If we grieve the Holy Spirit He may become silent, imperceptible to us, and we will find ourselves seemingly abandoned to a frustrated and unspiritual state. It was in the apparent fear of this condition that David cried out, "Take not your Holy Spirit from me!" The scores of apathetic and unmotivated Christians attest to this fact. It is possible to be born-again and yet be in a spiritually-lifeless condition. Such Christians and Churches frequently resort to "religious" behavior to compensate for the loss of their true spirituality. The Holy Spirit can be:
1. Grieved: Ephesians 4:30-32. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
2. Resisted: Acts 7:51-52. You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you.
3. Quenched: 1 Thessalonians 5:19-23. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.
4. Rebelled against: Isaiah 63:10. But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit; So He turned Himself against them as an enemy, And He fought against them.
5. Rejected: Hebrews 3:7-9. Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, In the day of trial in the wilderness, Where your fathers tested Me, tried Me, And saw My works forty years.
6. Striven With: Genesis 6:3-4. And the Lord said,"My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years."
After studying these scriptures, prayerfully ask the Holy Spirit to tell you the ways in which you have grieved, resisted, quenched, rebelled against, rejected, and striven with Him. If you are sincere in your request, He will tell you. Write His reply in detail and study it. In this case, as in all others where you are seeking guidance and instruction, the internal answer you receive should be put to the test of Scripture, i.e: Command the "voice" speaking to you to acknowledge that "Jesus Christ has come in the flesh" or get out of your mind. I John 4:2,3. The Holy Spirit will not be insulted by your request; it is He who commanded the procedure as a safe-guard against your being deceived. Do it! Examine your list carefully. Humble yourself before the Holy Spirit’s rebuke and repent of your sin. If left unconfessed, any unrepented sin will "insulate" you from His companionship and obstruct the release of His power through you. It is too high a price to pay.