The Filling of the Holy Spirit

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by H. C. G. Moule

Don’t be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, and making music to the Lord in your hearts. And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Eph. 5:18–20 NLT

The filling of the Holy Spirit is a state of being totally overwhelmed in the presence of Jesus Christ both within and without. To be “filled” for the believer means that he or she is under the controlling influence of the Spirit: the believer is motivated, encouraged,and directed by God.

“Being filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18) refers to God’s presence fully saturating the believer’s heart, soul, mind, and spirit. A “filled” Christian walks in union and communion with God. An individual who is filled with the Spirit is dominated in their person by the Spirit’s presence being a description how they live and love (Luke 4:1; Acts6:3-5, 7:55, 11:24). The filling of the Spirit is to be a life lived in God’s presence.

The infilling of the Holy Spirit is not confined to a one time experience at conversion or just a singular dramatic encounter occurring later in the Christian life. The infilling of the Spirit is a crisis, a one-time encounter, and a process, an on-going experience: sometimes described as one baptism and many fillings.

The filling of the Spirit should be a moment by moment experience of the constant, conscious presence of Christ.  “Being constantly filled,” with the Holy Spirit is freedom to enjoy Christ and his presence on a daily, if not, hourly, and even possibly, minute by minute basis. The filling of the Spirit is described by the Apostle Paul as a daily “walking in the Spirit” or a “keeping in step with the Spirit” ( Gal. 5:25). The Lord desires something better for us; a continual abiding in the Spirit of Christ (Rom. 8:9) as we perform the daily tasks of life.

The promise of the Spirit is not for great or exceptional Christians, but for any Christian who yields himself to God. Paul addressed everyday Christian believers at Ephesus: husband, wife, parent, child, master, slave. He encouraged all to live lives full of the divine Holy Spirit, full from within.

What this command to be filled with the Spirit meant in Ephesus, it means in England, it means to the one who is writing these words in his study at Cambridge, and to his brother in Christ who reads them, wherever and whenever God has bid him dwell.

H. C. G. Moule quoted in His Victorious Indwelling, ed., Nick Harrison (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1998), 158. 

Walking in The Spirit

What does that mean ... walking in the Spirit?

When I was a child, and then a teen and on up into my twenties, I heard many 'church phrases' (my father being in the ministry). I was born and raised on church terminology, accepted Jesus as my savior at a very young age, and yet most of these phrases meant little at all to me. I didn't know what they meant. In retrospect, I wonder why I didn't ask my parents. I'm still not sure, but one of the purposes of my blog is to enlighten people about scriptural things, so when I run across one of these phrases I try to remember that others might be in the dark, too.

Why do we talk this way? No, it's not just to annoy non-believers, to get on their nerves! It is the language of the Christian taken from God's Word. Just as scientists and accountants speak with words from their knowledge and experience base, so Christians speak from theirs. Maybe a good way to begin is to look at a few verses that refer to spirit.

"When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none." Matt. 12:43. The scripture plainly tells us here that the reference is to an unclean spirit. That is not the spirit we seek to walk with, but it is the spirit of all those who have not received Jesus Christ as savior. All human beings have either the spirit of the devil or the Spirit of the Lord directing and influencing their lives.

"And when the disciples saw him [Jesus] walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear." Matt. 14:26. Now in this case the scripture doesn't indicate what type of spirit they thought this to be. People were often initially frightened upon seeing spirits or angels - whether good or evil - simply because spirit manifestation is out of the realm of normal activity for most human beings. However, since that area of the world was filled with demon worship, this type of spirit appearance may not have been that unusual, and there is plenty of reason to be very frightened if demon spirits manifest themselves.

"When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out." Luke 11:24. This gives us a little more insight into demonic spirits, which are desperate to inhabit a person. They are so restless when disembodied that they will even enter into an animal, if necessary. That is why the demons Christ drove out of the demoniac begged Jesus to allow them to enter the swine, which he did allow.

"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Romans 8:1. Notice the capitol letter "S." This immediately tells us that Paul is talking specifically about the Holy Spirit. He is reminding them that through Christ's sacrifice on the cross they are now free from the bondage of their old natures, since the Holy Spirit is now their guide.

"That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Romans 8:4. The moment a person accepts Christ into his life the Holy Spirit comes into his life. Unclean spirits may still influence a Christian, but they cannot inhabit or possess a Christian once the Holy Spirit resides in him.

"I desired Titus, and with him I sent a brother. Did Titus make a gain of you? walked we not in the same spirit? walked we not in the same steps?" 2 Corinthians 12:18. Both Paul (who is speaking to the church in Corinth) and Titus were indwelt by the Holy Spirit, but here Paul is referring to the unity of spirit they shared together as people. They were united in their thoughts and spirits because they shared the same goals and outlook, as Christian men whose lives were now guided by the Holy Spirit.


"This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would." Galatians 5:16,17. Here, Paul is talking to fellow Christians in Galatia. These were probably 'baby Christians,' who were not really allowing the Holy Spirit to rule and reign in their lives. He explains that it is necessary to obey the urging of the Holy Spirit within them if they wanted to attain to full Christian maturity. If they weren't being obedient to the leading of the Holy Spirit they would be ineffective Christians rather than growing in their faith by walking in the Spirit. He is explaining that the 'natural man,' the natural fleshly nature of human beings, is prone to sin and demonic influences. They needed to vigilantly guard themselves against that.

