And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. 
—John 14:16-17

The Holy Spirit is almost unknown to the world and sadly to the body of Christ. They talk about Him, but few realize who the Holy Spirit is and what He came to do.

Jesus called Him another Counselor. The Greek word is parakletos. It means someone who comes along to provide aid, help, strength, and guidance. It is the word for paralegal. He is like an attorney.

A few months ago, my former church was in a legal battle, so I hired an attorney to fight for our rights. He was able to go to court, defend our rights, and use the law for our advantage. Ultimately we won the case. If I had done that on my own, I know I would have lost. But thank God for my attorney. He knew more than I did.

The Holy Spirit is like this. When you confront a situation beyond your ability and knowledge, the Holy Spirit will provide the strength and wisdom so you can win in life. The difference between Him and a lawyer is that He is free. He is a gift.

Holy Spirit in the Old Testament

Jesus said He would ask the Father to send us the Holy Spirit. This means that the Holy Spirit was not yet given, which brings us to an important question: Was the Holy Spirit at work in the Old Testament?

Of course He was, just like Christ was before His birth. Jesus appeared at various times to the Old Testament saints, such as to Moses in the burning bush and to Abraham at Mamre (Genesis 18). Despite Jesus pre-incarnated appearances, it was His birth in Bethlehem that marked His coming to the earth. The same is true of the Spirit. Pentecost will always mark the time when the Holy Spirit came.

There are several distinct differences between the way the Holy Spirit worked under the Old Covenant than the way He works under the New Covenant. There are four major differences.

First, back then God gave them the gift of the Spirit sovereignly. No one could ask for the gift or believe for the gift; it came when God wanted to empower someone for service. If you lived in those times, you could not have asked God in faith for the Holy Spirit.

Today, Jesus says, "If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (Luke 11:13). We can now ask for the Holy Spirit. Do not be like so many Christians waiting for God to sovereignly give them the Holy Spirit or waiting to speak in tongues if God wills it. You must come to God in faith and pray expectantly for the gift.

Second, the Holy Spirit came upon them to empower them for some special service; however, the Holy Spirit did not help the saints to fellowship with God. Take Samson as an example. The Holy Spirit would come upon him so that he would have supernatural strength to do battle with the enemy. Yet, if you look at his life, he was a very carnal man. I do not see that he had an intimate relationship with God.

Yet, now the Holy Spirit is here to help us know Jesus and God the Father. He produces intimacy with God. This is why Paul wrote: "May the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all." (2 Cor 13:14). He produces fellowship under the New Covenant.

Third, the Holy Spirit came upon them temporarily. He never abided with them forever. For example, when Samson got his hair cut, Delilah said, "The Philistines are upon you." He woke up from his sleep only to find "that the LORD had left him" (Judg 16:20). The Holy Spirit never permanently abided with those saints.

Yet, Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would be with you forever. We do not have to worry about the Holy Spirit leaving us if we do wrong. He will stay forever, so long as we continue to believe in Jesus Christ.

Fourth, the Holy Spirit came "upon" them, but He never came to "indwell" them. In speaking to His disciples, Jesus said, "He lives with you and will be in you." Not only is the Spirit with us, but better, He is in us.

The difference is plain. What would you prefer, a big man pushing your car, or having gasoline inside your car? As strong as he may be, the gasoline will take you further and faster than anyone pushing your car. The Holy Spirit used to carry and move the prophets; today, He is inside of us doing far greater than He did under the Old Covenant.

Don’t You Know

Don’t you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? (1 Cor 3:16)

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; (1 Cor 6:19)

What I find interesting about these passages is the fact that Paul, instead of plainly stating that the Spirit lives in them, he, rhetorically questioned, "Do you not know that God’s Spirit lives in you?" He said it twice. Now, why would Paul question them on this? It doesn’t take a genius to figure out why; he asked them this because it was obvious that they did not know that the Spirit lived in them.

There are so many believers who have received the Spirit, but they forget that they have Him on the inside of them. They act like they are by themselves. They feel alone or powerless. Yet the truth is they have the power of God to help them overcome every obstacle that Satan throws their way. It is clear that the body of Christ often does not know that the Holy Spirit lives in them.

The Greater One

You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. (I Jn 4:4)

I hear Christians tremble and say, "Pastor, pray for me, someone has put a curse on me." My flesh wants to shake them and say, "Brother, who cares!? Why are you worried, the greater One lives in you!" Of course, I try to be patient and show them who they are in Christ and that the Spirit lives in them.

Many believers feel overwhelmed by the problems of life. It is easy to feel frustrated when things have not gone your way. But, praise God, you have a helper who lives inside you.

Let him help you. He likes to be put to work. You put Him to work by confessing who He is to you. Confess that He is the greater one.

If you are facing sickness, confess, "The Holy Spirit makes healthy my mortal body."

If you are confronting curses, confess, "The Holy Spirit will cause the curse to go back to the person who is trying to curse me."

If you are encountering confusion, counter it by confessing, "The Holy Spirit is giving me wisdom and counsel."

You see, when you confess that the greater one is in you, then He rises big on the inside of you and provides the help you need.

Treasure in Jars of Clay

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. (2 Cor 4:7)

The mystery of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is revealed by this verse: the Holy Spirit is the treasure inside jars of clay. The problem we meet is the fact that we are jars of clay. There is nothing plainer than jars of clay. Our bodies seem so earthly and natural, and they are. However, it is not the jars of clay that are powerful, but it is the treasure that the jars of clay hold.

God did not make us little silver teapots, polished and bright. No, He never changed our bodies when the Holy Spirit came to live in us. Instead, He leaves our bodies the way they are. This often fools us into thinking that we are not that great. We think we are not powerful. We are looking at our natural selves, and we are not very impressive. But it is not the natural self that is powerful; it is the treasure inside of us that is powerful.

An athlete does not look strong sipping tea. But when he goes to play, you soon see how strong and athletic he is.

The Holy Spirit does not make us look strong when we go about our lives. He is not meant to make us look powerful. But when God calls us to our task, then the Holy Spirit enables us to do the job with competence. When troubles comes our way, then we discover the power of God to help us overcome. So long as everything is fine and you do your normal task, then there is no need for the Holy Spirit to help. He comes to help when you have reached the end of your strength and wisdom.

You will continue to look like jars of clay until the treasure is opened. The treasure only needs to be opened when you need His wealth and expertise.

A millionaire who walks by you does not look rich. He looks normal. But little do you know that all he needs to do is make a phone call and his money will flow to him. That is like us. We do not look rich. We do not look like joint heirs with Christ. The world despises us. Yet, little do they know that we can simply make a heavenly phone call and God will send us His riches through the form of answered prayer.

What makes ‘em fly?

A curious black boy attended a fair for the first time in the early 1900’s. He was starry eyed as he watched the amusement rides and various booths. Then he noticed a white balloon floating high in the air.

Where did it come from, he thought to himself. As he looked around the corner of a cotton candy stand, he saw an elderly, black gentleman filling balloons with helium. Crowds of children were buying balloons from him. When the crowds dispersed, he took a yellow balloon and filled it with helium and let it go. As it flew in the air, the crowds would come again to buy balloons. He did it again. He filled a red balloon and let it go in the air.

The little boy came to him and asked, "Mister, what if you filled a black balloon with air, will it fly?"

The old man smiled, "Son, it ain’t the color of the balloons that makes ‘em fly. It’s what’s on the inside of ‘em that makes ‘em fly."

Don’t get your mind on the color of your skin, or the degrees at the end of your name, or the money or lack of it in your bank. Get your mind on what is inside of you. The Holy Spirit lives in you and He will make you fly.