"How Would You Know if You Were Without the Spirit?" By Pastor Keith Sherlin (www.essentialchristianity.com)
How Would You Know if You Were Without the Spirit?
Doctrinal Thoughts
Doctrinal Thoughts
I have a dear friend of mine that I am fearful may insult the Holy Spirit. If this person does have the Spirit then I am afraid of the disaster that looms ahead if repentance does not take place. My friend you see has professed faith in Christ, been baptized, and initially has shown signs of spiritual life and growth in grace. However, at this moment of writing my friend is drifting, sliding, and growing cold to any accountability, any call to repentance, and any challenge to the faith. The professed love for the local church is no longer visible, the dedication to the saints is no longer manifested, and the submission to spiritual authority lacks. In essence signs of holiness seem to be dwindling, dissipating as dew at dawn.
What truly marks the life of a believer? It is the life of the Holy Spirit. Have you ever asked why the Spirit is named the “holy” Spirit? You hardly ever, if ever, hear someone say “Holy Christ.” Why do we call the Spirit the holy Spirit? We do so because he is defined by his primary work. His primary task in life is to conform believers, those whom have the Spirit, towards Christ likeness. Dr. R.C. Sproul says, “That the Spirit of God is called the Holy Spirit is not so much because of His person (which is indeed holy) but because of His work, to make us holy. It is the special work of the Holy Spirit to make us saints. He consecrates us. The Holy Spirit fulfills the role of the sanctifier. To be sanctified is to be made holy, or righteous. Sanctification is a process that begins the moment we become Christians. The process continues until death when the believer is made finally, fully, and forevermore righteous” (Essential Truths of the Christian Faith, 123). So then, if it is the role of the Spirit to make us holy, something he certainly accomplishes, then what should we think if people fail to be holy? Failure to either stay in step with the Spirit, or a failure to progress towards a holy life is more dangerous than walking on a thinly iced over lake. Two scenarios play out in such a case. First, if a wayward person truly does have the Spirit then discipline will occur. This discipline may even lead to God sovereignly taking the physical life of one living in sin. Recall, the role of the Spirit is to make you holy. He will make you holy even if it means killing you so as to get you into heaven where you will be holy! The Bible says: “Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received a full knowledge of the truth, there is no other sacrifice that will cover these sins. There will be nothing to look forward to but the terrible expectation of God’s judgment and the raging fire that will consume his enemies. Anyone who refused to obey the law of Moses was put to death without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Think how much more terrible the punishment will be for those who have trampled on the Son of God and have treated the blood of the covenant as if it were common and unholy. Such people have insulted and enraged the Holy Spirit who brings God’s mercy to his people. For we know the one who said, ‘I will take vengeance. I will repay those who deserve it.’ He also said, ‘The Lord will judge his own people.’ It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of a living God” (Hebrews 10:26-31). John said it this way: “there is sin that leads to death” (1 John 5:16b). Rev. J. Harold Smith noted that when you drift from the Lord “and after God has made many efforts to get you” to “come back to him and you refuse, then He signs your death warrant” (God’s Three Deadlines, 26). Do you laugh at such a thought? Careful my dear reader! The second reality is this. If discipline does not happen then it means you are not God’s child. If you can live a life of sin with no consequences then it is because you do not have the Holy Spirit. As Rev. Smith noted: “Many will say I know it is not true, for I have been a backslider for years and have never suffered; I have gotten by with my sin. Perhaps you have never been born again” (p.26). Dear reader either discipline comes or it is life without the Spirit of Christ. No discipline means no Spirit!
Life Application
What truly marks the life of a believer? It is the life of the Holy Spirit. Have you ever asked why the Spirit is named the “holy” Spirit? You hardly ever, if ever, hear someone say “Holy Christ.” Why do we call the Spirit the holy Spirit? We do so because he is defined by his primary work. His primary task in life is to conform believers, those whom have the Spirit, towards Christ likeness. Dr. R.C. Sproul says, “That the Spirit of God is called the Holy Spirit is not so much because of His person (which is indeed holy) but because of His work, to make us holy. It is the special work of the Holy Spirit to make us saints. He consecrates us. The Holy Spirit fulfills the role of the sanctifier. To be sanctified is to be made holy, or righteous. Sanctification is a process that begins the moment we become Christians. The process continues until death when the believer is made finally, fully, and forevermore righteous” (Essential Truths of the Christian Faith, 123). So then, if it is the role of the Spirit to make us holy, something he certainly accomplishes, then what should we think if people fail to be holy? Failure to either stay in step with the Spirit, or a failure to progress towards a holy life is more dangerous than walking on a thinly iced over lake. Two scenarios play out in such a case. First, if a wayward person truly does have the Spirit then discipline will occur. This discipline may even lead to God sovereignly taking the physical life of one living in sin. Recall, the role of the Spirit is to make you holy. He will make you holy even if it means killing you so as to get you into heaven where you will be holy! The Bible says: “Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received a full knowledge of the truth, there is no other sacrifice that will cover these sins. There will be nothing to look forward to but the terrible expectation of God’s judgment and the raging fire that will consume his enemies. Anyone who refused to obey the law of Moses was put to death without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Think how much more terrible the punishment will be for those who have trampled on the Son of God and have treated the blood of the covenant as if it were common and unholy. Such people have insulted and enraged the Holy Spirit who brings God’s mercy to his people. For we know the one who said, ‘I will take vengeance. I will repay those who deserve it.’ He also said, ‘The Lord will judge his own people.’ It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of a living God” (Hebrews 10:26-31). John said it this way: “there is sin that leads to death” (1 John 5:16b). Rev. J. Harold Smith noted that when you drift from the Lord “and after God has made many efforts to get you” to “come back to him and you refuse, then He signs your death warrant” (God’s Three Deadlines, 26). Do you laugh at such a thought? Careful my dear reader! The second reality is this. If discipline does not happen then it means you are not God’s child. If you can live a life of sin with no consequences then it is because you do not have the Holy Spirit. As Rev. Smith noted: “Many will say I know it is not true, for I have been a backslider for years and have never suffered; I have gotten by with my sin. Perhaps you have never been born again” (p.26). Dear reader either discipline comes or it is life without the Spirit of Christ. No discipline means no Spirit!
Life Application
“Examine yourselves to see if your faith is really genuine. Test yourselves” (2 Cor. 13:5) because if you do not you may suffer divine justice! As Rev. Smith says: “if you truly have been saved and you are now living in sin, who knows but what God is using this written message to give you your last warning before he takes your life. Don’t let it happen to you. Repent now! Cry for mercy and God will hear your cry and will forgive” (p.26,29).
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