Day 218: John 16:12–15

When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth. . . . He will glorify Me, because He will take from what is Mine and declare it to you (vv. 13–14).

Beloved, every one of these books and Bible studies as well as any message of value God has given me has come directly from the power of the Holy Spirit! I know better than anyone else that I am incapable of any such thing. Years ago I came face-to-face with my own self-destructive humanity, surrendered my life to be crucified with Christ, and determined to live henceforth through the resurrection power of the Holy Spirit. I certainly don’t always live my days filled with the Holy Spirit, but the rule (with obvious exceptions) has become the daily pursuit of the Spirit-filled, Christ-empowered life. The difference is night and day. Do I ask for more and more of God’s Holy Spirit? You bet I do! And He gives Him without measure! The beauty of His endless supply is that my portion does not take an ounce away from yours!

Now here’s a word of warning. Don’t confuse asking for more of the Holy Spirit with asking for more manifestations of the Holy Spirit. James 4:2–3 gives us two reasons why we don’t receive: We fail to ask, and we ask with wrong motives.

We may not have experienced the fullness of God’s presence and empowerment in our lives because we haven’t asked. However, sometimes we ask with wrong motives or what the King James Version calls asking “amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.” We can have wrong motives for asking for more of the Holy Spirit. Here are a few of my own examples of wrong motives.

• If I want more of the Holy Spirit so that people will be impressed with me or so that I will feel powerful, then my motives are self-glorifying and dishonoring to God.

• If I desire a manifestation of the Holy Spirit as proof that God exists, then my motive is to prove (or to test) God rather than glorify God.

A right motive for asking for more of the Holy Spirit is that God be glorified in you and me through our effective and abundant Spirit-filled lives. Matthew coined it best: “Let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven” (5:16 hcsb).

Remember what we learned earlier about Christian hedonism? God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.47 Our soul’s satisfaction for God’s glorification is a wonderful motive for requesting more of the Holy Spirit.

What do you need most from the Holy Spirit? Are you actively praying for more of Him toward that end?