Reference: John 16:13-14
We can look into the Old Testament andfind in many instances where Almighty God used certain men to do certainspecific things that he wanted accomplished. God used men such as Moses,Abraham, Samson, Daniel, and many, many others to do the very things that hehimself willed to be done. Of all the people that God worked through hemanifested himself through them by causing his Spirit to inspire them and tellthem what to do and what to say.
In the beginnning when God created theheavens and the earth, we are told that the Spirit of God moved upon the faceof the waters and God by his spoken word brought everything into existence.Whatever God does or wants done he will either do it himself or else he will,by his Spirit, inspire man to do it for him. Regardless as to how God does athing the will always do it through and by his Spirit.
Reading the books of the Old Testament, wefind that God only put his Spirit upon man only at the time when he wantedsomething done. The Spirit of God did not indwell the Old Testament prophets,but rather he only came upon them at certain times and would not remain withthem. There were many different things that God did through the men of the OldTestament era. He inspired them to prophesy of future events, and to teach thechildren of Israel the things contained in the law, and he also performed greatand mighty miracles such as the parting of the waters of the Red Sea and theriver of Jordan. There are many different great and mighty miracles that Goddid by his Spirit through many of the Old Testament prophets.
Regardless as to what God will do, he willalways do it through the power of his spoken word. God just spoke everythinginto existence by just saying to let it be done. Many places in the scripturesof the Old Testament, we find it being said of the time when God would not justdwell with man like he did with the children of Israel, but rather the timewould come when he would actually indwell people and remain in them even untilthe time of the end.
Now we can read of the things thatAlmighty God did and said through the saints of the Old Testament and askourselves many questions regarding the things that God will do through us inthis dispensation of time since Christ came to this earth hundreds of yearsago. We are told in God's word that the law was given by Moses, but grace andtruth came by Jesus Christ, as so stated in John1:17.
Now if we first have a good understandingas to why God even deals with man in the ways that he has already done asrecorded in the old testament, and in ways that he will deal with man as statedin the new testament, then we can know and understand the purpose of God givingus his Spirit in the day and age that we live in.
First of all we must go to the book of Genesis and find outwhere God created all things and to find out why he created these things. Godfirst created the earth and the heavens and all things that dwelled therein.God first brought forth the living creatures such as the type that live in thewaters and upon the earth such as the beasts and the fowls of the air. Thegreatest of all of God's creation was the bringing forth of man that wascreated in the likeness and the image of himself. Reading the account of man'screation, it did not seem to take very long for him to fall out of fellowshipwith his creator. He did this through the fall into sin when he partook of theforbidden fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil that was in thegarden of Eden.
When man fell into the power and influenceof sin, God began right away to put into effect a redeeming plan of salvationthat would bring man back to his original position that he had with God beforehis fall. This plan is mentioned in Genesis3:15 which refers to the Lord Jesusthat would come to this earth and reveal this perfect plan. This plan wasrevealed to the twelve disciples that Jesus had chosen.
Before Christ came and revealed thisperfect plan of redemption God gave the law to Moses and he was told to teachit to the Israel. The law served its purpose until the seed should come thatwould eventually bring forth the Lord Jesus Christ. The law was added becauseof transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made. (Galatians 3:19)
God did not put his Spirit upon man in thedays of the Old Testament just to make certain men greater than others. Godused these men for a very specific reason. And the same is true in our day andage that we live in. God does not give the Holy Spirit to men so that they canbecome somebody great in the eyes of the people. God gives his Spirit to leadthe believer into all the revealed truth revealed in the gospel and it is thistruth that will redeem man back to his original state that he was in before hisfall into sin. The law absolutely could not perfect man and bring him back intoperfect fellowship with Almighty God, but the bringing in of the New Testamentcovenant will. We are told in Hebrews 7:19 that the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of abetter hope did, by the which we draw nigh to God.
This better hope is the covenant of theNew Testament that was brought down to this earth by the Lord himself. Thisgospel, as it is also called, was revealed and taught to the disciples and theyin turn was told to go into all the world and proclaim it and those who believeit would be saved and those who do not will be damned. (Mark 16:15-16)
The Holy Ghost is given specifically forthe sole purpose of leading us into the very truth that will redeem us back tothe perfect state that Adam was in before his fall. God's revealed word of thegospel is yet very creative just like his word was creative in the beginning.God by his word created all things in existence and his word of the gospelrevealed by the Holy Spirit is the creative word that will transform a believerinto a perfect man filled with all the fulness of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Man today has come up with many ideas asto the purpose of God giving the Holy Ghost to them. Many get the mistaken ideathat God gives the Holy Spirit to men so that the world can know that God is aGod of power and can do all things, but this is not God's plan. God mostcertainly will be glorified, but not in the way that many think today.
All that the greatest majority of peopletoday are interested in, as far as God is concerned, is the ability to workgreat miracles etc. Reading the book of Revelations will show thatit's by the working of miracles that will deceive the world. Revelation 19:20 saysthat it was by the working of miracles that the false prophets wrought beforethe beast that caused multitudes of people to receive the mark of the beast andworship his image.
The truth that is not being proclaimedtoday is the truth concerning how a person is born again and becoming a childof God. It seems that nearly everybody has accepted the instant religion todayand rejecting the truth as the Bible reveals it....