The Person and Work, of the Holy Spirit lesson 30 Part 2
Courtney Hemenway · Jun 26, 2022
Holy Spirit (2021-23), No. 67
Holly Hills Bible Church
https://www.hollyhillsbiblechurch.org/teaching/messages/49261927317072

Transcribed from the recording by SermonAudio, so expect the occasional misheard word.

Alright, we are in lesson 30, and this is the person work of the Holy Spirit class. I think we got down to partially getting through question 3, and again this is the review of chapters 1 through 4. So we got down, I think in question three, how the Holy Spirit's work differed between the Old and New Testament. And we saw about how the Spirit comes on and off in the Old Testament, where now we have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, which we'll touch on a little bit as we proceed here.

And then we checked what's the difference between John the Baptist, well, baptism and indwelling were the two functions that Rite Out brought out. And in baptism, we looked at John the Baptist and what his baptism was. It was for repentance. And then the baptism of the Holy Spirit, which was completely different than what John was bringing forth.

So I think we'd stopped right at the indwelling. So what does indwelling mean with respect to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit? What does indwelling mean? Stunned silence. I put you all to sleep. What does indwelling mean? At the moment of faith in Christ, the Holy Spirit indwells the believer who has placed his faith in Jesus. And the Holy Spirit seals him in there. And once he's in, he's never to leave. Once he enters, never to leave. And we're empowered and every blessing you can imagine by having him inside us.

I was going to flag you for the violation of what I usually say when I say define what indwell means. You can't use indwell in your definition when you define it. But I think you went on enough to explain indwelling. The indwelling is the Holy Spirit coming into a believer. We understand that in into a lot, you know, and I was thinking about this and years ago I think Mike and I and I think there's even a book I don't know which if that was a miles one about many Christians say Invite Christ into your heart. Is that is that what the indwelling is?

No No, so you give an answer. No, you have to explain why and Well, your heart is the seat of your feelings, your basic feelings, and other than pumping blood and whatever, and that's not what the Holy Spirit has to do with. It's your whole being. Okay.

Yeah, you know, again, how many times have you heard people say, invite Christ into your heart, or things like that, and it really is not understanding what this transaction is about the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. It isn't just into your heart, it is imparting new life into this fleshly body. A whole life.

And so it's not just our, although I did, there is one verse, and I meant to check that, I've been traveling the last few days crazy, and I think there is one about something about the heart. There's a verse, and I can't remember where it is, but I thought maybe that's where people get the, is that what it is? I don't know if you can find it or not, but it's one that it says about something about into the heart, and I thought maybe that's where people get confused, but as you get through Romans 5, 6, 7, 8, there's no question about being placed into the body of Christ, and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, which we'll touch on now. But I was trying to think, up until coming here and a lot of the identification truths, that inviting into the heart was a very prevalent thing in the Christian community.

Yeah. When man was created by God, he was body, soul, and spirit. And when he sinned, his spirit died to God. So I think the Holy Spirit comes to indwell and enliven your spirit when you believe. Right, yeah, spiritual life. It's spiritual life, or eternal life as we know it. Yes. And so we find out from that that we've lived, up until the time we're saved, we've lived soulish lives, out of our souls, which are controlled by the sin nature and feelings and emotions.

And the very core and center of a man is really his spirit, I think, and everything that he is in both soul and spirit. So the Holy Spirit takes up residence there permanently and begins to move that life out into the rest of the man to sanctify him, set him apart. Although, as Romans says, there's nothing good in my flesh. Nothing. And it's kind of a weird concept that we have a new life that's eternal, that is perfect, living inside a body that is totally controlled by the sin nature. And so it's, but it's a life inside of you. It's not just your heart.

