evidences of the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the seal of our New Covenant relationship with Christ (Jer 31; Ezek 36-37; Eph 1:13). The Christian life is a life in the Spirit. (Rom 8)

How do I know when the Holy Spirit is at work in me? How do I identify his supernatural work in distinction from my own efforts at living the Christian life?

I wrote and posted this about a year ago, and have edited slightly to re-post...

Ten Evidences of the Work of the Holy Spirit

1) When we experience conviction of sin, not mere guilt and desire to escape punishment, but an awareness of sin against God which draws us to Christ for forgiveness and reconciliation – this is the work of the Holy Spirit. (John 16:8-11)

2) When Jesus Christ becomes attractive to us, and we begin to see him as glorious, powerful, and gracious (John 16:14; 1 Cor 1:23-24) – this is the work of the Spirit.

3) When God’s love is so understood and felt in the heart that we are moved to call out to God as our Father – this is the work of the Holy Spirit. (Rom 5:5; Gal 4:6)

4) When we joyfully believe and confess that Jesus is Lord – this is the work of the Holy Spirit. (1 Cor 12:3; 1 John 4:2-3)

5) When we have felt the truthfulness of the gospel concerning Jesus Christ and inwardly experience the authority and goodness of God’s word – this is the work of the Holy Spirit. (Eph 1:13; 1 Thess 1:5; 2:13)

6) When we have freedom, even boldness, to speak of Christ to others – this is the work of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:8; 4:31).

7) When we are receiving insight and understanding into God’s word, so that we are sensing its truth, power, and application to us – this is the work of the Holy Spirit. (1 Cor 2:12; Eph 1:17-18; 1 John 2:27; 4:6)

8) When we turn away from sin and fleshly desires, and are being led and empowered to manifest God’s holy character in our lives – this is the work of the Holy Spirit. (Rom 8:1-17; Gal 5:16-23)

9) When we truly desire to sing God’s praises and join with believers in corporate worship – this is the work of the Holy Spirit. (Eph 5:18-20)

10) When our service to others brings God’s blessing to the body of Christ, and gifts that he has given us work supernaturally to build up others – this is the work of the Holy Spirit. (1 Cor 12:4-11)

"If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (Luke 11:13 ESV)

clement quotes hebrews

Clement of Rome wrote to the church in Corinth around AD 90. This is perhaps the same Clement, companion of Paul, mentioned in Philippians 4:3. Many hold him to be the first bishop / pope in Rome, aka St. Clement I. Clement quotes from the letter to the Hebrews. Origin suggested that Clement was in fact the writer (as transcriber or amanuensis) of Hebrews. Perhaps this letter began as a "word of exhortation" given by Paul at the synagogue (Heb 13:22; cf Acts 13:15) which then became a circular letter for the churches. Other possible authors of Hebrews include Luke, Barnabas, or Apollos. The theology is Pauline, but the transcriber is obviously second-generation (Heb. 2:3-4). At any rate, this early church leader in Rome, is already quoting Hebrews in his letter in AD 90: CHAPTER 36 ALL BLESSINGS ARE GIVEN TO US THROUGH CHRIST This is the way, beloved, in which we find our Savior, even Jesus Christ, the High Prie...

Howard Hendricks on OT books chronology

When I was in seminary, Howard Hendricks (aka "Prof") gave us a little card with the books of the OT chronologically arranged. The scanned copy I have was a bit blurry and I wanted to make something like this available for our church class in OT theology ("Story of Redemption"). A few minor edits and here it is...

sword and trowel

"From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. And the leaders stood behind the whole house of Judah, who were building on the wall. Those who carried burdens were loaded in such a way that each labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon with the other. And each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built. The man who sounded the trumpet was beside me." (Nehemiah 4:16-18 ESV) The great London preacher, Charles Spurgeon, published a monthly magazine called The Sword and The Trowel; A record of combat with sin and of labour for the Lord. It was published from 1865 to 1892. The cover of the journal had a drawing taken from Nehemiah 4, which included both a trowel (representing the work) and a sword (representing the fight). The sword was necessary to protect what the men with trowels were building. These citizen-soldier-builders would successfully complete the wall aroun...

my burg

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