Sin and Our Relationship with the Holy Spirit

I am preaching a message from James 1:26-27;2:12 this Sunday titled, "Talk and act..." The big idea of the message is that our speach and action reveals the true quality of our faith. We need to talk and act like people that are expecting to be inspected by Christ.

I wanted to use a quote from a Pentecostal minister named Bill Johnson in the sermon but will not have room for it Sunday. I share it here because I think it helps us see how our relationship with the Holy Spirit makes a practical difference in our lives. The Holy Spirit empowers us to do all that God wants us to do for others and strengthens us to resist temptation. Here is the quote:

"Around twenty-five years ago I heard someone mention that if we would learn what it meant to "not grieve" and "not quench" the Holy Spirit, we would know the secret of being full of the Spirit. While that may be overly simplistic, this individual tapped into two very important truths that deal directly with the "character vs. power" trap.
The command, "Do not grieve the Holy Spirit" explains how our sin affects God. It causes Him grief. This command is character centered. Sin is defined in two ways: doing wrong things, and a failure to do right things: "To him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin." Departing from the character of Christ in either of these ways brings grief to the Holy Spirit.
Continuing with this theme we hae the command, "Do not quench the Spirit." This mandate is focused on our need to follow His leading. To quench means to "stop the flow" of something. As the Holy Spirit is ready to bring salvation, healing, and deliverance, we are to flow with Him. Failure to do so hinders His efforts to bring us into the supernatural."