Don't Quench The Spirit's Fire

Leverage Devotional by Pastor Segun Obadje                                   Thursday, October 16
DON'T QUENCH THE SPIRIT'S FIRE
Ephesians 4:29-31; Ephesians 5:18-19

I Thessalonians 5:19-20 "Quench not the Spirit. Despise not prophesyings."" In the above Scripture, we are exhorted not to quench the Spirit. This immediately suggests to us that the Spirit of God can be quenched. What does it mean to quench the Spirit? We can get a better understanding of the word by looking at a few other Bible versions. The Amplified Bible says "Do not quench (suppress or subdue) the [Holy] Spiritâ¦"" The Phillips New Testament version says "Never damp the fire of the Spiritâ¦"" God's Word version says "Don't put out the Spirit's fire."" From the different Bible translations, it's clear that to quench the Spirit is to suppress Him; it's to damp or put out His fire. One of the Scriptural symbols of the Holy Spirit is fire. On the day of Pentecost, in Acts 2:3 when the Holy Ghost came upon the disciples in the upper room, the Scripture says cloven tongues like fire came upon the disciples. The Holy Spirit comes like fire hence the admonition to not quench Him. To quench the Spirit means that the Holy Spirit is not given room to move or express Himself in our lives either as individuals or as a body of believers gathered together. There are people who think that the Holy Spirit will move whenever He wills and that nothing we do could hinder Him from moving. But 1 Thessalonians 5:19 shows us that we could hinder the Holy Spirit from moving. The next verse, 1 Thessalonians 5:20 says "Despise not prophesyings"". Notice that verse 19 and 20 are linked together. In essence when we despise prophesyings we quench the Spirit of God. This applies to other manifestations and workings of the Holy Spirit too. In 1 Corinthians 14:39, Paul said "Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues."" We must not come to the place where we feel we are too dignified or too sophisticated for the move of the Holy Spirit. We must continually place value on the workings of the Spirit in our midst.

Other Scriptures for Meditation: John 7:37-38; Romans 12:11

My Solid Front (Confession)
In the Name of Jesus, I refuse to quench the Spirit of God rather I learn to stir up the gift within me. I yield myself to the promptings of the Holy Spirit always. Amen.