[0:00] This message was recorded at Vision Baptist Church in Alpharetta, Georgia. This is the next message in our series on the book of John entitled, Jesus is God.
[0:15] All right, take your Bibles if you would and go to John chapter 16. John chapter 16 is a wonderful privilege to be in the Word of God today, to be in John chapter 16 and to see all the truths that God has for us.
[0:27] We are now within hours in the story of when Jesus will be crucified. It will not be long and Jesus will be on the cross. And he is talking to his disciples and he is loving them in the sweetest, deepest way possible.
[0:44] If you can only imagine how he would be there, knowing that the shadow of the cross is hanging over him and knowing in just a few hours he will die. And he is more worried about what they're going through than he is about what he is going through.
[0:58] He's more worried about what they're feeling than what he is feeling. And today in this passage of Scripture, he tells them, boy, you need the Holy Spirit. You need the Holy Spirit.
[1:08] It's great that I'm leaving because the Holy Spirit is coming. This is what's best for you. And he tells them that story. So take your Bible with me and we're going to work our way through that.
[1:19] But I want you to know today the ministry of the Holy Spirit. What did Jesus say he would do here on earth in our church? Baptists are often accused of ignoring the Holy Spirit.
[1:31] You can't legitimately accuse us of that because at our church we go verse by verse. And so whenever he's mentioned, we're going to gladly trumpet him. We're going to tell exactly what God says about him.
[1:44] And we're going to tell you what the Bible says and does. And he is always trumpeting Jesus. If you want to know who the Holy Spirit talks about, he talks about Jesus. If you want to know what his ministry is, it's to carry Jesus.
[1:57] And today, before he ever comes, if you want to get back to the real root of Holy Spirit ministry in a church and know what he does and who he is and what his purpose is, go back to Jesus telling the apostles, here he is.
[2:13] So read with me, if you would, John chapter 16 and verse 5. We'll start with the misunderstanding. If you write things down, we're going to start with a misunderstanding of what Jesus was doing.
[2:23] That causes great sorrow among the guys. In John chapter 16, verse 5, the Bible says, Now I go my way to him that sent me.
[2:34] None of you asketh me whether goest thou. But because I've said these things unto you, sorrow hath filled your heart. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth. It is expedient for you that I go away.
[2:46] For if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you. But if I depart, I will send him unto you. Father, would you please teach us? Open the hearts of your children.
[3:00] Help them to understand who the Holy Spirit is and what he does. God, help the Bible to ring true in their hearts. Holy Spirit, convict us of our need to believe and trust your word.
[3:12] And God, if there's any lost people here today, let the Holy Spirit do his ministry of convicting them of their sin, making them realize that judgment is coming, and that they today would be saved.
[3:22] And I will give you praise for it all. In Jesus' precious name, amen. The first thing I want you to write down is a misunderstanding. There's a misunderstanding going here because Jesus has been telling them now for several hours, I'm leaving here.
[3:36] I'm on my way out. And they are very sad. He told them in John chapter 14, I'm leaving and I'm going to go prepare a place for you. He told them in John 14, you'll do greater works than I've ever done because I'm going to send the Holy Spirit and he's going to bless your ministry and bless your work.
[3:53] And you're going to accomplish more than I will. I've accomplished. You will do greater works than what I've done. Hey, the Holy Spirit is going to live in you, abide in you, work in you, work through you.
[4:05] You're going to accomplish great things because I'm leaving. He says to them, hey, I've been protecting you. I've kind of held you in a sheltered environment, but now I'm leaving and I'm stepping out of here.
[4:17] Look at verse four, if you would, John 16, four. These things have I told you that when the time shall come, you may remember that I told you of them. And these things have I not said to you at the beginning because I was with you.
[4:30] So I didn't have to tell you I was right there. When everything was going on, I was there explaining to you what was happening, helping you understand what was going on. I was there all that time, but not now. Now I'm leaving.
[4:42] And so I'm warning you up front because I've been here to help you through it in the past. I'm sending you a comforter. Things are going to work out. He's leaving them and he wants them to know what's going to happen.
[4:52] He's leaving them in the hands of the Holy Spirit, the comforter, the spirit of truth. He's sending the Holy Spirit because that's what's best for the work. That's what's best for the work.
[5:03] I want to just stop a second and say to you that you often misunderstand what the Lord Jesus is doing in your life. When shocking things happen to every one of us, when things we weren't expecting happen to us, we can say, man, what are you doing, God?
