Scripture: John 16:5-15
Theme: Holy Spirit
Title: Supreme Guide Master – The Holy Spirit
INTRO:
Grace and peace from God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit!
I want to talk to you today about making decisions. In particular, I want to talk to you about some ways to make the best decisions and choices for your life. All of us have to make choices:
+Where will I live? +Who will I spend my life with?
+Where will I work? + What school will I attend?
+Should I go into debt? +Should I become a parent?
Making decisions is not just for the young. All throughout our lives, we will find ourselves having to make some life altering decisions.
+What should I do now that the children have gone?
+How do I live after my loved one is gone?
+How do I live after my divorce?
+Is it time to get a new job?
+When should I retire?
Those are just a few of the hundreds of questions and decisions that we have to make during our lifetimes. And if you are like me you need some help making those right decisions and choosing the right path.
This morning I want to share with you the person that promises us that He will help us find the right answers and the right paths to walk in this life. Jesus testifies of Him in John 17:13:
“When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak of His own but will tell you what He has heard. He will tell you about the future.”
There is a great deal packed in that one little verse. But the essence of it is simply this: The Holy Spirit wants be our Supreme Guide in our lives. The Holy Spirit will help make the right decisions and follow the right path if we will allow Him.
Let’s see exactly what all of this means:
1. The Holy Spirit will Guide us to the Absolute Truth
In other words the Holy Spirit will tell us what is most important in this life. And the most important thing begins and ends with Jesus Christ.
The Absolute and Foundational truth that any of us human being can ever come to understand and comprehend is this:
+Jesus Christ is Savior and LORD of all – there is no other Savior or Lord – there is no one else who can rescue us, redeem us and restore us.
+There is only One Way to the Father – and that is Jesus Christ
+There is only One Way to Everlasting Life – and that is through Jesus Christ
There is no other decision that we will make in this life that is more important than to make Jesus Christ our Savior and LORD.
When you build a life you need a solid foundation. And there is no more solid foundation than a life built on Jesus Christ. Without Jesus you might be able to achieve a great many things that look good to the world but it will all be for nothing. Without Jesus there is no everlasting joy, peace and future. Without Jesus there is only everlasting pain and loneliness. Without Jesus there is only Hell.
It is just that plain and simple. Without Jesus there is only Hell.
Jesus is the Son of God. Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus is the Redeemer. Jesus is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Jesus can set us free from sin, depression, loneliness and everlasting death.
So, before we look at anything at all, we need to fully understand that everything that will enable us to live a Victorious Life begins and ends in our relationship with Jesus. The Holy Spirit wants be our Supreme Guide but in order for Him to be that Supreme Guide, we must accept Jesus Christ as Savior and LORD of our lives.
II. Secondly, we need to understand that the Holy Spirit will always guide us away from Sin
The reason the Holy Spirit will lead us away from sin is that sin is so dangerous. In fact, there is nothing more dangerous to us making the right decisions than sin. Sin brings chaos, confusion and will always lead us down the path of disaster and destruction. Sin is anti-God; it is anti-Christ and it is anti-Holy Spirit.
Think back to the Garden of Eden. The Garden was perfect. The soil in the ground was perfect. The animals, the trees, the birds and the creatures that lived in the waters were perfect. Adam and Eve were perfect. Their relationship was perfect. Everything was perfect.
There was no sickness or disease. There was no death. There was no greed nor violence. Everything was just perfect. Everything reflected God’s glory and honor. The air was filled with joy, peace and love. The atmosphere in the Garden mirrored the atmosphere in Heaven.
But then Adam and Eve were tempted to bring Sin into the Garden. And we all know what happened when they allowed Sin to become a part of Earth’s creation. Immediately, there was chaos, division, confusion and death. There was disharmony and the perfect relationships that existed between humans and creation became tainted. Adam and Eve turned on one another and together they blamed both God and creation for their problems.
All of us have inherited the results of their bad decisions and our bad decisions. We live in a world that more times than not has invited Sin to remain and even rule. As a result all too often our world reeks of chaos, division, confusion, disease and death. We see it all around us.
