Friday, July 31
Read Ellen G. White, “The Gift of the Spirit”, pp. 47-56, in The Acts of the Apostles; “Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled”, pp. 667-672, in The Desire of Ages.
The Holy Spirit cooperates with the Father and the Son in the redemptive process. In all of our witnessing activities, we are joining Him in His work of saving people. He convicts hearts. He opens doors of opportunity. Through His Word, He enlightens minds and reveals truth. He breaks the bonds of prejudice that enslave us, triumphs over cultural biases that obscure our vision of truth, and delivers us from the chains of evil habits that shackle us.
As we witness for Jesus, it is crucial to remember that we are cooperating with the Holy Spirit. He is there before us, preparing hearts to receive the message of the gospel. He is there with us, moving upon minds as we perform an act of random kindness, share our testimony, conduct a Bible Study, give away a piece of truth-filled literature, or participate in an evangelistic outreach. He will continue working upon the heart of the individual long after we leave, doing whatever it takes to lead that person to a knowledge of salvation.
Discussion Questions:
1. Share with the members of your Sabbath School group a time when you sensed the Holy Spirit’s working powerfully though your witness.
2. Have you ever felt apprehensive or fearful about sharing your faith? How does a knowledge of the ministry of the Holy Spirit reduce that fear and give you assurance as you witness?
3. In this week’s lesson, we talked about the “activity” of the Holy Spirit in our witnessing. Discuss some different ways the Holy Spirit works with us in our witnessing endeavors. How does the Holy Spirit equip us to witness and work in the lives of others as we witness?
4. The lesson talked about the centrality of the Bible in witnessing. Why is the Bible such a crucial component of our faith and witness? How can we avoid the traps of those who, even while claiming to believe in the Bible, subtly diminish its authority and witness?
