Participants: Nathan Renner
Series Code: FC
Program Code: FC000348
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00:30 Welcome to Faith Chapel. Well, I'm
00:32 Pastor Nathan Renner from 00:33 the Troy Seventh-day Adventist Church in Troy, 00:35 Michigan. And we are going to discuss 00:38 a very important topic today, 00:41 titled The Work of the Spirit. And the, 00:44 the, work of the Holy Spirit has been 00:46 something that has, has intrigued and 00:50 motivated God's people throughout time. 00:52 And it's also been something that has been 00:55 a bit of confusion among God's people 00:58 in these last days. So, today we're gonna 01:01 explore from the Bible, what the Bible says 01:03 about the work of the Holy Spirit. 01:05 Let's pray and then we'll dig into the word of 01:08 God today to see what the Bible says, 01:11 let's pray. Father God, we thank you 01:14 for the truth of the work of the Holy Spirit. 01:16 And Lord today we pray that this would not 01:20 just be an intellectual study, but that 01:22 we would not just hear about the work of 01:24 your Spirit, but that we would sense the work 01:27 of your Spirit in our lives, bless us now 01:31 as we open your word and speak to us with 01:34 your Spirit, in Jesus name, amen. 01:38 In John chapter 16, Jesus is discussing 01:44 with his disciples about the fact that he is 01:48 going to be leaving. In fact, there is a, 01:49 there is a long discourse it actually begins 01:52 in about John 14. And Jesus is, is telling his 01:56 disciples that he is going to be leaving and, 01:58 he is telling them that the Holy Spirit is 02:01 going to come and the Spirit of God 02:03 is going to be there to comfort them to minister 02:08 to them after Jesus leaves. And then 02:12 John chapter 16 beginning in verse 8, 02:15 Jesus is speaking about the Holy Spirit 02:18 and notice what he says, it says 02:21 in John 16 verse 8, "And when he comes, 02:25 he will convict the world concerning sin 02:28 and righteousness and judgment. " 02:31 When the Spirit of God comes, the Bible says, 02:35 number one he is going to convict the world 02:37 of sin righteousness in judgment. Today, 02:41 we are gonna look at three works of the Spirit 02:44 on the world and three works of the Spirit 02:48 on believers. Okay, today again 02:52 we are gonna look at, what the Spirit of God is 02:54 doing to the whole world convicting of sin, 02:57 righteousness and judgment. And then we are gonna 02:59 look at what the Spirit of God does 03:01 in the life of true believers. Okay, 03:04 so we read in verse 8, the Spirit of God 03:06 comes and convicts of sin, righteousness and 03:10 judgment. Now, in verse 9, the Bible tells us 03:13 why the Spirit of God convicts of sin. 03:16 Verse 9, "Concerning sin, because they do not believe 03:22 in me. " Now, notice what the text in 03:25 scripture says, it says, that the reason that the 03:27 Spirit of God comes and convicts of sin 03:30 is because people do not believe in Jesus. 03:34 So what we could say is that when the Spirit of God 03:36 comes to the whole world and convicts 03:39 individuals in the world of their sin, 03:42 the Spirit is actually trying to lead people 03:46 to believe in Jesus Christ. 03:49 And this is very important because 03:52 what happens very frequently in people's lives 03:54 is they begin to study the Bible, 03:56 they begin to hear God's word, 03:58 they began to hear the voice of the Spirit 04:00 convicting them and when the Spirit of God is 04:04 convicting them of sin, they begin to feel guilty 04:08 and frequently they will say Oh! I don't 04:12 want to listen to you anymore. 04:14 I remember when I was 18 years old, 04:17 I had left home after I graduated from high school, 04:20 and I was living in Wyoming, climbing rocks and 04:22 one day, on the way home from Wyoming, 04:26 I decided to drive to home to see my family, 04:28 I was driving across Wyoming and there was, 04:31 there was nothing but AM radio. 04:33 And they had two stations available in the 04:37 middle of Wyoming. One was country music, 04:40 and which I wasn't too fond of at the time, 04:44 and the other was Christian and. 04:47 So, I decided to listen to the Christian 04:49 radio station, at the time I was not a Christian, 04:52 I was actually an atheist. So, I, I was just 04:54 listening on a whim Or at least I thought 04:57 it was a whim at the time, but it was really 04:58 the Spirit of God. And I was listening and 05:01 I was listening I, I was hearing a preacher 05:04 and who would have ever thought at that 05:06 moment that I would become a preacher someday. 