I know you have your Bible out. Since we've been
having these heart -to -heart talks regarding
the personality and the person of the Holy Spirit,
and since I hadn't been directing your attention
to the Word of God in different Bible references,
you're probably using your Bible more than you've
used it for a long time. And the thrilling thing
is that... literally hundreds and hundreds of
you people are being enlightened regarding the
Holy Spirit. You never dreamed that there was
so much in the Word of God pertaining to the
Holy Spirit. And it is true. Some have asked
the question, is the Holy Ghost and the Holy
Spirit the one and the same person? Yes. Whenever
the word of God refers to the Holy Ghost, it
means the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God. They're
all the same person. Now today, we are going
to go a little deeper into this person of the
Holy Spirit. And you're going to really... See
a different side of him than perhaps you've ever
seen before. And the importance and the sensitiveness.
Oh, he's so sensitive. That's the reason he's
likened unto a dove, the gentlest of all birds.
So sensitive. And we're coming to that part of
his personality. No, it's wonderful when you
see him in his strength. He, the mighty power
of the Trinity, and to know that he defends us.
Oh, isn't that the most comforting thing? Doesn't
it give you absolute security when you realize
that he, the mighty power of the Trinity, the
greatest... power there is in heaven and earth
will defend us, will come to our defense. When
you realize that you and I can have this wonderful
fellowship, this wonderful communion in him,
to realize that he is our great teacher regarding
spiritual things, the great revealer of the truth.
I also want you to know there is another side
of this personality, and that is he is easily
grieved, easily quenched. Turn, if you will,
please, to the fourth chapter of Ephesians. I'll
wait just a minute because maybe for some of
you it's going to be a little difficult to find
Ephesians if you're not acquainted with the Bible.
So I'll just wait while you find it. Ephesians,
the fourth chapter. And I'm going to speak to
you from the 30th verse of this fourth chapter
of Ephesians. But first of all, we dare not take
this out of its setting. I shall begin, therefore,
with the first verse of the fourth chapter. I,
therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech
you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith
ye are called, with all lowliness and meekness,
with longsuffering, forbearing one another in
love. And oh, this is so lacking in our Christian
lives today. Oh, beloved, this is so lacking
in the church today. This is so lacking in Christian
lives today. This is lacking in lives of men
and women who are supposed to be Spirit -filled.
The sin of jealousy is the most prevalent sin
there is in the lives of professing men and women,
even in the lives of those who profess to be
filled to Spirit. We don't even know what it
means anymore, this thing of meekness. Humility.
The greatest of all Christian races. It's so
lacking that we don't even know the real meaning
of it anymore. With all lowliness. I see so much
spiritual bigotry on every hand. Oh, these people
who have... a little prayer group in their own
home because they are so bigoted spiritually
that they feel that they have a corner on something
that, well, they know more spiritually than anyone
else and they just can't mix with the, oh. Don't
make me say it. I don't want to, but you know
what I mean, and it makes me feel badly. There's
so little of lowliness, so little of humility
anymore, so little of meekness, and long -suffering
is long gone. Forbearing one another in love,
there's so little of it. endeavoring to keep
the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
There's so little of real unity in the Spirit,
in the bond of peace. I'm telling you something.
It means something to be born again. It means
something to follow in the footsteps of Jesus.
It means something to take up your cross and
follow him. And as surely as there was a cross
for Jesus, and as surely as there had to be a
death on that cross, so surely is there a cross
for every one of us who've been born again, and
there must be death to that one's self. If we
are to follow him in the spirit of lowliness,
of meekness, it is to be long -suffering, forbearing
one another in love, endeavoring to keep the
unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. All
right, go on. For there is one body, that's the
church. That's the church of the Lord Jesus Christ.
There is one body. His church. That's the body
of Christ. You ask me the question, which is
the real church? We have thousands of organizations.
And you'll find a church on practically every
corner in some cities. Those are organizations.
There's only one who can say, my church, that's
the Lord Jesus Christ. And it's wonderful. It's
good that we have all of these organizations.
It's a place where you can come and fellowship
with other Christians. But when it comes to the
church, it is the body of Christ. And we are
born into his body. born into his church. There
is one body and one spirit. He's talking about
the Holy Spirit. Even as ye are called in one
hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one
baptism. Now let's see what baptism he's talking
about. We must be very sure. It's the same baptism.
as referred to in 1 Corinthians, the 12th chapter,
the 12th verse, because he's talking about the
very same thing. You can't take something out
of its context and make a doctrine of it. We
have the answer as to the baptism that he's referring
to. For as the body is one and hath many members
and all the members of that one body being many,
our one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit
are we all baptized into one body, whether we
be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free,
and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
That's the same baptism. The same body of Christ
that is referred to here in the fourth chapter
of Ephesians. One Lord, one faith, one baptism,
and one God and Father of all, who is above all
and through all and in you all. There it is.
