Not Feeling the Spirit Move There?

by Terry Wane Benton

I've heard several speak of attending various churches and "not feeling the Spirit move" there. This idea is foreign to the Bible. Feelings have never been the detector of the Spirit of God. If you rely upon feelings, you are not relying upon the Spirit of God. You are relying upon your feelings that can easily be deceived or mistaken.

Since the devil transforms himself into an "angel of light" (II Corinthians 11:13-14) and there are "deceiving spirits" (I Timothy 4:1ff) at work, how would you know that deceiving spirits are not making you think that the Spirit of God is not present at a church gathering? Perhaps your feelings are being used by the deceiver!

The real Holy Spirit is associated with the truth He revealed (John 17:17; 16:13; I Corinthians 2:10-16; II John 9-10). Perhaps people need to seek the already revealed truth, rather than taking the lazy route of "feeling" and trying to "sense" whether they think the Spirit of God is present. If the truth given by the Spirit is present, then that is the measure of whether God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit are present. If the truth is in us, then the Spirit is in us. If we do not bring this doctrine, then God is not with us.

"Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds" (II John 9-11 NKJV).

God is inseparable from His word and our true association with His word. We can only know the things of God through the revelation God gave by the Spirit in the Bible. So, don't criticize a group because you don't "feel" something in the air, but rather investigate whether truth is taught and practiced from the heart there.