*Outlines, fill-in-the-blank sheets, and Microsoft PowerPoint presentations are available. For more information, please contact pastorgeoff@bellsouth.net.
Truth Detectors [Episode 1]
Message 5
“The Truth About the Holy Spirit”
John 16:7-11
Opening Illustration
Show Video Clip, “Larry – Doubt and Disbelief” from Illustrate (vol. 3), Bluefish TV.
Video Debrief
Isn’t that sad? That man sits is the pews of an ordinary church every Sunday. Yet, did you hear his theology? He talks about God, then rejects an afterlife … he believes all religions are the same … he believes in good works. He calls Christianity mythology, yet he goes to church and takes his family every week. He calls Jesus, “A phenomenal human being … a phenomenal leader … who was able to claim he was the son of god.” Friends, this guy is classic! He believes in so much that he doesn’t believe in anything at all.
The truly frightening implication of this video is that there are a lot more Larry’s out there in our churches … people who occupy space in pews, drop a few dollars in the plate, and leave unchanged. People whose hearts are empty, and whose heads are full of lies.
People of Crossroads … we cannot be like that … we must hear, know, and be convinced of the truth. We have to be able to tell people what we believe and why. We have to be grounded in the doctrines of our faith.
As I listened to Larry, I couldn’t help but think, “Oh, if the Holy Spirit would only move in his life! If the Holy Spirit would only get all over that church … and all of our churches!”
Well … we’re going to talk about the Holy Spirit today. The Holy Spirit of God, the third Person of the Trinity. He is perhaps one of the least understood and misunderstood Persons of all time. He was called the Holy Ghost in the King James translation, and that idea kind of stuck. So many people think of the Holy Spirit of God as some kind of ghost … floating into and out of people’s lives. They think of the Holy Spirit as an invisible force … like something you would see in Star Wars.
But, friends, there is so much more to the person and work of the Holy Spirit of God … and that’s what we’re going to study today. But, as we have throughout this entire series, we need to remember our starting point …
Starting Point:
In essential beliefs we have unity.
There are some things which cannot be compromised. We must have unity in these areas. Our essential beliefs are defined in our Statement of Faith.
Our Statement Regarding the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the Son of God. He is present in the world to make men aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation. He provides the Christian with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right. He gives every believer a spiritual gift when they are saved. As Christians, we seek to live under His control daily.
2 Corinthians 3:17; John 16:7-13, 14: 16,17; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 2:12, 3:16; Ephesians 1:13; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 5:18
That is our statement of faith with regard to the Holy Spirit. But, as we continue, let’s look first at Jesus’ own teaching about the Holy Spirit in John 16:5-15.
Primary Passage - John 16:5-15
Bible Truths
The Person of the Holy Spirit
Now, we’re not going to spend a lot of time here, because we have talked about this before. But I want us to remember two important truths …
1. He is the Third Person of the Trinity. (Matthew 28:19)
We have already discussed this fact in our study of the Doctrine of God, so this is no surprise to us. But I wanted to remind you of this truth. We are not talking about some invisible, ghostly force … this is the Holy Spirit … the Third Person of the Trinity. Now, please remember also that …
2. He is God, co-equal with the Father and the Son. (2 Corinthians 3:17)
Please remember the relationship within the Trinity of God. There is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God is Three in One, the Triune Godhead, and the Holy Spirit is a co-equal Person of the Trinity.
Now, with that foundation laid … let’s get a little bit more personal. Let’s talk about …
Your Relationship with the Holy Spirit
Sometimes Biblical truths can be a bit difficult to get hold of. I heard a story about a 7-yr.-old girl who told her three-year-old sister that she had found Jesus and that she had hidden him in her heart. Not to be outdone, the younger girl later told her mother that she also had found Jesus and that she hid him under the bed.
Another little girl came up to her Mom and said, "I know that Jesus lives inside my heart. But how do I tell him I love him? Do you think if I write ’I love you’ on a piece of paper and eat it, he’ll get the note?"
Contributed to sermoncentral.com by: Mary Lewis
That little girl was confused about something that often confuses us adults. It’s this basic truth of the faith with regard to your relationship with the Holy Spirit of God …
1. He comes to dwell in you at the moment of your salvation. (Ephesians 1:13-14)
Isn’t that an awesome thought? The Holy Spirit of God comes to dwell in you when you accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord! That is the teaching and the pattern of Scripture. When you come to know the Lord, He sets up residence within you. You literally become the dwelling place of the Lord. Scripture teaches us that this is an instantaneous event that happens in that moment when you make a faith decision for Jesus Christ. Now, some good Christian people don’t believe that this is an instant event. They believe the coming of the Holy Spirit is often delayed.
There are only three Scriptural exceptions: (and they’re not really exceptions!)
