Study #43: LAMED
LAMED:THE GOAD OF DISCIPLESHIP: ( PART 7 )
THE 5 BLESSINGS OF THE ONE NEW MAN IN CHRIST ( PART 7 )
- NEW POWER ( PART 4 )
Pastor Yeoh from Penang sent me a helpful note yesterday in tandem with our study on DISCIPLESHIP.
I took it for granted that the majority of you knew who the Holy Spirit is? But it is always good to be reminded.
- Who is the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit is God, as are the Son and the Father. Much of the confusion surrounding the Holy Spirit occurs when people fail to view Him as a Person who has a personality. He is a divine Person with a will and emotions.
The Holy Spirit possesses all the attributes that the Son and the Father have. He is Omnipotent (all powerful), Omniscient (all knowing), Omnipresent and Immutable (unchanging) and Eternal. He is the Third Person of the Holy Trinity.
- What is the purpose of the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit is a major part of your Christian life. Let us look at some of His roles and see why He is so important.
The Holy Spirit convicted you of your sin and your need for Christ (John 16:8-11). The Bible explains that without the Holy Spirit’s help, people think Christianity is foolish (1 Corinthians 1:18). Those around you may think it’s crazy you’ve made such a commitment to Christ! You don’t see it that way at all because the Holy Spirit has revealed the wonder of a life in Christ to you.
The Holy Spirit gave you new life. Flesh gives birth only to flesh, Jesus said. It takes the Holy Spirit to give a spiritual birth (John 3:6). And it is through that Spirit that God’s love was poured into your heart (Romans 5:5). The Holy Spirit also provides an inner assurance that you are a Christian (Romans 8:16).
The Holy Spirit is your teacher. He leads you to the truth of God’s Word. He explains the Bible so you are able to understand and apply its truth (John 16:13,14). He speaks to people’s hearts as you tell them about Jesus (Acts 1:8). He speaks for you before the Father when you feel like you don’t know what or how to pray (Romans 8:26,27).
The Holy Spirit was sent by Christ to enable you to live the Christian life!
As Paul wrote, “…the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you” (Romans 8:11). Indeed, from our previous lessons, the Christian Life is possible only with the power of the Holy Spirit.
You may be thinking, I need the Holy Spirit in my life! If you are a Christian, He is already there: “You are controlled by your new nature if you have the Spirit of God living in you” (Romans 8:9). The Holy Spirit resides in you, but you may not be yielding your life to His direction. He may be a mere resident–without being President.
Paul distinguished between two types of Christians: the spiritual Christian and the carnal Christian.
Abba Father, teach us by the power of the Holy Spirit how to overcome our flesh life, the old man of our carnal nature who must be nailed daily to the Cross. As John the Baptist said, Jesus must increase in our lives that we may decrease (John 3:30).
