The Holy Spirit at Work

Thank you.

Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, where are you going?

Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief.

But I tell you the truth, it is for your good that I am going away.

Unless I go away, the counselor will not come to you, but if I go, I will send him to you.

When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment.

In regard to sin, because men do not believe in me.

In regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father where you can see me no longer.

And in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.

And can you turn to Acts 2, verse 22, page 1098.

Acts 2:22

Acts 2, verse 22.

Acts 2:22

Men of Israel, listen to this.

Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs which God did among you through him, as you yourself know.

This man was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge.

And you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.

But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.

David said about him,

I saw the Lord always before me, because he is at my right hand.

I will not be shaken.

Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices.

My body also will live in hope, because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay.

You have made known to me the paths of life.

You will fill me with joy in your presence.

Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day.

But he was a prophet, and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne.

Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay.

God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact.

Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit, and has poured out what you now see and hear.

For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,

The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.

Therefore let all Israel be assured of this.

God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.

When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the other apostles,

Brothers, what shall we do?

Peter replied, Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of your sins.

And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The promise is for you and your children, and for all who are far off, for all whom the Lord your God will call.

With many other words he warned them, and he pleaded with them,

Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.

Those who accepted this message were baptized, and about 3,000 were added to their number that day.

Thanks very much.

Well, keep your Bibles open there at those passages.

Michael's going to come now and speak.

As he's doing that, I'm going to hand out pens,

so if you want to take notes and use the back of your new sheet for that, you can do that.

I think most of you know who Michael is.

I know him a little bit.

He probably knows me a lot more.

Yes.

There we go.

Good to have you today.

Thank you.

Thanks.

Thanks.

It is good to be here.

I was looking at your notes before that I was the father of a well-known local pastor.

I know myself.

I don't know who the other fellow is.

But it is good to be back with you once again in Carragalline.

And we want to talk about the Holy Spirit's work this morning.

And so, as we've been reminded, have your Bibles open at those two passages that we read.

How do you do that?

Well, for some means, I'm sure you can think of, as we'll be referring to both of these passages

we go through the message this morning.

Let's begin with a question.

What is the principal work of the Holy Spirit?

I wonder how you would answer that particular question.

What is the principal work of the Holy Spirit?

Last week I was at a very charismatic church, and I'm sure they would have said something like this,

miraculous power of the Spirit.

And they would think of miracles performed in the power of the Spirit.

But is that the principal work of the Holy Spirit?

Some people would say, yes, gifts are the principal work of the Holy Spirit.

But that isn't the answer that the Scriptures give.

If you look at John chapter 16 and verse 14, you read these words.

John 16 · chapter mention

He, that is the Holy Spirit, the Counselor, the Comforter,

He will bring glory to me by taking from it what is mine and making it known to you.

The principal work of the Holy Spirit is to make known the Lord Jesus Christ.

That is His work.

If somebody fill with the Holy Spirit, then they will want to testify to the Lord Jesus Christ.

One has said that speaking of the Holy Spirit, He has as His supreme mission,

the glorifying of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And I think we all this morning are conscious of the fact that we need the Holy Spirit

to work in our lives and our individual lives.

But what will that mean?

Well, it will mean, of course, a likeness to the Lord Jesus Christ.

It will begin to take on the family likeness.

There will be that fruit of the Spirit that is evident in our lives.

We will give the Lord Jesus the honour that is due to His holy name.

We will be ready to be submissive to His every command.

And the Lord Jesus will be glorified because the Holy Spirit is at work in our lives.

If we think of the church, what will it mean for the church to be filled with the Spirit?

Well, there will be a greater awareness of the Lord Jesus as we come together to worship.

The fruit of the Spirit, again, will be in evidence among us.

We will not be able to do anything else but love each other

because the love of Christ has been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit.

The Lord Jesus will be honoured as we speak,

as we converse,

as we testify one to another of His goodness in our lives.

So, as individuals, we will be affected.

As a church, we will be affected.

