Paul says, “If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ” (Romans 8:9). So every Christian has the Spirit and yet not every Christian is filled with the Spirit. Paul wrote to the Christians at Ephesus saying, ‘be filled with the Spirit’ (Ephesians 5:18). It needs to be said that the Holy Spirit is already present in every believer’s life, but there are levels of indwelling. Some people live at home just a few days a month, others all the time. There are levels of indwelling. And Paul uses the present tense: ‘be filled with the Spirit’ to indicate the infilling of the Holy Spirit is not a once for all experience, but that we are to go on being filled, over and over again.

So what is the difference between someone who is a Christian and someone who is a Christian and is full of the Holy Spirit? Nicky Gumbel shares a good illustration that might help us understand. Years ago most gas boilers had a pilot light that was on all the time – some still have pilot lights. But the boiler is not always giving out heat and power. Some Christians have only got the pilot light of the Holy Spirit in their lives, whereas when people are filled with the Holy Spirit it’s like the gas is released and then WHOOSH!, they begin to fire on all cylinders if you will forgive my mixing metaphors! When you look at them you can almost see and feel the difference.

Nicky Gumbel, Alpha Questions of Life, 2007 edition, Eastbourne: Kingsway Communications, p.143.