9/02/2022 Wednesday
BIBLE BASICS
Review of God the Holy Spirit’s Person
Name a few of the person-like characteristics of the Holy Spirit
Teaches, testifies, guides, speaks, enlightens, strives, commands, intercedes, calls, comforts, works
What are some bad things we can do to the Holy Spirit
Lie to, resist, grieve, vex, disrespect
Name a proof that the Holy Spirit is God
Eternal, omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent, creator, linked with God
Why can the Holy Spirit help you understand the Bible?
He gave it, inspired it, reminds us of it, enables our understanding of it
God the Holy Spirit
His Work
The Holy Spirit’s work in Humans Before Pentecost
The Holy Spirit’s work in humans before Pentecost had three important features. Pentecost, Dwight, The Divine Comforter, Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1997, pp. 59-61
▰ 1. He came upon selected individuals, not everyone.
▻ Many Old Testament saints never had the Holy Spirit indwelling in them.
The Holy Spirit’s work in Humans Before Pentecost
▰ 2. He empowered select individuals with wisdom, skill, strength, or ability for a special service.
▻ Pharaoh recognized that God’s Spirit was upon Joseph to preserve life in Egypt (Genesis 41:38).
▻ God filled Bezaleel with the Spirit of God in wisdom and skill to build the tabernacle furniture (Exodus 31:2; 35:31).
▻ God took of His Spirit that was upon Moses and shared it with seventy men so they could help Moses (Numbers 11:17).
The Holy Spirit’s work in Humans Before Pentecost
▻ The Spirit of God came upon Balaam to prophesy (Numbers 24:2); Saul to be king (1Samuel 10:10; 11:6); Prophet Azariah (2Chronicles 15:1); Zechariah the
son of Jehoiada the priest to warn the people(2Chronicles 24:20)
▻ The Spirit of the LORD came upon judges Othniel (Judges 3:9); Gideon (Judges 6:34); Jephthah (Judges 11:29); and Samson (Judges (14:6; 14:19; 15:14) to
deliver God’s people.
▻ The Spirit of the LORD came upon David to be king (1Samuel 16:13).
The Holy Spirit’s work in Humans Before Pentecost
▰ 3. His indwelling was often temporary.
▻ The Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul (1Samuel 16:14)
▻ David asked God not to take the Holy Spirit from him (Psalm 51:11).
 This verse has confused many Christians who do not understand dispensations. Because he lived in the dispensation of Law, he was right in praying such a prayer.
 However, no Christian should pray that today because the Holy Spirit indwells and seals every true believer until the day of redemption (Ephesians 1:13-14).
The Holy Spirit’s work in Humans After Pentecost
After Pentecost, the Holy Spirit’s work in unbelievers includes:
▰ Restraining evil in our world until the Rapture (2The 2:7)
▰ Convicting unbelievers of their sin, of God’s righteous standard, and of their coming judgment (John 16:7-11)
▰ Regenerating repentant sinners (gives new birth) (Titus 3:5, John 3:5)
The Holy Spirit’s work in Humans After Pentecost
▰ The Holy Spirit indwells ALL true Christians the moment they repent and trust Christ.
▻ Christ spiritually baptises every believer in the Holy Spirit at salvation (John 1:33, 1Co 12:13).
 The Bible never mentions a “baptism of the Holy Spirit.” It is not the Holy Spirit who does the baptising. Instead, He is the “water” in which Christ baptizes every true
believer. The Holy Spirit indwells every believer at salvation (Rom 8:9)
▻ The Holy Spirit seals every believer and is God’s down payment for heaven (Eph 1:13-14, 4:30)
The Holy Spirit’s work in Humans After Pentecost
▰ The Holy Spirit longs to fill, empower, and help every Christian to fulfil God’s will, and every true believer has access to His graces.
▻ He longs to fill every believer (Eph 5:18). The passive voice in this verse means “allow yourself to be filled with the Spirit”. Every Christian has all of the Holy
Spirit he will ever get, but the Holy Spirit longs to have all of every Christian.
▻ He intercedes for Christians when they pray (Rom 8:26-27)
▻ He teaches believers the Bible (John 14:26; 1Co 2:13; 1Jo 2:27)
The Holy Spirit’s work in Humans After Pentecost
▰ He comforts burdened Christians (John 14:16, 26)
▰ He guides His children into truth (John 16:13)
▰ He produces fruit in the lives of yielded Christians (Gal 5:22-23)
▰ He empowers believers to witness (Ac 1:8)
▰ He gives spiritual gifts (Ro 12:6-8 1Co 12:4-11 Eph 4:11 1Co 12:28-31).
Special Note About Spiritual Gifts
▰ “When we speak of the gifts of the Spirit, we are not speaking about the native talents with which certain individuals have been endowed by natural
birth. We are speaking of a supernatural endowment.” Pentecost, p. 165-66
▰ “A man does not receive a spiritual gift because he prayed for it, because he sought it, coveted it, trained for it. Spiritual gifts are a sovereign
bestowal apart from the will or the inclination of the individual.” Ibid, p. 170
▰ The Holy Spirit gave some gifts during the first century that were temporary sign gifts to authenticate Christianity to unbelieving Jews.
▰ Other gifts of the Holy Spirit remain active today for the building up of the body of Christ. We will study this topic in detail next week.
The Holy Spirit’s work in Humans After Pentecost
▰ A Christian may limit the Holy Spirit’s power in his life, but He will never leave a Christian until the day of redemption (Eph 1:14).
▻ Sin in the life of a Christian will grieve the Holy Spirit (Eph 4:30)
▻ Sinful Christians may quench the power of the Holy Spirit (1Th 5:19)
▻ Sinful Christians may quench the power of the Holy Spirit (1Th 5:19)
Review of God the Holy Spirit’s Work
How did the Holy Spirit’s ministry in the OT differ from now?
Individuals, special service, temporary
What does the Holy Spirit now do for unbelievers?
Restrains, convicts, regenerates
What does the Holy Spirit now do for Christians?
Indwells, fills, empowers, helps
What are some ways the Holy Spirit helps Christians?
Intercedes, teaches, comforts, guides
What will hinder, grieve or quench the Holy Spirit in a Christian’s life?
Unconfessed sin
Let’s Get Practical
▰ How can we walk in the Spirit to gain victory over temptation?
▰ What is the Holy Spirit doing for you right now?
▰ How can we tell if we have grieved the Holy Spirit?