But also, there will be an effect on the community in which we live

because we will want to be witnesses to the Lord Jesus Christ.

We will be witnesses, of course, in the way that we live.

We will be witnesses in the way that we speak.

Our conversation will testify of Him who was crucified,

who rose from the dead,

and who ascended into glory.

We will not be able to be silent.

The Holy Spirit is so necessary.

It is He that gives us new birth.

It is He that gives us new life.

But that new life is in Christ.

Now, the promise of John 16 and verse 7

is, I will send Him to you.

And when He comes,

He will do certain things

that will bring glory to the Lord Jesus Christ.

And those verses that were read, first of all,

from John chapter 16 and verses 8 to 11

John 16 · chapter mention

are the verses that we're going to be looking at.

But we're going to be looking at them

in the light of Acts chapter 2.

Acts 2 · chapter mention

Because I would believe that

Acts chapter 2 is a commentary, if you like,

Acts 2 · chapter mention

of what the Lord is saying in Acts chapter 16.

Acts 16 · chapter mention

When the Holy Spirit comes,

this will happen.

And on the day of Pentecost,

it did happen.

So let's look at this passage together.

And the first thing that we will notice is this.

That the Holy Spirit will convict men of sin

that they might turn to the Lord Jesus Christ.

Look at verse 8.

When He comes,

He will convict the world of guilt

in regard to sin.

And then in verse 9,

there's an explanation of that.

In regard to sin,

because men do not believe in me.

What was the principal sin

that was identified on the day of Pentecost?

That one sin,

that great sin which embraces all other sins.

Well, this sin that men and women

do not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is the sin of unbelief.

And in Acts 2,

the Holy Spirit that had been promised comes.

And Peter preaches in the power of the Spirit.

He's speaking, remember,

to people who had witnessed the miracles.

People who had had ample opportunity

to see that God had sent His Son into the world.

But they did not believe.

Hear Peter in Acts 2 and verse 22.

Men of Israel,

listen to this.

Jesus of Nazareth

was a man accredited by God to you

by miracles, wonders, and signs

which God did among you

through Him

as you yourself know.

Those miracles,

those signs,

those wonders,

they were not done in the corner.

People spoke about them.

It was evident

that there was someone different among them.

But they did not believe.

And the Holy Spirit,

on the day of Pentecost,

speaking through the mouth of Peter,

was witness for the prosecution.

He was exposing unbelieving hearts.

Of course,

unbelief

had been apparent

all through the ministry

of the Lord Jesus.

It had been demonstrated

in different ways,

but it was unbelief

nonetheless.

If you think of His birth,

remember the wise men

arrive at the palace

of Herod.

And what does Herod do?

Well, he calls the wise men

and they look up the

Holy Scriptures.

They look up the Word of God.

Where is this new king

to be born?

Well, it's in Bethlehem.

It says in Micah,

Micah 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5,

and verse 2.

But what does Herod do?

He tries to murder him.

He was a king

who couldn't accept any other.

So it was a sin of unbelief.

He rejected the one

that had been promised.

As we see the Lord Jesus

in His unfolding ministry,

we read in John,

John 7 · chapter mention

chapter 7,

and verse 5,

even His own brothers

did not believe in Him.

Initially,

He had a great following.

But if we look at Acts,

Acts 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6,

we're told that many

of His people,

many of those

who claimed to be

His disciples,

did not follow Him.

They did not continue

with Him.

He told them that His,

He offered them

living bread.

This bread,

He said,

is my flesh,

which I will give

for the life of the world.

But they turned away from Him.

They turned away

in unbelief.

And the comment

that is given

in Acts,

in John,

John 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6,

and verse 64,

Jesus had known

from the beginning

which of them

did not believe

and who would

betray Him.

So there was this

constant rejection,

this constant

unbelief.

And this unbelief

reached its climax,

of course,

in the crucifixion

of Jesus.

And we see

the heinousness

of sin.

Jesus, of course,

had referred to it

in the parable

of the vineyard.

How servants

had been sent.