And you know, I've said this before, it was this year, 30 years ago in Greenwood Village, I was at work for CH Stonehill and we had the Greenwood Village police come in and they were talking about all the kids in Greenwood Village that were on drugs, mental, suicide, all these different things. And it was, you know, and she said, these kids have everything the world can offer. But a lot of the parents were, two parents working, or they were, and they'd just give all the money and the toys and everything to the kids. And the secular police person there said, you know, after doing this for so many years, there's a hole in these kids. And, you know, it's a hole, it's the dead spirit. And they try and glom on to the worldly things to no avail. And the frustration and the end is drugs or mischief and all these different things. But she noticed that there was a hole in them. Yeah, and I thought that's that's the whole now say it's your dad spiritually and all they have is their soulish life, right?

And she could see that she didn't know what it was, but she said that I'm like, wow, that's interesting a secular person I think the verse you're talking about is Romans 10 9 if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart Yeah that God raised him from the dead you will be saved and I think that's it that they but believe in your heart which is the essence is what Carol was saying the essence of you know, you're Who you are right so but that's just that part that the believing part is there but it's not residents, right? So that's right. That's one that I think people maybe bring that into you know, invite Jesus into your heart.

So Any other comments I would kind of off a little bit of tape Courtney as I was gonna say, I think I learned something when I was I with Bronco when he was, you know, during his last hours, whatever. It dawned on me that I think of the Holy Spirit living inside my body, and I think that's true, but what it dawned on me is Bronco's body now is basically, it's gone, and where that Holy Spirit lives is something The essence of who we really are lives in there in a sense, it's inside us but the body is really not hardly involved in the whole thing, it's something within us that the spirit enters, a new creature. You know, the beauty of the thing is what you're saying too.

The flesh is the one that gets in the way of everything. You know, that's the stumbling block. The minute we shirk these shells, we get a new body and then, you know, we still have that perfect spirit and our soul, who we are, is there. So it is, you know, the body is the one that restricts us.

The fleshly body, that's, you know, and the Romans 7 is clearly showing that, that nothing good dwells in thy flesh. You know, so as Mike was saying, the Holy Spirit is working within you to express Christ, but it has to do it through a body that is riddled with sin. So, Bronco is free to not have any of that now, which is awesome.

Right. Amen. So, a couple of things with respect to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. We can look at John 14, 16, and 7. And these are really cool verses when you think about it. I, Christ, will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever. That is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him, because He abides with you and will be in you. Again, the concept of being in, the indwelling. So it's a life inside.

And I thought the other interesting point about the Holy Spirit was brought forth in John 16, 7. But I tell you it is to your advantage that I go away. For if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. So what does this point out about the indwelling of the Holy Spirit to the believer?

I thought that was an interesting thing, when you really think about it. What's our desire? Many times I've heard people say, boy, if Christ was sitting in the front pew of our church building here today, oh man, how exciting, everything would change. Is that the best thing? No. He said, I love the way Christ puts it, but to tell you the truth, It is to your advantage that I go away. I don't think a lot of believers believe that. They want to see Christ face-to-face right now. Ooh, that would change me. Ooh, I'd be changed forever. No, they'd be like most when Christ was here. It's kind of the taillight warranty.

As soon as Christ disappeared, they're right back in the world and doing their thing. The indwelling Holy Spirit is 24-7 working on you, convicting, convincing you. And the other thing is, Christ was one person on the earth. Now how is Christ expressed? Billions of people. Christ now is living in billions of people being expressed in his life. Christ was in the Middle East, going up and down Palestine and through that area. That's who he could travel to. Now, where is Christ exposed? Worldwide. So that was the advantage, that now he can express himself in a billion people.

And the advantage, we have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, which is, as we go through this, amazing power resides inside of us. So again, I just thought that it's actually better to have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit than to have a personal face-to-face relationship with Christ while we reside on the earth. Ultimately, it's going to be incredible when we do face-to-face with Him without our sinful bodies and all that bronco and that. That's going to be incredible face-to-face, but that's not the best thing right now.

I think a lot of believers don't understand that and what the importance is of what we're studying is the Holy Spirit. And I said, do we truly understand and appreciate this principle or condition? And Rideout summarizes this, the work of the Holy Spirit at this time.

