Immediately after God’s calling, the Holy Spirit came to separate man, to sanctify man, so that man would repent and turn to God.
In this lesson, sanctification of the Spirit does not refer to the positional sanctification which comes through the redemption of Christ (Acts 26:18; Heb. 13:12), nor does it refer to the dispositional sanctification which comes after justification through the redemption of Christ (Rom. 6:19, 22). It refers to the sanctification which takes place before faith in Christ and before justification through Christ’s redemption (1 Pet. 1:2), in which the Spirit separates man from the world unto the obedience of faith in the redemption of Christ. This indicates that the believers’ obedience unto faith in Christ results from the Spirit’s sanctifying work.
The divine title “the Holy Spirit” indicates God reaching man to separate man unto Himself for His purpose and to make man holy as He is holy. It is by enlightening and seeking man that the Holy Spirit does His sanctifying work. In the second parable in Luke 15 the Lord Jesus speaks of a woman who lights the lamp, sweeps the house, and seeks carefully until she finds the lost coin. This signifies the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit uses the word of God (Psa. 119:130), which is the Bible, to enlighten and expose the sinner’s position and condition and also to cleanse and search carefully within him so that he may repent. Thus, the Holy Spirit brings the lost sinner, who is a treasure in the eyes of God, back to God.
Hebrews 6:4 and Acts 26:18 tell us that this enlightening of the Holy Spirit is also to open the eyes of sinners and to turn them from darkness to light, that they may see the divine, spiritual things; it is also to turn them from the authority of Satan to God. Therefore, the enlightening of the Holy Spirit results in the sinners’ repentance and turning to God. The awakening of the prodigal son in Luke 15 is due to the enlightening and searching of the fine woman. Our repentance is the result of the Holy Spirit’s enlightening, seeking, and sanctifying.
In John 16:8 the Lord said of the Spirit that “He will convict the world concerning sin, and concerning righteousness, and concerning judgment.” The Spirit convicts man, first, concerning sin; second, concerning righteousness; and third, concerning judgment. Each of these items is related to a person. Sin is related to Adam, for it was through Adam that sin entered the human race (Rom. 5:12). Righteousness is related to Christ because righteousness comes from Christ and even is the resurrected Christ Himself (John 16:10; 1 Cor. 1:30). Judgment is related to Satan because judgment is for Satan.
The Spirit convicts men concerning sin because they do not believe in the Lord Jesus (John 16:9). He enlightens men and reveals their sins, causing them to see that they are sinful, that they were born in sin, and that if they do not believe in the Lord Jesus they will die in their sins (John 8:24). He also causes men to see that in Adam they have been condemned already (John 3:18). If they do not believe in the Lord Jesus now, they can only wait for death under condemnation. Moreover, the Spirit causes men to see that today God wants men to believe in Jesus; this is not only God’s grace to sinners, but also God’s command to them. If a sinner does not believe in the Lord Jesus, he is not only rejecting God’s grace but also resisting His command. Therefore, unbelief is a sin, an exceedingly great sin, that is sufficient to cause a person to perish forever (Rev. 21:8). Since man is sinful and has been condemned already, all that God can ask man to do now is to believe in the Lord Jesus. To believe in the Lord Jesus is God’s unique command for sinners today. Therefore, if a man does not believe in the Lord Jesus today, he violates God’s unique command and commits the unique sin. The Spirit causes men to see this, thus convicting them.
The Spirit convicts men concerning righteousness because the Lord Jesus has resurrected and ascended to God (John 16:10). He also causes men to see that the Lord Jesus was made sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Cor. 5:21), He has borne our sins on the cross (1 Pet. 2:24), satisfying God’s righteous requirement. Hence, God raised Him from among the dead that we might be justified, and that He might be the proof of our justification (Rom. 4:25). Furthermore, He has ascended into heaven and is sitting at the right hand of God, proving that His death has solved our problem of sins once for all (Heb. 10:12), satisfying God’s righteous requirement. Now God can, and must, according to His righteousness, justify the ones who believe in Him. Hence, if men do not believe in the Lord Jesus, the Spirit will convict them concerning this.
The Spirit convicts men concerning judgment because the ruler of this world has been judged (John 16:11). He causes men to see that Satan, the ruler of the world, who opposes God and is at enmity with God, has been already judged on the cross of Christ. Any man who does not repent and believe into Christ will remain in sins to share with Satan the judgment that he will suffer for eternity. Therefore, men should repent, break away from Satan and the world that belongs to him, and turn to God. Since Satan has been judged on the cross of Christ, he no longer has dominion over those who believe in Christ. Thus, men can be delivered out of Satan’s rule through Christ and His cross. If anyone would still remain under Satan’s hand and be an enemy of God, he will share in God’s judgment upon Satan. The Spirit causes men to see this and convicts men concerning this.
Hence, the Spirit’s convicting man concerning sin, concerning righteousness, and concerning judgment is equivalent to His convicting man concerning the content of the entire gospel. The Spirit causes man to see that in Adam he is sinful and condemned; that in Christ he can be righteous and justified; and that if he remains in Adam he belongs to Satan and is judged. On the cross Christ solved man’s problem of sin, fulfilled God’s righteousness, and judged Satan. If a man believes in Christ, he will be delivered from his sin, obtain God’s righteousness, and be spared of the judgment that Satan will suffer. Otherwise, he will remain in his sins, and he will have no share in God’s righteousness. Eventually he will suffer the judgment of Satan and enter into the eternal fire prepared for Satan to be his companion in suffering the eternal punishment (Matt. 25:41). When a person has such a vision, spontaneously he will repent and turn to God.