On The Holy Spirit

Do not quench (suppress or subdue) the [Holy] Spirit;

1 Thessalonians 5:19 (AMP)

My Pentecostal background is about to show itself; Consider yourself warned.

I have been thinking a lot about the exact meaning of this verse; I have taken to writing it down on post-its and putting them in my direct view every day, reminding myself of the words and diction, tossing and turning them in my mind to fully understand their meaning and relevance to my life.

The diction of the verse is very important, though some of the pertinence is lost in translation. I believe those behind the Amplified translation of the Bible know this, and that is why they made it--to relieve the Bible of at least some of its ambiguities and "gray areas," to suppress argument, strife, and perhaps even some stress behind understanding God's intentions behind every verse.

"Do not quench (suppress or subdue) the [Holy] Spirit." This is exceedingly direct for a God who loves to speak in metaphors and parables. Therefore, there is a significance to this directness; There was to be no misunderstanding the instruction in this case; no personalization of this rule, and it is the same for everyone: Do not quench the Spirit.

"Do not..."
Don't do it! It's quite simple, really. There's no argument here.

"...quench..."

Suppress or subdue. Also easy to understand. So far, "Do not quench..." or "Do not subdue or suppress..." Got it.

"...the Spirit."

Whoa. Now I can see where people may become overwhelmed. 

Who is the Holy Spirit?

Before I can process this thought any further, I feel it necessary to define who I believe the Holy Spirit to be, and what that means in my life.

I feel that most of us (myself and people who read this) have a basic knowledge of the Trinity. If not, I'd love to blog about it later. Essentially, three in one. While I am aware that they are all God, I see them as different expressions of the same God (while I'm here, feel free to tell me when I make zero sense). God is the all-powerful, all-seeing, all-knowing, Creator of the universe; Jesus is God in the flesh; the Holy Spirit is our helpmate and guide through our lives. He is the part of God that plays an active role in everything that we do every day. The Bible says "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever-- the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you" (John 14:16-17). Romans 8:27 says "the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will." 

The Holy Spirit is a Counselor, and He intercedes on our behalf. He is that faithful companion, the shoulder to cry on, the one who actively works for the good in our lives. 

So, the Holy Spirit is a good guy, on our side, a help in times of despair--why is this verse so threatening? "Do not quench the Spirit." One reason for feeling overcome with confusion, I believe, is this: the implication is that it is possible for you to quench, suppress, or subdue the Holy Spirit. Personally, the fact that something that I can do can hinder the work of the Holy Spirit in my life or the lives of those around me does not sit well. I actually had a difficult time with this passage until recently. 

Without diving into specifics, I recently felt the affects of someone quenching the Holy Spirit in my own life. The worst part about this experience was that it was not the person's intention. Actually, the intention was to help me (and others) to engage in worship and prayer. Unfortunately, the exact opposite effect was the direct consequence of these exhortations. I wasn't completely aware that it was happening, I just knew that I was trying harder than is usually necessary to have a desperately-needed moment with God, and something was getting in the way of that. What made this worse was that I felt powerless against it; It wasn't until I was alone at home with my Bible that I was finally able to concentrate and get what I felt I needed from God that night.
 

I think, at least in this case, this hindering has a lot to do with trusting (or not trusting) the Holy Spirit to do its job. It's an elementary example of not "letting go and letting God." It's also a testament to the devastating consequences that not trusting God can have in our lives and the lives of others. We can affect how God works in life. This is an obvious example, but what about the non-obvious cases?

How many times has my desire to have control over my own life actually hurt me? If I retrace my own steps, I can see where the Holy Spirit was prompting me to do one thing, and I did another because it made more sense to me at the time. Where did I end up as a result of these actions? Hurt, alone, confused, abandoned, rejected, jaded, broken, blinded, scarred, terrified, mortified, embarrassed, humiliated--these are not the purposes for which God designed me.

This is where the fruit comes in.

When we let the Holy Spirit control our lives instead of taking our own misguided and selfish advice, what is the end result?

