The Holy Spirit is the most misunderstood Person I know. Unfortunately, within Christian culture, there exists an unrealistic perception of the Holy Spirit. When I mention the Holy Spirit, His presence, or His power, the response of some is to imagine chaotic church services, foolish actions, and loud, emotional outbursts. This sort of perception is what leads many believers to become hesitant and skeptical whenever mention is made of the Holy Spirit, the Spiritual gifts, praying in tongues, and so forth.
But the Holy Spirit does not make you senseless and silly - He makes you sharp. The Holy Spirit’s power is not found in chaos and noise - it’s found in silence and stillness. We do not step into His manifested presence through activity and hype, but through quiet and reverence.
Of course, there are moments when our agendas are disrupted by the Holy Spirit’s agenda. There are appropriate times to become loud and bold with our praise. Certainly, the Holy Spirit’s power can cause emotional responses. And the Holy Spirit does like to manifest His presence suddenly. This, of course, does not mean that there isn’t order to the Holy Spirit’s working; it just means that sometimes He has a different order in mind than we do.
The Holy Spirit is lively, colorful, energetic, and spontaneous. He’s the rushing wind that seemingly comes from nowhere. But He is also the whisper of the still, small voice. He is gentle, and He is fierce. He is the both the wind and the whisper.
We mustn’t stand inactive when He nudges us to move. We mustn’t move when He asks us to stand still.
In Acts chapter two, the Holy Spirit whirls about the atmosphere, causing what seems to be chaos:
Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. (Acts 2:2)
In the gospels, the Holy Spirit is described as a gentle dove.
and the Holy Spirit, in bodily form, descended on him like a dove. And a voice from heaven said, “You are my dearly loved Son, and you bring me great joy.” (Luke 3:22)
There are two sides to the Holy Spirit - two sides that confront two kinds of believers.
Some believers seek only experience. They are desperate to feel the Holy Spirit. And they doubt His presence if they don’t.
Other believers are skeptical and doubt moves of the Holy Spirit. They pride themselves in their ability to remain unmoved by what moves others. They mock and criticize the power of the Holy Spirit without even realizing they’re mocking Him.
The Holy Spirit’s nature will always contradict the aspect of your nature that is least like Christ. Those who have an unhealthy desire to control everything are challenged by the Holy Spirit’s wind-like and mysterious nature. Those who lack discipline and order are confronted by the Holy Spirit’s gentle and intentional nature. He stirs the stagnate, and He calms the chaotic.