Adrian Rogers - A Spirit-Filled Church
Be finding John chapter 14 and verse 12. We have been in a series of studies together talking about the kind of a church that we want to be, the new horizons, what God has for us, and what I've tried to teach you to do and be for over 30 years. And we've talked about being a unified church. That was Sunday before last. And then last Sunday we talked to you about being a steadfast church. And now, today, I want to talk to you about being a Spirit-filled church.
I heard about a man who was working in his woodworking shop. He was a retiree. He nicked his finger. His wife said, "Well, you better go down to the minor medical place and have them take a look at that". So he drove down there and he saw it, said, "Front door". He went in the front door and not a soul was in that room. And he saw two other doors: one said "Male", the other said "Female". He said, "Well, I'm a male". He went in that door. Then he saw two more doors: one said, "Over 60", and the other said, "Under 60". He said, "Well, I'm over 60," so he went in that door. Then he saw two more doors: "Minor" or "Major". He said, "Well, that's minor", and he went in that door.
And then two more doors: "Above the waist" or "Below the waist". He said, "Well, I think that's above the waist if I hold it up this way," and he went through that door, and he was back out in the alley. He came home. His wife said, "Did they help you"? He said, "No, but they sure were organized"? You know, I believe people come to church that way. And we process them. We grade them. We put them here and here and here and here. And they come in one door, they go out the other door, but there is no radical, dramatic change. Now, friend, when you worship God, you ought to be changed, Amen? Well, Jesus said that we're to be in a wonderful business.
Look in John 14 verse 12, "Verily, verily". Now, when Jesus says, "Verily, verily", that means pay attention, pay attention. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also," now, listen, "and greater works than these shall he do; because I go to My Father". Wow! "He that believes on Me". Now, there are only two classes of people: believers and unbelievers. "He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do, and greater works than these shall he do".
Now, how many of you who say that you believe are doing the works of Jesus, and greater works? Well, you say, "I'm a believer, but I'm not doing this". Well, something wrong, and it's not the Scripture. I heard about a battle where the flag-bearer got out in front of the regiment in enemy territory. And someone said to the captain, "Shall we bring the flag back to the regiment"? The captain said, "No, bring the regiment up to the flag". Now, when we read a Scripture like this, we're tempted to bring the flag back to where we are, Amen? We're tempted to dumb it down so it fits our experience. But Jesus said, "If we are a believer, if we believe in Him, the works that He does, we will do, and greater works than these shall we do".
Four things I want to lay on your heart this morning as we're talking about a Spirit-filled church. First of all, the church's exciting program. What is the church's exciting program? Very clearly, very plainly, it's not an activities program. It's not a music program. It's not an educational program. It's not a benevolent program. The church's exciting program is to do the works of Jesus and to excel the works of Jesus. You say, "Well, wait a minute, Pastor, how can we excel the works of the Jesus, or how could we do them, much less excel them? Jesus walked on water! Jesus raised the dead! What can we do that is greater than what Jesus did"?
Well, friend, I want to tell you that what our Lord is talking about is not raising the dead. Matter of fact, when I die, I don't want you to try to raise me. Let me alone! Now, just make sure I'm dead. But don't try to raise me up. Our Lord, here, is talking, when He's talking about greater works, He is not talking about quality; He's talking about quantity of doing more than the Lord Jesus did. Now, He's talking about leading people to Himself. He's talking about evangelism. He's talking about soul winning. He's talking about multiplication. He is talking about bringing people to Jesus Christ. Church, you listen to me, bringing a soul to Jesus Christ is greater than raising a man from the dead.
Now, I know you may not believe that, but I'm telling you, as surely as I stand here, it is absolute rock-ribbed truth! To bring a soul to Jesus Christ is greater than raising someone from the dead. Now, just turn backward to John chapter 5 and look in verse 20. Jesus is speaking. He says, "For the Father loveth the Son, and showeth Him all things that Himself doeth: and will show Him," now, notice this, "greater works than these". Again, now we're talking about greater works. I'm going to skip on down to verse 24 now, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My Word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life".
