John R. Rice Quotes of the Week

A Christian ought to have the power of the Holy Spirit, and can have it, to witness for Jesus. We are not talking about some joy, nor about some sign, nor about various gifts of the Spirit. We are talking about the Spirit Himself who comes in fullness, and it is called "endued with power from on high." That is exactly what the Lord said again in Acts 1:8: "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." - John R. Rice

There are many terms that God uses to make clear this enduement of power from on High. And that is what He said it is - "to be endued with power from on high." Now it is sometimes called "receiving" the Holy Spirit. "Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you." Now the Holy Spirit was already within these as far as a dwelling place is concerned. For on the day of the resurrection Jesus had breathed on the disciples and said, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost." The Holy Spirit's indwelling is already a settled fact for every Christian. But now the Holy Spirit wants to come upon them. "Tarry... until ye be endued with power." And when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you "will receive power... and ye shall be witnesses unto me." So endued would mean the Holy Spirit's coming upon you, a baptism. - John R. Rice

I want you to see here then God's plan is that a Christian can have enduement of power from on High. God knows I am poor and weak. Oh, I have prayed for power more than anything else in the world. To the glory of God, in citywide revivals in Buffalo, Cleveland, Seattle, Miami, Winston-Salem, Durham and Oakland California, San Pedro and many other cities, thank God I have seen thousands turn to Christ. I have letters from over 16, 500 people who wrote to say they were saved through my printed sermons. I am a poor, sorry kind of a Christian, but I know this: I have sought and I have had an enduement of power to win souls. Every Christian ought to have it. - John R. Rice

One can sin against God, you could sin against Christ, you could sin against the Holy Spirit. It is true that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are all three in the Family of God. All are three persons in One. And the Holy Spirit is a person. He is the One who loves.
Paul speaks in Romans 15:30 about "the love of the Spirit." He is One who can be grieved. And we are commanded, "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God" (Eph. 4:30). He is One who can be discouraged. We are commanded to not quench the Spirit. He is One who can be insulted. And sinners are warned about doing despite to the Spirit whereby we are called. He can be so blasphemed that He will turn away to leave a man condemned, unwarned, and unconvicted- to go to Hell with no chance of pardon. The Holy Spirit is a Person. - John R. Rice

I am thinking about a noble, Christian woman, who was active in the Lord's work. She loved the Lord, she read the Bible, she won souls, she played the piano beautifully at church, but she had a wicked, godless husband, lewd and dirty and a drunkard. She wouldn't leave him. She prayed about it. One time she told me, her pastor very sadly, "Oh, I don't want to be mean about it. But sometimes I say, 'O God, how long! How long until this ends!"
And so the Spirit of God lives in you, and may He not grieve over your sin? Could He not be grieved living in the same body with you, as that woman was grieved living with a wicked man? And the Spirit of God living in the same body can be grieved, God says here. You are to be careful not to grieve the Spirit of God whereby you are sealed. - John R. Rice

Christian people, will you remember this? Don't grieve the Spirit of God. And take care that you live holy lives. You are bought with a price. You belong to God. - John R. Rice

Now, remember this, God never gives a miracle and then rebukes it. If God had given a miraculous gift of tongues and God's Holy Spirit gave them tongues, then God wouldn't be rebuking it. At Corinth, then, they had a heresy - using natural languages in the services. They thought that made them superior to their "unlearned" brethren. - John R. Rice