The Holy Spirit

Question: Does the Holy Spirit live in and remain with the believer, or does He come and go?

I know of no place in the Bible where it is recorded that He comes and goes from the believer. It is true that the Spirit of the Lord departed from King Saul (1 Samuel 16:14), but we have no reason to believe that Saul was a true believer, a regenerate man. The Holy Spirit dwells in the believer, according to the teaching of Jesus Christ (John 14:17). The believer may grieve Him (Ephesians 4:30), but the Bible does not say that the believer "grieves Him away," as it is sometimes quoted as saying. Indeed, it distinctly says that even though we grieve Him, we are "sealed for the day of redemption" (v. 30). The believer, through sin or worldliness, may lose the consciousness of the indwelling presence of the Spirit of God. However, losing the consciousness of His presence and power is one thing; actually losing His presence is another. The Holy Spirit may withdraw into the innermost sanctuary of the believer's spirit, behind the believer's conscious awareness of His indwelling, but He is still there.

There is, however, a work of the Holy Spirit upon a person that is short of regeneration, as in conviction. In such a case, He may come and go.

Question: Please discuss waiting on God for power for service.

Our Lord Jesus distinctly taught in Acts 1:8 that there is a definite endowment of power from the  Holy Spirit for those who seek it. The experience of thousands of ministers and other believers proves the same. This power is received under the following conditions:

First, that we rest absolutely on the finished work of Christ as the only basis for our acceptance before God.

Second, that we put out of our lives every known sin.

Third, that we surrender absolutely to God for Him to use us as he wills.

Fourth, that we openly confess our acceptance of Jesus Christ as our Saviour and Lord before the world.

Fifth, that we really desire this anointing.

Sixth, that we definitely ask for it.

Seventh, that we take by faith what we ask for (Mark 11:24; 1 John 5:14-15).

There does not need to be a long time of waiting. God is ready to give the Holy Spirit at once (Luke 11:13). Of course, waiting on God is something that every believer should practice. Undoubtedly, God gives His Spirit when people individually or together spend a longtime in prayer before Him, thus recognizing and acknowledging their dependence upon Him. However, the teaching that a person may have to wait a month or six months for "his Pentecost" has no foundation in the Bible.

~R. A. Torrey~