There are some things that no pastor or Bible teacher can teach you; they can only be imparted by the Holy Spirit. By our own natures, we are stunningly ignorant. There are three things you cannot learn in school, that only the Holy Spirit can teach you.
First, is the conception of sin. Romans 3:23 says, “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” We are sinners by nature. The problem comes from within, not primarily because of what we do, but because of what we are.
Our nature is a poisoned well. Our sins are the poisoned water that comes out of that well. And perhaps our worst sin is not believing in Jesus Christ. Unbelief is the parent sin, out of which all other sins grow. Adrian Rogers says, “A courtroom may convict you of crimes; conscience will convict you of wrongdoing; but only the Holy Spirit of God will truly convict you of sin.”
The second truth the Holy Spirit teaches us the truth concerning righteousness and judgment. Only the Holy Spirit can teach us that listening to and following Satan’s cause is a lost cause. There’s no contest out there: truth is mightier than error, love is stronger than hate, holiness is higher than sin. And our salvation is in Jesus Christ alone.
Lastly, only the Holy Spirit can teach is the completion of salvation. Man is ignorant concerning both sin and righteousness. The Holy Spirit of God teaches us that our only hope is Jesus Christ. And when you receive Jesus Christ and His righteousness, He deals with what we are.
Christians are not just reformed, nicer people; they have received a new nature as a result of a “new birth.” He forgives what we’ve done and then He changes what we are from the inside out.
“We think a man is a sinner because he lies, because he steals, because he commits adultery, or because he kills. He is not a sinner because he does these things; he does these things because he is a sinner. A man is not a liar because he tells lies; he tells lies because he’s a liar. A man is not a thief because he steals; he steals because he is a thief. These things . . . come out of the heart.”