How they'd been

ill-treated,

abused,

and some of them

killed.

Last of all,

the son

of the owner

of the vineyard

was sent.

But they

murdered him.

And empowered

by the Spirit,

on the day

of Pentecost,

Peter drives

it home.

You,

he says,

no one else,

you,

have been

responsible.

And with the

help of wicked

men,

put him to death,

nailing him

to the cross.

But let all

Israel be

assured of this.

God has made

this Jesus

whom you

crucified,

both Lord

and Christ.

Here's the result

of your

unbelieving hearts.

You have

crucified

the Lord

of glory.

You

have taken

the hammer

and put

those nails

into his hands

and into his feet.

you have jammed

that crown

of thorns

upon his head

and you did it

because of your

unbelieving hearts.

And as the

Holy Spirit

worked

and testified

to what they

had done

to the Lord

Jesus Christ,

the people

were affected.

Sin that

had been

identified

led that

day to the

salvation

of many.

The Holy

Spirit

convinced

three

thousand

on the

day of

Pentecost

that they

did not

believe in

Jesus.

They were,

as we are

told in Acts

2,

cut to

the heart.

They cried

out

because they

saw the

awfulness

of the

sin of

unbelief.

What

shall we

do?

And the

answer comes

back clearly,

repent

and be

baptized

every one

of you

in the

name of

Jesus

Christ

for the

forgiveness

of sin.

The Holy

Spirit

convicted

men of

their sin,

the sin

of unbelief,

that they

might turn

to the

Lord Jesus

Christ in

belief.

Let me ask

you the

question this

morning.

Do you

know the

work of

the Holy

Spirit in

your heart

convicting

you of

the sin

of

unbelief?

Are you

convicted

of your

rejection

of the

one who

performed

those signs

and wonders?

Are you

convicted

of your

unbelief?

Oh, so

many today

say, I

believe in

Jesus.

I believe

he was a

historical

character.

I was

listening to

an interview

coming over

today of

two sisters.

They were

religious.

Oh, yes, if

you asked

them, did

they believe

in Jesus,

they would

have said

yes.

But do

they believe

in him in

the sense

that they've

turned from

their sin to

the only way

of salvation

in the

Lord Jesus

Christ?

Christ.

You can't

sit on the

fence as

far as

these things

are concerned,

can you?

Remember

those words

of Jesus

in John

3 and

verse 18,

whoever

believes in

him is

not condemned,

but whoever

does not

believe stands

condemned

already because

he has not

believed in

the name of

God's one

and only

Son.

So we

see on the

day of

Pentecost,

the Holy

Spirit

brought glory

to the

Lord Jesus

Christ as

3,000 people

vowed their

knees to

the King

of Kings

and Lord

of Lords.

How we

need the

Holy Spirit

in our

own lives,

how the

community in

which we

find ourselves

needs to

know something

of the

work of

the Holy

Spirit

that they

too might

be convicted

of sin.

For a time

I was in

membership in a

church in

the north of

Ireland and

there was a

man who used

to pray.

He's now in

heaven enjoying

his reward,

but he used

to have a

very quaint

prayers and

one of his

prayers was

this,

bless those

who are

sick of

our

fellowship.

Well, we

knew what

he meant.

But, you

know, another

thing that he

used to

pray was

this,

Lord, you

know, we

cannot raise

an anxious

thought.

And we

can speak

to people,

we can

testify to

people,

but oh,

it needs the

Holy Spirit

to come

upon them

that they

might have

that anxious

thought and

that they

might turn

to the

Lord Jesus

Christ in

repentance

and faith.

Let's pray

for our

community

that as we

witness, the

Holy Spirit

will take our

words and

convict them

of sin

in regard

to sin

because they

do not

believe in

the Lord

Jesus Christ.

There's an

old hymn

I used to

sing,

I know

not how

the Spirit

moves,

convincing

men of

sin,

revealing

Jesus through

the Word,

create in

faith in

Him.

But the

Spirit does

convince,

and the

Spirit does

convince.

