Selflessness Brings Fullness — Phil Beach Jr.

Crushed So Christ’s Life May Flow Through Us

She had such a burden for the people back home to realize the great need and, you know, she was just broken over it and she said, God, give me words that are like fire so that I can, you know, convince these self-satisfied and self-seeking people back in England that there's a world out here that's lost and dying.

And oh God, I wish I knew the poem by heart, but in other words, the Lord said to her, if you want words as fire, you first have to be crushed by molten stones and then the fire will flow through you.

And I mean, that's the very thought there that God wants to crush us, but not because he wants to destroy us, but because he wants to be able to bring forth more of the loveliness of his son. And it's only as we are crushed and broken that his life can flow more abundantly through us.

And I don't know why, but that was really on my heart that was really quickened to me. And the more we see this truth, the more we'll be able to rejoice no matter what we're going through. And the more we'll be able to thank God in the midst of our trials and suffering, because we'll realize that that's the only way, that's God's way to make us into the people that we really want to be in our heart.

And so I just want to encourage anyone this morning who was going through some kind of crushing or breaking or bruising or suffering, not to despair, but to thank God because he sees the desire in your heart to be more like Christ and to have more of Christ expressed through your life and that he's going to, through the very things that you're going through right now, those are his means, those are his tools and his instruments to bring about the prayer of your heart, oh Lord, please make me more like you.

Experiencing the Father’s Love

Well, it never fails that Phil picks up when the Lord's showing me something. I don't really know what it's going to mean to you, but for the last short while, the Lord's just been showing me different ways that he loves us.

I think we want to understand as people, we want to understand the aspects of the Lord that affect us and then we want to be able to just keep going on with our life and our ways and our thoughts and stuff.

But when you talk about salvation or us loving God, it really can only come from his drawing of us and I look in my life, my children's life, and I see so many different times how he revealed in different ways how he loves us and I still try to put those all together so I can just grasp the understanding of how he loves us.

But just let me share a couple of the examples that I've been seeing. One was, I remember when I was a little child and I had two brothers and two sisters. So with five of us, it was hard to get the love and attention from our parents that I felt that I wanted and stuff.

And I remember some of the times that I felt receiving that love more clearly, more strongly than any other times. And one example that was driving in the car when I would get to sit between my mom and dad in the front seat and be able to put my head on their shoulder.

You know how precious that time was. Didn't seem like there was enough of that time. And I think as I grew up, I realized from watching people and how they grow and how they live, that you just kind of gird up your loins and do your best without that love and nurture.

Or just take what you can get and strengthen yourself to make up the difference. One of the other examples that is in front of my face is with my two children. The oldest, when he was born, we loved him so much.

He was very active. So he would run, you know. We'd have little times that we could love him, and he would run. He'd always be doing his thing, you know. We became pregnant with the second one, and I remember asking God, you know, show me how I can love another child as much as I love this first one, you know.

I just didn't feel like it was within me to be able to do that. Second one came along, and he was the one that would just sit right on your lap, you know, just spend time right on your lap. You can see, even though he has all these other desires and interests, his contentment is there sitting in your lap.

He can still be thinking, still be living, doing other things, but that time in your lap, for me as the father now, you know, I really, I feel that I can show him more love because of the time he gives me.

You know, I see a difference in the security that the two have. I try to go out of my way. I think I put more effort into loving the older one because I'm trying to chase him with that love, and I think the Lord's doing that with us all the time.

But, you know, it's beyond our understanding, but yet that his love is our strength, you know, we become who he's meant for us to be, you know. We're going to glorify him when we love him because we receive his love.

We live as secure, strong people, not in our strength, but in his. And then, you know, when people see that, they're going to begin to desire that love of God. As they desire, they can receive it, then they're drawn to him.

Again, that's no complete understanding of what his love is like, but just part of what he's showing me. Thank you, brother.

Hallelujah. That's wonderful, isn't it? Thank the Lord. He is faithful and true, isn't he? Altogether lovely. Do you know where that statement is found, anybody? Song of Solomon, that's right. He is altogether lovely.

I'm going to change. OK. OK. All right. She wants me to put this microphone down and use the little one, so I'll do that. I'll turn that on and put this down. Hello, are you still on? Good. All right.

Well, praise the Lord. We're able to tape through the system now so that I don't need that microphone, that this one here is both putting me on the amplifying system as well as putting me on through the system onto the tape.

