“For a people shall dwell in Zion, in Jerusalem; you shall weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. As soon as he hears it, he answers you. And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself anymore, but your eyes shall see your Teacher. And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.
Isaiah 30:19-21
In John 14-17, as Jesus prepared his followers for his departure, he told them about the Helper, the Holy Spirit he would send. The doctrine of the Holy Spirit is taught throughout the Bible. We first meet the Spirit in Genesis 1.
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.”
Genesis 1:1-2
In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit came upon certain people for special tasks and roles, such as prophets, priests, judges and kings. But Jesus came to baptize his followers “with the Holy Spirit and with fire” (Matt. 3:11). To baptize is to immerse, to totally change his people from the inside out. This inner transformation was foretold in two key passages in the Old Testament.
“For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
Jeremiah 31:33-34
“I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.”
Ezekiel 36:24-27
Jeremiah prophesied of the new covenant by which God’s people would be forgiven and changed so they would know God personally and have internal awareness of His law. Ezekiel added the important detail that this would be accomplished by the person of the Holy Spirit.
In the New Testament, this transformation from a heart of stone to a heart of flesh, from disobedience to internally motivated obedience, is called regeneration.
“But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior.”
Titus 3:4-6
The baptism of the Holy Spirit, “the washing of regeneration,” takes place at the moment you put your faith in Jesus. Not only are your sins all forgiven as soon as you call on Jesus to save you, he also gives you his Holy Spirit to change you, lead you and empower you for the rest of your life.
For the Christian, the Spirit of God convicts us of sin, illumines God’s Word for us, reminds us of the teachings of Jesus, guides us into the good works He has prepared in advance for us to do, gives us boldness to share the good news with others and strengthens us to endure opposition and persecution to the end.
Five times in Ephesians Paul calls believers to “walk” in a new way that fits our new life in Christ. The fifth goes like this:
“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit.”
Ephesians 5:15-18
And how are we to seek this daily, continual filling of the Spirit? Paul shows us in his prayer in chapter three.
“So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
Ephesians 3:17-19
To be filled with the Spirit of God is to be filled “with all the fullness of God.” And this leads Paul to one of the great benedictions in the New Testament.
“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”
Ephesians 3:20-21
So let’s listen to the Holy Spirit. Let’s walk with the Spirit. Let’s pray in the Spirit and follow His leading!