The Work of The Spirit, Part 2

“But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.” John 16:7-12

How does the Holy Spirit work to transfer a person form the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of Christ?

First, by convicting the world “concerning sin” (John 16:8). Man, in his pride, cannot see his own sinful nature and alienation from God without the help of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit convicts man of his helpless condition before Almighty God, shattering his rationalizations of good works and notion of self-righteousness. At the same time, the Spirit opens the unbeliever’s mind and heart regarding God’s “righteousness.”

The Spirit convicts a man of sin by underscoring the holiness of God. God is perfect and blameless. Along with the Spirit’s conviction of sin and righteousness is the divine revelation of “judgment.” Because of man’s sin and God’s holiness, God’s judgement for his sin is inevitable. The only escape is through faith in Jesus Christ who bore God’s judgment for sin.

The Holy Spirit is truly man’s best friend, opening blind eyes and minds to the only truth that can set them eternally free.

“There is none righteous, not even one.” Romans 3:1