The Holy Spirit and You

Not many people speak of the Holy Spirit in the Biblical ways anymore. There is either an over-emphasis or and under-emphasis on the Holy Spirit. Both leading to a "leading astray" if you will. I began to notice how the Trinity of our Loving God was not always being taught and it began to disturb me. The Trinity is comprised of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit and all THREE have power. They all have purpose. They all are important because they ALL three work together as ONE. Why? Because they ARE ONE.

You see, when Jesus came physically here on earth, He asked people to believe in Him and follow Him by Faith. Jesus told His disciples that He was leaving and going back to Heaven, where He came from. This is evidenced in John 3:13, "No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven." Also in John 6:38, "For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me." However, He told us that He wouldn't leave us alone, in this fallen world, without a Helper; He called Him the comforter, (another like himself). In John 14:16-17, Jesus says to the disciples that were soon to be apostles of the church, "And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever v17) the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you." Then in John 16:13-14, "However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. 14) He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you."

The Holy Spirit hears things from Jesus which is a personal communication (much in the same manner as Christ did with the Father in John 3.32; 7:16, 8:38 and 12:49), and when the Spirit receives those things from Jesus, He then delivers it to us. That is also the same kind of personal communication as well. See, God is willing to help us; He desires to help us. He’s not trying to hid it, nor is He trying to make us earn His help. He wants to be involved in all aspects of our life, from our simple thank-yous to our full blown pleas of our hearts. Before we are saved, before we receive Jesus Christ as our Personal Savior, God is already there working through the Holy Spirit that He sent. In John 16:8-9, it says, "And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9) of sin, because they do not believe in Me;" Simply put, once someone believes they are a sinner, and that they truly NEED a Savior, they can, then, turn to Jesus for forgiveness. Of course, they need to believe that Jesus Christ was born to a virgin, died on the cross to pay our sin debt in full and rose three days later and is alive, sitting at the right hand of the Father. The Holy Spirit has several responsibilities but the FIRST one is to show someone that they sin and are in great need of a righteousness that they do not possess. A Savior who can cleanse them to be white as snow. To forgive. Then, as His work ultimately progresses, eventually they will hear about Jesus Christ who forgives sin, which is the unadulterated gospel, so they can be saved.

John 16:8-9

For the unbeliever, for those who have chosen to reject Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit has a specific ministry of leading them to the Son, first and foremost. He's been sent to convince, and CONVICT, unbelievers of sin, righteousness and judgment. Sin - to show them they are sinful, having fallen short of God’s standard and glory. Righteousness - To convict them of not having a righteousness of their own to be accepted by God, but to show them they are in need of God’s righteousness that He FREELY gives through accepting the gospel, believing truly and receiving His Son. This righteousness can ONLY be found in Christ. And then, Judgment - in that there is more than meets the eye, that there is a time they will have to answer for how they've lived their lives. There IS a hereafter, as eternity is in our hearts. We know that there is more than just this physical life. Hallelujah!

But what does the Holy Spirit do for the believers? For the saved in Christ? Well, let's take a look and see exactly how the Holy Spirit operates in the Christian's life! First of all, I'd like to point out that ALL believers have the Holy Spirit indwelling in them, otherwise they have not been born again. When a believer has the Spirit, he has ALL of the Spirit, because God is not divisible. The Holy Spirit unites us believers to Jesus Christ and to His body. The Holy Spirit reveals Christ to us, He gives us His life, and makes Christ alive in us.

