Music is important, isn’t it? There’s something about music that accesses a different part of our soul, and speaks to us in ways that just regular words don’t. And so that’s why we threw Pastor Paul in our worship staff and team. That’s why we spend a lot of time sifting through, filtering through music. We don’t just play music or sing music on Sunday morning because it’s fun to sing, or because it hides the people’s voices that aren’t great at singing. We sing, um… truth. We sing creeds. We sing what the Bible tells us we should believe. And so when we sing It Is Well With My Soul… By the way, if you can’t sing something, you might… if it’s not true of you, maybe don’t sing it… Amen!

My wife and our son and I, the three of us sat with a really good friend this last week who’s in Hospice. And he’s got cancer all through him. His wife… just a really, really dear lady… next to him. You know how Hospice works. Right? And I said, um… I said, “Kerm, how’re you doing?” “It is well with my soul…” because it can be unwell with every other part of you and still well with your soul. It can be unwell in your marriage. It can be unwell with your kids. It can be unwell in your job. But if it’s well with your soul, then it’s well.

So is it well with your soul? God has won. Christ prevailed. That’s why it can be well with your soul. Do you believe that? We are in a series called We Believe. So it’s important that we know what we believe and why.

And today we’re going to scratch the surface of what might be one of the most mysterious and misunderstood aspects or areas of theology. Theology is just taking every part of Scripture, the Bible, and applying it to every part of our lives. Right? So we’re going to take this aspect of theology this morning, the Holy Spirit. And my prayer has been that we’ll see the Holy Spirit not just as someone that is relevant to our lives but as a real grace gift that’s given to God’s people. And I’ve already taken four minutes and I’m not even in my notes yet. So this is… we’ve gotta get going.

The series, We Believe, it’s really about taking massive biblical teachings and filtering them down into short, memorable, repeatable truths. Right? — because our brains need categories, because we need places to put things. Now, I don’t know how this works in your house, but I’ve got to have a place to put everything. So when I unload the dishwasher, I take the silverware, and there’s two ways that this can go. One way is you open the drawer and just dump all the silverware in the drawer. But that’s how cavemen do things. (audience laughing) Okay? There is another way to do it. In fact, it’s the way Christians do things. The knives go with knives, the forks go with forks, and the spoons go with spoons, because since you’re a Christian, you eat ice cream every night and you have to find the spoon for your ice cream. And you don’t want to be filtering through everything. Right? There’s a spot for your ice cream spoon.

And in some ways that’s what our Saylorville Creed is doing. When someone asks, ‘What do you believe about God?’ You’ve got a drawer where you can start looking for an answer. And this is where you might start your answer. God is a Trinity; Father, Son, Holy Spirit, equal and eternal. And when your kid says, “Who created the universe?” — simple questions like this — you’ve got a category for that. You could say something like the Bible teaches that God, the Father, created everything out of nothing. And then you open up scripture and show where you see that. And look, no creed is above the Bible in authority. We get that. We look at everything in life through scripture, but creeds can be helpful in that they put the Bible’s teaching about massive topics into places where we can remember them, and access them, and then share them with others, and ultimately live them out in our lives.

And so, this morning we’re opening up a drawer in our kitchen labeled, “What does the Bible teach about a Holy Spirit?” — And we’re gonna look inside to see what belongs in that drawer. And so here’s what our creed says.  And if you wanna read this along with me, you can. Otherwise, just follow along as I read it.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the person of God in us. He convicts us of sin, opening our eyes to our need for grace, and leading us to repentance. He conforms us to Christ, helping us live like He did, and giving us gifts to build up the church. And He comforts us until the end, sealing our salvation, and strengthening our hope. Excerpt from the Saylorville Creed

