Bible Studies
The Holy Spirit’s Work In Communicating the Message of God (1 Cor. 2:9-13)
Series: Additional StudiesIntroduction:
1. It is clearly Paul’s understanding that God revealed His mind through things communicated by His Spirit. 2. We cannot come to an understanding of God’s mind without Him communicating to us. 3. How does He do that? Does He leave us messages in the stars? Astrologists believe that He does. Is His message to be found in the palm of our hands? Palm readers would like us to believe that it is. 4. A question asked by many Christians is, “Is God communicating to us through special circumstances in our life to bring us to conclusions that we need to reach?” To ask the question reflects our uncertainty. Would God communicate a message without making it clear that it was a message from Him? 5. Sometimes I hear people say, “I just feel that God was communicating to me.” If He is why is He being so subtle? 6. What does Scripture say about the Holy Spirit’s work in communicating the message of God?Discussion:
I. The O.T. witness is clear that God uses His Spirit to communicate to men.A. It is apparent that during the Patriarchal Period God spoke directly to people.
1. Genesis describes Him conversing with Adam, Eve, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and others.
2. He communicated with Joseph, the baker, the butler and Pharaoh through dreams.
B. During the Mosaic period God communicated through prophets (Deut. 18:9-19).
1. This occurred as a result of Israel’s request (Ex. 20:18-21).
2. Other methods of receiving communication were prohibited (Deut. 18:9-14).
3. The implication is that God does not communicate through such mysterious and uncertain methods no matter how intriguing and interesting they may be.
4. Are people able to do such things as communicate with the dead? What about the diviners? Has the devil given them real powers? I think not! 2 Thess. 2:12 refers to “false wonders” and “the deception of wickedness.” But if they were “real” the message of God is “Do not listen to them.”
5. Jesus confirms that this is not God’s way of communicating with men in the account of the rich man and Lazarus. The rich man wanted Lazarus sent from the dead to his five brothers. But Abraham said, “They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them” (Lk. 18:29).
C. That God communicated through His Spirit is evident in the O.T. witness.
1. In Psa. 143:10 David prays, “Teach me to do Your will, for you are My God; let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.” Note the connection between God teaching him and the Spirit leading him.
2. In Psa. 106:33 when Israel was rebellious against God it is said “they were rebellious against His Spirit.”
3. Isaiah speaks of the Messiah and says, “the Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord” (11:2).
4. Isa. 61:1 says, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners.”
II. The N.T. witness is clear that God uses His Spirit to communicate to men.A. The N.T. witness validates the O.T. witness.
1. 2 Pet. 1:19-2 claims that “Men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.”
2. Heb. 3:7 says, “Just as the Holy Spirit says,” and then quotes from Psa. 95.
3. Acts 1:16 says concerning Judas the betrayer, “The Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit foretold by the mouth of David concerned Judas.”
4. Acts 4:25 says, “God spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of our father David” and then quotes Psa. 2:1.
5. Perhaps the most telling passage of all is in Acts 7:51ff in Stephen’s speech before the Jews when he said, “You are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did. Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute?”
6. The preponderance of evidence is that God typically communicates to men by means of the Holy Spirit through prophets whom He validates (Heb. 2:2-4).
B. “But don’t you think He communicates directly some times?” Yes, but this is the exception rather than the rule.
1. He communicated directly to Philip: “Go up and join this chariot” (Acts 8:29). Even in that instance the Spirit still operated through what was written and Phillip’s explanation of it.
2. The Spirit operated directly in Acts 13 when He said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them” (v. 2). Notice that even here he is sending prophets to communicate His message.
3. In Acts 16 the Spirit was involved in forbidding Paul from speaking the word in Asia, and Bithynia and instead gave him a vision involving going over to Macedonia.
4. God definitely can communicate directly.But it is the exception rather than the rule.
C. “Is God communicating with me indirectly, through circumstances, that He has brought me into?”
1. Is the current dry weather God calling on men to repent? If so He has not said so. He did in the 3 year and 6 month drought of Elijah’s day.
2. A tower in Jerusalem had fallen and killed 18 people in Jesus’ day (Lk. 13:2ff). The people evidently were concerned that this was God’s message that those 18 were worse sinners than others in Jerusalem.God had not said that. But should sinners repent? Certainly!
3. “But don’t you believe that God brings people into certain circumstances?” Yes, I believe that. But it is not something I have specific revelation on. I see evidence that God used people throughout Scripture to accomplish His purposes. Sometimes He used them and they were unaware of it (Pharaoh). Sometimes He used them and they later became aware of how they were used (Joseph; Gen. 50:20).
4. Sometimes things are unclear to us.
Conclusion:
1. Listen to what the Lord has clearly communicated to us. Do not neglect it by giving attention to areas where you cannot be clear. 2. Our faith needs to be based on what is clearly revealed rather than on what we are unsure of.
