What happens if the Holy Spirit leaves me?

Judges 14:5-6 Then Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother, and came as far as the vineyards of Timnah; and behold, a young lion came roaring toward him. The Spirit of the Lord came upon him mightily, so that he tore him as one tears a young goat though he had nothing in his hand; but he did not tell his father or mother what he had done.

As we return to story of Samson we encounter a statement in verse 6 that deserves our attention so that we can understand the ministry of the 3^rd person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit.

It is amazing to witness the incredible strengths of Samson, which we will deal with in more detail as we go into this story, however, take a moment to pause and if you’ve seen any video of lions in the wild or if you’ve ever been to the zoo, that allows you a close-up view of a lion, it is hard to imagine how a man could tear an animal of that power and size the way that Samson did! Why Samson did not tell his mother and father is not stated, so we will not try to answer that.

We do encounter a statement in verse 6 that would be good for us to discuss; “the spirit of the Lord came upon him.” This is the term that is used in the Old Testament to describe the interaction between the Old Testament saint and the Holy Spirit of God. It is different from the ministry and interaction Holy Spirit has with believers during the Church age. When the Holy Spirit would come upon a person the outcome would look the same as when the Holy Spirit “fills” a New Testament believer.  Basically the Holy Spirit takes control of the person and will do through them what the desire of God is. This can be anything from, as in this case, physical power to boldness in speech or willpower to resist temptation.  The difference between what happens to the Old Testament believer and to the believer today is that the Holy Spirit will not depart from a believer today; in the Old Testament the Holy Spirit could come upon and then leave at His will.

It is important that we have a thorough understanding of the wonderful blessing of the ministry of the Holy Spirit for all believers in this age. The Old Testament saint was at a great disadvantage in comparison to the blessings that God has bestowed upon us. The Old Testament saint could experience the departure of the Holy Spirit and would be left again at the mercy of the flesh. This is why David prayed the way he did in Psalm 51:

Psalm 51:10–11 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.

The New Testament believer never has to fear that experience; so as you can see, my title was a deliberate ploy to get you to read. I did that because after 4 decades of ministry, I have been astounded at the number of children of God that still believe they can lose their connection to the Holy Spirit as far as relationship is concerned.  At the moment of salvation the Holy Spirit becomes one with that individual forever. The works of the Holy Spirit in the believer’s life are multi-faceted and they are worth looking at them again.

At the moment of salvation the Holy Spirit is:

The Regenerator - God Creates A New Nature in you

Titus 3:5 He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit

2 Pet. 1:4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.

God does not try and rework the old nature; He just discards it because it was crucified with Christ. This does not mean it is eradicated, what it means is that the old nature no longer has the right to rule you. You can yield to its control, but it no longer can command you.

The “Baptizer” – Places you into the Body of Christ

1 Cor. 12:13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.

The original word simply means to place into, immerse or dip. Some have tried to make this word mean a special enduing of power. It does not mean that, nor is this a work that happens as a “second blessing” accompanied by some special sign. This is a simple but essential work. The Holy Spirit places each believer into the Body of Christ with spiritual gifts given to them individuality to use for the glory of God and the edifying of the Body of Christ.

The “Sealer” - Marked With Ownership

Ephesians 1:13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise

2 Corinthians 1:21–22 Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and anointed us is God, who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge.

We belong to God and the Holy Spirit is our seal of ownership. No power, no demonic being…nothing can touch us without having the permission from God first.

The “Adopter” - Placed in the Family of God

Romans 8:15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!”

Galatians 4:6 Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!”

We have been made a part of the family of God and are joint heirs with Christ. No longer spiritually orphaned!

The last two works are empowerments.

As the “Indweller” He Abides “IN” You forever – He empowers you to have the ability to choose to live the Christian Life.

1 Cor. 2:12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God,

1 Cor. 3:16 Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

This work is all His, this gives every believer the ability to experience a victorious spiritual life; it does not guarantee it.

Remember we never had free will. That was lost in the garden. Adam had free will; but after the fall all humans are born with a nature that loves to sin. So free will does not exist, our will is effected by our fallen nature and desires to sin.

However, there is free choice, though before salvation it is limited. Before salvation we were “slaves to sin. Sin was our master and we most often obeyed it.

Romans 6:12–14 Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace.

Yet, we still had enough free choice to make a decision to seek for truth, and when we find it, decide how to react to it. If we choose Christ our freedom of choices expands greatly.

Now that the Holy Spirit has indwelt you, you can choose to obey the new nature He placed in you at regeneration.

This is where the last and continuous work of the Holy Spirit takes place.

He is the “Filler” and desires to control you and lead you to live righteous and obediently toward the Lord.

Just for fun when you think of the Holy Spirit filling you, how would you finish this sentence?

"It Is Not A Matter Of Me Getting More Of The Holy Spirit, 

But ____________________________________!

What does it mean to be filled?

Ephesians 5:18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit

Consider what the difference is between being Drunk vs. being Filled.

When you are drunk it means you have an over abundance of alcohol in you. The outcome is the alcohol controls you.

When you are Filled, you do not get more of the Spirit, He gets more of you! The outcome is the Spirit controls you.

Difference:

Drunk – You get more of the alcohol in you.

Filled – The Holy Spirit is allowed to get more of you.

Each time you choose to obey God you are yielding to the Spirit’s control.

Each time you choose to yield your thoughts to God you are yielding to the Spirit’s control.

This is a constant battle – it is NEVER settled once and for all, we must yield Daily

Galatians 5:16–17 So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.

Filling happens when you simply yield yourself to God – your future plans, your ego, your desires. The more you give in to Him the deeper you will experience His presence.

Romans 8:7-8 For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.

Complete The Sentence; "It Is Not A Matter Of Me Getting More Of The Spirit, But Of Him Getting More Of Me!"

The outcome is Christ likeness and is expressed in the Fruit of the Spirit.

Have you thanked God the father and God the Son for sending the Spirit of God to indwell you? Are you now allowing Him to control you? If not, why? What should you do about that?