Delight yourself in the LORD, and He
will give you the desires of your heart.
Psalm 37:4

Blog

Two Ministries of the Holy Spirit

On 13 Oct, 2013 By With 0 Comments
purchase prednisone

Last year, while back in the States, a church asked if I would share about the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer.  I decided to share with them about two ministries which Christ expressed to his disciples in John 14.

What did Jesus say about the Holy Spirit’s ministry in our lives?  As He is loving His disciples by telling them about what is to come, how does He describe the work of the Spirit, which the Father will give to them?  There are two verbs Jesus uses to describe how the Spirit works in us.

1) First, Jesus says that the Spirit teaches us.

“These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you.  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things…” (John 14:25-26a)

Now everyone knows the role of a teacher.  The dictionary defines teaching as giving information to someone or showing and explaining to someone how to do something.  Jesus had taught the disciples for three years, but it would be the Holy Spirit who would be their teacher in the days to come.  And the Holy Spirit is not some consolation prize to Jesus, as if there were only a few lessons the Spirit could give us.  No, Christ tells them and us that the Spirit would teach us ALL things.  Yet the most eye-catching fact to me is not that the Spirit teaches us, but rather how He teaches us, which is wrapped up in the second verb.
2) Jesus tells us that the Spirit will enable us to remember His words.

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. (John 14:26)

Now that doesn’t make the Holy Spirit sound like a teacher.  He sounds like a tape player, which plays back old recordings to us of the words Jesus said, thereby helping us to remember His words.  But, first appearances can be deceiving, so let’s hear what Jesus says just two chapters later about the Holy Spirit in John 16:

“But now I am going to Him who sent Me; and none of you asks Me, ‘Where are You going?  But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.  But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.  And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. 

I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.  But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.  He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you.  All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you. (John 16:5-15)

I think there’s a great example of this “teaching and guiding into all truth by bringing to remembrance Christ’s words” in Acts chapter 11, which we were reading this past week as a family.  That’s where Peter went to Cornelius, a Gentile, and preached the gospel to him, his family, and close friends.  When the Holy Spirit was poured upon them all, as evidenced by the fact that they were speaking in tongues, it left many of the apostles surprised.  In fact, many took umbrage with Peter and wanted him to explain.  Listen to how Peter (and in turn the others) came to understand that repentance and salvation was not only for the Jews, but also for the Gentiles:

“And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as He did upon us at the beginning.  And I remembered the word of the Lord, how He used to say, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’  Therefore if God gave to them the same gift as He gave to us also after believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God’s way?”  When they heard this, they quieted down and glorified God, saying, “Well then, God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life.” (Acts 11:15-18)  

How do you think Peter “remembered the word of the LORD” and came to understand that salvation was for the Gentiles?  How did the rest of the apostles come to the same understanding?  God has given us the Holy Spirit to teach us and bring to remembrance His Words.  He did it for the disciples and He does the same thing for us.  The Holy Spirit will teach you and lead you into all truth by bringing to remembrance God’s Word.
If the Holy Spirit is a fire, then the firewood which provides fuel that He loves to feed on is the Word of God.  Let’s keep throwing logs on that fire by hiding His Word in our hearts. 

online cialis legit

This Post Has 0 Comments

Leave A Reply