1) Every believer is SEALED with the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 4:30, "And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption."
2) The Holy Spirit is the anointing given so every believer is anointed with the Holy Spirit. 1 John 2:27, "But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him."
3) We are to become like Jesus in His moral likeness, having His character and bear his fruit. Romans 8:29, "For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren." This is our predestination!
4) The Holy Spirit Comforts us. Acts 9:31, "Then the churches[a] throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied."
5) The Holy Spirit bears witness to the truth in our conscience. Romans 9:1, "I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit,"
6) The Holy Spirit enables us to wait which is something we all struggle with. Galatians 5:5, "For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith."
7) The Holy Spirit cries in our hearts, "Abba, Father!" Galatians 4:6, "And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!" 
8) The Holy Spirit transforms us into the image of Christ. 2 Corinthians 3:18, "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord."
9) The Holy Spirit speaks to, in, and through us! MANY Scripture references so I'm going to add one, but then just add some extra Scripture references for you to look up on your own. 1 Corinthians 12:3, "Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit." Here are some others for your reference. 1 Timothy 4:1; Revelation 2:11; Hebrews 3:7; Matthew 10:20; Acts 2:4; Acts 8:29; Acts 10:19; Acts 11:12 and 28; Acts 13:2; Acts 16:6-7; Acts 21:4 and 11.
10) The Spirit reveals the deep things of God to us. 1 Corinthians 2:10, "But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God." 
11) The Spirit distributes spiritual gifts and manifestations (the outshining) of His presence to, and through, the body. 1 Corinthians 12:4, "There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit." Also in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10, it gives us a much clearer understanding of the gifts, saying, "for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, v9) to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the same Spirit, v10) to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues." Then also in Hebrews 2:4, "God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will?"
12) The Holy Spirit guides us into all truth.  John 16:13, "However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come."
13) The Holy Spirit glorifies and testifies of Christ. John 15:26, "But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me." Also in John 16:14, "He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you."
14) The Holy Spirit leads us and guides us. Romans 8:14, "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God." In Matthew 4:1, "Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil." Then also in Luke 4:1, "Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,"
15) The Holy Spirit sanctifies us.  2 Thessalonians 2:13, "But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth," Also in 1 Peter 1:2, "elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied."

The Holy Spirit does much much more than what I listed and I could have added probably 30-40 more. But you see, He has a lot of functions and "job duties" to perform. Now for all of those who believe in the Gospel, as it is written in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, "Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2) by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3) For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4) and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures," the Holy Spirit is immediately given to each believer as the seal of ones justification, or in other-words right standing. in the New Covenant. They're all cleared of any and all guilt before God and they will start with a new slate. Ephesians 1:13, "In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise," Because we now have the helper with us, and in us, life is going to radically change. When I say radically, I mean that in the purest sense of the word. The Holy Spirit will convict you of those "worldly" sins and things you have clung to before meeting Jesus Christ. He will assist you in changing daily to be more Christ-like in your ways. He will guide you into the Truth. He will lead you away from bad choices. The old "you" will have been laid to rest and a new you will have been born! 2 Corinthians 6:16, "And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.""

Since our lives changes radically and continues to be sanctified daily, it's how we die to self and NOT be attracted to the world and the flesh, and surrender in cooperation in obedience to the Lord, that will dictate just how much He can use our life. I WANT Jesus to use my life. I WANT to be obedient so that He CAN. I WANT to be used as His vessel of Light in this darkness we call the "world." WE all slip and slide and stumble. But we can't be perfect in this life! However, we MUST be vigilant in pursuing the likeness of Jesus Christ, to bear fruit, to be a good witness to those who are living in the darkness of their sins. We can't continue to CHOOSE to live in the sins of the world the way we did before coming to know and love Jesus! We can't continue to CHOOSE to sin because WE want to control our lives. Our lives aren't ours to control. Jesus promises in John 7:38-39, that, "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." The living waters flowing down is much more beautiful that the parched tongues of darkness!

The Holy Spirit Prays for Us

You see, we humans, were originally made in the image and likeness of God but it is passed down to us corrupted. The Lord beautifully restore the moral nature that man lost in the garden of Eden from Satan’s temptation by having the Holy Spirit sent to live in ALL believers in Christ. The Holy Spirit has the same NATURE as Jesus, but His purposes are not the same, His duties are not the same. He is to comfort us; guide us; lead us into truth by explaining the Word; convict us of sin, and conform us to the image of the Son as we go through our trials and suffering. His work is mostly moral and restoring holiness of the image of God in man. We are to become more like the Character of Jesus with His moral likeness so we can bear His fruit! This amazing process can be, at times, very painful and a great learning experience depending upon just how much we are willing to cooperate with Him along the way. The less we cooperate, and the more we want to control our lives and its outcomes, the longer it's going to take and the MORE PAINFUL it WILL be! Trials are sent to us in many different forms in order to build up our faith in God and to teach us to trust in the very God we now have a personal relationship with! Many people mistakenly think trials are sent to punish us but that's the lie of Satan! God does NOT punish His children. He DISCIPLINES them. There is a huge difference. Satan actually punishes his "followers" with torment, darkness, temptations of the flesh. Satan's only goal is to tear someone up, tearing down their person in order to lure them over to his side. God lifts us up above it all, He wants the best for us, He will discipline His children to strengthen them and show them the error of their ways and so they will rely on His strength and not their own.