05:07 I was listening to the radio and as I was 05:10 listening to the radio, I heard the preacher 05:12 preaching God's word. And 05:15 I began to sense the Spirit of God 05:18 working there, I didn't know it was the Spirit of God, 05:19 but I began to feel guilty, I began 05:21 to feel contempt, I began to 05:24 sense the reality of my sin. 05:27 And in a fit of rage, I punched my radio 05:32 to turn it off. I was experiencing 05:37 the conviction of sin and I, I didn't really 05:39 understand what to do with it at the time? 05:41 The Spirit of God convicts of sin, 05:44 not just to make us feel bad, not to make us 05:47 feel guilty, but to lead us to the place 05:50 where we put our confidence, faith and 05:52 trust in Jesus Christ. The reason the Spirit 05:55 convicts of sin, it's not to make you feel bad, 05:58 it's not to make you feel guilty, it's not to, 06:00 to make your life uncomfortable, 06:02 but it is to lead you to the place where 06:05 you put your confident trust in Jesus Christ. 06:07 Who died for your sins and rose again 06:10 the third day. Now, the second work of the 06:14 Spirit here for the world is found in verse, 06:19 verse 10 actually. It says, That 06:24 he will convict, no not only convict of sin, but he 06:26 will convict of righteousness concerning 06:28 righteousness in verse 10, because 06:31 I got to the Father, and you will see 06:34 me no longer. It's quite the esoteric verse, 06:38 it's always for a long time it confused me, 06:41 it says, he convicts of sin, 06:42 so they we'll believe and he convicts of righteousness 06:44 because Jesus isn't around anymore, 06:46 he's gone to the Father. I always puzzled 06:49 over that verse, why does the Spirit convict me 06:52 of righteousness because Jesus isn't going around, 06:56 isn't around anymore. And then one day 06:59 it hit me. Jesus Christ was the perfect 07:03 embodiment of everything that was right, 07:07 everything that was righteous, and when he 07:09 went to the Father, we no longer have that 07:10 living, breathing human example of what it 07:16 meant to be righteous. And so the Spirit of God, 07:19 he, he not only convicts of sin, what I have 07:22 done wrong, but the Spirit of God comes 07:24 into the life as a, as a, as an example of what 07:29 right living really looks like. Jesus says, 07:31 as I've been here living, I have been the 07:34 perfect example of what right living, what 07:36 righteousness is? Now, I'm gone, you don't see me 07:40 anymore, and so now you have the Spirit of God 07:45 to convict you, to show you what righteousness 07:48 really looks like. So, the Spirit of God convicts you 07:51 of sin, what you have done wrong, 07:53 it convicts you of righteousness, what, what, 07:55 what right living really looks like. And then the 07:58 third thing it convicts you of is judgment, 07:59 and verse 10, verse 11 rather, it tells us 08:03 why the Spirit convicts of judgment, 08:06 we'll read it now. "Concerning judgment, because 08:10 the ruler of this world is judged. " 08:15 Now, in the gospel of John, the ruler of this 08:19 world is Satan. And so it says, that we are 08:24 convicted by the Spirit of God of judgment, 08:27 because the ruler of this world is judged, 08:30 that is Satan is judged and of course we know 08:33 he's judged condemned. But why would God 08:36 convict me of judgment because Satan 08:39 has been judged condemned. Well, the answer 08:43 is very simple. It goes something like this, 08:45 if Satan is judged condemned for his sin, 08:50 how can his followers expect to get off the hook. 08:55 You follow the logic, in other words if, if 08:59 Satan has been condemned for his sin, 09:02 how can we expect the followers of Satan, 09:06 that is anybody that's not the follower of the true 09:08 God to get off the hook. So, follow what, 09:11 what Jesus has said then. He says, the 09:13 Spirit of God comes to convict of sin, righteousness 09:16 and judgment that what he's doing to the 09:18 whole planet. He is speaking to the hearts and 09:21 minds of every human being on this planet 09:23 saying, you've sinned, believe in Jesus, 09:27 he is taking care of the sin problem. 