HOLY
SPIRIT, ROLE OF
THE HOLY Spirit helps us to discern. He’s like a burglar alarm at home. When it goes off, you know somebody has come in your house uninvited. When the smoke detector goes off, you know something is awry. When a metal detector at an airport goes off, it makes a beeping sound that gives an alert to check things. These alarms help us to know that something is not quite right. In the same way, the Holy Spirit alarms the soul.463
Rom. 8:9; 1 John 3:4–6
WHAT’S the difference between a rowboat and a speedboat? A rowboat requires human effort; a speedboat moves based on another power source. A rowboat represents my determination to get there. A speedboat represents the Christian who relies on the power of the Holy Spirit to propel him forward into his Christian life and get him where he needs to go.464
[God, Power of; Self-Sufficiency, Danger of]
Acts 1:8; Rom. 15:13
A YOUNG couple faced their first winter in a new home. As temperatures began to drop and the house began to get a little too cool for comfort, they decided it was time to flip the switch and turn on the heat. They got nothing. So, the lady of the house called the air-conditioning and heating guy and called him out to help.
In a matter of minutes the serviceman had diagnosed the problem. The young woman held her breath, expecting to hear that in order to fix their heating system, they would have to pay a pretty penny. But the pro had surprising news. The problem was minor, only a few bucks to fix. The igniter was out. The furnace was self-igniting—designed to ignite automatically. A tiny thing like an igniter was causing such a big problem. It worked but was not making the connection necessary to kick the heater into gear. The igniter was there but wasn’t doing what it was designed to do because of a bad connection.
The couple didn’t need a new heater. They had all the power they needed. They just needed to change out a small part that would enable them to access the power resident in their heater to heat their home.
Many new Christians wonder how they can have all the power available to them and have such cold, and sometimes miserable, lives. Their igniter is not working. When it’s not operative, the available power does no good.
When we come to faith in Jesus Christ, we have all the power we need. “Old things are passed away and all things become new.” We have all we need. God gives us a new heart, a new consciousness, forgiveness of sin, and empowerment. God has an igniter called the Holy Spirit. If the igniter is not working, it’s because we are not allowing Him to by responding to His prompting.465
[God, Power of; Power, Accessing; Spirit, Power of]
Acts 1:8; 2 Cor. 5:17; 1 Thess. 1:5