Views from an Evangelist

The text and emphasis of this sermon:

(The Indwelling of the Spirit, the common Privilege of all Believers)

John 7:37-39, “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive.”

GW begins with the claim that the one thing that has rendered the cross of Christ of least effect is that: “that most of what is contained in the gospel of Jesus Christ, was designed only for our Lord’s first and immediate followers, and consequently calculated but for one or two hundred years.”

GW’s remedy:  “…the true ministers of Jesus, who have been made partakers of this heavenly gift, to lift up their voices like a trumpet; and if they would not have those souls perish, for which the Lord Jesus has shed his precious blood, to declare, with all boldness,that the Holy Spirit is the common privilege and portion of all believers in all ages; and that we as well as the first Christians, must receive the Holy Ghost, before we can be truly called the children of God.”

GW says these Scripture verses tell us that at the Annual Feast of the Tabernacles to commermorate Israel living in tents in the desert as it was common at the end of the feast for ‘pious persons’ to bring water from the well on their heads ‘singing singing this anthem out of Isaiah, “And with joy shall they draw water out of the wells of salvation.”’

Jesus in turns tells them that from Him flows the water of salvation instead of from the well and that those who come to Him will receive an abundance of life giving water.

GW breaks down his sermon:

“And FIRST, I shall briefly show, what is meant by the word Spirit.

SECONDLY, That this Spirit is the common privilege of all believers.

THIRDLY, I shall show the reason on which this doctrine is founded.

And LASTLY, Conclude with a general exhortation to believe on Jesus Christ, whereby alone we can receive the Spirit.”

First point: “By the Spirit, is evidently to be understood the Holy Ghost, the third person in the ever-blessed Trinity, consubstantial and co-eternal with the Father and the Son, proceeding from, yet equal to them both.

Second point: GW explains that having the Spirit is what brings forth God’s inner work in us vs believing that evidence of having the Spirit is the ability to do miracles or possess knowledge beyond what is written in Scripture.

The Holy Spirit also brings the union amongst God and His people; that we are partakers of the divine nature; be baptized into the nature of God in Christ; and to not be taught to receive it is to teach heresy.

Third point, to deny the doctrine of original sin is to deny the truth of Scripture and to deny therefore the need of the Holy Spirit. But if we don’t have the Holy Spirit then are we unclean and unable to dwell with God.

Therefore come to Christ by faith to receive the Holy Spirit. As the Scriptures say at the beginning of the sermon all come to Christ to receiving the living waters of salvation.