Experiencing the Assurance of Being God's Children

"definition you must not say that you can receive this gift and feel nothing now we've spent spent a great deal of time in describing what happens when the spirit Bears witness with our spirits and what we have seen is this that it is a tremendous experience that people are moved as they've never been moved before they're lost in a sense of wonder love and praise they're melted into tears they're humbled and yet I'm told don't worry about your feelings take it by faith well how can you possibly take a Assurance by faith the things a contradiction in itself what the Apostle is concerned about here as we've seen is this that you and I as the children of God should know that we are the children of God and he's telling us how we can know it he says if you're led by the spirit and if You' got proof that you are being led by The Spirit Well then you've got assurance that you're a child of God but not only that he says you've got within you a spirit of adoption which makes you cry ABA father you can't cry AB father without feeling that you're a child it's not you saying to a man who's crying AB father don't worry about your feelings the man is full of the most glorious feelings and the highest of all is this the spirit beareth witness with our spirits that we are the children of God and yet I'm told don't worry about your feelings my dear friend you won't be worrying about your feelings when you get this you'll be overwhelmed by your feelings you'll be lost in the most glorious experience that you've ever had this is essentially experimental experiential and to tell people that they can take this of all Blessings by faith not worrying about their feelings is I say to confuse terminology and to deny the teaching of the scripture about the highest and the greatest experience which ever comes to a human being in this pilgrimage which we call life no no it isn't that very well then what do we do having cleared that point we now face another difficulty because there are people who say yes what you've been emphasizing is absolutely right you will always know when you've got this and you haven't got it until you know they're very well then they say this is all you've got to do all you've got to do is to come to our meetings because in our meetings you can get this and you can get it you've simply got to come to the meeting we've got certain people if they put their hands upon you they will give you this gift they will give you the baptism of the spirit and you will know it you'll be filled as you say with these great feelings all youve got to do therefore is to come to our meeting and you will receive it in that way as the hands are laid upon you sometimes they will say that you can get it apart from the laying on of the Hands by simply being in the meeting and in the atmosphere of the meeting and as the results of other people's prayers for you now what of this well again we've got to test this by the teaching of the scripture there are many other tests it's remarkable to notice that there's no talk about this in the history of the church throughout the centuries this is a teaching which has only Arisen rarely during this present century and it's been popular only since about 197 that's an interesting thing in itself as I'm trying to say on Sunday mornings about the Cults people should ask a question like this well what happened to all the people throughout all those long centuries before these Cults and special teachings came in did they know nothing about these experiences and the simple answer is of course they did and they knew the true New Testament experience well there's one answer but there is another nowhere in the scripture are we given such teaching but we are given this teaching the apostles certainly had this power they laid hands on people and their people received the gift of the Holy Ghost but nobody else had that power apart from the apostles there was one man you remember in Samaria who wanted to have it Simon the Sorcerer And you remember his story you'll find it in the 8th chapter of the book of the acts verses 18 and 19 19 no no this was clearly something that was confined to the apostles for a specific object and purpose which isn't difficult to understand but it is clear that nobody else possessed this power and it is equally clear that nobody has possessed it ever since I know that there are certain High sections of the Anglican Church Anglo Catholics and so on who believe that Bishops have this power but if you examine the people who are supposed to have received this gift you will soon come to the conclusion that the vast majority the ad generate to be very careful have never received anything of the kind their lives prove it and everything else proves it they know nothing about this testimony of the spirit and may not even believe in it so that there is no evidence of tool in the scripture that this gift is something that can be received in that way in a meeting and that brings me to my third negative which is again very important because there was once a teaching It Isn't So common now but it was very popular say the beginning of the 19th century and particularly in America and it came over to this country a teaching which talked about taring meetings in other words there was a great deal to be said for it only that it went too far and that is where the Devil comes in the teaching was that this is a very special blessing and that people should seek it now then they said we must meet together and we must seek it and stay in that meeting until we get it sometimes they'd even stay for days on end now the danger of that of course is obvious again there's nothing to indicate that at all in the New Testament furthermore there is a great deal in the New Testament to show that it is erroneous take this for instance if you say that you're going to wait and carry