THE PERSON OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

The Holy Spirit is THE Person who communicates wisdom, direction, warnings, correction, peace, comfort, and love. He is the third Person of the Trinity alongside the Father and the Son. He is the active presence of God in the world, guiding, inspiring, and empowering those who have accepted Christ as their Savior.  

The Holy Spirit is referenced throughout both the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament refers to the Spirit as "the Spirit of God" or "the Spirit of the Lord" and is associated with creation, giving life, and sparing no effort to win sinners. 

The New Testament speaks of Jesus’ promise to send the Holy Spirit as the Helper, Comforter, and the Spirit of truth. If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you (John 14:15-17 NKJV).

Why is the Holy Spirit important in the lives of Christians? He empowers a believer to live a Christ-centered life that will reflect the Spirit of God who guides believers toward all truth and reveals the deeper meanings found in His Word.

The Holy Spirit commissions and empowers believers with spiritual gifts to share the Gospel and live a life pleasing to God. He reveals and convicts believers of sin and enables them to become victorious over sin. The Holy Spirit seals believers' salvation, guaranteeing their eternal inheritance. Ultimately, the Holy Spirit accomplishes God's saving work through believers who respond and obey.

It is impossible for Christians to be all that they can be, if they do not recognize and acknowledge the Holy Spirit’s presence and guidance. For He will nudge us to move out of our comfort zone, step out in faith, and follow His lead as He speaks with a still small voice into our spirit. Through our obedience, the Holy Spirit will put the right words in our heart to speak. Sadly, many well-intentioned Christians are so fearful of making a mistake, sounding crazy, being too forward, or intrusive that they resist the Holy Sprit’s leading.

My personal experience with the Holy Spirit has been an amazing and exciting journey of blessings throughout my 54 years of being a Christian. Of the many times that the Holy Spirit has spoken to me and encouraged me to step out in faith and speak to a person, one memorable moment has always had a profound and special place in my heart.

My husband and I would occasionally indulge in a Sunday buffet after church. That Sunday, the restaurant was very busy, so when I spied an unoccupied table, I quickly went to sit down while my husband paid for our meals. As I sat down, I noticed to my right a man sitting at a table by himself. A waitress, who appeared weary and in her 60’s, came to his table and politely asked if there was anything else she could get for him. He very gruffly answered, “No!” and threw a dollar on the table and hurriedly left.

A deep sadness flooded this woman’s face, as she gingerly picked up the dollar, placed it into her apron and proceeded to clear the table. I was so overcome with emotion that I began to cry and asked God, “Why am I feeling such profound sadness for this woman?” The Spirit of God clearly spoke into my spirit, “Her husband recently died, and she believes that I have forsaken her. I want you to give her (He told me an amount of money), and place it in her hand and tell her, ‘God loves you and has not forgotten you.’”

My husband came to the table, and I quickly shared what had happened and what the Holy Spirit had spoken into my spirit about the waitress. I then said to him, “God spoke a very specific amount of money to give to this dear lady, but I want you to pray and ask Him what that amount is.” He bowed his head and prayed. When he looked up, he said the exact amount that God had told me.

When we finished eating, the waitress came to our table and asked if there was anything else she could do for us. I motioned her to me and took her right hand, and as I pressed the money into her hand, I said, “God wants you to know that He loves you and has not forgotten you.” Immediately, tears began to flow down her cheeks as she said, “My husband recently died, and I was sure that God had forgotten me.”

The joy that I felt then and that I still feel today left a lasting and beautiful memory of God’s extreme goodness and love that He has for every human being. He intimately knows and cares deeply for each person. As ambassadors of Christ, we are given the ultimate privilege of being His hands and feet that can bring His love, comfort, and miracles to others (Matthew 25:34-40, 1 Peter 4:10, and 2 Corinthians 5:20.) I would rather obey God and possibly make a fool of myself, than stand before Him one day with regrets. For there is no greater joy than seeing the fruit of our obedience!

PRAYER: FATHER, forgive me for those times when I ignored the nudging of Your Holy Spirit to speak to someone. Help me to always be obedient to The Spirit’s leading so that I can be Your hands and feet, actively embodying Your love and compassion to serve others while on this earth. In Jesus’ name, amen.