1 Thessalonians 5:19 Quench not the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is more than "Emmanuel, God with us." He is God in us. Until He so comes we are ruined; when He comes the ruin becomes a living temple. No man can explain this; and yet every striving, expanding soul exults in the sacred belief. How awful, then, the power given to a man to quench the Spirit. How? By any unfair dealing with the laws and principles of our nature, by which lie works. He uses memory for conviction, conscience for condemnation or justification, understanding for enlightenment, will for invigoration, affections for happiness; and if we refuse to allow these faculties to be so used, we are quenching the Spirit. The Spirit's work is — I. CONVICTION OF SIN. He takes a sinner, and makes memory a scourge to him: shows him the holiness of God and the sinfulness of sin. It is a most gracious opportunity; but, alas! he misses it, stifles memory and silences conscience, and thus quenches the Spirit. Christians, too, when convinced of sin may quench the Spirit if they do not take heed. II. REVELATION. "He shall receive of mine," etc. In conducting this great work He uses every kind of suitable instrumentality — the inspired writings, the spoken word, thoughtful books, Christian conversation, etc. It follows, then, that if we do not search the Scriptures and take kindly the ministries of truth we are shutting out of our hearts the waiting Spirit of God. III. SEALING OR SETTING APART. When men are born by His regenerating power from above they are marked for their celestial destination, and set apart for God. He renews His sealing process again and again, retouching His work and bringing out the Divine inscriptions. Any one who resists this process, who does not often think of the Father and the Father's house, and who minds earthly things is quenching the Spirit. Christian people, too, have thoughts given to them purely as sealing thoughts; they are not needed for duty or life here, but for higher service and the life to come. One is earlier down some morning than usual, and in the short moment of quietness looks far away into the land of sunless light. One is struck suddenly — at the high noon of city life — with the utter vanity of all the fever and toil and strife. Or at night there falls upon the house a little visitation of silence. Quench not the Spirit in any of these His gracious comings. (A. Raleigh, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: Quench not the Spirit. |
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