The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.
—2 Corinthians 13:14
We see the three persons who are God in this verse: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. There are three aspects of relationships that are also referenced.
- Grace of the Lord Jesus
- Love of God
- Communion (fellowship) of the Holy Spirit
I spent some time discussing the need to understand that the Holy Spirit is a person previously. It is not possible to have fellowship with an inanimate object. There will be no response if you try and fellowship with a chair because it is an impersonal object.
I have heard many people refer to the Holy Spirit using “it” as if He is some impersonal entity. He is not an “it”! The Holy Spirit is a divine person who desires to develop a relationship with you.
We have already established that the Holy Spirit has a will and have looked at Jesus’ references to Him using masculine pronouns. Let’s take a few moments now to look at Scripture to determine whether He also has emotions.
First, do you think that the Holy Spirit will respond to you and how you approach Him? Fellowship requires a response from both parties, so He must respond to you to have a relationship with you. You will find Him to be a very knowable person if you just take time out of your busy day to spend with Him. We will see that it is possible to get to know Him just like we do our spouse, friends, or loved ones.
And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;
Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. (John 14:16 – 17)
Jesus was the disciples “Comforter.” He referred to the Holy Spirit as “another Comforter,” and we can learn a lot about our relationship with the Spirit by studying Jesus’ relationship with His disciples.
I want you to notice that Jesus told His disciples that the Holy Spirit would never leave them once He arrived. The same is true regarding your relationship with Him. He is a friend who will never desert you and who will always be in your corner!
Christians will often pray for God to send His Spirit. They do this due to not understanding that He is with them and will not leave them. He is with us in service, but His presence is often not discerned due to our lack of acknowledgment that He is with us.
Jesus told His disciples that the world does not recognize the Holy Spirit because they cannot recognize His presence or have a relationship with Him. Every Christian can get to know Him and always find Him waiting to spend time with them.
The world is not Spirit-led for two reasons. First, they are unaware of His presence, and second, they do not know Him. Christians struggle with understanding how He leads and guides for the same reasons.
Your relationship with the Holy Spirit will progress over time, just as any natural relationship does. He is with you in the morning when your eyes first open and when you close them at night.
One challenge to overcome is fleshly desires for spectacular. The Holy Spirit is not flesh. He is spirit, and many times the manifestation of His presence will be in a manner that is so ordinary you will miss it if you’re not looking.
Many people have a false impression of God that depicts Him as emotionless. Religious tradition presents Him as being stoical. Scripture paints a different picture of Him. Numerous passages depict Him as being angry, happy, or even grieved. Let’s look at a few examples.
- God has a soul.
Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul. (Jeremiah 32:41)
I have forsaken mine house, I have left mine heritage; I have given the dearly beloved of my soul into the hand of her enemies. (Jeremiah 12:7)
- God grieves.
And they put away the strange gods from among them, and served the Lord: and his soul was grieved for the misery of Israel. (Judges 10:16)
- Jesus is touched with the feelings of our infirmities.
For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:15)
Jesus is “touched with the feelings of infirmities.” He is not led by “feelings,” but they touch him. You can learn to follow His example and not be led by feelings even though you are not feelingless.
God desires for us to walk by faith. Doing so will require us to be led by His Spirit and not be our heads. The Spirit is dwelling in your spirit if you are a Christian. He is standing by to help you learn to look to Him instead of your feelings. You will never be Spirit-led, allowing yourself to be preoccupied with what your body is feeling.
We live in an unrestrained society surrounded by people who wear their feelings on their sleeves. It is easy to allow this to affect us. As a Christian, you are called to live at a much higher level of living!
You must never allow yourself to be easily offended and hurt by what people may or may not do to you. Many Christians will never develop spiritually. They focus too much on the people around them and what they think they should or should not be doing.
Christians move from church to church looking for the perfect one. If the Lord leads you to move, that is one thing, but if you move churches as a result of being upset about what people did or said, then you will miss the will of God.
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