These then are the two characteristic features of the Spirit's work at this time, baptism and indwelling. The first shows us the formation of the church, the body of Christ, as distinct from every other work of God. And the latter shows us the power for walk in order, both in the individual and the church as a whole. So, again, the two main ones, baptism being placed into the formation of the Church, and then the indwelling. Those are the two keys that he brought out at the end of Chapter 1. So, any thoughts or questions before we move on to Chapter 2? I'll ask the Father and He will give you another Helper.

And the word for another is a loss, which means another of the same kind, which I thought was So, yeah, the Holy Spirit is exactly Christ or God's replica. I mean, they're the same, the triune God that we're bringing out, they're all the same, they have different functions, but they're all deity. Anyway. Yeah, but I mean, that is a cool thing. The other is, I've been trying, He, not It. It's a person that's one of the key things out of this first chapter was it's a person not a not an it or a force so Any other thoughts before we move on chapter 2?

All right, this is the Holy Spirit in salvation So right that brings out three different things. So what are the threefold areas of conviction by the Holy Spirit? Anybody have that or look it up Yes, the threefold that he brings out conviction of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. So, for the conviction of sin, I think that's Fairly straightforward.

And the one I always go to, which I just think, this is kind of the summary. You know, if you're in a court case, this is the summary. When the final word is brought to the jury, this is the final one. Well, you look through Romans 1 through 321. It basically lays out man's sins and sin nature. But the culmination, I think, is in 310 through 318. So this is the one where, I just love this, and this is, I have to look in the mirror. This is me in the flesh.

So it is written, there is none righteous, not even one. There is none who understands. There is none who seeks for God. All have turned aside. Together they have become useless. There is none who does good. Ask the world that one today. that you know is there the benevolent philanthropist they're all they're great people there is none who does good not even one their throat is an open grave with their with their tongues they keep deceiving the poison of asp is under their lips lips whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness their feet are swift to shed blood destruction and misery are in their paths and the path of peace they have not known there is no fear of God before their eyes That explain the world today? That's... I didn't... what is the news today? I don't remember. Oh, I haven't... yeah, we've... Yeah, well, just a... yeah, a daily... well, that was, I think, what I shared last at the Lord's Supper.

You almost have to get callous to the fact of how much death and we see in violence and all these things. You almost have to get callous to it. That's why The remembrance service is to remember his death, above all, because we get calloused to, you know, 20 people get killed or whatever, a mass shooting or, you know, a plane goes down or whatever, and we, in order to survive, we get calloused to that. But, you know, the remembrance service is remember that death. But the point is, look at the world today and what do we have? Destruction, death, bloodshed, all these things.

That's a manifestation just like what he says here in Romans 3. I think, I agree with you. You know, the stuff that's going on about Roe versus Wade and the people that are vehemently against it. It's a complete institution of thinking specific to the worship themself. That's the center of self. And all of those things are the result of those types of thinking. So when the Word of God talks about you're swift to shed blood, quick to murder.

Oh, totally. Just because they can't defend themselves, we're going to get rid of them. Yeah. Oh no, it's evident every day, but not yet. You know, I just boggles my mind on that from the, you know, our citizenship's in heaven. That's the important factor.

But when we're here and we see that, that people are glorifying killing babies. You know, in New York, I just remember this, and they passed a law that basically said, up to, and I think after birth, you can kill the baby. And I saw the legislature standing and cheering that. I almost threw up. It's like, do you understand this? Do you understand this? I think they've said, now we have the technology to see that 19 weeks are a survivable and definable child. Yeah, from conception, but for them, now we can physically see this now. It really goes to what we just read. Quirk to shed blood. There is nothing good in a fleshly man or woman. Nothing. That's the Holy Spirit's job is to convict us and convict those people that what they're doing is hideous and horrible.

You know, it's, it's, yeah. I just wonder, my question is, you know, will we see, and this is, you know, whether salvation, you know, will we see these millions of babies in heaven? You know, is there, I don't know, Mike, I don't know, you may speak to that. I've heard both. Say it again. Yeah. We are technically technology challenged here. We have to hit a mic and the green light go on, so we have to go through that.

