Why don't you understand?

People who do not have God’s Spirit do not accept the things that come from his Spirit. They think these things are foolish. They cannot understand them, because they can only be understood with the Spirit’s help. (I Corinthians 2:14)

If you have ever wondered why some people just don't seem to understand what God is doing in your life, it could just be that they haven't met Jesus yet and therefore, they don't understand what you are sharing with them. The Spirit of God is necessary to 'interpret' the things God is doing - to really connect with these things, one needs his Spirit. It is easy for them to understand the things of this world, for that is where their minds are connected. Once there is a connection established between them and God by the power of God's Spirit, they will soon come to understand the things God is doing in and around them, as well.

We sometimes try to communicate the things God is doing in our lives in a way that those without God's Spirit can understand, but it is harder than you think. The things of God's grace are not that easy to understand when you can only see them in a purely 'natural' sense. Sometimes God's plans and actions are behind the scenes of our lives, but we can sense there is something going on. Try explaining the battles going on in the heavenly realms on your behalf to an unbeliever and they might just think you are ready for the looney bin! Although they know there may be a God, and even that they may have a 'guardian angel' watching over them, it is hard for them to believe that God has forces at work right now battling demonic forces on your behalf.

God's Spirit is like a tutor in the lives of a believer, but he acts as the one who helps an unbeliever realize their need for God's grace in their lives. Once he has accomplished that, he then becomes their tutor, as well. It is good to know that we are all 'tutored' by the same tutor! Even after we invite Christ into our lives, the Spirit of God will still bring conviction in our lives - in any area where we are not walking as we should be with Jesus. If we allow sin and compromise to continue, he will convict us, but this conviction is not 'unto salvation' because we are already 'saved' in the sense that we have invited Christ into our lives and had our sins washed away by the blood of Jesus. 

We all need God's Spirit - believer and unbeliever alike. He just has a different 'role' in our lives when we aren't believers yet. We might not be able to fully express God's grace as well as he does, but when he confirms what we say about grace to an unbeliever, it opens doors for them to enter into that grace themselves. Just sayin!