And that is compliments of Mr. Cashill. Norman and I went to visit him on Sunday or last week, I mean, and we had a lovely time with him. And he said again, is there anything that we can do for you? And so Norman took advantage of the opportunity, which is characteristic of a wise store, and explained our need.

And Mr. Cashill said, tell me what you need. He wrote it down on a piece of paper and we got it. So the Lord is faithful and he's altogether lovely. And he truly does love us with an everlasting love and his heart is toward us in a wonderful way.

The Fullness of the Spirit and Laying Down Our Lives

I have a few things from the Lord this morning that I'd like to share, but first of all, I'd like to testify to the fact that I believe the Lord has shown me a through many times this week, in particular last night while praying, that as far as the Lord's timing in moving in a significant way, he has been, but he has something in his heart.

As far as timing is concerned, I believe the Lord showed me last night, late in the night, that the hand is one minute before twelve, one minute before twelve, which I believe is indicates that we are on the threshold of the Lord being pleased to open up the heavens as we continue to tarry before him and pray and seek him.

And he's going to open up the heavens and pour out a blessing that we cannot contain and that this blessing will empower us to lay our lives down for one another and for the many people that God has put in our lives.

The Holy Spirit's fullness is intended to come into the church so that the church will be enabled to follow in her Lord's footsteps. When husbands pray for the fullness of the spirit, it's so that they can lay their lives down for their wives and their families and the church.

When wives pray for the fullness of the spirit, it's so that they could have a meek and a quiet spirit, as the scripture says, and that they could demonstrate the beauty that Sarah, Abraham's wife, was adorned with.

And what kind of beauty was that? That was not outward beauty, but it was the inward beauty of a meek, quiet godly spirit. And God wants women to be clothed with those kind of glorious garments. The Lord wants men to be men and not women.

And maybe several hundreds of years ago, that might have been facetious to say, and it maybe only would have been taken as a pun, but that can be literal today, can't it? Because men actually want to become women.

But men need to be men in the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Men need to recognize our inherent weaknesses and deal with them in a very strong way. One of an inherent weakness of a man is being lazy spiritually, not lazy after the thing he wants, but lazy spiritually.

Most men, if they've got a desire or a vision or a passion for something, they'll be up early in the morning and they'll go after it. A lot of men have accomplished a lot of things, but God is looking for the man in the assembly who will take the responsibility and lead his family spiritually.

Spiritual Diligence and Leading the Family

Spiritually. Take your responsibility as a man, as a husband, as a father, and lead your family spiritually. Don't be lazy. The scripture indicates one instant where Jesus had crowds pressing on him, and the scripture says that it was into the evening hours, indicating that it had probably gotten pretty late.

And then the very next scripture says, and early the next morning, Jesus got up way before everybody. And what did he do? He prayed. Now, he could have certainly justified not getting up and praying by saying, I had a busy night last night, but he was so gripped, he was so controlled by an awareness that he of himself could do nothing, that he felt, Father, wake him up early before the sun rose, before his disciples got up and bid him come, son, that we might commune together, that I might give you bread for today.

That's what it means, brothers. So watch out for being lazy spiritually. Be diligent. Pray that God will give you an earnest, diligent, seeking heart. Lead your family. Get in and get God's word in your heart.

Have a word from the Lord for your wife every day. Every day, find something for your wife, find something for your children every day. I know some don't have a family, but this is a good habit to get into just for yourself.

And then maybe if you don't have a family, then zero in on someone from the body. Wake up one morning and say, oh, Lord, I have a burden for brother Phil today. Lord, give me something from your heart for brother Phil, something to encourage him, something to edify him.

You know, I hate to say this, brothers and sisters, but I can't remember the last time somebody came to me, says, you know, brother, the Lord put you on my heart. And here's what he said. I can't remember the last time.

I don't say this to shame anybody. God knows my heart. I don't say this to put any guilt on anybody. It's just a fact. So if you don't have a family, pick someone out in the body and pray and seek the Lord.

You know what it does to somebody when you call them up on the phone and say, you know, the Lord has just given me something. Can I share it with you? And you tell them and you all of a sudden you hear hallelujah, yes.

And all of a sudden there's a mutual exchanging of encouragement and strengthening. What happens afterwards when somebody calls you up or tells you something encouraging from the Lord? How does it affect you?

