How do you know someone is Spirit filled?
Discussion question for January 7, 2011.
One of the qualifications for deacon in Acts 6 is that the man be Spirit filled. How would the apostles and Christians of the early church know? What manifestations would be certain? How do you know you are Spirit filled? How can you tell when someone else is?
Here’s my summary of our discussion.
The presence of the Holy Spirit is manifested by signs and wonders. All the gifts of the Spirit would be considered supernatural, and some are more physically obvious than others. That is why Acts 19 uses the speaking of tongues as a diagnostic characteristic that the Gentiles were filled with the Spirit. But it also lists prophesy.
The apostles were looking for spiritual gifts operating in the candidates for deacon. That would have included giving, helps, administration, leadership, pastor and teacher. This would be the first indication that the Spirit was present in that person.
The second part is whether someone is Spirit filled. This requires them to be operating under the power of the Spirit all the time (filled). To be filled means to be yielded to the power of the Spirit, allowing His purposes to be the motivating factor.
When someone is filled with the Spirit they will also be walking by the Spirit. According to Ephesians 5:16, then they will not be walking in the flesh. You know someone is Spirit filled by the way they live their life. This is especially evident by how they deal with temptations, or if they seem to be mostly immune to them. If they regularly struggle, they may have the Spirit but not be Spirit filled.
When someone is filled with the Spirit they will also produce the fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-23 list the characteristics of the way they live: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control.
The fruit of the Spirit can be faked, and some of the gifts of the Spirit can also. When someone acts like they are Spirit filled by pretending to have the fruit or gifts it doesn’t last, nor does it fulfill God’s purposes. The power of the Spirit is to be used for supernatural purposes, and the one filled with the Spirit will always do that. It is part of being yielded.
It seems like a person that is Spirit filled is able to discern that another person is also Spirit filled. However, a person that is not Spirit filled sometimes can’t tell. This is where your spirit testifies with the Spirit so that you can discern the things of God from the things of man.
Holy Spirit fakers have done a lot of damage to the church and non-believers. By emulating the power of God they cause people to turn away from the supernatural power of God. This is why Jesus taught that not everyone is operating under the power of the Spirit (Matthew 7:21-23) even though they have signs like prophesy, casting out demons, and doing miracles. But those that do these same things according to the will of God will enter the Kingdom of heaven.