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The Holy Spirit Dwells Within Us
August 5, 2007
TEXT: NKJ 1 Corinthians 3:16 Do you not know that you are the temple of
God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
We have talked about the Holy Spirit many times in our lessons—Jesus promised to
send the Holy Spirit to help us through this journey we call life—Jesus
instructed all believers to wait for the sending of the Holy Spirit
NKJ Luke 24:49 "Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in
the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high."
We need the power of the Holy Spirit—for many things—but most of all for our
salvation—it is the gift of the Holy Spirit
NKJ Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not
of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
NKJ Romans 8:11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells
in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal
bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
We cannot understand that Jesus is the Christ without the Holy Spirit—our very
understanding of our salvation is a gift of God through the Holy Spirit
NKJ 1 Corinthians 12:3 Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the
Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except
by the Holy Spirit.
Now let us examine some of the things we know about the Holy Spirit and the work
of the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit Convicts Us to Acknowledge Our Sins
Jesus told His disciples about the Holy Spirit’s purpose in coming into the
world
NKJ John 16:8 "And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of
righteousness, and of judgment:
Until we know that we are sinners—we have no need for a Savior—again we go to
the very words of Jesus
NKJ Mark 2:17 When Jesus heard it, He said to them, "Those who are well have no
need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the
righteous, but sinners, to repentance."
Therefore the Holy Spirit brings us to understanding that we are sinners—which
establishes our need for a Savior—and the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, brings us
understanding and faith in our forgiveness—and that is the gift of God that we
read about earlier
God knows we are sinners—He knows because He looks at our heart—we can’t trick
Him or fool Him into thinking that we are without sin
NKJ 1 Samuel 16:7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or
at the height of his stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not
see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at
the heart."
Just as God looks at us within—we also must examine ourselves internally—realize
that we are sinners—confess our sins—and ask God to forgive us because His Son,
Jesus Christ paid for those sins on the cross
The Holy Spirit Guides Us to the Truth
The Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of Truth by Jesus
NKJ John 14:16 "And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper,
that He may abide with you forever -- 17 "the Spirit of truth, whom the world
cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for
He dwells with you and will be in you.
The Holy Spirit dwells within each Christian
NKJ 1 Corinthians 3:16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that
the Spirit of God dwells in you?
Our God is a Triune God
The truth is within each of us—and that truth is what guides us through this
life—we are reminded of what is righteous—and what is sinful—and we need to
follow the Spirit within us—God the Holy Spirit dwells within us—God the Father
created us—God the Son is our Mediator upon judgment
NKJ John 15:26 " But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the
Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.
Therefore the Holy Spirit guides us with the truth that He hears from the
Father—and the Son also hears from the Father—Jesus speaks of this relationship
NKJ John 12:49 "For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who
sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. 50 "And I
know that His command is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as
the Father has told Me, so I speak."
The Father glorifies the Son
NKJ John 8:16 "And yet if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone,
but I am with the Father who sent Me. 17 "It is also written in your law that
the testimony of two men is true. 18 "I am One who bears witness of Myself, and
the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me."
And the Father and Son bear witness of the Holy Spirit
NKJ John 14:26 "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My
name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things
that I said to you.
The Gift of Salvation through the Holy Spirit
Salvation is a gift—we can’t buy it—we can’t earn it—it is a gift of God—that is
part of the truth we spoke of earlier—only those who have the Holy Spirit know
Jesus
NKJ 1 Corinthians 12:3 Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the
Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except
by the Holy Spirit.
Paul teaches us that the Holy Spirit dwelling within us guides us to perform the
will of God
NKJ Philippians 2:12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in
my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation
with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to
do for His good pleasure. 14 Do all things without complaining and disputing, 15
that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the
midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in
the world, 16 holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of
Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.
There are those who insist that we must earn salvation—we have to perform good
works to be good enough to “earn our salvation”—we know that is not true—we do
good works as a fruit of the Spirit
NKJ Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control.
Against such there is no law.
Christians are alive—full of the Spirit—and that Spirit—that life—make us want
to help others live—that’s why we are driven to share
NKJ James 2:26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without
works is dead also.
Now consider this from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians
NKJ Ephesians 2:1 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2
in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the
prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of
disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of
our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by
nature children of wrath, just as the others.
Being dead in your sins is much like being dead in this life—dead people can’t
help themselves—but people that are alive can help someone who is dead—this is
true physically and it is true spiritually—if you are dead from lack of water,
we could pour water into your mouth and you could not even swallow it—if you
were dead from starvation you could not eat bread if we placed it into your
mouth—you are like that spiritually—we are powerless to save ourselves—only
through the forgiveness of our sins by God are we saved—it is all the work of
God through God the Holy Spirit
We were all dead in the spirit before being brought to the truth by the Holy
Spirit—Jesus instructed us to love God—and love one another
NKJ Matthew 22:36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?" 37 Jesus
said to him, " 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all
your soul, and with all your mind.' 38 "This is the first and great commandment.
39 "And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' 40
"On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."
This love is the love of life—literally!
NKJ 1 John 3:14 We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love
the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. 15 Whoever hates
his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life
abiding in him. 16 By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us.
And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
Some call this change in status from dead in the spirit to having eternal life
through our Savior Jesus Christ—conversion—regeneration—what we call it is—A
GIFT
NKJ Romans 6:8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live
with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more.
Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to
sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you
also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ
Jesus our Lord.
NKJ Ephesians 5:14 Therefore He says: "Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the
dead, And Christ will give you light."
The Spirit Gives Life
As we close this lesson—let us consider the Holy Spirit as the Giver of life—and
give thanks for your life—it is a gift
NKJ John 6:63 "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The
words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.
ALL GLORY BE TO GOD!