"If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit." Galatians 5:25. Paul is telling them to treasure and nurture the Holy Spirit, newly in them, through obedience. As we obey God's Word, the Bible, we make more and more of ourselves available to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, as He leads us into Christian maturity. It is only in this way that we can fulfill the tasks God has for each one of us. Otherwise, we are ineffectual and make poor use of the mercy and grace he has extended toward us.

"And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:" Ephesians 2:1,2. Paul is warning the church at Ephesus the same as he did to the Galatians, reminding them that the Holy Spirit had 'quickened' them [made them alive] from their previously condition as 'world walkers' who remained subject to demonic persuasion. He is stressing how important it is for them to 'walk in the Spirit' which is newly within them.

The Holy Spirit is a precious gift Who resides within the believer and empowers him to overcome sin and live for the glory of God, serving the specific purpose He has for each Christian while on earth. We can, however, severely limit His power by ignoring Him. Those who seek to obey and follow His influence have limitless access to an abundant life of power that comes only from God.

Walking in the Spirit means that we rely on Him to lead the way, to speak, to give us warnings and direction. We, in turn, follow directions, heed His warnings and obey His directions. It is a path of complete surrender on our part. This is not easy - no argument there - but it is well worth the challenge. It leads to an incredibly rich and powerful fullness of life, an amazingly abundant and victorious journey ... a journey that prepares us to rule and reign with Jesus Christ on earth at His second coming. Our walks here will determine our rewards there.

If people could only comprehend the purpose for which they are intended while on this earth they would take an entirely different approach to life here. This life is a TEST. How well a Christian does while here on earth will determine the POSITION he will have throughout all of eternity. I read one theologian the other day who speculated about Christians having the opportunity to rule a planet or paint a sunset. I think he's right on target. I'm not interested in flipping burgers throughout eternity while I try to pass Eternity 101.

Which spirit will you walk with?

Royal Heir

The Funeral

I just returned home from attending a funeral today. Actually it was a memorial service.

This service had the potential of being the epitome of a depressing event. The young lady, Katie, was only 24 years old and had been murdered, her head bashed in by her 'boyfriend' of 42. Her grandmother and her cousin arrived within moments of witnessing, or becoming a part of, the murder. The body was still warm.

There was reason to believe that the murder was premeditated, since two days prior the telephone lines had been cut underneath the house. I learned just today that the man has been charged with first degree murder, and police are looking for another person or persons. They believe he may have had accomplices. Certain paperwork dossiers are missing from the house.

It gets worse. Katie lived with her grandparents, neither of whom is well physically. The grandmother's health has partially disabled her. The grandfather has terminal cancer, and a week ago he suffered a severe heart attack and has been in CCU ever since. He and Katie were very close, and he had been teaching her all the financial ins and outs so that she could handle business when he was gone. She did everything for her grandparents - cooked, cleaned, ran errands - just everything. They all loved each other.

Since an autopsy was done on her, and due to the nature of the death, the decision was made not to have a funeral. And that's the reason for the memorial service. With that stage set you may see why this service might reasonably be expected to break records in terms of being emotionally depressing. And, of course, as a Christian, my main concern was whether or not Katie had accepted Jesus Christ as Lord of her life. Although I had been told she was a Christian ... I wasn't entirely confident that was the case.

I am now. Amazingly, it was one of the most uplifting services I've ever attended. I never fail to be astonished at the unique and surprising things that happen when the Presence of the Holy Spirit is in attendance - and He certainly was there. The atmosphere was electric with His Presence, from beginning to end.

The second reason the service was so positive was Katie herself. I knew she was extremely intelligent, perhaps brilliant. She was studying bio-chemistry. That any of the bio sciences could be comprehended by any mere mortal always wins my highest respect, that being my Waterloo. (I love quantum physics :-) I knew she was devoted to her grandparents. That was only the beginning.

The long parade of young people who came to the microphone to pay tribute to her was awe-inspiring, but the reason they loved Katie so much was what got my attention. She was apparently one of the best missionaries the church was blessed to have. She regularly brought people into the church from the highways and byways of the community, telling them of their need for Jesus Christ in their lives. Her witness extended to college, where she challenged her teachers about their beliefs and the state of their spiritual lives.

Oh, Katie had her youthful problems and her 'demons,' but she loved her Lord, so much that she told everyone about Him. She was progressing - moving in the right direction, impacting lives.

One trait almost every person mentioned in humor about her was that she was opinionated. And she was! But not in an obnoxious way. No, it was actually somehow endearing because it welled up from the core of her being, from those things that excited her. That's exactly how the Lord made her, and now we know why. She was excited about Jesus Christ. Who can say how many people heard the good news of the Gospel because of Katie?

The Holy Spirit worked in another way. I had been questioning in my mind whether or not Katie was really a Christian. Now, during the service, I began wondering if - in my entire life - I had been as effective a witness as Katie had been. God has a way of turning the tables on us for our own introspection.

Evidently the Lord only needed Katie here for 24 years. Evidently she did more for Him in those 24 years than most people do in three times that many years.

It's no wonder the Holy Spirit attended Katie's memorial service. Apparently she, too, was...

A Child of the King

(You can be, too!)