Sinning Against The Spirit

Sinning Against The Spirit "And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption." Ephesians 4:30 Have you ever said something to someone that brought tears to their eyes—and then felt terrible for saying it? In the same way, we can make the Holy Spirit sad by things that we do and say. The Bible tells us in Ephesians 4:30 above, not to "grieve the Holy Spirit." Literally, this means to make Him sad or sorrowful. And what makes Him sad or sorrowful? We find the answer in verse 31: "Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice." Are you harboring a grudge, against someone right now? This grieves the Holy Spirit. We all have people who have hurt us, and I am sure we could somehow justify any reaction, when we are hurt, but the Bible tells that us if you are harboring a grudge in your heart, then it is a root of bitterness, and it actually brings sorrow to the Holy Spirit. How about slander? To slander someone means to talk about a person behind his or her back. It is saying in their absence what you would never say in their presence. In some cases, it may be a little truth with a little spin. In other cases, it may be an outright lie to defame and hurt someone. That brings sorrow and grieves the Holy Spirit. We can also quench the Holy Spirit. The apostle Paul exhorted the Thessalonians: "Do not quench the Spirit" (1 Thessalonians 5:19). The word used for "quench" suggests extinguishing a fire, like when you are camping and you extinguish the campfire. We can actually quench the work of the Holy Spirit by unbelief. Grieving the Spirit and quenching the Spirit are sin's that believers can commit. In other words any sin that we commit after accepting Jesus into our hearts, grieves the Holy Spirit that lives within us. Be careful each day to not sin, resist temptation and let your life be holy and pleasing to God. Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven January 5