“Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God” Ephesians 4:30.
As I continue to try to understand the Holy Spirit who lives in each of us as believers, I find myself confused but determined to enter into a deeper awareness and relationship with Him. The Holy Spirit is a Person and has His own personality just like us. Yesterday, determined to carry my pursuit of the Holy Spirit into the rest of my day I grabbed an iced coffee, sat outside a bakery facing the sun and began to speak to Him. I closed my eyes and with the sun on my face heard myself say, ‘You know every single thing about me, and yet I know very little about you. Give me one word which describes your nature.’ After a minute or two the word ‘peace’ came into my mind. Suddenly, I was filled with an amazing peace and awareness of a breeze on my face and the songs of birds singing. I was so thankful that He wanted me to know something of His nature, but He also put the emotions with it.
This morning my study turns to how we can grieve or ‘sadden’ the Holy Spirit. Just like we have emotions, according to Scripture so does He. The NLT translation of Ephesians 4:29-32 states, ‘Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them. And do not bring sorrow (grief) to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live…Get rid of bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words…Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.’ My nature is to always pursue harmony and peace in my relationships. This has been my mantra since I was a little girl. It saddens me to see opposition and divisiveness between people and it will actually push me away. Other times, I am saddened by the way I have hurt a person whom I love. Scripture is clear that anything that takes us away from peace and unity will sadden the Spirit. I think He must be sensitive…I think He must be tenderhearted…I wonder if He distances Himself when saddened just like I do?
Our conversation, conduct, and character matter, and deeply affects the Spirit of God. We were given the Holy Spirit as a blessing and a relationship that we should always pursue. We must see Him as a friend and a constant companion who longs to fellowship with us. A friend who has feelings…ideas…desires. He wants to be heard, experienced, and loved just like God and Jesus. ‘The Holy Spirit has made our hearts His dwelling place. Everywhere we go, He goes; that is an intimate association. Therefore, He is deeply affected by what we allow into our lives.’ The Holy Spirit, John Bevere, p. 61.
Our interaction with the Spirit is to be treasured, protected, and honored always.
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