Some people look at the Christian life and say, "I couldn't begin to live that way and hold to those standards. It is too hard!" This is true. It is not hard to be a Christian—it is impossible (that is without the help of the Holy Spirit). You see, God has given you power to live the Christian life. The moment you asked Jesus Christ into your heart, he gave you the gift of his Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit not only takes up residence in your heart, but he empowers you to live a holy life and to be an effective witness for Jesus Christ.
The Holy Spirit's power is much like an investment. You need to draw upon his power daily to live out your faith. To find out more about how the Holy Spirit can empower and strengthen your Christian walk, look up the following passages of Scripture.
1. God's Spirit Will Guide You. The Holy Spirit will help you understand the truths of Scripture and the character of God.
(see John 16:13-15)
2. God's Spirit Will Empower Your Witness. The Holy Spirit will give you greater courage and an increased ability to share your faith.
(see Acts 1:8)
3. God's Spirit Will Encourage You to Be Obedient. You will have a Holy Spirit inspired desire to obey God's commands
(see Ezekiel 36:26-27)
4. God's Spirit Will Help You Overcome Sin. Sin will no longer have the power over you it had before you accepted Christ into your life.
(see Romans 8:9-14)
A) God's Spirit Will Guide You
Read John 16:13-15
The work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a Christian is multidimensional. We are told that, among other things, the Holy Spirit "speaks to us deep in our hearts and tells us that we are God's children" (Romans 8:16). In this passage, we see that the Holy Spirit serves as a teacher and a guide.
The Holy Spirit Will Help Us Understand the Bible. Before you became a Christian, understanding the Bible may have been like walking around with blinders on. But those "blinders" you once had were taken off, so to speak. when the Holy Spirit took up residence in your heart. The Holy Spirit teaches you the truth of the Scripture, helping you grasp hard-to-understand passages.
The Holy Spirit Will Reveal More and More about God and Jesus.
The Bible makes it abundantly clear that one of the primary roles of the Holy Spirit is to glorify Christ. The moment you invited Jesus into your heart, God's Spirit began to help you grasp the awesome, praiseworthy attributes of Jesus. Those who do not have a personal relationship with Christ cannot see or understand the full glory of God, because they do not have the Holy Spirit's assistance.
The Holy Spirit wants to be actively involved in your life, helping you grow in the knowledge of God and his Word so that you can better understand God's will for your life. Every time you open the Bible, pray for the Holy Spirit to show you how the passages you read can apply to your life.
B) God's Spirit Will Empower Your Witness
Read Acts 1:8
One of the greatest things the Holy Spirit wants to do in the life of the believer is empower his or her witness. The word for power in this verse comes from the Greek word dunamis, from which we get the words dynamite, dynamic, and dynamo. God didn't give us the power of the Holy Spirit to feel something, but to accomplish something.
Sometimes the Holy Spirit's power acts like dynamite in our lives, blasting us with zeal, jolting us out of complacency, and motivating us to greater spiritual growth. At other times God's Spirit is like a dynamic, generating power that will help us live from day to day at a level we could not achieve on our own.
We need to remember the encouraging words the apostle Paul gave to young Timothy: "For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline" (2 Tim. 1:7).
Are you timid in your witness for Christ? Is it hard for you to speak up for what you believe? Then you need to tap in to that power he has made available to you through his Spirit. God's Holy Spirit will give you an added dimension of boldness, power, and persuasiveness in your witness that you have never experienced before.
C) God's Spirit Will Encourage You to Be Obedient
Read Ezekiel 36:26-27
As a new believer, you may be wondering if your old lifestyle will lure you away from the Lord you love. Make no mistake about it: You will be tempted to do some of the things you have now tried to put out of your life. But you don't have to give in to those temptations. In fact, this passage should encourage you.
You see, God has already performed "heart surgery" on you, so to speak. To keep that new heart healthy and strong, he has given you an in-house physician: the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit will not only fill your heart with a love for God, but he will also help you to obey God's commands and follow the principles found in the Bible. So when those temptations come your way—and they will—ask the Holy Spirit to give your heart a checkup and any necessary maintenance. And he will.
D) God's Spirit Will Help You Overcome Sin
Read Romans 8:9-14
This powerful passage of Scripture contains some critical truths we need to know about letting the Holy Spirit lead our lives.
Remember, once you became a Christian, God gave you his Holy Spirit to help you live out your faith, guide your steps, empower your witness, and, as this passage attests, overcome sin. Look at four key points the apostle Paul makes here:
1. You Are Controlled by a New Nature. Your old, sinful nature will still try to get a hand on the steering wheel. But now your new nature is in the driver's seat, and your old nature has become like an annoying backseat driver. You can either give in to your old nature's nagging bad directions, or you can ignore it and let the Holy Spirit direct your path.
2. Even Though You Will Face Physical Death, You Will Not Face Spiritual Death. As a believer, physical death is simply a transition to eternal life in heaven. You have been spared from spiritual death, which leads to everlasting torment and hell (see Rev. 21:8). This important fact should reassure you when the devil tries to throw doubts your way.
3. The Same Spirit of God That Raised Jesus from the Dead Resides in You. Did you catch that? The Holy Spirit, who had the power to raise Jesus from the dead, now lives in you! If that is indeed true—and God's Word says it is—just think of the supernatural power you now have in your life to resist sin!
4. We Do Not Have to Give In to Our Sinful Nature and Urges. Paul wasn't talking about New Year's resolutions here. If we try to live a morally upright, godly life in our own strength, we will fail—and fail miserably. But, if we rely on the power of the Holy Spirit to help us, we will be overcomers.
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