Teen
the
Holy Spirit
Our Daily Bread
BIG QUESTIONS ABOUT . . .
the
Holy Spirit
S
o God is God . . . And Jesus . . . and some kind of floatyspirit-thing? Church people talk about the “Spirit” and being “in the Spirit” or “moved by the Spirit”. But it probably all sounds a bit mumbo-jumbo. Who is the Holy Spirit,
what does he do and what’s he got to do with us?
Here are a few of the big questions about the Holy Spirit, answered for you by readers in the Our Daily Bread Ministries family. So get stuck in! And if you want more, check out What is the role of the Holy Spirit? at ourdailybread.org/lookingdeeper
Who is the
Holy Spirit?
T
he Holy Spirit is one of the three persons of God. If that sounds confusing, don’t worry. It’s mind-blowing for everyone! But, after all, if God was easy to figure out, he wouldn’t be much of a God, would he?! God is three persons: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Together, they are our one God. Because the Holy Spirit is described as the “Spirit” who will “be with you forever” (JOHN 14:16), many people think he might be a force, a bit like electricity. But the Bible is clear he is a person: he talks, he teaches, he guides, he leads (JOHN 16:13-15). And, as God, he doesn’t just want to ‘power us up’; he wants to have a relationship with us. The Bible also says we are to listen to him and obey him; and also warns that, just like with any other person, we can deeply upset him when we push him away (EPHESIANS 4:30). We also know the Holy Spirit is a person because of the way Jesus talked about him. When Jesus knew he was going to leave his friends and go back to heaven, he said: “It is for your good that I am going
away. Unless I go away, the [Holy Spirit] will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you” (JOHN 16:7). Jesus gives
us the Holy Spirit, who is just like him, to be with each one of us. It means we can walk closely with God through everything. When he was on earth, Jesus could only be in one place at one time. Now, through the Holy Spirit, God lives in and with all of us to keep us going, help us know what to do and remind us of who he is when things get rough.
What does
the Holy Spirit do?
S
ometimes the Bible calls the Holy Spirit a “helper” and “comforter”. This makes it sounds like he’s a warm, fuzzy feeling we might get sometimes. Or that we’re in charge and he’s just helping us, a bit like a genie. But neither of these ideas are right. The Holy Spirit, being God, is the one in charge in our lives. And even though he is called the “comforter”, he isn’t here to make us feel comfy. He is here to lead us and “help” us become more like Jesus. The word “comfort”, when it comes to the Holy Spirit, is all about protection. It’s more literally comfort. The Holy Spirit is like a fortress who locks us into God’s family so we can’t ever lose our place with him (EPHESIANS 1:13). He also makes us brave enough to stand out for God at home and at school (2 TIMOTHY 1:7), and ready to fight against our selfishness (GALATIANS 5:16). The Holy Spirit uses the Bible, our prayers, church, other Christians and the time we spend with God to correct us when we go wrong, and make us more like he is: full of “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (GALATIANS 5:22-23). In his fortress, he
will protect us, change us and help us to grow into the kind of people we’ve always wanted to be!
What is
the fruit of the Spirit? T
he Holy Spirit wants to keep us focused and centred on Jesus. Partly so we stay confident in him and all he has done for us. But also to make us more like him. This is what the Bible means when it uses the word “fruit”. It's about what we ‘produce’ in our lives; so it's how we live. The fruit of the Spirit is “love, joy, peace, [patience], kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (GALATIANS 5:22-23).
They are not a result of hard work; neither are they a tick-list to achieve. They are a way of life. It’s also important to remember that they are the fruit of the Spirit, meaning He produces them and they come from him, not us.
