Power, Baptism of
True spiritual power depends on God's presence, not just external conditions or efforts.
One has asked, "Suppose I do receive the baptism of power, and no good results follow, what must I think?" A few years ago, a young engineer was being examined for graduation, when his examiner proposed the following question: "Suppose you have a steam-pump constructed for a ship, under your own supervision, and know that every thing is in perfect working-order, yet, when you throw out the hose, it will not draw. What would you think?"—"I should think, sir, there must be a defect somewhere."—"But such a conclusion is not admissible; for the supposition is, that every thing is perfect, and yet it will not work."—"Then, sir, I should look over the side to see if the river had run dry." So I should look to see if God had vanished from the universe. S. H. Platt.