Ministering: Oluwatobiloba Thompson

Date: 15th May 2023

Topic: The Ministry of the Holy Spirit II

Tonight, we continue in the same light of the Holy Spirit’s ministry. Jesus told His disciples very clearly, that it was to their advantage and also ours, that He be taken away. If He wasn’t taken away, the Holy Spirit would not have been able to dwell in man and ultimately, man wouldn’t even be saved at all, but thanks be to God, for His wisdom and counsel… Catch up on the first part of this teaching series here.

This evening, we shall be looking into who the Holy Spirit is before we can begin to understand and receive His ministry. Ministry here implies service, responsibility, and accountability.

Knowing the identity/person of the Holy Spirit will enable us to discern and accept His ministry because when you don’t know someone’s identity/personality you can accept anything said about them.

For example, before we knew God we must have heard persons give “testimonies” of how God killed so and so person…right?

But now that we’ve come into the light and knowledge of the truth, we now know that God is a Life-giver and Life-Saver.

He gives life and He saves lives.

So that being said, Who is the Holy Spirit?  What is His identity? His personality? By the grace of God, we shall know and understand this evening.

Let’s delve right into it.

1. The Holy Spirit is not lesser than God, no!

Neither is He God’s servant. The Holy Spirit is co-equal with God and that means,  He is God. This, then means that if the Holy Spirit is in it, then God is in it.

[II Corinthians 3:17 NKJV]

Now THE LORD IS THE SPIRIT; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

I was once in a meeting, where a minister of God said when talking about the gospel we shouldn’t mention the name of the Holy Spirit, that Jesus is the message of the gospel.

I laughed at the show of ignorance because Jesus Christ Himself expressly said, This is the Being that will tell and teach you about Me.

Jesus and the Holy Spirit are not different personalities, please. The Bible lets us know They are ONE.

All that Jesus did on earth, He did with the help of the Holy Spirit even though it was by the Holy Spirit’s power He was resurrected.

So let’s know that today, anywhere Jesus is spoken of, the Holy Spirit confirms His presence.

2. He is the Empowering force behind the Word of God

[John 6:63 NKJV]

It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.

3.  He is the Power behind the Resurrection.

He is the Resurrection Power

[Romans 1:4 NKJV]

…and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.

Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life.

The Holy Spirit is the Power behind the Resurrection and the Life.

4. He is the Greater Witness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ i.e. death and resurrection of Jesus.

[1 John 5:6-8 NKJV]

[6]This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth.

[7]For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.

[8]And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.

Now if you notice in these few portions of the Bible, there is nowhere He is presented as an IT. The Holy Spirit’s pronoun is He, and it tells us something. He is a Person!  In the Bible; wind, dove, water, and fire are a few of the metaphors used to explain His nature and ministry.  The Holy Spirit is not a dove neither is He water nor wind or even fire…those things were just used to give an explanation of His nature/identity/person and ministry. He is a Person with a mind, as Apostle Paul accurately wrote to the Roman church.

[Romans 8:27 NKJV]

[27]And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is THE MIND OF THE SPIRIT, because HE maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

With that being said. Tonight, I particularly want us to look into the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer.

Let’s know this, the ministry of the Holy Spirit is not a function of consistent fellowship and all, the reason for consistent fellowship is to cause the life of God in your spirit to gain ascendancy over your soul and body.

Are you a believer? Be rest assured the Holy Spirit is for you and is always willing to help whenever you choose to allow Him to help you.

Remember I said, the ministry of the Holy Spirit implies service, responsibility, and accountability.

And we should always be in submission to the Holy Spirit if we are truly going to express the reality of eternal life on this earth.

So what is His ministry in our lives?

1. He is the Abiding- Presence in us:

Jesus said to the disciples that the Holy Spirit will be IN them after His death and resurrection, and in anyone that will obtain salvation in His name. This really is the seal of our salvation, the IN-DWELLING of the Holy Spirit. That goes to say that no believer is ever alone, he might feel alone but really the believer is never alone.

[John 14:16-17 NKJV]

[16]And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

[17]Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

2.  He is the Greater Witness of the Gospel

Whenever we open our mouths and hearts to preach the truth of the gospel, the Holy Spirit convicts the hearts of people and confirms our words with signs and wonders

[Acts 5:32 NKJV]

[32]And WE ARE HIS WITNESSES of these things; AND SO IS ALSO THE HOLY GHOST, whom God hath given to them that obey him.

