What Does Do Not Grieve The Holy Spirit Mean?

"And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving [Greek word for forgiving, Charis, meaning to have grace upon each other] each other, just as in Christ God forgave [Greek word for forgave, Charis, meaning God has graced us with love, compassion, forgiveness, and kindness] you." (Ephesians 4:30-32)

Don't grieve the Holy Spirit.

That is a verse we have heard quoted over and over again.

Let's take a quick look at what it means to grieve the Holy Spirit.

The word grieve means to feel emotional pain deeply because of love for the one being grieved over.

Only deep love grieves.

We are loved deeply by the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5).

That is why he grieves for us.

The Holy Spirit loves us with a depth of love that is indescribable.

Because of his great love for us, he wants us to have the best of relationships.

He wants us to have peaceful relationships (Ephesians 4:1-3).

The only way to have the best of relationships is to give grace to one another rather than get angry at one another.

The only way to get rid of the anger that destroys our relationships is to give grace to those in our relationships.

Otherwise, we give the devil a foothold in our relationships (Ephesians 4:26-27).

In the verses above, we are encouraged to get rid of the anger that destroys our relationships and to freely give grace to one another, which builds up our relationships.

The grace we are to give one another is the same grace God has freely given to us in Christ.

Through Christ, God has freely and compassionately given us unconditional love, undeserved kindness and unlimited forgiveness.

As those who have become the objects of his grace through Christ, we make others the objects of our grace.

Rather than making people the objects of our criticism and condemnation, we make them the objects of our compassion.

Rather than make people the objects of our frustration, we make them the objects of our forgiveness.

Today, see yourself as one whom God has lavished large amounts of grace upon, meaning large amounts of unconditional love, unmerited kindness, and unlimited forgiveness.

You are the object of his love, not his anger.

You are the object of his forgiveness, not his frustration.

You are the object of his compassion, not his condemnation.

See yourself as one whom God is not angry with.

See yourself as one whom God is not frustrated with.

See yourself as one who is not condemned by God but accepted by him.

As we see ourselves as those whom God's grace has been poured upon abundantly, we will then be empowered to pour out on others the same grace God has poured upon us.

In doing so, the grief of the Holy Spirit, the pain he feels when our relationships are filled with anger, will be turned into gladness as we experience God's grace for ourselves and express God's grace to others.

The Holy Spirit will experience gladness because he takes joy in seeing people and relationships healed by grace and then flourish in grace (unconditional love, unmerited kindness, and unlimited forgiveness).