The Holy Spirit
(A Consideration of the Communal and Individualistic Aspects of the Spirit)
By J. R. Peyton
April 2006©
To what end and for what main purpose is one filled with the Holy Spirit? What role does the community have in the individual lives of Spirit-filled believers, or what role does the individual have in a community of Spirit-filled believers? Does the individual fulfill (or further) the purpose of the community, or does the community fulfill (or further) the purpose of the individual? These questions and many similar questions have been asked and debated down through church history and are still relevant questions being asked today.
Is the primary work of the Holy Spirit to initiate, sustain, renew, and shape the lives of individual believers, so that the bestowal of shared life on the community is a happy by-product? Or is the primary work of the Holy Spirit to initiate, sustain, renew, and shape the shared life of the community, so that the bestowal of life on individual believers is instrumental to that end?
As a Pentecostal theologian, it is important that this writer establishes his presuppositions coming into this study. This writer, as other Pentecostals , would have, prior to graduate school, given the weight of the purpose of the Spirit to the salvation of the individual believer. Throughout this writer’s extensive research into the words of our Lord, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thy self,” the realization of the importance of the role of community in the life of the believer has increased. However, it was not until the research for this paper began did this writer consider what role the Spirit and/or the infilling of the Spirit played in the church community. Therefore, throughout the research and writing of this paper, this writer’s understanding of the role of the Spirit has shifted considerably from an emphasis on the individual to an emphasis on the community. This is not to say, as you will see, that this author’s position has solidified, for as is the nature of the Spirit, it is difficult to harness the wind for the purpose of theological proofs.
Therefore, it is the purpose of this paper to examine the role of the Spirit in both the lives of individuals and the life of the community. This will be considered first from a biblical perspective and second from a historical perspective. As is often the case for Apostolics, one finds the conclusions of the Bible and history at loggerheads with one another. It will be the effort throughout this paper to determine the intertwined relationship affected by the Spirit between the individual and the community. Finally, this writer will consider what conclusion might be made from this research, what lessons should be learned for the church today, and examine further avenues of needed research. It is the belief of this writer that at the end of the day the researcher will find that there is both an individual role of the Spirit and a communal role of the Spirit. However, this writer is convinced that the reader will find that the biblical emphasis of the Spirit is the role it plays within the body of Christ.
The Role of the Spirit in the Individual From a Biblical Perspective
Interestingly enough, the most difficult aspect of the research associated with this paper was trying to find a scholar attempting to defend an individual emphasis of the role of the Spirit. Calvin, Schleirmacher, the Westminster Divines, Barth, Tillich, other reform theologians along with modern Pentecostals , and modern scholars such as Dunn are accused of holding the position that gives individual emphasis to the role of the Spirit. However, much of such arguments are made by proponents of the opposite view and seem to be arguments from the silence of such theologians rather than arguments from their stated positions.
It has been equally difficult to find biblical references that would stand theological scrutiny. For example, the most often quoted verse supporting such a position could be, “…work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” However, a closer examination of the passage would reveal just the opposite. Consider the verse in its original context, “Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” First of all, the beloved that Paul is addressing is not an individual, but rather a local community of Spirit-filled believers in Philippi. Therefore, he is telling the community to work out their salvation together in fear and trembling. Further, Paul informs them that it is God (probably a reference to the His Spirit) that will do the work in the community to do God’s will and pleasure. It does not take much research to determine the will and pleasure of God. “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!”
While it may be true that Catholics deny an individual infilling of the Spirit, there does seem to be little doubt that for most Protestantd the infilling of God’s Spirit does indeed happen to individuals. “When the life given by the Holy Spirit is described as birth or resurrection we are speaking of what individuals experience.” The disagreement among Protestants comes in discussing for what purpose one is filled with the Spirit. The introduction of this paper expands on this poignant question, Does the individual receive the Spirit to benefit the community or does the community exist to initiate, sustain, renew, and shape the life of the individual?
