Feb 16, 1997 10 min read old-sermon

The Spirit Illumines

isn’t God good?
I’ve been encouraged these past few weeks as I’ve been thinking about the Holy Spirit
when we become Christians, the Holy Spirit moves in
and when he moves in, he begins that critical work of turning sinners into saints
he fills us, he moves us, he convicts us, he purifies us
but there’s one problem
I’ll explain this problem very bluntly: we’re dumb
we’re pretty simple-minded people
we lack the cranial capacity to really grasp what we need to know in order to live the spiritual life
to give you an example, I have a pet dog who is rather intelligent for being a dog
but the one thing I find is that my dog lacks the cranial capacity to grasp the nuances and subtleties of human thought
I talk to my dog, and unless I say her name, or walk, or food, or one of the 50 or so words that she knows, basically I get a glazed look in response
now, let’s think about the mind of God
think about God’s mind compared to our mind
God tells us in the Bible that his mind is vastly superior to anything we can know or comprehend
(Isaiah 55:8) “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD.
(Isaiah 55:9) “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
(Romans 11:33) Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!
(Romans 11:34) “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?”
we cannot begin to grasp the mind of God
basically, we as human beings are limited to things we can understand
have you ever noticed how many times Jesus spoke in the Gospels and people were confused?
but there’s a solution to this problem of our lack of comprehension
the solution isn’t more brains, the solution is a better teacher
the answer is that God has given us his Spirit, and the Spirit has taken on the role of teaching us and illuminating us
somebody has called the Holy Spirit “the go-between God”
what he does is he takes the things of God and makes them real to us on one hand
and he also takes our longings and prayers and brings them to the Father on the other
in essence, the Spirit is a translator, making known to us the incomprehensible things of God
that’s why Jesus could say in Matthew 11
(Matthew 11:25) At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.
(Matthew 11:26) Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.
this morning I would like to describe three aspects of this ministry of the Holy Spirit
the technical name for this ministry is illumination – the concept of turning the lights on in our souls so we can perceive spiritual things
these three aspects of the illuminating or teaching work of the Spirit make a tremendous difference in our lives
THE FIRST WAY IN WHICH THE SPIRIT ILLUMINATES US IS BY GIVING US SPIRITUAL UNDERSTANDING
please open your Bibles to 1 Corinthians 2
(1 Corinthians 2:14) The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.
this verse describes the man without the Spirit
Jude 19 describes this sort of man as one who follows mere natural instincts, and do not have the Spirit
the man without the Spirit, or the non-Christian, is basically dominated by the merely physical, or worldly life
they can see, they can smell, they can hear, they can touch, and they can feel
and that’s it
they do not have the Holy Spirit, and therefore cannot receive the truth that comes from the Spirit
before you become a Christian, you’re missing out on a whole other world
(1 Corinthians 2:9) However, as it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him”–
(1 Corinthians 2:10) but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.
(1 Corinthians 2:11) For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
(1 Corinthians 2:12) We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.
verse 9 talks about the great things God has planned for us
and then verse 10 tells us that God has revealed these things to us by his Spirit
you see, without the Spirit, there is no revelation
without the Spirit, we are unable to grasp the wonderful things that God has planned for us as believers
Paul goes on to explain this in verse 11
who knows you best?
no one knows you better than you
no one knows your private thoughts and your inner struggles better than you do
there are things about you that no-one else could ever know unless you revealed it to them
what Paul says in verse 11 is similar
no-one can know God’s thoughts except for the Spirit of God
but God, verse 12 says, is pleased to freely reveal these thoughts to us
God has chosen, through his Spirit, to reveal himself to us as believers
think about it – through the illuminating and revealing ministry of the Holy Spirit, we have access to the very heart and mind of God
someone has said that the Spirit of God is like a scuba-diver who goes down to the depths and finds out what’s down there
the Spirit does “deep thought fishing” to connect us to the mind of God
but the unbeliever does not have access to the mind of God
(1 Corinthians 2:14) The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.
you see, the things of God are silliness to the lost person
they have no apparatus to receive the truths of God
you see, what happened when we became believers was that the Spirit allowed us to comprehend the things of God
they made no sense to us before
but all of a sudden, we were no longer limited to what we could pick up from our five senses
in a sense, we were given access to the very mind of God
now, let’s think about this
when we share the Gospel with someone, it’s going to be silliness to them
but it’s not our job to convince them; that’s the Spirit’s job
when we present the Gospel to someone, your job isn’t to lead them to Christ
only the Spirit can do that
your job is to be an instrument that the Spirit can use
if this morning you have not received Christ as Savior, you need to come to Christ and pray that he would open your mind to spiritual things
THE SECOND THING THE SPIRIT DOES IS HE TEACHES US
(John 14:26) But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
(John 16:13) But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
we tend to forget, don’t we?
even after we read the Scriptures and the words of Jesus, we need the Spirit to teach us and to bring these things to our remembrance
when Jesus said these words in John 14, the Gospels were of course not written
in fact, s ome of the books of the Bible were written forty years after Jesus died
how could ordinary fishermen and tax collectors and laborers remember what Jesus had said, and write it down later?
because the Holy Spirit enabled them
Jesus said in effect, “When the time comes, the Spirit has everything on file, and will remind you of what I said”
but even for today, the Spirit teaches us and opens up the Scriptures for us
