John 16:8-11
"And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged."
The "He" here is the Helped, the Spirit of the Living God, coming upon the lives of every true believer and into the world to draw people to Christ.
Notice specifically, that the Spirit comes to convict, to bring our hearts to agreement with God concerning our lives. To convict means to be found guilt, and while we are guilty without the presence of the Spirit, it is the Spirit which warns us of our shortcomings.
First, the Spirit convicts of our sins. Clearly, God cannot dwell in the presence of sin, and the Spirit tells our spirits that our lives are not ready for God's indwelling. Everybody falls short of God's glory and are by nature, sinners from birth. In Christ, the Lord takes care of our sins, bringing forgiveness through faith in Jesus' atoning work for us on the cross.
Secondly, the Spirit convicts of righteousness. Surely this is two-fold, reminding us of the truth of God's holiness along with the unworthiness of our lives. While some of us may be pretty good people, we must all admit that under the brightness of God's holiness, we come up short.
Thirdly, the Spirit convicts of judgment. This is the realization that God has not only the right to condemn me because of sin, his sense of justice requires him to hold me accountable. For some, this may not seem fair, since we're by nature sinners since the time of Adam. Fair or not in your eyes, the Spirit convicts us of God's pending judgment.
There is good news for us in the Spirit's conviction. In the middle of this verse we find these words, "because they do not believe in me." God has provided a means to relieve us of our guilt, meeting the need judgment through Christ on the cross. Our only role is to believe in Christ.
As believers, the Spirit still convicts, but not in judgment. For us, the Spirit gently reminds us of our shortcomings against God's moral law and will for our lives and invites us to restoration.
LORD JESUS
Lord, I thank you for not only the convicting presence of your Spirit in me, but for the reminder of the grace you've offered to me in your sacrifice on the cross. I invite your Spirit to convict me daily of my sin, that I might turn in faith from these actions to your forgiving arms. Amen.
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