09:29 This is what righteousness really looks like. 09:32 This is what right living really looks like and 09:36 the Spirit of God says that he convicts of 09:39 judgment he says that you will be judged 09:41 condemned just like Satan was judged condemned, 09:44 if you refuse to believe in Jesus. 09:47 And if you refuse to let the Spirit of God teach you 09:50 what right living looks like. You follow, 09:53 in other words he convicts of sin, so you believe, 09:56 convicts of righteousness, so that you'll know what's 09:59 really right and wrong, and he convicts of judgment, 10:02 so that they will actually make the decision. 10:06 So, that we will have motivation to actually make 10:10 the decision to believe in Jesus Christ. 10:12 So, the Spirit's job for the world is to convict of sin, 10:16 righteousness and judgment. Sin, so that they'll 10:19 believe, righteousness so they'll know what's really 10:22 righteous inside of God and judgment, 10:24 so that they know the consequences of 10:27 refusing to believe in Christ and refusing 10:30 to allow the Spirit to give them a righteous life. 10:33 Convict of sin righteousness and judgment, 10:37 but what happened when somebody believes, 10:40 the Spirit of God is working outside of you 10:41 convicting of sin. So, that you'll believe, 10:43 what happens inside of person once they become 10:48 a believer. Galatians chapter 3 verses 2 through 6 10:54 tell us, very clearly what happens when you 10:58 believe the message of Jesus Christ? 11:01 Galatians chapter 3 beginning in verse 2. 11:04 Now, Paul goes through a series of questions here. 11:07 And here they are, let me ask you only this. 11:10 Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law 11:13 or by hearing with faith? Are you so 11:17 foolish having begun by the Spirit, 11:20 are you now being perfected by the flesh. 11:22 Did you suffer so many things in vain, if 11:25 indeed it was in vain? Does he 11:27 who supplies the Spirit to you and works 11:31 miracles among you do so by the works 11:34 of the law, or by hearing with faith, 11:36 just as Abraham believed God, and it was counted 11:40 to him as righteousness? Now, here Paul 11:44 is making a very simple point. 11:45 He is asking a question, how does a person 11:48 receive the gift of the Holy Spirit? 11:51 How does a person get the Spirit? 11:53 And he asked the question, do you get it? 11:55 By, by, by living a certain way, or do you get it 11:58 by believing in Jesus Christ. And the answer 12:01 is very simple that when you believe you 12:05 receive the Spirit of God. That when you 12:09 believe you receive the Spirit of God, 12:12 but what does the Spirit of God do once you believe. 12:15 We're gonna go to Ephesians chapter 1, 12:18 go with me to Ephesians chapter 1 12:22 and we are gonna begin in verse 13. 12:25 We'll read 13 and 14. Again Paul makes the 12:28 point in him; you also when you heard 12:32 the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, 12:36 and believed in him, were sealed with the promised 12:41 Holy Spirit. Now, notice what the Bible says 12:47 in verse 13 it says, that after you hear 12:50 the gospel of your salvation, you hear the 12:52 word of truth, the gospel of your salvation 12:55 and you believe. The Bible says that you 12:58 are sealed with the promised Holy Spirit. 13:02 Now, we want to understand this, this 13:04 very essential point. The text says 13:07 that when you believe the Spirit of God 13:11 comes in to the life. We cannot miss that point. 13:15 My friends, the moment somebody believes that 13:18 they're a sinner, and that Jesus Christ died 13:21 for them on the cross. When they believe 13:24 in the message of the death burial resurrection 13:27 of Jesus Christ. The Bible says, 13:29 the Spirit of God comes into that person 13:31 and seals them. Now, what does that mean 13:35 that seal? Look in verse 14, verse 14 gives us 13:40 the answer. It says, that the Spirit is the guarantee 13:46 of our inheritance until we acquire 13:50 possession of it, to the praise of his glory. 13:54 So, it says, that the Spirit is the guarantee 13:57 of our inheritance until we acquire 14:00 possession of it, to the praise of his glory. 14:03 What does that mean? It's very simple and this 14:07 is the first work of the Spirit for the believer. 