Even the people that Jesus raised, they died again. But when we believe on Him, when we trust Him, we have everlasting life. You want to see a miracle? Look up here, right here. You're looking at a man who cannot die. And Jesus said in John 11:26, "He that liveth and believeth in me shall never die". Now, what is the greater miracle? What is the greater work: to raise a man from the dead or to help a man to come to the Lord Jesus Christ and receive Him so that they can never die? These greater works refer to the salvation ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, Jesus said in John 4 verse 34, "My food is to do the will of Him that sent Me".
What did God send Jesus to do? To heal the sick? Nope. To feed the hungry? No. He did these things. But Luke 19:10 says what He came to do is this, "The Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which is lost". Jesus came as, not as the great healer, not as the great teacher. He is that, but He came as a Savior. And Jesus said, "I have finished the work Thou gavest Me to do". John chapter 17 and verse 4. So, what did God the Father give Jesus to do?
Well, listen, let me just go back and read John 17:1 through 4, "These words spake Jesus, and lifted up His eyes to Heaven, and said, 'Father, the hour is come; glorify Thy Son,'" now, listen, "'that Thy Son also may glorify Thee,'" just underscore that, "'that Thy Son also may glorify Thee. As Thou hast given Him power over all flesh, that He should give,'" now, watch this, "'eternal life to as many as Thou hast given Him. And this is life eternal, that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent. I have glorified Thee on Earth, I have finished the work Thou gavest Me to do.'"
Do you get it? Do you see it? Jesus said, "Father, I have given them eternal life. That's what You sent Me to do. And, Lord, that is the way that I glorify You". The work of God is to bring souls to Jesus Christ, and that glorifies God. Say Amen. Now, don't miss this, don't miss this. Well, why does He say, "Greater works than these that I do shall ye do". He's not talking about greater in quality but in quantity. We as a church, are going to do far more than Jesus did when He was here on this Earth walking in the flesh.
Friend, on the Day of Pentecost, more souls were saved in one day than came to Jesus in His entire ministry. Now, what our Lord wants is souls, multiplied souls coming to Jesus. And church, God wants you to be a part of it. God wants the church to be a Spirit-filled church, doing the works of Jesus; that is, giving eternal life, and greater, more multitudinous than Jesus ever did. I heard about a man in Washington who passed a government building. And up there on the façade it said, "The past is prologue". He said, "What does that mean"? The taxi driver said, "It means, 'You ain't seen nothing yet'"
Now, that's the way it is with the church. When we saw what Jesus did, that is miniscule to what needs to be done, what ought to be done. Our Lord is saying, "Listen, 'Greater works than these that I do will you do if you believe on Me.'" Do you believe on Jesus? Do you believe on Jesus? All right. Now, listen, this is the church's exciting program. The choir is wonderful. The orchestra is fine. The preaching, mediocre. The educational program, fine. All of these are fine, but they all are only a part of a great program, and that is doing the works of Jesus. And what is the work of Jesus? He said, "I've finished the work Thou gavest Me, sent Me to do". "The Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which is lost".
Never, never, never, never minimize bringing souls to Jesus Christ. There is no substitute. And if this church moves away from evangelism, it signs its death warrant. A church exists by evangelism like a fire exists by burning. Now, that's the church's exciting program. Let's shift gears, and I want you to remember and see the church's explicit promise. Now, in verse 12 He speaks of these greater works. And notice that verse 12 through verse 14 are con-joined. And He says, "And," that is, it's part of the same thing, "greater works than these that I do shall ye do. And whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask anything in My name, I will do it".
Now, how do we do these greater works? We do these greater works by believing prayer. Now, I mentioned a while back about 3,000 saved in one day on the Day of Pentecost. Well, they prayed for 10 days, preached for 15 minutes, and 3,000 got saved. We pray for 10 minutes and preach for 10 days and have a handful saved. You see, this program, this exciting program is based upon a promise. And that promise is God will answer our prayers. Now, prayer is not a substitute for our work. Prayer is not preliminary to our work. In many senses, it is our work, in many senses.
Do you believe that God will do greater things through your prayer? Now, don't answer out loud, because the next question will be embarrassing. How much do you pray? Jesus said in John 14 verses 13 and 14, "Greater works than these that I do you'll do because I go to My Father. And if you ask anything in My name, I will do it". Now, you can do a lot without prayer. The pyramids were built without prayer to our true God. They may have prayed to their pagan gods. But this church, in order to do the greater works that Jesus commands us to do, we must do it by prayer.