But the fruit of the [Holy] Spirit [the work which His presence within accomplishes] is love, joy (gladness), peace, patience (an even temper, forbearance), kindness, goodness (benevolence), faithfulness, gentleness (meekness, humility), self-control (self-restraint, continence). Against such things there is no law [that can bring a charge].

Galatians 5:22-23 (AMP)

Now it all makes sense. It can be tempting to quench the Holy Spirit (even without knowing it), because the thought of letting someone or something else control your life is scary; Not having absolute control is intimidating and terrifying. However, how has doing it your way worked for you so far? Do I need to repeat my list of consequences of having control over my own life? I fear too many would have a similar list. When I let the Holy Spirit guide and counsel me in my decisions...

...I am loving: I have a love I can't explain for the people in my life. Those people can feel how much I love them, and I can feel their love for me as well. I have a love that cannot be quenched or doused in any way. 

...I am joyful: I am filled with a happiness that does not depend on the actions of people (not my family, nor my friends, nor any others), who have failed me time and time again, and left me stripped of joy and gladness. I am reminded constantly of God's enduring and faithful love for me, and it fills me with a happiness that must be expressed at every possible moment. 

...I am at peace: Peace is something that eluded me for many years. In fact, I'm not sure I knew what peace was during the entire duration of my adolescence. Only in the last year or so of my life have I had moments where I know, beyond the shadow of a doubt, what it is to be at peace, to know that God has not forgotten or abandoned me, to know that He saw every tear I shed over every person who ever hurt me, and to know that He had the plan that was going to relieve that kind of pain. All I had to do was accept His plan and His will, even if I didn't know exactly what the plan entailed. He hasn't failed me yet.

...I am patient: I have found that when you pray for God to grant you patience, He doesn't so much instill automatic patience within you, but gives you opportunities to be patient. Sometimes I am successful, other times, not-so-much. But when it really counts, I can feel the Holy Spirit tugging on my heart, and telling me to hold on, to wait, to listen, to take a breath--that He's got it, and I simply need to be patient to discover what His plans are.

...I am kind: We don't see a lot of kindness in today's world. We see "niceness," but not genuine, selfless kindness. The Holy Spirit is the only thing that could possibly give me the capacity to exhibit such a rare trait.

...I am good: There is a reason why Paul mentions "kindness" and "goodness." While kindness implies an inexplicable friendliness, goodness connotes selfless charitableness. Anyone who has been paying any sort of attention to the world around them is aware that such behavior does not exist in human nature. That is why it is a fruit of the Spirit.

...I am faithful: Unfortunately, this doesn't exist in human nature either, and some of us are reminded of it every day. Divorce is an obvious example; I myself have struggled with the fidelity of not only friends, but a boyfriend as well. Our generation, for one reason or another, has a weak spot for unfaithfulness. When the Holy Spirit is living and active in our lives and the lives of those with whom we choose to be in intimate relationship, these fears of infidelity or non-trustworthiness can dissipate so that true relationship can form, and so we can experience more of God in those faithful relationships.

...I am gentle: The Holy Spirit not only gives you peace, but gives you the ability to pacify others (a characteristic of gentleness). I believe gentleness is also exemplified in the softening of our hearts when we let the Holy Spirit do its work. I have had a lot of people tell me that after what I've experienced, they see no reason for me to have any grace with friends or romantic relationships, but my heart, while it has learned quite a few lessons, is relentless. What could explain this? Not determination in people on my part. Faith in what the Holy Spirit can do is what keeps us moving when the world expects us to stop; it's what keeps us soft and warm when the world tries to make us hard and cold.

...I have self-control: I have boundaries, and the ability to say "yes" and "no." I make the right decisions--not the easy decisions, but the right ones. I know when to hold my tongue, and how to control my actions and behaviors. It is never easy, but I am certainly better off for it.

None of the above qualities are inherent in human nature. That is why we need to Holy Spirit. I would encourage you, Church, to examine yourself and ask if the Holy Spirit is truly in control of your life, not just for your benefit, but for the benefit of those you love.