• The coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. (Acts 2:1-4)
This was a very unique event because the Holy Spirit had not yet come. Jesus had ascended into heaven, but He had not yet sent the Holy Spirit. It was the day of Pentecost, fifty days after the Passover. The believers were gathered together, and it was in that moment that the Holy Spirit of God came down from heaven and inhabited His people. So, in every sense of the word, this was the actual coming of the Holy Spirit unto Christian believers. This wasn’t a delayed coming … it was the first coming!
But there is one other passage that some people will claim as evidence of the delayed coming of the Holy Spirit.
• The salvation of the Samaritans. (Acts 8:14-19)
Many people appeal to this Scripture as a claim for a normative "second blessing" of the Holy Spirit. However, it was far from normative. It was most unique. We must remember the transitional nature of the book of Acts. Remember the enmity that existed between the Jews and Samaritans. They were bitter enemies. If the Samaritans had received the Holy Spirit totally independent of the Jerusalem church, there would have been a rift. There would have been, in effect, separate churches. So God, in His infinite wisdom, preserved the unity of the church by delaying the Holy Spirit until Peter and John arrived and laid hands on them. The apostles had to see firsthand that the Holy Spirit was, indeed, for the Samaritans. The Samaritans had to understand their submission to their apostolic authority. Unlike this particular and unique situation, we know that believers today receive the Holy Spirit in that moment of salvation (1 Corinthians 12:13).
• The salvation of John’s disciples. (Acts 19:2-7)
Some people want to point at this passage and say, “See! The Holy Spirit comes later for some people … and it only comes by laying on hands … and it only comes with supernatural evidence!” But they’re reading a whole lot into this passage than they’re reading out of it.
Look at the encounter between Paul and these men. He found some guys who appeared to be disciples, but something obviously wasn’t right about them. Paul did not discern the Spirit of God in these men. So he asked them if they received the Holy Spirit. They said, “We’ve never heard of Him!” And Paul asked, “Now whose baptism did you receive?” That’s like us asking, “Now, where do you go to church?” And he found out that they were baptized by John … they were disciples of John, not disciples of Jesus! So Paul told them about Jesus, they believed, he baptized them, and then laid hands on them … and the Holy Spirit came. This was a very unique instance where these men had only a partial Good News … an incomplete belief. And Paul helped them to know Jesus.
So … what’s my point … it’s this …
Scripture offers no support for a “second blessing” of the Holy Spirit.
There is absolutely no evidence that all believers should receive a second blessing of the Holy Spirit and that this blessing should be accompanied by unusual, supernatural events. We don’t have enough time to go into what tongues are … that’s another message for another day …
What I do want you to understand is this … when you called upon the Lord and were saved in Christ Jesus, the Holy spirit came to dwell within you. In fact, the Bible says …
2. You are the temple of the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthian 3:16)
Do you understand what the temple in Israel was? It was the dwelling place of YaHWeh. It was God’s dwelling place on earth. But when Jesus died on the cross, the temple was shaken and the curtain in that separated man from God was torn in two from top to bottom. That temple was emptied, and a new temple was filled. And you who are in Christ Jesus are that temple. You are now the dwelling place of God … you are the temple of the Holy Spirit.
So, we know that the Holy Spirit dwells within us … but there’s something else that you need to understand …
3. You should seek each day to be filled with the Holy Spirit. (Romans 5:18)
Yes, the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us when we trust God for salvation. But we are also commanded to be “filled with the Holy Spirit.” How can this be? How can we be filled with the Holy Spirit if He has already taken residence within us.
Now, I want you to think about that for a moment. When was the last time you fed a baby oatmeal? Peaches or applesauce? How about my all time favorite green beans or peas? Regardless of what you may be serving when your baby does not want to eat his or her entire body gets engaged in the struggle. The jaws become cast iron letting nothing enter the mouth. Any food that may miraculously make it past the lips is pushed out by an iron tongue. The baby develops great eye coordination at these times when you want it to finish the last few bites, but he or she has had enough. The spoonful headed for the mouth hits the ear instead, a small hand pushes the spoonful into your lap. How many of you have ever been there?
Babies need to eat. Good nutrition is important for the growth and development of every infant. However, no matter how hard we may try, and regardless of how tasty the food may be, UNLESS THE BABY IS YIELDED AND WILLING TO EAT, WE CANNOT “FILL IT” WITH FOOD. When the same baby is hungry or thirsty and is crying out making its desire know, then it is much easier to “fill” the baby.
Similarly, the Holy Spirit does not force Himself to “FILL US.” In the same way that a baby needs to have a desire for food or drink to be willing to eat, we must also crave the presence of the Holy Sprit in our lives in order to be “filled with the Spirit.”
