Think about a church’s “spiritual energy” as the total of hours and dollars participants give to the shared life and work of that congregation. Now consider these observations from church consultant Ed Stetzer:
- The Spirit-oriented Pentecostal and charismatic movements continue to expand, and many are shying away from oddities and excesses in their past, like speaking in tongues.
- Evangelicals are moving toward the theology of Spirit-filled and Spirit-led ministries.
- Forty years ago, 30% of the US population self-identified with mainline denominations; now it is about 15%. Their loss of energy is most obvious in empty pews and buildings.
A good way for a traditional church to regain spiritual energy is to focus more on how the Holy Spirit energizes Christian fellowships. Classical Lutheran and Calvinist theology left the biblical teachings on the Third Person of the Trinity poorly developed.
My intent is to offer fresh perspectives on what Jesus teaches about his Spirit and how Paul explains the role of the Spirit in Christian church life. Ultimately the Spiritual energy of a congregation is a reflection of how well the Spirit has energized the individual participants, who add their energy to that church’s fellowship.
A modern term gives focus to the Spirit’s work. It is “motivation”—the understanding of what moves people into action. There is no clear biblical equivalent. Motivation provides the missing link in the classical theology of justification by grace through faith, not by works. The act of trusting God’s love and accepting the free gift of Christ’s redemption brings us into the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, who is God’s empowering presence. Christ’s Spirit works on our hearts and brings new priorities that motivate our behaviors. In addition to being saved as a gift of grace, we can also live by the gifts of the Spirit as a second kind of grace.
Luke uses a unique phrase in his Gospel and Book of Acts. Eleven different times he describes a follower of God as “full of the Holy Spirit” combined with something else, best understood as an emotion. One of the ways to recognize the Holy Spirit at work today is in a follower of Christ proclaiming or acting boldly or with special wisdom.
Luke first used the phrase for Elizabeth, who when hearing that Mary was to be the mother of the Messiah, was full of the Holy Spirit and burst out in praise to God. Her husband Zechariah, proud at the birth of his son John, was full of the Holy Spirit and proclaimed praise for the coming Messiah. After the resurrection, Peter was full of the Holy Spirit and boldly proclaimed the Good News to the Sanhedrin. Noting his courage, they marveled that such an illiterate could speak so well. The seven chosen to be food administrators were full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom.
Have you had a special time when, overcome with emotion, you broke out in praise to God? Or have you had a time when you needed to speak about your faith to someone somewhere, and the right words just seemed to flow out of your mouth? Or can you remember when you came up with a unique idea that solved a problem at church that was recognized as especially wise? Now you have a word for it. Then and there you were full of the Holy Spirit. Gain confidence that the Spirit is leading you. Look forward to his next special visitation.
To be full of the Spirit at special times does not mean the Spirit is gone at other times. Like the dove who alighted on Jesus’ shoulder at his baptism, the Spirit is sitting on the shoulder of believers, constantly whispering into your thoughts how to keep in step with him as you go through your day, whether you recognize the Spirit or not. An old word for the Spirit’s nudging is following your conscience.
Paul uses the image of the Spirit being poured out on someone. Think of yourself as a jar receiving the Spirit. But your jar and mine have a hole in it called sin, and our resistance to the Spirit can be strong at times, leaving the jar mostly empty. And then when he is most needed, he comes in a special way, and we become “full of the Spirit” again.
Additional Reading:
- Why do People go to Church?
- Why so Many Young Adults Went Missing
- What’s the Level of Spiritual Energy in your Congregation?
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© 2019 David S. Luecke. All rights reserved. Permission granted to excerpt or reprint with attribution.
Excellent starting point for an activated personal and congregational appropriation of that which is given in Baptism, which is life in the Spirit. Connection to the Old Testament and to the Gifts of the Spirit will assist churches which remain attached to the historic creeds to access the dynamics of Spirit Life – thanks, Dave!
Thanks. Can we use your statement in some future version addressed specifically to Lutherans? Steve Wagner is going to be our mission speaker this year.