14:11 The Spirit according to this verse is the guarantee 14:15 of your inheritance until you actually 14:19 get your inheritance. Now, here your inheritance 14:22 is eternal life and life with God and all of the 14:25 glory that goes along with it. 14:27 And it says that the Spirit is your guarantee 14:29 of your inheritance. 14:31 Now, in the margin of my Bible, in the margin of 14:34 many Bibles it says the earnest of our inheritance 14:38 or the down payment, now follow with me, 14:43 if you are gonna buy something expensive. 14:45 Lets say you're gonna buy a house, and let's say 14:47 the house costs a $100, 000, just to pick a figure. 14:49 And you are gonna buy that house, but of course 14:53 you have to get a mortgage to actually buy the 14:55 house, and you have to fill all this paper workout etc, 14:58 etc, etc. Well, from the time that you tell the seller that 15:02 you want to buy the house until the time 15:04 you get all the mortgage and the everything taken care of. 15:07 Let's say that that period of time is a period of, 15:11 lets say three weeks. Well, in between the time, 15:17 when you have promised to buy the house. 15:19 And you actually do buy the house; 15:21 you place a down payment on the home. 15:24 And that down payment lets the seller know 15:27 that you are absolutely serious and absolutely 15:31 committed to actually buying the house, 15:34 does that make sense? In, in, in that way the 15:37 seller is protected from you being dishonest with him. 15:44 And so, so the down payment is, is the gift 15:48 that the buyer, or the, that the, the money that the 15:51 buyer gives to the seller as a guarantee that 15:54 he is actually to purchase the home. 15:56 Well, that's what the Bible says the Spirit of God is. 15:59 When you believe in Jesus Christ, and the Spirit of God 16:04 comes into your life, the Spirit is your guarantee 16:08 that God is actually going to do what 16:11 he said and giving you eternal life. 16:14 So, the very first work of the Spirit. 16:17 The very first work of the Spirit is as 16:20 your guarantee of your inheritance. 16:23 The Spirit of God comes in and says, 16:26 I'm here, I'm here as a guarantee, as a promise 16:31 that you will get your inheritance, 16:34 that inheritance of glory that God and 16:38 Jesus Christ have promised you. That's the first work 16:40 of the Spirit and the believer. For the unbeliever 16:43 the Bible convicts of sin, you've sinned, 16:44 you should believe, this is righteousness, 16:47 this is what right living really looks like and 16:49 this is judgment, if you refuse to believe, 16:52 these are the consequences. So, when you 16:55 become a believer. The Spirit of God comes in 16:58 and he is your down payment, your guarantee, 17:01 the earnest money as it were. 17:03 He is the promise that God is really gonna do 17:06 for you what he's promised he would do. 17:09 Now, the second work of the Spirit is found 17:12 in the Book of Romans. Romans chapter 8, 17:15 the second work of the Spirit in the life of the believer. 17:18 We are gonna look in Romans chapter 8, verses 14, 17:22 15, and 16. We'll read those together at this time. 17:26 Romans chapter 8, verses, 14, 15, and 16. 17:30 "For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 17:36 For you did not receive the Spirit of slavery to fall 17:40 back into fear, but you have received the Spirit 17:42 of adoption as son, by whom we cry, Abba Father. 17:47 The Spirit himself bears witness with our Spirit 17:51 that we are children of God. " Now, did you hear 17:56 the language there? It says in verse the, 17:59 the, the final verse we read. Verse 16 it says, 18:01 that the Spirit of God bears witness with our Spirit 18:06 that we are children of God. That is the second major 18:12 work of the Holy Spirit. The first thing the Spirit 18:14 does when he comes into life, it says, 18:17 I'm here to guarantee that you're going to heaven. 18:19 The second work of the Spirit when he comes into 18:21 the life is as a guarantee that you are indeed 18:25 in fact God's child, you are God's son, 18:30 you are God's daughter. You're following? Spirit comes 18:33 in, you are my son, you are my daughter, 18:36 and I'm here to guarantee that you have eternal life. 18:39 Now, right there in Romans 8, we have the third work 18:41 of the Spirit. We are gonna begin in Romans chapter 8, 18:45 beginning in verses 5, 6, and 7. Follow, 18:49 "For those who live according to the flesh 18:52 set their minds on the things of the flesh, 18:55 but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds 18:58 on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on 19:02 the flesh is death, to set the mind on the Spirit 19:04 is life and peace. For the mind that is set on 19:09 the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit 19:13 to God's law; indeed it cannot. 19:17 Now, I need you to follow with me here. 19:21 He is saying there's two kinds to minds. 19:23 There is the mind that is set on the flesh, 19:25 and there is the mind that's set on the Spirit. 19:27 Now, when the Spirit of God is come into the life, 19:30 the mind is no longer set on the flesh. 19:32 The mind is set on the Spirit, now what does that mean? 19:36 Well, again let's look at verse 7 again. 19:39 Just so that we have an idea of what it saying. 19:41 It says that "The mind that is set on the flesh 19:44 is hostile to God. " Now, if you look at the verse, 19:50 it also says, the reason why, the mind that's set 19:53 on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not 19:57 submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. 20:03 There is a fleshly mind and there is a spiritual mind. 20:06 The fleshly mind is hostile to God, because it is in 20:12 rebellion to the law of God. Now, follow with me, 20:16 the text says, the mind that's set on the flesh is 20:19 hostile to God because it refuses to submit 20:23 to the law of God, but the spiritual mind, 20:28 the spiritual mind is life and peace, as we 20:33 read there in verse 6. Why is that? 20:37 Because the spiritual mind is no longer in rebellion 20:42 to the law of God. Notice, how the Bible says, 20:46 in Hebrews chapter 10, Hebrews chapter 10 20:50 beginning in verse 15. Hebrews, chapter 10 20:54 beginning in verse 15, And the Holy Spirit also 20:57 bears witness to us; notice it's the Holy Spirit 20:59 doing the talking. For after saying, 21:02 "This is the covenant that I will make with him after 21:04 those days, declares the Lord: 21:06 I, I will put my laws on their hearts 21:09 and write them on their minds, then he adds, 21:12 "I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds 21:15 no more. " Now, do you follow that amazing message? 21:21 It's a very awesome message, it says essentially 21:25 that the Spirit of God is going to come into 21:28 the life, and he is going to write his law on 21:31 your heart and on your mind. 21:33 And that he is going to no longer remember your 21:36 sins anymore. So, the Spirit of God, when a 21:41 person becomes a believer comes into the life 21:44 and says to the individual, you are going to heaven, 21:48 I will guarantee that you are going to heaven. 21:50 The Spirit of God comes in and says, you 21:51 are my son, you are my daughter, 21:54 you are my child, I will treat you like my child. 21:57 And the Spirit of God comes in and begins to write 22:01 the law of God on the heart. 22:03 He takes away the hostility that the natural human 22:06 heart has for God, he takes away the rebellion 22:09 that the natural human heart has for the law of God. 22:12 The Spirit of God comes in and writes the law 22:15 on the heart and on the mind. 22:19 Now, this promise in Hebrews 10 is just a quote, 22:22 this promise in the New Testament is echoing 22:27 the promise of the Old Testament in 22:29 Jeremiah 31:31 to 34. Let's read that now, 22:32 Jeremiah 31:31 to 34. Notice what is says, 22:39 "Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, 22:41 when I will make a new covenant with the house 22:44 of Israel and with the House of Judah, 22:46 not like the covenant that I made with their 22:47 fathers on the day when I took them by the hand 22:54 to bring them out of the land of Egypt, 22:55 My covenant that they broke, though I was 22:58 a husband, declares the Lord. 23:00 But this is the covenant that I will make with 23:03 the house of Israel after those days declares the Lord, 23:05 I will put my laws within them, and I will 23:08 write them on their hearts. " Do you follow 23:12 these beautiful new covenant promise? 