[5:17] What's going on in my life? Why is this happening like this is happening? And that's what's going on with the apostles. The apostles are thinking, hey, Lord, you've been with us all this time.
[5:27] We've been through all of this. We've been preparing to do great things. And now you're leaving and we're really sad. And here's what Jesus is saying. I'm not going to do anything to hurt you. I'm doing everything we're on.
[5:38] It's the best for you. You can trust me. We might not understand what God's doing, but we can always trust that what he's doing is best for us. We have his promise.
[5:49] He has already proven his love. He has already proven his goodness to us. Now you look this way and you listen. I have some shocking news this week. Some of you are going through some shocking things and your life isn't exactly where you wanted it to be or what you thought it would be.
[6:03] But can I just tell you, you serve a good God. Can I just tell you that you might have heard bad news and you may be hurting and your job's not working out like you want it to.
[6:13] Your family, you got problems. You're going through rough times. You have an economical problems. Whatever you're going through, you are a child of the God of heaven. If you're born again, and he is there working in you and will work in you and you ought to trust him and magnify him and glorify him.
[6:31] Don't misunderstand him. He loves you. Can you say amen right there? Understand he loves you. Understand you can trust him. Understand that he's at work in your life. Now he tells me what the Holy Spirit is going to do.
[6:43] Second thing you might write down, the Holy Spirit will convict and reprove the world. You need to write that down. The Holy Spirit's ministry when he comes is to convict and reprove the world.
[6:54] Look at John chapter 16 verses 8 and following. Now let me just tell you, now look this way for you a second. Sometimes because of the way things work and TV channels and big name churches and Holy Spirit stuff, you don't understand what the Holy Spirit does.
[7:10] and you don't understand who he is. Now this is Jesus telling me about the Holy Spirit. How many of you believe Jesus knows about the Holy Spirit? Say amen. How many of you believe that Jesus could explain to me what the Holy Spirit ought to do when he gets here?
[7:25] Can you say amen? Now just watch because what we're going to get now is what the Holy Spirit is supposed to do according to Jesus. The Holy Spirit is the comforter. The Holy Spirit is the spirit of truth.
[7:35] The Holy Spirit is coming because Jesus is sending him. Jesus is leaving him. And the Father and Jesus are sending the Holy Spirit. What's he going to do? Number two in your notes. But the first thing he's going to do, he's going to convict and reprove the world.
[7:48] Look at verse 8. This is God's word, not Austin's word. John 16, 8. And when he has come, he will reprove the world of sin and of righteousness and of judgment.
[8:00] Now let me read that so you really get it pretty clear. The way that verb works, that verb works on every one of those objects. Look at this. He will reprove the world of sin. He will reprove the world of righteousness.
[8:12] He'll reprove the world of judgment. Of sin because they believe not on me. Of righteousness because I go to my Father and you see me no more. Of judgment because the prince of this world is judged.
[8:24] So the Holy Spirit's come to reprove and convict the world of several things that we're going to look at real quickly. I do want you to understand something. The Holy Spirit works in and through believers and the church.
[8:39] The Holy Spirit works in and through believers in the church. He does his work through the church. You say, how would you know that he's always through the church? Well, because if you know the books of the Bible, you got the Acts of the Apostles, which is the Acts of the church.
[8:53] You'll see how the Holy Spirit works through the church in the book of Acts. Then you got Romans, 1st and 2nd Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1st and 2nd Thessalonians, all written to churches.
[9:05] Then you got 1st and 2nd Timothy and Titus and Philemon. Timothy and Titus are written to two pastors of churches about their church work. Philemon had a church in his house and a guy's on his way back there.
[9:18] Hebrews is about the Jews that are spread across. Then the other epistles are about the church. Book of Revelation, you're going to get there. Chapter 2, chapter 3, you're going to find out there's seven churches mentioned.
[9:30] Our God works in and through a local church. The Holy Spirit is going to work in and through the church, his people. That's where he does his work. The Holy Spirit is not some spook floating around doing ministry.
[9:44] He works in and through his people in his church. And you can see that. By the way, you know what he works through? He works in and through preaching. Can I just stop here?
[9:54] We don't have time to go there and look at it. But in Acts chapter 1 and 2, you know what's going to happen? The day of Pentecost is going to take place and the Holy Spirit is going to come. And that's when you're going to see the speaking tongues and the tongues of fire.