in a meeting until you've got this blessing well what you're really saying is that you are the one who determines when it comes and you are denying the sovereignty and the lordship of the Holy Spirit he gives this in his own time and in his own way and for us to lay down conditions that it's got to happen before we leave a meeting he is not only I say verging upon blasphemy but it is also opening the door as widely as it can ever be opened to the strange psychological and psychic and even devilish powers that are ever ready to mislead the children of God and to give them a counterfeit and a false experience no those are not the ways whereby we are to seek this blessing well what are the ways well it seems to me it's just this first and foremost let us get clear in our minds as to the nature and the character of this experience you you can be a Christian without having this testimony of the spirit you cannot be a Christian without having the holy spirit in you but this isn't what I'm talking about this is the spirit bearing witness with my spirit be clear about the unique character of The Thing described see that this is indeed the Fulfillment of John 73739 the Fulfillment of John 14 where our Lord makes that gracious promise which was afterwards fulfilled see that this is the thing taught in all those instances in the book of The Acts of the Apostles see that this is the thing which the Apostle means in the 14th chapter of this epistle in verse 17 when he says the kingdom of God is Not meat and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost have you got it are you rejoicing in it or it's the thing that Peter talks about whom having not seen ye love in whom though now ye see him not yet believing ye Rejoice with a joy unspeakable and full of Glory is that true to your experience you see it should be it can be very well that if you recognize that it can be I'm arguing give yourself no rest until you've got it believe that it's possible for a Christian in this life to rejoice in the Lord Jesus Christ with a joy unspeakable and full of Glory realize it's possible for a Christian to say the love of Christ constrain me realize that we are meant to know the breadth and the length and the depth and the height and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge do we it's possible for us to be filled with all the fullness of God do we know anything about it well now then that's the starting point get rid of All These Foolish objections and all these fears which arise because of the fear of excesses realize that you're meant to be a rejoicing Christian who knows the love of God as certainly as you know anything else and even more certainly and then I say having realized and having believed it begin to seek for it but secondly be careful that you're seeking for the right thing don't merely seek an experience don't merely go out for manifestations seek a knowledge of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ and of the love of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ don't seek Balls of Fire or any sensation of electricity going through your body stop all that seek him say I want to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his suffer that's what I want the knowledge of God and of Christ in this intimate Manner and the knowledge of his love shed abroad in our hearts that's the thing to seek or if you prefer it seek to be holy seek his glory don't merely desire a comfortable feeling but say to yourself apart from this I can never be a true witness I can no more witness for him than those disciples could before the day of Pentecost Christ said to them hey where you are until the power comes you can't be witnesses to me until the power comes and say to yourself is it conceivable then that I can be a witness without it and isn't that perhaps the reason why I'm such a poor witness very well seek to minister to his glory to be a witness to his glory seek his glory not your own nor anything in and of yourself and then of course the third step follows do everything you can to please him as the Apostle has told us in verse 13 mortify the Deeds of the body through the spirit do your utmost to be holy please him in all things do what Peter tells you in The Second Epistle 1 Chapter veres 5 to 7 beside this giving all diligence add to your faith virtue and to Virtue knowledge and to knowledge Temperance and to Temperance patience and to patience godliness and to Godliness brotherly kindness and to brotherly kindness charity go on giving all diligence work hard at it keep on don't just relax and take it by faith add to your faith go on Furnishing out that's what the Apostle is saying and it's the teaching of the New Testament everywhere do everything that the Risen Lord said to the church at Leo Des you'll find it at the end of the third chapter of the Book of Revelation and then give diligence to seeking him in the word he's often met his people as they've been reading about him read the word spend time with it meditate upon it these are the ways these are the ways the Saints have always followed and then on top of it all importunate prayer ask seek knock go on and keep on let nothing hinder you make your desire known to him with all your might and with all your power and above everything else I say don't give in don't don't stop keep on yes I believe there are steps there ask ah if you don't get your reply seek and if that doesn't do it keep on knocking Hammer at the door as Isaiah puts it give him no rest nor peace until that's the teaching of the scripture well now in order to encourage you to do all this and to show how men throughout time in the history of the church have done this very thing and have heeded these exhortations of the scripture let me support what I've been trying to say by reading to you the teaching of certain men of God I'm only going to give you three this evening let