The Two Baptisms
To experience the fullness of the Spirit, one must yield to the preparatory work of God's Spirit in conviction and waiting, turning away from self and the world.
Andrew Murray emphasizes the importance of understanding the two stages of spiritual life: the stage of failure and the stage of divine power. He encourages believers to fully desire the fullness of the Spirit, urging them to turn away from self and worldly distractions. Murray asserts that a heart wholly set on receiving God's blessings cannot be disappointed, and that true fulfillment comes from yielding to the Spirit's preparatory work. He calls for a complete trust in God, highlighting that the desire for the Spirit must be the primary focus in one's spiritual journey.
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Let all who are in the personal search of the fullness of God's blessing note this well. Would you in your own experience understand the connection between the two stages in your spiritual life, the one of failure in which you live and the better one of power of which God speaks to you, hold fast the thought: the desire of the heart, that with all its strengths turns itself from all that it has to receive all God has for it cannot be disappointed. There are some who have a desire for the fullness of the Spirit, but not as the only one thing they seek: it is only one desire among others. They have not turned away from everything of self, and the world, and the church. ...
Let us yield ourselves to the teaching and action of the preparatory work of God's Spirit in conviction, and waiting: the desire wholly set, in despair of self and trust in God, on the fullness of the Spirit, must be fulfilled.
(Excerpted from The Cross of Christ, by Andrew Murray, pg. 152-153)
Sermon Outline
- The Two Stages of Spiritual Life
- The Connection Between the Two Stages
- The Stage of Failure
- The Stage of Power
- The Desire of the Heart
- Turning Away from Self and the World
Key Quotes
“the desire of the heart, that with all its strengths turns itself from all that it has to receive all God has for it cannot be disappointed” — Andrew Murray
“Let us yield ourselves to the teaching and action of the preparatory work of God's Spirit in conviction, and waiting” — Andrew Murray
“the desire wholly set, in despair of self and trust in God, on the fullness of the Spirit, must be fulfilled” — Andrew Murray
Application Points
- Turn away from self and the world in order to receive the fullness of the Spirit.
- Yield yourself to the teaching and action of the preparatory work of God's Spirit in conviction and waiting.
- Trust in God alone for the fullness of the Spirit.