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  THE CHURCH WITHOUT THE SPIRIT
  by Samuel Chadwick
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Summary: The Church's success depends on its reliance on the power of
the Holy Spirit, not on human efforts or self-confidence.

Topics: "Holy Spirit", "Church Revival"
Scripture References: Zechariah 4:6, Acts 1:8, Romans 8:26, 1 Corinthians 3:16, Ephesians 6:18

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DESCRIPTION
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Samuel Chadwick emphasizes the vital role of the Holy Spirit in the
Church, stating that the Spirit fills, directs, and empowers the Body of
Christ. He warns against man-managed churches and ministries that lack
the Spirit's power, highlighting the importance of prayer as the test of
faith and the secret of power. Chadwick stresses that miracles,
conviction, and true salvation come from the Spirit of God, not human
efforts or worldly influences. He calls for a return to relying on the
Holy Spirit's presence and power to bring life and transformation to the
Church.

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CONTENT
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The Church is the Body of Christ, and the Spirit is the Spirit of
Christ. He fills the Body, directs its movements, controls its members,
inspires its wisdom, supplies it's strength. He guides into truth,
sanctifies its agents, and empowers for witnessing. The Spirit has never
abdicated His authority nor relegated His power. Neither Pope nor
Parliament, neither Conference nor Council is supreme in the Church of
Christ. The Church that is man-managed instead of God-governed is doomed
to failure. A ministry that is College-trained but not Spirit-filled
works no miracles. The Church that multiplies committees and neglects
prayer may be fussy, noisy, enterprising, but it labors in vain and
spends its strength for nought. It is possible to excel in mechanics and
fail in dynamic.

There is a superabundance of machinery; what is wanting is power. To run
an organization needs no God. Man can supply the energy, enterprise, and
enthusiasm for things human. The real work of a Church depends upon the
power of the Spirit. The Presence of the Spirit is vital and central to
the work of the Church. Nothing else avails. Apart from Him, wisdom
becomes folly, and strength weakness. The Church is called to be a
"spiritual house" and a holy priesthood. Only spiritual people can be
its "living stones," and only the Spirit-filled its priests.

The Church always fails at the point of self-confidence. When the Church
is run on the same lines as a circus, there may be crowds, but there is
no Shekinah. That is why prayer is the test of faith and the secret of
power.

The Spirit of God travails in the prayer-life of the soul. Miracles are
the direct work of His power, and without miracles the Church cannot
live. The carnal can argue, but it is the Spirit of God that convicts.
Education can civilize, but it is being born of the Spirit that saves.
The energy of the flesh can run bazaars, organize amusements, and raise
millions; but it is the presence of the Holy Spirit that makes a Temple
of the Living God. The root-trouble of the present distress is that the
Church has more faith in the world and in the flesh than in the Holy
Ghost, and things will get no better till we get back to His realized
presence and power. The breath of the four winds would turn death into
life and dry bones into mighty armies, but it only comes by PRAYER!

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Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/samuel-chadwick/the-church-without-the-spirit/
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