We have had an extraordinary series of thirteen studies on the Holy Spirit. In no way should anyone conclude that we have exhausted the subject. We have only been teased into further study.

In this final week, we can see the goal to which we have been traveling. And we ask two questions privately: "Have I been permitting the Holy Spirit to do his primary work of reproducing the character of Jesus in my life?" And, "Am I committed to join others in stepping up to the plate as God’s representatives in earth’s closing hours wherein all the malignant forces of evil are aimed at destroying God’s influence on this planet?"

The entire universe has been anxiously waiting for God’s loyalists to grasp their privileges and responsibilities. Through these men and women, identified as those who "keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus" (Rev. 14:12), people everywhere will hear a "loud voice" saying, "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come" (Rev. 14:7).

That "loud voice" is the powerful witness of people in whom the Holy Spirit has been dwelling, people in whom God will not be embarrassed to give his latter rain power. They will have developed life habits of "the fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control" (Gal. 5:22,23). They will be "filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God" (Phil. 1:11). Such is the purpose of the gospel, "which is Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col. 1:27).

Paul’s frequent phrase, "Christ lives in me," or similar statements (Gal. 2:20; 4:6; 4:19; 5:16-25) reflects the Lord’s promise that he would, after his ascension "give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive…but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you" (John 14:16, 17). In other words, the indwelling Spirit, Christ’s promise, is our "hope of glory." Not repetitious mental beliefs of an historical Christ alone, but the moment-by-moment companionship of the Holy Spirit that will produce the "fruits of righteousness" that all heaven is waiting to see ripen in earth’s final harvest.

John saw God’s loyalists in the last days maturing quickly into those that God could stamp with his approval, writing his signature across their foreheads (Rev. 7:3; 14:1; 22:4). All this is the product of the chief work of the Holy Spirit—"given as a regenerating agent, and without this the sacrifice of Christ would have been of no avail" (Ellen White, Desire of Ages, 671),

To make all this relevant and practical, the return of Jesus will be delayed until God has loyalists who are ready for his seal of approval (Rev. 7). The harvest of the world, the maturation of both the wheat and the tares, will be delayed until the harvest is ripe (Rev. 14:14–16). Without the latter rain, the explosion of power in fully committed loyalists—there will be no loud cry, no ripening of the grain, no soon return of Jesus.

In so many ways, over many decades of emphasizing these biblical principles, we have been told:

[T]his is the work that the Lord would have every soul prepared to do at this time, when the four angels are holding the four winds, that they shall not blow until the servants of God are sealed in their foreheads. There is no time now for self-pleasing.…We should daily obtain a deep and living experience in the work of perfecting Christian character [which is another way of saying that the "fruit of the Spirit" should be permitted to ripen]. (Ellen White, Testimonies to Ministers, 510, 511)

The promise is electric with eternal implications: "Those who come up to every point, and stand every test, and overcome, be the price what it may, have heeded the counsel of the True Witness, and they will receive the latter rain, and thus be fitted for translation" (Ellen White, Testimonies for the Church, 1:188).

In reviewing this quarter’s emphasis on the Holy Spirit’s purpose and how he does his work in our lives, we all sense that he surely is our best and closest Friend. He talks to us while we read the Bible. He stands at the gate to help us face temptations of all kinds—from within and from without—and he answers our prayer, "lead us not into temptation." He encourages us and empowers us when we are overwhelmed with the duties of the day and night. He soothes us in the night hours when we are still awake. He considers his highest honor is for us to be better acquainted with Jesus and our Heavenly Father.

Which one of the Heavenly Trio do you want to thank the most when you get on the other side?

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