Motivation, as you said, is a prime mover in organization dynamics today but also as you said, there is no biblical equivalent.
I have experienced the Holy Spirit more powerfully at times, and less obviously at other times. Nonetheless, I know it is the Holy Spirit at work in my life and in the life of others.
I once knew a social justice pastor who was powerfully moving the church in charismatic direction, but only on the basis of that very work, and not by the Holy Spirit. It was all very deceiving after a friend of mine took the call to the church (after the charismatic pastor left), and exposed the problem, by taking a stand against the homosexuality movement in that church.
We are experiencing less and less of the movement of the Holy Spirit in our ELCA churches because of this misuse of power.
The point is that God’s power is greater, God’s kingdom is greater, than the powers of this world; whatever its motivation or perversion. We may be deceived by the genuiness of someone’s motivations, but the Holy Spirit work is tried and true when the church is aware of the Holy Spirit in her midst.
I pray for the Holy Spirit to be alive and well in my church. Some believe it’s not possible because the ELCA is in heresy and will not listen to the Holy Spirit. My response is that in the larger church that may be so, but individual congregations still have a prophetic voice and their are still some of us pastors ready to boldly proclaim the cross, and the power of the resurrection, and the evidence of this power today, through the Holy Spirit.
Bravo for everything you are saying. I recently had a conversation with a young pastor who bought into the theory that you have to narrow the ministries you will feature in a congregation. That is zero-sum thinking–the bigger piece someone gets means that other pieces will be smaller. He has not yet understood the Spirit can enlarge the pie.
Because I trust you, Pastor Luecke, I went ahead and read your blog after your sentence. “Think about a church’s “spiritual energy” as the total of hours and dollars participants give to the shared life and work of that congregation.” I do not consider this my definition or idea about spiritual energy. I think many of us can remember people in our lives who spent a lot of time at the church and pledge a tithe or more, but … when we examine their ‘fruit’, they do not appear to bring forth the fruit of the Spirit.
Many years ago, I attended a home Bible Study led by my pastor’s wife. She was encouraging us not be judgemental in our views of other people. However, she suggested that we be ‘fruit inspectors’. I loved your comment about how the early Christians were filled with the Spirit AND…( a fruit of The Spirit?)
Galatians 5: 22-23 (Message)
But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.
Thank you for thought-provoking blogs.
Marilyn
I don’t understand the charismatic movement of the 60s-70s. It came and soon left. It did not precipitate a larger movement. I thought that movement was Promise Keepers, but that soon died out. It was a wonderful ministry that changed the lives of a lot of men.
Pastor Luecke,
Thank you for writing this blog and offering it to all of us.
I’ve experienced many times the Holy Spirit’s presence, especially as we grew the school, as well as in my personal life. It’s a remarkable and blessed feeling. My struggle is to always be listening and be aware for the Spirit to lead me.
I just recently wrote to someone about how our RR school is the biggest in our Ohio District. I commented that we just started it 20 years ago. Yes, the Spirit had to have been in it.
Once you understand the gifts of the Holy Spirit, these gifts become a part of your life. You then ask the Holy Spirit to fill your life with even more of His gifts. We must realize that the Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity and actively works in the hearts and souls of people. This realization has made a huge impact on my life
Annette, great description of what happens when the Spirit works on a believer’s heart. You identify what you have to do to get the Spirit to work on your heart–put yourself n the Spirit’s workshop, that is in a fellowship of believers gathered around God’s Word.
Dave, you continue to bring optimism with the bountiful information and reality check about our churches in your blog comments. I have always loved your enthusiasm for the Holy Spirit. I just read the six perspectives of the Spirit and felt I had been given a wonderful gift, one I can explore more fully with such a love to gain more “Spiritual Energy”. Your blogs are a treasure to all that read them. I look forward to exploring all of them.
Thanks Elaine. There does seem to be momentum behind these blogs. I think the Spirit may be moving. We now have 22,000 who are receiving the weekly blog.
That is fantastic to have that many viewers. Definitely, the Spirit is working! Prayers go with you that that number will double or triple!