Grieving the Spirit

As we saw yesterday, there are hindrances to the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives. Yesterday we looked at what it means to quench the Holy Spirit. Today we will consider the sin of grieving the Holy Spirit so that we can avoid such attitudes and actions that hinder His work in our lives (see Ephesians 4:30). We grieve the Holy Spirit by sinning. We grieve the Spirit by blatantly choosing to disobey God’s desires.

Consider a believer who lies, cheats, or commits adultery—all the while knowing that the Word of God clearly says this is a sin. And he does this not once but repeatedly. That believer is grieving the Holy Spirit.

There is one solution to the sin of grieving the Spirit, and that is the act of confession. God tells us, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

Confession and forgiveness of sin remove the barrier between us and the Holy Spirit. Confession requires self-judgment. According to 1 Corinthians 11:31, “[I]f we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not come under such judgment.” Before we can or will confess, we must first recognize that what we are doing is wrong. We must say, “I admit to myself that I am in error before God,” before we can arrive at the place of saying to the Lord, “I admit to You, Lord, that I have sinned.”

Prayer: Father, help me not to grieve Your Spirit. Help me to admit to myself and to You when I have sinned. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.