We don't have to strive for more of Him, because He gave us EVERYTHING of Himself! What we DO need to do is to give Him MORE of us. We are selfish human beings. We want and want and want. We want all of HIM but we don't want to surrender ALL of ourselves. We mistakenly think that we can do better in some areas and we'll save a little for ourselves. Not how it works! All we truly need is already in the believer’s possession! How amazing is that! It isn't that we need more of the Holy Spirit, but, rather that HE needs more of US! If you even try to have, or put on, more requirements to make you holy or if you need more of the spirit, "another baptism", an anointing, or anything else that others use to add to the Gospel, then you are seeking it all the wrong way. 2 Peter 1:3-4, "as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4) by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust."And THOSE things consist of TWO things....The Holy Spirit, Romans 14:17, " for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." and The Scriptures, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17) that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." 

Ephesians 5:18-19, "And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord," When it says to be "filled with the Spirit" that simply means to be continually and daily filled, and to be under the Holy Spirit's control. Not our control, but His! Being filled with the Holy Spirit is a daily sanctification, rejuvenation, that involves dying to one's self and allowing God to cleanse out, and control, the soiled areas in our lives that were dictated by the devil and our sinful nature. I’m not the same person I used to be and yet I’m still being changed into His Son’s image every day that I die to myself and surrender to Him. Every single day! We become subject to the law of the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit is the executor of God’s nature and His "estate" if you will. The believers are God's estate. See it's not the Old Testament commandments in the Mosaic covenant that instructs us any longer, it's the Holy Spirit who becomes our direct instructor. He's the source of our new birth and the Holy Spirit brings out Christ's nature in each believer. He conforms us to Jesus on a daily basis. To walk in the spirit basically means that you are spiritual, you are living a spiritual, NOT carnal, life. This means that you are willingly allowing God’s word to mold your life. It means that you aren't listening to another "voice," whether it be your own or Satan's, that would sound like God to lead you and is contrary to the scripture. It means to be daily sanctified to become more like Jesus. It is by yielding and surrendering to His guidance throughout the each day that we don't walk in the flesh, but instead walk in the Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is not impersonal. Quite the opposite actually. The Bible teaches us that He is very active in our lives, that He's a distinct person but is also FULLY God. I mean He speaks to us so that we can be brought into a joyful, personal relationship with Jesus! Some people, and some denominations, don't believe that the Holy Spirit can speak because they depersonalize what God, Himself, personalized for us! You must understand that the Holy Spirit is a real Person, who has a mind, emotions and will. He is not just some force or some kind of presence or power. You need to recognize Him as a Person because He IS a Person. He can speak. He prays for you, just as Christ prays for you. He teaches you what you need to know. He guides you in your decisions and directs you on your paths. He tells you that you are a child of God. He personally cleans up all the dirty, filthy "rooms" of your innermost being when you allow Him. You have two choices here, you can submit to His voice or you can reject His voice. If you choose to boldly disobey His voice, He'll be grieved. Respecting the Holy Spirit as a person is necessary for your relationship with Him. It's vital actually!

There are two things I would like to touch on at this point in the post and that's the grieving of the Holy Spirit and the quenching of the Holy Spirit. Since He is a person, with a will, emotions and mind, then He feels. He has done and continue to DO, many things for us, in us and through us and the two things we should be cautious of are the two above mentioned words. First let's look at grieving the Holy Spirit. To grieve means "'to afflict with deep sorrow.'" Let's see what it says in Ephesians 4:29-31, warning us, "Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. 30) And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31) Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice." You see, in its full context, the Holy Spirit can be grieved, or afflicted with deep sorrow, when we CHOOSE to return to those very things from which we should've been set free of. All of these things such as bitterness, wrath and anger, etc., can clearly grieve the Holy Spirit. Why? Well, because they definitively deny what has happened to us in being born again. So then how is it meant to work then? We find the answer in Ephesians 4:32, "And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you." Remember what God has done for you. Past tense. How can we not find forgiveness for others after we literally take into account all that has been freely forgiven us by God? If we are/were conscious of our own sin and the awesome, amazing, beautiful Grace that has been fully extended to us, then how can we remain bitter and angry with others? The human nature I suppose. But it's something we all need to work on, look more into and pray more diligently about. There's an order under grace and it's first known that you have been forgiven, and then, secondly, we forgive others. The order under LAW in the Old Testament, is to first forgive others so that you can be forgiven. That’s why I say, and emphasize, that it grieves the Holy Spirit when we hold onto bitterness and malice and anger because it is a certain denial of the very thing which God has already done for us, and the great grace we have already received!