“On the one hand baptism [of the Spirit] is… to be seen as the rite of entry into the Christian community… On the other hand, the community can play an important role in the gift and reception of the Spirit.” For Oneness Apostolics the above issue is further convoluted in the effort to bifurcate the Spirit at least into two roles or functions, if not into two separate (S)pirits. The first is the ‘salvific’ Spirit of God, and the second is the ‘gifting’ Spirit of God. When separated (which is untenable by Scripture) it is easy to see that the first is individualistic and the second community oriented. However, in Paul’s ‘body dissertation’ he says, “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.” “It is a mistake to differentiate sharply between receiving the Spirit to enter the body of Christ and receiving the Spirit for power to serve the body of Christ.” Since the Scriptures emphatically insist there is only one Spirit, the individualistic nature of salvation must be reconciled with the communal aspect of the ongoing work of God’s Spirit.
Another variant of the individualistic role of the Spirit in the lives of believers is found in the imparting of the ‘Gifts of the Spirit’. David Bernard, the foremost Oneness Apostolic apologist, draws such a distinction, “…the Spirit grants supernatural gifts to the church for individuals to exercise…” He goes on to point out that, “…the gifts operate through individuals, but each manifestation is a gift to the body and not merely to the individual through whom it comes.” So while it can be argued that the gifts are given to individuals, they are not given with the individual in view, but rather with the community or body at large. As the reader will see in the next section, most often, when the New Testament talks of the work of the Spirit, it has the benefit of the larger community in view. The point can and should be conceded, the Spirit does fill individuals and endow individuals with the ‘gifts of the Spirit’; however, it is most likely that the greater good of the community is both in the mind of God and the recipient when the Spirit is present.
The Role of the Spirit in the Community From a Biblical Perspective
Due to the isolated references to Spirit-filled people prior to the general outpouring of the Spirit in Acts chapter 2 and the limited space with which to write, this writer will refrain from the examination of such incidents. However, no talk of the Spirit would be complete without an examination of the Lukan perspective. Just as Luke could not conceive of a Christian without the Spirit, neither could he conceive of an individual Christian outside of the Christian community. “Perhaps the most characteristic feature of Luke’s portrayal of the ministry of the Spirit is his stress on the Spirit’s abiding with the community.”
The corporate emphasis of the Pentecostal narrative is evident in that they were all together in one place, all the house was filled with the sound of a rushing mighty wind, tongues of fire rested upon each of them, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. “…when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.” This same corporate emphasis in Scriptural ‘Spirit-infilling’ narratives is seen throughout the New Testament .
It may be more important to our study to examine the descriptions of resultant life in the community narratives (life secondary to the outpouring of Spirit) than the narratives of the outpouring of the Spirit.
And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. 46And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, 47Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved [emphasis added].
If this study is to be true to the dynamics of Acts, it must demonstrate that in each Scriptural reference, koinonia was added immediately after the imparting of the Spirit and thus established a precedence for the church today. Acts clearly demonstrates that the first Christians were far more serious about fellowship and community than the church today. “We may contrast today’s standard of fellowship [with the standard of fellowship demonstrated in the book of Acts], by which members [today] often do not even know many others in the church and single members often leave as lonely as when they came.”
Paul, following lock step with Luke, explicitly relates Christian community in every major discussion of the charismata. At least six of the Pauline Epistles utilize the ‘body’ language when describing the intent and purpose of the church. Specifically to the Corinthians, Paul expands on the Salvific intent of the Spirit, “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.” The unity of the Spirit is the determinative factor in which Paul demonstrates the oneness of the Church’s common experience in their new life. “More than anything else, [the ‘body of Christ’ analogy] illustrates how the many members of the Church should relate to one another, and ultimately to the Lord.” Further, Paul emphasizes to the Corinthians that they are fundamentally and primarily the body of Christ and only secondarily individuals. Finally, Paul never reduces the salvific experience to an individual pietism, rather, “…the corporate dimension of [one’s] religious experience is integral to Paul’s whole understanding.”
