At the beginning of the book of Acts, the promise of the Spirit is highlighted again with regards to the disciples. I thought it would be helpful to think about how those texts in John 14-16, regarding the Spirit, apply to all believers. The specific wording leads to the direct application being limited to the disciples, however the principles apply to all. For instance, what he does for the apostles in the inspiration of Scripture, is very similar to the Spirit’s role for the believer in the illumination or understanding of the Scriptures. The obvious difference is that the Spirit does not work through believers to inspire additional divine revelation, but rather helps the Christian understand and believe and implement what was previously inspired by the apostles (eg. 1 Cor. 2). Furthermore, after he regenerates our soul, does not the Spirit convict us of our sin as He leads us more and more into the truth of Christ so that we bring glory to his name? Does He not also choose to bless our evangelistic and discipleship efforts as He brings conviction to those with whom we are sharing the truth? We would be lost in our journey without this Helper, so what love and care is demonstrated by our Lord giving us this gift!
The Benefits of the Spirit
