Our motives for wanting divine guidance may not always be as free of self-interest as we think. One of our chief concerns in life is to avoid loss to ourselves, and for this reason even pagans are brought to their knees. Loss of wealth is of great concern to some. Others are anxious to preserve their health, while the possibility of losing face is a primary motive with many who seek divine direction.
In our folly we assume that it is important to seek help for special occasions only, whereas it is God’s pleasure to make it available to us constantly. This is not to say that there may not be good reason for extra concern when we arrive at a fork in the road of life and are perplexed as to which is the right path. But let us remind ourselves that God’s way may not always preserve us from the fulfillment of the fears that are outlined above. If those are the primary concern of the Christian, he will not be able to read God’s guidance when it is made known. He must want God’s will for the sheer pleasure and privilege of doing it, with little regard for his own well-being. This is the story of the cross:
“Father, if Thou be willing, remove this cup from Me: nevertheless, not My will, but Thine, be done” (Luke 22:42).
THE USE OF THE TERM
However, the main concern of this article is the matter of the leading of the Spirit, a privilege experienced by every believer but often little understood and enjoyed. (For some reason we who seek to practice the priesthood of all believers in some of the meetings of the church, and especially in the Breaking of Bread, tend to think of the Spirit’s leading as something to be sought almost exclusively for that occasion. Truly we may experience it then, but the fact that we confine it to such times means that we are often unaware of His leading in other situations, those that are perhaps quite secular and ordinary.)
There are only two passages in Scripture that speak of the leading of the Spirit in connection with the believer. Neither of these deal with church meetings. In fact, they speak of what is the natural outcome of being born into the family of God and the result of being delivered from the Law.
“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God” (Rom. 8:14).
“But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the Law” (Gal. 5:18).
We should note here that neither of these verses exhorts us to be sensitive or responsive to the Holy Spirit’s direction. They simply state that His leading is a fact for all who belong to Christ.
What does this teach us? Surely it focuses our attention on the complete change of motivation, the major revolution that takes place when a person truly believes on the Lord Jesus and becomes the shrine of the Holy Spirit. His stimulus to action, what he does naturally, is now the will of God. He does not do it only because he ought to, but because he wants to. This leading of the Spirit will become true for him even when he gives way to the flesh, for the Holy Spirit will oppose the action–a thing which never took place before. A man might have been bothered by his conscience, but never directed and urged from within to repent and do what pleases God instead.
IN ASSEMBLY MEETINGS
Perhaps we may ask: “But does not the leading of the Holy Spirit affect our actions when we come together to remember the Lord?” Of course, it does.
Here we return to our first statements about the will of God not always providing safe conduct for us through all situations. When believers meet together the primary concern of the Holy Spirit is not to preserve us from making mistakes. If we become occupied with our image, our ability (or inability!) to pray or praise effectively, if we are overly occupied with ourselves or critical of others who do not conform to what we think is appropriate, we are not being led by the Spirit but rather quenching His operation (1 Thess. 5:19, 20). Furthermore, if we communicate our dissatisfaction to others we will put them, in a practical sense, under law. They will struggle to meet our requirements.
Is there not teaching then to help us determine what would be the leading of the Spirit on such occasions? We believe there is, and it is given in the Word He has written.
The writer would suggest that there are three key words that, if remembered and applied before we attempt to participate with others in worship or prayer or before speaking from the Scriptures, we would be kept from mistaking His leading.
The first word is glorify. “If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister (serve), let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 4:11).
I must therefore ask myself whether what I am planning to say will exalt the Lord. Sometimes even a word of testimony may draw attention away from the Lord and focus instead upon the speaker and his experience. Especially at the Breaking of Bread we wish to center our thoughts upon Christ and not on ourselves.
The second word is unify. Will my participation draw the hearts of God’s people together as one? Am I speaking about what we all share in common? Is it in harmony with what the others (whom I may assume are also being led of the Spirit) have already been saying and doing?
“Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like-minded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 15:5, 6).
The third word is edify. “What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification” (1 Cor. 14:26).
The spontaneity of the Holy Spirit must not be jeopardized by human rules, but here is a God-given check upon a fleshly desire to be heard without due concern as to the content of the speech. The words “edify,” “edification,” etc., appear seven times in the first twenty-six verses of 1 Corinthians 14. Being led of the Spirit does not do away with the necessity to think about one’s actions and to consider whether what I do will truly build God’s people up. “The spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints” (vv. 32-33).
To sum up, if we desire to be responsive to the leading of the Spirit, let us not be too concerned about ourselves and our image, else we may be forever silent. The checks on fleshly haste are: 1. Will my participation glorify the Lord? 2. Will it unify my brethren? And 3. Will they be edified? When these things are happening we may be confident that we are being led of the Spirit.
Finally, we would suggest that those most accustomed to being led by the Spirit in their domestic, business and personal lives will be most able to discern His leading in the assembly. We cannot expect to be jerked out of a pattern of carnal thinking and conduct simply because we are with others of like precious faith. Let us seek to respond positively and unreservedly to His leading all the time. What a testimony to the world we will then become.