The Trinity Pt. 3

Our third and final week on the Trinity focuses on the Holy Spirit: our Counselor.

There are many things the Holy Spirit does in our lives. We are going to just focus on a couple of those.

In John 16:6-15, Jesus makes a pretty shocking statement. He tells the disciples that it is better for them if he is taken away into heaven so that the Holy Spirit can be sent. Can you imagine Jesus telling you that face to face?

How can it be better for Jesus, God himself in human flesh, to leave earth? What is better than being able to sit and chat with the God of the universe over coffee?

The problem with sitting with Jesus over coffee isn't the ability to do so...it's the availability to do so. There are 6+ billion people on earth. If there truly are 1 billion Christians as some experts say, imagine all billion of those people wanting to have a chat with God in flesh (because everyone would). To make an appointment with God to discuss an upcoming job offer might mean waiting in line for 28 years! Can you imagine waiting that long to speak with God?

Jesus gave up certain abilities when he became human; specifically, omnipresence. He is no longer able to be everywhere at the same time. He set that ability aside in order to walk this earth as a human.

Enter the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit does possess omnipresence. Consequently, he can be everywhere at once, which means he's able to be present with all Christians everywhere. Your wait time to speak with God just drop from 28 years to 28 nanoseconds! Maybe Jesus was on to something. Maybe it really is better that he left earth and sent the Holy Spirit. But how does the Holy Spirit work in the lives of Christians? Here are a couple ways:

1. The Holy Spirit reveals right and wrong
Some people chalk this up to a conscience. A conscience is nothing more than an implanted set of morals learned somewhere in life (usually in the development of a child). The Holy Spirit leads in a different way. The Holy Spirit reveals to us the right and wrong choices before us from the view of God. Morality is no longer our compass. God now guides us. The Holy Spirit will never force us to make a decision either way, but He will reveal to us what is and isn't sin if we'll take the time to listen.

2. The Holy Spirit gives us wisdom for living
At first glance this might seem the same as #1. There is an important difference here, however. Sometimes in life our choices are not between right and wrong, but between good, better, and best. Some examples might be the aforementioned question regarding a job offer. Another example might be the decision between two college courses available during summer term. Neither decision is necessarily a sin and thus a wrong decision. But how do we know which decision is best according to God's desire for our lives? The Holy Spirit will guide us in these decisions as well.

The question might naturally arise: "That's great, but how do I know where the Holy Spirit is leading me?"

Galatians 5:16-25 is a good starting point. The Holy Spirit will never lead us into sin. And while there is no cut-and-dry answer about the best way to hear the Holy Spirit, there are principles we can follow.

*The best way to hear the Holy Spirit is through the Bible.
*The Holy Spirit sometimes speaks through Godly people in our lives.
*The Holy Spirit sometimes speaks through visions and dreams.

My advice: pray and read. Through prayer and Bible reading we can increase greatly our ability to hear and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit in our lives.