God does not make it hard to know Him. He
desires a personal relationship with each one of us. We don't
mean, of course, that you can really know God – no
one can truly know and comprehend Him –- but that you can
know of Him and know that God is real and cares about you.
By "knowing" God you can discover this relationship.
It includes the inspired Word, a personal Savior and a loving
Spirit.
THE SPIRIT
We've already discussed how much God loves
us and how much he wants us to know Him. His plan of salvation
through Christ Jesus includes an incredible bonus.
Jesus asked the Father to send
us a helper, the Holy Spirit.
This Spirit of God, part of the divine trinity
– God in three persons – helps us by revealing truth
and giving us various gifts that assist us in our lives and
our faith. The Spirit is eternal, and as such, has been active
throughout time. At the time of the creation of the world we
are told that God's Spirit moved over the surface of the waters
(Genesis 1:2). He has spoken through the prophets of the
Old Testament and he is active today in the lives of Jesus'
followers.
At the last supper Jesus consoled his apostles when he told
them that despite the coming suffering and death (both his own
and that of his followers) that he would send a helper (John 16:7). Jesus called him the Spirit
of Truth, the one who guides us into all the truth and glorifies
both the Father and the Son. It is crucial to all of us, that
we recognize and accept this helper!
Your Holy Temple
When you do you invite the Spirit to dwell
within you (1 Cor 3:16-17) you have a responsibility
to safeguard your "temple". Your invited guest should
have a high-quality dwelling place (1 Cor 6:12-13,19). This should cause
you to think about what you put into your body, especially your
mind. You can't fill your body and mind with toxic substances
and expect to experience the full benefit of the Spirit.
Jesus promised the Spirit (Acts 1:5) and breathed it on his apostles
(John
20:22). The Holy Spirit also came upon many believers
in a very visible way on Pentecost (Acts 2:2-4).
When
the Spirit moves you
The power of the Holy Spirit is evident today.
You've heard the expression, "when the Spirit moves you".
Paul, in many of his excellent letters to the early Church communities,
spoke of the activity of the Holy Spirit. Read 1 Corinthians
to discover the many gifts(1 Cor 12) and how it all has to be
bound together in love (1 Cor 13 ). Paul's conversion was so
complete that he learned the trap of self and was grateful for
the power of the Holy Spirit in the lives of believers (1 Cor 2:4). Further, in 1 Corinthians
2:12 Paul states, "And God has actually given us his Spirit
(not the world's spirit) so we can know the wonderful things
God has freely given us."(NLT) Part of knowing God is knowledge
of these gifts.
Understanding the truth the Spirit gives you goes beyond human
wisdom. In fact, those who don't have the Helper can't understand
this truth, it is foolishness to them (1
Cor 2:14-16). So, consider this: if you go through life
relying on human wisdom then you are falling into a trap. You
can't discover the real truth without knowing God.
To be sure, our brains are amazing creations. We use only a
fraction of our potential. Yet, God tells us that no matter
how brilliant we may be it is foolishness in His eyes if we
disregard His wisdom. I think the powerful combination of the
Helper and our individual gifts is what brings about real fruit.
Your gifts, whatever they may be, are God given. The gifts of
the Spirit may be things you've been good at before, like speaking,
writing or music. They will reach their fulfillment in the Spirit.
You might also receive gifts from the Spirit the likes of which
you've never experienced. Be open to this.
Reminding you of God's Truth
The Helper is what brings to life the teaching
from Jesus and God. You can study the Bible and you can perform
good deeds, but it's ultimately futile to do it without the
free gift of God's Spirit to lead us. We fall into that trap
of trying to do what pleases God on our own power. The Holy
Spirit gives us the help we need to turn from our sinful nature
(Romans 8:11-14).
Christ saved us from our sins by dying on the cross. Our repentance
is part of the requirement for receiving salvation. That doesn't
mean we won't ever sin again. We're forgiven, yes, but we also
need to change. The real demonstration of that change is in
how we live and how we treat others. The Holy Spirit, dwelling
in you, will give you all the help you need. Furthermore, He
pleads on our behalf to God (Romans 8:26-27).
1,2,3-A
Mystery
The Holy Spirit is God. We believe in the
Trinity — God in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
We cannot fully define or understand this mystery. It is beyond
human comprehension. We can only suggest what it is like, such
as a man having a body, mind and spirit-which one is man? We
can describe H2O as being liquid, solid and a vapor —
water, ice or steam. Which one is the element we call H2O?
The pattern of the Trinity is woven into creation. Consider
time - past, present and future. What about space? It's fundamentally
three dimensional - length, width and depth.
We must accept that we cannot define this Trinity. However,
we can believe in it and discover the joy of God dwelling in
us through the Holy Spirit! God is showing us through this "three-in-one"
mystery that God is relational.
It is not enough, however, to just believe in God. We have to
believe in the power of God that intercedes in our lives and
brings about miraculous things! That is what the Holy Spirit
does. We become empowered with God's spirit enabling us to be
witnesses to Christ (Acts 1:8). The Spirit controls our lives
and produces good fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal 5:22-23).
The Spirit makes the Word of God relevant and meaningful to
us. When we are filled with the Spirit we are enlightened to
the true meaning of Scripture.
This is the real calling of Christians, to live a Spirit-filled
life. Be filled with the Spirit and then put your faith into
Action.
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"John
baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized
with the Holy Spirit."
(NLT)
1 COR 12:7-11
"Now
to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the
common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the
message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by
means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit,
to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another
miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing
between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of
tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues.
All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he
gives them to each one, just as he determines."