And notice what kind of prayer it is. Number one: you've got to have the right people. Verse 12 tells us that we must believe. Now, if you're not a believer, your prayer doesn't get any higher than the lightbulbs. But if you believe, if you're the right person, if you know the Lord Jesus Christ, and, by the way, if you don't find in your heart an earnest desire to pray, I wonder if you're saved, because God sends forth His Spirit into our hearts, crying, "Abba Father, Abba Father". There must be the right person, verse 12. There must be the right power. "And if you ask anything in My name, I will do it".
Now, you can't just forge His name to a prayer and say, "This is in the name of Jesus, I want a swimming pool". No. What does it mean to ask in His name? The name stands for authority. You put your name on a check. That gives the cashier the authority to take some money out of the bank and hand it to you because you have some in your account, I hope. Now, if you don't have anything in your account, and you put your name on that check, they don't put the check in jail; they put you in jail, because, you see, your name stands for you. Jesus said, "If you ask anything in My name", that is, "with My authority, My approval, then I'll do it".
Very much like a policeman. Maybe there's a wild party and he goes and knocks on the door. And they come, and he says, "Open up in the name of the law". Now, he might be 150 lbs., full of bananas, and soaking wet, but he says, "Open in the name of the law". He has a badge on; he has authority. We, as believers, have authority. We don't have to have physical strength, monetary strength, and intellectual superiority. We have the authority of Jesus Christ. Do you believe that? I hope you do. Now, the right person, he that believes. "And if you ask anything in My name". The right power.
Now, let's suppose that policeman goes home, and he goes to his neighbor and says, "May I borrow your lawnmower in the name of the law". It doesn't fit, does it? It just doesn't fit because, you see, he cannot take that authority and apply it to something where it does not belong. And don't you think that you can just tack "In the name of Jesus" on a prayer and get your prayer answered. In the name of Jesus, it means for the right purpose.
Now, what is the right purpose? Well, just continue to read here in this Scripture, John 14 verse 13, "And whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, that will I do," now, watch this, "that the Father may be glorified in the Son". What is the purpose of prayer? It's to glorify God! Not to have our little selfish desires met. When you get the right person praying with the right power for the right purpose, let me tell you how to get your prayers answered. Let your purpose and God's purpose come together, that you want God glorified. Listen to me. We are to do greater works than the Lord Jesus Christ. And the way we do that is through, first of all, believing prayer. And God has given us an explicit promise. Don't take from it. Don't add to it. Believe it and practice it.
Number three: there's the church's expected practice. All of these things are con-joined: the greater works, the prayer, and now notice John 14 verse 15, "If you love Me, keep My commandments". Now, if you say you love the Lord Jesus Christ and you're not keeping His commandments, you are a liar! Do you keep His commandments? Now, if you don't keep His commandments, it's no wonder that you're not doing greater works. And what is His commandment? It's the Great Commission. "Go, and make disciples". What are the greater works? Bringing people to Jesus Christ.
Jesus said in Acts 1:8, "You'll receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you, and ye shall be witnesses unto Me". He didn't say you're to go out and argue. You say, "Pastor, I'm not educated. I don't know a lot of theology. I can't witness". Oh, yes, you can! If you're saved, if you believe on Jesus, you can witness. If you're saved, you know how you got saved, don't you? Say, "Well, if you know how you got saved, can't you tell somebody else how you got saved"?
You see, our Lord has not called you to be a lawyer, but to be a witness. A lawyer argues a case; a witness tells what he's seen and heard. And the only reason some people don't witness is they haven't seen or heard anything. I mean, if Jesus Christ has saved you, can't you tell somebody else? The first soul I ever led to Christ, all I did was tell him how I got saved, and he got saved. It was very simple, very glorious, very wonderful. Now, there's no cheap, easy, way to do it. The word witness and the word martyr are the same word in the Greek language. You see, a bullet doesn't make a martyr; it just reveals one.
Now, you say, "Oh, I'd die for Jesus". Put that on the shelf, will you live for Jesus, will you? I'm telling you that the word martyr and the word witness are the same word. Now, He says, "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments". That is the church's expected practice. Over and over and over again He tells us in the Bible that we're to share the Lord Jesus Christ. Look at this church. Look at the manpower. Look at the ability. When I look back upon the ministry that God has given me, there's a great sense of failure. Do you know what it is? Somehow I have not engendered a soul winning heart in the life of our people.
