What Spirit Are Ye Of?
The Lord's Spirit is one of love, forgiveness, and salvation, and we must be careful not to act out of a different spirit, driven by a desire for destruction or unloving actions.
G.W. North reflects on an incident from Luke 9:51-56, where the apostles, frustrated by the Samaritans' rejection of Jesus, ask if they should call down fire from heaven like Elijah. Jesus rebukes them, stating, 'ye know not what spirit ye are of,' highlighting that their desire for vengeance was not aligned with His spirit of love, grace, and forgiveness. North emphasizes that while the apostles had gifts of faith or miracles, they lacked the true Spirit of Christ, as they had not yet been baptized into Him. This incident illustrates the distinction between being part of Jesus' company and embodying His Spirit, which is essential for true discipleship. The sermon calls for believers to reflect on the spirit they operate in and to align themselves with the spirit of Christ.
Text
Recalling an incident from the history of the earthly life of the Lord Jesus as recorded in Luke 9.51-56, will suffice us for an illustration of this great truth. It occurred during the course of the Lord's final journey up to Jerusalem and His ultimate victory there. The apostles, incensed by the attitude of some Samaritans towards the Lord, said to Him, 'shall we call down fire from heaven and consume them as Elijah did?' To this the Lord answered, 'ye know not what spirit ye are of ...', which shows that although greatly privileged at that time, the apostles did not have nor could they function in the same Spirit as the Lord.
His Spirit is the spirit of salvation, preservation, grace, love, forgiveness, but theirs was not, so He restrained and reproved them.
What they wanted to do was quite foreign to His Spirit, but then they were not members of His body at that time. Therefore they were not of Him, nor could they be, for they had not as yet been baptised into Him and it. They were of His company, but not of His Spirit. We may safely assume that they had either the gift of faith or of miracles, perhaps even both, for they were quite certain that they could actually call down fire, and perform the destructive miracle. Seemingly they had the gift which enabled them to do so, but the Spirit of the Body, and therefore of Christ, would not have been manifested by such an act. And no wonder either, for these men were seeking to model themselves upon Elijah, it was he who had performed the miracle which the apostles wanted to emulate.
Sermon Outline
- The Spirit of the Lord
- The apostles' misunderstanding of the Lord's Spirit
- The Lord's restraint and reproof of the apostles
- He restrained them from acting on their desire
- He reproved them for their misunderstanding of His Spirit
- They had not been baptized into the Lord's Spirit
Key Quotes
“Ye know not what spirit ye are of...” — G.W. North
“His Spirit is the spirit of salvation, preservation, grace, love, forgiveness, but theirs was not...” — G.W. North
Application Points
- We must be careful to ensure that our actions and desires are in line with the Spirit of the Lord.
- Being a member of the Lord's company does not necessarily mean having His Spirit.
- The Lord's Spirit is one of love, forgiveness, and salvation, and we should strive to emulate this spirit in our lives.