Tuesday, May 24, 2005
Ezekiel 36:24-27 "For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them."
THE PURPOSE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
As New Testament believers we associate Pentecost with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the disciples just ten days following Jesus' ascension into heaven. This was a fulfillment of what Jesus had promised His followers both before and after His death and resurrection as we read in the Gospels. But the working of the Holy Spirit was not limited to the early New Testament church. Here in the Old Testament book of Ezekiel the purpose and work of the Holy Spirit is described.
Look at what Ezekiel says the LORD would provide for His people through the Holy Spirit: cleansing from sin, a new heart which responds to God and His Word, and a new life -- a life which walks in the ways of the LORD. Ultimately, the LORD would cleanse all people through the blood of Christ who would be born almost 600 years after God's people returned to the promised land. But the benefits of that cleansing would be lost were it not for the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit brings people to believe in the promises of God, and through that faith they receive the blessing of Christ's perfect cleansing on our behalf.
The LORD said, "I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes . . ." The new life that a believer lives is brought about by the working of the Holy Spirit within them. It is because of the Holy Spirt that we are God's people and that we have come to know Him as our God, our LORD, our Redeemer, etc. It is the purpose of the Holy Spirit to make God's name Holy through the salvation of souls! This was true for the people of the Old Testament, and it is true today as well.
As we realize what the purpose and role of the Holy Spirit is, we understand that the Holy Spirit has been at work from the very beginning and will continue His work until the end.
