There can be few more fearful prospects for a Christian or a church than that of grieving the Holy Spirit. I wonder how many of us ever contemplate this, searching our own hearts and lives, considering the life of the church, and asking whether or not we are guilty of such a sin? Spurgeon reminds us of this horrible possibility, explaining how and why it may come about. He also explores some of the ugly consequences of grieving the third Person of the Godhead, the damage it does in the life of the church and her members. Finally, he urges a personal argument why the saints should not grieve the Holy Spirit. Of course, the preacher’s aim is not merely to bring us down, still less to keep us down. Rather, the desire is to diagnose and to prescribe, to make us aware of the dangers so that we might either avoid them or address them. While some may be prone to assume that they have grieved the Holy Ghost in some way, too quick to jump to this conclusion, it seems likely today that the opposite problem more prevails—that of failing to consider whether or not one of the reasons for the weakness of the church is that we have distressed the Spirit of God. Here the question is put, here a solution is proposed.

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