The Spirit Who Surprises, Part 1

Have you ever sat down to read a passage of Scripture and felt used. Maybe the sentences sounded like a riddle. Well, as humans with finite minds are we supposed to unravel the mysteries of the Bible today on Insight for living. Chuck Swindoll continues his teaching series on the Holy Spirit. It's called flying closer to the flame this next portion of our study will be looking at what it means to have the spirit, helper, come alongside us to reveal the meaning of Scripture. Chuck titled today's message the spirit who surprises drilling beyond words. I mean have you ever put yourself in the place of the disciples who had never really put together the story of the resurrection, even though they had been told of it on more than one or even a few occasions and then finally after the empty tomb experience. Finally, after it all began to fall in place, they realized they personally realized firsthand that Jesus had indeed miraculously in bodily raised from the been raised from the dead and they lived to witness the fulfillment of what you predicted. They literally lived in a time when biblical prophecy was fulfilled. You know that you experience fulfillment the fulfillment of biblical prophecy on a regular occasion as a Christian. If you are student or a teacher of the Bible. Let me show you that prophecy in John chapter 14 verses 25 and 26. You will observe that the prediction that Jesus made had to do with the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

John 14 verse 25. The prediction is made and we are still living out the fulfillment of this prophecy, Jesus says 1425 of John these things I've spoken to you while abiding with you but the helper, the Holy Spirit whom the father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you before I address the. The prediction itself. Please observe the name that is given the Holy Spirit. This intimate spirit of who we are studying these days. He is called here the helper, the helper, the Greek word par Rockley toss is from par which means alongside something as you would play something alongside a desk or beside a pool. Alongside the other word is from the verb, all which means to call out cold. Alongside is the idea. In fact, if you were to amplify it. It would mean one called alongside to help to be of assistance if you were in severe physical need around-the-clock.

You would hire a nurse to serve alongside you to be of assistance to you in your physical ailment and in your hurt in your pain she or he would work alongside you to be of help. That's the word that is used here by John in describing the terms of Jesus, the helper one who has been called alongside to help them observe the prophecy.

Two things are stated.

Verse 26.

First, he will teach you all things and implied he will bring to your remembrance all that I said to you the spirit of God is in the continual process of teaching us the truth of the Scriptures, and he is continually bringing to our remembrance. The things that Jesus said that this had an immediate fulfillment in the lives of the disciples. Once they were involved in the very dynamic years of the early church, the spirit of God came alongside to help them and to bring to their attention the truths of what Jesus had taught and to bring to their remembrance. The things that he had told him when he was on earth with them, and yet today, 20 centuries later we are still experiencing the fulfillment of that prophecy, the one who has been called alongside to help continues to teach us all things and continues to bring things of the truth to our remembrance.

Jesus later uses the same title to chapters later, John chapter 16 verses seven through 15 when he explains further.

Some of the special help of the spirit.

16 verse seven. Jesus still talking to the same group of frightened disciples only hours before the arrest, trials and death of our Lord says to them. I tell you the truth it is to your advantage that I go away, or if I do not go away is the word again, the helper, the one called alongside to help shall not come to you, but if I go, I will send them to you notice the future. He is not yet with you, he is not yet in you.

I will send him however I will send him to you and then he goes on to describe the work of the helper. He when he comes, will convict the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment. He amplifies those three statements concerning sin, because they do not believe in me, so let me break in here and say it is the work of the Holy Spirit to convict individuals of sin. You cannot do it. I cannot do it.

It is the work of the Spirit of God, you have a lost friend who seems to be merrily moving along his way without Christ seems to have an nonchalant attitude to spiritual things living wrong and you know it's wrong, he doesn't care that it's wrong. He has no standard. He doesn't live according to biblical standard. He has not yet been convicted of his sin. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to bring conviction of sin into the life of the lost, he will continue to do that on behalf of those who do not believe in in our Lord Jesus, and then he continues verse 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the father and you no longer beholden me as long as Jesus was on the earth. They had an example of righteousness. They had a model a standard, they could look to him they could talk to him I could listen to him and in the process of relationship with Christ.

They literally saw righteousness now when he left the earth no longer seen on the earth.

It was the Holy Spirit's responsibility to reveal righteousness to convict people of the lack of righteousness, and he continues to do that and also his work. Verse 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. He says I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. Now the verse that's of critical importance. 13 and when he the spirit of truth comes notice again in the future he will guide you into all the truth.

For he will not speak on his own initiative, but whatever he hears he will speak and he will disclose to you what is to come. Once again I see two particular ministries of the Spirit in verse 13 first, he will guide you into all the truth, who hasn't sat down at a desk at a table opened up a Bible and begun to work their way through began to work their way through the passage of Scripture and with a prayer on the lips saying I want to know what this means. Lord, I want to know what this means to be in the passing of up of the period of time, maybe 10 minutes maybe 20, 30 minutes perhaps an hour when you have finished with your study.

