15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.” – John 14:15-17
Dead Divinity?
I have often looked at the state of the church and the lives of individual Christians, myself included, and questioned the efficacious work of the Holy Spirit. If the Holy Spirit was unleashed at Pentecost, which He was, and He indwells individual Believers, which He does, how can things be the way they are?
Why does the church seem so ineffective at stemming the tide of an increasingly evil world? Why has the church lost her focus? Instead of reaching the lost we seem to be more concerned with satisfying the saints. Even if we have to entertain them to “keep” them.
At an individual level, how can so many people who claim to be followers of Christ have such “messed up” lives? What does the victorious Christian life look like? What does it mean to be an Overcomer? Which leads me to wonder, while atheists have boasted of killing God, has the church “killed” the Holy Spirit?
Mom’s Request
To my recently deceased mother, the Holy Spirit wasn’t dead. Far from it. During the last few months of her life, she would often ask me to pray to the Holy Spirit on her behalf. Not knowing what precipitated these requests they made me a little uncomfortable.
My mother was on the brink of eternity, so according to my way of thinking she should have been focusing on Jesus and His redeeming work. But maybe my way of thinking needed a little re-thinking. Perhaps it was my theology and not mom’s request that was the source of my “discomfort”.
Maybe my theology needed more “life”!
Life Source
It is easy to approach Christianity from an academic viewpoint, gathering facts as if they were ammunition for future discussion or debate. But Christianity isn’t about cold facts, it is about a living vital relationship with an all-powerful living God.
To me, the most plausible explanation for our plight as individuals and as the Church, is that we are far removed from the living vital relationship with the Person of the Holy Spirit as the Father intended it. Again, myself included.
If so, there is no better time than the current to repent and surrender ourselves to our Paraclete. But I am convinced we won’t do so until we understand Him and trust Him as a person.
Confide
With whom do you share your most intimate thoughts? A parent? A sibling? How about a friend or spouse (in case your spouse isn’t your friend)? How about your dreams and aspirations or troubles and fears? To whom do you turn for guidance and direction?
When the disciples needed someone to confide in they turned to Jesus. He could calm their troubled hearts and buoy their despondent souls unlike anyone else. When they were weak, they rested in His strength. When the darkness would oppress them, He was a constant source of light.
No matter what the situation, the disciples always knew they could go to Jesus. And He never let them down. He couldn’t.
In the person of the Holy Spirit, we have a Friend just as dear to us as Jesus was to His disciples. But how often do we confide in Him?
In your time of need, turn to your Friend. When you want someone to share your cares and concerns with, go to the Holy Spirit. He is already more intimately familiar with you than any parent, friend or spouse ever could be. And He loves you more than any human ever could.
Trust
Perhaps when we realize that the Holy Spirit already knows our most intimate thoughts, highest aspirations and deepest sorrows, we will begin to “trust” Him as we should. Consider this quote from R. A. Torrey.
“The Holy Spirit is not a blind, impersonal influence or power that comes into our lives to illuminate, sanctify, and empower us. No, He is immeasurably more than that. He is a holy person who comes to dwell in our hearts, One who sees clearly every act we perform, every word we speak, every thought we entertain, even the most fleeting fancy that is allowed to pass through our minds. If there is anything in act or word or deed that is impure, unholy, unkind, selfish, mean, petty or untrue, this infinitely Holy One is deeply grieved by it.”
We do not need to accept the status quo. I am confident God has much loftier plans for us. Instead of grieving the Holy Spirit with our sin (especially ignorance, apathy, and neglect), what if we were to confide in Him and in an attitude of surrender allow Him to sanctify us? After all, He is the Holy Spirit and being God His work is efficacious.
Truth
I don’t want to give the impression that the Holy Spirit is simply a “shoulder to cry on”. On the contrary, as we looked at in the last devotion, He is our greatest hope for comfort. But He is not going to comfort us “as we are”, but rather by conforming us. While our sorrows and sufferings are a consequence of sin, the Holy Spirit comforts us with Truth.
When Jesus refers to the Holy Spirit in today’s text, one of the ways He refers to Him is the Spirit of truth. When we confide in and surrender to the Holy Spirit He will bring us comfort through the Word. Although we may desire to be made comfortable in our sin, the Holy Spirit must first “hurt” us before He can heal us. He must be true to His character. Holy. This is where trust is so important.
Before we can expect consolation, we must obey the Holy Spirit as He convicts us of sin and reveals Truth. Truth that He wields to purify us and bring us peace. With the Word of God, the Holy Spirit can reveal to us eternal truths thereby transforming our ignorance into wisdom. As He reminds us of the teachings of Christ our fears will give way to boldness. Certainly, as He illuminates the inerrant Word to us conviction of sin will occur (John 16:8). Hopefully shaking us of our complacency.
For many, if not most of us it is past time to “reconnect” with the Holy Spirit and allow Him to bring “life” to our theology and comfort to our souls. Until we do, we won’t be an effective witness to the world.
Revive All
God is not glorified by an anemic church. Nor is He honored by “messed up” Christians. While we may grieve the Holy Spirit, He is not dead. Instead, all too often it is us who seem to be on life support. But why?
As I have already stated, it is time to turn to the Holy Spirit. He dwells within you. He is always available. The Spirit of truth wants to guide you and comfort you with the Word of God. He wants to conform you to the image of Christ. What could be more comforting? What could be better evidence of the efficacious work of the Holy Spirit?
I may never know what motivated my mother to turn to the Holy Spirit as her certain death was approaching, but there is a truth to be gleaned from her request. By God’s design, the Holy Spirit is our source of eternal life (John 3:3-6). Sometimes we need to have the delusions of the world removed from our spiritual eyes to remind us of just how dependent we are upon the Holy Spirit. No matter what stage of life we are at, the Holy Spirit is our source of comfort.
Thanks for the reminder mom.