Who needs the Holy Spirit at this time of the modern world? 19th Sept. 10
John 14:16-18
The caption of this message is designed to reflect the cynic and secularised attitudes often shown toward religion by the modern world. This sense of rejection might help us in looking objectively to the question of relevance of Godliness in our compromised morality world of today.
For this passage to be treated with the level of relevance needed, I will start with four basic questions about the Holy Spirit:
· Who or what is the Holy Spirit?
· What impact could he have in the world today?
· What could he bring in my life?-(marriage, children, job, finance etc)
· How do I experience the Holy Spirit?
Firstly, who or what is the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit is the power of God manifested in Christ, the third person in the Trinity, the word trinity means tri-personality of God-three persons in the God head ( God-Almighty, the son of God-Jesus and the Holy Spirit) This divine team is the ultimate power force behind everything spiritual in our faith in God as Christians. (Ephesians 4:3-6) and Matthew 28:19)
The Holy Spirit is referred to, in a human pronoun form as He, because as described earlier, he is one of the divine personalities in the nature of God. In one of Jesus’ teachings to his disciples about the Holy Spirit, he said to them, that he will not leave them orphans, but will bring someone who will be their helper, in his place, which indicated that he was talking about a person, who will perform the functions of divine nature. (John 14:16-17)
This is clear evidence that the Holy Spirit is not an impersonal, imaginative force, as some people thought of him. Though he is referred to in numerous symbols, those symbols represent his nature.
Let’s look at some symbols:
· Dove- represents Gentleness, yet powerful.(Luke 3:22)
· Oil- Anointing for God’s presence (Exodus 29:7)
· Living water- living water flowing from innermost being of a Christian’s life (John7:37-39)
· Wind- Rushing mighty Wind-which filled the house for baptism of the disciples (Acts 2:2-4)
· Fire- Baptised with fire-that purifies our lives and burns in the hearts of believers who have been filled with his presence
( Matthew 3:11, Acts 2:3-4, and 1Samuel 10:6)
What impact could he have in the world today?
The world we live today is sin-friendly, which sees nothing wrong with the way people live their lives with less care for moral purity. Everyone is allowed to do what pleases them, as long as it generates a level of happiness that satisfy the craving need; without any sense of judgement that underpins the morality of such desire.
In our society today, the spirit of Godliness that shaped the vision of founding fathers of some nations around the world is now being replaced by spirit of materialism with scornful attitude toward Christian principles.
The notion of ‘NO-GOD-ON-MY-PATCH’ sentiment is creating a generation who lack the ability to discern right from wrong; because the aggressiveness of secularism is developing a false belief of rejection in absolute truthfulness in moral and spiritual guidance.
In such situations, the Holy Spirit is needed to convict people of sin, as the gospel is being preached.
The only way the world will acknowledge the wrong and sinfulness perpetrating in societies today is developing faith in God that will meet the need of the soul, which is part of the human nature, which is more readily in tune with the divine nature of God.
Hence the bible said in (John 3:16) that God so loved the world and gave his son Jesus to believe in him for eternal life. Now, for the world to come to the knowledge of God for repentance it would take the divine ability of the Holy Spirit to prove to the world, that they’re guilty of their sins and need Christ as their saviour and Lord; no human ability can convert people, and bring salvation into their lives.
Some example of the Spirit work could be found in (Psalm 84:2) ‘my soul longs, yes, faints
for the courts of the LORD; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God’.
That’s when the Holy Spirit touches the heart of someone, the person wouldn’t be happy in
life unless he/she found Christ, and this is what the world need today; to bring back the
Spirit of Godliness into our societies, where righteousness will be fashionable to crave for,
So that our youth in society will have moral substance that will help them model their life by
What could he bring in my life?-(marriage, children, job, finance etc)
When a person becomes a Christian, his or her life takes on a new lease, which goes through stages of spiritual maturity, because you have been redeemed from the market place of sin into the new life of Christ; and the Holy Spirit come to dwell in your life. Now, as you open up your heart to God, and make yourself available (surrender your will to him) the Spirit takes control, and develop your lifestyle, and the more you keep listening to his counsel and obey, the closer he gets to teach you his ways of working in your life.
These are some of the ways he relates to our lives:
· He speaks over situations in our lives and advises us.
