The Big Diehl

No person can say that Jesus is Lord but by the Holy Spirit! (1 Cor. 12:3). It is the Holy Spirit that convicts and convinces of sin (John 16:8).

Without the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit, no person can come to Christ. In Romans 8, the Apostle Paul wrote an entire chapter on the subject of REGENERATION. To regenerate means to be spiritually reborn. It means to be renewed or restored. The dictionary states: “to form or bring into existence again; re-establish on a new basis.” To be regenerated is to be formed again or to be made anew. Such words as “born again,” “to be saved,” “to receive Christ,” “to become a Christian,” and “to receive Christ as Saviour” are all terms that we use to describe regeneration.

The Apostle Paul wrote the entire 8th chapter of Romans to explain the doctrinal truth of regeneration. The purpose of regeneration is to provide life (eternal life) to the believer. When the believer invites Jesus Christ into his heart, the Holy Spirit comes as the “Spirit of Life.” (Romans 8:2).

The Scripture states that we have life when the Holy Spirit comes as the Spirit of Christ to dwell in us (Romans 8:10). It is the Holy Spirit who assures us of resurrection from the dead (Romans 8:11).

Every person who has confessed his sin and has publicly acknowledged Jesus Christ as Saviour and has asked for forgiveness has received the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit enters into us as the “Spirit of Christ.” He is also the Spirit of God (Romans 8:9 and Romans 8:14).

EVERY BELIEVER HAS RECEIVED THE HOLY SPIRIT!! It is impossible to be a Christian without the abiding presence of God’s Spirit in our lives.

It is the Holy Spirit that bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. This inner witness is the “blessed assurance” that we have been born again. Believers are made anew. We are REGENERATED! Christians have eternal life. The Holy Spirit indwells all believers so that each one can be led and directed by Him. (Romans 8:14). Jesus stated that the Holy Spirit will guide us into all truth (John 16:13; 14:17).

The believer is not left alone. Jesus has sent the blessed Holy Spirit so that we would not be left comfortless. He comes to bear witness that we are, indeed, a child of God (John 14:16, 18).

The Apostle Paul makes it very, very clear that it is impossible to be a Christian without the Holsy Spirit indwelling us. We are the temples of God. As we read through this wonderful eighth chapter of Romans, we discover the Holy Spirit is called [many things]:

The Spirit of Life (Romans 8:2)
The Spirit (Romans 8:4, 5, 9, 26, 27)
The Spirit of God (Romans 8:9, 14)
The Spirit of Christ (Romans 8:9)
The Spirit of Adoption (Romans 8:15)
The Spirit Himself (Romans 8:16, 26).

When we receive Jesus Christ as our Savior, we have His life — eternal life. When we receive Jesus Christ into our hearts, He gives us a spiritual mind and a spiritual understanding. (Romans 8:5-7).

In 1 Corinthians 2:14-16, we learn that the natural man cannot receive the things of God. We have received the Spirit of God, that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. (1 Corinthians 2:13).

The carnal mind does not grasp spiritual truth. Our natural minds are at enmity against God and cannot be subject to the law of God. A Christian understands spiritual truths. The Word of God becomes meat and food. The Scriptures are alive. Preaching the Word produces life and power. The Word of God produces and strengthens faith. Without the ministry and work of the Holy Spirit, none of this is possible.

[”Is The Holy Spirit Real?” By the late Dr. Paul E. Paino. Copyright 1992 Paul E. Paino Ministries. Used by Permission].

I have noticed a lack of understanding when it comes to the function of the Holy Spirit in our lives. That’s why I’ve started a new blog series titled, “Is the Holy Spirit Real?” The upcoming blogs will not be my own words, but will be direct quotation from the book, “Is the Holy Spirit Real?” by the late Dr. Paul E. Paino. (Copyright 1992 Paul E. Paino Ministries). I will occasionally insert my own comments for discussion or clarification, but when I do, it will be in [brackets]. I will also make slight modifications to make it more appropriate for online viewing (for example, I will utilize links in scripture references).

I am thrilled to have obtained permission to share this book with you on my blog. Dr. Paino provides the most clear, simple, and concise teaching on pneumatology that I have ever seen. I will start with a portion of the introduction:

While attending Bible school in the early 1940’s, I began asking serious questions concerning the work, the ministry, and the personality of the Holy Spirit. Here are some questions with which I constantly wrestled:

1. Do all believers in Jesus Christ receive the Holy Spirit?
2. Does the Baptism in the Holy Spirit produce Christian character?
3. Is the Baptism in the Holy Spirit primarily for the purpose of receiving power?
4. Is there a difference between being baptized in the Spirit and being filled with the Spirit?
5. Does the experience of the Baptism give us power to witness or does receiving the Holy Spirit give us this power?
6. What is the purpose of “tongues”?
7. Can the “gifts of the Spirit” or “spirituals” operate in a person who has not received the Baptism in the Holy Spirit?
8. Are all of the “spirituals” of “gifts of the Spirit” to operate in the local church today?
9. Are these “spirituals” resident int he believer, and can these “gifts” function at the will or bidding of the believer?

These are a few of the questions that I want to address in the following pages [blogs]. As a result of searching the Scriptures concerning these matters, the Lord gave me clear understanding concerning the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Yes . . . the HOLY SPIRIT is REAL!

For years I considered a lot of the Bible pretty boring. Okay . . . really boring. Reading through the first five books where God explains the “law” was sorta boring. Reading pages of “So and So was the father of . . .” was sorta boring as well. And reading one of the Old Testament books written by a prophet, where it can be really difficult linking the prophecy with the historical context — that’s just . . . tedious.

But it all has a purpose.