Oh, we have soul winners, but there are a lot of people who think they've done God a wild favor when they get here on Sunday morning. You ask them, "Do you serve Jesus"? They say, "I go to church". Friend, you're to do the works of Jesus, "And greater works shall you do". And you are expected to obey the Lord if you love the Lord. Now, next, I want you to notice the church's exceeding power. For an excelling purpose and an exciting purpose and an expanded purpose, you're going to need exceeding power.
Now, we continue to read here. We're still in John 14, now, let's start with verse 16 and read through verse 18, "And I will pray the Father," now, He says you pray and now watch what he says, "And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know Him; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you". Who was dwelling with them? Jesus. Who would be in them? Jesus. "I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you". The Holy Spirit is Christ in the Christian.
Now, our Lord says, "Look, you have a mission impossible. You're to do the works that I do, and greater works than these". "Pray, obey, and I'm going to send you the Comforter, another Comforter". The word Comforter is the word paraclete, paracletos, and the word means somebody who will come alongside of you, someone who will get into yoke with you to empower you and to strengthen you. You'll never be alone. Another Comforter. And He uses the word another. There are two Greek words for another. One means another of a different kind. For example, you say, "I've got a horse, but I need another horse".
But then there's the word another in the Bible; it means another of a different kind. "I've got a horse, but I'm going to get an automobile". There's a different word for another there. Now, the word that Jesus uses is not the word another for a different kind; it is another of the same kind. "I will send you another Comforter. I'm right here with you, but I'm going to send the Holy Spirit". And then He says, "I'll be with you". Do you get it, church? Do you understand it? Listen, "I will not leave you comfortless; I will come to you"! In a Christian, Jesus lives again. That's the way we can do the works that Jesus did and the greater works.
You know what He said there in John 14 verse 13, "If you ask anything in My name," what? "I'll do it. I'll do it". He didn't say, "I'll help you to do it". "I'll do it". "I'm crucified with Christ," Paul said in Galatians 2:20, "nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me". You see, listen, God moves in and God begins to work in you, through you, with you when you believe Him for greater works than raising the dead, when you pray believing prayer in the name of Jesus with His authority for the glory of God, when you obey Him when He says, "Ye shall be witnesses unto Me," then God will empower you. God sends the Holy Spirit. God sends another Comforter, who is Jesus Christ in you.
Stuart Briscoe, a preacher friend of mine, said that, "When I first got saved, I was so full of joy, I walked out and I said, 'Man, this is easy. This is wonderful.'" Then after he lived a while and got his nose bumped a few times, he said, "This is difficult". And then as he repented and tried to get better and stronger and made more resolutions and resolves and failed more, he said, "This is impossible". But then he learned the secret of Christ in him, and he said, "This is wonderful. This is wonderful".
I've told you, church, listen to me, there's only one who has ever lived the Christian life; His name is Jesus. And if the Christian life is lived in your house, in your club, on your team, in your choir, there's only one person who'll be doing it; it's Jesus! We're not to be a little tin imitation of Jesus. It is Christ in us. Oh, God, help us to understand this. Help me, Lord, to understand it, that Jesus Christ is alive in me, and He said, "If you ask anything in My name, I will do it". He is the one who steps in. This is the exceeding power that we have to do these greater works than the Lord Jesus Christ. And He says, "I'm going to come, the Comforter will abide". That means to dwell forever.
The late, great Ron Dunn said, "Your heart is not a hotel with check time 12:00 noon on Sunday". He lives with us and is with us. Now, you think about it. Do you remember where Jesus said in, John chapter 16 verse 7? He said, "Nevertheless I tell you, it is expedient for you that I go away: for if I don't go away, the Comforter will not come". Now, how many of us would say, "You know, boy, I just wish I could have been here when Jesus was on Earth. Man, I just wish I could have walked with Jesus breathed that air, be there in the miracle times when Jesus was here. Wouldn't that be better"? "No," Jesus said, "It wouldn't be better, it is better for you;" "It is expedient for you that I go away".
