Holy Spirit Small Group Study Joyce Webb 2011
Lesson #1 5 pages
Introduction: Work of the Holy Spirit:
Convicts us of sin: Convict means to make a person feel they are wrong, feel shame, feel sorrow for one’s actions and thoughts.)
John 16:8 ”And when he is come, he will reprove (convince, make them understand) the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment.” KJV In NLB—he will make them understand or convince the world of sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment.”
Strives with sinners: Strives means He calls and works at calling them. He tries to get them to live right.
Gen. 6:3 “And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man,….” God will not keeping calling to man forever. There will come a time when God will stop calling man to give up his sin.
Romans 1:24 “God gave them up to do unclean and sinful things from the lust (desires) of their own hearts……”
Proverbs 29:1 “He that being often reproved (spoken to) makes his neck hard, and shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.” KJV He who is called and convicted often but he makes his heart hard against the Spirit who calls him, he will be suddenly cut off (destroyed) and there will be no fixing it or changing it.
God loves us with an everlasting love. Jeremiah 31:3 Over and over the scriptures tell us that He is longsuffering. However, these verses tell us that for some—- after God has been patient for a long time—–He may decide to end calling to them—- and He can decide bring to punish their sin. He may decide to let that person go love his sin and let that sin rule over him.
He will love us always. He will be sorry if we will not come to Him. But He will not call and call and call forever. He may not always strive with us.
If the Holy Spirit stops calling us to God, we will be in a bad way.
He can be grieved: Grieve means to make very sorry.
Ephesians 4: 30 “And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” Next verses reprimands them of behaviors that do not please the Holy Spirit—especially since they say they are Christ’s followers.
Isaiah 63:10 In speaking of Israel, God’s own people,…“But they rebelled (would not listen) and vexed (made angry) his holy spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.”
We can resist him: Resist means to not yield. To not let happen.
“ Stiff- necked (hard, and will not listen) and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.”
“How oft did they provoke (anger) him in the wilderness, and grieve (make sorry) him in the desert (dry land)! Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.” Psa. 78: 40, 41
Story of Ananias and Sapphira—-Acts 5: 3, 9 they lied to the Holy Spirit and tempted the Spirit of the Lord
Reveals (Shows) the things of God:
I Corinthians 2:9,10,13 “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed (showed) them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.…..man knows the things of man….the things of God knows no man, but the Spirit of God……..we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teaches, but which the Holy Ghost teaches….”
I Cor. 2:16 “…..we have the mind of Christ.”
He glorifies the Father and Jesus (not himself):
We are never instructed to worship the Holy Spirit—-yet the Holy Spirit is God. The Holy Spirit always directs attention to the Father and Son.
John 16:14 “He shall glorify me;”
John 15: 26 “When the Comforter is come, …..Spirit of truth, which comes from the Father, he shall testify (tell) of me.”
I John 5:6 “And it is the Spirit that bears witness, because the Spirit is truth.
And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.”
The water could mean the cleansing that was part of the Old Testament worship, or it could mean water baptism, also could mean the water and blood that flowed from Jesus’ side. It could mean all of them. The blood refers to Jesus’ blood.
Holy Spirit reveals the future:
Luke 2:25- 26 Simeon “…the Holy Ghost was upon him, and it was revealed (showed) unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
Acts 21: 10 – 11 “Agabus took Paul’s belt (sash) and bound his own hands and feet, and said, The Holy Ghost says, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owns this sash, and shall deliver (give) him into the hands of the Gentiles.”
Acts 21:4 “And finding disciples, we waited there seven days: who said to Paul through the Spirit, that he should not go up to Jerusalem.”
Holy Spirit urges us into a certain action.:
“And he came by the Spirit into the temple. “ Luke 2: 27
Matt. 4:1 “Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness…”
Holy Spirit can carry us bodily to another place:
I Kings 18: 12 “…..as soon as I am gone from thee, that the spirit of the Lord shall carry thee where I know not….”
Acts 8:39 Philip “and when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more; ….but Philip was found at Azotus.” ( A eunuch is a special servant to the queen—-it is a man who has had his sexual organs cut —testicles removed)
Directs the decisions of the church:
Acts 15:28 “For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things;
Acts 13: 2 “….the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work where I have called them.”
Acts 16: 6 “…..they were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia…..they were thinking to go into Bithinia, but the Spirit made them know they should not go.”
Dwells in believers/followers of Christ:
John 14: 14-17 “I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide (live) with you for ever: even the Spirit of truth; …….for he dwells with you, and shall be in you.”
I John 2:27 “But the anointing which ye have received of him abides in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teaches you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it has taught you, ye shall abide (live) in him.”
John 14:26 “ But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatever I have said unto you.”
Generally only believers can have the Spirit leading them:
“Even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because people who are unbelievers do not see him, neither do they know him: but ye know him; for he dwell (lives) with you, and shall be in you.” John 14:17
This is not to say that God in his sovereignty (power to be king) can not or does not at times for a special reason lead people who are not believers. There are times in the OT that God spoke to kings and others who were not believers. We know from experience that God has “led” nonbelievers to do things.
In general, only those who are “in tune” with God’s spirit will know his leading.
I Corinthians 12:2 “….no man speaking by the Spirit of God curses Jesus:
And that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.” Matt. 16:17,
Holy Spirit leads us into all truth:
John 16:13 “When he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself: but whatever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come.
He will glorify me: for he shall receive of me, and shall show it unto you.”
Shows us what to say when persecuted: Persecuted means to have mean hurtful things said or done to you.
Luke 12:12 “For the Holy Ghost shall teach you in the same hour what ye should say.”
Matt. 10:19 “But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaks through you.” Mark 13:11
Gifts of the Spirit:
I Corinthians 12: 1-11 word of wisdom, word of knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, working of miracles, prophecy, discerning (knowing)of spirits (knowing if they are good, or evil) different kinds of tongues, interpretation of tongues vs.31 “But covet the best gifts: and yet show I unto you a better way.”——chp. 13 Love chapter
Fruit of the Spirit:
Eph. 5:22,23 love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance (self-control)
He comforts: Acts 9:31 “……walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost,…”
He is called the Comforter in many places.
He helps our infirmities: (Weaknesses) He helps us pray in a right way: He shows us the mind of God:
Rom. 8:26 “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities (weaknesses): for we know not what we should pray for as we should: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be said.” At times we have such a heavy burden for something that we do not know what words to say to pray, but just groan in our spirit.
The Holy Spirit comes and prays through us in a way that touches God and we know our prayer has been heard.
#1 Why is spiritual power so important?
John 15:3 -5 “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide (live) in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can you, except you abide in the me…….for without me you can do nothing.”
Going back to all the things said in the Introduction—-all those things are ours only as we stay connected to the source.
#2 Why was it important that Jesus send the Holy Spirit to help us do God’s purposes?
Jesus was with them after his resurrection and he said to them: “….that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, you have heard of me, for John truly baptized with water: but you shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days to wait.
…….ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and you willl be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the far away parts of the earth.
Jesus could only be in one place at a time—–but the Holy Spirit will be in them—-each one—-wherever they are.
#3 Do you think there is more feeling of hurry in today’s world to reach people with the message of salvation?
The time for the end is nearer than before. Prophecies about a one world government, about Israel and the nations that hate her—-are happening more and more.
We believe the rapture will happen before the antichrist comes.