The work of the Holy Spirit

The initial role of the Holy Spirit in the life of every person is to convince them of their need to believe in Jesus Christ and accept His offer of righteousness, and to realize that the devil himself has been judged and condemned . . .

“Nevertheless, 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 when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.” (John 16:7–11)

These verses are one reason that I believe in Jesus Christ and in the Word of God; these things happened to me. The Spirit of God showed me that my biggest problem was an internal and eternal issue; I did not believe in Jesus Christ and stood before God as a sinner, but the Holy Spirit did not stop at that:

“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.” (John 16:13)

He also guided me to the truth, and that truth is a Person. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)

Others talked to me about Jesus but I don’t remember any of their words making sense. I read the Bible daily for many years but don’t remember understanding any of it. Then one day the Holy Spirit opened my mind. Because of His grace, I immediately knew that Jesus is God the Son, and that I needed Him. I didn’t need to invite Him in because He was already there, flooding my life with light.

Since that day, the Holy Spirit continues to guide me. This morning I asked Him to show me what to do about something I’ve learned about another person. It seems obvious that He is convicting her of sin, but do I clarify that? Do I say anything in response? Or do I keep my mouth shut?

As I read this verse, He verified that I understand her situation rightly. The Spirit is doing what Jesus said He would do. Then I kept reading and came to verse 13 (quoted above). It says that the Spirit of truth will guide her into all truth. For me that means He will do it. It might be through her thoughts, or through the words of someone else, but He will do it. I need only to keep listening because He will guide me also if it is me that must do the talking.

In the meantime, I will continue to pray and to listen. The Holy Spirit is a marvel, the Helper from God that Jesus promised and the One who has authority to speak truth from God, truth about my life and needs, and even truth about things to come. I just need to remain in listen/obey mode so I can experience Him at work!