David Diga Hernandez - How to Stop Grieving the Precious Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is a personal being; He has feelings, so it’s possible that you can hurt Him. Don’t grieve the Holy Spirit. Before I begin, if you’re watching on YouTube, don’t forget to subscribe to Encounter TV and click that notification bell when you subscribe. You can also follow us wherever you’re watching us. It’s important that we remain sensitive to the person of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit can be hurt by the actions that you and I choose. Ephesians 4:30 says, «And do not bring sorrow to God’s holy spirit by the way you live.» Remember, He has identified you as His own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. The Scripture also says, «Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit?» Your physical being is the dwelling place of the presence and the glory of the Holy Spirit. Your hands are His hands, your eyes are His eyes, your ears His ears, your mouth His mouth, your being is His being. So let me ask you, what are you doing with the Holy Spirit’s hands? What are you speaking with the Holy Spirit’s mouth? What are you looking at with the Holy Spirit’s eyes? What are you listening to with the Holy Spirit’s ears? It’s important that you and I consider the fact that when we do something, the Holy Spirit is present. When we think something, the Holy Spirit knows what we’re thinking. Are you putting things before yourself that remind the Holy Spirit of things that break His heart? Are you living in such a way as to glorify Him, as to please Him, or do your actions deeply grieve Him? You know the Holy Spirit is jealous over you. I know that the word jealousy has a negative connotation attached to it, but consider that there is such a thing as holy jealousy. Ungodly jealousy demands out of fear what doesn’t belong to it, but holy jealousy demands out of love what rightfully belongs to it. James chapter 4 verses 3-5 say this: «You ask and do not receive because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your own pleasures. Adulterers and adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a true friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.» Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, «The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously»? The Holy Spirit yearns for you jealously, and when you do those things that you ought not to do, He burns with holy jealousy. When you take Him to places that He doesn’t want to go—and yes, He goes with you wherever you go—He burns with jealousy, holy, holy jealousy. You carry the presence of the Holy Ghost; that means wherever you step, He steps. What are you doing with His being? What are you doing with His body? What are you doing with His purchased possession? Don’t grieve the Holy Spirit. You know, if I’m being honest with you, when I first began in ministry, I was very attentive to the opinions of man, and people’s criticisms got to my heart, and their compliments got to my head. But as the Lord has helped me, and only by His grace have I been able to overcome this mentality of people-pleasing. So I no longer fear the opinions of man. I don’t fear their criticisms; I don’t fear cancel culture. I’m not afraid of what people think of me, so long as I know that I’m obeying the will of God. Of course, this doesn’t mean that I don’t let anyone have an opinion in my life. Of course, I listen to those who love me, those who care for me, and those who speak with wisdom. But ultimately, I’m living for the glory of God, so the opinions of people don’t scare me. What man can do to me does not scare me. People do not intimidate me, nor am I afraid of demonic powers. Admittedly, again, when I first began in ministry, I was somewhat intimidated by demonic beings. It was kind of frightening watching when people would manifest with their demons being revealed until I learned how to cast out demons, until I learned that I had the authority by the Holy Spirit to drive out demonic forces. So I’m not afraid of what man can do to me; I’m not afraid of what the devil can do to me. You’ve heard the phrase, «New level, new devil.» I say there’s no devil that can walk on your level when you walk in the glory of God, when you live in the presence of the Holy Spirit. But I do have a fear, and I believe it’s a healthy fear; it’s a reverence. I don’t fear the opinions of men, and I’m not afraid of demonic beings. What I do fear is grieving the Holy Spirit and diminishing His influence on my life. I don’t want to hurt Him. My desire to please Him, my desire to not hurt Him—that’s the inspiration for holiness, that’s the inspiration for commitment to ministry, that’s the inspiration to love my neighbor. I don’t want to grieve the Holy Spirit. Now, the Scripture says something quite interesting in Song of Solomon chapter 2, verse 15: «Catch all the foxes, those little foxes, before they ruin the vineyard of love, for the grapevines are blossoming.» Now, in the Song of Solomon, the vineyard here represents relationship, or your love for God and His love for you. So when the Scripture here is talking about all of those little foxes that spoil the vineyard, it’s a prophetic parallel, if you will, of our lives—our love for God and the sin that destroys our relationship with God. Those little things that we allow in our lives ultimately end.