nning at flood-tide. Ezekiel's vision of the future capital of
Israel gives prominence to a wonderful river gradually reaching
flood-tide and exerting untold influence.

John's companion vision of the future church in the closing chapters of
Revelation finds its radiating center in an equally wonderful river of
water of life. When Jesus would give a picture of a christian man up to
His ideal He exclaims, "Out of his belly shall flow rivers of living
water." John's explanation years after was that He was speaking of the
Holy Spirit's presence in the human life. Jesus' ideal would put our
lives at the flood-tide. No ebb-tide there. No rise and fall. But a
constant flowing in and filling up and flooding out.

Love is ambitious. God is love. And therefore God is ambitious for us.
In the best sense of the word He is ambitious for our lives. The old
impression has been that salvation is for the soul, and for heaven.
Well, it is for the soul, and it is for heaven, but it is for the
present life and for this earth. Some of God's most far-reaching plans
have to do with this earth. To-night we want to get a glimpse of God's
ambitious ideal for our lives down here; something of an understanding
of the _results_ of the unrestrained presence within us of His Holy
Spirit.

It is not surprising that there have been some mistaken ideas about the
results. It has been a common supposition that somehow the baptism of
the Holy Spirit is always connected with an evangelistic gift and,
further, connected with marked success in soul-winning. Men have thought
of Mr. Moody facing great crowds, who were swayed and melted at his
words, and of people in great multitudes accepting Christ. Probably the
world has never had a finer illustration of a Spirit-filled man than in
dear old Moody. And it is not to be wondered at that the rare
evangelistic gift of service with which he was endowed and the great
results attending it should be so closely allied in our minds with the
Spirit-filled life which he exemplified so unusually. In sharp contrast
however with that conception will you note that we are told over here in
Exodus of a man named Bezalel[17] who was filled with the Spirit of God
that he might have skill in carpentry, in metal working, and weaving of
fine fabrics, for the construction of the old tent of God. Will you note
further that a company of seventy men[18] were filled in a like manner
that they might be skilled in conducting the busines