Because of receiving bad information in the past, many people must overcome obstacles before receiving the baptism in the Spirit. My previous article in this series illustrated how to conquer fear and legalism. This one looks at two more common hindrances and shows how to get past them.

 

Traditions of Men

Religious groups tend to form their own culture and traditions over time. Non-denominational churches often begin as a sort of protest against dead formality and ritual, but over the years such churches develop their own set ways of doing things. This is part of what it means to be human and is not necessarily a bad thing.

If our traditions stand between us and the our apprehension of the truth and our reception of God’s promises, however, they are evil and must be set aside.

Jesus confronted dead religious traditions quite often, thereby incurring the wrath of the establishment. Once traditions are set, they assume a stature as if God himself set them up. Some churches, such as Roman Catholicism, officially elevate church tradition to the status of scripture. More evangelical churches would never openly say such a thing, but in actuality they sometimes put their traditional interpretation of scripture over the truth. Once again, this is a human propensity. For those steeped in the traditions of men, the old and established way of doing things always seems better.

Jesus warned against following our traditions when they nullify the clear intent of God’s Word.

And He answered and said to them, "Why do you yourselves transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? 4  "For God said, 'HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER,' and, 'HE WHO SPEAKS EVIL OF FATHER OR MOTHER IS TO BE PUT TO DEATH.' 5  "But you say, 'Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever I have that would help you has been given to God," 6  he is not to honor his father or his mother.' And by this you invalidated the word of God for the sake of your tradition. 7  "You hypocrites, rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you: 8  'THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME. 9  'BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.'" Matthew 15:3-9 (NASB)  

When it comes to the baptism in the Holy Spirit, the only thing that matters is what the scriptures say, not what our church traditions may teach. Just as in Jesus’ day, sometimes it requires great courage to resist and overcome time honored traditions in order to serve the Lord.

Passivity

There is a time for “waiting upon God,” which describes our having the attitude of being surrendered to God’s will for our lives and honoring him as the initiator. Waiting on God is a function of our understanding the danger of operating independently from the leadership of the Holy Spirit.

However, once we know what his will for us is and are confident that now is the time for us to act, passivity becomes a sin.

Nothing substitutes for acting in faith, not even prayer or worship. If our mother asked us to clean our rooms, when we were young children, she would not be happy to find out we never did it because we were praying instead. There is a time for every purpose under heaven.

Jesus instructed his first disciples to wait for the promise of the Father, the baptism in the Spirit, but this was because their first experience of this extraordinary gift from God had to take place on the exact day of Pentecost, perfectly fulfilling God’s eternal purpose for that Old Covenant feast. They waited and prayed for days in the upper room, but when the day of Pentecost finally arrived, the Spirit was powerfully poured out.

Since then, every day is Pentecost. There is no longer any need to wait. We can receive instantly.

In addition, we should not expect the Holy Spirit to somehow take control of us, as if God superimposes himself over our desires and will. In his goodness and love, God expects and encourages us to partner with him. The Spirit, who dwells within us, also comes alongside us allowing us to participate with him in ministry. He lets us know the things that God has freely given to us, which includes the baptism in the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 2:12)

Our role is to ask for and receive God’s blessings. If we do not ask, why should we expect to receive? If we have asked, what is stopping us from actively receiving?

It is true that sometimes God blesses those who do not seek or ask, but almost always he wants our participation, especially when we know the truth. Therefore, we should not be passive when it comes to the baptism in the Spirit. Remember: faith acts as if God’s Word is true… because it is.

"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8  "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Matthew 7:7-8 (NASB)

 

 

Want to know more? I have written a book on this very topic, which is available on Amazon. Click here to find out more.