May we

know His

work in

our midst.

The second

point,

the Holy

Spirit reveals

the righteousness

of the Lord

Jesus Christ.

John 16

and verse

8.

When He

comes,

He will

convict the

world of

guilt in

regard to

sin and

righteousness.

righteousness.

And then in

verse 10,

in regard

to righteousness,

because I am

going to the

Father where

you can see

me no longer.

So how

does the

Spirit convince

of the

righteousness of

the Lord

Jesus Christ?

Well,

Peter on the

day of

Pentecost

shows very

clearly that

the death

of Jesus

was an

unrighteous

act.

Acts 2

and verse

23.

You,

with the

help of

wicked men,

put Him

to death,

nailing Him

to the

cross.

They were

aware of it.

It was

recent

history.

They had

said,

and their

leaders had

said,

by our

law,

He ought

to die

because He

claims to

be the

Son of

God.

It was

blasphemy.

The law

was clear.

Blasphemy

meant death.

Jesus should

be put to

death.

It was a

righteous act

in their

eyes.

But Jesus

had been

approved of

God.

He always

had the

Father's

approval.

There is

His

baptism.

This is

my

beloved

Son in

whom I

am well

pleased.

At His

transfiguration,

the same

thing

happened.

And Jesus

Himself was

able to

say,

I do

always

those

things

that

please

Him.

But the

people had

said it

was a

righteous

thing in

putting Him

to death.

And they

put Him

to death

between

two

thieves.

It was

a

travesty

of

justice.

But here

Peter,

on the

day of

Pentecost,

as He

proclaims

in the

power of

the Spirit,

He shows

very clearly

that the

Lord Jesus

Christ was

righteous.

And that

the Father

had vindicated

Him.

God

raised Him

from the

dead,

He says

in verse

24.

Verse

32,

God

has raised

this Jesus

to life.

and we

are all

witnesses

to this

fact.

Therefore,

let all

Israel be

assured of

this.

God has

made this

Jesus,

whom you

crucified,

both Lord

and Christ.

Far

from being

guilty,

the Father

was saying

clearly,

I have

vindicated

my Son.

The one

you crucified

was the

Lamb without

spot or

blemish.

And the

Holy Spirit

is drawing

attention to

the fact

that the

Father

had

accepted

the sacrifice

of His

Son.

Son.

The

Holy Spirit

through

Peter

was

proclaiming

clearly

that the

death of

Jesus

was an

unrighteous

act.

When

He

comes,

He

will

convict

the

world

in

regard

to

righteousness,

in

righteousness,

because I

am going

to the

Father.

And He

had gone

to the

Father,

and He

sent forth

His

Spirit.

They

saw Him

no more,

but He

lived on

in the

power of

His

Spirit.

Notice

how He

draws

attention

to the

resurrection

in Acts

2 and

verses

24 and

34.

Indeed,

the majority

of Peter's

message that

day centered

on the

resurrection

of the

Lord Jesus.

He

had gone

home to

the

Father

by way

of the

cross.

They

saw Him

no more,

but He

lives on

a living,

risen

Savior.

And the

Holy Spirit

testifies to

this fact.

It is as

though the

Father had

placed His

seal of

approval on

His Son by

raising Him

from the

dead.

And as

Peter preached,

so the

Holy Spirit

took the

Word and

planted it

in the

hearts of

the hearers.

It became

a living,

acting,

life-giving

Word.

These

people had

known the

Holy Scriptures.

They knew the

Old Testament.

Many of them

had memorized

whole sections

of it.

They'd grown

up with the

Word of

God.

They would

have known

Psalm 16.

Psalm 16

that is

quoted by

the Apostle

Peter on

the day of

Pentecost.

You will

not abandon

me to the

grave, nor

will you let

your Holy

One, your

Righteous

One, your

Perfect

One, see

decay.

On the

day of

Pentecost,

they saw

that this

spoke of

the Lord

Jesus

Christ,

the one

they had

recently

crucified.

