Right or Wrong? Renewed interest in the Holy Spirit

The fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) comprise a composite of virtues. Is the renewed emphasis on the Holy Spirit a quest to build Christ-like character or another tactic to boost church attendance?

The well-documented decline of not only church attendance, but also all measurable indices of healthy Christianity—giving, Bible reading, baptisms, etc.—have American church leaders looking for solutions. One prescription for renewed spiritual vitality is to counter the superficiality of American cultural Christianity by offering a deeper, Spirit-led Christian experience. “Living in the Spirit” emphasizes yielding one’s life to the Holy Spirit’s control and utilizes an increase of the fruit of the Spirit in the disciple’s life as one measure of spiritual growth.

Certainly no Bible-believing Christian would fault any person or church for promoting Spirit-led living. Unfortunately, we live in a chaotic advertising- and marketing-driven culture, where everyone wants to have more love, joy and peace in their lives and is willing to try almost anything to experience these “emotions.”

Not an emotional ‘Nirvana’

Therein is the two-fold problem. First, the fruit of the Spirit is not an emotional state of Christian Nirvana. Second, offering people the peace and joy of the Holy Spirit can be either a legitimate means of evangelism and renewal or a cynical exploitation of people’s perceived needs to bolster institutional survival. Unfortunately, churches often deceive themselves regarding their motivation.

The litmus test for both understanding our own motivations and determining whether our efforts are going to produce deeper Christians or dissatisfied consumers can be found in the path we outline for people to follow to experience the fruit of the Spirit. Does that path lead through repentance, changed values and the Cross? Or is it a path based on positive thinking and outstanding motivational speaking?

Not preaching what people want to hear

The Prophet Jeremiah said of the false prophets of his day: “They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. ‘Peace, peace,’ they say, when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14). He condemns those who were preaching what the people want to hear—peace possible without repentance and true change. In our day, people want love, joy and peace without laying down materialism and self-centeredness and instead placing Christ and his values at the center of their lives.

The Bible teaches, “You reap what you sow.” For congregations that teach the biblical promise of the fruit of the Spirit within the context of “the whole counsel of God,” a renewed emphasis on Spirit-led living may or may not produce numerical growth, but it certainly will produce spiritual growth. For churches that market the fruit of the Spirit to the public and congregation as a spiritual analgesic that can be used to obtain the desired results without true repentance and changed values, there will be further defection as people realize they have been deceived and offered a counterfeit.

Alan D. Stanford, senior pastor

Leesburg Community Church

Leesburg , Va.

If you have a comment about this column or wish to ask a question for a future column, contact Bill Tillman, consulting ethicist for “Right or Wrong?” at btillman150@gmail.com.