[10:07] And you're going to see the Holy Spirit come and move. But guess what he worked through? Preaching. They preached Jesus. Guess what the Holy Spirit does? He says, preach about me and I will step in there and I will do the work.
[10:20] One of the men this week in his workplace was talking to a Muslim man about Christ. And he said some things about Jesus being the son of God. And he gave the message. The message was rejected. But let me give you a hint. The Holy Spirit is the one who does the work with the preaching.
[10:34] Can you say amen? That's his job. He's going to work and do that. What's he going to do? He's going to reprove the world of sin. That's what the verse said. Now look who he's working on. He's working on lost people.
[10:45] He's working on people that reject God. He's working on people that don't believe him. And he's going to reprove them of sin. He's going to show them. He's going to bring to light their sin. He's going to expose their sin.
[10:57] He's going to convict them and convince them and pronounce the judgment. The Holy Spirit is kind of like the prosecuting attorney. He comes to show men that they're lost. They're unsaved. That they're sinners before a holy God.
[11:10] Now listen to this. He's going to use the Bible. He's going to use truth. But he's going to come. And how many of you remember when you realized you had sinned? How many of you can remember that? Say amen if you remember that. Oh, do you remember that?
[11:21] You remember you were sitting there and all of a sudden it was like, Man, I am. I don't know how. I don't know how. I just know now. I'm a sinner. I'm really messed up. I need God to do a work in my life.
[11:33] And you woke up and you realized that. You know who did that, don't you? That was the Holy Spirit. You were in the world. You were in the world. You were in the world. You were in the world. And the Holy Spirit came and convicted you. What's the first thing he convicts men of?
[11:45] Unbelief. Unbelief. Look if you went to John chapter 3 verses 18 through 21. You see it said he reproved the world of sin. What's the sin? The sin is unbelief.
[11:56] The sin is I don't believe in God. I don't believe in Jesus. I don't believe Jesus died on the cross for me. Look at what the Bible says in John 3 verse 18. He that believeth on him is not condemned.
[12:08] But he that believeth not is condemned already. Because he had not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation. That light has come to the world. And men love darkness rather than light.
[12:20] Because their deeds were evil. For everyone that doeth evil hateth the light. Neither cometh to the light lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light that his deeds may be made manifest.
[12:33] That they are wrought in God. You know what the Holy Spirit is doing? He is using the law. The Old Testament. Sin. And he is convicting people and saying you're guilty.
[12:46] He's got the conscience. Has the word, the law of God written in people's hearts. Creation screams you're not really a product of evolution. There is obviously a God. And the Holy Spirit has said you have sinned.
[12:59] What is the sin? You don't believe in God. You have not put your trust in Jesus Christ. He's at work convicting men of their sins. The second thing he said was he reproves them of sin.
[13:10] Not sins. Sin. It's not about, hey, you're doing this wrong, this wrong, and this wrong. It's about you're a sinner. You deserve to go to hell. Because you haven't trusted Jesus Christ. The second thing he does is he convinces or reproves men of righteousness.
[13:24] That's what it says in your verse. You have the verse there in front of you. Would you read it? Chapter 16 and verse 8 it says, And when he has come, he will reprove the world of sin, not sins, and of righteousness.
[13:36] And of righteousness. The Holy Spirit shows the world the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ. You know what God's doing? Now listen to this. Look here. This is where holy living comes in for you.
[13:47] Are you listening to me? You know when you got saved, God showed you you were a sinner. God showed you you'd failed God. God showed you that you were a sinner and you trusted Jesus Christ. You became a new creature.
[13:58] He gave you new desires and a new heart and new wants tos. He showed you how to live for him. Do you realize that what happens when you live out who you are, it really rubs people the wrong way?
[14:10] When you live out who you are and you live out your Christian life and holiness is there, not because of you, but because of him. Lost people are convicted. They see the righteousness of Christ.
[14:21] You know what he wants to do? He wants them to see. You sinned. Jesus is perfect. You sinned. Jesus is right. You're a failure. Jesus is success. He wants them to see that.
[14:31] So he convicts them, reproves them of sin and of righteousness. Third thing the Holy Spirit does. The third thing the Holy Spirit does is he reproves them of judgment. Go back up and read the verse with me if you would.
[14:43] Verse 8. And when he has come, he will reprove the world of sin and of righteousness and of judgment. Verse 9 tells us what he's going to say about it. Of sin because they believe not. That's where you get that.
