Vance Havner told the story about how when
he was a young man, he met an
old man while traveling on a train.
Havner recognized the white bearded man immediately.
It was R.A. Torrey, who was D
.O. Moody's colleague and friend.
Vance Havner slowly approached R.A. Torrey and
asked him if there was any advice he
could give a young preacher boy like himself.
With steely eyes and a shaky voice, Torrey
answered, Always remember, you can have as much
of the Holy Spirit you want so long
as he can have as much of you
as he wants.
I don't think we preachers today appreciate that
remark, at least not on a personal level.
There is a dearth of authoritative preaching in
the land.
The generation of preachers who knew about the
Spirit's anointing are long gone from our midst.
We have an abundance of personalities in the
pulpit and are shared professionals.
But where, oh where, is the prophet of
God today who has God's mantle of authority?
In the book of 2 Kings, we read
in chapter 2, in verses 8 and 9,
And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it
together, and smote the waters.
And they were divided, hither and thither, so
that they, too, went over on dry ground.
And it came to pass, when they were
gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask
what I shall do for thee, before I
be taken away from thee.
And Elijah said, I pray thee, let a
double portion of the Spirit be upon me.
And we see, friends, over in verse 13,
He took up also the mantle of Elijah
that fell from him, and went back, and
stood by the bank of Jordan.
And he took the mantle of Elijah that
fell from him, and smote the waters, and
said, O where is the Lord God of
Elijah?
And when he also had smitten the waters,
they parted hither and thither, and Elisha went
over.
We need that kind of power today, friends.
I want to relate to you what my
homiletical mentor, Dr. Stephen Oford, once shared with
me.
And if anybody ever heard Stephen Oford preach,
you knew he was a man with the
Spirit's anointing upon him.
His preaching was transformational to many who heard
him.
He related to me one day the following
advice.
He said, The Word of God cannot be
mastered until we are mastered by the God
of the Word.
There's a lot in that statement, friends.
When I was writing the authorized biography of
J.
Siddall Baxter, I came across something he wrote
in his personal papers.
And I want to share with you today
because it fits nicely into our subject.
Dr. Baxter wrote, What I give to Him,
He takes.
What He takes, He cleanses.
What He cleanses, He fills.
And what He fills, He uses.
I like that because it's true.
And I agree with R.
A.
Torrey's advice to Vance Havner that we can
have as much of the Holy Spirit we
want so long as He can have as
much of us as He wants.
I like another remark by Siddall Baxter which
states, How can a man full of himself
preach to Christ who emptied himself?
When I think of someone God used in
an incredible way, it was David Brainerd, the
missionary to the Indians in New York.
Brainerd was a special man because Brainerd had
the power of God upon him.
Reading David Brainerd's diary is a profitable exercise
for any Christian who wants to go deeper
with God.
I highly recommend it to you, friends.
Anyway, Brainerd preached with power from on high
because he was a man empty of self.
He wrote in his journal, Went to the
meeting house, ashamed to see anyone come to
hear such an unspeakable, worthless wretch.
However, God enabled me to speak with clearness,
power, and pungency.
It is my prayer that some young preacher
boy will go get along with God and
ask God to get a hold of him
and fill him with His Holy Spirit so
he can preach God's Word with God's authority
to God's people for our day.
Let us pray.