It's the same thing. Now, to that which I started
out. In reference to the Holy Spirit. Be ye angry
and sin not. Let not the sun go down upon your
wrath. Neither give place to the devil. Let him
that stole steal no more. But rather let him
labor working with his hands. The thing which
is good. That he may have to give to him that
needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed
out of your mouth, but that which is good to
the use of edifying, that it may minister grace
unto the hearers. And grieve not the Holy Spirit
of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of
redemption. Now see what follows. Let all bitterness
and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking
be put away from you with all malice. And be
ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving
one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath
forgiven you. Now how can one grieve the Holy
Spirit? And keep in mind that even though he
is the mighty power of the Trinity, he is sensitive,
easily grieved, and there is no doubt as to how
this wonderful person may be grieved by bitterness,
by wrath, anger, Evil speaking, in other words,
he can be grieved by anything in the life of
an individual that is contrary to meekness, long
-suffering, forbearing one another in love, endeavoring
to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of
peace. Anything that is contrary to these things.
will grieve the Holy Spirit. I still contend
that I do not care what you profess. I do not
care what spiritual experiences you may have
had in the past. If there's an unforgiving spirit
within you, if there is malice, if there is an
evil tongue, if there is jealousy in your heart,
if there is somebody that you are holding a grudge
against, if you are an old gossip and you are
a tale -bearer, if you lie, If you tell the untruth,
if you exaggerate, I don't care what you label
it, it's still lying. The Holy Spirit does not
dwell in the same vessel. He cannot because these
things are absolutely contrary to his personality.
Can't do it. It is... If there is corrupt communication
that proceeds out of your mouth, if your speech
is not edifying, the Holy Spirit cannot and will
not make that body of yours his temple. And it's
just like that. Because these things are sin.
They grieve the Holy Spirit. He cannot and will
not abide in the same vessel. That's the scripture.
Somebody says, I wish to goodness I hadn't turned
her on today. Well, since you're on, stay with
me. But you know, sometimes I think that we only
want to see what we want to see. We'll only hear
what we want to hear. And it's true when it comes
to the Word of God. That's the reason some people
just love it when the minister speaks on heaven.
Oh, and he just transplants you right now, all
the way from your sinfulness and has you walking
down the streets of glory. You'll love him. Oh,
but the minute he starts preaching about sin,
I can prove that. The majority of preachers today
would be out of their pulpits in six months if
next Sunday they preached a good old -fashioned
sermon on hell and on sin. If you don't believe
it, try it. Don't put up an argument against
me. Just put it to a test. If every minister
in the United States would get up next Sunday
morning and preach a red hot old fashioned sermon
on hell and on sin. I mean calling sin by its
right name and preached an old -fashioned sermon
on ye must be born again. Half of them would
be out of that pulpit within six months, and
you know it's the truth. Crap. You don't believe
me? Crap. Ask your preacher to put it to the
test. He knows what the results would be. And
it's like that, sure. But I'm telling you, we've
got to get back again to the Bible. It's so important
that we do because one of these days you and
I are going to be judged from this word, his
word. Now, we're going to see something else
about the Holy Spirit. There are those who've
been so concerned about that sin for which there
is no forgiveness. It's called the unpardonable
sin. The Bible speaks of it as the only sin for
which there is no forgiveness, neither in this
world nor the world to come. The unpardonable
sin. Somebody says, well, I'm glad I didn't turn
you off because I've always been wanting to know
about it. I know there are all kinds of ideas
regarding the sin for which there is no forgiveness.
This, too, must not be taken out of its context.
It must be kept in its context. Now, let me read
you the scripture. Then was brought unto him
one possessed with the devil, blind and dumb.
He was demon -possessed, and he healed him. It's
Jesus who's doing the healing, insomuch that
the blind and the dumb both spake and saw. And
all the people were amazed and said, Is not this
the son of David? Referring to Jesus. But when
the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow
doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub, the
prince of the devils. They called Jesus a devil.
And Jesus knew their thoughts and said unto them,
Every kingdom divided against itself is brought
to desolation. And every city or house divided
against itself shall not stand. And if Satan
cast out Satan, he's divided against himself.
How shall then his kingdom stand? And if I, by
Beelzebub, cast out devils, by whom do your children
cast them out? Therefore, they shall be your
judges. If I cast out devils by the Spirit of
God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you.
Or else how can one enter into a strong man's
house, spoil his goods, except he first bind
the strong man, and then he will spoil his house.
And he that is not with me is against me, and
he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.
Now, this is what follows in the same connection.
I've given you the context. What the Pharisees
were doing, they were attributing the work of
God, the work of the Holy Spirit to the devil.
They said, this is the devil. This is the devil.
The Holy Spirit, through Jesus, had just cast
out. the devil, and one who had been blind and
dumb had been healed, and the blind and the dumb
both spake and saw. And they said, that's the
work of the devil. That's Satan. And Jesus said,
how can Satan cast out Satan? He'd be working
against himself. Now, in the light of that context,
I read, Wherefore I say unto you, All manner
of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men,
but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall
not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh
a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven
him. But whosoever speaketh against the Holy
Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither
in... this world neither in the world that come
there is one sin that is the sin for which there
is no pardon and that is the sin of blaspheming
against the holy ghost those gifts of the holy
ghost in the apostles the manifestation the power
of God in the lives of individuals were the last
proof that God designed to make use of for the
confirmation of the gospel. And they're still
kept in reserve. They are still in evidence.
And when a man or a woman attributes the work
of the Holy Spirit to the work of satan he commits
a sin for which there is no forgiveness either
in this world or the world to come be careful
what you say regarding the work of the holy ghost