The Holy Spirit Part 7 of 8 Kathryn Kuhlman The Holy Spirit Defends and Leads

We've been having some good discussions regarding the third person, the Trinity. And by now, I am sure, I am very sure that many of you have gotten well acquainted with the Holy Spirit. Aren't you sorry that all of these years you only thought of him as being a mystery? Someone that you and I were not to understand? Aren't you sorry that you overlooked this wonderful personality, the third person, the Trinity, not knowing that he was just as real as Jesus, just as real as God the Father? Think what you've missed all these years. Think. Just pause a moment and think what thousands and thousands of professing Christians are missing today by not seeking to know the person of the Holy Spirit. And I am speaking not only of Christians, but that servant of the Lord in the pulpit. I beg of you, my brother in the Lord, I beg of you, please, if you have not yet become acquainted with the Holy Spirit, I ask you, please go deep in the Word and then present Him to your people. We are now talking about the personality of the Holy Spirit. And we saw that he teaches, he reveals, he communes. We have wonderful fellowship in the Spirit. And he is a person. He has intellect. He has sensibility. Oh, sure. And then we learned that you and I are personal. to the Holy Spirit. I am personal to Him. My needs are personal. I am an individual when it comes to the Holy Spirit. Now I want you to see something that is just as thrilling, and that is the fact that the Holy Spirit also defends. I don't mind telling you. That gives me a sense of security. That gives me a protection. That gives me... Now, how should I put it? I feel so relieved. I don't have to defend myself. He defends his children. He has come to my defense thousands of times. I may not have been aware of his defense at that moment, but he was there. As long as you and I are living in the center of his will, as long as we're living consecrated lives, he will be our defense. Now, I cannot expect his defense. I cannot expect him to defend me. If I deliberately take my life out of the hands of God, if I deliberately go against that which I know is right, if I deliberately, knowingly sin, then I cannot claim his defense. I have no right to ask him to defend me. to protect me. But as long as I am living up to all the light I know, as long as I am living a daily, surrendered, consecrated life, as long as I know that I am not knowingly committing sin and am living in the center of His will, He will defend me. Turn, if you will, please, to 59th chapter of Isaiah, the 19th verse. So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west and his glory from the rising of the sun, when the enemy shall come in like a flood. Oh, and he does sometimes. Sometimes the enemy comes in from the east, the west, the north, the south, all at the same time. You know, we could kind of brace ourselves once in a while if you'd only come from one direction. Mm -hmm. But you've had the same experiences that I have had. Sometimes he comes at you from all four directions, and there you are in the middle. And we'd all be sunk. We would have gone down in defeat over and over again had it not been for you. Spin for the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of the Lord. Why? Watch this glorious portion of the promise. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord, the Holy Spirit, shall lift up a standard against him. That gives me security. Why can I be a secure person? I have reason to be a secure person. Because my security, my defense is in Jesus. And he has made provision for the security for his children through the person of the Holy Spirit. And the enemy, now watch this very closely. I don't care how deeply spiritual you may be. You may be filled with the Spirit. You may have gifts of the Spirit. You may be the most deeply spiritual person living this hour. Yeah. As long as you're in this old body of the flesh, the enemy of your soul will be right on your tail. There'll be temptations. He'll fight you. He'll never forget you. Not because he thinks so much of you. Not because he thinks so much of me. But because he is trying to get at the heart. of the one that he really hates, Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Jesus is his enemy. And if he can get me to yield to temptation, if in striking at me he can bring a reproach on the gospel of the Lord, if in striking at me he can cause me to bring a reproach on the Lord Jesus Christ. He's happy. He's thrilled. He has won a victory. But I don't care what our temptations may be. I don't care what your temptation is. Jesus has made provision for you and for me. In that not one of us needs be defeated not on a single score. Our defense is the Spirit of the Lord. And when the animation come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him. I don't have to go to my own defense. I don't have to be my own lawyer. I don't have to be my own attorney. I don't have to fight for myself and fight for my rights and fight the enemy and fight those who do evil against me. No. It is my place to follow my master and be... perfect in love, even as the Father is perfect in love. And if I am perfect in love toward those who hate me and do evil against me, the Holy Spirit will fight my battles for me and come to my defense. He will lift up a standard against me. Doesn't that do something to you? Say, don't you ever apologize for being a Christian. Not on your life. If you are a Christian, if you are standing on the promises of the Lord, if you know the things of the Spirit, filled with the Spirit, enjoying the things of the Spirit, you have no cause for worry, for you do not... have to fight your own battles. You are secure in him. Now then, see another side of his personality. And this is just as exciting as any other part of the personality of the Holy Spirit. If you don't think that this thing of being a Christian and living a Christian life isn't exciting, it's just because you haven't gone into it for everything that there is. Uh -huh. All right. Turn, if you will, please, now, and we go to the New Testament, Acts, the eighth chapter of Acts, and we find a very interesting incident that happened. It just really happened. This was not a parable. This really happened. And it happened to Philip and the Ethiopian. And remember now, this is the same Holy Spirit that existed from the beginning of time. The same Holy Spirit that is spoken of by the prophets in the Old Testament. The same Holy Spirit that Jesus spoke of. the same wonderful person who came on the day of Pentecost, the same Holy Spirit of whom Peter said, and ye owe this wonderful promise, this glorious promise. Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus for the remission of your sins, Peter said, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit for the promise. This wonderful promise that I've been talking to you about is unto you. Now, he was referring to those to whom he was speaking, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. That's the reason I can sit here and tell you this promise is still in effect. everything that I've been talking to you about regarding the personality and the person of the Holy Spirit is still in effect. And all of these things are a part of our inheritance as members of the body of Christ. All right, now back again, if you will, please, to the Bible. And if you've been following me, you know that everything that I've been telling you, I backed up with the Word of God. Now, this actually happened. Begin with the eighth chapter of Acts. And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise. Now, when you talk about the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, I have wondered too just how he spoke. I'm not sure. I do not think it was in an audible voice. I have my doubts whether it was audible or whether he heard an audible voice. I'm not sure. I would rather think not. You see, I could say to you, now, the Lord spoke to me regarding something. And yet, it wouldn't be an audible voice. And you ask me how I know? I would be as sure of it as though it had been an audible voice. There are things that I know that I know that I know. There are things that he tells me to do, I know I've got to do them. Even though it may not be reasonable, even though on the surface of things, when it comes to logic and reason, it would be neither logic nor reason to do such a thing, yet I know that the Lord has spoken to me. I know the Holy Spirit has told me to do it, and I've got to do it. And when He tells me to do something, and I'm, oh, I tell you, he's right there to meet me. And the thing is always as he said it would be. He's never disappointed me yet. Never. But be dead sure it's the Holy Spirit who tells you to do it. Be very sure. Mm -hmm. I'm always leery of these people who will say now, Miss Cooman, the Lord told me to tell you so -and -so. Oh, no. You're off the track right now. Do you want to know why? Because he never gives a message secondhand. He'll tell me directly. First hand. I'm always leery. And I've got to keep in contact with him. I've got to do it. Every hour of every day and every night. The two to before. If I should lose contact with him for one hour, I'd be sunk. I would absolutely get myself into more trouble. I'd get myself in a mess. To keep in constant contact with Him. Every minute. And it's just like that. So don't try to give me a message and tell me it's from the Lord. Because if He wants me to know something, the Holy Spirit will tell me. We're in close fellowship and communion. And it's like that. And... If it is a message for two people or more, he will give each one of them the same message. And the whole thing will fit together perfectly. Mm -hmm. You understand? Oh, sure you do. All right. Here is an example. And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise. and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. And he arose and went. He knew he had gotten his instructions. There was no doubt. It was a positive message. He had received directions. He didn't hesitate one minute. And he arose and went. And behold, a man of Ethiopia, the eunuch of great authority and the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of all her treasure and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, was returning, sitting in his chariot, and read Isaiah the prophet. Please get this picture. Then the spirit said unto Philip, Go near. Join thyself to this chariot. And Philip ran thither to him, heard him read the prophet Isaiah, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I? Except some man should guide me. And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. And the place of the scripture which he read was this. He was led as a sheep to the slaughter. And like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth. In his humiliation, his judgment was taken away. And who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. And the eunuch answered Philip and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? Of himself or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth and began at the same scripture and preached unto him. Jesus. And as they went on their way, they came into a certain water, and the eunuch said, See, here's water. What doth hinder me to be baptized? Oh, there you are. He had really been born again. And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ... is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still, and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more. and he went on his way rejoicing. There's no longer reason for Philip to tarry because the job was done. He'd done his work. The will of father had been taken care of. The Holy Spirit knew that the eunuch had been born again. It was all taken care of. The Holy Spirit knew that in that eunuch, there was a man who was ready for Jesus, but he had no one to teach him. So the Holy Spirit sent Philip. Philip was obedient, and the result was another man brought into the kingdom of God.