THE WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
© 4/2001 Mark Beaird
2 PART SERIES / Part 2
Text: John 16:13 and 14:15-18 used at PPCOG 3/5/03
The human body is a most remarkable machine. It can maintain a constant temperature of 98.6 degrees no matter what the weather is outside. Whether a man is at the Arctic Circle or the equator, his body temperature is about the same. There is an inner mechanism that makes the difference. The Holy Spirit dwells within the Christian to achieve this kind of stabilization in terms of spiritual health. Whether we face good times or bad, whether we are tempted or receiving spiritual nourishment, the Holy Spirit keeps us stable within.
--Robert C. Shannon, 1000 Windows, (Cincinnati, Ohio: Standard Publishing Company, 1997).
In our text we see just how the Holy Spirit works within our lives to bring about stability.
I. THE HOLY SPIRIT COMMUNICATES WITH THE HEART OF THE BELIEVER.
A. The Holy Spirit guides us into the truth of God’s Word.
John 16:13 reads, “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.” NIV
The future of every believer involves many things such as: trials, joys, but it all involves our service to Christ. The believer is never led into all truth for purely his or her own benefit. We are to use the truth to reach out to others.
“God’s Holy Spirit orchestrates our lives to touch others--strangers, friends, work-related people, service-industry workers and more--if we would just open up and be ourselves. How? Be free to be in love with Jesus in front of people. Be an ambassador through whom he can introduce himself. There is a world out there, hungry and searching for Jesus and his love. Don’t keep him to yourself.”
-- Becky Tirabassi, From Wild Things Happen When I Pray. Copyright 1993 by Becky Tirabassi. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Marriage Partnership, Vol. 11, no. 2.
B. The Holy Spirit communicates spiritual truths to ensure our spiritual growth in Christ.
In John 14:26 Jesus said, “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” NIV
Spiritual growth only takes place when we follow the leading of the Holy Spirit as He leads us in accordance to the Word of God. And He always leads us according to the Word!
In Ephesians 5:15-21 Paul tells us, “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” NIV
In Colossians 3:15-17 Paul adds, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” NIV
J. O. Sanders wrote, “A walk in the Spirit will of necessity be a walk in accordance with the Word the Spirit has inspired. The parallel between Eph 5:18-21 and Col 3:15-17 is significant. The same results are said to flow from being filled with the Spirit in the first cast, and being filled with the Word in the second. To remain filled with the Spirit, and thus enjoy His continuing sanctifying work, will mean continuing to be filled with the Word. The relationship is obvious.” J.O. Sanders, Enjoying Intimacy with God, Moody, p. 91.
II. THE HOLY SPIRIT COMFORTS THE HEART OF THE BELIEVER.
A. The assurance of comfort is given to all those who will obey God.
Jesus said in John 14:15, "If you love me, you will obey what I command.” NIV
Before we can go any farther and rejoice in the comfort of God we must first stop here and deal with a foundational principle—obedience. We grieve the Holy Spirit by our disobedience and if He is grieved with us will not be able to receive the comfort He has for us.
Milton S. Agnew in the book The Holy Spirit--Friend and Counselor, writes "Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God" commands Paul. Now, only a dear friend can be grieved. Not a stranger: he might be annoyed. Not a chance acquaintance: he might be perplexed. Not a business partner: he might be offended. Only a loved one can be grieved.
--Milton S. Agnew in The Holy Spirit--Friend and Counselor. Christianity Today, Vol. 36, no. 8.
B. Comfort is the blessing reserved for those who obey God.
Jesus continues in John 14:16-18, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” NIV
In the book Healing the Masculine Soul, Gordon Dalbey says that when Jesus refers to the Holy Spirit as the Helper, he uses a Greek word, paraclete, that was an ancient warrior’s term. "Greek soldiers went into battle in pairs," says Dalbey, "so when the enemy attacked, they could draw together back-to-back, covering each other’s blind side. One’s battle partner was the paraclete." Our Lord does not send us to fight the good fight alone. The Holy Spirit is our battle partner who covers our blind side and fights for our well being.
-- Tom Tripp, Colusa, California. Leadership, Vol. 15, no. 2.
CONCLUSION
Gordon Brownville’s Symbols of the Holy Spirit tells about the great Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen, the first to discover the magnetic meridian of the North Pole and to discover the South Pole. On one of his trips, Amundsen took a homing pigeon with him. When he had finally reached the top of the world, he opened the bird’s cage and set it free.
Imagine the delight of Amundsen’s wife, back in Norway, when she looked up from the doorway of her home and saw the pigeon circling in the sky above. No doubt she exclaimed, "He’s alive! My husband is still alive!"
So it was when Jesus ascended. He was gone, but the disciples clung to his promise to send them the Holy Spirit. What joy, then, when the dovelike Holy Spirit descended at Pentecost. The disciples had with them the continual reminder that Jesus was alive and victorious at the right hand of the Father. This continues to be the Spirit’s message.
-- Thomas Lindberg, Stevens Point, Wisconsin. Leadership, Vol. 7, no. 3.
It is this presence in the life of the believer that gives us the stability that we need in order to serve Christ as we grow in grace and knowledge of the Savior.