When Jesus left this Earth and went back to Heaven, that was glorious, because when He went away, He then sent the Spirit to take His place. Now, what's the difference? Well, when Jesus was here on Earth, He was limited by time and space. Mary and Martha said to Jesus, "Master, if you had been here, Lazarus wouldn't have died". But when Jesus was here on Earth, if He was there, He couldn't be there. But, friend, when He comes into you with the Holy Spirit, are you listening? Jesus is with me, He's with him, He's with you, He's with you and He's not limited by space. He's not limited by time. He lives and dwells in all of us through the Holy Spirit of God and, therefore, the church is the body of Jesus on this Earth.
The church is the visible body of the invisible Christ, and Christ is the invisible person of the visible church. "If you ask anything in my name, I'll do it". You say, "How, how can I do the works of Jesus, and greater works"? Because He'll still be doing it, but He will now do them in you and you and you and you and me and me and me and me. And don't you cop out. This is the work of the whole church for the whole age. You know what I want for the church? I want the church to bring not thousands, but millions of souls to Jesus Christ. Millions! Millions! Why not? Jesus lives in me. Jesus lives in you. And He says in John 14:12, "If we will believe, greater works than these that I do will ye do because you believe in Me".
Now, there are three miracles that deal with your life. One is the first miracle when you got saved. That new birth is a miracle. The second miracle is when you're glorified at the Rapture, the resurrection, when you're made like the Lord Jesus. But there's a middle miracle, and that's when you and I live day-by-day empowered by the Holy Spirit and say with the apostle Paul in Galatians 2:20, "Nevertheless I live; not I, but Christ who lives in me". My heartbeat, my prayer for this dear church is that we will be obedient to the Lord Jesus Christ and God will look down from Heaven with a smile and say, "Look at that, they're doing more than My Son did. Greater works than He did because they believe in Me, because they pray and obey, and because I dwell in them".
Do you think you understand this? I can't tell. Do you think you understand it? Oh, now, let me tell you something. That's good. But it'd be far better for you not to understand it than to understand it and not obey it. I want you to present yourself to the Lord right now, and say, "Lord God, here I am. I am available. I know that You want to do greater works than Jesus did because I believe in You, and I will pray in the power of the Holy Spirit for the glory of God, and I will obey. O Lord, help me, because I'm so weak, but I will. And, Lord, You will empower me with Your blessed, precious Holy Spirit to do the job".
Now, we can't all do it the same way. We can't all be preachers, but we can all be reachers, Amen? If you can't win an adult, win a child. If you can't win somebody in your family, bring somebody else. If you can't do it, at least try. Bring souls to Jesus Christ. Now, if you're not a Christian, if you're not saved, you can't be a part of this program until you give your heart to Jesus. "He that believeth on me, the works that I do, shall he do, and greater works than these".
Would you bow your heads in prayer? Heads are bowed and eyes are closed. Now, if you'd like to be saved and have your sin forgiven, and know that you're going to Heaven, and know that you have a purpose here beyond drawing your breathe and drawing your salary, you want to be a part of something great, the program of God, greater works than Jesus, then you need Jesus in your heart.
Now, let me tell you some facts while heads are bowed, and I pray God the Holy Spirit will let these facts sink into your head. First of all, we are sinners: sinners by birth, by nature, by practice, and sinners under condemnation. God will never, ever, ever, ever overlook anybody's sins. "The wages of sin is death". "The soul that sinneth, it shall surely die". And, friend, I can tell you there's not anyone who has not sinned.
Second thing I want to tell you is this: that Jesus Christ took the penalty that our sins deserved and He carried them to the cross. He was our substitute. He took your sin and mine; suffered, bled, and died alone on the cross, and with His blood He paid the sin debt.
And the third thing I want you to know is that you must receive that. If you don't receive it, it does you no good. It only increases your judgment.
The fourth thing I want you to know is that you receive it by faith. The Bible says, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you'll be saved". He doesn't say feel a certain way. As far as I can find, the word feeling is only used twice in the New Testament. The emphasis is on faith, trusting Jesus. It's not an emotional thing. It may show in your emotions, and if you really mean it, it probably will, but the emotions are secondary. Put your faith where God has put your sins on the Lord Jesus Christ. Believe and you'll be saved. I invite you to pray a prayer like this:
Dear God, I need You. I want You. Help me to trust Jesus and to make it public and to make it real, today. In Your holy name, Amen.