For the Holy Spirit to work in your life, first you must be saved. Also, for the Holy Spirit to work in your life, there are two things you must not do:
--Quench not the Spirit (I Thess. 5:19)
Matthew Henry stated, “Quench not the Spirit (v.19), for it is this Spirit of grace and supplication that helpeth our infirmities, that assisteth us in our prayers and thanksgivings. Christians are said to be baptized with the Holy Ghost and with fire. He worketh as fire, by enlightening, enlivening, and purifying the souls of men. We must be careful not to quench this holy fire. As fire is put our by withdrawing fuel, so we quench the Spirit if we do not stir up our spirits, and all that is within us, to comply with the motions of the good Spirit; and as fire is quenched by pouring water, or putting a great quantity of dirt upon it, so we must be careful not to quench the Holy Spirit by indulging carnal lusts and affections, or minding only earthly things.”
--Grieve not the Spirit (Eph. 4:30)
Isa. 63:10-- “But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.”
To grieve the Holy Spirit is to revel against Him. This can lead you down a very dangerous path.
The Holy Spirit can work in five different ways:
1. YOU CAN BE LED OF THE SPIRIT (Matt. 4:1)
Notice that Christ was led of the Spirit, not by the Spirit; those prepositions are important. When you are led by someone, you are following his lead; but when you are led of someone, you are obeying instructions.
William Moses Tidwell, in his book Effective Illustrations, tells this story: “A gentleman had a pet dove which would light upon his shoulder, walk down his arm and eat out of his hand. One day he decided to experiment with it. As it was eating out of his hand he gripped it a little. When he relaxed his grip the dove flew away and lighted upon a tree. It looked sad. The man coaxed and called. Finally the dove, very reluctantly, came back. He repeated just what he had done before. The dove flew away and acted as before, but this time the man had to call and coax much longer. It seemed it would never return, but finally it did. The man again repeated what he had done. When he relaxed his grip this time, the dove flew farther away and lighted upon a tree. The man began to coax and call, but the dove lifted its wings and flew away. He never saw it again.”
Has the Holy Spirit gripped you lately? He wants to lead you, but you have to obey. And if you continue to ignore Him, He will stop bothering you and leave you to yourself. Some Christians want that; but without the Spirit’s leading in your life, you will go your own way and ruin your life on your own.
Example: Early Church. They couldn’t follow Jesus anymore; they had to follow the Holy Spirit. Where would we be today if the Early Church had not had followed the Holy Spirit’s leading?
2. YOU CAN BE DRIVEN BY THE SPIRIT (Mark 1:12)
Illustration: a boy tries to get a big old box turtle to move, but the turtle hides in its shell. So the boy props it up on a stick and lights a match under it. The turtle hot-foots it our of there! If the Holy Spirit has lit a fire in your heart, you’ll be driven forward for Christ!
What drives you in life? What drives you to do what you do? Perhaps your stubborn will drives you to go to work each day; or maybe the paycheck drives you to work. The Holy Spirit will drive you to stand up for God, or to witness to someone; He will never drive you crazy, but instead will drive you to holiness.
Jesus was driven by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil; the Holy Spirit will drive you into trials and temptations because He knows what is best for your life.
3. YOU CAN BE CAUGHT BY THE SPIRIT (Acts 8:39)
Here, Philip was caught up by the Spirit and moved to another location where God needed him. He was caught by the Spirit! At any moment, the Spirit might need you to help someone or to do something; are you willing?
What catches your attention? What catches your time? Do you get caught up in the things of the Spirit or the things of the world? Jesus got caught up in the things of the Spirit or the things of the world? Jesus got caught up in His Father’s work as a 12 year old. He said in Luke 2:49, “How is it that ye sought me? Wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?”
It’s easy to get caught up in the wrong things. The devil is looking to catch weak Christians. I Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” Who has caught you, the Spirit or the devil? Right now, either one or the other has you.
4. YOU CAN BE MOVED BY THE SPIRIT (II Pet. 1:21)
The word “moves” in the Greek means “borne or carried along as by a mighty wind.” Has the Holy Spirit moved you lately? What moves you? A good story can move you; a friend can move you; but do the things of God ever move you?
Matt. 14:14-- “And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick.”
Remember Jonah? God moved in his heart to go to Nineveh, but Jonah wasn’t moved to go there; instead he went the other way and God had to teach him a lesson the hard way.
What about David? I believe the Spirit of God moved David to kill Goliath; he listened, and look what he did! He did something incredible for God!
When the Spirit moves you, you can listen and obey, or you can ignore Him. But if you ignore Him, you’ll never know what you could’ve done if you would’ve listened.
5. YOU CAN BE FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT (Eph. 5:18)
Alcohol illustration: beer commercials never show the after-affects. Alcohol controls people so they don’t even know what they’re doing. The Holy Spirit should be in control of your life. If you’re in control, and something terrible and unexpected happens, you’ll lose control.
Glass illustration: hold up a glass. “How can I get the air out of this glass?” Then pour water into it. How do you get sin out of your life? Put the Holy Spirit into your life.
There are too many carnal Christians in the world today; God needs more Spirit-filled Christians! A Spirit-filled Christian won’t rent R-rated movies from Blockbuster; a Spirit-filled Christian won’t look at filthy wickedness on the internet; a Spirit-filled Christian won’t go to the theatres and mix himself in that worldly God-forsaken crowd; a Spirit-filled Christian won’t dress, talk, or act like the world because he desires to be separate from the world! We need more Spirit-filled Christians in this church and in this world!
Sail illustration: if you have a sail and it has holes in it, the wind won’t be able to influence it; you have to sow up the holes. If your testimony has holes in it, or your character has holes in it, the power of the Holy Spirit cannot influence your life.
You might ask, “How can I be filled with the Spirit?” It’s simple: starve the flesh and feed the Spirit. Ask God to put the power of the Holy Spirit back into your life. David said, “Take not thy holy spirit from me.” Did you know that you can live your life in such a sinful way, that there is no indication of the Holy Spirit in your life? Examples: Lot, King Saul. Are you living your life in such a way that God can bless it? Or is there no indication that the Spirit is even in your life?
CONCLUSION
Has the Spirit been working in your life? Are you bearing fruit for God? If not, there’s no one to blame but yourself. Perhaps you’re struggling with sin; spend more time reading your Bible and praying, and stay away from that sin. Starve the flesh and feed the Spirit. Perhaps the Holy Spirit isn’t in your life because you’ve never accepted Christ as your personal Savior. You can do that tonight and start walking in the Spirit. What are you filling your life with? Are you in control of your life or is the Holy Spirit in control?
