The Work of the Spirit
1. TO CONVICT US
John 16:8-11
When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: [9] in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me; [10] in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; [11] and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
The Holy Spirit is the prosecuting attorney of God attempting to get us to settle with God out of court
Before we face judgment1. day when the book is thrown at us
The Spirit is busy convicting men in 3 areas and to direct them toward Jesus
he gives us a sense of SIN
The biggest sin he is working to convict men of is their unbelief in Jesus
He is working to reverse that unbelief and distrust so that men believe in HIM
He convicts us to affirm the righteousness of Jesus
The Pharisees said he was of the Devil – The Spirit is saying – he is from the Father
The Spirit is working to gain a reversal of the Worlds verdict and view of Jesus
The world says Jesus is merely a man
Just a prophet or a good teacher
It has disturbed me recently to see the impact 2 Morman missionaries are having on our community. It seems like everyweek they have their picture in the paper – the most recent being an article of their donation of the book of mormon to Parker library
They are good looking kids
Helpful
Kind
Active
But their Jesus is not the Jesus of scripture..
And I am compelled by The Spirit of God to Worship JESUS only and when I get into their presence or read about their works –Spreading Lies-
I feel the conviction of the HOLY Spirit
The Spirit is confirming the righteousness of Jesus and is saying look to him alone…
The Spirit is convincing the world of judgment that is already handed down and judgment that is yet to come.
2. REGENERATE US
To take that which is dead
Our sinful nature and bring it to life
John 3:5
Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.
Jesus acts upon this verse
John 3:5
Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.
John 20:22
And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit.
Up until this time the faith of the disciples had been the same as that of any OT Saint that looked forward to the messiah that would one day come
Their faith was in anticipation that God would send a saviour
In John 20:22
His work on the cross is finished
Jesus stands before the disciples with indelible proof of his living presence
On that basis the disciples are given an opportunity that no one before them had been given.
Now no longer would their faith be in anticipation
But it would look back upon a work that had already been accomplished.
When they received the Holy Spirit they received LIFE
There is life in the breath of God.
Man was created but did not come alive until God breathed into him the breath of life (Genesis 2:7).
God’s first breath made man different from all other forms of creation.
Now, through the breath of Jesus, God imparted eternal, spiritual life.
Once you have received new life
The enemy comes along and tries to tell you that you have not received new life
Because there are still signs of the old life
But the fact is New life has come
And the old life that show itself is only in it’s dying stages
The new life is taking hold and emerging
For when we are in Christ the sinful nature is dead and a new nature has risen
What a wonderful change in my heart has been wrought since Jesus came into my heart…
Just as we bore the likeness of the earthly man
Now we bear the likeness of the man of heaven
Through Jesus Christ the law of the Spirit of life has set me free from the law of sin and death
I am a new creature in Christ – through the Spirit who has brought the life of Jesus to me…
3. HE SEALS BELIEVERS
Ephes. 4:30
And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
Ephes. 1:13-14
….. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, [14] who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance …
When you become a believer God takes his invisible stamp of ownership the Holy Spirit and he brands your life
You are owned by the Lord
Plus – it is a down payment that guarantees that you are completely Christs
When a house goes up for sale
We say the house is sold when a contract is entered into and escrow money is put up
But the house is not completely sold until it has cleared escrow
In the mean time the person selling the house allows the realtor to put a sold sign in the house that in good faith the purchaser of the house will have enough money to pay for it.
What paul is saying here
He is taking that analogy from the real-estate world and applying it to our lives
There is coming a day when you will be completely God in eternity
Now you are in escrow
The Holy Spirit has sealed you
SAINT –
Fortunately we don’t have to worry about the credit of the one who is buying us..
When the sold sign goes up over our lives
We have the full guarantee of redemption
Romans 8:16
The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
When you have failed and you have sinned
The devil does not come along and remind you that you are Gods
6. THE HOLY SPIRIT IS OUR GUIDE
Acts 8:29
The Spirit told Philip, "Go to that chariot and stay near it."
Acts 13:2
While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them."
The Spirit is very active in junctures in our lives when we are going to be effected for a long time
We can rest in the fact that the Holy Spirit knows what he is doing
How many of you have heard the story of David Wilkerson “The cross and the switchblade”
He was pastoring a church in Pennsylvania and it grew.
The HS spoke to him about giving up his TV and spending time in prayer
As he prayed the Lord spoke to him through the cover of a life Magazine
The rest his history
He went to new York – started Teen Challenge
The spirit guided him..
It was not that he was wise
Or intelligent
He was guided by the SPIRIT
You can choose to get hold of the Spirit and find out what his mind is for you
Or you can grieve the Spirit by not spending time seeking his direction and then settling for second best in your life
7. EMPOWERS US TO BE WITNESSES
Luke 24:49
I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high."
Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
1 Thes. 1:5
because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake.
Words are not enough
It takes the Spirit working with us to minister
The Lord promises us that as we go forth and witness that the Spirit will be active in our witness
When God moves mightily in worship it’s not just to stir us up to leave us
When he stirs us up it is so that we can go out
Empowered to do the work of the Lord
There is no better way to reach people for the Lord
Then for Christians to get fired up
Filled up and sent out to witness and to do the work of the ministry
8. THE HOLY SPIRIT HELPS US TO UNDERSTAND THE WORD.
Not only did the Spirit inspire the scripture
But he made it inspiring
2 Tim. 3:16
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,
What ever the Spirit does will line up with the word
Because the Spirit himself inspired it
Pentecostals at times have been accused of having all kinds of experiences that are outside of the word
Experience with Jesus and the Word flow together
The Spirit of God reveals his word to us…
Augustin
He changed the shape of the church in his day
He had a genuine experience with Jesus
He dabbled in the occult
And lived for himself for 30 years
His mother prayed for him every day to get saved.
One day waited down with the burden of his own sin he heard the voice of a small child.
Saying take and read
He went to the garden of his home and found the scriptures lying open to this verse
Romans 13:12-14
The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. [13] Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. [14] Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.
He took and read and lived
Because the Spirit took the word and drove it home to him
That’s his work..
