It's good to see everyone here:) I seem to be falling into a pattern these days - someone will say something in a previous study that will give me an idea for the next one. Last week we concluded our examination of the book of Esther, and at one point, for some reason I can't quite recall, this verse was brought up: "Quench not the Spirit." (1Th 5:19)

This week, I've been wondering - why does that statement get a verse all to itself? A lot of the time you'll find the Biblical writers' ideas in little pargraphs, and sometimes you have to subdivide even the verses themselves to get at a particular point. But this one's just laid out plain - Quench not the Spirit.

I don't think there'll be anything particularly "new" or sensational in this study, but there are a few things that may be a blessing to the hearers, for going over familiar (or what should be familiar) ground also has its place. As it is written: "For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till He come." (1 Cor 11:26)

The bread remember, is not only a wafer we take once a month, or week, or whenever... but also His Word, the things He has commanded to be written for us to "chew" on.

So there are a few things we're going to try and answer tonight: What does it mean to quench the Spirit? How do people do it? How can we NOT do it? And lastly, what can we expect to see happening when we follow Paul's advice in this matter?

The nature of the Holy Spirit is one of the Bible's great mysteries. As a part of the Godhead, it can't be really compared to anything existing in nature.

Look at these three verses, each of them speaking of the Spirit: "All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils." (Job 27:3) "And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them." (Acts 2:3) "For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring." (Isa 44:3)

Air, fire and now water... to all of these is the Spirit of the Most High compared. So then... the Spirit is like... everything, in a way.

The major reason for the second Commandment was a reflection of this principle, that there's nothing we can conceive of that would adequately represent Him, in any of His parts: "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments." (Exo 20:4-6)

But now that's an interesting way to phrase it. Why does He connect the promise of His favor, and warnings of His displeasure, to this commandment in particular? Why not to "Thou shalt not steal," for example? You'll notice that most of the others are basically "thou shalt nots," so why the extra wording to this one?

I think it's related to this verse: "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:3)

Neither is this limited to New Testament doctrine: "Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in His fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? what is His name, and what is His Son's name, if thou canst tell?" (Pro 30:4)

The blessing is in knowing God, and in knowing that there is nothing on earth, or heaven, or in our imagination, that we can compare Him to: and that His Spirit is beyond our ability to understand.

If we read Romans, we find that when we lose sight of the "image" of our Father, we run into problems.

"Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient." (Rom 1:22,23,25,28)

Paul then goes on to list the things that losing sight of the Most High leads to: wickedness, fornication, lying, envy, gossip; the works of the flesh, basically... and therefore not of the Spirit.

Nevertheless, although He is Spirit, and in our flesh we cannot behold His form, He bids us to know Him - and if He says we can, we can.

So how can we quench this powerful Spirit? It is like fire, and wind, and water - how is it that we can stand against such a force? Well, as we saw from our Study of Esther, the Father will never use more force than is absolutely necessary. Yes, His Spirit is powerful: "By the blast of God they perish, and by the breath of his nostrils are they consumed." (Job 4:9) Yet for those who know Him: "And He said, 'Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord.' And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, 'What doest thou here, Elijah?'" (1 Kings 19:11-13)

So it is to be with us, for Elijah recognized His voice, and did not reject it, even though it was still, and small. He wishes to treat us that way also, as friends. And though there may be storms, and blasts of fire... His favorite method of communicating with us is to speak with us as friends, as gently as a husband to His bride-to-be. "For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." (2 Cor 11:2)

Do you remember the thundering appearance that the Father had when He gave the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai?

"And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled." (Exo 19:16)

But did that fear keep them faithful? No. It's important to our understanding of who our Lord is that we understand that fear and a show of strength were never His best plan. The escapees from Egypt had been so long in the culture and heathen religious atmosphere of their captors, that they would have no conception of a "gentle" Creator... But how much more was His nature represented in Christ, of whom it was prophesied: "A bruised reed shall He not break, and smoking flax shall He not quench, till He send forth judgment unto victory." (Mat 12:20)

This is the face He wants us to understand as being most surely representative of His character, and therefore the still, small voice is the way in which He will speak to His friends. But then, this gives those who are "His friends" a great responsibility.

Powerful as the Holy Spirit of Yahweh is, He will not push, and He will not press - and therefore, He runs a risk, in a manner of speaking, of being ignored. This is how we "quench the Spirit."

Elijah could have misread the signs, and gone out to see the fire, or the earthquake, or the whirlwind... but Elijah also could have stayed in his cave "waiting on the Lord" when the still small voice DID come, and he would have been just as wrong to do either of these. Waiting on the Lord is a good thing, and a necessary thing... but it must never become an excuse to not do the things we already KNOW we must and should do.

The Father gave the commandments with smoke, and fire, and thunder... but did He appear to the congregation every week and demand a behavior report? No... rather He was silent, unless there was an actual emergency.

This is the way He spoke to His people in His way: "Nevertheless He left not himself without witness, in that He did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness." (Acts 14:17)

This is how He communicates... with the good things, often with the little things that we can easily take for granted. But again, because He is gentle, He would rather we step on Him than Him stepping on us... and if we're not careful... we can quench the voice of the Spirit. This is one of the reasons the Messiah warns us time and again about doing that... in many places: "He that hath ears to hear, let him hear." (Mat 14:9) "Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear." (Mark 4:23) "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches." (Rev 3:6)

That last verse is repeated word for word frequently in Revelation, and hear Stephen's admonition to the Sanhedrin, which sounds a lot like Paul's with which we began: "Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye." (Acts 7:51)

Again we see the connection between the hearing, and resisting the Holy Ghost. To hear Him, we must have a "circumcised heart and ears."