That is why Jesus came to Rescue, Redeem and Restore us. That is why Jesus came to bring us New Life. He came to make it possible for us to live a whole new kind of life here on this earth.
That new life of course is called the Born Again Life. When we repent and receive the infilling presence of the Holy Spirit we are no longer the same person. We have a New Heart and a New Spirit. We host the Person, Power and Presence of God’s Holy Spirit.
The power and penalty of sin have been broken in our lives. We don’t have to sin. We don’t have to give in to temptation. Through the Holy Spirit we can live above sin. We can say no to the misleadings of the Devil and the temptation of sin.
That is why we need the Holy Spirit to be our Supreme Guide. The Holy Spirit wants us to live an Abundant Life. He wants us to be able to live the best life possible on this Earth. And so, the Holy Spirit will always lead us away from sin.
This is what the Apostle Paul was telling his congregation at Galatia (Gal. 5:16)
“I say then, “Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.”
Paul understood that as Born Again, Spirit-filled people that Devil would not go away. Neither he nor his legion of demons will just write us off and leave us alone.
Instead of living us alone, evil does its best to trip us up. The devil and his demons do their best to bring sin back into our hearts, minds and souls. The only way that they can stop us from enjoying the best life possible here on earth is for us to sin or allow sin to prevent us from our God given destiny.
If the Devil can’t stop us head on by causing us to sin in the body he will do his best to attack our minds and cause us to be overwhelmed with anxiety, fear and doubt. He will get us to focus on ourselves and our own problems to the point where we are paralyzed.
It is here that we need to hear and listen to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will lead us into a life of obeying God; a life of holiness. The Holy Spirit will lead us into a life of living above sin. The Holy Spirit will lead us into a life of fruitfulness.
Jesus did not save us for us to live a life below the life of being Born Again and infilled with His Holy Spirit. Jesus rescues us, redeems us for us to be restored into the Image of God. Jesus saves us for us to live above the things of this world and above the curses and problems that come with sin.
Every time the Devil or his legion of demons tempts us it is to stop us from our God Given Destiny; that of living the Abundant Life. Every time the Devil or his legion of demons tempts us it is to cause us to stumble and fall down. He hopes that we fall back into sin and miss out on God’s Goodness and Love.
The Bible tells us how desperately the Devil tried to stop King David. The devil was unable to kill David when he used a bear, a lion and Goliath. He was unable to kill David through King Saul’s foolishness.
However, the Devil knew that David developed a weakness towards certain women. And so the Devil tempted David to stay home and be on the house top the night that Bathsheba was taking her ritual bath. The Devil then tempted David to take Bathsheba by force and have his way with her. After all, David rationalized that he was the King and the King should be able to have any woman he chooses. That is what all the kings around the nation of Israel were doing.
You see, the Devil could not kill David but he could tempt David to destroy himself. And as you read David’s story, this sinful encounter with Bathsheba nearly did the trick. Had it not be for David’s sorrow and repentance, I have no doubt that David would not have survived the next few years.
As it was, his sin/rebellion opened the door for even more sin. He lost not only Bathsheba’s baby boy, but as you read the story he loses two of his other sons; Amnon and Absolom. Amnon repeated his father’s lust that led to his death and Absolom’s out and out rebellion against his father led to his death.
All of this was because David turned not to the LORD at his time of temptation but instead allowed his flesh to override his spirit. That is what the Devil desires. He wants us to choose the desires of our flesh over the desires of our spirit.
That is why the Holy Spirit is so keen at keeping us away from sin. That is why the Apostle Paul wrote these words:
“… give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice – the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the only way to worship Him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s perfect will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” Romans 12:1b-2 (NLT)
“Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. Do not scoff at prophecies, but test everything that is said. Holy on to what is good. Stay away from every kind of evil.” (1 Thessalonians 5:19-22 NLT)
The Apostle Peter puts it this way:
“So prepare your minds for action and exercise self-control. Put all your hope in the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy.” (1 Peter 1:13-15 NLT)
The Holy Spirit will do everything He can to guide us away from sin. He knows all too well how sin can slip us up, cause us to lose out on living an Abundant Life and bring about generational sins.