The truth has begun to dawn on you as to what God has written in his word that is the fulfillment of biblical prophecy. Christ said when the spirit comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will speak on his own initiative. In other words, it will be coming from the father. He will be the go-between in the revelation of truth in the illumination of truth and once you begin to pour over the Scriptures and the truth begins to dawn the fulfillment of this prophecy would've taken place. It happens on a regular basis. Furthermore, he says he will disclose to you what is to come. There is something fascinating about the subject of prophecy. We are all sitting on the edge of our seat in every era of time wondering what this means in light of the prophetic Scripture were all concerned about the fall of the are the the renewal of or the beginning of nations around us were all concerned horses Americans about the role our country will play in the picture of biblical prophecy and in all the way through their all kinds of fascinating subject. It is the responsibility of the spirit of God to disclose to us, those things that are yet to come.

And he continues to do that.

Not just a little further on Jesus words about the spirit. Verse 14 he shall glorify me for he shall take of mine, and shall disclose it to you once again a prophecy and he continues to do that.

He takes the things of God the things of our Lord Jesus, and he discloses them to us all things.

The father has are mine.

Therefore I said, he takes of mine and will disclose it to you.

He has said that three times he will disclose to you what is yet to come. Verse 14 he will disclose to you the things that are mine says Jesus in verse 15 he will disclose to you those things that the father has revealed to me the spirit of God is this reservoir. This this member of the Godhead who was a reservoir of knowledge of information of trues along with comfort and compassion and he is able to take the things of God and revealed them to us.

And when he does you what I experience the fulfillment of biblical prophecy it's happening right now you have learned more things regarding the spirit of God, perhaps, than you knew before in these last 10 minutes you have added to your reservoir of information and if you have learned it if it has become a reality to your mind you can think the spirit of God for taking the truth and revealing it making it clear to you the insights that you have gotten on occasion in your study of the Bible you have the helper to thank the occasions when you have discovered is will and you saw it in the principle of Scripture or perhaps in a sense of peace that the spirit of God gave you have the helper to thank for leading you into the Lord's will. You have had flashes of truth that you received just in the nick of time so that you made a tough decision you said no when you should have for you said yes you should have. You have the you have the helper to thank for an understanding of that moment in the importance of that decision. He reveal that to you now from this set of 16 chapter Jon, I want us to turn our attention to the first letter Paul wrote to the Corinthians.

The second chapter because I interestingly these two chapters tying them together rather well what Jesus taught before he went to the cross and then left the earth. The apostle Paul addresses a little more in detail in his letter to the Corinthians. So we have some examples in first Corinthians. Two of the spirits inner workings. I'm I'm fascinating, but this fascinated by the subject, the more I dig into it the more I'm beginning to see about the. The intimate spirit of God because we cannot see the spirit of God. We tend to ignore or we tend to overlook is a better kinder word. We tend to overlook the power of his presence in our lives and in our midst. Apostle Paul looks back on his early days in the Corinthian church when he was just founding the church and he calls to mind his ministry when he was among them and the very first thing he puts his finger on is the demonstration of God's unique power as he recalled his early months and even early year year and 1/2. He was with the Corinthians he remembers the demonstration of the of the spirits power listen to Paul's own testimony about his ministry.

He's talking to the curries writing to the Corinthians. When I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God.

That is what he did not do. He didn't come displaying his his superiority of speech or of wisdom. Was he a brilliant man just read the record, he was brilliant Saul of Tarsus was a household name among the Jews. He was the up and coming San Pedro next he was the Pharisee of the Pharisee. He was the persecutor of the church and then the spirit of God poured into his life at his conversion, and the apostle Paul went through a transformation.

So much so that in the letter to the Philippians he looks back and he says I consider all of those things, but refuse that I might gain Christ I don't walk in my own righteousness, but now in a righteousness that is of God, so that when he came to this entertainment center of Greece Corinth of Greece among people who look for great eloquence and entertainment and all of the things of the flesh pulses I deliberately did not come to display that I didn't come with superiority of speech and of wisdom will what did he do versus two and three, I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I had a single purpose, a single-minded focus, and that was Jesus Christ the cross and the message of the Savior. I was with you. You're not gonna believe this, that is if you if you read the popular idea Paul.

I was with you in weakness. I was with you in fear. I was with you in much trembling that you might wonder why will do a little study in the book of acts just before chapter 18 of acts where the Corinthian church is founded he is in Athens where no church was founded and he and he meets with the assembled brain trust of Athens, the political center of the Grecian world and meeting with them proved to be virtually void of significance.

