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  THE INNER WITNESS OF THE SPIRIT
  by A.W. Tozer
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Summary: A.W. Tozer explores the workings of the Holy Spirit in the life
of believers, emphasizing the importance of recognizing divine witness
and the new birth.

Topics: "Holy Spirit", "New Birth"
Scripture References: John 3:3, John 14:26, Acts 1:8, Romans 8:16, 1 Corinthians 12:7, 2 Corinthians 1:21-22, Galatians 4:6, Ephesians 1:13-14, 1 Thessalonians 5:19, 1 John 5:10

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DESCRIPTION
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A.W. Tozer explores the concept of the inner workings of the Holy
Spirit, particularly focusing on prevenient grace, which manifests as a
deep longing for God, conviction of sin, and a desire for spiritual
deliverance. He emphasizes that while many divine operations occur
without our awareness, the new birth and the anointing of the Holy
Spirit are experiences that we recognize. Tozer highlights the
importance of the Spirit's testimony within us, affirming our identity
as God's children, and cautions against subjective interpretations of
spiritual experiences that can lead to confusion in the faith community.

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CONTENT
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Then, there is another kind of divine working that may occur without our
being aware of it, or at least without our recognizing it for what it
is. This is that wondrous operation of God known in theology as
prevenient grace. It may be simple "conviction," or a strange longing
which nothing can satisfy, or a powerful aspiration after eternal
values, or a feeling of disgust for sin and a desire to be delivered
from its repulsive coils. These strange workings within are the
stirrings of the Holy Spirit but are rarely identified as such by the
soul that is undergoing the experience.

But there are two acts of God within the life of the seeking man that
are never done without his knowledge. One is the miracle of the new
birth and the other is the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

Of the new birth, Paul explicitly states, "The Spirit himself testifies
with our spirit, that we are God's children" (Romans 8:16), and John
says, "Anyone who believes in the Son of God has this testimony in his
heart" (1 John 5:10). These passages declare the fact of a divine
witness but do not state the nature of it. This has made it possible for
various people to read into it their own peculiar psychological
reactions and set up those reactions as criteria by which they judge the
spiritual claims of everyone. Some at the time of their conversion have
felt unusually light on their feet; others have heard voices or seen
lights or felt an unseen hand pass over them. In some places, the new
convert must shout aloud or his profession is not accepted.

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Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/aw-tozer/the-inner-witness-of-the-spirit/
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