Do I Need The Holy Ghost?

_{(all scripture references are from the King James Version of the Holy Bible unless otherwise indicated)}

Jesus said, "And I will pray the Father and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; _{(John 14:16)} But the Comforter, who is the Holy Ghost..... _{(John 14:26 )}

The Holy Ghost also referred as the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is fully God. He is not a force, a wind or a thing. He is God as distinctly as God the Father is God and as distinctly as God the Son, Jesus is God. - These three (3) are one (1).
_{(1 John 5:7)}

(This is by no means an exhaustive list.)

1. He seals us in Christ until the day of redemption - Ephesians 1:13
2. He baptizes (immerses) us into Christ - Matthew 3:11
3. He confirms the Word of the Lord - Luke 3:22
4. He teaches - Luke 12:12, John 14:26
5. He comforts and reminds - John 14:26, Acts 9:31
6. He empowers - Acts 1:8
7. He speaks - Acts 2:8, Acts 4:31, Hebrews 3:7
8. He gives gifts - Hebrews 2:4
9. He renews - John 3:5-7, Titus 3:5,
10. He leads, guides and decides - Acts 13:4, Acts 15:28, Acts 16:6
11. He fills us with Himself - Acts 2:1-4, Acts 10:44-45, Acts 8:12-15, 17-20

Of all of the things that He is, and all of the things that He does, the most life changing thing is His indwelling presence. The born again beliver has the Holy Spirit inside of them. "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
_{(1 Corinthians 3:16.)}

The God of the universe, the maker of heaven and earth and all that dwell therein, lives in us in the person of the Holy Spirit. Because the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost are one, when we receive Jesus as or personal Lord and Savior, the Holy  Spirit, as the representative of the trinity, comes into our spirits. He recreates our spirits instantaneously.  Our mind and body take a life time to change, but not our spirit.

The presence of Jesus in the person of the Holy Spirit begins to work in developing the attributes of Christ within us. He plants the seed of the fruit of the Spirit and, once planted that fruit grows in spite of us.

 The Holy Spirit teaches us to love God. He keeps us when times are difficult. He gives us the ability to forgive and to love the unlovely. He gives us understanding and comfort in the most trying times and, He leads us in the right way.

We don't always follow His example or His leading, but we have the confident assurance that He will be with us forever...He is the Comforter and guide that we all need. He is not a spirit guide as in spiritualism or new age. He is from everlasting to everlasting, inherently stable. You don't decide what form he will take or what face He will take. He is who He is, and He is God equally with the Father and the Son.

The desire of the Holy Spirit is to draw you closer to Jesus. It is His desire to empower you to both carry the gospel and to live a life that is pleasing the Lord. He only wants to manifest the will of God the Father in us and through us.

Many Christians pull back from the Holy Spirt because they fear what He may ask them to do. Yet, at the new birth, we all say, "Lord, use me. I'll do what you want me to do; I'll go where you want me to go; I'll say what you want me to say." We mean these things when we say them, but when the Holy Spirit urges you to tell someone about Jesus, you hesitate. Why?

Pride that's why. A sudden and deadly attack of the "What if I am missing God? What then?" Well, it is really very simple, if you missed God, you just missed God! There will many, many mistakes made by believers as they walk the way of the Lord.

It is not about you! It is not about me. It is about helping somebody Pride protects you from embarassament. But, what is more important, Saints of God....what other people think about you, or what God thinks about? Trust God, trust Jesus, trust the Holy Spirit! You can do it...

The Holy Spirit wants to use us to reach those people who we can reach. He wants as many people to come to know Christ as possible. He wants lives changed and touched by the love of God. And, unfortunately, the way this thing is set up is that He has to use people to get the job done.  And, you are one of those He wants to use.

Decide today that you are going to let pride and fear go.... Let's just repent of those things and get back on track with the perfect will of God for our lives....c'mon, say it with me, "Lord, use me. I'll do what you want me to do; I'll go where you want me to go; I'll say what you want me to say."