The Holy Spirit

Why do some people make the issue of the Holy Spirit so hard to understand?  I’m finishing up a series of messages on the Trinity and my final sermon is on this very issue.  It seems so many not in church see the Holy Spirit as some entity that swoops down on a person and makes them talk funny and do silly things.  This view is so accepted (or a variations of it are) that many churches and their pastors don’t even talk about this wonderful third person of the trinity and what it is he really does.

Jesus promised his disciples that the spirit would come and lead them in all truth.  He said this to them just prior to his crucifixion so they would not feel abandoned.  The spirit itself descended on Jesus at his baptism and predicated the beginning of Jesus’ earthly ministry.  It must be important to us today right?

Quite simply, the Holy Spirit guides me daily.  In my spiritual formation, he illuminates biblical truth and speaks to me in the still small voice that spoke to Elijah when he was taken up on a mountain by God to hear him speak.  Many of us are like Elijah and want to hear God in the fire, earthquake, or heavy winds.  Many of us will not slow down and tune our ears to the quiet.  I’ve never spoken in tongues, never been caught thrashing on the floor (except when falling over my son’s skateboard), and never made it a point of contention with others.  Everyone’s relationship with the spirit is unique.  One thing I do know though is that the spirit will bring attention to the redemptive work of Jesus Christ and NOT to the person.  That is how I differentiate between the charlatans and the real Christ followers.

What does the Holy Spirit mean to you?  How do you connect with Him in your own life?