Do you believe that? That’s what the Bible teaches. I wish I had that statement when I was in high school. When I was about 16, my family moved to Indiana and we started attending a church just north of Indianapolis. And I had some friends that went to church with me, and then I had some friends that went to a different church kind of across town. And somewhere in the middle of my Junior year, I started noticing a pattern in some of my friends that went to the different church. So on Mondays, they would come back to school and they’d be like on fire spiritually! They were upbeat, and they were excited, and they were energized, and they were talking about everything that had happened at church the day before. They’d say things like, “The Holy Spirit really showed up yesterday!” — And they’d say, “The preacher that preached yesterday, he had all of the Holy Spirit! Didn’t he?” They were jazzed about it! But as the week went on, the energy just seemed to wear off for them. Tuesday was a little flatter than Monday, and Wednesday was a little worse, and by Thursday they looked worn out. And on Friday, my buddies were pretty much just zombies. And so one day I asked them about it. And the way they explained it to me was basically this. On Sundays, during the worship services at their church, they were getting charged up by the Holy Spirit! But as the week went on, the Spirit’s power and His presence slowly faded away from them. And they’d come back the next Sunday to recharge, and then the whole cycle would start over again.

Now, at 16, that fascinated me. It intrigued me. And to tell you the truth, I was a little skeptical, so I went to one of them and I said, “Hey, can I come to church with you?” And they’re like, “Yes! That’d be amazing!” And so we sat down somewhere right around here in the second row on the right-hand side of the stage. And I said, “Man, we’re really close up.” And they said, “Yeah. This is where you’re really going to feel the energy!” — And that was an understatement. Boy, was there energy! There was movement, and there was volume, and there was intensity, and there was excitement!  During the songs people were singing at the top of their lungs! In fact, some people around me were actually shouting the lyrics to the song, screaming them. Other people were getting up and hopping around, jumping around, dancing in the aisles. At the end of one song, somebody walked up front right over here to the stage and just started laughing uncontrollably. It wasn’t me! (audience laughing) At one point during the singing… and this is the memory that is just emblazoned in my mind… the man who was leading the singing looked right at me, right into my eyes… and he pointed at me and he said, “Young man, you need to let the Holy Spirit take over. You’re holding back. You’re resisting the power!” It gave me chills, to be honest! And there were other things happening that night that made me uncomfortable, but at the time I couldn’t really explain why.

Now listen, I knew that these friends were sincere Christians. I knew that they were genuine. I wasn’t sitting there saying, ‘These people don’t love Jesus.’ But the way they talked about and the way they interacted with the Holy Spirit was just completely foreign to me. I didn’t have a drawer in my brain for it. Right? And so I wondered somehow if this super Baptist missionary kid had somehow missed something, and maybe I was actually not worshiping with enough emotion. Maybe I was, in fact, not accessing the full power of the Holy Spirit. Maybe, like the worship leader claimed, I was actually resisting the Holy Spirit. And so it left me confused. And my friends really seemed to know what they believed about the Holy Spirit… but did I know what I believed? I really didn’t. And I don’t know what you believe this morning. You come in with maybe a different sort of background into this conversation today. Some of you have probably grown up in churches where people talked about it or even talked to the Holy Spirit constantly. And some of you maybe were taught not to talk about the Holy Spirit, because we don’t wanna be like those churches that talk about the Holy Spirit all the time. And some of you probably think yourselves as spiritual people, but you’ve never really thought about the Holy Spirit.

And so, rather than starting with our experiences or reacting against the experiences of others, let’s just go back to the Bible. We do believe that the Bible is our authority for life. So let’s do that. We’re gonna spend most of our time moving through John 14:15 and 16, the Gospel of John.

[John 14:15-16

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever…”]

So here’s the setting. This is the night before Jesus goes to the cross. Judas has already left to betray Jesus, and now Jesus is alone in the Upper Room with His true disciples, His followers. These are the men that are closest to Him, but these guys are shaken up, because Jesus keeps telling them… they’re in the Upper Room… that it’s almost time for Him to leave them. It’s sort of strange. For three years, maybe three and a half years, He’s been with them. And so when these followers were confused, they would just ask Jesus what’s going on. And when they were scared, Jesus was there right next to them physically. When they didn’t know what to do, they just followed Jesus for the last three years. And now, Jesus looks at them and He says, ‘Friends, I’m going back to Heaven, to the Father who sent Me to this earth in the first place.’ But here’s the big reveal, Jesus says, ‘Guys, it’s gonna be way better for you when I’m gone1′ Look at John 16:7. Jesus says:

John 16:7, “Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: (Truth is an important word here) it is to your advantage that I go away, (Jesus says, ‘It’s actually better if I leave!‘)

Now put yourselves in the place of the disciples. How can that even be true? ‘Jesus, we’re here right next to You. How could You leaving us be better for us? You’re Jesus! How can it get better than having You here with me? Aren’t You the ultimate?’ And Jesus answers:

John 16:7b, “… for if I do not go away, the Helper (the Holy Spirit) will not come to you. But if I go, I will send Him to you.”

Now there’s a lot in there. But I want you to notice right away how Jesus talks about the Holy Spirit here, because this is foundational for everything we’re going to talk about today and so much more. Look at this. Jesus doesn’t say, ‘When I leave, I’m going to send you some kind of energy source.’ He doesn’t look at His friends and He says, ‘The force will be with you. You will go home and rethink your life.’ He says, “I will send… Him to you.” — not a power, a Person. A Person. Jesus gives this Person a name. He calls Him “the Helper” Jesus is leaving, but He says, ‘If I don’t leave, the Helper will never arrive.’ That’s incredible! The Holy Spirit here to Jesus is personal, and all throughout these chapters, Jesus talks about the Holy Spirit personally over and over again. The Holy Spirit comes, and He teaches, and He reminds, and He testifies, and He hears, and He speaks, and He guides, and He helps, and He glorifies Jesus. Friends, you don’t describe an energy that way. You describe a Person that way. And that’s why the Holy Spirit is the Person of God.

And so, in our creed we call Him the Person of God in us, because that’s what the Bible teaches. It’s not just clever wording. That’s actually good doctrine, and it’s what the Bible teaches, so that’s what we should believe. The Holy Spirit isn’t an “it.” He’s a “He.” And that is so important, because that means He’s not simply God’s power. He IS God! And that’s why this… here’s why this matters… It’s a huge difference! — because, if you think that the Holy Spirit is just a force, then the whole Christian life becomes less about a relationship with God and more about trying to figure out how to access an impersonal power or energy source. ‘How do I get in touch with that power?’ ‘How do I get more of it?’ ‘How do I not lose it?’ ‘How do I put myself in the right kind of environment or situation where I feel it more?’ And, ‘What’s wrong with me if I don’t feel it at all?’

And that’s exactly what confused me when I was 16. But Jesus doesn’t introduce us to a power that we need to learn how to use. He introduces us to a Person who comes and lives in His people, because, friends, the Holy Spirit isn’t something that you can plug into when you’re out of juice or when you need a spiritual pick me up like a charge block for your phone whose battery’s draining. He’s Someone you know, and Someone you listen to, Someone you can lie to, Someone you can rebel against. Do you know you can grieve the Holy Spirit? You can’t grieve a power source. You can’t make your cell phone sad. You make people sad. If the Holy Spirit is the Person of God in us, then what does He do in us? And so, John 14:15-16:

[John 14:15-16

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever…”]

They give us three roles of the Holy Spirit. And there’s more, but in these chapters… specifically these three, and we’ve tried to capture these three as we’ve written in our Saylorville Creed. First of all, He convicts us of sin. The Holy Spirit convicts us of sin. Look at verse 8 of John chapter 16.  Talking about the Holy Spirit, Jesus says this:

John 16:8, “And when He (there it is again — He) comes, He will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:”

So Jesus says, ‘Guys, listen,’ (this is amazing!) ‘I’m leaving, but don’t worry. I’m gonna send you a Helper. I’m gonna send you someone that’s going to help you. I’m gonna send someone to be with you. And one of the helpful things He’s gonna do in your life is… now wait for this… it’s amazing! — ‘this Helper… you’re gonna love this! He’s going to help you by pointing out your sin! (audience laughs) ‘Hang on, Jesus. I thought a Helper was supposed to actually help us. I thought a helper was like good. What’s, what’s… what’s with this? It sounds cruel.’ Here’s how it’s good. He convicts us of sin, opening our eyes to our need for grace and leading us to repentance. Do you believe that conviction is good? — or do you believe that conviction is cruel? I would have said this last week, conviction is great! I believe that. But God kindly gave me an opportunity to make sure that I actually do believe that.

