The Holy Spirit’s “job”

Sometimes believers in Christ go to one of two extremes:
1. They fail to take responsibility for God given duties in the name of letting the Spirit "do his job."
2. They fail to follow the Spirit's lead and use his power, in the name of not being a "parked car."

However, the truth of our duty and the Spirit's activity are combined and balanced. First let's look at "the Spirit's job."

It is true that it is indeed the Holy Spirit who convicts unbelievers (and believers for that matter) of sin, righteousness, and judgment. But how does he do this?

Let’s answer the question with a question. How do unbelievers become believers? How do they find out that they have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory? Is this not through the preaching of the gospel by Spirit filled and Spirit led believers? Isn’t it by the believer's right use of the law of God and of conscience that unbelievers are convicted of their sins?

So the Spirit does “his job” through believers, not apart from or in spite of them. Believers, not the Holy Spirit, are to preach the gospel.
Believers, not the Holy Spirit, are to make disciples.
Believing fathers and mothers, not the Holy Spirit, are to train their children.

All of these are to work by the power and presence and leading of the Holy Spirit.

Some may give these objections:
"Genuine repentance, gratitude, sorrow for sin, or a change of heart, cannot and should not be 'forced.' After all, we can’t control or change people’s hearts. Only the Holy Spirit can do that.”

Yet even the Holy Spirit cannot change our hearts without our consent. But we, AND the Holy Spirit, can change a person’s heart, or mind, or intention. This happens all of the time. People regularly change each other’s minds or intentions, assuming their free volitions, or choice to change in response to our words of truth and love.

We as believers are charged by the Lord to command repentance, which means a change of mind or heart or intention. The Spirit empowers our command, but we must give the command in order for the Spirit to act on our behalf.

The irony is, there are some who speak of that which is only "the Spirit's job" who also use the analogy of a "parked car." The analogy of the parked car is often used to make the point that if we are not in motion, or active, then the Spirit has nothing to work with.

Yet a "parked car" does not move itself. It is moved by a driver. So for the analogy to truly fit, the Holy Spirit, or Christ, must be the "driver," and the fuel is his power. He is the one giving the directions. A car does not start, steer, or empower itself.

Of course the analogy breaks down because a car has no will of its own. But it is also a good analogy because the car has no will of it's own.

Therefore, we must follow the Spirit's lead and use the Spirit's power in doing our God given duties.

For example, we know that we are commanded to preach the gospel. Yet all of us are not commanded to do this in the same way, or by the same gifts. So we must first know our calling and empowering by the Spirit. We must also know to whom we are sent and when we are to go.

To a certain extent, the 12 apostles and the 120 were "parked cars" on the day of pentecost, in the sense that they did not go into the world and preach the gospel, by the very command of Christ, UNTIL they were endued with power from on high. Now once they were endued, as they had freely received, so they freely gave. Yet even in this they followed the Spirit's lead, and did not take the attitude of "going unless the Spirit stops you."

There is truth to the parked car analogy, and there is truth to letting the Holy Spirit do his job.

We are to be "parked cars" in the sense that we wait for clear direction and power from the Spirit before we go to others. This, too, is "letting the Spirit do his job." The ministry is his, and he is the one to begin, continue, and end it. This means he is also ultimately responsible for the results, or the end of the work he starts. But he is not responsible for the means to the end in the sense of carrying them out by himself. As has been said, we are responsible to speak and act as he leads us.

Once we know our gifts, calling, empowering, and sending, then we can act in those contexts, almost as if we need not wait for the Spirit's leading, because he has already led us by calling and empowering us. This very blog is an example. I know that I am called to speak and write as God leads and empowers me. I am to speak and write to all who are willing to listen in the United States. Blogs are a means to that end, an opportunity for me that I may use freely.

So, I am not a "parked car" in the sense that I am writing as I have opportunity, as often as I have opportunity. But I am a parked car in that I do not and will not write unless I know I have something from the Spirit to write.

Therefore, our power and direction comes from the Spirit. We actively wait for his leadership, and we energetically carry our callings at every opportunity presented to us.