The Holy Spirit

John 16:4-15

"I needed God in a personal way – not as an object of my study, but as friend, guide, comforter. I needed an existential experience of the Holy One…I found the Scriptures to be helpful – even authoritatively helpful – as a guide. But without feeling God, the Bible gave me little solace…I found a longing to get closer to God, but found myself unable to do so through my normal means: exegesis, scripture reading, more exegesis. I believe that I had depersonalized God so much that when I really needed him I didn’t know how to relate." - Daniel Wallace

“The Spirit’s message to us is never, ‘Look at me; listen to me; come to me; get to know me,’ but always, ‘Look at him; and see his glory; listen to him, and hear his word; go to him, and have life; get to know him; and taste his gift of joy and peace.’” - J.I. Packer

Life Group Discussion Questions

  1. In verse 6, how does Jesus describe the way the disciples feel about his pending departure? As the Helper is his gracious response to those feelings, what should we understand about the gift of the Holy Spirit? How does verse 7 confirm this?

  2. The Holy Spirit brings conviction – concerning sin, concerning righteousness, and concerning judgment. In what areas of your life would you benefit from this particular ministry of the Spirit? What truths are less than real to you that the Holy Spirit can make more real?

  3. The Holy Spirit illuminates God’s Word. How does this encourage you? What are some habits and rhythms that we can pursue to seek and invite this work of the Spirit into our lives?

  4. The Holy Spirit glorifies Jesus. In what ways can we apply this truth to our lives?

Proposed Statement of Faith

We believe the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, fully divine. He proceeds from the Father and the Son to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. He graciously works to call, regenerate, sanctify, and empower all who profess saving faith in Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit indwells every believer and serves as an abiding helper, teacher, and guide. He is the source of all scripture and illuminates them for all who desire to know truth. This results in personal transformation through the renewing of the mind. The Spirit of God helps believers to engage in spiritual warfare, and He gives His fruit to those who walk in Him. He constitutes the church as God’s family and promotes its unity and maturity. He grants spiritual gifts to each believer for service and promotion of the gospel. He provides endurance for all believers and seals them for the final day of redemption.

Main Text: John 16:4-15

Other Key Texts: Joel 2:28-32; Acts 2:1-41

For Further Study: Mike McKinley, Friendship with God: A Path to Deeper Fellowship with the Father, Son, and Spirit

“The Spirit’s message to us is never, ‘Look at me; listen to me; get to know me,’ but always, ‘Look at [Christ], and see his glory; listen to him, and hear his word; go to him, and have life; get to know him, and taste his gift of joy and peace.’” -J.I. Packer