The Spirit Of The Lord
9. He Convicts
“Nevertheless 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 depart, I will send Him to you. “And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgement: “of sin, because they do not believe in Me; “of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more.” (John 16:7 – 16:10 NKJV)
The Holy Spirit gives conviction. Conviction is a firmly held belief or opinion. Where there is total darkness or doubt, He will step in to shine His light and let it reign. We are not able to accept light and truth without the Holy Spirit’s enablement. As the giver of knowledge, wisdom and truth, conviction will not enter and stay in our hearts concerning any topic or subject in the word of God without the power of the Holy Spirit
Redemption
The Holy Spirit convicts us about our redemption – He is the one that enables us believe that all our past and forsaken sins are forgiven and cancelled. He makes us stand on the word of God to resist the devil steadfast in faith, conviction and confidence. He exalts the finished work of the cross and makes us rejoice in our salvation.
It is the Holy Spirit’s conviction that makes us say, by His stripes we are healed, all my sins are washed away and the blood of Jesus set me free and cancelled my punishments and debts. Hallelujah! He is powerful in faith and conviction and those who lean on Him and cling to Him build up massive, extraordinary faith.
Without Him, we will keep on making sacrifices and offerings for sins like pagans. He is also the one that convinces us that Jesus is Lord. He is the one that makes you believe the supremacy of Christ over everything including death and the grave.
Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 12:3
I am the living one! I was dead, but now I am alive forever and ever. I have authority over death and the world of the dead. Revelation 1:18
Sin
The Holy Spirit convinces us and brings conviction about sin. He is the one that makes you accept that lying and gossiping are evil. He makes us keep away from hurting others. He makes us reject idolatry, adultery, fornication, homosexuality, pride and other vices. Without His conviction , we will romance and pamper sin. We will also approve of sin and give approval to those who sin. Without Him we will encourage sin in our lives and in the lives of others.
For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.
Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshipped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them. Romans 1:21-32
The Example Of Joseph
The Lord was with Joseph so he was convinced about sin, righteousness and judgement. There are some men that will fall flat on their faces and accept that evil offer and apple from Potiphar’s wife. They are so careless, irresponsible and reckless that they would oblige her without shame or batting an eye lid. In their foolhardiness, they would forget the penalty for adultery when caught.
Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. And after a time his master’s wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, “Lie with me. ” But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house, and But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my charge. ((Genesis 39:6 – 39:8 ESV)
He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except yourself, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” (Genesis 39:9 ESV)
Can a man carry fire next to his chest
and his clothes not be burned (Proverbs 6:27 ESV)
Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman
and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?
(Proverbs 5:20 ESV)
Or can one walk on hot coals
and his feet not be scorched?
So is he who goes in to his neighbor’s wife;
none who touches her will go unpunished (Proverbs 6:28 – 6:29 ESV)
They live that way because they do not have the Holy Spirit and so there is no conviction about sin. They call good, evil and call evil, good. However, Joseph called evil, evil. He said, ‘ how can I do this great wickedness and sin against God.’ He realised that the evil was against God not just Potiphar. Every harm we cause others is actually hurt and evil against God their maker.
Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Matthew 25:37-40
Righteousness
The Holy Spirit is the one that brings conviction into our hearts about holiness and righteousness. He makes us seek the Kingdom Of God and it’s righteousness first. He makes us serve God alone instead of God and mammon. He enables and empowers us to hate sin and love righteousness. He made Joseph resist the snares and seductions of Potiphar’s wife.
He was constantly with Jesus and Paul and they embraced and maintained righteousness. They were undeterred and unfettered in their quest for Holiness and pleasing God. They had unfettered and unrestricted access to vast oceans of holiness, righteousness and purity resident in God through His Holy Spirit.
You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy.” Hebrew 1:9
Judgement
The Holy Spirit is the one that convinces us that the ruler of this world has been Judged and dethroned. When we understand and have that conviction that sin and death have been judged and dethroned, we will not let sin rule us. Sin, darkness and unbelief are all fruits of death. Since death has been judged it will be foolhardy of us to keep embracing him and romancing Him.
For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. Romans 6:14
Judgement will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged.
John 16:11 New Living Translation
The time for judging this world has come, when Satan, the ruler of this world, will be cast out. John 12:31
And about judgement, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
John 16:11 NIV
Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come. Romans 5:14
May we all realise that we are helpless without the help of the Holy Spirit. May He bring deep, lasting convictions into our hearts and make up fruitful and abundant in faith, hope, love, holiness and righteousness in Jesus Name.
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