Doesn't affect your whole day, doesn't it? You sort of bring that with you to the store. You find yourself whistling. That's what it should be. Members ministering one to another. So take the responsibility and pray and don't don't pray in doubting and unbelief.

Believe God will give you something. Brothers, sisters, God will give you something from his heart. Tell your children that they're loved by God. Tell your children that though they be, as what's the scripture, it slipped my mind in Isaiah, though your sins be as scarlet, God says he'll what?

Make them white as snow. Tell your children that when they struggle. Do you teach your children how to deal with frustration and anger? Do you teach them how to deal with it when you see they're frustrated or they're angry?

Sit down with them and say, listen, here's what God's word says. Get a word for him, beloved, get a word for him, get a word. We need we need God on the scene in the world today and we need the Lord to be filling us for others, for others.

Forgiveness as the Prerequisite for Effective Prayer

Now, last week we talked about two important topics. The first topic was forgiveness. See, the Lord's been dealing with us a lot about prayer, but we learned last week that we can't enter into the subject of prayer and really touch the Lord's heart if there's an unforgiving spirit in us.

Boy, I certainly love this without the microphone, Norman, what an answer to prayer, be able to free to talk. My, my God is so faithful. But forgiveness, forgiveness, forgiveness. We must guard against unforgiveness, beloved guard against unforgiveness.

We learned last week the story of unforgiveness and how we have no right to have unforgiveness in our heart toward anybody. And the reason why is because we owe the Lord more than we could ever pay him.

And he forgave us. And no matter what anybody ever does against us, we always have a greater debt toward the Lord. If somebody has hurt you in any shape or form, you just consider this, you've hurt the Lord worse and he forgave you.

So who are you to look at your brother and sister and say, I'm not going to forgive you? Who are you to do that? We are to forgive others, even as our heavenly father, which is in heaven, hath what? Forgiven us.

And when something hurts and it gets real big, I understand it's hard and we might struggle, but that's not a reason to justify unforgiveness because we still have access to God and he'll give us the grace.

Then we learned last week that once the issue of forgiveness is settled in our heart and we need to make sure that we always, always, always allow the Lord to deal with our hearts regarding our forgiveness and never allow unforgiveness to fester in our heart and in our life.

Once we settle the issue of forgiveness, then we come to the issue of prayer. And we told the story last week that Jesus told regarding prayer. He taught his disciples to pray, Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.

The Lord's prayer that he gave us a pattern prayer. And then remarkably, right after the prayer, he told them a little story. And in this story, he talked about a friend who had another friend. And this friend had visitors suddenly come and visit him at the midnight hour, and he had no bread to give.

So this guy went to his friend late at night and he said, I'm paraphrasing. He said, Listen, I've got some folks here that need some bread and I don't have any bread. Could you please give me some bread?

Now, he basically went to his friend and it was on the basis of friendship that he initially asked. Friendship. It would be like Gary and I are friends and I came to Gary because I have a relationship with him as a friend and I asked him for something.

Well, that's what this friend did to his friend at the midnight hour. But remarkably, and this is the emphasis, this is the real meaning of this whole story. This is what Jesus was trying to teach. Remarkably, the friend said, I'm sorry, it's midnight, I'm in bed, I'm with my children, my doors are locked, I can't respond to your request.

And so therefore, Jesus went on to tell that simply based on friendship to friendship, the request was denied. But the friend who had the need, the scripture says, began to make requests over and over again.

And Jesus said he possessed what is called reckless, audacious boldness. Reckless, audacious boldness. So the appeal went, listen, the appeal for bread went a step above. They were friends, but the request went from just simply friend to friend to a friend imploring and begging and recklessly, audaciously asking.

And then Jesus said, I tell you the truth, even though this friend up here would not give this guy bread because he's a friend, I say to you, because of his reckless, audacious asking, the friend will get up even though it's midnight and he'll give him all that he has need of.

And then Jesus starts talking about prayer again. So he starts out with prayer, he stops and tells a story, and then Jesus starts talking about prayer again. And the important thing about this whole section of scripture that we looked at last week was that Jesus was teaching us that there's a kind of prayer that he was looking to see in us.

And in order for us to understand that kind of prayer, he had to tell us a story. So the kind of prayer that Jesus is looking, first of all, is the kind of prayer that springs out of us. That is because we see a need, not that we have necessarily, but that somebody else has.

