“Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.”
John 16:7 (NKJV)

“And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever.”
John 14:16 (NKJV)
 

Jesus told His disciples that it would be better for them that He leave and go to His Father; and that when He left, He would send His Holy Spirit who would live (abide) with them forever. In the Old Covenant (which Jesus had just fulfilled and brought to a conclusion), God’s Holy Spirit came on certain people, for express purposes, at specific times, and then He would leave. But in the New Covenant (which we are now in) the Holy Spirit would come and stay. He doesn’t come and go – He “abides forever”.

 

In the Gospel of John (John 15:26; 14:16; 16:7), Jesus calls the Holy Spirit our Helper or “parakletos”. This Greek word can be defined in a number of different ways and beautifully describes the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Jesus was calling the Holy Spirit our Comforter, Counsellor, Helper and Guide. Living out the Christian life isn’t difficult, it’s impossible! We certainly need a Helper to help lead us on the right paths (John 16:13) and to help us make good decisions, and what a blessing to have a Comforter and Counsellor who is with us 24 hours a day, ready to encourage us, build us up and refresh us by reminding us of God’s Word and who we are in Christ. We should be the most encouraged, confident, joyful, fearless, positive and motivated people on earth! The role or ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives is vital and significant. But there is another reason we desperately need the Holy Spirit…

 

“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.”

Acts 1:8 (NKJV)

 

The baptism (or empowering) of the Holy Spirit enables us to live lives that bring glory to Jesus and enable us to be effective witnesses (ambassadors) for Him in all the earth. After rising from the dead Jesus told His disciples to wait for the empowering of the Holy Spirit before starting to fulfill the Great Commission to tell the World the Good News (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-18; Acts 1:4-5) because He knew that they wouldn’t be able to fulfill the Commission without the empowering. The Baptism (or empowering) of the Holy Spirit is a gift from God that you receive after becoming a Christian. We have a supernatural call – and therefore we need supernatural power to fulfill the call. Trying to live the Christian life without the baptism of the Holy Spirit is like trying to drive a car without petrol; you’ve got the car but it’s not going anywhere without a push (lots of effort).

 

Jesus said that when we receive the Holy Spirit, we receive “power”. The word “power” in the Greek is Dunamis, which means miraculous working power or ability. When we receive the empowering of the Spirit, we receive supernatural ability to do the miraculous and move in the gifts of the Spirit (these include: words of wisdom, words of knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, and prophecy). Jesus said that we would do the same works that He did and greater works, but we cannot do anything supernatural without supernatural power. The overall purpose of the empowering of the Holy Spirit (and the reason we are enabled to move in these supernatural gifts) is to be effective witnesses of Jesus in all the World (Acts 1:8) and to share the Gospel with boldness (Acts 4:29-31). The power of the Holy Spirit enables us to reign in life and make an eternal impact in people’s lives wherever we go.

The Holy Spirit is my Comforter, Counsellor, Helper and Guide. He will never leave me nor forsake me (John 14:16; Hebrews 13:5). That means that I am never without help, comfort, encouragement, wisdom, guidance or counsel. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit empowers me to live a supernatural life which brings glory to Jesus. This empowering helps me to fulfill the calling of God on my life to be an ambassador of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20) and make an eternal impact in people’s lives.

Over the next couple of days we will be looking at the empowering of the Holy Spirit to reign in life. If you’d like a head-start in learning more about the Holy Spirit and the Gift of Tongues, then you can download this short study guide.