and — may I say it with reverence — has more pleasure in the receiving back than even in giving. With our little faith we often think our gifts come back to God all defiled. God says, "No, they come back beautiful and glorified." Have I not seen a mother give a piece of cake, and the child come and offer her a piece to share it? How she values the gift! And your God — His Father's heart of love — longs, longs, longs to have you give Him everything. It is a demand, but it is not the demand of a hard Master; it is the call of a loving Father, who knows that every gift you bring to God will bind you closer to Himself, and every surrender you make will open your heart wider to get more of His spiritual gifts.

What are the practical lessons? We here learn what the true dispositions of the Christian life are: to abide in continual dependence upon God. Become nothing; begin to understand that you are nothing but an earthen vessel into which God will shine down the treasure of His love. Blessed is the man who knows what it is to be nothing, to be just an empty vessel meet for God's use. Work — the Apostle says — for it is God who works in you to will and to do. Come and take the place of deep, deep dependence on God. And then take the place of childlike trust and expectancy. Count upon your God to do for you everything that you can desire of Him. Honor God as a God who gives liberally. And then come praise and surrender and consecration.

What are we going to consecrate? First of all, our lives. Come to Him and say, "Lord of all, I belong to you; I am absolutely at your disposal." Yield up yourselves. Let us give Him all our powers — our head to think for His Kingdom, our heart to go out in love for men — and however feeble you may be, come and say: "Lord, here I am, to live and die for your Kingdom." Remember, the Holy Spirit came to fit men to be messengers of the Kingdom, and you cannot expect to be filled with the Spirit unless you want to live for Christ's Kingdom. It is the soul utterly given up to God that will receive in its emptying the fullness of the Holy Spirit.

We must consecrate not only ourselves — body and soul — but all we have. Educate your children for Jesus. And there is money — oh, friends, our giving must be in proportion to God's giving. He gives you all. Let us take it up in our consecration prayer: "Lord, take it all, every penny I possess. It is all yours." You may not know how much you ought to give. Give up all, put everything in His hands, and He will teach you if you will wait.

We have heard this precious message. We Christians — have we learned to know our God who is willing to give everything? God help us to. We have nothing that we do not receive, and we may receive everything if we are willing to stand before God and take it. Whatever you have received from God, give it back; it brings a double blessing to your own soul. And whatever God receives back from us gives Him infinite joy and happiness, as He sees His object has been attained. Let us come with the spirit of David, with the spirit of Jesus Christ in us. And may the Blessed Spirit give each of us grace to think and to say the right thing, and to do what shall be pleasing in the Father's sight.