The Holy Spirit in the life of the believer

[Lamb]

One thing that Luther teaches in the Lutheran catechism is the following

I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Ghost has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith; just as He calls, gathers, enlightens and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian Church He daily and richly forgives me and all believers all our sins; and at the last day He will raise up me and all the dead, and will grant me and all believers in Christ eternal life. This is most certainly true.

What I love about that text is that I see that the Holy Spirit is there from the very start, giving us faith in order to believe...but that isn't the end! He continues to be a part of my walk and I know I'm never alone. I don't worry about whether or not I believe enough or if I'm doing enough because I know the Holy Spirit does what the above text says He does.

What are your thoughts on the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer?

 

[BruceLeiter]

One thing that Luther teaches in the Lutheran catechism is the following

I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Ghost has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith; just as He calls, gathers, enlightens and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian Church He daily and richly forgives me and all believers all our sins; and at the last day He will raise up me and all the dead, and will grant me and all believers in Christ eternal life. This is most certainly true.

What I love about that text is that I see that the Holy Spirit is there from the very start, giving us faith in order to believe...but that isn't the end! He continues to be a part of my walk and I know I'm never alone. I don't worry about whether or not I believe enough or if I'm doing enough because I know the Holy Spirit does what the above text says He does.

What are your thoughts on the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer?

He is with me every step of my way, @Lamb, from the Father through Jesus!

 

[Edward429451]

What I love about that text is that I see that the Holy Spirit is there from the very start, giving us faith in order to believe...but that isn't the end! He continues to be a part of my walk and I know I'm never alone. I don't worry about whether or not I believe enough or if I'm doing enough because I know the Holy Spirit does what the above text says He does.

What are your thoughts on the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer?

Not a lot of people had the Holy Spirit i the OT. When God told told Abraham to go on a long journey to a land he's never been to before, and...I'll talk to you when you get there! That's all God said. Abraham had no clue where he was going or for what. But Abraham Believed God, so he went and left for the journey. So God counted it as faithful righteousness for Abraham because he trusted God and Believed God, and "Believe" in Hebrew has an action connotation with it. Abraham believed by leaving on the journey.

Then a woman in the NT, a Samaritan woman? And Jesus called her a dog and turned her down! And she said, yeah but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall...and that changed everything into faith for Jesus.

Now Jesus had not been crucified yet at that point, so the promise of the Holy Spirit had not been given yet. So that little lady was a time traveller, lol. She reached into the future to grab hold of that promise and on that she held onto it and challenged Jesus with it!

Matthew 15:26-28
26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs.

27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.

28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour..../KJV

Great is thy faith, He said. and things went well for her. Conclusion, Holy Spirit.

 

[BruceLeiter]

Not a lot of people had the Holy Spirit i the OT. When God told told Abraham to go on a long journey to a land he's never been to before, and...I'll talk to you when you get there! That's all God said. Abraham had no clue where he was going or for what. But Abraham Believed God, so he went and left for the journey. So God counted it as faithful righteousness for Abraham because he trusted God and Believed God, and "Believe" in Hebrew has an action connotation with it. Abraham believed by leaving on the journey.

Then a woman in the NT, a Samaritan woman? And Jesus called her a dog and turned her down! And she said, yeah but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall...and that changed everything into faith for Jesus.

Now Jesus had not been crucified yet at that point, so the promise of the Holy Spirit had not been given yet. So that little lady was a time traveller, lol. She reached into the future to grab hold of that promise and on that she held onto it and challenged Jesus with it!

Matthew 15:26-28
26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs.

27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.

28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour..../KJV

Great is thy faith, He said. and things went well for her. Conclusion, Holy Spirit.

You're right, @Edward429451, that in the Old Testament, a remnant or minority of the people had the Holy Spirit operating faith in them (Hebrews 11), but the emphasis of the history is not on personal faith but on the history to prove a spiritual point by the prophets who were inspired to write those books.

It's also a remnant in the New Testament who really trust in Jesus. For example, Mark emphasizes the 12 disciples' lack of faith, because of their wrong expectations of the kind of Messiah they and the rest of the Jews wanted.

 

[jswauto]

You're in the hospital, the ER, or Intensive Care. You have IV's hooked to you giving you vital fluids. You have monitors and instruments of life support assisting in your life's stability.

That's how it is with the Holy Spirit, strengthening your relationship with the Lord every step of the way! Filling you with faith, love, and hope. Giving you a word of strength throughout your walk, every minute of every day!

 

[jswauto]

The Holy Spirit Manifests in your life:

In Old Testament times, the Holy Spirit limited his manifestations to certain individuals. These included Prophets, Priests, and Men of God. At such times, the Spirit of God would come upon them for a specific purpose or to carry out unique assignments. However, after their divine assignment was completed, the Holy Spirit would depart from them. Some examples of can be seen in Judges 6:34, 2 Chronicles 24:20, and Judges 14:6. And although these manifestations always resulted in triumphant leadership, superhuman strength or unusual boldness, it had its limitations. Primarily that the Holy Spirit did not stay continually on the person and that such manifestations were limited to some people.

In Joel 2:28-29, God expressed His ultimate plan for mankind. The scripture says:

And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.

Through this scripture the Lord was saying that a day would come when the manifestation and indwelling of his Spirit would be available to everyone, regardless of age, gender, or status. That promise was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was poured out (Acts 1:8, Acts 2:1-4).

Manifestations of the Holy Spirit in a Believer​

By the term Manifestation of the Holy Spirit, the outward and visible expressions of the Holy Spirit presence in a believer’s life. These manifestations are evidence of the Holy Spirit’s presence and work in and through a believer. For example, one such manifestation is the power to witness Jesus to others (Acts 1:8) 8But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Some other manifestations of the Holy Spirit are:

1. Manifestations of the Spirit through the Gifts of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:4-11) 4Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. 6And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. 7But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. 8For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; 9To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; 10To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: 11But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.
2. Expressions of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit through the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 4:22-29) 22For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. 23But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise. 24Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar. 25For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. 26But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. 27For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband. 28Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. 29But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now.
3. Boldness in the face of opposition (Acts 13:9-9-11) 9Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him, 10And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? 11And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand.
4. Ability to speak in other Tongues (Acts 2:1-4) 1And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 4And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
5. Visions, Dreams, Trances, and the Inner Voice of the Spirit (Acts 10:17-20) 17Now while Peter doubted in himself what this vision which he had seen should mean, behold, the men which were sent from Cornelius had made inquiry for Simon's house, and stood before the gate, 18And called, and asked whether Simon, which was surnamed Peter, were lodged there. 19While Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three men seek thee. 20Arise therefore, and get thee down, and go with them, doubting nothing: for I have sent them.
6. The ability to worship and serve God acceptably (Philippians 3:3 3For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh .and John 4:24) 24God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
7. Ability to understand God’s Word (1 Corinthians 2:12-13) 12Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. 13Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
8. Being transformed to become more like Jesus (2 Corinthians 3:15-18) 15But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart. 16Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away. 17Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord

Do you desire these manifestations of the Spirit in your life but are not born again? If so, we encourage you to say this simple prayer in faith:

Lord, I believe you want the best for me that’s why you sent your son Jesus to die for my sins. Today, I ask that you forgive me, cleanse me by the blood and make me yours. In Jesus name. Amen.