us start with Thomas Goodwin yes's Goodwin preaching on Ephesians 1 13 and4 it's in the first volume of his complete works you that believe are to wait for this see this isn't a teaching that began you know about 197 Thomas goodin was saying all this 300 years ago you that believe are to wait for this promise as the Jews waited for this coming of Christ so are you to wait for the coming of the Holy Ghost into your hearts it is said that the father served God day and night waiting for the promise namely Christ to come serve you God day and night Faithfully walk humbly there is a promise of the Holy Ghost to come and fill your hearts with joy unspeakable and glorious to seal you up to the day of redemption Sue This Promise out wait for it rest not in believing only rest not in assurance by Graces only there is a further Assurance to be had it was the last Legacy Christ left upon earth look John 14:16 he said there that he would send the promise of the father this very promise of sending the comforter read Luke 24:49 therefore Sue out the will of Christ you see it's like going to court you sue a man will you sue Christ for this Sue out that last Legacy of his it was the fruit of his Ascension when he was ascended up and received this promise then he poured it out and again he goes on the Ephesians had it you see they were sealed for afterward chapter 4:30 he exalts them not to grieve the Holy Spirit by which they were sealed the Thessalonians had it 1 Thessalonians 1:10 they received the word with such joy that he Seth they waited for the coming of Jesus Christ from heaven for that is the next step Heaven is next unto it and to wait for Christ when you are thus sealed those that Peter weree to headit 1 peter8 in whom believing you rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of Glory listen to this thus ordinary it was in the Primitive times it was ordinary he says thus in the Primitive times where the defect lies God knows but certainly it might be more common if men would sue it out such a promise there is he is therefore called the spirit of Promise because he is Promised as a sealer only my brethren let me give you a direction or two first believe this promise wait for it by faith you see the difference he doesn't say take it by faith he says wait for it by faith make it the aim of your faith we are said to receive the promise of the spirit through faith Galatians 3:14 believe there is such a thing aim at it wait for it and serve God day and night in all humility to obtain it rest in no other lower and under assurance and in the end the Lord will give it the reason why men attain it not is because they rest in other assurance and they do not aim at this they content themselves with bare believing and that their consciences are quieted but my brethren there is such a work as healing by the spirit if you have faith there is a spirit and a spirit of Promise made to Believers which he may receive by faith this is the first reason why he is called a spirit of Promise because he is promised to Believers as he is a Seer well now that's perfectly plain isn't it Thomas Goodwin let me come and just read you a brief extract now from George Whitfield The Next Century you remember here is Whitfield writing in 1739 on Thursday December the 20th this is how he puts it it is a dreadful mistake to deny the doctrine of assurances or to think it is confined to a time of persecution or to the Primitive ages of the church not only righteousness and peace but joy in the Holy ghost which is the consequence of assurance is a necessary part of the kingdom of God within us and though all are not to be condemned to have not an immediate Assurance yet all ought to labor after it I really believe one great reason why so many go mourning all their lifelong is owing to ignorance of their Christian privileges they have not Assurance because they ask not they ask it not because they are taught that it does not belong to Christians of these last days and he might very well have been writing today might be whereas I know numbers whose salvation is written upon their hearts as it were with a Sunbeam they can rejoice in God their Savior and give men and Devils the challenge to separate them if they can from the love of God in Christ Jesus their Lord dear Redeemer and Enlighten all thy followers to see their Privileges and never let them cease wrestling with thee till thou dust bless them by assuring them of their Eternal salvation and then there's this bit of poetry why should the children of a king go mourning all their days great comforter descend and bring the tokens of thy Grace assure each conscience of its part in the redeemer's blood and bear thy witness with each heart that it is born of God now that's only one of many quotations that I could give you out of the journals of George Whitfield I hope you've got this book it's on sale read through it yourself and Mark out these most wonderful passages that you will find there but let me end with a 19th Century men and again it's Charles headen Spurgeon now this is how Spurgeon puts it in a sermon which he preached on February the 24th 19 1861 just over a 100 years ago you see on Solomon sng Chapter 8: 6 and 7 she longth that she may know the love of his heart and that she may experience the power of his arm can we not each of us join the spouse in this prayer tonight oh Lord let me know that my name is engraven on thy heart not only let it be there but let me know it write my name not only in thy heart but may it be as a signate on thy heart that I may see it doubtless there are the names of very very many written upon Christ's heart who have not yet been able to see their names there they are there but are are not written as on a Signet Christ has loved them from all eternity his heart has been set on them from Everlasting but as yet they have never seen the Signet they have never had the Seal