[14:54] Of sin because they believe not on me. Of righteousness because I go to my Father. You see, I'm God and I'm going to heaven and God's accepting me. Verse 11. Of judgment because the prince of this world is judged.
[15:07] He tells them, let me just tell you, this rebellious attitude you have, this not believing God attitude that you have, that is something from the devil, from Satan and his lies.
[15:19] And he is a defeated foe. He is a defeated foe. Satan is defeated and the Holy Spirit convinces people of that.
[15:29] He lets us know we cannot go to heaven. He lets us know that judgment is coming to Satan and all that follow and believe what he does. The Holy Spirit produces conviction that causes lost sinners to see their lostness, their foolishness of unbelief.
[15:47] He does not, that the sinner does not measure up to the righteousness of Christ, that he is condemned with Satan and the world. Two things and we'll move on to what he does, what else he does.
[15:58] But let me just say this to you. You know, you're not going to get people saved. And some of you have been witnessing to people and trying to convince people and you ought to continue witnessing. You ought to continue sharing Christ.
[16:08] But let me tell you what's going to happen. The Holy Spirit of God is going to convict them. He's the one that's going to come in and cut them to the quick. He's the one that's going to come in and drive the truth home. He's the one that's going to wake them up and show them they're a sinner.
[16:20] It is a work of God. None of us are going to get the work done. He's going to get the work done. Can you say amen right there? What does this conviction look like? What's it look like? It's to a lost person, not to us.
[16:32] It's to a lost person. It's to the world. He said he came to reprove the world, the world, lost people, not the church, of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment to come because Satan was going to be defeated.
[16:43] Here's the story in Acts chapter 2 in the New Testament. A picture of it. In Acts chapter 2 verse 36, Peter has just gotten through preaching and it says, Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made that same Jesus whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.
[17:01] Now when they heard this, underlined this, they were pricked in their heart and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
[17:17] Watch this. Here's what happened. Peter stood up on the day of Pentecost. The Holy Spirit came home and empowered. There was no special slaying people in the Spirit. There was no lightsaber sweeping across the auditorium.
[17:31] There was no spooky weird junk going on. Here's what weird junk went on. Peter got up and said, You killed Jesus. And he came from God. He was God in flesh. The Lord in Christ and you killed him.
[17:43] And when he said that, they went, Oh! That got me in the heart. Pricked me in the heart. I realized I've sinned. Peter, what can we do? That was the Holy Spirit.
[17:54] You know what the Holy Spirit does? His ministry is the show of loss. You know how we got saved? You know how we got new life? We got it through the Holy Spirit convicting us and showing us of our need for Jesus.
[18:07] Pricked in the heart. Look at Acts chapter 5 verse 33. I can give you a few more with this too and we'll stop with these. They were cut to the heart. And when they heard that, they were cut to the heart.
[18:18] These guys rejected Jesus. But they knew. They knew. And very likely when you're witnessing to people and they put on an air, they laugh at you. They mock you.
[18:29] They reject your message just like they did here. But the Holy Spirit went in and cut their heart. And they went, I have sinned. I know I'm wrong. And these guys got mad and wanted to kill the men of God.
[18:42] Your job is to allow the Holy Spirit to cut their heart. You're to let Him do the work. To help you live out who you are. Let Him do the convicting. He convicts.
[18:52] He saves. It's a ministry of the church to get the gospel to the world. You can trust God to get the job done. So before I go to the next point, look at this real quickly. How many of you are out witnessing?
[19:04] How many of you are sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ? If you are, know this. You're doing holy work. And you're in a battle. And you're in a spiritual war. And when you give out a gospel track, when you witness to somebody, when you share the name of Jesus, what you need to understand is this.
[19:18] You're just an instrument in the hand of the Holy Spirit. And you will speak. And you will not convince them. There have been times that I have seen people get saved. And I knew. I didn't explain it well.
[19:29] And I knew I messed up in my presentation. I knew I didn't do good. And boy, God came in there and he shook them to their foundation. And they got saved and they're still living that Christian life. There have been other people.
[19:40] Boy, I presented the gospel. And I did it in the best way. Textbook group. Classic. I mean, really good. And nothing happened. Here's the deal. The Holy Spirit.
[19:51] There might be somebody in this room today. And the truth is, the truth is you have never accepted Jesus as your Savior. Because you're unwilling to admit you're a sinner. You're unwilling to admit that not only you're a sinner.
