Lesson 5 (part 1): THE MATURING WORK of the HOLY SPIRIT

Read Romans 8:29 (below)
The scripture verse above (Romans 8:29) tells us that God's purpose in our lives is to conform us to the image of Jesus. This transformation of our character is accomplished through the maturing ministry of the Holy Spirit. Several of the names/terms applied to the Holy Spirit tend to describe this work. Each of these names emphasizes the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the process of sanctification.

Sanctification means "to be set apart." When Bible teachers use the word to describe the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the process of sanctification, they are referring to His attempts to help believers be "set apart" FROM to world and its evil influences and "set apart" TO God, embracing His call of holiness.


The maturing names of the Holy Spirit draw attention to the fact that the indwelling Holy Spirit encourages believers in their spiritual growth. The word "mature" means to be whole, complete or well-rounded. Most of us have reached physical maturity by this stage of life, but what about our spiritual maturity? Have we grown spiritually since becoming believers? Are we growing more and more Christlike every day? The key to our spiritual maturity is found in the Holy Spirit living in and through us.

In this lesson we will look at five names of the Holy Spirit that emphasize His maturing ministry in our life.
1. A NEW SPIRIT

We talked in the last lesson about how the Holy Spirit comes into our lives at the time of our salvation and places A New Spirit within us -a Spirit who is He, Himself. His presence in our lives changes our old sin hardened heart into a heart that is softened by the love of God and pliable to His touch.

Ezekiel 11:20 goes on to tell us that when He has given believers this softened heart, they will "walk in My statutes and keep My judgments and do them; and they shall be my people, and I will be their God." In other words, having a heart that is tender to the things of God will cause us to respond to Him in obedience.

Does the Spirit automatically cause us to obey God? No, certainly not. Salvation doesn't turn us into puppets on a string. We still have choices. Where obedience is concerned, the choice we make can usually be summed up in the middle three letters of the word - DIE. Will we choose to die to what WE want and choose what God wants? Real life is found when we surrender to the Spirit.

Believers will never grow to maturity without learning to yield to the Holy Spirit.

2. the SPIRIT OF GRACEWe saw the Holy Spirit at work in atonement as the Spirit of Grace who offered us salvation when we were lost and deserving of hell. The same Spirit of Grace who brought us salvation is also the key to our maturing spiritually.

When we deserve misery and oppression because we have chosen sin, the Spirit of Grace offers to bring us to the place of cleansing and forgiveness that places us back into the peaceful will of God. When we rebel against God and deserve to be cut off from Him, the Spirit of Grace offers to fill us with God's presence and enrich our lives as we return to Him.

The Spirit of Grace always gives us what we don't deserve. That's what grace is. Grace is getting the good things of God instead of His judgment.

3. The SPIRIT of SUPPLICATION
Personal Bible study and prayer are two absolute ESSENTIALS in the process of spiritual growth. We will study the teaching names of the Holy Spirit in lesson 6 and see how He helps us grow as we read and study the scriptures. The Spirit of Supplication helps us grow in our prayer life.

As the Spirit of Supplication, the Holy Spirit receives your prayers and presents them to the Father. The Spirit of Supplication helps us pray. In fact, Romans 8:26 says "the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered." And verse 27 goes on to say that the Father hears His intercession "because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God." Beth Moore likes to say that "He takes our intent and adds content!"

The Spirit of Supplication not only helps us pray, He motivates us to pray. Have you ever awakened in the night and felt a prompting to pray? That was the Spirit of Supplication. Have you ever felt an inner burden to pray for someone you weren't even thinking about? That was the Spirit of Supplication.

He gives us a greater desire to pray and then actually helps us when we pray. Prayer is one of the most essential elements of our spiritual maturity!

4. MY WITNESS

The Holy Spirit is the Father's Witness to your heart. When you don't know what to do, the Holy Spirit will communicate the Father's will and guide you to walk in it. When you have doubts, the Holy Spirit will give you assurance. Just as a witness in a court of law must give accurate testimony, so the Holy Spirit will tell you what the Father expects from you.

Witnesses in court tell what they have seen. Not only is the Holy Spirit the Father's Witness to us; He is our Witness to the Father. Can you picture the time that the Holy Spirit told all of heaven that He saw you repent of your sins and ask Jesus to be your personal Savior? Can you picture the Holy Spirit telling the Father that He saw you resist a temptation that had a powerful hold in your life simply because you desired to be obedient to His will? Can you picture the Holy Spirit telling all of heaven how He has seen your good works and faithfulness here on earth? I'm not sure how those dynamics actually take place in heaven, but it's exciting to imagine the scene, isn't it? I am sure of this: "there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word and the Holy Spirit: and these three are one." 1 John 5:7

5. THE HELPER

Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit as THE HELPER in John 14:26. His role as the Helper is multifaceted. Entire books have been written about the Helper. In fact, if you've never read Catherine Marshall's book by that title, you've missed a real treat. These are some of the chapter titles she uses to describe the Helper's ministry in her life:

• He Saves Me Time



• He Guides My Actions



• He Protects Me



• He Is With Me in Everyday Situations



• He is My Remembrancer



• He Gives Me New Desires



• He Changes My Undesirable Habit Patterns



• He Convicts Me of Sin



• He Teaches Me about Tears



• He Is My Comforter



• He Teaches Me to Pray

Can you look at that list and agree with Catherine Marshall that the Holy Spirit helps you in those ways as well?

Whenever we face a new challenge to grow spiritually, we can be confident of the ministry of the indwelling Helper to assist us in our adjustments and guide us in our decisions.

God's purpose in our lives as believers is to transform us to the image of His Son (Romans 8:29). It's important for us to remember that even though

• A New Spirit indwells us and gives us a Spirit-filled life



• A Spirit of Grace helps us walk by grace, not law



• A Spirit of Supplication motivates us to pray



• the Witness bears witness of our salvation and sanctification



• and the Helper facilitates our spiritual growth

we have the capability of preventing or inhibiting the Holy Spirit's work in our lives if we

• resist Him (Acts 7:51)



• grieve Him (Ephesians 4:30)



• or quench Him (1 Thessalonians 5:19)

I want to leave you with a few questions to ask yourself:
Are you fully yielded to the Spirit today - OR

• is there some habitual action in your lifestyle that indicates you are taking the love and mercy of God for granted?



• How quickly do you respond when the Holy Spirit prompts you to pray?



• What do you do when the Holy Spirit prompts you to give to those in need?



• What do you do when the Holy Spirit gives you the opportunity to tell someone about Christ?



• Are you resisting some calling the Spirit has put upon your life?

Surrender fully to His maturing work in your life, my sisters. Ask Him to sanctify you and help you pursue holiness. It will be one of the best decisions you'll ever make.