Secondly, the quenching of the Holy Spirit. So to quench means '"to extinguish or put out. Example: the water quenched the fire.'" 1 Thessalonians 5:16-21, "Rejoice always, 17) pray without ceasing, 18) in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19) Do not quench the Spirit. 20) Do not despise prophecies. 21) Test all things; hold fast what is good." How can we quench the Holy Spirit, or extinguish it altogether? Well, by simply not doing the things that give Him the much needed access to control our lives. Us believers have all been there at some point. For example, instead of rejoicing in what God has done for us, and continually talking to Him about it while giving thanks to the Father in all things, we may moan, gripe and complain about our situation. Instead of us giving thanks, we may be slightly ungrateful, wondering what God is doing or where He is in all of "this." These are the very things that can, and will, quench (or restrict) the Spirit. We need to give the Holy Spirit reign to control and work in us, through us and for us. You can see that the differences of the two are fairly clear. Grieving the Holy Spirit is something we DO. Like, for instance, we are angry, bitter,  or have unwholesome talk. Whereas, quenching the Holy Spirit is what we DON'T do. Like, for instance, we don’t rejoice, we aren't being thankful or we aren't just talking with God.

Fruit of the Spirit

The Bible clearly presents the role of the Holy Spirit as a continuation of the amazing work of God the Father and Jesus, the Son, in the lives of all of the believers. As it is, He is an essential companion of, and TO, every Christian. The Holy Spirit is the guarantee and the means by which we are able to persevere to the point of reaching heaven. In the New Testament, John describes Jesus in a very evocative way. In John 1, Jesus is described as God’s Word who IS God and who BECAME man and who dwelt with us. John surely sees God coming to dwell with His people again. Jesus did all that God had done at Mt Sinai - telling people about God and about how they were to live as His people. He gathered His disciples all around Him, who literally became the first "Christians". On the eve of His death, He gathered with them and spoke to them about His departure (John 13-16). As you can only imagine, they were full of grief, as any of us would be! Jesus promised them another companion (or counselor, helper) would come to take His place and who would be with them forever. This is the Holy Spirit found in John 14:15-31. The Spirit will dwell within them (vs 17-18),  and teach them and remind them of Jesus' teaching (vs 26). It's by the Holy Spirit that God (the Father and the Son) dwell with us, His people, His children, and continue to teach us, comfort us and help us to stay true to Him. That's why we need to Holy Spirit. He is IN every believer. The Holy Spirit points us to Jesus always, without fail! The Holy Spirit will always be faithful to show us where we are not like Christ. And as we read God’s Word and ask the Holy Spirit to lead us in ways that are pleasing to Him, He will produce in our lives the fruit of the Spirit: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness and self control."

As He does all of this work in the Christian, there will be many changes that will come about in the Christian's life. The evidences of the Holy Spirit's indwelling are noticeable as 'fruit' in the Christian's new, born again life that's totally opposite of the "normal" "worldly" living of those people who don't have the Holy Spirit in their lives, the Unbelievers. The Holy Spirit is living within us, as any Christian will attest. The new life, the victory over the struggles of the old life, the peace that settles our searching and troubled spirits, and the purpose in life that only Christians can claim are all the result of the new spiritual birth, caused by the indwelling of God the Holy Spirit.

If you are an unbeliever and you desire to be indwelt with the Holy Spirit, to always have Him within you, it's not too late! Please, if you feel the tugging at your heart, in your spirit, know it's the Holy Spirit convicting you and trying to draw you into a relationship with Jesus Christ! Know that if you call upon the name of Jesus, He will hear your pleas! Don't keep running....we are not promised tomorrow!



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