[20:03] But you're such a dirty, rotten, stinking, no good scumbag sinner. You deserve to go to hell. And you listen to me say that on a regular basis. And every Sunday you go, nah, that's his opinion.
[20:14] But sooner or later the Holy Spirit will come in and prick and cut and drive it home. And you'll go, oh, oh, that's me. That's Holy Spirit.
[20:27] Is he doing that in your life this morning? And if he is, oh, rejoice and be excited. Because he's showing you your need of the Savior. Jesus said, hey, I'm leaving. I'm sending the comforter, the Spirit of truth, the one who's going to do the work.
[20:40] And when he comes, he'll reprove the world of sin. Not sins. Sin. The sin of unbelief. He'll reprove the world of righteousness. He'll lift up Jesus and let them see Jesus as beautiful and wonderful and perfect.
[20:54] The son of God come down from heaven. Died on a cross who didn't deserve to die. Who loved us when we didn't deserve it. They'll see Jesus high and lifted up. And they will realize that without Jesus, Satan is condemned.
[21:06] Satan has lost. Rebellion has lost. And I'm headed that way if I don't get saved. And today I trust Jesus. That's the ministry of the Holy Spirit. The first thing Jesus mentioned. What a wonderful thing.
[21:17] A Sunday school teacher will walk into a room and teach a Sunday school class. Or a guy will teach a class. And you'll say, man, I just want God to work. Well, it is God who does the work. The Holy Spirit convicts lost people of their sin.
[21:28] Number three. Third thing. Second thing the Holy Spirit does. The third thing I want you to write down. He guides the church. Write that down. The Holy Spirit guides the church. Go with me, if you would, to chapter 16 and verse 12.
[21:39] And look what he said. Chapter 16 and verse 12. I have yet many things to say unto you, but you cannot bear them now. Jesus said, there's a whole lot more y'all need to know. But y'all aren't up to it.
[21:50] You couldn't handle it if I gave it to you right now. He said, how be it when the Spirit of truth, the Holy Spirit, the Comforter is come. He will guide you into all truth. For he shall not speak of himself.
[22:03] But whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak. And he will show you things to come. Well, what a sentence. Do you see what he's going to do? The Spirit of truth is going to come. There are things I need to say to you you can't handle now.
[22:15] He'll guide you into truth. And he will speak and he will show you even things to come. Things that haven't happened yet. He's going to show you the future. Write down, if you would. He guides us into all truth.
[22:27] The Holy Spirit guides us into all truth. John chapter 14, verse 26. Look what your Bible says. The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name. He shall teach you all things and bring all things to your remembrance and whatsoever I have said unto you.
[22:43] Chapter 16, verse 13. When the Spirit of truth is come, he will guide you into all truth. He shall not speak of himself. But whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak. And he will show you things to come.
[22:55] Can I tell you what he did? Are you ready? We're in the book of John. Acts hasn't been written. Romans and Galatians and Ephesians and Philippians and Peter and Jude and Revelation haven't been written.
[23:06] You want me to tell you how he guided us into truth? He gave us this book. Those apostles had no idea. Jesus died, buried, and rose again.
[23:17] And they didn't know so many things they needed to know. But the Holy Spirit came down and said, All right, Peter, sit down. I got a couple of books you need to write. Jesus told you I'd guide you into all truth. Start writing.
[23:27] Hey, Paul, write, write, write. Romans, write it down. 1 Corinthians, write it down. 2 Corinthians, hey, Luke, give me the book of Acts. Let's write it down. I'll tell you what to say in that. Hey, John, let's tell them things that are to come.
[23:38] And he gave us the book of Revelation. He has guided us into all truth. Now, don't you dare leave here thinking that guiding us into all truth is he's going to tell you some spooky revelation that has never been said before.
[23:49] It's here. This is all truth. He gave us his word. Can you say amen right there? You're holding the word of God in your hand. You're holding the word of God in your hand.
[23:59] He gave it. It's inerrant. It's infallible. It's preserved. It is God given. God breathed. You have the Bible, the word of God. He told them how to act. We don't need new truth.
[24:11] We have the truth. Nothing needs to be added to it. We have the truth. He gave us his word. It's an inspired book. By the way, notice this about it as he guides us into all truth.
[24:23] This is really going to go against many things you believe from television and from ministries. He does not speak of himself. Look at chapter 15, verse 26, if you would.