One day this week, I was invited into a conversation with a friend who confronted me with some blind spots in my life… Not blind spots… sin… sin… sin that I had subtly let take root in my heart, and now was starting to show on the outside with nasty fruit. And it was a hard conversation… but it was a healthy conversation. And I needed to repent to the Lord and to several people that were on the receiving end of my sin. And when I came back to my laptop after that first conversation, I was working on this message. I came back to my laptop, my notes for this message were open on the screen and the cursor was blinking. You know how it does… Right? — on the very last thing that you typed. And these words were the last words that I typed before that conversation. Here they are.

“Conviction happens when the Spirit opens our eyes to what’s true about us, and what’s true about Jesus, and He gives us grace to close the gap.” words from Jason Jackson’s sermon

Now isn’t that ironic? (audience laughing) I mean, the way the universe did that. (audience laughing) Here’s what I know. I’m pretty much an expert at explaining away my own sin. I’m the best in the world at comparing myself to someone worse to make me feel better. My heart works over time to rename sin so it doesn’t quite sound so bad. Instead of pride, I say, ‘I’m just really passionate about that.’ Instead of greed, I say, ‘I’m just collecting resources for the kingdom for God to use.’ Gossip shows up when I say things like, ‘Are you as concerned about so and so as I am? Can we talk about how we might help them?’ Ooh… That’s juicy! And then, ‘Let’s pray.’ And I justify sin by constantly saying, ‘Well, I mean, nobody’s perfect.’ Right? Now, you don’t say those things… But if you did, I would say, ‘Please stop saying, ‘Nobody’s perfect.’ We all know you’re not perfect. It’s called “sin.” The Holy Spirit, usually through the loving confrontation of God’s people, speaks into my self-deception and into yours. And He says, ‘Nope… let me show you what’s really going on here. Here’s Jesus and here’s you and… you see that gap? That gap, it’s not a blind spot. It’s not just imperfection. It’s not just the way you were raised. It’s sin! But conviction isn’t just about feeling bad about what you’ve done. Listen, you feel bad… because you got caught. You feel embarrassed because somebody knows what you did. I want you to hear this. Regretting the consequences of your sin is different than regretting your sin. The Spirit’s conviction is a grace gift that moves us beyond just feeling bad. It moves us towards something or someone… Jesus. Look at the words Jesus used in verse 8:

[John 16:8, “And when He comes, He will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:”]

“Sin… righteousness… judgment.” I mean, these are strong words. He shows us the reality of our sin. He shines light on our desperately wicked hearts, and He reminds us that we’re accountable to a holy God. And friends, that conviction is not cruel. That is a grace gift in our lives.

If you’ve got a disease, you go to the doctor. You get a scan. They run tests. The doctor shows you the proof of your sickness. That doctor’s not the enemy. The doctor’s not the sickness. The doctor’s just the one that revealed what’s going on inside of your body so that you can work with that doctor to find a cure. And that’s what the Holy Spirit does with our sin. He exposes our sin disease so that we’ll stop defending ourselves and start looking for a cure that’s already available. It’s the Savior. And Jesus gets even more specific in John 16 verse 9. He says:

John 16:9, “… concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me;”

“Concerning that sin. And what is the sin? “They do not believe in Me.” Friends, watch this. Ultimately, our problem… mine, yours… isn’t just that we’ve broken some rules or that we’ve got some blind spots. It’s that sinful people have rejected the God who made them. We’ve sinned against a holy God, and none of us has the righteousness necessary to stand before Him. That’s what the Apostle Paul said. The word of God is our final authority in life. So the Apostle Paul says in the Bible:

[Romans 3:23] “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

Not all have blind spots and just need someone to point them out. Not all have been raised in a way that you can excuse your actions towards people. All have what? — SINNED! Okay, I’m sorry. Can we say it a little louder? I know… it’s a word we yell… but without it we don’t get the grace. All have what? SINNED! That seemed manipulative, I’m sorry. (congregation laughing)

[Romans 6:23] “… but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.“

And that’s what the Holy Spirit does. He opens our eyes to our need for grace. And so if you’re a Christian today, somewhere along the way, the Holy Spirit did that for you. You saw yourself, you saw Jesus, you saw the gap… that’s your sin… and sin became personal, and grace became beautiful, because grace is most beautiful when it is most personal. Right?