of the spirit to witness within that they are born of God while their names may be in his heart they have not seen them there as a seal upon his heart and no doubt there are multitudes for whom Christ has fought and conquered and whom he daily keeps and preserves who have never seen their names written and as a seal upon his arm their prayer is that they may see Christ's love visibly that they may discover it in their experience that it may be Beyond a question and no more a matter of doubt that his hand and his heart are engaged for their Eternal salvation I repeat it ye can all join in this prayer ye people of God it is a cry that you would put up now and continue to put up till it is is fully answered oh let me know my Lord that I am thine bound to thine heart and let me know that I am thine protected and preserved by thine arm this is the prayer I shall not say more upon it because I wish to speak more at length upon the arguments with which it is here pleaded and then he goes on to show the pleadings that were used by the spouse in the Song of Solomon but let me just read you another quotation from Spurgeon where we've got this same thing once more he says these operations of the spirit of God are easily to be obtained by the Lord's children and then he says there is another thing to be done as well and that is to pray and here I want to remind you of those blessed words of the master and then he quotes the words that I've already quoted to you from the 11th chapter of Luke's gospel you see there is a distinct promise to the children children of God that their heavenly father will give them the Holy Spirit if they ask for his power and that promise is made to be exceedingly Strong by the instances joined to it if there be a promise that God can break which there is not this is not the promise for God has put it in the most forcible and binding way I know not how to show you its wonderful Force did you ever hear of a man when his child asked for bread gave him a stone go to the worst part of London and you will and you and will you find a men of that kind you shall if you like get among Pirates and murderers and when a little child cries father give me a bit of bread and meat does the most wicked father fill his own little one's mouth with stones yet the Lord seems to say that this is what he would be doing if he were to deny us the Holy Spirit when we ask him for his necessary working he would be like one that gave his children Stones instead of bread do you think the Lord will ever bring himself down to that but he says how much more shall your heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him he makes it a stronger case than that of an ordinary parent the Lord must give us the spirit when we ask him for he has herein bound himself by No Ordinary pledge he has used a simile which would bring dishonor on his own name and that of the very grossest kind if he did not give the holy ho Spirit to them that ask him oh then let us ask him at once with all our hearts am I not so happy as to have in this audience some who will immediately ask I pray that some who have never received the spir Holy Spirit at all may now be led while I am speaking to pray blessed Spirit visit me lead me to Jesus but especially those of you that are the children of God to you is this promise especially made ask God to make you all that the spirit of God can make you not only a satisfied believer who has drunk for himself but a useful believer who overflows the neighborhood with blessing and I can give you my last quotation very briefly because it is a short one it's in this volume of Revival sermons by Charles Eden Spurgeon which has been printed recently and which is available it's on Roman 8:30 predestination and calling listen to this he's talking about assurance and he's been saying that the believer may know it as surely as if he read it with his own eyes nay he may know it more surely than that and this is what he says what would some of you give if you could arrive at this assurance Mark if you anxiously desire to know you may know if your heart pant to read its title clear it shall do so air long he doesn't say take it by faith now air long no man ever desired Christ in his heart with a living and longing desire who did not find him sooner or later if thou Hast a desire God has given it thee if thou Pest and criest and gronest after Christ even this is his gift bless him for it thank him for little Grace and ask him for great grace he has given thee hope ask for Faith and when he gives thee Faith ask for Assurance and when thou get us Assurance ask for full assurance and when thou Hast obtained full Assurance ask for enjoyment and when thou Hast enjoyment ask for Glory itself and he shall surely give it thee in his own appointed season well there it is for you 17th century 18th century 19th century and again I could give you almost endless quotations along the same line from men who were Calvinists or minions anything you like they all teach the same thing you don't take it by faith you ask for it you plead you seek you knock you groan you wrestle these are their terms and you go on doing so until you have received it here it is for you by a men from Wales who put it in a hymn here's the English translation William Williams speak I pray thee gentle Jesus oh how passing Sweet thy words breathing all my troubled Spirit peace which never Earth a gos all the world's distracting voices all the enticing tones of ill at thine accent mild melodious subdued and all is still tell me tell me thou art mine or savior grant me an assurance clear banish all my dark misgivings still my doubting calm my fear all my soul Within Me yth now to hear thy voice Divine so shall grief be gun forever and despair no more be mine beloved people do you know this have you seen if I may borrow the language have you seen your name on the Signet" [00:21:21]