So it's not so much bread for us as it is bread for somebody else. Bread for somebody else. Now, when we come into this awakening, where we realize that there's people that are needy all around us, you're sitting next to people who are needy.

As soon as you leave here and you go out into the world, you're going to be with people who are needy. And this revelation needs to grip us. And as this revelation grips us and we realize that we are amidst needy people who are in need of bread, Jesus is telling us that there's an aspect of our relationship with God that must grow if we expect to receive the bread that we need to give to others.

And that aspect of that relationship with God has to go beyond the simple truth. And this is important, but it has to go beyond it. The truth that we are the friends of the Lord, that he has made us his friend.

It has to go beyond simple relationship. I'm related to God now because I'm one of his sons and he's one of and he's my father in heaven. And based on that, I'm simply going to ask him for whatever I want and he'll give it to me.

Well, essentially, that's true, but that's the foundation. We've got to grow on that foundation. The truth that Jesus is teaching is there's got to come in us a longing, a craving, a desire and asking a boldness to God in order to get the bread that we need to share with people that God brings our way.

Do you sense in your hearts this kind of a prayer that is growing in your life? A longing, a passion and asking because you've seen the need of others and you want the Lord to provide you with bread for them.

Surely the Lord is eagerly awaiting a people who will ask and keep asking, seek and keep seeking, knock and keep knocking as a result of this kind of revelation in their heart. Beloved, I am persuaded that bread for this purpose to give is not readily available among God's people because this kind of importunity that Jesus taught in the story, this kind of asking father is simply not in abundance within the house of God.

And that kind of growth has to occur in our life if we are to see the joy, the utter joy of being entrusted with the ministry of bringing bread to the hungry. And they're all over, they're everywhere, everywhere you turn.

It's just a matter of the Lord dealing in our life and helping us to make the transition from me centered, I centered, my centered to God, the Lord's desires, the Lord's interests. And he'll surely fill us to overflowing as we ask him to enlarge our hearts.

Selflessness, the Parable of the Talents, and Serving Others

So that was the message last week. Forgiveness is a prerequisite, has to happen before we enter into prayer. And prayer, if it is going to please the Lord in its entirety, has to become a selfless prayer, a request for bread for others, others.

You remember the parable that Jesus taught? Matthew chapter 25, you could turn there, Matthew chapter 25 beginning in verse 14. We want to continue along this line for a few moments this morning. Remembering that we're dealing now with the issue of asking God for bread that we might be able to give it to others.

Now, let me just say a few things, beloved. Keep your finger on Matthew chapter 25. You cannot enter into the ministry of serving others unless you have been prepared by the Holy Spirit to be willing to lay your own life down.

This is true in families. Families don't work when everybody's selfish. You know, there was a police officer that I worked with in Mississippi, and he was just amazed at the size of my family. And he made a statement that it was very true, and I had respect for the guy.

I was a little sad that this was his condition, but I had respect for him. He was married, had a nice wife. But he said, we're never going to have children. And I said, well, why? Why not? He said, because we're too selfish.

He said, I know that when you have children, things got to revolve around the children, and you got to give up your agenda. You got to give up your own plans. You got to give up your own wants, your own desires.

A family doesn't work when mom and dad have their selfish agendas, and they do their own thing. A family works when the strongest, the most mature in the family, which ought to be the parents. But nowadays, sometimes it's the children that are more mature than the parents.

But the way families work is the husband and wife become selfless. They lay their lives down. The way a marriage works is the husband lays his life down. Husbands have to lay their lives down for their wives, even as Christ laid his life down.

You see, so if you did a close scrutiny of most of the problems going on in the church today, or in a family, or in a marriage situation, you'll find 9 times out of 10, if not 10 times out of 10, that the problem is that somebody is being selfish.

Somebody's being selfish. Somebody has not caught the revelation that we are to lay our lives down, that we are to die to ourself. So when you come to the issue of being a body of believers, when we come to the revelation that God is calling us, first of all, to deal with unforgiveness, basically, when we come to the issue of unforgiveness, what we're doing is we're coming to the issue where you can't have aught in your heart toward anybody.

