The Holy Spirit Speaks Jn. 16:13 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO
The Holy Spirit speaks. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that you stay “in tune” with the Spirit of God so that you will hear him when he speaks. Be filled with the Spirit so that when he speaks you won’t miss his voice. Likewise, you do not want to be misled by an unclean spirit counterfeiting the voice of the Holy Spirit. Notice:
The Holy Spirit speaks TO you – Jn 16:13 – he guides you into all truth; he’s the teacher [1 Jn 2:26-27]. He does not speak of himself as in the charismatic churches. What he hears he speaks, thus you and I get from the scripture what the Lord wants us to have when he wants us to have it [i.e., I just saw that Jn 20:22-23 is merely the continuation of the ministry given to John the Baptist (Lk 1:15; 1:77; Acts 2:38)]. He speaks of things to come [prophecy] and so all of this confusion over the timing of the Rapture relative to the Tribulation is the result of men. Hence, men and unclean spirits interfere with the voice of the Spirit of God. Be careful.
The Holy Spirit speaks FOR you – Rom 8:26-27 – he will direct your prayers into the will of God – and the more you pray with and for those for whom you also intercede, the more the Spirit of God alerts you to their needs and the will of God in their lives. For instance, Randy was praying for me and the Lord answered his prayer immediately concerning the specific matter about which he was praying. Therefore, churches must pray together, families must pray together, and we must pray for our missionaries. When the Sprit intercedes he does so with groanings which cannot be uttered, so this is not some sort of private Pentecostal prayer language. Not praying and praying monotonously inhibits the Spirit’s intercession for you.
The Holy Spirit speaks WITH you – Acts 10:19-20 – he will direct you to people to whom he wants you to witness – for example he directed Peter to Cornelius [Acts 10] – the Lord directed Maureen to her neighbor, for whom she had been praying, and it was not hard to lead her to the Lord – it never is when the Lord is the one directing you to them – the hard ones are the ones opposed to the gospel and you don’t win them by arguing with them – the Lord must open their hearts [Acts 16:14]. You do not want to doubt [Acts 10:20; 11:12] and ignore the Spirit when he speaks with you.
The Holy Spirit speaks IN you – Matt 10:19-20 – the Holy Spirit uses your voice but he is the one doing the talking – he puts the thoughts into your mind and the words in your mouth for preaching, confrontation, counsel and witnessing. Your own thoughts and opinions [and those of the committee in your head] and your fears will interfere with the voice of the Spirit of God. So, don’t wrestle with premeditated answers in these tough situations.
Conclusion: The Holy Spirit speaks TO you [through the truth of scripture], FOR you [through prayer and intercession], WITH you [for witnessing and direction], and IN you [for confrontation and counsel]. Don’t let anything counterfeit or drown out his voice – stay filled with the Spirit. And if you are lost and the Spirit is reproving you of sin, righteousness and judgment, listen to his reproof and follow him to Jesus.