TOPIC:"The Gospel of the Holy Spirit"
by Rev. Dr. Reg Dunlap
TEXT:John 16:7-15
"Nevertheless, I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you" (John 16:7)
A sentence from the pen of G. Campbell Morgan, the great Bible expositor, is applicable here. He stated: "The coming of the Holy Spirit was the dawn of the brightest day the world had seen since the Fall." Why do you believe Dr. Morgan made such a statement?
I believe it was because he realized that though the physical presence of Jesus was going to be withdrawn, with the coming of the Holy Spirit Christ was going to be present on even a higher level. In the past Jesus was WITH us, but now in the presence of the Holy Spirit He is WITHIN us. Consider the words of our Lord in chapter 14 verse 17 regarding the Holy Spirit: "He dwelleth with you, and shall be IN you." Or consider these words of the Apostle Paul: "What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is IN you?" (I Corinthians 6:19). Think of it: A new and astonishing intimacy with the Spirit of the living Christ. Paul put it in these words: "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27).
Hence the "gospel of the Holy Spirit." The "gospel" means the good news of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The "gospel of the Holy Spirit" is the good news that He has not only come to indwell us, but He has come to meet the urgent needs of Christians, and also the world in which we live. The good news of the coming of the Holy Spirit is fourfold - to gather lost sinners, to glorify the lifted Savior, to grace living saints, and to guide loyal servants. Permit me to explain each one of these.
I.
First of all, the good news of the Holy Spirit's coming is to GATHER LOST SINNERS. He is to gather for God's preservation a great host of unregenerated men and women. Notice the words of Jesus in verses 8 through 10: "And when He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged." The word "reprove" is better rendered "convict" in the NIV and "convince" in the NLT.
We are living in a day when sin is rampant in all levels of life. The problem is that modern man is so proud that he is not willing to admit that he is troubled and plagued by it. He will go to any length to deny its existence or to . . .