Much of this fruit has to do with how we treat and think about others. The Holy Spirit wants to make us people of love, forgiveness and grace who show Jesus to those around us. Churches and youth groups should be learning to be full of the fruit of the Spirit. Some Christians may be more patient, others will have better self-control or lots of joy. The point is we’ll always be learning to live out these things better—and we’ll all benefit from how everyone else shows them too. And this fruit should really make us stand out from our friends and family who aren’t Christians, maybe even making them wonder what makes us so different. This isn’t about being perfect and living lives without any mess. This is about being people of love even though we get things wrong. Jesus didn’t promise the Holy Spirit would ‘zap’ away our problems, but he did promise the Spirit would keep pointing us to the certainty of the rescue Jesus won for us on the cross. With that as our focus, and knowing too our own struggles, we can be kind and generous to those we meet, showing them the love and forgiveness that God has shown us. This kind of transformation is the really amazing work of the Spirit within us.
What does it mean to be
filled with the Holy Spirit ?
W
e’re told in the Bible to be “filled with the Spirit” (EPHESIANS 5:18). This is not about ‘running out’ of God and needing to top up, like a phone needing battery. Neither is it to do with having super-spiritual highs, seeing visions or getting rid of all our problems. It’s about always allowing the Holy Spirit to lead and change us. It is about deciding to choose to
spend time with God, allowing him to strengthen us for his good purposes. It is daily life for Christians.
As we come closer to God through reading the Bible and praying, he will fill us with his ways, love and purposes. We will want to live for him more and more. Being filled with the Spirit is also about having confidence in God: There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. —ROMANS 8:1 As we spend time with God, He will remind us of the rescue Jesus has won for us over sin and death! It is not a victory we earn by working hard; it is one we are given by trusting him and giving our lives to him. Even when we mess up, we have real hope in Jesus and can admit our mistakes to him, knowing he forgives us and will help us change. This confidence and total reliance on God is something of what it means to be filled with his Spirit.
What does it mean to be
filled with the Holy Spirit ?
Being filled with the Spirit also means wanting to look out for other Christians, enjoying our relationship with God and being thankful:
Be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God. —EPHESIANS 5:18-21 So, what does our relationship with God look like? Is it a joyful experience? If we feel distant from God, or that Jesus stuff is all a bit boring, we need to be filled with his Spirit again. This doesn’t mean we’ve lost him—it means that we need to spend time with our God, enjoying who he is and being refreshed by the Bible’s life-changing story. Being filled with the Spirit is an active thing on our part, not that we can ‘fill ourselves’, but that we can choose to come to God, making him the centre of all we are and do.
A constant helper John 14:15-26
[The Holy Spirit] will remind you of everything I have said to you (V.26).
A
fter a spinal injury left Marty paralysed, he decided to go back to university to earn his degree. Marty’s mum, Judy, helped him along the way. She sat with him through every lecture and study group, making notes and keeping him going. She even helped him onto the platform when he was handed his degree certificate. What might have been impossible became a reality with the constant help of his mum.
Jesus knew his friends would need a similar kind of support after he left the earth. When he told them he was about to leave, he said they would get a new kind of connection with God through the Holy Spirit. This Spirit would be a helper for every second of every day—a teacher and guide who would not only live with them but also be in them (JOHN 14:17,26). The Spirit would give Jesus’ friends help from God, keep them going through everything and give them the confidence to talk about Jesus to everyone. In difficult moments the Spirit would remind them of everything Jesus said to them (V.26): do not let your hearts be troubled; love one another; I am the resurrection and the life. Are you facing something that’s too hard to deal with on your own? You can rely on the Spirit’s constant help. God’s Spirit working in you will keep you going and bring him the glory he deserves. JBS Dear God, thank you for the Holy Spirit living in me. Help me to rely on your Spirit each day.
WITH GOD’S ALMIGHTY SPIRIT IN US, WE NEVER NEED TO SAY, “I CAN’T.” This article is from the Our Daily Bread Teen Edition annuals. Fancy getting hold of them? You can ask for your copies and see all our other resources at ourdailybread.org/teen
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. ROMANS 8:1 Scripture taken from Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 2019 by Our Daily Bread Ministries. All rights reserved.
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