Our theme for this month: “Life on this side of the cross”
Our Bible verse for today: “It is for your benefit that I go away, because if I don’t go away the Counselor will not come to you. If I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment.” John 16:7-8 (CSB)
Our thought for today: “The Holy Spirit plays a vital role in our lives.”
In yesterday’s devotional we read about Jesus starting to prepare His disciples for His departure from this world and for the coming of the Holy Spirit in His place. In today’s passage from John 16:7-8 He even tells them that they will be better off when He is gone and the Spirit has come. At that time, they couldn’t possibly comprehend how that could be. They didn’t understand that rather than having the human Jesus living with them, they would instead have the Holy Spirit living inside of them. That understanding still eluded them, but it shouldn’t elude us. The important truth about the nature of the Spirit’s work in the lives of believers pertains to our lives too, and therefore we must understand it and embrace it.
Yesterday, in John 14:16, we read that Jesus called the Spirit “The Counselor”. What that means is that the Spirit living in our hearts whispers wise words of counsel to us as we make decisions day-by-day and moment-by-moment. He guides us in big ways and in small. Jesus also called Him “The Spirit of truth”, meaning that the Spirit helps Christians to discern truth from lies – the ways of God from the ways of Satan. In John 16:13 He said, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth.”
In John 14:26 Jesus said that the Holy Spirit will teach us, and He will also remind us of the things we have learned. In other words, once you have made the effort to learn the important truths of God, and once you have memorized passages of Scripture, the Holy Spirit will bring those lessons and those passages to your mind at the times when you need them. (However, He won’t bring to your mind things you never bothered to put in there to begin with! So, study the Bible, learn the lessons, and memorize the verses so they will be there for the Spirit to remind you of.)
Finally, in today’s passage, in John 16:8, Jesus tells us that another function of the Holy Spirit is to convict the world of sin. By “world” Jesus meant the individuals who make up the world. In other words, you and me. The Holy Spirit will convict you and me of our sins. That’s one of the important roles He plays in our lives.
As Jesus was patiently working with His young disciples and building this body of understanding for them, He was helping them to understand that on this side of the cross, rather than relying on the Old Testament Law as our guide for living, or even on the human Jesus walking with us, we would have the Holy Spirit of God living in our hearts and working in our lives to convict, teach, guide, counsel, and remind. He is your own personal mentor and life-coach who is with you 24/7 and who never leaves you. How well do you know Him? How much influence are you allowing Him to have in your life?
Oak Hill Baptist Church