Being Led by the Holy SpiritSample

PERSONALITY AND CHARACTER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 

INTRODUCTION

Jesus’ disciples worked, walked, talked, and lived together with Jesus for approximately 3.5 years. They gave their lives to believe in Him and love Him. Then one night, Jesus delivered the shocking news that He would soon die to fulfill the will of God. The disciples were disappointed and discouraged. However, Jesus said that even though He went to the Father, there was another Helper who would stay with them forever and give them the power to witness.

The helper, who is the Holy Spirit, has come. He lives and dwells in the hearts of those who believe in Jesus Christ. Moreover, the Holy Spirit lives with us forever. The Holy Spirit comes to lead people to Christ, to convict their sins, to lead people to righteousness, and to give them courage and wisdom.

Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we could have the characters, attributes, and the power of Jesus. Peter was a coward and emotional man who even denied Jesus before he was filled with the Holy Spirit. After he was filled with the Holy Spirit, Peter was changed to be a brave and anointed man with great influence in the birth of the church 2,000 years ago.

Then what kind of power is the Holy Spirit that causes every believer who has Him in his/her heart to experience a massive transformation?

DISCUSSION

Today we will discuss the four roles of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believers.

1. To convict (John 16:8)

None of the believers is able to realize sin by himself as this is the work of the Holy Spirit that never ceases to remind us of the mistakes that we have made. 

The greatest difference between the devil and the Holy Spirit when they correct us is that the Holy Spirit never corrects us by accusing us. The Holy Spirit convicts someone’s sin by reminding that person that the mistake will be defeated by God’s unlimited love. Holy Spirit is a gentle person. His voice is capable of turning the heart of someone who has fallen into sin to return to the Father who has unlimited love.

What Peter experienced is proof that God is able to restore our lives no matter how many mistakes we have.  (John 21: 15-17). The Holy Spirit who convicted Peter also anointed Peter to do a powerful ministry (Acts 3: 1-7). If today the Holy Spirit reminds us of our sins, He is doing it not to punish us, but to bring us back to the great love of God.

2. To give understanding about truth (John 16:13)

Sometimes we experience deadlock while we meditate on the word of God. Thank God that the Holy Spirit will help us give new insights and revelations of every word we meditate on. He will enlighten our minds and hearts to understand every word and phrase in the Bible. 

Therefore, it is important for every believer to pray for God's guidance in their daily reading of the Word as this is a form of God's communication with His children. He wants us to understand and capture His heart, and all wisdom that man cannot understand in general will be opened to us. The Holy Spirit longs to talk to us and reveal the truths that the world does not have; this is the wealth of the believers.

3. The source of divine power in our lives (Acts 10:38)

While Lord Jesus was still on earth in the form of a human being, He depended entirely on the Holy Spirit. He depended on the will of the Holy Spirit for every miracle ministry that He did. It is the Holy Spirit who does supernatural powers to those who believe in Him.

The apostles who experienced the power of the Holy Spirit in Pentecost were able to do those wonderful things because of the role of the Holy Spirit. The question is, can we do such supernatural things? The answer is simple. If there is Holy Spirit in our hearts and what we pray for is in accordance with the will of the Holy Spirit, then be prepared to see the miracles that God could do through our faith.

4. The source of comfort and joy (John 14:26)

A special power that is only available to the believers (and not available to the world) is joy. This joy is not based on external circumstances. This eternal joy radiates like a spring that gives freshness to life. This joy comes from the Holy Spirit who dwells in the heart of every believer. We are no longer afraid of pressures, problems, and sufferings because we will have the comfort of the Holy Spirit. It is this guarantee that brings peace to our lives. The first step that we need to do is to invite the Holy Spirit to enter and control our whole life. After we do this, we will see that our Christian life will grow, bear fruits, and be filled with peace.

CLOSING

Our journey in this world is filled with things that might be dangerous for us. Yet there is a great joy that the Lord shows to us, which is the assurance of the presence of the Holy Spirit. He is the person who gives fire to our lives so that we are always filled with excitement. It is the Holy Spirit who transforms every weakness, fear, and anxiety of our limitations into strength, courage, and certainty. We are also enabled to do unlimited things, for the One who is with us is the indefinite Spirit.