What is the conviction of the Holy Spirit?
John 16:7-11
Having grown up in Wisconsin, I learned that the deadliest wildfire in the history of the U.S. was the Peshtigo fire of 1871, killing around 2,400 people. But that was before my time, by a little over 100 years. I never experienced or even imagined anything close to a wildfire in Wisconsin in the last part of the 20th century.
This all changed when I moved out west. Wildfires are a threat every year in Wyoming. Sometimes I am amazed that we have as few as we do, with all of the dry tinder on the ground every fall, most summers, and sometimes even in the winters and springs. But, as likely as they are, wildfires only happen when they are ignited, usually by a bolt of lightning, a careless campfire or slash pile fire, or a spark from a piece of equipment on the highway, the hayfield or in the forest. Fires do not start without an ignition.
When we talk about the conviction of the Holy Spirit, ignition might be a good way to think about what is going on. Logically speaking, everybody should know that they will die someday and be judged by God. It does not take much to learn enough about Jesus to believe and be saved. But the truth is, very few believe. Why so few? Because, like a wildfire, belief in Jesus must be ignited. This is what we call conviction, the work of the Holy Spirit (or Comforter, or Helper, or Advocate, depending on your English translation) described for us in John 16:7-11.
There are three parts to conviction by the Holy Spirit. First, we are convicted of our sin. The Holy Spirit shows us that the wrong things that we do are sins. Whether it is talking back to our parents, swiping an item secretly from the grocery store, starting rumors, getting drunk, indulging in pornography, cheating in school or at work, lying, or just about anything else, it does not take a brain surgeon to realize that these are all wrong. We all know to some extent the difference between right and wrong. But it takes the Holy Spirit for us to be convicted that, not only are they wrong, they are sins against a Holy God.
Secondly, the Holy Spirit convicts us of righteousness. We know, from above, that we are not righteous. Who is righteous? Only Jesus Christ is righteous. Whereas we all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23), Jesus Christ never sinned. The Holy Spirit convicts us of the righteousness of Jesus Christ by showing us that He is the Son of God and therefore holy and righteous, just like God.
Thirdly, we are convicted by the Holy Spirit of judgment. Obviously, whenever there is a wrong committed, judgment is made and a penalty given. (If we break our parents’ rules, we get grounded. If we defy the law, we go to jail. If we don’t follow directions, we get lost. If we do drugs, our bodies break down much faster. If we sin against a holy and eternal God, we must die forever.) When the Holy Spirit convicts us of judgment, He convinces us that the penalty for our sins is paid for by none other than Jesus Christ, the righteous One, who died on the cross for our sins! The eternal God died to sin once so that we can live forever.
And just like that, just like a spark on dry ground in Wyoming, after the Holy Spirit convicts us, we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and are born again!
We are convicted that there is a penalty for our sin and that penalty is death (Rom 6:23). When we realize that we are sinners against a holy God and when we recognize the righteousness of Jesus Christ and when we realize that God judges our sins by crucifying His only begotten Son, Jesus, on the cross, we believe and are saved.