They laughed him off the stage as it were. As he got to the subject of the resurrection they turned him all and Paul left Athens with his tail between his legs as it were broken disappointed, discouraged, lonely, broke, perhaps even depressed defeated and he stumbled into Corinth and went back to the tip making trade where he lived with the Kula and Priscilla according to the early part of acts chapter 18 that's another story, but together they founded the church a car when he began, there was a broken man. He came to them in weakness, in fear, and in trembling by the way, that's a good word for all of us. You will find yourself in places where you will be intimidated where you will be in fear and weakness. And believe me, that is when the spirit of God does his best work for when I am weak, but then God is strong. He learned that he tells us of it.

In second Corinthians chapter 12 the Lord has shown me in his grace that when I am weak and unable and incapable and inadequate. That's the work of the new covenant, the ministry of the Spirit of God comes in like a flood, and he makes those occasions the most powerful and profound of all that you can remember because it doesn't come from the flesh. How could he have been strong in his weakness powerful in his fears and effective in trembling will look at verses four and five my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of do not miss, there's that word again. We saw it first in acts 18.

In our study and be seen again and again. It's the dynamic of the spirit of God. My preaching not being words of persuasive wisdom, but really they were inflamed by the spirit of God who empowered my tongue and gave significance to my words verse five that you Corinthian believers you young converts, that your faith should not rest on the wisdom of men but on the power of God. When the Corinthian believers left those meetings where they had come to listen to and be ministered to by this man who founded their church.

They left talking about the Lord, not the person, and that pleased Paul immensely. The helper were back to the subject. The helper empowered the man's message is leadership. His style of ministry and as a result, the awesome presence of God was felt. Don't be afraid of that.

Don't resist that there are occasions where the presence of God.

It is so obviously this is like like electricity upon the gathering you have been in such occasions, and I have as well. Certain gatherings where you you since the the power of the correctly toss the spirit of God, who has come alongside to help and he has. He has moved through the presentation of music and he has moved through the ministry of the word and your soulless head your heart is lifted up, and interestingly you're not that impressed with the person what you are and what you leave with is the is the reason the revealed word of God is the spirit of God is taken it and I am so convinced that it is of the spirit that I would say it cannot be defined. It cannot be denied, and it cannot be duplicated. You walk away trying to describe someone else. The significance of that time you can't do it can't describe. You can't deny it can't duplicate. It isn't something that is like a performance that could be done over and over again, Paul's experience among the Corinthians, by his own testimony was that it was the work of the spirit and God was doing now he doesn't stop here. He digs even deeper. He talks about the searching work of the spirit put your thinking cap on verses six through 10 address the searching of God's hidden wisdom. I think with me. Paul continues to write to these friends of his and Carmen, yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature, he is speaking of a wisdom. It is not a worldly wisdom. It is a godlike wisdom among those who are mature and he described wisdom, however, not of this age, nor of the owners of this age who were passing away. But in contrast to wisdom learned in this world. Wisdom learned from the books wisdom learned from the nobles and the scholars of any era, but we on the other hand speak God's wisdom in them in a moose. They read on in a mystery mystery is really a transliterated Greek word we speak wisdom that is from the secret places of God made clear to us, but the spirit, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory. Don't let that slip by in the in the eternity past before there ever was a world before there ever was matter before there ever was, time, and of course, before there were ever people on this earth in the in the in the eternity past, when the Godhead existed and existed alone in the divine decrees of the father and the son and the Spirit in the working out of the plan that God would have run its course on this earth. When earth began for that. Called time it was the father's plan to work out and to reveal within the Godhead. All of these things that would transpire and would be sovereignly superintended by the Godhead through the passing of time. He is looking back to that era in the hidden wisdom in the mystery of God's wisdom, which was all predestined before the ages for our glory. The wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood for if they had understood they would not of crucified the Lord of glory. You see when you operate in this pinpoint call time when your perspective is riveted to today. You do not enter into the realm of God's wisdom is.

Wisdom is pervasive. It goes beyond eternity goes beyond our past, even though the beginning of this world. It goes back into eternity past and it was far beyond our future beyond time's wisdom covers all of the existence through all of the eras was all arranged ahead of time and it is running its course exactly as God predicted in his God predestined none of the rulers of this age riveted to today understood that or will ever understand. They had understood they would never crucified the Lord of the would've understood that it was a part of the point you're listening to a message presented by Pastor author and Bible teacher Chuck Swindoll.

He's talking about the spirit who surprises this is inside for living. To learn more about this ministry, we invite you to visit us online@insideworld.org. We'll be glad to learn that Chuck wrote a book that parallels today's topic. It's called embraced by the spirit. The untold blessings of intimacy with God to purchase a copy right now. Go to inside.org/store. Bear in mind that while your listing to Chuck's teaching today are joined with fellow listeners around the world.

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I was having a really bad time in my marriage. I was staring down the barrel of divorce your broadcast every morning. Help me to weather the storm. Be patient and wait on the Lord, Chuck.

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