They saw

it now

clearly, and

they saw

themselves as

guilty.

They saw

themselves as

the ones

who had

crucified the

risen Christ.

He wasn't

with them

anymore,

but he

descended up

on high.

He sent

the Holy

Spirit,

that they

might hear

these things

and believe.

No wonder

they shouted

out,

brothers,

what shall

we do?

They were

saying, is

there any

hope for

us?

And Peter

is able to

say, yes,

there is

hope for

you.

If you

turn in

faith to

this

crucified,

risen

Christ,

and we're

told in

Acts 2

Acts 2:40

verse 40

with many

other words,

he warned

them and

pleaded with

them, save

yourselves from

this corrupt

generation.

You see,

they came to

see that

Jesus was

right and

that they

were wrong,

totally wrong.

do you know

the Holy

Spirit working

in your

life?

Do you

see him as

the righteous

one,

the perfect

one?

You do not

see him in

the flesh,

he has gone

to the

Father,

but he sent

the Holy

Spirit that

we might

see these

things,

and that

the very

righteousness

of the

Lord Jesus

Christ should

become ours.

Not only

that our

sin might

be wiped

clean,

but also

the very

righteousness

of Christ

should be

put to

our

account.

In

1927,

there was

a revival

on the

east coast

of England.

I'm not

talking about

a mission.

I'm not

talking about

something that

man arranges.

I'm talking

about a

work of

God.

A work

of the

Holy

Spirit.

A man

had been

appointed to

preach a

series of

messages in

a place

called

Loisdorf.

It was a

fishing town.

It happened

to coincide

with the

herring

season.

The

herrings

went along

and the

boats

caught the

fish and

then they

moved up

the coast

following

the

shoals

of

herring.

Big

industry

in those

days.

A lot

of

Scots

fishermen

had come

down.

They were

religious

people.

But they

come down

for the

fishing

season.

They

come down

with their

wives

who

gutted

the

herrings

salted

them

as was

a

custom

in

those

days.

But because

they were

religious

they didn't

go to

sea on

Sunday.

They went

to the

church.

It happened

to be a

Baptist

church.

church.

And what

happened?

An

ordinary

sermon was

preached.

I've read

it.

There's

nothing

particularly

wonderful

about it.

It was

ordinary.

But it

was made

extraordinary

by the

Holy Spirit.

Because

people saw

him as

he really

was.

The

righteous

one.

And they

knew that

they were

not righteous

and they

turned to

him.

Many

fishermen.

Many

local

people.

And as

they went

up the

coast

so they

took that

message with

them.

And others

were converted.

It went

right up to

Scotland to

the fishing

villages.

It reached

Edinburgh

and Glasgow.

And a

great work

was done.

Because the

Holy Spirit

was present

testifying to

the Lord

Jesus Christ.

That he

was the

righteous

one.

That he

had ascended

to the

Father.

And that the

Father had

vindicated him

by raising

him from

the dead.

God

said to

God.

The third

and final

point is

this.

That the

Holy Spirit

reveals the

triumph

of the

Lord Jesus

Christ.

His triumph

over evil.

John 16

and verse

8.

When he

comes

he will

convict the

world of

guilt

in regard

to sin

and righteousness

and judgment.

And verse

11.

In regard

to judgment

because the

prince of

this world

now stands

condemned.

And on the

day of

Pentecost the

Holy Spirit

reveals the

Lord Jesus

Christ as

king and

ruler.

the one

who had

triumphed

over the

principalities

and powers

of darkness.

Look at

Acts 2

and verses

29 to

33.

Brothers

I tell

you confidently

that the

patriarch

David died

and was

buried.

And his

tomb is

here to

this day.

But he

was a

prophet.

And knew

that God

had promised

him on

oath that

he would

place one

of his

descendants on

his throne.

Seeing what

was ahead he

spoke of the

resurrection of

Christ.

That he was

not abandoned

to the grave

nor did his

body see

decay.