[24:37] Chapter 15, verse 26. But when the comforter has come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the spirit of truth which proceeds from the Father, he shall testify of me.
[24:48] Holy Spirit, what are you going to talk about? Jesus. Holy Spirit, what's on the conversation today? Jesus. Look at chapter 16, verse 14. He shall glorify me.
[25:00] He shall receive of mine and shall show it unto you. Now that doesn't mean the Holy Spirit wasn't going to talk about himself at all. I mean, he wrote the New Testament. So what we know about the Holy Spirit, we know because God, through the Holy Spirit, God breathed his book, God wrote his book, and we know all about the Holy Spirit.
[25:17] But you know what? The Holy Spirit doesn't emphasize himself above Jesus. The Holy Spirit never emphasizes himself above Jesus. He doesn't have a different message. He works in harmony with the Father and the Son.
[25:31] Any ministry that makes much of a man or even much of the Holy Spirit has gotten off track. Stop here just a second. Let me show you something. It would be convenient for me to try to let you think I'm some super spiritual spooky guy.
[25:48] Preachers love that stuff. They got this God aura about them. They want you to think they float in the air. They want you to think everything about them is perfect. But the Holy Spirit of God says all men have sinned and come show the glory of God.
[26:00] That includes you, Austin. Say amen. You know what he wants to say? He says, I'm not making much of a man. I'm not even making much of me. I make much of Jesus. So real Holy Spirit preaching makes much of Jesus.
[26:15] You turn on the Holy Spirit channels. Let me just tell you. They wouldn't be Holy Spirit channels if they were Holy Spirit channels. They'd be Jesus channels.
[26:28] Mad yet? They'd be Jesus channels. It'd be about Jesus and what he did. He would glorify Jesus. He works in harmony with the Father. By the way, he told them what was going to happen.
[26:39] He gave them the book of Revelation. He told them what the future would have. He told them about it. He wrote it down for all of us. They stood that day unable to receive all the truth they needed.
[26:52] Had they only been with Jesus for three years or less, Jesus was soon to step out on a cloud and ascend into heaven. He really didn't know how to run a church. They didn't know how to build a church.
[27:04] They didn't know how to disciple people very much. They'd been told to do it, but they didn't have a whole lot of instruction. But Jesus said, don't worry, guys. You can't handle it. But I'm fixing to have my guy write a book. That book's the Word of God.
[27:17] By the way, it's an eternal book, but that's a whole other message. He said, I'll build my church. You won't build it. You'll never convince people to get saved and serve God and do right, but I will.
[27:29] We can be confident of this. The Holy Spirit will accomplish God's will in our lives. Before I leave this and take you to the last point, I just want you to know something.
[27:41] The Holy Spirit speaks Bibleese. The Holy Spirit wrote this book. He said, why in the world do y'all always? I mean, it's just like go to the next chapter and the next verse because we're not here to talk about what Austin thinks.
[27:55] This is not the Dr. Austin or the Dr. Phil show. And my name's not Oprah. Here's all I know. This is what God says. Let me read it and tell you what it says. Let me explain it because I have truth in my hand.
[28:07] And then we get alone with God and in prayer and you too. And we say, God, teach us what your book says because we know it's truth. Let me tell you, I hold the Bible in awe and reverence and respect.
[28:19] I think to myself, I am unworthy to touch its pages. But God has allowed me to do that. The Holy Spirit guides us into all truth. And the truth isn't about which one of you want to give me $1,000 this morning.
[28:32] And the truth is that it's not about which one of you I can convince to give me money to take care of an orphan in Africa. The truth this morning is Jesus, God in the flesh, died on a cross, buried in a grave, rose from the dead, conquered sin, conquered death, going to heaven, praying for me every day, interceding for us.
[28:52] The truth is Jesus from Genesis 1 to Revelation 22. Number four, last thing. Write this one down. The Holy Spirit will always glorify Jesus.
[29:03] It's all about Jesus. It's about Jesus every time we open the book. It's about Jesus every time we sing the songs. That's why until today I think it can be truthfully said the music that sang, sang, sung, singed, whatever you do around here, from our pulpits, not about us and how good we feel.
[29:24] It's about how big our God is. It's about the wonderful things he's done, how big Jesus is. It's about Jesus. That's because that's what a church is all about, Jesus. Jesus.
[29:35] Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. John 16, 14. He shall glorify me, for he shall receive of mine and shall show it unto you.
