God’s Covert Conviction Operative

(John 16:8–9 NKJV) “And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: (9) of sin, because they do not believe in Me.”

Jesus spoke to his apostles about the Holy Spirit, and the functions he would perform when he came to work with them and in them. Here he lists three supernatural actions that he performs on “the world”: He convicts them of “sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.” The first of these is that he convicts the world of sin. The reason he gives is because “they do not believe in me (Jesus).”

The first important point we note from this is that the Holy Spirit convicts people of their sin; we don’t. We can cooperate with the Holy Spirit in what we say, pray, and do; but only he can bring people under conviction and draw them to faith in Jesus. For example, in the following passage he gives us a very illogical way of effecting burning conviction—but not by directly confronting the sin:

(Romans 12:17–21 NKJV) Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. (18) If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. (19) Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. (20) Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.” (21) Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Wow! “Overcome evil with good.” Overcoming is extremely important for Christians. In the book of Revelation, we are told eight times about the rewards God gives to those who overcome. Here he is showing us how to be overcomers against evil; he says to “overcome evil with good.” Jesus gave us a similar approach to dealing with certain types of sin against us:

(Matthew 5:39–42 NLT) “But I say, do not resist an evil person! If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also. (40) If you are sued in court and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat, too. (41) If a soldier demands that you carry his gear for a mile, carry it two miles. (42) Give to those who ask, and don’t turn away from those who want to borrow.”

Amazing! Jesus says, “Do not resist an evil person!” He instructs us to offer no physical or verbal resistance to those who render evil against us in these ways. He even goes as far as to use the word “love” in the way we are to respond to those opposing us:

(Matthew 5:44 NLT) “... love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!

Our wonderful, ingenious Lord is giving us a way to cooperate with the immaterial, but infinitely powerful Holy Spirit. When we do as Jesus says, and when we cooperate completely with the prompting of the Holy Spirit, he can reach into the heart of the person who opposes us or who is evil towards us. The Holy Spirit alone can do something powerful and inescapable in their hearts that convicts them inwardly of their sin. This is the only way they can be brought to repentance.

No wonder Jesus tells us to love them; our love releases the Holy Spirit to go to work on them. It is also why he tells us to pray for them; prayer also releases the Holy Spirit’s unseen action. If we retaliate against the evil person without prayer or love, we would simply be releasing more evil; this would make the situation worse, not bring a solution to sin.

Several years ago, one of our students went out for something to eat. He noticed a group of young men standing outside the food outlet eating their take-out meals. He simply stood near them, and couldn’t help overhearing their conversation. Fresh from the classroom, and clothed in Holy Spirit power, he listened with amazement as he too ate his meal.

At first, the group of young men were proudly bragging on all of their evil deeds, mischief-making, and sinful ways. But while our student simply stood there—saying and doing nothing—their conversation began to change. One by one they began to say, “We’ve been terrible”; “We are going to have to change our ways” etc. Their speech reflected an inner work of conviction that only the Holy Spirit can bring. Simply by being present, our young student friend was able to allow the Holy Spirit to do what none of us can; he convicted worldly people of their ungodly ways. What’s more, he brought them silently and stealthily to a place of confessing their need to change.

Holiness cannot be lived without the presence and power of God’s Holy Spirit. If we focus on loving him—fellowshipping him, and avoiding ever grieving him by our words or actions; and if we release his glory from within by our obedience, our praise, our confession of God’s word, our prayer (especially praying in the spirit), and a holy life; he will be in manifestation on us—clothing us in the glorious power clothing that Jesus promised:

(Luke 24:49 ESV) “And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

When the Holy Spirit is all over us—manifesting his glorious presence and clothing us completely—not only will he empower us to live holy lives, he will influence those around as too. You may notice people beginning to apologize for swearing; you may see an improvement in their manners; or you too may hear them talking of changing their ways.

On the other hand, as was often the case with Jesus, when demonic powers encounter the manifest Holy Spirit, they also manifest in all their ugly ways: screaming abuse, swearing, negotiating, inflicting symptoms on the host humans. Do not be surprised at this, and don’t assume that the person is getting worse; it’s simply demons manifesting in their panic. When that happens, pray silently and bind them up. If the demonic manifestation is extremely overt or threatening, you may simply have to do as Jesus did, using his name of course:

(Mark 1:21–26 NKJV) Then they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught. (22) And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. (23) Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, (24) saying, “Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” (25) But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!” (26) And when the unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him.

Today, let’s conclude with our hearts ready and willing to obey Jesus in his instructions and the Holy Spirit in his prompts and nudges. Let’s do our part, and allow the Holy Spirit to do his. He is an absolute master at working covertly as we live in holy submission to him. We may be preaching the gospel, praying in secret, or simply standing near people. But if we have been living in line with the holiness of the Holy Spirit, he will be in manifestation all over us—ready to operate in his uniqueness. He will convict the world of sin. He will do it silently but effectively.

The Holy Spirit can certainly do the impossible. He can do what we most certainly cannot; he “is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us” (Eph. 3:20 nkjv). Will you do your part today? Will you love him, fellowship with him, follow his nudges and obey his prompts? (Remember how to “heap coals of fire” onto an enemy’s head the Holy Spirit way—overcome evil with good.) When you do, you will be amazed at his genius, his ingenuity, and his stealthy ability to bring conviction to the heart of even the most hardened sinners. God bless you as you step out in him today.