Real Talk #13: Do not grieve the Spirit of God.

Do you ever read Scripture and it feels like it might have been written just for you to read?

Today, I had one of those days.

29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30AND do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4.

Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God. The word "and" is a conjunction... You might ask, "Conjunction junction what's your function?" (Thank you Schoolhouse Rock.) A conjunction's purpose is to join things together. So, the use of the word "And" ties verses 29 and 30 together...It shows there there is a connection between grieving the Spirit and unwholesome, destroying words...

Chan puts it better than I can:

"The Spirit is GRIEVED when there is a breach in relationship, whether it be with God or other people. When we are disunified, unloving, hateful, jealous, gossipy, etc, that is when we grieve the Spirit of God. And since He is the creator of emotions, I believe that He grieves more deeply than we can ever understand...I believe that if we truly cared about the Holy Spirit's grief, there would be fewer fights, divorces, and splits in our churches. Maybe it's not due to a lack of belief but rather a lack of concern. I pray for the day when believers care MORE ABOUT THE SPIRIT'S GRIEF THAN THEIR OWN."

When I read this in Chan's book, I just sat and stared at the page. I went back to Ephesians to read it all in context, and there it was.

I am in the process of finding areas of my life that GRIEVE the Spirit of God...areas that I never thought there was a problem. The Spirit knows our hearts and motives, and He is grieved when He sees bitterness, anger, and words of destruction.

Today as I read this passage in Ephesians, it cut my heart open and exposed all the nastiness that was inside. I literally sat and just wept about all the times in the past months (and even today) that I have grieved the Spirit of God with my words and actions.

There has to be a change in the way I speak. There has to be a change in the way I deal with the bride of Christ.

I really don't have much else to say about this right now, b/c I don't think I have processed it all the way.