THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH
By Glenda Ward
McDowell County
Lord, Your Word is alive and we are Blessed to have it in our lives and as our guide. In our lives, the Holy Spirit works in and through Jesus Christs’ followers. He, (The Holy Spirit), works in and through our lives to draw attention to Someone worth celebrating and He works tirelessly to magnify the Work of Jesus.
During Jesus’ last night with the disciples before His arrest, He explained of His going away. He explained it as a gift, of His going into His Father’s house to prepare a place. Jesus tells them He will come again to receive them and where He is they may be also. He also tells them that they know where He goes, and that they know the way. In John 14 Thomas replies unto Him, “Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto Him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” Jesus is the visible, tangible image of the invisible God. He is the complete revelation of what God is like. Jesus explained to them that to know Him is to know God. The search for God, for truth and reality, ends in Christ. Jesus gave great insight into that of the Trinity. In verse 7 of John chapter 14; “If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know Him, and have seen Him.” And verse 10; “But the Father that dwelleth in me, He doeth the works.” Jesus tells them “if ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever.” This meant: The Comforter, The Spirit of God Himself, and The Gift – God’s Holy Spirit. Just before He ascended into Heaven, Jesus reminded His disciples of this gift in Acts 1:8.
Jesus promised the disciples that the Holy Spirit would help them remember what He had been teaching them. This promise ensures the truth of the New Testament. The disciples were eyewitnesses of Jesus’ life and teachings, and the Holy Spirit helped them to remember. We can be confident that the Gospels are accurate records of what Jesus taught and did during His time here on earth. The Holy Spirit can help us in this same way. As we study the Bible, we can trust Him to plant truth in our mind, convince us of God’s will, and remind us when we stray from it. The end result of the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives is deep and lasting peace. This peace is confident assurance, in any circumstance we face; of the peace, Christ indwells in us. Doubt, fear, and numerous other forces are at war within us. The peace of God moves into our hearts and lives to restrain these hostile forces and offer comfort in place of conflict.
God’s gift of the Holy Spirit does two things:
- The Holy Spirit testifies about Jesus.
- The Holy Spirit empowered the disciples to also testify about Jesus.
Jesus told His disciples they would first receive power, and after that the Holy Ghost would come upon them, making them witnesses unto Him (Acts 1:8).
The first time they saw the power of the Holy Spirit in their own lives was in Jerusalem at the Festival of Pentecost (Acts 2:3-4), when without warning, the Holy Spirit came into them in a rush empowering the disciples to preach to the people in a way that those who didn’t know God could understand (John 15). In the Great Commission, Jesus called His disciples to disciple others. Jesus also gives us this commission, and then He gives us the power to carry it out. Jesus never expects us to evangelize and disciple others on our own. We are to rely on His Holy Spirit in our lives. The Holy Spirit works through us in varying ways, but it is always to point to and testify about Jesus.
Make no mistake, there are times when we are blind to our own shortcomings and sin in our life. But, one role of the Holy Spirit is to make us aware of our sin – and He works through us to make others aware of their sin and the truth of the gospel. When the Holy Spirit comes to us and indwells in us, He will do His convicting work through us. The Holy Spirit will use our witness to convict unbelievers in three areas: 1) Sin, 2) Righteousness, and 3) Judgment.
1) Sin. The Holy Spirit convicts us of all sins. The Holy Spirit convicts the unbeliever of the reality of his sin, the truth of who Jesus is, and how his sin and judgment were dealt with on the cross.
2) Righteousness. The Holy Spirit convicts even unbelievers of what righteousness is. The Holy Spirit convicts them about the righteousness of Christ and leads them to see the truth of who Jesus is: the righteous, holy Son of God.
3) Judgment. The work of Satan and our sin was judged and dealt with through the death of Jesus on the cross. Through the death of Jesus, our salvation into eternity is complete.
Jesus’ disciples had the greatest guide anybody could need. All they had to do was ask Jesus Himself. But Jesus was just one man, and He could only be in one place at one time. The Holy Spirit dwells in all believers, and He does everything for us Jesus did for His disciples. We as Christians and followers of Christ have the exact same Spirit that Jesus promised His disciples, He dwells within us to empower and guide us in the ways of the Lord. The Holy Spirit seeks to glorify Christ. The Holy Spirit does not call attention to Himself; He calls attention to Jesus Christ, the resurrected King.
The Holy Spirit guides us into all truth and helps us put to death the deeds of the flesh. The Holy Spirit glorifies Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, bringing Him glory and honor. We no longer walk as children of darkness, but as children of the Light and that brings glory to Jesus, the One Who is The Light. We belong to Christ and it is the Holy Spirit’s affirmation that gives us strength and confidence to tell others about our relationship with Christ. The Holy Spirit gives us the tools to live by in a Christ-glorifying life. In learning to obey The Holy Spirit, this is a process by which He directs our steps. The Holy Spirit – The Spirit of Truth!
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Glenda Ward is a member of Grand View Baptist Church in McDowell County. She is the mother of five grown children. Glenda is a Christian writer/author of “Something to Think About” – weekly Christian Articles. She writes Church Programs & Bulletins, VBS Material, Christmas and Easter Programs; all material based on the KJV of the Bible. Also testing the field in tributes, individual memorial writings, etc. You can read more good Christian news from Glenda HERE.
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