judgment. The word properly in structs us, "The soul that sinneth, it shall die." The death of Christ was the judgment of the world (John 12:31). At the beginning of Christ's min istry the devil offered Him the kingdoms of this world on the ba sis of His return homage and wor ship. Jesus definitely turned aside from this which meant Satan's un doing. While he is still alive and active in the affairs of this world the cross of Christ opened up forces which will ultimately end the career of this arch-enemy of both the Lord and man. The cross was a crisis in the history of the world. THE HOLY SPIRIT, OUR HELPER The life of man is a continuing cry for help. It is a confession of our complete insufficiency for our daily existence which is character ized by very definite limitations. By nature, before we were con verted to Christ, we were dead in trespasses and sins. There was no spiritual life. Our condition would best be described as being "with out God and without hope in the wo rld ." Because of the Lord's grace, through the power of the Holy Spirit, we have been led to discover our horrible plight, and drawn to the cross through repen tance and faith. God justified and reconciled us to Himself. The Scripture says about the Holy Spirit, "He shall abide with you forever." The Greek word "para clete" means "one who is called alongside to help." What a com fort this suggests. When Martha was cumbered with serving (Luke 10:40), she became distracted, ask ing the Lord to tell her sister to do Page 57
THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE WORLD Just before Jesus Christ was to leave His disciples He promised them the Holy Spirit would be giv en (John 16:7-77). The coming Comforter would convict the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. The Holy Spirit brings the unbe liever to the root of the matter. The law would convict the Jew of various infractions. Conscience convicts men of many different kinds of evil (Romans 2:15). The Holy Spirit, however, convicts man of one specific sin which is that of unbelief. He brings us face-to-face with the Saviour who died for our sins. The "Good News" is that you can find wonderful forgiveness in the Lord simply by trusting Him and His sacrificial death for you on Calvary. Herein then is the difference be tween the work of the Spirit and that of only human conscience. When the soul comes to the sense of its guilt before God it be gins to cry out, "Is there any hope for me?" The Spirit's ministry does not end with the revelation of sinfulness. He proceeds to make known the provision of righteous ness obtainable only through Christ. Jesus has been accepted by the Father because of His finished work on the cross. God put His seal of approval on His Son (II Cor inthians 5:21). Scripture says that the Holy Spir it also convinces or convicts the world of judgment. This is not simply that which is to come, but that which is already revealed. Judgment is never a welcome note, yet the Spirit does not hesitate to bring it home to the unbeliever's heart. Golgotha was a place of
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs