Title: The wonderful Holy Spirit
Scripture Reading: John 7:33-39
Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while am I with you, and then I go unto him that sent me.
34 Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come.
35 Then said the Jews among themselves, Whither will he go, that we shall not find him? will he go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles?
36 What manner of saying is this that he said, Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come?
37 In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.
38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)
What do we need to know about this wonderful Holy Spirit?
- He is the Christian’s Unknown God
Acts 17:22-23
Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars’ hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.
23 For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, To The Unknown God. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.
The Greek were afraid that they may have forgotten or left out of their worship an important deity who might cause trouble if neglected, so they regularly had monuments of this type. It showed their fear of the spiritual realm and their polytheism.
John 4:22, ‘You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know.’ So, it is possible to know God.
But sad to say, for many of us, we are no different from the Grecian people. The Holy Spirit has become our unknown God.
How could God take a life like you and I, that is so conscious of failure, emptiness, dissatisfaction, sin and renovate it to make it strong, vital, victorious and have a definite and permanent transformation, obvious to all. The answer lies in the Christian’s unknown God.
The Holy Spirit is not an instrument of the Father, nor a tool of God, by whom God’s purposes are carried out.
This first point is to help God’s people, especially the new ones to know, love, trust and believe this ‘unknown God’ who has come to save our lives, as the Lord Jesus came to save our souls.
John 7:33, ‘Yet a little while am I with you, and then I go unto him that sent me.’
The Father is on His Throne in heaven. Jesus is with him in sitting on the right hand of the throne. The Holy Spirit is in the world today.
- He is the God of the Last Day
John 7:37
In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.
The phrase, ‘last day’ is prophetically pointing to our day. We are living in the last day.
‘The great day of the feast’ was the feast of Tabernacles which lasted 8 days. This was the last day of the last feast.
The celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles emphasized how God provided water to Israel in the wilderness on their way to Canaan.
Water has always been a symbol of the Holy Spirit.
Note this invitation:
Firstly the invitation was broad
Second the invitation was narrow, because it said, ‘if anyone thirsts.’ One condition is we must see our need. Thirst is not anything in itself; it is a lack of something. It is an emptiness, a crying need.
Thirdly water was poured out when there was no water. It is very interesting when you study the Feast of Tabernacles. It was actually a 7-day celebration. But then according to Maccabees 10:60 and the historian, Josephus it was an eight day feast. Apparently in Jesus’ day it was an eight-day feast. However, on the last day (the eighth day) water was not taken from the pool of Siloam and poured at the base of the altar as it was on the other seven days. So there was no water on the eight day to be poured on the base of the altar.
- The Holy Spirit is Fruitfulness
Proverbs 11:30 says, ‘The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life.’
Proverbs 12:28 says, ‘In the way of righteousness is life; and in the pathway thereof there is no death.’
Do you want your life to make a difference. I will go on to state that your life can never make a difference without the Holy Spirit. Do you realize that your life can be a source of blessing to other people every day? When the Holy Spirit is given His place of Lordship, He guides the life into usefulness and profitable fields of service.
- The Holy Spirit is Fullness
John 3:39
39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)
In the golden passage of John 7:33-39, Jesus describes how your spiritual thirst can be quench (the hole in your soul filled) and the effect that this can have on your life. Jesus anticipates what will happen on the day of Pentecost. He speaks about the transformation by the streams of living water that the Holy Spirit brings to your life.
The bible said ‘Jesus stood.’
- The Holy Spirit dwells with you and shall be in you
John 7:38
He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
The meaning is that the Holy Spirit takes up permanent residence in the body of the believer.
He brings about some life changing results.
A. He comes to a soul dead in sin and creates new life
B. The Holy Spirit confirms to the believer that he belongs to the Lord and is an heir of God.
C. The Holy Spirt gives spiritual gifts to edify the church and serve the Lord effectively
D. The Holy Spirit helps the believer to understand and apply the scripture to his daily living.
E. The Holy Spirit enriches the believer’s spiritual life.
- The Holy Spirit is A Promise
A. Who makes this promise?
We see these three options demonstrated in today’s reading:
Some thought him ‘the Devil of Hell’.
Some thought him insane.
But others recognized, ‘He is the Christ.’
B. To whom is the promise made?
Jesus said, ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink’ (v.37). It is made to every person.
C. What is the Promise?
Jesus says, ‘Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, will have streams of living water flowing from within’ (v.38).
This river does not flow once in a while. It flows continuously.
D. How to you receive the promise?
Jesus says let them ‘come to me and drink’ (v.37). It is a promise for ‘whoever believes in me’ (vv.38–39).
