The Roles of The Holy Spirit In Our Struggle Over Sin

What the believe in the holy spirit is one of the hallmarks of the Christian faith. A life guided by the holy spirit the ultimate goal of every Christian. Apostle Paul in the New Testament talks about sanctification as the role of the holy spirit, without which the Christians will be fighting a losing battle against the sins of the flesh and sinful behaviors. As Christians, we can in no way be made perfect unless we chose to lead a life full of the holy spirit. Man is naturally inclined to sin, and the war against the flesh and sinful behaviors should be fought daily with the help of the holy spirit. There are various ways in which the holy spirit helps us to overcome the flesh and sinful behaviors.

The first role of the Holy Spirit is fighting our sinful behaviors. Some of the fruits of the holy spirit as listed by Paul in Galatians chapter 5 include; love, peace and most importantly self-control. A true Christian who is possessed by the holy spirit will manifest these fruits in their lives. Apostle Paul exhorts us to love one another in Rom 5:5. A born-again Christian will exude the love of God. Love is not a good feeling towards somebody but rather caring for other people as we would care for ourselves. The Holy spirit, therefore, helps us to fight our sinful ways by using the fruits. The fruits of the Holy spirit always stand as a contrast to the works of the flesh.

The fruits of the holy spirit other than helping us to avoid being self-centered help us to have self-control. The works of the fesh are common in the world and include such vices as sexual immorality, envy, strive, murders, covetousness and also unfaithfulness. The holy spirit helps us to overcome these vain works of the flesh by fighting our weak human nature. Self-control helps us to avoid indulging in evil works of the flesh such as sexual immorality. When tempted by our sinful desires, the holy spirit strengthens us. Thus we can make the right choices.

The holy spirit also reveals the works of the flesh. When the works of the natural flesh are made evident in our minds, we will choose to walk in righteousness. Paul in Galatians 5;19-21 warns the Christians against partaking in the works of the flesh as doing so will make them lose the kingdom of heaven. Paul argues that the spirit assists us in weakness (Rom 8:26) by giving us the power to discern the works of the flesh. The temptation in itself is not a sin, but giving up to our vain desires results in sin(Fee,1996). The beginning of the Christian life is always characterized by the indwelling of the holy Spirit and therefore wherever we are almost overcome with the urge to sin, the spirit talks to us inwardly, and thus we avoid sinful ways.

The holy spirit also helps us to fight against the flesh and sinful behaviors by leading us to repentance whenever we succumb to sin. The holy spirit always ensures that we do not justify our sinful behaviors by helping us feel guilty after sin. The inward Godly grieve that we experience always moves us to repentance thus, we can kill our sinful ways and the urges of the flesh. Evidently, Paul shows us that we have a weak nature and we are prone to sin from time to time. To ensure that we walk on the right path, God has made the provision of praying in the spirt whenever we are faced with a temptation. Paul himself engaged in a holy spirit filled prayer to get the power to continue in the ministry of the Gospel (Fee,1996). Jesus Christ also engaged in communion with God during His temptation in the wilderness. The holy spirit, therefore, guides us to live a holy life by helping us to pray to God. Our ongoing struggle against the principalities and agencies of Satan will only be made successful if we walked in faith and prayer as the holy spirit directs us to do. As the writers put it, a prayer less life is, in essence, a practice of atheism.

I agree with the authors concerning the role of the holy spirit. The authors show Pauls perspectives about the role of the Holy Spirit in the Christian life and also how modern-day Christians tend to misunderstand Pauls theology. I agree with Paul that Christians should partake in a spirit filled prayer when they feel weak and in need of Gods guidance as this is the surest way to fight against the flesh. The holy spirit motivates us to have strong faith in God and direction in the Christian walk(Smith,2010).

This topic is important to my personal and professional goals. A broad knowledge of the role of the Holy spirit in my life will help me to follow a more righteous path. Going to heaven is the goal of every Christian. Knowing that the holy spirit gives us power when we are weak is very important. Professionally, the understanding of the role of the holy spirit will guide me to teach more effectively against flesh and sinful behaviors. Without the holy spirit, Christians become atheists.

References

Fee, G. D. (1996). Paul, the Spirit, and the People of God. Hendrickson Pub

Smith, J. B. (2010). The Good and Beautiful Community. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Books.