Set apart by the Holy Spirit: the filling of our lives
The Christian life is not just a human effort to be good people. It is a life transformed from within by the presence of God himself: the Holy Spirit. The Bible teaches that God sets his children apart for himself, sanctifies them and fills them with his Spirit so that they may live with power, love and purpose. Yet many people, even after years in church, feel that their spiritual life is dry, routine or powerless. In this article we will look at what it means to be set apart by God, what the filling of the Holy Spirit is, how the early Church lived it, what hinders it and how we can seek it each day. Different Christian traditions explain these subjects with different nuances, but all agree that we need the Holy Spirit to live the faith.
What does it mean to be “set apart”?
In the Bible the word “holy” (Hebrew kadosh, Greek hagios) means precisely “set apart”, “separated for God”. The temple vessels were holy because they were reserved for God’s service. In the same way, God sets people apart for himself. To Jeremiah he said: “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations” (Jeremiah 1:5). Paul introduced himself as “separated unto the gospel of God” (Romans 1:1). And Peter says to all believers:
“But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.”
1 Peter 2:9
Being set apart does not mean isolating ourselves from the world, but belonging to God in the midst of the world, with a different life and a clear mission.
“Separate me Barnabas and Saul”
In the church at Antioch, while the leaders ministered to the Lord and fasted, something decisive for the history of Christianity happened:
“As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.”
Acts 13:2-3
It was the Holy Spirit who set apart Barnabas and Saul for the missionary work that would carry the Gospel to Asia Minor and Europe. Notice the context: the church was worshipping, fasting and praying. There they heard the Spirit’s voice. God still sets men and women apart today for specific tasks: ministry, mission, service to the poor, family, work as a witness. But all believers are set apart for God. Read Evangelism.
Sanctified by the Spirit
The Holy Spirit is the one who carries out that work of setting us apart and transforming us. Paul writes that God chose us “to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth” (2 Thessalonians 2:13). And he reminded the Corinthians: “ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:11). Sanctification has two dimensions: it is a gift received when we believe in Christ, by which we belong to God, and it is also a lifelong process in which the Spirit makes us more and more like Jesus (2 Corinthians 3:18).
The promise of the Spirit
Jesus promised his disciples that he would not leave them alone. He would send them “another Comforter”, the Spirit of truth, who would abide with them for ever (John 14:16-17). At a feast in Jerusalem, Jesus stood and cried out:
“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: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)”
John 7:37-39
The image is one of abundance: not a glass of water, but rivers that flow and overflow. That is how God wants the life of a Spirit-filled believer to be: not a stagnant well, but a spring that blesses others. Read Jesus’ words to his apostles before he departed.
Pentecost: filled with the Holy Spirit
Fifty days after the resurrection, the disciples were gathered in Jerusalem, praying with one accord, when there came from heaven a sound as of a rushing mighty wind, tongues like fire appeared, “And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:4). Peter, who weeks earlier had denied Jesus out of fear, preached boldly, and about three thousand people believed. The filling of the Spirit turned fearful men into courageous witnesses. Read The Holy Spirit.
And it was not a one-off experience. Shortly afterwards, when they were threatened, the disciples prayed for boldness, “and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness” (Acts 4:31). The filling of the Spirit can and should be renewed.
“Be filled with the Spirit”
Paul gives all believers a clear command:
“And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Ephesians 5:18-20
The contrast is striking: just as wine controls someone who is drunk, the Holy Spirit should guide the believer’s life. In the original Greek, the verb is in the continuous present: “keep on being filled”. It is not a one-time experience but a daily relationship. And Paul describes its signs: praise, thanksgiving and mutual submission out of love (Ephesians 5:19-21).
What a Spirit-filled life looks like
The fruit of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance” (Galatians 5:22-23). Christ’s character being formed in us is the clearest sign of the filling. Boldness to witness: “ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me” (Acts 1:8). Spiritual gifts placed at the service of others: teaching, service, mercy, wisdom, faith, healing and many more (1 Corinthians 12:4-11). Read The gifts of the Holy Spirit. A life of prayer in which the Spirit intercedes for us (Romans 8:26). Love for God’s Word, because the Spirit guides us into all truth (John 16:13). Unity with our brothers and sisters (Ephesians 4:3).
What hinders the filling
The Bible warns of two attitudes that obstruct the Spirit’s work. The first: “grieve not the holy Spirit of God” (Ephesians 4:30). In context, Paul mentions lying, uncontrolled anger, stealing, corrupt words, bitterness, clamour and evil speaking (Ephesians 4:25-31). The Spirit is a Person who is grieved when we live in sin. The second: “Quench not the Spirit” (1 Thessalonians 5:19). As a fire is put out, we can quench his work through indifference, unbelief, disobedience or rejecting his guidance. Read How to overcome the temptations of the flesh.
How to seek the filling of the Spirit
1. Give your life to Christ. The Holy Spirit glorifies Jesus; the filling begins with yielding control of our lives to him. Read Have you given your life to Christ?. 2. Confess your sins. A clean heart is a ready vessel (1 John 1:9). 3. Ask in faith. Jesus promised: “how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” (Luke 11:13). 4. Abide in the Word. The Spirit speaks through the Scriptures he himself inspired. 5. Obey. God gives his Spirit “to them that obey him” (Acts 5:32). 6. Worship and give thanks. As in Antioch and in Ephesians 5, praise makes room for God’s presence. 7. Seek fellowship. Pentecost happened when they were “all with one accord in one place”. 8. Serve. The Spirit fills us so that we may flow out to others.
Different traditions, one Spirit
Christians understand some aspects of the Spirit’s work in different ways. Pentecostal and charismatic churches speak of a “baptism in the Holy Spirit” as an experience after conversion, often accompanied by the gift of tongues. The Catholic and Orthodox traditions link the gift of the Spirit to baptism and to confirmation or chrismation. Many evangelical and Reformed churches teach that every believer receives the Spirit on believing and must seek to be continually filled with him. Beyond these differences, all recognise that without the Holy Spirit there is no authentic Christian life. Read Ecumenism.
Prayer
Holy Spirit, today I speak to you. Forgive me, for so often I have lived as though you were not there, as though faith depended on my effort. I have grieved you with my sin and quenched you with my haste and indifference. And still you have not left. Come. Come as wind, and carry off what is dead in me. Come as fire, and burn away what is not of God. Come as water, for I am dry. Come as a dove, and rest your peace upon me. I hand you the helm I find so hard to release. Fill me, not so that I may feel something, but so that I may be like Jesus. Let rivers of living water flow from within me towards those who are thirsty around me. Give me your gifts for serving, and your fruit for loving. Set me apart for God, wholly, without reserve. And teach me to hear your gentle voice amid so much noise. Come, Holy Spirit. Here is your home. Amen.