The Holy Spirit and Our Great Salvation | Sermon By T. T. Crabtree
Text: “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body” (1 Cor. 6:19–20 RSV).
Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 6:12–20
Hymns:
“All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name,” Perronet
“Grace Greater Than Our Sin,” Johnson
“O Spirit of the Living God,” Tweedy
Offertory Prayer: Heavenly Father, we thank you for again calling us together that we might worship you in spirit and in truth, and rejoice with one another in the bounty of your rich gifts to each of us.
We thank you for the manner in which your Spirit indwells the church to lead us into paths of righteousness. Lead us now as we give our tithes and offerings for the advancement of your kingdom’s work. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Introduction
Jesus Christ came to take away the sins of his people (Matt. 1:21). John the Baptist declared that Jesus was the Lamb of God who came to take away the sin of the world (John 1:29).
Paul declared that “Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures” (1 Cor. 15:3 RSV). And Peter emphasized the substitutionary nature of the death of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 3:18).
Many people think of salvation only in terms of forgiveness for the guilt of sin and the removal of the penalty of sin.
This is to fall far short of the great salvation Jesus Christ came to provide. He came not only to save us from the penalty of sin but also to save us from the power and the practice of sin.
The Father God wants us to be living, powerful demonstrations of what Jesus Christ can do in the life of those who trust him as Savior and Lord.
God is interested in saving us in the present from the power and the practices of sin. To accomplish this great purpose, he has given us the precious, personal gift of his Holy Spirit as an indwelling presence.
In the Scripture passage for today, we have heard the instructions that God sent through the apostle Paul to the church at Corinth, which declare that we are to glorify God in our bodies.
The closing challenge in verse 20 places before us an imperative: “Glorify God in your body.” Paul was requesting that we reveal the graciousness of God in our bodies.
He was demanding that we demonstrate the presence of God in our bodies. He was inviting us to introduce God to others by our very being.
Making a positive response is part of the great salvation God wants us to experience through faith in Jesus Christ.
The Father God, through the apostle, called on the people in the church of Corinth to be the place where God dwelled so that the other people of that pagan city could be saved.
To live a profane life of immorality was to defile and to degrade the temple—the residence, the meeting place where people could experience the very presence of God.
It is through the Holy Spirit that the people of God experience the presence of God in the present.
I. The Holy Spirit came to continue the work of Christ.
The Holy Spirit never calls attention to himself. Like John the Baptist, the Holy Spirit is always pointing to Jesus Christ (John 16:14).
As Luke began writing the Acts of the Apostles, he said that he had dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, in reference to the gospel we know as the Gospel of Luke.
The Acts of the Apostles would be more correctly thought of as “The Acts of the Holy Spirit.” The Holy Spirit continues to do what Jesus began to do.
II. The Holy Spirit convinced each of us of our need for salvation from sin (John 16:8–11).
III. The Holy Spirit brought about the new birth when we responded to the gospel by faith (Titus 3:5–7).
This same precious Spirit—who brought about conviction of sin and conversion from sin and the miracle of the new birth—wants to lead us in a manner of life that will demonstrate to the world that we are the people of God (Titus 2:11–14).
IV. The Holy Spirit works in creating conflict between our lower fleshly nature and our new nature (Gal. 5:6–21).
Some new converts experience a great deal of inward tension as they struggle with the presence of evil within them. Some are quite disappointed to find that the life of faith is not a life of comfort and relief from tension.
Perhaps some feel this experience of disappointment because they responded to only a fraction of God’s great plan for them when they received Jesus Christ as Savior.
V. The indwelling Spirit is God’s seal of ownership.
The Holy Spirit is also God’s guarantee of our final and ultimate salvation from death and the grave.
Paul affirmed this divine seal of ownership in his letter to the Ephesians (1:13–14). In his letter to the Romans, Paul declared that the gift of God’s Holy Spirit is his guarantee that he will give us ultimate and complete victory over death and the grave (Rom. 8:11).
VI. The Holy Spirit has been given to us so that with our cooperation he can produce the fruit that will indicate that we are indeed children of God (Gal. 5:22–23).
A. We give our consent to Jesus Christ to become our Savior.
B. We must give not only our consent but our continuous cooperation to the Holy Spirit if we are to experience God’s full salvation for us.
By so doing, it is possible for us to glorify God, that is, to make him known to others.
Living the Christian life is something much more than lifting ourselves by our own bootstraps. In reality it is a life of joyful cooperation as the Holy Spirit works within us. When we recognize him and cooperate with him, it is possible for us to glorify God in our bodies in the here and now.
Conclusion
Yours is the peril of making a negative response to God’s great plan for you. Yours can be the joyous privilege of making a proper response to Jesus Christ. Trust him as Savior.
Listen to him and obey him as your Lord. Trust in the abiding presence and power of the Holy Spirit to help you become all that God wants you to be.
T.T. Crabtree
T. T. Crabtree was for many years the pastor of the First Baptist Church in Springfield, Missouri. He taught preaching and homiletics in Southern Baptist seminaries.