“The essential balance for hyper-individualism and constant taking of one’s own spiritual temperature is right there in the favorite Pentecostal passage , as well as in all the rest of the Scripture.” Just as it would have been impossible to address the Spirit’s role in the first church without considering the Acts two outpouring of the Spirit, it would also be remiss to not, at least briefly, examine the charismata address to the Corinthians. Bernard summarizes the teachings of Paul on the charismata into two main points, “First, we should earnestly desire all the gifts of the Spirit particularly those that will benefit the whole church,” and “Second, we should not forbid or discourage any spiritual gift, as long as it is used to bless everyone.” (emphasis added) It would be impossible not to notice the communal thrust of both of these points. The discussion of glossolalia and the other gifts in 1 Corinthians makes it very clear “…that the primary work of the Holy Spirit is to bestow koinonia, shared life, on the people of God.” The overriding theme of Paul’s discussion on the charismata is “unity amid diversity.”
No discussion of Paul’s discourse on the charismata would be complete without a few words on the central placement of 1 Corinthians 13. As this writer has demonstrated in other papers, love of God and love of neighbor is the central theme of the entire Bible. Love is first and foremost a communal activity, in fact it could be argued that without community, love would be impossible. The centrality of love within the charismata demonstrates the central theme of community within the discussion of the purpose of the Spirit. The subject of love is placed and discussed in such a manner that it is clear that without love there is no Spirit.
Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.
One can conclude, as does Winn, from the above discussion, “If the new birth and resurrection of individuals were the main thing, would Paul have argued so constantly from ‘the common good’ and ‘the building up of the church’ ?” It is also easy to see how the entire biblical drama moves toward the Kingdom of God and not the Kingdom of Individuals.
The Historic Perspective of the Role of the Spirit
In the earliest days of the post-apostolic fathers, koinonia/communion was the identifying mark of the 2nd Century church. The early Roman Catholic Church also held to a communal aspect of the role of the Spirit; however, the communal aspect of the Spirit became less and less that with which the individual was involved. Until modern Catholicism removed any involvement of the individual, “…in 1991 in Brighton, England, a Roman Catholic priest argued that the entire Roman Catholic Church is charismatic (characterized by spiritual gifts), even though the vast majority of local churches and members never experience them.” In other words, the Priest or Bishops could and would experience the gifts for the community at large, and the individual may never see them in their own experience.
As part of the reformation, early Protestants protested against the universal church of the 1500’s. Part of the Protestant platform was a knee-jerk reaction against the broadening communal aspect of the Church with little or no individual involvement in either salvation or the moving of the Spirit. This individual relationship with God became the flagship of the Protestant movement (an individual walk of faith); Calvin, Schleirmacher, the Westminster Divines, Barth, Tillich, and other reform theologians stood firmly on the preeminence of the Spirit’s purpose in the saving of the individual. On further examination, this pendulum response does not seem to reconcile with the Protestant movement’s doctrine of church community; however, disappointingly little is said specifically about the role of the Holy Spirit in the church community, so it is difficult to reconcile their position(s). So remote was the idea of the Spirit’s work in bestowing shared life on believers that many reformed church definitions, “…lack any reference to the life of the Spirit, vivifying and uniting the body of Christ.”
Some change is seen among Protestants in the early to mid 20th Century. Winn would go as far to say that it could be construed (from Barth’s writings) that Barth was moving towards a communal emphasis of the Spirit throughout his writings, and Barth would say “…that the primary work of the Holy Spirit is his corporate work, that the primary life he gives is the common life in the Body of Christ.” Early on, Dunn follows in the tradition of individualistic understanding of reformed theologians and spends almost his entire book, Baptism in the Holy Spirit, expounding on this aspect. As almost an afterthought, he contributes part of one page to the communal aspects of the Spirit, “Thus far on the purely individualistic level, but we must not forget the third party in the conversion-initiation event – the Christ community. Dunn, like Barth, seems to be moving toward a more communal understanding of the role of the Spirit, and in a later book, Jesus and the Spirit, he makes a significant contribution to the communal role of the Spirit in a chapter entitled, “The Body of Christ – The Consciousness of community.”