[29:46] All things that the Father hath are mine. Therefore said I that he shall take of mine and shall show it unto you. The Holy Spirit communicates divine truth. Let me stop here and say something to you.
[29:59] When he does, it's this. It's the word of God. He does speak today, but he speaks through this. This is how God talks to us.
[30:12] So Holy Spirit, you say, Austin, what's the Holy Spirit told you about your kidney? Well, nothing. I mean, nothing. I just told him I try to honor you and glorify you.
[30:25] Well, Austin, what's the Holy Spirit told you about when we're getting a building? Nothing. I'll talk to you about that. We'll see what the bank says about that maybe.
[30:36] See, here's what the Holy Spirit said. This is it. We teach and preach this book. He guides us into all truth. He always glorifies Jesus.
[30:47] The truth that he communicates does not come from him. The Holy Spirit, not from the Holy Spirit, but from Jesus and the Father. The Godhead always works in harmony. God, the Father, God, the Son, and God, the Holy Spirit, they're not changing directions.
[31:02] They're not going in different directions. They don't have different truths. They don't teach anything else. As Jesus leaves, the Holy Spirit comes. The ministry continues on. Same ministry. It's all the plan of God, and it will all work out perfectly.
[31:18] Be careful of any ministry that makes much of the Holy Spirit and of a man. Can I tell you that I am tempted? I like those ministries.
[31:30] I mean, y'all could give me a really expensive car, and y'all could buy my T-shirts after I cut them up, and you could all give me a thousand bucks for those as I cut them into little squares. I mean, that's all cute.
[31:42] Just not Bible. So at our church, we'll just have a lot of peons, a lot of nobodies, a lot of brothers and sisters, and we'll open the book and find out how great our God is.
[31:55] We won't have a great church except for a great Jesus. We won't have a great pastor except for a great Jesus. Our goal is to magnify Jesus.
[32:06] As we allow the Holy Spirit to work in us, we will see God do great things. We'll talk about Jesus. We'll tell of his greatness. We'll allow the Holy Spirit to work in and through that.
[32:16] As the Holy Spirit convicts and works, Jesus' name will be lifted high. We don't want to hinder the work of the Holy Spirit. Well, what a wonderful thing. Jesus said, I'm leaving, but I'll send you the Holy Spirit.
[32:29] Three major truths I want you to know about him. Number one, he will reprove the world. You've got to admit the apostles had to be looking and saying, now how are we going to convince everybody? And here's what Jesus said. You're not.
[32:40] He is. Missionary, you don't have to convince those Muslims. The Holy Spirit will. Missionary, you don't have to convince those people in Africa. The Holy Spirit will. Missionary, you don't have to go to those Hindus and convince them.
[32:53] The Holy Spirit will. Hey, you can trust me. The Holy Spirit will show them their sin and show them the beauty of Jesus and show them that judgment's coming on all of the lost.
[33:05] Go in his name. Hey, you say, I need to know truth. He said, I'll give you truth. And he gave us his book. And he said this. And I'll always glorify Jesus.
[33:17] Jesus will be high and lifted up. Jesus. And today, have you, do you know you're saved? Has the Holy Spirit been convicting you this morning in your heart? Have you been saying, man, I don't know what's going on.
[33:29] I've not felt this uncomfortable in church since I've been coming. I'm telling you, some reason I feel nasty today. Some reason I feel like a sinner. Some reason I feel like I need God to do something in my life. That's not me. That's the Holy Spirit.
[33:40] He's at work in you. And the minute you see yourself as a sinner, it'll be the work of God in you, the Holy Spirit. And if that's where you are today, you should get saved. If you're a Christian today and you've been struggling and straining and wondering why God doesn't do the work, why don't you just tell him, I'll trust you, Holy Spirit, to do your work.
[33:57] If you've been seeking truth outside the book, why don't you just admit God gave us truth. And it's in a book. Boy, do you realize. You say, why are y'all such big Bible people?
[34:09] Because this is his book. It's his book. It's his book. And he always glorifies Jesus. Father in heaven, magnify yourself. Save anybody that's not saved here today.
[34:20] Convict them of their sin. Make them realize their need for you. And God, help Christians to trust you and believe you and look to you. And I'll give you honor and glory. You have been listening to Austin Gardner, pastor of Vision Baptist Church.
[34:35] For contact information, location, service times, or more audio and video recordings, log on to www.visionbaptist.com.