Our first two questions were, "What does it mean to quench the Spirit, and how is it that people do this?" I think we have our answer. To quench the Spirit means simply to ignore, downplay or reason away the leadings of the Lord in your life. How do people do it? By taking advantage of His true nature - that of gentleness, love, compassion and mercy. This is known as "licentiousness."

Now, how can we avoid doing this? Well, obviously... by listening :) By simply following the advice given by these verses above (and that was just a tiny sample of the very many), we can avoid this sad state of affairs.

The question may arise, then... how do we know if it's really God's voice, or just our own emotions? And that is a valid question. Generally speaking, we know this of spiritual insights; it is given so that the people may know how to recognize a true prophet, but it has an application in this sense also: "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." (Isa 8:20)

If the "voice in your head" or if the leadings of what you feel is conscience is telling you to do something that you know is wrong, that the Bible has spoken against, it's probably not a safe or wise course of action. Naturally, there are cirumstances where this may not seem to be the case. Abraham is surely one of those: "And he said, 'Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.'" (Gen 22:2)

In a situation like that, however, these things are only said to those who have been following His voice for a very long time, and who are able to bear such a thing... for we know now that this act on Abraham's part was to point far into the future - to the sacrifice of Christ. That Abraham was able to properly recognize Yahweh's voice, so that he would not think it was Satan or some delusion, we know clearly from the Word: "And the Lord said,' Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do, seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?'" (Gen 18:17-18) "And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God." (James 2:23)

They knew each other, and to such a degree that the Lord could ask of Abraham something so unusual, so strange, that it seems almost unlike Him... and yet, "By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, 'That in Isaac shall thy seed be called;' accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received Him in a figure." (Heb 11:17-19)

By this extraordinary act, Abraham, so many years before the Messiah's birth, was made to understand the character and nature of God as revealed in Christ. Of this matter, the best that can be said of what the Holy Spirit may lead you to do is this: "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it." (1 Cor 10:13)

The Father will not put on us more than we can handle... apparently Abraham was able to bear very much.

Of course, there are lots of things that the Word does not specifically mention, and situations which are as clear-cut as the above are rare, and if the principles aren't clear... that is what the Body is there for :)

"Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble." (1 Pet 5:5) Ask the advice of those for whom you hold some form of spiritual respect. It'll be much more difficult to make a mistake that way, for: "Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven." (Mat 18:19)

The goal, of course, is as Paul said it: "And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men." (Acts 24:16)

We are therefore to strive also for this, a clear conscience, but more than this... aside from feeling good about what we're doing, we must also make sure that we are doing the right thing! The balance here is to have an _enlightened_ conscience; one that knows the will of the Father: "For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure." (Phil 2:13)

Notice the two ideas there: both to will (to desire it) and to actually carry it out - and if we can do this with a clear conscience, enjoying the tasks to which our Lord has set us, we've done well, and have not quenched the Spirit of the Most High. Listen, give thanks, and then DO.

Now... what can we expect to happen when we fulfill this teaching?

The more we allow ourselves to be led by the gentle voice of the Creator, the more gentle He will yet become. This is the same One who created all things by a Word, and as we need only His words, and not more visible signposts, to get us to do His will, the more we reflect our status as re-created beings. "For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, 'The just shall live by faith.'" (Rom 1:17)

Obviously, if one is a good servant to an all-powerful master, the results of this should be obvious: "His lord said unto him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.'" (Mat 25:23) "And he said unto him, 'Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.'" (Luke 19:17)

But the benefits of following the still, small voice, are not only that we will be successful in what we do... they may not even be the most important ones. But like Abraham, He may then also ask us to do extraordinary things; acts of faith that may echo in their infleunce down through the ages. From the earliest days of the Chosen People: "Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the Lord God of your fathers giveth you." (Deu 4:1) Right down to the very end of the Bible's prophecy: "Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand." (Rev 1:3)

From the Alpha to the Omega our success is made sure. And here again we have the ingredients to not quenching the Spirit... we must hear, and then we must DO. This is how the relationship, and the Christian walk progresses. Faith to faith, as Romans records.

But an important thing, THE important thing I want us to get out of this study... and out of all these studies, is a good "picture" of God in your mind. "Jesus saith unto him, 'Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?'" (John 14:9)

No idol, no image can represent Him - but in the Person of the Son we can see Him, and can understand His nature. The true picture of God speaking to His children is not the smoking top of a mountain, but the still, small voice that was heard by Elijah, by Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the still, small voice that the Messiah died to give us the authority to work along with, and to have It live in us.

The true picture of Yahweh speaking to His children is a small, warm fire, that even we, who are dust, and ashes... even we have the freedom to ignore. But it need not be that way with us. Hear the voice of the Lord: "O my people, what have I done unto thee? and wherein have I wearied thee? testify against me." (Micah 6:3)

If you remember only one verse from this study, let it be this one... for it is powerful in its simplicity. This is not the voice of a warlord, or a tyrant... or a stern judge; even in the Old Testament, for it would seem some Christians have difficulty recognizing the Savior there. But this is the voice of a Father, and a Friend... earnestly seeking to save us from the snares of this world.

And how is it we must be saved? By faith. And it is said of faith: "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Rom 10:17)

And not only does faith come by the hearing of the Gospel, but the Spirit also, which we are not to quench: "This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?" (Gal 3:2)

Let us always be sensitive, then, to the voice of the Spirit, and hasten to do all our Father's good pleasure, for by faith we shall be saved, and by faith we shall do the works of Christ, and more: "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father." (John 14:12)

It is with His words, then, that I close, and the heart of the study is locked up in what our Lord says to us in the last Book of the Canon. How do we quench not the spirit?

"Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me." (Rev 3:20)

David.