Letter To Our Children

by Pastor Joe | April 3, 2024 | Letters To Our Children

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April 3, 2024

Dove

Hello Friends!

Growing up, some thought or talked about the roles of the Holy Spirit in very wild ways. People still do. Slain in the Spirit, laughing in the Spirit, shaking uncontrollably, roaring like a lion, and having Spirit-inspired visions were a few of the ways those people understood the working of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus promised His followers that a "helper" would be given to them. Through this helper, we actively experience God's power and presence. The helper is the Holy Spirit.

 

The Holy Spirit

 

First, the Holy Spirit is the primary agent in our salvation. He convicted us of our sin while we were unbelievers, according to John 16:8-9. Titus 3:4ff says that we have been born again by the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior.

 

Secondly, the Holy Spirit is the power in our sanctification, which is the gradual process by which we become more like Jesus Christ in thought, word, and deed.

 

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,

To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with His blood:

Grace and peace be yours in abundance.

1 Peter 1:1-2

 

Third, the Holy Spirit illuminates the word of God so that we can understand and apply its truth. The knowledge of the Scripture's absolute importance is natural to no one. People may be familiar with Christian ideas, but they can't welcome its truth. The Holy Spirit gives us the ability to understand God's word.

    

But the man who isn’t a Christian can’t understand and can’t accept these thoughts from God, which the Holy Spirit teaches us. They sound foolish to him because only those who have the Holy Spirit within them can understand what the Holy Spirit means. Others just can’t take it in.

1 Corinthians 2:14

 

Fourth, the Holy Spirit is, says Ephesians 1:13-14, the seal of our inheritance, meaning He gives security to genuine believers that nothing can take place that will cause us to lose our salvation. Your confidence in your security is known as your assurance through the loving ministry of the Holy Spirit.

 

And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of His glory.

Ephesians 1:13-14

 

Fifth, the Holy Spirit testifies within the depths of your soul you genuinely belong to God. He is your Father, and you are His child, giving the necessary assurance longed for and cherished.

 

The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.

Romans 8:16

 

Sixth, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us when we don’t know what to say or express, in words, our prayers to God.

 

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

Romans 8:26

 

Finally, seventh, the Holy Spirit equips us to serve. The goal of every Christian is that we would live a life that glorifies God by serving Him and by serving other people in and out of the local church, and that happens only through the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

Now, about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers, and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed.

1 Corinthians 12:1

 

What A Friend We Have in Jesus is a good song often sung in Churches. The Holy Spirit is our friend as well. We praise Him for His active roles in our Christian life, even as we praise Him for the clarity of the Scripture He inspired.

 

God bless you in all things, great and small.

Pastor Joe