GRIEVING THE HOLY SPIRIT

Eph. 4:30

Morning Meditation 5/2/2013

"And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption."

What is the work of the Holy Spirit in this day? First of all He was sent by Jesus as is recorded in John 16:7-11, "Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged."

The first thing the Holy Spirit is sent to do is to "reprove the world of sin." John 16:8, "And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:" Let's take notice of what the Holy Spirit is sent to do:

1. He was sent to "reprove the world of sin." Concerning the reality of sin as missing the mark and as wronging God and man, and not a mere slip or animal instinct or devoid of moral responsibility or evil. Some scientists and psychologists are bent on setting themselves in opposition of the fact that man is a sinner at the core of his being, completely incapable of rising above his nature so leaves man with no hope. The way of God's free salvation strikes at man's exalted opinion of himself, he comes before the bar of God in dust and ashes and agrees with Him concerning his condition. This must take place in some form before a man is saved. Now God works through men and churches to get the message out and issue a call to repentance. When we do not let the Holy Spirit work through us is grounds for grief, "Grieve not the Holy Spirit. . ."

2. He is sent to reprove the world "of righteousness." The word "elegcho" translates the word "reprove." It means, "to convict, refute, confute, generally with a suggestion of shame of the person convicted." The Holy spirit makes the unbeliever feel uncomfortable about his relationship to God and leaves him a candidate for salvation. If one is reproved because of righteousness or the lack of it, he is being approached with an offer of salvation through Jesus Christ.

The planet is filled with false teachings. There is no one but Christ who has ever lived a life of perfect righteousness. Since He is not here in bodily form, there has to be another way, to convince man apart from seeing Jesus, to determine one's guilt or innocence. This is the work of the Holy Spirit and He will do His work even though He is hindered by the unbelief of professing Christians.

3. He is sent to reprove the world of judgment. The awful tragedy is that men, like in the days of the Lord himself, are rejecting Heaven's message to earth's people.

I realize that every time I get up to preach that Satan is there to cause distractions. He fights to keep men lost. And his appeal is a strong one. Men blinded to the gospel, are ready to fill that known vacuum with sports and music and dope and alcohol. We could go on indefinitely to name the things that distract man from considering what God has said about the destiny of the unbeliever. Hell is his eternal home from which there will be no tuning back. He may beg for a drop of water like the rich man in hell did. But now this is the primary purpose that the Father sent the Son, and the Son sent the Holy Spirit to do the work of gathering a bride for His Dear Son.

The Holy Spirit is the indweller of every believer. We should be careful what we say and what do. He hears everything. He is easily grieved when we do not practice in our daily lives complete surrender to Him as Lord and Saviour.

May the Lord bless these words to your hearts.

In Christ

Bro. White