The guiding, indwelling and comforting of the Holy Spirit is thought to be strange and mysterious by many people. It is not the fact that the Spirit does these things which are disputed, but the way He does them. The unscriptural view has the Holy Spirit guiding men to speak gibberish and trying to perform real miracles. Christians do not seek signs but obey by faith the Holy word.
The Holy Spirit does not personally inhabit the body of a Christian, but dwells in us the same way as the Father and the Son — by faith; that is, by the influence of the revealed word. Now, the Spirit is not the word, and the word is not the Holy Spirit. The Spirit wrote the word as a means of accomplishing the work in the conviction of sin, and for the searching heart, conversion and sanctification in Jesus (Romans 1:16).
To believe that God takes over the human body, and directs him separately from the influence of the word of God goes back to the pagan view of the mystery of deity. The Holy Spirit guided certain men into all truth, and our faith in this Bible truth is the source to:
- Convert the sinner (Psalm 19:7).
- Save from sin (Acts 11:4).
- Purify the heart (Acts 15:9).
- Purify the soul (1 Peter 1:22).
- Sanctify in Christ (John 17:17).
- Develop faith (Romans 10:17).
To be convicted of our sins and converted to Christ comes by the word because the Holy Spirit gave the word to be exclusive in saving and leading a Christian to walk in newness of life. The Spirit of Christ lives in Christians because they submit to His word, and it dwells in us to transform us into a spiritual regeneration (Ephesians 3:17; Colossians 3:16; Hebrews 5:9).
Jerral Kay