Two of the most important things the Holy Spirit will guide us about is:
+Knowing and Accepting Jesus Christ as Savior and LORD
+Guiding us into a life free from the penalty and power of sin
III. Holy Spirit will Guide us to fulfill our God Given Purpose in this Life
One of the amazing things that we find in the Bible is all the different ways that the LORD has used to guide His people:
+We see the LORD leading His people using a Pillar of Fire and a Pillar of Cloud in the book of Exodus
“The Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light”. (Exodus 13:21)
+We see the LORD using some unexpected ways to speak to Gideon in Judges 6:33 – 40. Gideon lays out a piece of wool fleece on a threshing floor and asks God to do certain things to it so that he might know God’s will. The LORD not only helps Gideon once but twice.
+We see the LORD leading Elijah to a cave on Mt. Sinai and then through a soft voice sharing with Elijah what He wants him to do next. He is to go and anoint two new kings and call a new prophet. (1 Kings 19:11-18). You can’t get more direct than that.
+In the New Testament we see Jesus step by step guiding this disciple and that disciple. We see Him using different parables and sermons to help people know how to make the right decisions and follow the right paths.
St. Luke takes great pains for us to understand that just as God the Father leads people and Jesus leads people so too does the Holy Spirit. In fact, St. Luke shows us how the Holy Spirit led Jesus while He was here on earth.
+The Holy Spirit was there at the time of Jesus’ conception – Luke 1:35
+Jesus is anointed by the Holy Spirit at His baptism – Luke 3:21-22
+Jesus is then led by the Holy Spirit to the wilderness for a time of testing and helps Jesus be Victorious – Luke 4:1-13 (Jesus’ use of Scripture)
+Jesus is then guided and anointed by the Holy Spirit to start His ministry – Luke 4:17-21
From that point on we see passage after passage of how the Holy Spirit worked in and through Jesus leading him, guiding him and empowering him.
+It was by the Spirit's power that He performed signs and wonders (Matt. 12:28; Luke 4:18; Acts 10:38)
+It was by the Spirit’s power that He cast out demons (Matthew 12:28)
+It was by the power of the Spirit that He proclaimed the gospel (Luke 4:18; Matt. 12:18; Acts 1:2)
Even though Jesus is the Son of God, Jesus purposely choose to live the servant life while He was here on earth. He choose to live the life of a human being (Philippians 2:5-11). He committed Himself to the will and guidance of the Holy Spirit while He was here on this earth. He did so to show us how we too could live a victorious life under the will and guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Even as Jesus was guided and led by the Holy Spirit, He desires for us to be guided and led by the Holy Spirit.
Then on the Day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit came in His fullness (Acts 2). The Holy Spirit came to not just anoint people but to live inside people. The Holy Spirit made it possible for all of us to Host Him in our hearts, minds and souls.
After Pentecost we see how the Holy Spirit guided people to fulfill their God given Destiny:
+The Holy Spirit guided the Early Church in selecting the seven deacons (Acts 6:3)
+The Holy Spirit guided Philip to talk to the Ethiopian (Acts 8:29)
+The Holy Spirit gave specific instructions concerning Cornelius (Acts 11:12)
+The Holy Spirit specifically told the Early Church to appoint Barnabas and Paul (Acts 13:2)
+The Holy Spirit guided the Early Church how to assimilate Gentile Believers (Acts 15:28)
+The Holy Spirit prevented Paul going into Asia and instead instructed Paul to go to Macedonia (Acts 16:6-7)
In each of these cases the Holy Spirit used different ways to speak.
+The Holy Spirit spoke through verses – that is to say that the Holy Spirit spoke through Scripture
+The Holy Spirit spoke through events – using creation
+The Holy Spirit spoke directly – both inwardly and outwardly
Many people have come to understand how the Holy Spirit speaks through the Bible. This is usually the preferred method people like to use to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit. And it is a good one for the Holy Spirit inspired the Word and will at no time contradict what He has inspired to be written in the Bible.
This challenges us to be people of the Bible. The more we read, study and meditate on the Bible the better we will be able to hear and listen to the Holy Spirit. That is to say, if we want to make the right decisions in our life and follow the right path then we need to be students of God’s Word.
