While charismatics will feel that the book stops short of the full story and cessationists may feel uncomfortable in the deep waters of these great truths concerning the Holy Spirit, neither should write off this book. Dr. Jeremiah plainly and lovingly sets forth the truth about the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. This is a truth which more Christians need to hear. Cessationists today are generally afraid to speak of the Holy Spirit, much less to enjoy a life led and empowered by Him, and charismatics are often so focused on the miraculous outpourings of the Spirit that they neglect the simple, blessed truth that the Holy Spirit lives within each and every believer to sanctify, empower and guide him.

The only reason this book did not recieve 5 stars from me is its insistance upon a cessationist view of scripture. While I understand the writer's need to establish the theological basis for a cessationist view of "baptism in the Holy Spirit," I feel that the book breaks from its primarily pastoral/practical focus in attempting to establish this view and distracts from the overall flow of this otherwise marvelous book.


AWESOME!   April 1, 2004
 6 out of 7 found this review helpful

What more is there to say after Daivd give us this paryer....

O God, here I am in Your presence this new day. I thank You that I am Your child, that You have made me part of Your family. I know through Your Word, that Your Holy Spirit lives right inside me. So Lord God, as I begin this day with You, I want You to know that is it is not enough for me for the Holy Spirit just to be resident in my heart... I want Him to be president of my heart.

So Lord, I give You permission to control my life. Holy Spirit, I give You permission to control my emotions, to control everything there is about me. I totally yield myself to You, Lord. My life, my health, my finances, my marriage, my family and all the hours, minutes and seconds of this new day before me. Lord God, control my life, for Jesus' sake and in His name.

Holy Spirit of God, take control of my life. Sit in the place of power. Pull the switches. Do Your work. Lord, I just want to be available. Holy Spirit, I will be Your suit of clothes. Walk around in my body. Speak through my lips. Empower me to be what I cannot be in myself. I ask You to cleanse me from my sin, O God, and fill me now to overflowing. And I ask it in the name of Jesus. Amen.

O God, may the words of my mouth, the actions of my life, and the influence of my deeds show others your holiness and grace and lead them to acknowledge your majesty and might. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

BUCKLE IN AND HOLD ON ... Your life will never be the same.


No help for what the Holy Spirit is doing today   November 25, 2003
 9 out of 16 found this review helpful

My comments are not intended to be personal criticism of a highly successful and respected pastor, but only an informed rebuttal of some of his positions.
A new Christian or one who has not yet read a variety of Christian authors needs to be aware that the author comes from a cessationist theology (that supernatural signs and wonders ended when the bible was finished) - a position that is not generally shared by Christian writers today and which I thought was thoroughly demolished by the powerful spiritual renewals of the 20th century.
A well-read and mature Christian will be put off by numerous dogmatic but controversial statements. For instance, "Some people have taken the reference to water in this verse [John 3:5] to mean you have to be baptized in order to be saved. But that isn't what Jesus meant at all." (p.53b), "The water is the Word. So what Jesus said to Nicodemus was, `Nicodemus, you can't be born again unless you have been born of the Spirit and the Word.'" (p.54a). An interesting concept, but hardly definitive. No, Jesus said "of water". How can the author tell us that's not what Jesus meant?
Probably the most outrageous teaching, at least to those who have participated, observed, or have just heard about the powerful spiritual renewals in the last century, is that Satan has two different strategies: liberal scholars is one. The other is called "experience" (p. 60). The author is concerned that people seek experience and ignore the bible. Of course that is a serious concern: it's called occultism. But for a more rounded and authoritative treatment of experience, one should turn to the writings of such highly qualified authors as John Wimber (as early as the 1970's), Peter Wagner, Charles Kraft, Francis MacNutt, and many others. Contrary to the author's inference, every one of these experienced evangelical ministers stresses and teaches the importance of being soundly based in scripture and of avoiding seeking spiritual experiences outside of Christian doctrine (i.e., the occult). They, in fact, were led to discover the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit at work today precisely by studying the bible and wondering why we in the churches have been ignoring it.
One would never discover what we Christians have been missing by reading "God in You." I am willing to give it two stars because he stresses the authority of scripture. I strongly urge anyone who reads this book or conducts a group study to also include one like John Wimber's classic testimony in "Power Evangelism". He was not taught by Dallas Theological Seminary; he just read the bible and believed it. In thirty years his shared story has resulted in tens of thousands of conversions and hundreds of Vineyard Fellowship churches.


Biblically sound portrayal of the Holy Spirit   August 15, 2000
 13 out of 18 found this review helpful

I must disagree with one of the other reviewers on the Biblical soundness of this book. Clearly the hing of the arguement is whether the Spirit enduced sign gifts refered to during the time of the early church are applicable to us today. Paul does refer to these gifts as something to be desired by the believer, but also comments that in the 'fullness of time' that the sign gifts (speaking in tongues, prophecying, etc.) will no longer be needed. Paul's reference to a future point when the sign gifts would no longer be necessary is a referal to the time when the authoring of the Scriptures would be completed. In Paul's time the early church was not privy to the completed special revelation of the Scriptures - the Apostle John would continue to add to the canon nearly till the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. Today we are blessed with the complete Word of God and consequently have no need of further revelations (prophetic speaking, speaking in tounges, etc. which by the way were specifically used in the early church to exhort others in a church setting and not intended for personal, private use). All we need for this life is in the Bible. Nevertheless, the Spirit is still activly at work in the lives of the believers, and it is key for Christians to understand the funtion and Person of the Holy Spirit that they may live 'in the Spirit'. This book is wonderfully simple and clear! A great tool for unwrapping the truth of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Dr. Jeremiah is blessing!