The grace of conviction and forgiveness was so beautiful to me this last week because it was so personal to me. And if the Holy Spirit has convicted you of your sin, that is a beautiful thing, not a cruel thing. He convicts us of sin, opening our eyes to our need for grace. He conforms us to Christ. Preach on the Holy Spirit for 35 minutes, cover every question.

Number two, He conforms us to Christ. Look at verse 12 of John chapter 16:

John 16:12-

12 “I still have many things to say to you,” (Yeah, I feel that) “but you cannot bear them now.” (Jesus says)

13 When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth…

(And then in verse 14, right away) ‘He will glorify… the Holy Spirit will take what’s Mine, Jesus says, and declare it to you.’

Listen, if you want to understand what the Holy Spirit is passionate about, Jesus makes it pretty obvious. The Holy Spirit is all about Jesus. ‘He will glorify Me,’ Jesus said.

But the Holy Spirit doesn’t just point us to Jesus. He takes the truth about Jesus and He presses it gently into our lives so that we actually begin to live like Jesus. And that’s part of what this Upper Room conversation is all about back here in John 14:15 and 16. In verse 15 Jesus says:

John 14:15,”If you love Me, you’ll keep My commandments.”

Whoa! That’s a sermon series! And then immediately He promises a Helper, the Holy Spirit. Why? Why do you think He promised a Helper right after He said, “If you love Me, you’ll keep My commandments“? — because it’s hard! — and we need help. And then in verse 26, Jesus says:

John 14:26, “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you (The Spirit will teach His disciples… that’s us) all things and bring to your remembrance all that I (Jesus) have said to you. (us)”

And so the Spirit, the Holy Spirit… the person of God in us… brings the words of Jesus back to the people of Jesus so they can actually live like Jesus. And then in John 15, Jesus uses this picture of vine and branches, and He tells His disciples to abide in Him, because apart from Jesus, they can do nothing, but when they remain in Him, their lives produce fruit. We would call it spiritual fruit. And then by the time we get to John 16, Jesus tells us how the Holy Spirit fits into all of this. He says, He will guide you in the truth. And so here’s the progression if you’re following it.

The Spirit points to Jesus.

The Spirit teaches us about Jesus.

The Spirit keeps directing our attention back to Jesus. And as we abide, remain in Christ,

The Spirit helps us become more and more like Jesus.

It’s all about Jesus! And that’s why our Creed says He conforms us to Christ. He doesn’t point to Himself. He conforms us to Christ helping us live like He did, because, friends, the Holy Spirit isn’t just giving us more information about Jesus. He’s helping us look at Jesus so we can look like Jesus. I love how Pastor Colton said it last week.

“We become like what we behold.” Pastor Colton Willey

That’s such a great statement! It’s a biblical statement. Watch how this works. The Spirit reveals Christ to us. That’s us beholding Him. And then the Spirit reproduces Christ in us. That’s becoming like Him. And so this should sound a little familiar to you if you are a part of Saylorville Church often, because something we say a lot around here is that we want to Make More People More Like Jesus. But friends, here’s what we can’t ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever forget, that that can never happen without the Holy Spirit. If we leave the Holy Spirit out of this mission, then we’ll just be making more people more… better. And that’s not just bad grammar. It’s really bad theology! The Holy Spirit never points to Himself. He never says, ‘Christian, here’s your problem. You need more of Me. You need to experience Me. You need to invite Me in more often.’ He teaches us the truth about Jesus. He glorifies Jesus. He transforms us to look like Jesus. He gives us gifts to serve the body of Jesus so that we can engage our world and tell other people about Jesus. He just wants to point people to Jesus, and that’s what He’s doing when He conforms us to Christ.