The Holy Spirit will also speak through creation. So many times we can hear the LORD when we are being still under a tree or watching a sunset or just being near a body of water. There is something about being still and resting in nature that enables us to hear God’s voice and come to understanding what the right path is we need to take.
It should not surprise us then that one of the images that Jesus used when He spoke of the Holy Spirit to Nicodemus was the image of the wind. And it should not then surprise us that one of the images that Luke used to describe Pentecost was both the wind and fire.
Creation was made for us. God uses Creation to speak to us. He spoke to Moses out of the fire. Jesus turned water into wine and feed 5,000 with just a few fish and a little bread. Both of these miracles spoke volumes.
The Holy Spirit can use any means of creation to help us; the wind, the trees, the calming presence of the water. Just being alone in nature at times allows us to be quiet enough to hear the Lord’s voice.
Finally, the Holy Spirit will speak to us both inwardly and when He desires outwardly. He will speak to us through our times of prayer. He will speak to us as we go about our everyday lives. He will speak to us as we drive down the road or as we do our house work or sit at our desk at school or in the office.
One of the things the Holy Spirit loves to do is to share our lives. He doesn’t confine Himself to just those times that we are Reading the Word or being quiet in nature. The Holy Spirit wants to be a part of all our lives.
The Holy Spirit will speak to us if we open our hearts, minds and ears. We need to remember that Our Heavenly Father is not mute. Jesus was not mute. Neither is the Holy Spirit. He can and will speak to us.
Too many people are worried that if they say that they have spoken to LORD and the LORD has spoken back to them that they will be considered crazy.
Well, then the Crazy List includes the likes of Abraham, Moses, King David, Elijah, Isaiah, Daniel, Mary, Joseph, John the Baptist, Peter and Paul plus a great many more. Now, that’s not a bad crowd. Each of them heard God speak – some inwardly, some through angels, dreams and visions and others directly.
Again, this should not alarm us or upset us. Genesis tells us that God came down in the cool of the Garden to talk and spend time with Adam and Eve. Every since we were created the LORD has wanted to communicate with us through a multiplicity of methods.
This morning let me challenge you:
Take the Bible – read it, study it and allow the Holy Spirit to use it to help you make the right decisions and walk the right path.
Take nature – talk a walk with the LORD. Get alone and listen to the wind, watch creation, sit by a body of water and allow the LORD to speak to you. Being alone with God in His Creation can help us clear away the fog and clutter in our lives and enable us to hear His Words.
Speak to the LORD – Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Lean into Romans 8:26-27
“And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groaning that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will.”
Don’t grieve the Holy Spirit. Don’t block the Holy Spirit from speaking to you in whatever why He chooses. He is God. He is our Supreme Guide. He knows what we need – be it speaking to our minds, giving us a vision or dream or opening up a passage of Scripture or even talking to us out loud.
Be open. Jesus tells us to seek and we will find. Knock and it will be open to us. Jesus promised us that the Holy Spirit would guide us into the truth and that in the Holy Spirit we will find the answers to life that we need.
If you are in doubt, then do what the Apostle John writes in 1 John 4:1-3 – Test the spirit – If it is the Holy Spirit then you will find yourself surrounded by peace, joy and love. If you find yourself filled with chaos, anxiety and worry or if what you are hearing is telling you to sin or to be prideful, greedy, lie or cheat then you can be well assured that it is not the Holy Spirit speaking.
This morning, the LORD wants the best for us. He did not die for us to keep away from us or to hide from us. He did not send His Holy Spirit to keep us at bay. He did not allow us to be host of His Spirit for us to be left alone.
I mean how foolish would it be for us to be Hosts of the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit stay mute, cloistered up in our heart, mind and soul?
This morning, let me challenge you to allow the Holy Spirit to be Supreme Guide in this life.
+Acknowledge, Accept and Receive Jesus as Savior and Lord of Your Life
+Allow the Holy Spirit to led you to a life above and beyond Sin – A Spirit-filled and Spirit-guided Life
+Open every avenue for the Holy Spirit to speak to you – The Word, Nature, Your Mind and Your Ears.
Closing Prayer/Communion/Open Altar
