“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” (John 14:26)
In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit was given selectively and temporarily to indwell certainly individuals for special ministries. However, in the New Testament after Jesus ascended to heaven, He sent the Spirit to dwell within each believer (Luke 24:49).
This means that if you are a true born again Christian, God is living inside you, available to help throughout life by providing guidance, empowerment, comfort and peace.
We need to understand that obedience to Christ is impossible for anyone relying on his or her own strength. Sadly many Christians often try to live life by depending on self instead of recognizing their need for God.
We need to remind ourselves each morning that our dependence comes from Him; and need to ask to be filled with His Spirit so that all that we think, say and do comes from Him as we trust the Holy Spirit to work in mighty ways through us.
The Holy Spirit has many functions. Not only does He distribute spiritual gifts according to His will (1 Corinthians 12:7-11), He also helps us (John 14:16), teaches us (John 14:26), and remains in us as a seal of promise upon our hearts until day of redemption of those who are God’s possession, which is the day Jesus returns (Ephesians 1:13-14). The Holy Spirit also takes on the role of Guide and Counselor, leading us in the way we should go and revealing God’s truth in what we are to say (Luke 12:12; 1 Corinthians 2:6-10).
The question however is always how do we recognize the Spirit’s guidance? How do we discern between our own thoughts and His leading? After all, the Holy Spirit does not speak with audible words. Rather, He guides us through our own conscience (Romans 9:1) and other quiet, subtle ways.
One of the most important ways to recognize the Holy Spirit’s guidance is to be familiar with God’s Word. The Bible is the ultimate source of wisdom about how we should live (2 Timothy 3:16), and believers are to search the Scriptures, meditate on them, and commit them to memory (Ephesians 6:17). The Word is the “sword of the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:17), and the Spirit will use it to speak to us (John 16:12-14) to reveal God’s will for our life; He will also bring specific Scriptures to mind at times when we need them most (John 14:26), that is why it is so vital to be familiar with God’s word.
When we spend time with the Lord and know His Word, it will help us to discern whether or not our desires come from the Holy Spirit. We must check our decisions against Scripture; because the Holy Spirit will never lead us to do anything contrary to God’s Word. If it conflicts with the Bible, then it is not from the Holy Spirit and should be ignored.
We need to make sure not to take Scripture out of context just to achieve our desires; instead we need to take time to be still before God and to ensure that we have peace in our hearts before going forward.
Jesus told His disciples that “when He, the Spirit of Truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13). He is the ultimate Guide, leading the way, opening our understanding, and making all things plain and clear.
It’s difficult to hear from the Holy Spirit when a person isn’t born again and doesn’t know the Bible; because everything the Holy Spirit speaks to our hearts will line up perfectly with Scripture and the Bible tells us that: “The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit” (1 Corinthians 2:14).
Constant study and practice of God’s word is a sure way to hear the Holy Spirit clearly. Remember what Jesus said in John 10:27 “My Sheep hear my voice and they follow me.” If we do not study His word, how can we correctly make the right decision and know that we are hearing His voice?
Hearing from the Holy Spirit requires us to be patient and wait; it is part of maturing in our faith. The prompting comes ever so gentle like – He might bring someone again and again to our mind, so we finally call the person and find out that they have a need and that we can comfort them with a simple prayer of faith. But the choice is ours, will we respond or will we ignore His prompting and go about our day? Be conscious that if there is a matter where God has put a constant reminder in your mind that you need to obey Him in that regard.
To better understand the prompting of the Holy Spirit there are many Bible examples of hearing God’s voice, and here are just a few of them:
Ananias a disciple of Christ was told to go to the house of Judas where Saul was on Straight Street in Damascus. He was afraid but the Lord said to him, go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel (Acts 9:10-19).
In Paul’s first missionary journey, while they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them (Acts 13:2).
Then we see Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas (Acts 16:6-8).
It is in stillness, not busyness, that we tune our spiritual ears to hear the voice of God. Many times the Lord speaks to us in that still small voice (1 Kings 19:12), but often it’s drowned out amid all the turmoil of our daily lives because we do not recognize or take time to be with the Creator of the Universe our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who sent us the gift of the Holy Spirit.
We need to learn to take time to listen and fellowship with Him on a daily basis, remembering to trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6).
Jesus said that He would send the Spirit to those who have put their trust in Jesus Christ, so that He would be our Helper, Comforter and Guide, because as Jesus said: “When He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come” (John 16:13).
As we see, the Spirit speaks to us and leads us in the right direction when we learn to listen to Him. He acts as a still, small voice that is heard in our spirit rather than audibly.
Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He told His disciples that He would send us another Counselor who would teach and guide all those who believe in Him (Acts 1:5; John 14:26; 16:7). Jesus’ promise was fulfilled fifty days after Passover at Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came in power on the believers (Acts 2).
Therefore, the role of the Holy Spirit is to help us succeed in the Christian life just as Christ succeeded in His ministry as we continually gain strength from Him by listening and obeying.
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Mission Venture Ministries 
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