Contributed to sermoncentral.com by: D. Greg Ebie
Yes, the Holy Spirit is within us … but the question is, how much of us does He have? Sometimes we are so occupied with ourselves that we don’t make any room for God in our lives. The Holy Spirit is there, but we do all that we can to cram Him into a small corner … kind of out of the way. In order to be filled with the Holy Spirit, we have to cram self into the corner. We have to talk to God, confess our sin, get right with Him, and yield ourselves to Him. And we have to do it every day. Then … we can be filled with the Holy Spirit of God. So, yes, the Holy Spirit dwells within this temple. But we must choose how much of this temple we allow Him to occupy.
The Work of the Holy Spirit in Our Lives
1. He convicts us of sin and brings us to repentance. (John 16:8)
Sometimes we like to think that it is our job to convict and judge … but it’s not. That is the work of the Holy Spirit.
2. He reveals the standards of God’s righteousness to believers. (John 16:10)
The Holy Spirit sets the standard for holiness in our lives. He speaks to us when we sin. He brings conviction and shame when we are living lives that do not please God. We know what righteousness is, and we know how we should live, because of the Holy Spirit within us.
3. He provides power for living the Christian life. (Romans 8:2)
Do you want to “crash and burn” as a Christian … then try living the life on your own. Try doing good works and acting like a Christian out of your own power … and you’ll run out of gas really fast. We must tap into the power of the Holy Spirit, which is constantly available to us, in order to live effective Christian lives.
4. He provides power for witnessing and ministry. (Acts 1:8)
That supernatural power isn’t just for us. It’s not so that we can have satisfaction and lots of “warm fuzzies.” That power is the Glory of God for the glory of God. We have that power in order to make us have an effective witness. It’s the power to live a holy life that people can see. And it’s the power to open up our mouths and speak the Gospel to those around us.
5. He equips us for ministry. (1 Corinthians 12:4-6, 11)
This is a major role of the Holy Spirit in our lives. When you become a follower of Christ … when you have your eternity changed by God’s salvation … then the holy Spirit does not only come to dwell in you, He equips you for ministry. He gifts you with very special and specific spiritual gifts for God’s service. These gifts aren’t given so that you can receive and praise and glory. They’re given so that you can serve and use them and bring God the glory.
6. He helps us to pray. (Romans 8:26-27)
You know, most of us rarely run out of things to say. We generally like to talk … some even more than others … But there is one time when we seem to universally be at a loss for words. It’s during our prayer time. Somehow, when we come to sit or stand before God, we don’t know what to say to Him. Sometimes, things are just so bad in our lives that we don’t know what to say. That’s when the Holy Spirit steps in and helps us.
And, finally … one last thing …
7. He helps us discern false teaching. (1 John 2:26-27)
That’s what we’re all about in this series … being truth detectors … discerning the truth of God and separating it from the lies of the world. A proper understanding of the Holy Spirit and a daily filling of the Holy Spirit will go a long way in helping keep us away from the lies. You see, folks, when the Holy Spirit of God has filled you to the full, there’s no room for the lies … He points them out to you. He is our ultimate weapon, our ultimate resource, in discerning those false teachings of the world.
Whew! We’ve covered a lot of ground, haven’t we? We were reminder of the person of the Holy Spirit. We studied His relationship with us. And we reviewed some of the ways that He works in our lives. I’m sorry that we had to go through things so fast. I want to encourage you to take some time on your own, use this guide as a resource, and invest some personal Bible study time in learning more about the Holy Spirit.
Closing Illustration
A Pastor named A. J. Gordon told once of being out walking and looking across a field at a house. There beside the house was what looked like a man pumping furiously at on of those hand pumps. As Gordon watched, the man continued to pump at a tremendous rate; he seemed absolutely tireless, pumping on and on, up and down, without ever slowing in the slightest, much less stopping.
Truly it was a remarkable sight, so Gordon started to walk toward it. As he got closer, he could see it was not a man at the pump, but a wooden figure painted to look like a man. The arm that was pumping so rapidly was hinged at the elbow and the hand was wired to the pump handle. The water was pouring out, but not because the figure was pumping it. You see, it was an artesian well, and the water was pumping the man! You see, friends, that is how the Holy Spirit of God works in the lives of believers. So often we think that we are doing the work and God is simply giving His approval. We think that God needs us, so we have to do things. But, friends, we have to remember that it is God who is really doing the work in and through us through His Holy Spirit. If you want to be a part of what God is doing, all you have to do is keep your hand on the handle.
SOURCE: Ted Sunderland in "Constantly Abiding" on www.sermoncentral.com
So, my friends, hold on tight. Seek that daily filling of the Holy Spirit. Submit to Him in your life. And get ready for an awesome, powerful work of God in your own Christian walk.
Challenge
Acceptance of Christ, Filling with the Holy Spirit
LIFE Applications
1. Each day, confess your sin and selfishness, and ask the Holy Spirit to fill you to the full!
2. Submit to the guidance of the Holy Spirit in your life.
3. When you study the Bible, ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand.
4. Trust in the power of the Holy Spirit in your ministry. Do not attempt to do ministry on your own!
5. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you discern His truth from the lies of the world.