I had a high school literature teacher named Mrs. Nisun who taught me that “the author puts every word in the book for a reason. Pay attention to all of them.” I think she was talking about Nathaniel Hawthorne when she said that, but how much more true is that when the author is God? I began to enjoy those “boring” parts of the Bible a lot more when I seriously began learning about Him. Learning the history and context of the books. I learned why the first five books of the Bible needed to be as long and tedious as they are. I learned why the genealogical information was important.

The Bible is jam-packed with the message of salvation through Jesus Christ. All of it — even the boring parts.

For those reading who don’t know me, I’m a musician. I play the piano, and throughout time I have learned how to practice. The secret to effective practice is spending time on the things that you cannot already do. For example, if you have to play 2 songs for an event and you’re really good at one, and you stink at the other song — you should spend rehearsal time working on the song that you stink at, and not spend time on the song that you already can play. This seems self-explanatory, right? Many musicians have problems with this because working on songs that don’t sound good yet isn’t always fun. It takes time for a musician to find the fun in the process and not just in the final product.

As I now work with many other musicians, I’m often surprised at how many of them haven’t learned how to practice. They think that “practice” means playing all the fun stuff that we are already really good at. What does that accomplish? Nothing. It accomplishes absolutely nothing. It only results in a short-lasted fun time and a much longer rehearsal.

Now let’s pull that concept out of the musical context and apply it to other areas of our lives. What’s you “music”; the thing you’re trying to get better at? Are you trying to get “better” at your relationship with God? …at your job? …at your relationships? All these things can be practiced. Are you practicing effectively?

On several occasions I’ve heard the argument from a non-Christian that they don’t want to get involved in church or Christianity because the church is filled with hypocrites.

I’m a hypocrite on some levels. I’ll be one of the first to admit it, but I know I’m not alone. A hypocrite is someone who says one thing and does the opposite. I may tell someone else, “Read your Bible everyday.” Yet the next day I might get busy and push aside reading my Bible myself. That’s being a hypocrite. If hypocrisy is measured strictly in action, then all Christians are hypocrites on some level; no one is perfect. We say (at least by association): “don’t sin” and then we turn around and do it. That’s hypocrisy, and every Christian does it.

But what those who have fallen away from Christ don’t understand is that a Christian’s relationship with God is not about having each and every action perfect. Christian’s know that we will sin, but we also know that we are moving away from sin. We try not to. If hypocrisy is measured strictly in action, then we’re hypocrites. But a Christian’s life can’t just be considered in action, but also in the heart. To stick with my Bible reading example, when I realize I didn’t read my Bible on a day I quickly reorient my heart towards God and get back on the right page. That doesn’t excuse my screwing up. But it explains how hypocrisy can exist in each of us. It isn’t always pure evil. In strictly action, I am a hypocrite sometimes. But in heart (since I repent of the sin), I am not. I say one thing, slip in doing the opposite, and then fix it.

Since I know I will probably fail sometime, should I keep my mouth shut and not proclaim God’s truth? Of course not. “Woe is unto me if I don’t preach the Gospel,” right? (1 Cor. 9:16). I will boldly preach truth. Sometimes I will blow it (and then fix it). That makes me a hypocrite sometimes. That doesn’t change truth.

So when a non-Christian says that they don’t want to get involved in a church because its full of hypocrites, I say, “Yes, it is. What does that have to do with you?”

I opened a bag of potato chips the other day. Not just any potato chip, but original kettle cooked recipe. Oh, those are so good — and crunchy.

Have you ever noticed how when you open up a bag of potato chips there is an incredible fresh bag smell? It only lasts a few seconds, and then its gone. But wow, it smells so fresh right then.

Then when you come back the next day, even if you rolled up the bag, it won’t be as fresh as it was the day before. Every day after the bag is opened it gets more and more stale.

That’s what religion does to a Christian. Remember when you asked God into your life? It was fresh and exciting. But as time goes on, we often forget that our Christianity isn’t about religion but its about our relationship. This mis-directed thought pattern is the cause of many religiously transmitted diseases.

This is a plug for Ed Gungor’s book, “Religiously Transmitted Diseases.” This book discusses many incorrect thought patterns that have somehow infiltrated the church, alot more than I had expected. This book has significantly changed my life, and I encourage any Christian to read it. Check it out.

Holiness is being set apart.
Christians are to be holy and set apart.
How do we do this?

The most common (and most immature) answer to this would be to show everyone else how holy we are. This is projected holiness. This is when we take the things that sets us apart (makes us holy) and project them towards everyone else. The attitude becomes more like, “I don’t [insert questionable behavior here]! Do you see how holy I am?” This works in the opposite direction as well, “I am [insert GOOD behavior, i.e. fasting]! Do you see how holy I am?” I think if we stop here and think, most of us have had this attitude . . . many of us still have it. This is projected holiness.

Or worse yet — we take personal convictions and project our holiness towards others in a legalistic manner. For example, “Due to my personal conviction, I don’t [insert questionable behavior]. You shouldn’t either!” That’s projected holiness.

Jesus taught us that our holiness is not a “projection” issue. It is an internal issue. In Matthew 5, Jesus took several outward actions (projected holiness), and explained how the heart was much more important. Murder and adultery are both wrong actions. But Jesus says that if someone is angry or looks lustfully at another they have murdered or committed adultery in God’s eyes.

Christians, let’s stop focusing on projecting our holiness towards others.

Our focus needs to be our internal holiness.

When we are internally holy, the holiness on the inside of us will ooze out. You won’t be able to help it. The oozing of our internal holiness is what will shine out among the world. Our internal holiness will be evangelistic and through the Holy Spirit, it will convict others. We don’t need to make it that way.

Be internally holy.