“And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— the Spirit of truth.” John 14:16-17a
This coming Thursday we will be celebrating the ascension of the Lord Jesus to heaven. Through this article we are once again reminded of the promise that Jesus gave to His disciples before He ascended to heaven. He promised that He would give them a helper. Who is this helper? He is the Holy Spirit, who is the Spirit of truth. He is a person. He is a spirit who is real and exists, even though we cannot touch him physically. As a person, the Holy Spirit has knowledge, will, emotion, and power. He is the Lord himself, a third divine person in the Trinity along with the Father and the Son, the Lord Jesus.
Before anything else existed, the Holy Spirit was already here. He was involved in the making of this universe. He was the Spirit who filled and controlled the people who were chosen and determined by the Lord to be judges, kings, prophets, etc in the Old Testament. He was also the Spirit in Joel 2:28-29 – the Spirit that was promised to be poured out on all mankind. This came to pass during the first Pentecost in Jerusalem over 2000 years ago.
As a helper, what does the Holy Spirit do in our lives? First, He guides and leads us. he shows the paths we should take in order to be in accordance with the will of God. That is why it is very important to involve the Holy Spirit in all things, even in small decisions we have to make.
Before He ascended to heaven, Jesus said to His disciples, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” The Lord fulfilled His promise. After the first Pentecost, we are able to read in Acts, how the disciples were used amazingly in their ministry with the power of the Holy Spirit. The blind saw, the lame walked, the dead was risen up, and diseases were healed using the power of the Holy Spirit.
We have to acknowledge that the work of the Holy Spirit is limitless and we just have to allow Him to work in our lives. The Holy Spirit is more than just a Spirit who leads and guides us. He is more than the Spirit who gives us power in our ministry. The Holy Spirit reveals the presence of the Lord in our lives.
Ten days after the ascension of the Lord Jesus to heaven, we are going to celebrate Pentecost, which is the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Prepare ourselves and let’s wait on the Holy Spirit! He is coming and will fill us with great power. We are going to experience “wonders” through the power of the Holy Spirit. Amin. God bless you!
Source: GBI Gatot Subroto, Jakarta Bulletin