· He comforts us when in pain
· Heals our sicknesses
· Protects us from danger and gives peace
· Helps us grow in the Lord.
Life without God is like a huge beautiful dome or any structure you can think of, with an empty space-no spiritual substance; and a Christian without the Holy Spirit is like a blind person without a guide dog. The person becomes a spiritually dehydrated child of God, who is empty religious person, not knowing where life is taking him/her. (Proverbs 3:-6) says in all your ways acknowledge (him) God; and he shall direct your path, and God speaks to us through the Holy Spirit.
That was the experience of Nicodemus; (John 3:1-10) he was in the upper crust of the religious fraternity, Jesus described him as a ruler, that’s a person of high authority, a scribe- a teacher of the scripture, but had no knowledge of the Holy Spirit baptism, and Jesus was amazed at his spiritual ignorance. The phrase ‘be born again’ that was used by Jesus meant a regenerated life- a life from state of dilapidation from sin (deterioration, disrepair) to a life reformed, revived by the holy Spirit. Read Romans 8:1-9 to understand the meaning properly.
For us to life in the fullness of Christ, is to live a diligent and discipline moral life, in the fullness of the Spirit-that’s doing everything based on the promptings of the Spirit; this will bring love, righteousness and truth in our lives, then the blessings of God would be experienced in our lives, read (Joshua 1:8-9)
Our relationship with Christ becomes so burdensome-difficult to feel any push for spiritual things, if the Holy Spirit is not filling your heart. It makes you just a religious person, who don’t see church going a top priority, who would exchange church for anything else in the world.
You wouldn’t see any reason to pray, or read the bible; and when things go wrong, how would you have the audacity to blame God, the pastor, or the members of Christ’s church, as some do, and disappear from the scene of fellowship of Christ.
However, when we have the Holy Spirit, he burns new fire in our hearts all the time, even when tired, confused and seemed to give up, he will encourage, comforts, revives and speak to you about future glory you are going to enjoy with Christ.
The problem these days is that many Christians have become ‘busy bodies’, trying to do good for God, and some also seriously sorting their lives out, which is good; but what’s God saying over your marital, financial, job problems, have you involved him in the solution process. You may ask how I do that, by creating a listening period, sit down in a quiet time with your bible in your prayer time, and listen to what God is saying through the Holy Spirit and the directions he’s given on those issues, to make the Christian journey much more understandable and easier to soldier on.
The book of Job in the bible talks about the horrible experience of pain from tragedies, frustrations and disillusionment, (Job 17-20) Job endured, however, he had the spiritual understanding from his pain beyond the present to future divine glory awaiting him (Job 19:25) He was a model of faith, someone who lost all his children-seven sons and three daughters, at one stroke of tragedy, his businesses failed at the similar rate of phenomena, had an incurable sickness condition as described in the chapter, he cursed the day he was born (Job 3: 1-12) but still had faith in God, why, because the Spirit was with him to comfort and assuring him of future victory. He was eventually healed and blessed than before, this shows that the will and faith to hang on to the promises of God in times of difficulties come from the Holy Spirit, the third person in the God head.
David also pleaded with God not to take away his Holy Spirit from him (Psalm 51:11)
When he got disillusioned (embittered) with God over the death of his child, through being punished of heinous sin of adultery and murder; you may ask why, because he could not endure the pain of his child death, and the punishment God was exerting on him; he needed a divine intervention, that’s what the Holy Spirit gives us, in our vulnerable periods in life.
How do I experience the Holy Spirit?
A Christian must be baptised in water followed by the Holy Spirit as he/she takes Jesus as Lord and saviour. This is the normal introduction of the believer into the realm of personally flowing in the power of God; and generates the spirit of dedication to the service of Christ. However, the baptism of the Spirit must be based on the act of asking from God to fill the changed heart, as stated in Luke 11:13, our asking is through the time of prayer, and believing in the Lord to receive, Jesus also after his resurrection breathed on the disciples to receive the Holy Spirit. In (Acts 1: 4-5) he asked the disciples to wait to receive it, that caused them to create a time of prayer to receive, this is a significant evidence that someone could become a Christian without the Holy Spirit baptism, and we have to ask for that. Some of the sign of baptism is speaking in tongues, as the disciples did.