Lesson Twelve
The Work and Ministry of the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit Is The Author And Interpreter Of The Scriptures:
•	"Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth" (John 16:13).
•	"But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit; for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God" (I Corinthians 2:10).
•	"But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God... spiritually discerned" (I Corinthians 2:14).
•	"For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost" (II Peter 1:21).
•	Apart from the Holy Spirit man simply cannot understand the meaning of the Scriptures. 
•	Therefore, only men and women who are Spirit-filled should teach God's Word.
•	Another conclusion is quite apparent here, if there is a difference of opinion on the interpretation of the Bible, both interpretations cannot be correct. 
•	The Holy Spirit will reveal the same thing to each person.

The Holy Ghost Convicts The Sinner: 
•	"And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment" (John 16:8).
•	This is the first step in the sinner being saved. 
•	The Holy Spirit anoints the Word that is being preached, quickens it to the heart and conscience of the hearer, awakens him to an awareness of his lost condition, and causes him to see himself a sinner. 
•	He can never repent until he first experiences Holy Ghost conviction of sin. 
•	Salvation is the work of the Holy Spirit in the heart of a man from beginning to end.

The Holy Spirit Regenerates: 
•	"Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God" (John 3:5).
•	 "...By the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost" (Titus 3:5).
•	The word of regeneration is the changing of a sinner into a saint causing a man to become a new creation in Christ Jesus. 
•	This is only accomplished through the power of the Holy Spirit coming into the life of a man.

The Holy Spirit Indwells The Child Of God: 
•	"...If so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you" (Romans 8:9).
•	"What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you..." (I Corinthians 6:19).
•	The Holy Spirit fills the temple and moves in to dwell, and abide there.

The Holy Spirit Seals The Believer:
•	"In whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise" (Ephesians 1:13).
•	"And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God whereby ye are sealed..." (Ephesians 4:30.) 
•	To be sealed will have the following meanings:
1.		OWNERSHIP	-	The child of God now belongs to Jesus Christ.	
2.		SECURITY	-	The child of God is secure and safe as long as the Holy Spirit abides there, and the seal is unbroken.	
3.		APPROVAL	-	The seal places God's approval upon the life.	
4.		FINISHED WORK -	The Baptism of the Holy Ghost is the last act in the work of regeneration in the life of the believer. However, the work of growth and sanctification continues.	

The Holy Spirit Endues With Power:
•	"But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you" (Acts 1:8).
•	The word "power" comes from the same root as the word "dynamite." 
•	This is actually the power of God coming into the life of an individual giving him the power to overcome and live victoriously over sin, and power to witness to souls of the saving grace of Jesus.

The Holy Spirit Baptizes Into The Body Of Christ: 
•	"By one Spirit are we all baptized into one body" (I Corinthians 12:13).
•	The child of God is placed into the body of Christ, and at the same time Christ comes into him. 
•	This may be illustrated by placing an empty cup into a pail of water. 
•	The cup is in the water, and the water is in the cup.

The Holy Spirit Guides The Child Of God:
•	"For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God" (Romans 8:14).
•	"As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said...So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost..." (Acts 13:2-4).
•	"...Were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia... the Spirit suffered them not" (Acts 16:6-7).
•	The Holy Spirit guides the child of God as to an understanding of the Scriptures and to the will of God. 
•	By speaking and checking He guides in every detail of our lives.
•	At Antioch the Holy Spirit spoke to the church and directed them to send forth Barnabas and Saul as missionaries. 
•	In Asia the Holy Spirit checked the Apostle Paul from turning to the left or to the right and guided him to Troas where he received the Macedonian call.

There Are Sins Which May Be Committed Against The Holy Spirit:
•	1. Resisting The Holy Ghost:
•	"Ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your Fathers did, so do ye" (Acts 7:51).
•	This is the sin of rejection and the sinner commits it when the Holy Spirit deals with him. 

•	When this happens there is no longer any hope of salvation for him. God's Spirit will not always strive with man. (Genesis 6:3).
•	2. Despising The Holy Spirit:
•	"...And hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace" (Hebrews 10:29).
•	A study of the context makes clear that the backslider commits this sin. 
•	He has contempt for what God has done for him. 
•	This sin may be illustrated by that of Esau's. 
•	He despised his birthright and therefore found no place of repentance. 
•	(Hebrews 12:17).
•	 The backslider who has committed this sin may never be restored.
•	3. Blaspheming The Holy Spirit: 
•	"All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men; but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men" (Matthew 12:31-32).
•	This is the "Unpardonable Sin." 
•	It is committed by word of mouth but we should read on to verse 34 for here Christ makes clear that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. 
•	(Matthew 12:34).
•	It would seem that this sin must be done by speech that is prompted by a heart that despises the Holy Spirit. 
•	It actually is attributing to Satan the work and manifestation of the Holy Spirit. 
•	The entire context makes this clear. 
•	In this there is a solemn warning to every man to be careful how he judges the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. 
•	It is quite evident just how this sin becomes the unpardonable sin for salvation is entirely of the Spirit of God. 
•	When a man blasphemes the Spirit who withdraws from his life, then by what means can he be saved? 
•	There is none.
•	Undoubtedly this is the "sin unto death" for which we are not to pray.
•	 (I John 5:16).
•	 It is useless to pray for it for there can be no answer.
•	The question often arises whether a sinner can commit the unpardonable sin. 
•	This is doubtful, but there could be a possibility of it if first of all he had a clear knowledge of the moving and manifestation of the Holy Spirit. 
•	Before his conversion the apostle Paul was a blasphemer but he did not commit the unpardonable sin for he blasphemed in ignorance and unbelief. 
•	(I Timothy 1:13).
•	4. Grieving The Holy Spirit:
•	"And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God..." (Ephesians 4:30).
•	This has to do with fruit bearing and the life of holiness. 
•	The Holy Spirit is easily grieved with any careless, worldly living. 
•	When the Holy Spirit is grieved He is made sad and sorrowful.
•	5. Quenching The Holy Spirit:
•	"Quench not the Spirit" (I Thessalonians 5:19).
•	This has to do with the operation of the gifts of the Spirit, with the ministry and service.
•	"To quench," means to put out the fire. 
•	This is done by refusing to allow the Holy Spirit to have His way in the ministry, in witnessing, in the gifts of the Spirit, etc.
•	6. Lying To The Holy Spirit:
•	"Why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost...?" (Acts 5:3).
•	This has to do with consecration and surrender.
•	 It is professing a consecration, which we know is not being done. 
•	Ananias died not because he kept back part of the price, but because he said be brought it all, while keeping back part of it. 
•	This also is said to tempt the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:9).

Lesson Twelve
Self Help Test

1. Explain the work of the Holy Spirit in the Salvation of man.

2. State FOUR sins which may be committed against the Holy Spirit.

3. Explain clearly Matthew 12:31-32.