0407. GRIEVE NOT THE HOLY SPIRIT

GRIEVE NOT THE HOLY SPIRIT

Eph_4:30

It is solemnly possible to grieve the Holy Spirit, because He is a gracious, loving, tender Personality. It is not possible to grieve or vex a mere influence. The wind bloweth where it listeth, you cannot grieve the wind; but the breath of the Holy Spirit is the breathings of the very heart of God. All the attributes of God are attributed to the Holy Spirit. He is the Spirit of truth, of wisdom, of life, and of power. To grieve Him is to hinder His loving and merciful operations in the heart, and thereby impoverish our lives, and stultify our most earnest efforts in the service of Christ.

I. By Unholy and Profitless Talk (see Eph_4:29; Eph_4:31). Communications that are not "to the use of edifying," but which have a corrupting influence must be a grief to Him who is "Holy," and who has come to take the things which belong to the incorruptible Christ and show them to us. The Spirit of Truth can have no fellowship with frivolous talk and evil speaking.

II. By Ignoring His Presence. If our earthly friends dealt with us as we often deal with the Holy Spirit, we would be sorely offended. To live in the same house with one and be seldom recognised must be a great hardship. Mutual recognition is absolutely essential to the maintenance of real friendship. Don’t grieve Him by the coldness of forgetfuness.

III. By Rejecting His Teaching. It was by rebelling against His leading that Israel "vexed His Holy Spirit" (Isa_63:10). The Spirit is ever seeking to lead us into the truth as it is in Jesus, that we might be sanctified and made meet for His use. We grieve the Spirit, when through prejudice or unbelief, we refuse to accept His teaching, or to obey His leading. If we are not growing in grace, and in the knowledge of God, we may well suspect ourselves of disobedience to the Lord the Spirit. It must be a great grief to Him that His gracious work should in any way be hindered in us or through us, as Christ is dishonoured thereby, and His chief purpose is to glorify Him.

IV. By Conniving at Things which He Hates. The Holy Spirit is opposed to sin in every form. All worldliness and self-seeking are antagonistic to His nature and mission. If we found any of our personal friends winking secretly at things which they knew our souls abhorred, how deeply we would be grieved at such a discovery. Are we more sensitive than the Holy Spirit is? If we are ashamed to rebuke what He rebukes, and to exalt what He exalts, then we are not in the fellowship of the Spirit. Grieve not the Spirit by encouraging the ungodly in their sin. Remember Samson.

V. By Grieving the Children of God. Uncharitable thinking which leads to uncharitable speaking, must grieve Him who is the Spirit of love and of unity. Whatever tends to alienate the affections of God’s people, one from another, is a striving against the workings of the Holy Ghost. "That they all may be one," was the prayer of Christ. "That they all may be one," is the purpose of the Spirit. To hinder this oneness is to grieve the Spirit by marring the unity of the Body, which He is so eager to maintain.

VI. By Serving the Lord in Our Own Strength. The Holy Spirit has come that we might have power to witness for Christ; to speak and labour in our own strength is a denial of His mission, and must be a great grief to His heart. How very sad it must be to the mighty Holy Spirit to see the servants of Christ, whom He has come to empower, substituting fleshly energy and worldly policy for His subduing, quickening presence. "When the Spirit is grieved by such self-assertiveness, the evidence of it is apparent in a formal, fruitless life. A grieved Spirit not only means a powerless testimony, but also a lack of the enjoyment of the love of God in the heart. If this love is to be shed abroad in our hearts, we need the communion of the Holy Spirit; this we cannot have if our manner of life and service is opposed to His mind and will. We may have our lamps, and we may have a measure of light, like the foolish virgins, but if we have not that reserve of oil which is to be found in the presence of an ungrieved Spirit, we will be ashamed before Him at His coming.

Autor: James Smith