You have to grow out of that realm where there is warring, and jealousy, and striving, and bitterness, and contention in your heart toward people. If you want to be a prince with God, an intercessor for God, one who moves mountains for God, one who says, be thou plucked up and cast into the sea, you can't be uttering those prayers before the Lord one early 5 .30 in the morning, and then at 9 o 'clock go to the donut shop and see someone and say, I can't stand that person, I'm leaving this place.

Those things don't work. You can't do it, you see? Now, you could pray that prayer, and I'm sure the Lord will give a period of grace, but the fact is the Scripture says we can't have that kind of heart and be a prince with God.

The Lord can't do it. The Lord won't do it, you see? And we can't be a prince with God and have our tongues out of control. So when we come into this story that Jesus taught, inherent within this story is volumes of truth.

You've got a man who is willing to entertain people in the midnight hour. That in itself indicates what? Selflessness. You know, there's a lot of territories that we... You know, we have a lot of areas in our life that we pretty much tell the Lord, Lord, this is my territory, this is my time.

This is... And we get defensive and angry if someone bothers us in our time. The worst time for a husband is when he comes home from nine hours of working. The last thing he wants to do is lay his life down, he's tired.

Doesn't want to. Doesn't want to. Doesn't want to deal with the family. Doesn't want to deal with the wife. Doesn't want to deal with her needs. Doesn't want to deal with the children. Just leave me alone.

I want to sit down. Where's my chair? Who's got my pillow? Where's the TV control? Just leave me alone. You see? This is the way we are as human, you know?

But, you know, what if the Lord has a...

What if the Lord wants to encourage your wife and He wants to use you? What if one of the children have a need and He wants to use you? It's the midnight hour, you need bread to give to somebody, but you're not available.

You see, we fall short, don't we, brothers? We fall short. So the fact that Jesus was talking about a guy who's banging on his friend's door saying, I got some needs here, means the guy's got something in his life.

He's willing to deal with a need that someone else has. So, we're going to look at Matthew 20, 25 here, but before we do, I want to read here in 1 John 3, verse 13. Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.

We know that we have passed from death unto life because we love the brethren. Wow, that's incredible, isn't it? One of the evidences of being born from above, being one of God's children, is we love the brethren.

Now, I tell you right now, the Holy Spirit here is not talking about, as I heard one preacher once say, sloppy agape. You know, it's not just a love where we cry and we touch one another and we have a sentimental feel like, oh, I just love you so much.

I just love to be with you. That might be part of it, but I'm not sure if that's what the Lord has in mind. Matter of fact, I'm quite sure it's not. Here's the kind of love the Lord has in mind. Let's read on and we'll see.

The Holy Spirit defines what he's talking about here. Because we love the brethren, he that loveth not his brother abideth in death. Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer, and we know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us. There you go, right there. The love of God has been defined for us through the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus defined what it is to be filled with divine love.

It is not essentially sentimental feelings toward a person. It's not necessarily an emotional feeling toward a person. But it is an action. It is an action. Verse 16, hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid his life down for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

A Church Prepared for the Spirit’s Outpouring

Beloved, listen closely. Whenever a company of people such as ourselves have been before the Lord for many years, have we not? Mostly everybody here has had a history. We've all had a history together.

And our history has been quite a history. We've gone through many things together. But I think that we're at the place now together as a body where we're really beginning to say, Lord, we need you. We want your fullness.

We want you to bring your spirit, Lord. We are in need of you, Lord. We are dry. We are thirsty. We thank you for the truth that you've given us. We thank you, Lord, that you have taught us the basic doctrines that we need to know of Christ, and the blood, and our acceptance, and our security in you.

So we thank you, Lord, for all those things. And we glory in them because they are the foundation upon which we live. But Lord, we need to know you now. Our hearts are longing to know you. And Lord, we recognize that here we are in a town, and you brought the nations of the world right to our back door.

How many see the nations of the world here within a 20-mile radius? The nations of the world. Maybe 20, 30, 40 years ago, New York City was characteristic of that. And everybody talked about New York City as a melting pot of the world.

But beloved, it's just not true anymore. It's true right here. We've got people from all over, all over the Mideast, have come here.

So therefore, as a body,.

How many have become more and more aware of the needs of the people around about you as a body over the last year? See, we're growing together, aren't we? We're growing together. And as a result, we're praying, Lord.

So the Lord would respond to us as a body by saying this, hereby perceive we the love of God because he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. There is no company of people who can gather together and continue to beg God to pour out his Spirit without the Lord coming into their midst and making it crystal clear to them that the answer to their request will necessitate an ax laid to the root of selfish ambition.

