May 22, 2005
Morning Sermon Outline
”Another Helper”
John 14:16-17
”When God designed the great and glorious work of recovering fallen man and saving sinners to the praise and glory of His grace, He appointed in His infinite wisdom two great means thereof: The one was the giving of His Son for them; and the other was the giving of His Spirit to them.” John Owen
In this passage, we see the great importance of the work of the Holy Spirit in our salvation:
I. He is the prayed for replacement of Jesus Christ – 14:16a
1. He is equal to Christ and to God the Father as the third Person of the Godhead – WSC Question 6, Matthew 28:19-20
2. He is Christ’s complimentary counterpart in the work of our salvation
A. His work is as necessary as Christ’s
B. His work completes Christ’s
3. His work is essential to the success of the Church – John 14:12; Acts 2
II. He is the One who abides with us forever – John 14:16b
1. This touches at the heart of the purpose of our salvation, a relationship with God – Jeremiah 31:33; Revelation 21:3
2. This is what God promised Abraham – Genesis 17:7
3. God had His tabernacle with His people in the wilderness – Exodus 40:32-38
4. Solomon built a temple – 1 Kings 8:27
5. Jesus was Emmanuel (God with us) – Matthew 1:23; John 1:14
6. The Holy Spirit dwells in us – 1 Corinthians 3:16, 1 Corinthians 3:19
III. He is the Spirit of Truth – John 14:17
1. Our depravity is such that it clouds our minds / also God’s ways are not our ways – 1 Corinthians 1:18 – 2:16
2. The depravity in the world in which we live confuses things more
3. It is important that we understand our own weaknesses, they keep us from understanding Scripture
4. Therefore, we pray for the Help of God’s Holy Spirit as we read, hear or study God’s Word.
5. The Spirit will never lead us contrary to the teachings of God’s Word!
IV. This is another reason for studying God’s truth about the Holy Spirit, there are many counterfeit spirits –
1. Anything good will be counterfeited, this is a long time practice of the Devil – Exodus 7:10-13; Jeremiah 14:14; Lamentations 2:14; Ezekiel 22:28; Matthew 7:15; Matthew 24:11-14; Matthew 24:24; Luke 6:26; 2 Peter 2:1-2
2. We are commanded to test the Spirits – 1 John 4:1-4; 1 Thessalonians 5:19-21
Application for Today
1. Today’s sermon I am hoping, Lord willing, will be the first in a series of sermons on the Holy Spirit, pray that the Lord will bless us as we study His Holy Spirit’s life and ministry among us.
2. Make it your own goal to cultivate your relationship with God through the studying of Scripture with the prayed for help of our Helper the Holy Spirit.
Corrie Ten Boom in her book "Each New Day" writes:
"I have a glove in my hand. It can't do anything by itself, but when the hand is in it is can do many things. It is true it is not the glove, but the hand that acts. We are the gloves. The Holy Spirit is the hand that does the work. We are called to make room for the hand to do the work through us."