God

has raised

this Jesus

to life

and we are

all witnesses

of the fact

exalted

exalted

to the

right hand

of God.

He has

received from

the Father

the promised

Holy Spirit

and has

poured out

what you

now see

and hear.

what does

Peter say

empowered by

the Spirit?

What does

he testify

to?

He

testifies to

one who

wasn't allowed

to remain

in the

grave

but one

who is the

fulfillment of

the prophet

David

that there

was one

from his

very own

line who

would sit

on his

throne.

he testifies

to one

who has

been

exalted

to the

right hand

of God

the Father

having triumphed

over the

principalities

and powers

of darkness

having

condemned

the

prince

of this

world

having

condemned

him

through

his death

on the

cross

Paul

inspired

by the

Spirit

testifies

to these

things

in Colossians

2

and verse

15

having

disarmed

the powers

and authorities

he made

a public

spectacle

of them

triumphing

over them

by the

cross

a few

days

before

people

had looked

at the

situation

and it

seemed

utterly

hopeless

there

was their

prince

the one

they thought

who would

redeem

Israel

hanging

on a

cross

naked

a

spectacle

to the

watching

crowd

taken

away

and

buried

and a

stone

rolled

in front

of the

tomb

and a

seal

placed

upon

it

with

guards

even

his

disciples

spoke

of

Jesus

in the

past

tense

remember

them on

the

Emmaus

road

in

Luke

24

and

verse

21

we

had

hoped

that

he

was

the

one

who

would

redeem

Israel

but

remember

that

stranger

who

walked

with

them

even

the

risen

Christ

speaking

to

them

and

rebuking

them

did

not

the

Christ

have

to

suffer

these

things

and

then

enter

his

glory

but

the

glory

had

now

been

entered

the

son

had

triumphed

the

devil

had

been

defeated

the

conquering

king

was

demonstrating

his

power

that

day

as

three

thousand

people

bowed

the

knee

to

him

my

friends

what a

saviour

who has

done

all

this

when

he

comes

he

will

convict

the

world

of

guilt

in

regard

to

sin

and

righteousness

and

judgment

and the

holy

spirit

has

come

and

testified

to

all

that

Jesus

came

to

say

and

to

do

and

the

holy

spirit

calls

us

to

submission

to

the

triumphant

Christ

hear

Peter

in

Acts

2

and

verse

36

therefore

let

all

Israel

be

assured

of

this

God

has

made

this

Jesus

whom

you

crucified

both

Lord

and

Christ

he

is

Lord

we

sometimes

speak

of

Jesus

and

we

leave

out

his

lordship

but

we

cannot

according

to

scripture

he

is

Lord

and

he

demands

our

submission

what

were the

people

to do

when

they

heard

the

information

they

were

to

repent

and

be

baptized

and

they

did

repent

they

did

believe

they

were

baptized

and

they

continued

in

the

apostles

fellowship

and

in

their

teaching

they

had

been

delivered

from

the

judgment

that

was

to

come

they

walked

with

the

victorious

risen

Christ

they

were

convinced

of

sin

and

the

righteousness

and

judgment

so

what

are we

going

to do

with

the

information

that we

have

received

today

well

there's

two

ways

if you're

not a

believer

turn

from

your

sin

to

him

it's

as

simple

and

as

wonderful

as

that

if

you

are

the

Lord's

then

there's

a

world

out

there

that

needs

to

hear

of

this

Jesus

but

don't

do

it

in

your

own

strength

look

for

the

Holy

Spirit

to

come

and

take

your

words

pray

that

you

will

know

the

working

of

God's

Spirit

in

your

life

that

you

may

constantly

glorify

the

Lord

Jesus

Christ

pray

that

our

words

of

witness

will

be

effectual

that

they

will

be

taken

by

the

Spirit

and

used

to

bring

people

to

trust

in

the

Savior

but

there

we

pray

something

else

we

do

not

despise

the

day

of

small

things

of

one

here

and

another

there

coming

to

salvation

in

the

Lord

Jesus

Christ

indeed

we