And finally for today, He comforts us, the Holy Spirit comforts us until the end. Back in John chapter 14, verse 16, Jesus says:

John 14:16 “… I will ask the Father and He (the Father) will give you another Helper, (the Holy Spirit. And here’s one of the most incredible phrases in our English Bible…) to be with you, (what’s the word?) forever...”

Remember what’s happening here. Jesus is about to leave. The disciples are confused and they’re scared. And Jesus tells them, ‘Guys, it’s going to be okay. It’s going to be more than okay. It’s actually better. It’s better if I leave (why?) — because you won’t be alone. Verse 18, Jesus promises:

John 14:18, “I will not leave you as orphans.”

Look, Jesus is going away, but God’s not abandoning them. He sends a helper, an encourager, an advocate, a counselor, a comforter. And Jesus says, ‘This comforter, this Helper will be with you forever,’ not until the end of the worship service, not until the emotional high wears off, not until you sin, not until you figure it all out so He can go and mess with somebody else now. He’s going to be with you… forever… Forever… Forever! This may be the most meaningful part of the ministry of the Holy Spirit in your life right now. If you’re a Christian, God has given you the comfort of the Holy Spirit… Forever! That’s the last statement in our Creed… He comforts us until the end, sealing our salvation and strengthening our hope. You see what the Holy Spirit’s doing? He’s not just helping you get all charged up on Sundays. He’s the person of God in you every single day, all the way to the end. Watch how this works. Jesus is with the disciples. Physically, He’s right there. He says, ‘I’m going to leave, but there’s not gonna be any gap. I’m gonna leave you the Holy Spirit. When I leave, the Holy Spirit’s gonna come.’ And now we have the Holy Spirit, Christians, until the very moment that we fall into the arms of Jesus again. He comforts us until the end, the person of God in us every single day.

And so when you feel abandoned by your friends, He reminds you, you belong to God. When you don’t think you can make it through another day, He helps you in your weakness. When it hurts so bad you don’t even know how to pray. He smooths out those prayers and lays them before God the Father.

And some of you are there this morning, aren’t you? You’re in a place that just doesn’t… you just don’t feel God right now. And I want you to know, those feelings can be very real. I get it. There are dry seasons. There are desert seasons. There are dark seasons. We know that. Read the Psalms. There are moments where God feels distant. But hear this, friend. Your feelings aren’t the final word about God’s presence… Truth is, and here’s the truth right from the mouth of Jesus. The Helper will be with you… forever! Awe… that’s good! So, New Testament Christian, you don’t come to church because you’ve run out of God through the week. You come to church with God already living in you. You don’t have to beg the Holy Spirit to give you more of Himself. You don’t have to invite Him to come back into your life. Why? — because He never left! He never will. That’s what it means that He’ll be with you forever. He comforts us until the end.

So as our band is going to come up, bring us right back to the Gospel here as we close, because before the Holy Spirit can comfort us, before He can conform us to Jesus, Christ says that the Holy Spirit must be the one who convicts us. He opens up our eyes to something we would rather not see. We’re born sinners before a Holy God. And Jesus came to pay the penalty for that sin on the cross. He was the only One that could ever do it. And He was buried, and He rose again proving that God has victory over sin and the grave, and sharing that victory with you, believer. That’s the Gospel. We don’t save ourselves. Jesus saves sinners. And who opens your eyes to that? It’s the person of God in you, the Holy Spirit. And when God saves you, He doesn’t just forgive you and send you on your way to figure it out yourself. He gives you Himself. He gives you the Holy Spirit, the person of God in you. He convicts you and leads you to grace. It’s a gift. He conforms you and makes you more like Jesus. And He comforts you and keeps your hope alive all the way to the end. So Christian, here’s the truth. Jesus left so that you and I could have a Helper. And that Helper is the Holy Spirit, the person of God in us. And so as we pray, maybe just pray this simple prayer and then we’ll begin singing.

Father, through Your Holy Spirit, help me be more like Jesus. [Music]