the Spirit is involved in teaching us through the Scriptures the mind of God
every believer has the Spirit as a teacher, a teacher who puts us on heaven’s frequency
a pastor can’t do that
no human teacher can do that
but the Spirit can
(1 John 2:20) But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.
(1 John 2:27) As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you.
it’s easy to misunderstand this last verse
John isn’t disparaging human teachers, since he himself was one
John was writing at a time when Gnostic teachers claimed to have “higher knowledge” that only they possessed
and John’s point was this: you don’t need any higher knowledge
you already have the anointing of the Spirit, and he is teaching you everything you need to know
now let’s get practical
D.L. Moody said, “The Bible without the Holy Spirit is a sundial by moonlight”
when we read the Scriptures, we need the Spirit to teach us
sometimes I’m reading a book, and I can’t understand what the author is saying
I sometimes wish I could talk directly to the author, and say, “What did you mean by this?”
when we read the Bible, we can talk directly to the author!
we should pray that the Holy Spirit gives us his illumination as we study Scripture
we don’t need any additional spiritual knowledge other than what the Spirit reveals to us as we study the Scriptures
you see, Christian living requires a continual openness to the Spirit and his communication to us, not about strange mysteries, but about what Christians have in the gospel and about its significance for life
we continually need insight into the faith, because we have a darkness that needs enlightening
the teaching ministry of the Spirit does not involve the revelation of new truth
but it does give us a capacity to appreciate and appropriate God’s truth already revealed
have you ever had the experience of reading a passage of Scripture that you have read many times before, and the Spirit gives you fresh insights into that passage?
as we read the Holy Word of God, we need to request the Holy Spirit to lead us into the truth
we need to ask the Spirit to teach us
some time ago, a young man became a Christian
this man was a soldier, and not long after his conversion, he was sent to North Africa
there was no way for his Christian friends to help him take his first baby steps in the faith
and his Christian friends became worried for him
some months later, his friends heard that he was organizing a Bible study in his North African quarters
and not only his piers were coming, but also his higher-ups in the army
this man had no human teacher, but he had the Spirit of Christ and the Scriptures, and through them he grew in knowledge and in spiritual stature
this is the great teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit
THE LAST THING THE SPIRIT DOES IN THIS MINISTRY OF ILLUMINATION IS THAT HE GIVES US CONFIDENCE
(2 Timothy 1:7) For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.
you know, the road God has chosen for us as Christians is not always easy
but we don’t have to be timid as Christians
through the illumination of the Holy Spirit, we know where we’re going and we therefore have confidence
the Holy Spirit gives us confidence because he reveals to us things that other people don’t see
when other people look at a situation, they see what is visible
but when Christians look at an event, they see God’s power and purpose behind it
I love the story of Elisha in 2 Kings 6
Elisha and his servant woke up one day and were surrounded by the Arameans
the servant looked out and panicked
he said, “Oh, my lord, what shall we do?”
but Elisha said, “Don’t worry – we’ve got them outnumbered”
I think his servant probably thought Elisha had lost it
but then listen to what happened:
(2 Kings 6:17) And Elisha prayed, “O LORD, open his eyes so he may see.” Then the LORD opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
when God opens our eyes, he allows us to look beyond our circumstances to see the vast amount of resources we have in him
when God gives us illumination, everyone else is panicking around us
but God opens our eyes and we see the mountain full of God’s chariots and horses providing protection and deliverance
we see what can only be spiritually discerned, and as a result we have confidence
one of my favorite stories is about the church’s first martyr, Stephen
in Acts 7, Stephen had just been charged with blasphemy, and was about to be killed for his faith
the religious leaders were furious with him
but listen to Acts 7:55:
(Acts 7:55) But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.
in other words, Stephen saw something the others didn’t see
and instead of being scared or timid, Stephen received incredible confidence and boldness
now if we look at circumstances, we’re going to be scared
but if we, like Stephen, see Jesus standing at the right hand of God, we’re going to stop looking at our circumstances and we’re going to start looking at the glory of God
and I can guarantee you, you’re going to be confident!
it’s like the two men who were walking to Emmaus in Luke 24
they were dejected and downcast, because Jesus had been crucified
but then a stranger appeared to them, and just before he left, the passage says, “their eyes were opened”
their emotions changed
that’s illumination, and that’s what the Spirit does in our hearts
do you want to know the mind of God?
or are you simply going to live in the realm of the five senses?
would you like the Spirit of revelation to do his work in your hearts, that you may know God better?
would you like increased confidence in your life as God reveals spiritual truths to you?
I hope you will let me pray a prayer for you
if you have a pen, this prayer is found in Ephesians 1:15-19
please close your eyes as I pray this prayer
I am praying this prayer for you
(Ephesians 1:15) For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints,
(Ephesians 1:16) I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.
(Ephesians 1:17) I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.
(Ephesians 1:18) I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,
(Ephesians 1:19) and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
Amen
Open our eyes, Lord,
We want to see Jesus,
To reach out and touch him,
And say that we love him.
Open our ears, Lord, and help us to listen,
Open our eyes, Lord,
We want to see Jesus

Darryl Dash

I'm a grateful husband, father, oupa, and pastor of Grace Fellowship Church East Toronto. I love learning, writing, and encouraging. I'm on a lifelong quest to become a humble, gracious old man.

Toronto, Canada

Darryl Dash

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