Anyway, so I mean because of the work of the cross, God can save anybody any way he wants. I know how I had to be saved and how the Word of God spells it out to me, but If you're, you know, if you're a fetus, and you get aborted, is God free to offer you salvation? Absolutely he is.

And that's my belief, is that, you know, they're kind of an age of accountability, that, you know, if a one-month-old, who, you know, is that, is their son, I don't know. I think that God has the ability to do that. But yeah, it's staggering to see how many have ended that way. Bathsheba's baby died, and David said he'd see the baby. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it's tough quandary. We were never in this.

Because of Romans 3, people do this, and gleefully. Well, it shows you what the sin nature really is. We've always been putting holy water on it to try to make it not smell so bad. And that's what you just read is what my sin nature is totally like. Well, that's what I'm saying.

I put me in there. I mean, that's me in the flesh. You know, I can't say I'm, you know, above that. That's me in the flesh. Which, you know, that's scary. Without what we're studying, the Holy Spirit, the conviction of that sin by the Holy Spirit, you know, that the flesh isn't manifest more. Yeah. I said, that's what the old man does. And when you recognize what the old man does through the scripture, you don't have to see yourself carrying all that out, but you know that that's what, who you are in Adam, that's what you do. In one way or another, you reflect Everything that is against who you are as a creation of God you reject everything And most importantly you reject the Creator, right?

That's us. That's us. That's who we are I mean like I said, I can't say well that well, that's for Mike or for you know, whoever that's not me Oh, that's absolutely me in the flesh. That's anybody there is none. That's why it's none It isn't you know, I have a you know, a little subset that says, you know, these people over here really cool and good and None. There's not one. I'm in that picture, too.

That's kind of scary, but it's also very refreshing to know that the Holy Spirit is in me working to bring forth the life of Christ over that flesh. We'll see that with the conviction of righteousness and first of sin. We know that. Without the Holy Spirit and a new life indwelling us, that's who we are.

So what's the next one? The next one is, what is it to be convicted of righteousness? It's kind of an interesting one. What is convicted of righteousness? How are you convicted of righteousness? Get the green light. Well, it doesn't mean that he's convicting you and you realize that you've certainly fallen short and you're not what you should be.

You reflect Romans 3. That's not very coherent. Yeah, I think it's interesting. And the conviction of righteousness, I thought that was kind of an interesting portion of this, of what the Holy Spirit's work is. Well, I was just going to say, I think in terms of salvation, you, until the Holy Spirit convicts you of the right, I don't want to say it the right way, but righteousness as God, a person, and understanding that sin has to be condemned, It has to be condemned because of righteousness. It doesn't have to be condemned for condemnation's sake, right? He does it because he's righteous. And until you understand and are convicted that it is unrighteous for me to remain in the old man, and it is God's righteousness that he gives to me as a free gift, until you make that clarification of Sin is unrighteous, but God is righteous. So you have to have that distinction first, and then you have to figure out, how does the Holy Spirit convince me of my righteousness in Christ?

In Christ, right? So there's really, there's that salvation, and then there's that sanctification level of conviction. Which we're talking about in salvation here, but I think the hardest part is the second half of that. That's the harder part, probably. You know, in this slimy, nasty, fleshly body of mine, You know, convincing us of the righteousness in Christ.

Yeah. Because we want to dog ourselves all the time, right? Yeah. Well, I mean, it's trying to understand. The way God sees us now, He sees me in Christ. He has the filtered glasses that only see Christ in me. Sins are all paid for. They're gone. They're taken care of. Why am I worrying about it? They're taken care of. And why am I beating myself up?

I'm a new creature in Christ, and that's how God sees me. Well, I was thinking too, that's the whole goal of the world is to redefine righteousness. I had to get to decide what that is. Yeah, yeah. Self-defined righteousness. You know, which is, let's say you're starting from that same person we just read in Romans 3 to define righteousness. That's going to end up well. So, yeah. No, that's what, yeah, that's totally. And again, what is the center of that all? Again, this is kind of the two-part, which I like, J.D., what you said.