 

[Acts 4:33 NKJV]

[33]And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.

Power to work signs and wonders doesn’t come from us, it is all the Holy Spirit’s doing. Our role is just to be a willing and available vessel

[Philippians 2:13 NKJV]

[13]For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

At the end of the day, no one can actually boast of anything at all!

That’s why God said if at all you’ll boast, BOAST IN ME. He is the essence of our being

3.  He is the Sanctifier of the saints:

Now there is an ongoing sanctification of the saint, and it is that of the soul and body!  Your spirit as it is, is already perfect, holy, and righteous just as Christ is because at the point of salvation, it was recreated in the image of the Son of God (Romans 8:29), however, your soul must continually be exposed and body subjected to the glory of the gospel.

The work of the Holy Spirit doesn’t just stop at the spirit alone,  He’s Sanctifier of all, why? Our physical bodies are also the temple of the Lord, our souls were saved from hell. I hope we are all aware that it is the soul that goes to hell. Not spirit? We shall touch on that some other time, so let’s move on.

[Jude 1:24 NKJV]

[24]Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,

 

[1 Thessalonians 5:23 NKJV]

[23]And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Yes ma, that’s why the Bible emphasizes that we work with the Holy Spirit in renewing our minds through reading the word and praying especially in tongues daily.

Since it’s an ongoing process, there might be one, two, or several incidences that would happen as the Holy Spirit helps you into maturity.

Paul said, when such incidences happen,  this is what your consciousness should be,

[2 Corinthians 5:16 NKJV]

[16]Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more.

 

[2 Corinthians 5:16 GNT]

NO LONGER, THEN, DO WE JUDGE ANYONE BY HUMAN STANDARDS. Even if at one time we judged Christ according to human standards, we no longer do so.

Your identity is in the Spirit and so you must know yourself by the Spirit.

Otherwise, you would begin to see yourself as a worthless, unrighteous sinner before God and which IS NOT TRUE!

You are not a soul or body, YOU ARE A SPIRIT and therefore must bring your soul and body to the subjection of your spirit by the power of the Holy Spirit.

4. He has the responsibility to GUIDE the believer, and in guiding the believer it means then that HE SPEAKS to the believer.

The moment you receive Jesus into your heart, you were quickened unto life and that means you are not spiritually dead! The believer is not a spiritually dead person at all, but we are told to fill up our souls with the light in our spirits through reading/studying the word and praying (particularly in tongues).

The problem most believers have is not hearing God, it is actually the ability to discern/recognize His voice (We shall delve into this in the coming week).

[John 16:13 NKJV]

[13]HOWBEIT WHEN HE, THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH, IS COME, HE WILL GUIDE YOU INTO ALL TRUTH: FOR HE SHALL NOT SPEAK OF HIMSELF; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

The Bible is the primary and foundational way the Holy Spirit speaks to a believer before we begin to talk about channels of communication.

So take Bible reading and study very seriously.

There is so much to teach about the ministry of the Holy Spirit, now the purpose of this is to cause you to bring into your soul that which is at work in your spirit-man, and therefore make you be fruitful in the way of the Lord, so meditate on this a whole lot and reveal in your flesh, the good work of the Lord.

[James 1:21 NKJV]
[21]……receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

Thank You Father for light, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Please if you have questions, you can ask.

Thank you.

………………………………………….

Sister B:
The only question I have to ask has been postponed to next week. I just wanted to know when one’s soul is punished in hell, where does the spirit go too? And please..does that mean that my spirit is actually not my spirit but the Holy Spirit?

Oluwatobiloba Thompson:
All spirits go back to God.

It is the soul that faces judgment.

Your spirit is holy spirit but it is not THE Holy Spirit.

[John 3:6 NKJV]
[6]That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of The Spirit is spirit.

The difference between the believer and the unbeliever is this:

The believer’s spirit has already been quickened by the power of the Holy Spirit;

The unbeliever’s spirit is dead, dead means not in a relationship with God.

Sister B:
So, sir, my spirit is born of The Spirit.

Oluwatobiloba Thompson:

Yes, because you’ve accepted Jesus Christ, Yes. And that means the Righteousness of the Spirit is also your Righteousness.

Let me just say this quickly:

The only way a man can prevent his soul from going to hell is by receiving the life of God into his spirit. As believers, we have the solid assurance that our souls have escaped from the snare (hell) of the fowler (the devil). If he doesn’t do that, his soul will go to hell.