God will not empower people to continue in selfish ambition. God will not empower a people to continue in a lifestyle that basically is very self-relating and self-centered. So the Lord wants us to fully understand this morning.

And he's not saying this as if to make us say, well, Lord, who would want this? He's saying it, I believe, to cause us to respond by saying, Lord, so be it. Yes, Lord. But he's saying to us, listen, if we pray for the fullness of the Spirit in our lives, as husbands, as wives, if we pray for the fullness of our Spirit in our families, if we pray for the fullness of our Spirit as believers gathered together, it will mean having to have an encounter with the Almighty God over the issues in your life, over the things in your life that are yet selfish, self-seeking, self-relating, and the Holy Spirit will have to put his finger on it and say, if you want my fullness, if you want the fullness of my love, if you want the fullness of my power walking through you, you've got to be prepared to relinquish, to give up, to acknowledge these areas in your life, and let me take them from you.

Because you search the Scriptures and tell me if it is not true. Anywhere you find in the New Testament an outpouring of the Spirit, God moving in an assembly, you see selfless people laying their lives down for one another, reaching out through the power of the living Christ, flowing through their empty vessels, and you see all kinds of things happening.

You see riot, you see revival, you see repentance, you see the devil getting stirred, moving on people to persecute the church, you see believers getting encouraged and strengthened, all kinds of things happen.

Beloved, we are on the threshold of a mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit because we have together corporately been brought step by step to a place where God has made us to see our need to be selfless people.

That should encourage us. Selfless people. The devil knows that the Holy Spirit of God has taken much time and much effort and has intimately worked in each one of our lives on a very personal, intimate level.

Differently, separately sometimes, sometimes together. But the end result that God is realizing in each one of us is an awakening that's occurring in us, and this awakening is, Lord, I'm tired of myself.

I'm tired of my own ways. I'm tired of being spent, Lord, for selfish living. Lord, you have a big heart. You have a big plan. The body is so needy. I am so needy. Lord, I want to live for you. I want to be filled with you so that I can live for you and be poured out for others.

Now, I want honesty. Now, who feels that these kind of groanings are developing in your heart? That these kind of desires are developing in you? Everybody raises their hand. Everybody. You see? And the enemy knows what God's doing.

He sees. He knows this. I'm telling you, beloved, there's a lot of things going on in hell. Now, hell, metaphorically speaking, not the grave, but the place where the devils get together and have their strategy meetings.

And don't think they don't, beloved. Don't think they don't. They've got places designated who knows where. Maybe they get together in abandoned crack buildings in New York City. And I'm sure, God forgive me, I'm sure that they get together in some empty church buildings too.

...of certain believers, huh, Carrie? I bet his name's been mentioned a couple times. What about Mitch? Huh? And they assess the situation. What's going on in their life? What's going on in their life?

Huh? What's going on? And let me tell you something. When they begin to see in brothers and sisters the work of the Holy Spirit, the fruit of the Holy Spirit, and they begin to see the heart and hear the prayers of, Oh God, deliver me from my soft.

Deliver me from selfish ambition. Deliver me from loving this world. Deliver me from my temper, from my anger. Lord, I want to be, I want to fulfill the scripture of laying my life down for my brothers and sisters.

And when they see this growth, let me tell you, there's no small turmoil going on. They get distressed. Because that's the prerequisite. That's what happens right before God moves by his Holy Spirit. People start crying out.

I mean, on the day of Pentecost, Acts chapter 2, you do a history with those believers. And before Acts chapter 2 came, man, I'll tell you, their dreams were dashed. Their hopes were dashed. They were emptied.

Peter denied the Lord three times. They had severe dealings. But they were all gathered together in the upper room. And they were all in one heart and one mind and one soul. They all had the same kind of history in their life.

Same kind of history. Different ways that God did it. But they had the same history. And they were all at the same place where they were crying out. And they were continuing in prayer and in supplication.

And they were seeking to be empowered from God so that they could, by the power of Jesus Christ, live and be what God called them to be. Hallelujah to God. And suddenly, suddenly, the Scripture says, the Spirit came.

So, when we look at this whole issue of prayer and seeking to be a body of believers that are experiencing the fullness of God's Spirit, we must equate that directly with being selfless. Selfless and fullness.