Skip to main content

Grieving The Spirit


          And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one antoher, forginving each other, just as in  Christ God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:30-32) 

          Grieve? The Holy Spirit can be grieved? I admit, I regularly think of how I must grieve the Father… and the Son. When I think of God in anthropomorphic terms, I tend to think of Him as shaking His head, or His head lowered… it’s even easy to think of Him as frowning. It’s easy for me to think of Him as grieved. But when it comes to the question of what I’ve done to cause that grief, I don’t often have specifics. It’s just a general thing: I’m a failure. I’m not good enough.
          And those things are true. I am a failure. We all are. I am not good enough. None of us is. But one of the things I was taught years ago was that the Spirit’s conviction will be specific. The devil’s condemnation will be vague, ambiguous, or general. So I try not to put too much stock into the generality. I’m going to think I’m not good enough and I’m right, but God will lead me in the right direction.
          That doesn’t mean I don’t grieve the Spirit. But I don’t want to. So what does Paul tell us about how to not grieve Him? I put the three verses together this morning because they seemed to me to be one thought. The “and” separates them from what what listed in the previous verses. That means not grieving the Spirit includes doing things like getting rid of bitterness, rage, anger, brawling, slander, and every form of malice.
           There’s are phrases and a word that comes to mind with each of these words this morning. The phrases are It’s not my fault and He started it. The word is “victim.” These are all characteristic of self-righteousness. I’m not the problem, she is. And I may be right. She might have started it.
          There’s are a few words that give the answer to them: The Spirit, forgive, and response-ability. If I haven’t the strength, courage, or wisdom to forgive on my own, the Spirit can help. The Spirit can give us the ability to respond and hold us accountable for our response as a result. When we refuse, we grieve the Spirit, not simply because we’re doing what we’re told not to, but because we’re effectively refusing His aid. We’re saying, “I can’t!” but not saying, “God, help me!”
           And what does Paul suggest as alternatives to bitterness, rage, anger, brawling, slander, and malice? Kindness, compassion, and the sort of forgiveness God gave us in Christ. That means a kind of forgiveness, compassion, and kindness that are not dependent on or deserved by the one who grieved us. The sort that may cost us more than it does them.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

"Especially to those who belong to the family of believers."

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. (Gal 6:10)   “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.   By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35)           Joshua grinned when he saw Rex standing by the door, studying something on the ground. "Hey, man! Are we ready to do this thing?"          Rex looked up. "Josh, I can't do it. We're still best buds, but I can't stand your fiancée."           I've met "Rex" many times. I've been Rex. Joshua (Jesus) loves the Church. He's not a fool. He knows the Church is far from perfect, but she is His chosen bride. The Rexes of this world, who think themselves His friend, turn away from her. "You don't need the Church to...
Post a Comment
Read more

Ssssssubmmissssssionnn

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ . (Ephesians 5:21)             "Ssssssubmmisssssssionnn." Can't you just hear the serpent hissing this most horrible of words? If you listen to the serpent or the world, submission means groveling, allowing yourself to be abused, denying yourself your own humanity. Nothing could be worse than submission, could it?             Submission has never been a problem for me, as long as things are going the way I want them to. The rest of the time? Well, let's just say that while I don't know how to fight physically, I don't know how to not fight mentally. One of the fights I've been having with myself for years is about submission.             My first breakthrough took place on a trip to a bookstore. As I walked into the store, my thoughts were very clear. 1) I was goi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Shark Fins, Triple Dog Dares, Heroes, Villains and Sidekicks

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12)            There's a scene in Jaws in which someone sees a shark fin and starts a panic. As   all the swimmers scramble to shore, boats surround the fin, which falls over to reveal two kids. With several guns pointed at them, one of the kids points at the other. The message is clear: it was his idea. In Christmas Story, there's a scene in which one kid "triple dog dares" another to do something stupid. Since it's a triple dog dare, well, what choice does the boy have? There doesn't seem to be any end to the trouble that peer pressure can cause. ...
Post a Comment
Read more