23:14 The new covenant promise that we have in the 23:16 New Testament is a quote from the Old Testament, 23:20 and that is that God is going to write his law 23:23 on the heart and on the mind, he is going to write 23:26 the law on the heart and on the mind. 23:29 So, follow when the Spirit of God comes into 23:32 the believer, you believe, the moment you 23:34 believe the Spirit comes in and says, 23:35 you are my son, you are my daughter, 23:38 I'm gonna take you to heaven, and I'm going to 23:41 teach you how to live like somebody that's 23:43 going to heaven. I'm gonna write my law 23:45 on your heart and I'm gonna write, write my law 23:47 on your mind. Notice how Paul describes this 23:51 in Galatians chapter 5, in Galatians chapter 5 23:55 beginning in verse 19. He quickly describes 23:58 what it's like to live without God, and what it's 24:02 like to live with the Spirit. "The works of the flesh are 24:05 evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 24:09 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, 24:12 fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 24:16 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. 24:19 I warn you, as I warned you before, 24:21 that those who do such things will not 24:24 inherit the kingdom of God. " Now, he changes," 24:27 but the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, 24:31 patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 24:34 gentleness, self control against such things 24:37 there is no law, and those who belong to Christ 24:40 have crucified the flesh with it's passions, and desire. " 24:44 Notice how he describes the two lives. 24:47 He has one life lived in the flesh, 24:49 lived for all of the sinful desires of the flesh, 24:52 and then he describes a life, full of love, 24:56 and joy, and peace, and goodness, 24:58 and gentleness, and faithfulness, 25:01 and self control, all of these things 25:03 produced by the Spirit of God. 25:06 My friend the Spirit of God, the Spirit of God 25:10 is working on the whole planet, right now 25:13 saying, you've sinned, you need to believe 25:15 in Jesus. The Spirit of God is saying this is 25:20 what right living should look like; 25:22 this is what it looks like? It saying, 25:26 if you don't believe and, and, and, and 25:28 if you don't surrender to, the life 25:30 that Jesus is calling you to live, there is nothing 25:33 but judgment waiting for you. 25:35 The moment you believe, the moment 25:40 you believe the Spirit of God comes into the life, 25:43 the moment you trust Christ for your salvation, 25:46 the Spirit of God comes in and says, 25:47 I'm your guarantee, you are going to heaven. 25:50 I'm here to tell you that you are God son, 25:52 you God's daughter, your God's child, 25:55 and I'm here to help you live like God's son or daughter. 25:59 I'm gonna write my law in your heart and 26:01 your mind, I'm gonna figure life with love 26:04 and joy, and peace, and goodness, and 26:06 gentleness, and self control. 26:08 This is what I'm going to do for you, 26:11 this is what I'm gonna do for you. 26:14 The Spirit of God fills you with love, joy, peace. 26:21 The assurance that God is your Father 26:24 and that heaven is your home. 26:26 Now, this is why Jesus said in John chapter 14, 26:30 verse, John chapter 14 verses 15 and 16. 26:34 "If you love me, keep my commandments. 26:37 And I will ask the Father, and he will send you 26:41 another Helper, to be with you forever. " 26:44 Notice what Jesus says, if you love him as your Father, 26:48 if you love him as your friend, you will keep his 26:52 commandments and you're not gonna do it on your own. 26:54 God is gonna send you a Helper, that helper 26:57 is the Holy Spirit. He is going to guarantee 26:59 that you are his son, you are his daughter, 27:02 he is going to guarantee that you are going to heaven, 27:04 and then he is going to teach you, 27:06 how to live like a child of God, 27:09 like somebody that's going to heaven. 27:11 Today, what do we need to do to have all 27:15 of these wonderful promises as ours? 27:16 What do we need to do to experience 27:18 this amazing blessing of the Spirit of God? 27:21 We need to understand that we have sinned, 27:23 we need to understand it deep within our 27:26 hearts, and we need to trust Jesus Christ 27:29 for our salvation. When we trust him, 27:32 when we trust him. The Spirit comes in, 27:35 guarantees our God, we are going to heaven, 27:39 guarantees that we are a child of God, 27:40 and writes the law of God in our hearts 27:43 and our minds. Friend today, won't 27:46 you trust Jesus, won't you experience 27:48 the tremendous blessing of the fruit 27:52 of Spirit in your life right now. |
Revised 2014-12-17