It's of sin, but also of our righteousness in Christ. Again, I think that's the harder part for a lot of believers to understand. They can see it, because they see it every day in their flesh, how terrible their flesh is. So I think it's the harder part of seeing the convicted righteousness in Christ. So, Rideout puts it this way, Thus the world is convicted of righteousness in the fact that Jesus is now with the Father.

They treated him as a malfactor, as a blasphemer against God, as a plotter against the stability of the government. That was their estimate of Christ. But God has raised him from the dead and placed him in his own right hand. He has lifted him out of the lowest shame in which man's estimate had put him in and exalted him to the highest place in heaven. the righteousness which the world would not have, God has received into heaven and enthroned it there.

What an awful conviction God What an awful conviction! God could not righteously leave His Holy One under the imputation of guilt. He must declare His righteousness. And so He is raised from the dead by the glory of the Father. What a vindication of the Lord! What a condemnation of the world! Well might the Apostle give the resurrection of Christ as God's assurance of coming judgment.

So again, it's God's acceptance of Christ, raising Him, accepting the payment, and then seating Him at the right hand of God. Righteousness. Now, how does the convicting work of the Holy Spirit function with respect to judgment? How does He convict us in judgment? 30 more seconds, otherwise I'm going to be over. It says in John 4, 5, somewhere in there, that all judgment has been given to Christ. And so he's the one that is going to judge men based on their deeds. So who is he judging?

Two things. So, yeah, I mean, I shouldn't have stopped you. I'm sorry. No, I'm not. It's the cross. This is from right up the cross. Thus, the cross declares judgment both of Satan and the world. That's who is judged. And that got you off at the world. all the world and Satan. Not an uncertain thing as we have seen in the future, but an accomplished fact in the head and representative of all, the one whom the world had chosen for itself.

Here again, however, for faith, the very conviction and judgment brings the promise or deliverance. Is the ruler one who held me in bondage judged? Has he who had the power of death been annulled? Then is there not deliverance for me if I do not accept this judgment of the cross and flee in faith to the one who is smitten for me?

So understanding that Satan and the world have been judged, we are no longer under that judgment by the world, and Satan has been judged, and we actually stopped on our long drive yesterday back in Grand Junction. Talking about Satan too, you know, again, Satan is one person, and we talked about that, he's not omnipresent, he's not omnipotent, any of those things, and he's a defeated foe.

God uses him for his purposes now. He's been judged, has been judged. And so now, he can only go as far as God allows him to go. And he uses it for his perfect purposes, not for punishment of us, but to accomplish the purpose of conforming us to the image of Christ.

And the world has been judged. That's another thing. That's interesting for a believer. The world has been judged. When we look at the earth and all these people who are gleefully celebrating abortion, you think they've been judged? And every one of those could be being convicted by the Holy Spirit and know the Lord tomorrow. He's offering that free gift to every one of those people.

Because I'm the same. I was the same. It's like in a court of law, the judgment comes down. guilty sentence to the gallows, but there's a time frame between the sentence and the carrying out of the sentence. Yes. And in this case, there can be the reprieve of salvation through Christ. Yeah. But the world and Satan have been judged. Just understand that. They have been judged. Yeah. It's a done thing.

So, alright, any other last minute thoughts or questions real quick? Alright, let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you and thank you again just for your plans and how you work in each and every one of us in the world and the church body. We just thank you that it is so far above what we could ever think and how you're working. You have judged the world and Satan, but you still use Satan to accomplish your purposes. That he's a defeated foe and can be used to ultimately conform individuals, members of the body, conforming them to the image of your son.

And there's so many different things. Just the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and what that means to every believer. That indwelling is a perfect life. that is greater than the fleshly body that we look in Romans 3. That's who we are in the flesh and in Adam. And as we see in Romans 6, we have been crucified, we've been placed into Christ's body, and now we have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, which is the power that overcomes the flesh.

And we thank you for that, and we just pray that, again, the convicting nature of the Holy Spirit in each and every believer, to draw out the manifestation of Christ in each and every believer. And we thank you again for all that you provide, your word, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. And again, we just thank you for your perfect plans. And we just thank you for all these things in Jesus' name. Amen.