Intro
Let me begin by telling you a story about a man who was going skydiving for the first time. He had taken all his lessons and it was time for his first solo jump. So he jumped out of the plane, but he panicked and couldn’t remember how to open his parachute. As he was falling rapidly to the earth he suddenly met another guy who was going up. So he seized the opportunity and shouted, “Hey, buddy do you know how to open a parachute?” The guy shouted back, “No! Do you know how to light a propane stove?”
Ever feel like you just need some help? You need some answers?
Recently my wife called me and the truck wouldn’t start, battery dead, no power.
1. The work of the Holy Spirit is to convict. (v.8-11)
Convict is a word that carries with it the meaning of exposure, refuting, chastening, examine.
To convict of the reality of sin. Sin as the missing the mark, the wronging of God and mankind. Not as animal instinct or mistakes. To show what sin is, and to show men they are sinners.
We get uncomfortable when we realize the reality in our life. We get depressed, we scowl, we get grumpy, we refuse to come to church, think people are talking about us, think the preacher has been following us around all week. Realize we have been living with a lie – believing things about ourselves that wasn’t true and don’t want to deal with it.
Don’t want to come to church because of all the hypocrites and I (would like to say- but dare not)"come join us because you are one too!"
“Periodically, organized religion seems to come up with a new absurdity. One of the latest theological fads is that we must make the Gospel relevant. That, my friend, is a lot of baloney. It is not our job to make the Gospel relevant. Our task is to preach the Gospel so people can understand it. The Holy Spirit is the one who makes it relevant. Times change, but people do not change. We have a hundred new fangled names for sin, but sin is still sin. The wages of sin are still death.” Randy Aly
To convict of the possibility of righteousness. Using the proof of Jesus’ resurrection and ascension. Showing the necessity of righteousness.
We say, “I could never do what you do, I could never live like you live, I could never forgive that person, I could never love her like you say.” And we are exactly right – we can never do any of that – in ourselves. But we forget that when we come to Christ asking for forgiveness and accepting him into our life, that we are baptized with the Spirit, and through him we gain both the power and the possibility to do those things we could never do on our own. If we stay in the realm of the physical, and in the realm of our own humanness, our sin, then we will go on saying, “I could nevers” until the end of our life. As long as we refuse to think about the possibility, and hold onto those things we cannot do, then we block the power of the Holy Spirit in our life.
To convict of the certainty of judgment. There is a great day coming when no one will stand unless righteous. And no one is righteous without the blood of Jesus Christ applied to our past, our sins and our present life. The Holy Spirit is trying to show us that there is a certain judgment coming and all will stand by themselves before their creator.
2. The work of the Holy Spirit is to Guide. (v. 12-13)
Into all truth – “guide you wholly into all the truth.” Jn 14:26 “…shall teach you all things…” Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” He leads us as one would lead a blind person or a child.” And he can use anything or anyone to lead you to the truth. He has been trying ever since you were born to lead you to the truth, and he will continue to try until you die. The Holy Spirit is passionate about the truth!
Jon Gordon – America’s Energy Coach, who was recently on CNN, tells how he came to Christ. He says, “I grew up Jewish and followed the new age path for awhile but found it unfulfilling. After becoming a speaker and author I tried to break into speaking in all the non-Christian conferences but was blocked in every way. My business partner, Dennis, started sharing some scriptures and I kept driving down the road and seeing signs that said, ‘Jesus is the answer.’ It happened all the time. But I didn’t like the church, there were manipulators and dishonest people, so I started to question all of it. But every time I tried to meditate I would see a cross. A Jewish kid from Long Island was now seeing a cross. Go figure. I was able to connect with… (a well-known speaker) and all signs kept pointing to Jesus. About 2 months ago, after a conversation with a Buddhist healer, it all became clear to me, and I recently became a follower of Jesus. People think only Christians can point you in the right direction, but for me it was the fact that God used everyone in my life to point me to Jesus. God brought me to my business partner, he brought me to you, he brought me to a Buddhist healer, and he brought me to Jesus. Now he brings me to the people who need to hear my story.” (Emphasis mine - Story told by Erwin McManus on Mosaic.org podcast from 10/1/2006 titled “Is Jesus the Only Way?”)
“When Jesus says he is the only way he is not - he is saying that he is the one who loves you, who is pursuing you, who paid the price for your sins, for your life. Choose me and live.” Erwin McManus
Into the future – “the things that are coming.” He speaks what He hears from God about the Son, and he never contradicts the written Word of God.
D. L. Moody – “It is not our work to make unbelievers believe. That is the work of the Holy Spirit…. We can only proclaim the Word of God.”
“Christian if thou wouldst know the path of duty, take God for thy compass; if thou wouldst steer thy ship through the dark billows, put the tiller into the hand of the Almighty. Many a rock might be escaped, if we would let our Father take the helm; many a shoal or quicksand we might well avoid, if we would leave to his sovereign will to choose and to command. The Puritan said, ‘As sure as ever a Christian carves for himself, he’ll cut his own fingers;’ this is a great truth. Said another old divine, ‘He that goes before the cloud of God’s providence goes on a fool’s errand;’ and so he does.” Charles Spurgeon
3. The work of the Holy Spirit is to Glorify. (v. 14-15)
Glorify Himself? Never! Takes the things of Christ and reveals them to the church, to the community. Christ’s teachings, doctrines, principals and commands he “brings to your remembrance.”
Glorify Christ? Always! He honors Jesus Christ, reveals Christ, uplifts Christ, leads us to Christ, glorifies Christ. John 15:26, “But when the comforter is come, he shall testify of me.”
“The Scotch catechism says that man’s chief end is ‘to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.’ But we shall then know that these are the same thing. Fully to enjoy is to glorify. In commanding us to glorify Him, God is inviting us to enjoy Him.” C.S. Lewis
Conclusion:
“On the Lord’s day a group of missionaries and believers in New Guinea were gathered together to observe the Lord’s Supper. After one young man sat down, a missionary recognized that a sudden tremor had passed through the young man’s body that indicated he was under a great nervous strain. Then in a moment all was quiet again. The missionary whispered, ‘What was it that troubled you?’ ‘Ah,’ he said, ‘But the man who just came in killed and ate the body of my father. And now he has come in to remember the Lord with us. At first I didn’t know whether I could endure it. But it is all right now. He is washed in the same precious blood.’ And so together they had Communion. It is a marvelous thing, the work of the Holy Spirit of God. Does the world know anything of this?” H.A. Ironside
“A committee of ministers in a certain city was discussing the possibility of having D. L. Moody to serve as the evangelist during a city-wide evangelistic campaign. Finally, one young minister who did not want to invite Moody stood up and said: “Why Moody? Does he have a monopoly of the Holy Spirit?” There was silence. Then an old, godly minister spoke up: “No, he does not have a monopoly of the Holy Spirit; but the Holy Spirit has a monopoly of D. L. Moody.” Does the Holy Spirit have a monopoly on your life?