At least to observers, Pentecostals of the 20th Century have not moved very much from the populist opinion of the reformers and is therefore ‘unavoidably individualistic’. This is probably secondary to Pentecostals’ emphasis on soteriology, eschatology, and the primitive impulse that emphasizes the acquiring the gifts and not on how they are to be used or for what purpose. The church must hurry up and get as many people saved as possible before Jesus comes back. Equally responsible for this individual emphasis of the Spirit is Western culture’s (specifically in America) strongly marked individualism… Most modern Pentecostals (modern Pentecostalism originated in America) have a high view of inspiration and would agree with reformed theologians that the emphasis of the Spirit is not on the communion of the body, but rather that it falls on the salvific thrust of individuals. Charismatic Christians (which include both Charismatics and Third-Wavers) have a greater sense of the relationship between koinonia and the work of the Spirit than classical Pentecostals and therefore usually focus more on community.
Conclusions From Research
While it is easy to see the role of the Spirit in both the individual and the community, “…the primary work of the Holy Spirit is to bestow shared life on the people of God.” For Pentecostals, especially, one must understand that, while the individual is indeed saved by the Spirit, it is that same Spirit that calls the individual into community with other believers. When one becomes a Christian, he becomes a member of the body of Christ, participating in the local communion of a body of believers, “…there are no isolated Christians.” “The person is saved as an individual but is immediately incorporated into the body of Christ by the operation of the Holy Spirit.” On the other hand, while the primary work of the Holy Spirit may not be for the saving of individuals, but rather to develop, create, and enhance the body of Christ, the salvation of individuals is instrumental to that end.
“No personal flights of spirituality can free the individual from his responsibility to the community or from his dependence on the community.” It is easy to become trapped by the isolationist individualism of Western Culture and see the charismata as God’s gift to the individual and forget the individual’s dependence upon the body; however, while “God does indeed give gifts to individuals, …the gifts are [given] for the benefit of others.” Therefore, the charismata rightly belong to the entire body/community of Christ. Regardless of the gifting of the individual, the individual’s gift should only exist for the welfare of the others. “When ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.” (emphasis added) “Perhaps one reason why many Christians do not see more gifts in operation is because they desire them selfishly .” It should be evident, even to the casual observer, that if the charismata is to be done for the edifying of the community, then the charismata and community belong together.
Conclusion “Application For the Church Today”
Let us not seek our own individual lives, either after the pattern of the old orthodoxy or after the pattern of the new Pentecostals. We have it on good authority that whosoever seeks his own life will lose it. Let us seek rather the koinonia, the common life in the body of Christ, to which our individual lives are instrumental. That is the life which we have to offer the world and for which the world is incredibly hungry. That is the life which is the sign and guarantee of eternal life.
All Spirit-filled believers should feel an inward impulse to become more and more involved in co-operative activities and fellowship, and should be conscious of the common Spirit held by the new community of believers founded by the Spirit of Christ. Consequently, Pentecostals, who hold a high view of the biblical text, should recognize the communal results of the first and subsequencial, biblical outpourings of the Holy Spirit, and, therefore, “…one would expect that it should accompany true outpourings of the Spirit today.”
It has been the intention of this author to examine the role of the Spirit in both the lives of individuals and the life of the community. The reader has seen how an understanding of the primary role of the Spirit has evolved through time from community to distorted community, then Protestant individualism, and finally, an effort to return to a biblically-based community endued with the one Spirit of God. Further, it has been demonstrated that while the emphasis of the Spirit is communal, one cannot deny the individual salvific role of the Spirit. Finally, the biblical evidence demonstrates that the emphasized role of the Spirit by both Luke and Paul in the early church was clearly communal. While this call for a communal emphasis may be revolutionary to some, when considered against the salvific emphasis of the last 100 years, in the long run, it may increase the retention rate of believers. A greater retention rate of healthy Spirit-filled believers can only result in a higher birthrate of new believers.
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