Filled With the Spirit

From Anstey’s Doctrinal Definitions:

This term has to do with the believer’s state. It is, therefore, something more than receiving “the gift of the Holy Spirit” whereby we are indwelt by Him (Acts 2:38; 8:15-17; 10:45; 19:2³⁸Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. (Acts 2:38)
¹⁵Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost: ¹⁶(For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.) ¹⁷Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost. (Acts 8:15‑17)
⁴⁵And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. (Acts 10:45)
²He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. (Acts 19:2); 2 Cor. 1:21-22²¹Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God; ²²Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts. (2 Corinthians 1:21‑22); Gal. 3:2²This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? (Galatians 3:2); Eph. 1:13; 4:30¹³In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, (Ephesians 1:13)
³⁰And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. (Ephesians 4:30); 1 Thess. 4:8,⁸He therefore that despiseth, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy Spirit. (1 Thessalonians 4:8) etc.). Being “filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18¹⁸And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; (Ephesians 5:18); Acts 2:4; 4:31; 6:3; 7:55; 9:17; 11:24,⁴And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Acts 2:4)
³¹And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. (Acts 4:31)
³Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. (Acts 6:3)
⁵⁵But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, (Acts 7:55)
¹⁷And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost. (Acts 9:17)
²⁴For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith: and much people was added unto the Lord. (Acts 11:24) etc.) has to do with the Spirit being given full control of our lives in a practical sense.

An illustration given by H. P. Barker makes this distinction clear. He said. “A visitor to your house does not fill it. He is confined to the part of the house to which you have introduced him. If, however, you put your whole house at his disposal, and give him the key of every room and cupboard, he then fills the establishment. It is not that he comes from the outside to do this; he is already there. But now he is, by your act of surrender, in complete control. Even so it is with the Holy Spirit. We often confine Him to certain parts of our experience and life, but He desires to have full control, to possess us entirely on behalf of Christ. When we gladly yield to His control, the whole establishment of our being, He is then in undisputed charge, and in this sense, fills us (The Holy Spirit Here Today,” p. 77).

Thus, the believer receives the Holy Spirit once in his lifetime by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. When this divine Guest takes up His residence in him, He never departs (John 14:16¹⁶And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; (John 14:16) – “forever”), for the believer is therewith “sealed unto the day” of his final “redemption,” which is when the Lord comes at the Rapture (Eph. 4:30³⁰And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. (Ephesians 4:30)). But the believer may be filled many times. This is because our state ebbs and flows, and we may not always be yielded to the Spirit as we should be. Hence, there are no exhortations to Christians in Scripture to be “sealed” or “anointed” with the Spirit because those terms have to do with the reception of the Spirit, which the believer has already received. There are, however, exhortations in Scripture to be “filled” with the Spirit.

We may well ask, “How does a Christian get filled with the Spirit?” The following passages speak of the filling of the Spirit and give us the answer:

• In Acts 2:1-4¹And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. ²And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. ³And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. ⁴And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Acts 2:1‑4) it is connected with being devoted to the interests of the Lord.

• In Acts 4:31³¹And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. (Acts 4:31) it is connected with occupying oneself with prayer and reading the Word of God.

• In Acts 6:3³Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. (Acts 6:3) and Acts 11:22-24²²Then tidings of these things came unto the ears of the church which was in Jerusalem: and they sent forth Barnabas, that he should go as far as Antioch. ²³Who, when he came, and had seen the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. ²⁴For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith: and much people was added unto the Lord. (Acts 11:22‑24) it is connected with serving others in the name of the Lord.

• In Acts 7:55⁵⁵But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, (Acts 7:55) it is connected with testifying for Christ.

• In Ephesians 5:18-21¹⁸And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; ¹⁹Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; ²⁰Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; ²¹Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God. (Ephesians 5:18‑21) it is connected with rejoicing in the Lord with singing and giving thanks.

In order for us to be filled our lives must first be emptied of all that is inconsistent with the holiness of the Lord. There are often things in our lives that have no right being there, and they hinder the Spirit. Consequently, He does not fill us. It may be impure thoughts, unworthy motives, covetous desires, selfish interests and ambitions, etc. These surely need to be cast out, but the great question is, “How is this to be done?” The answer is, “On the principle of displacement.” H. P. Barker gave the following helpful illustration regarding this point. He said, “Suppose I hold in my hand a glass, apparently empty. In reality it is full of air. How can I empty it of this? Not by frantically shaking it upside down. Not by wiping it out with a cloth. It is emptied by simply standing it quietly on a table and filling it with water. I empty it of the one thing by filling it with the other” (The Holy Spirit Here Today, p. 78). It is the same with being filled with the Spirit; when Christian things and activities occupy our thoughts and lives, those other things will not have a place there. If we try to force the filling of the Spirit the other way around, Christian living becomes a legal thing, and eventually it will break down for the lack of energy to continue in them.

Being filled with the Holy Spirit has much to do with being surrendered to the claims of Christ and the divine Guest within. Our wills are the chief culprit. Another illustration from H. P. Barker helps us to understand this point. In Germany many years ago, a magnificent, world-renowned pipe organ was built into a large cathedral. One day there was a visitor that came to the cathedral and asked if he could play the organ. The caretaker told the visitor that he was not allowed to let strangers play the instrument. The visitor insisted, and finally after much cajoling, the caretaker allowed him to sit down at the organ. Immediately, the most beautiful music flowed out from it and filled the cathedral. The caretaker was astonished and stood rooted to the spot in wonder as he listened to the marvelous sounds reverberating through the building. After the visitor had played for some time and was about to leave, the caretaker came over to him and asked, “Who are you?” He replied, “Mendelssohn”—it was the great composer himself! Then the caretaker was embarrassed and said, “Think of it; here I was refusing you, a man of such ability, and the greatest composer in Europe, from playing this organ! I am ashamed of myself.” Far greater than any famous human composer, the Spirit of God has entered our hearts when we were saved. But have we, like that caretaker, forbidden the divine Composer to sit down at the control-panel of our lives to create, so to speak, “beautiful music” for the glory of God?