Life in the Spirit

One of the most precious chapters in the Bible is Romans chapter eight. It explains that a Christian has the Spirit living inside of them and how our new life will be very different from our old one. Many people do not know that they must respond properly to this unusual fact. We need to have experience with the Spirit if we want to know what it feels like. Paul wrote so much about the Spirit that it may be possible this unusual message was revealed to him by Jesus Himself. Paul claims; I received my message from no human source, and no one taught me. Instead, I received it by direct revelation from Jesus Christ. Gal 1:12 (NLT) Life in the Spirit may be what Jesus was talking about when He said to His disciples; Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more… “There is so much more I want to tell you, but you can’t bear it now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. John 16:10-13 (NLT) Some people ask if they can have the power of the Spirit in them. Jesus said the Spirit would come so we must believe Him. Let us take a look at some verses in Romans eight while we ask the Spirit to reveal Himself to us.

To live as a Christian requires a very different type of thinking than that of a regular person who follows their natural desires day by day. The Scriptures give us a description of this unusual way of life with precise statements about this different type of living. It begins when we come to the understanding that someone else will be directing our life. The Bible says; He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit. Romans 8:4 (NLT) We need the realization that we can be righteous individuals when we redirect our life. It is our responsibility to give by up our old ways and learn to follow the directions of the Spirit of Jesus. We must always remember that it is not accomplished by any of our natural powers. We must walk in the Spirit at all times. As we act out the will of God in our life we have the continual strength and guidance of the Spirit. As the Holy Spirit controls our life we may at times feel His directions or power but most of the time we simply live by faith and trust God to accomplish his purpose.

Many Christians want to obey God but simply cannot. The power of our old sinful flesh is always pushing itself to the front of our desires. Yet we read this Scripture and wonder why sin continues to hold on to us.  And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. Romans 8:2 (NLT) The fact is we have been set free from our sinful flesh but sometimes we do not actually believe it by faith. Faith is always lacking when we sin. For some reason some people feel that they only need faith when they are originally saved. This is bad thinking and is the main reason people never progress in their relationship with the Savior. It is absolutely necessary for a Christian to progress in their faith every day of their life. For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” Gal 3:11 (NLT) Our entire Spiritual life requires faith. In order to enjoy the freedom of the Holy Spirit we must exercise our total faith. Life in the Spirit is one of the most beautiful blessings that the Lord wants to give us.

The reality of the Spirit of God living in us takes some getting used to. However, the union of our spirit with that of the Almighty is something we must strive to accept. Paul spoke for God when he said; But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. Romans 8:9 (NLT) This control should be as real to us as if we fell in a lake and filled ourselves with water. We will be completely submerged in the Spirit and our natural life will die. We should be filled with power, love, and self-discipline (2 Tim 1:7) which is not at all like our old nature. The Spirit has been sent by the Father and the Son to live in us. How can we fail to understand and love them for this blessing? Somehow we must believe that the Almighty God cares about us enough to come way down to earth in order to live in us although we are certainly not worthy. Because the Spirit is living in us, we may have a deep understanding of truth, we may feel a love that we have never felt before and we may actually realize enough power to live this wonderful life.

God tells us that to be spiritually minded is life and peace. It is this simple; those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. Romans 8:5 (NLT) This means that we will direct our thoughts through (run them by) the Spirit continually. We usually know people that have very different dispositions. Some we know as generous, some may be mean or maybe we simply know them as a first class sinner. But any of us can become known as a person who pleases God if we will continually behave in the way that the Spirit advises. Is our mind made up to do whatever the Spirit tells us is righteous? When we have real faith people will say “They have the mind of Christ”. The love of God is truly a mystery to most people. When it is operating in our life we will do things for people that are almost unexplainable. Sometimes we can even love a person that is unlovable. My friend, if we will yield ourselves to God this life is actually possible.

Next we must face the unpleasant fact that the natural deeds of our body must die. Many people would serve God if they did not have to give up something important in their life. The Bible says; But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. Romans 8:13 (NLT) Anything that is not from God is sinful. It does not need to be a bad thing, only something that originates in our natural self which includes our own good deeds. This is the spiritual death of our old natural self. It is this death that Jesus is talking about when He says that we must die with Him in order to be raised a new creation. Jesus died to obtain forgiveness of our sin and we must die so that it can become a reality in our life. The verse says that it is “through the power of the Spirit” we are able to die which is the same power we need to live. Therefore it is possible for us to live a spirit led life if we tell God it is our desire. There are people who tell us that a first class Christian life is too difficult. This is simply not true because with the help of God it becomes a pleasant and joyful life.

One of the privileges of a Christian life is divine guidance. God’s greatest promise, to make us a son, is incomprehensible without His guidance; For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. Romans 8:14 (KJV) Many Christians will wait until they have a problem before they run to God for His guidance. This is like asking for directions to do heart surgery on our best friend when we have never prepared at all. God intends for us to be following His directions every day and then when something big happens it will just be a natural thing for us to find spiritual victory. Being spiritually minded is the only way of life for a dedicated Christian. Jesus said he could do nothing Himself. He was telling us that His life was yielded to God and that the Spirit was telling Him every move to make. How exciting to know that God will direct our life and take a big load off our backs. By the Holy Spirit we can have a life that pleases God in the same way that Jesus pleased the Father. This new life has been promised to believers and it is difficult to understand why more people are not seeking God for it.

Everything we are discussing should be natural to our Christian life. It is also a very rewarding life because we are becoming an heir of the Almighty God. The Scripture says; you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. Romans 8:15-16 (NLT) The Spirit of God is willing to join with our spirit. This is the same spirit that created the earth, that walked with Jesus every day and that raised Him from the dead. If we could only grasp the wonder of God’s power living inside of us. Our fellowship with God could be fantastic if each of our days was filled with an awareness of His presence inside of us. Jesus should be the absolute center of our world because His Spirit has joined with our spirit. Can we comprehend how gently the Father wants us led through life or how closely He wants to care for us. It is wonderful to know that the Lord wants only good for us as Jesus becomes real in our life. Living for God becomes even more pleasant as we gain a sense of assurance.  

Each of us received the Holy Spirit into us when we were saved. The problem is that with time we allow the things of this world to fill our life. The New Testament scriptures have reminded us continually that we must dedicate ourselves to God. Jesus himself warned us with stories like the master who gave different amounts of money to his servants but when he returned to check on them the servants had to account for their actions. “Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one with the ten bags of silver. To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away.  Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”Matt 25:28-29 (NLT) Each person who is saved has received something valuable from God. What are we doing with ours? Most people will state that according to their theology God cannot do this to them. Maybe we have some misunderstanding about the story but serving God full time has always been the way for successful Christians.

Christianity 101

The subject of Christianity is very large. It is the biggest branch of learning the world has ever known. The Almighty would naturally include nearly every topic known to humans in His plans. Because God has allowed His enemy to rule our world, to test us, the Devil is continually attempting to trick people into denying that any learning about the Creator even exists. But a real believer will become truly impressed with the enormity of the things God has prepared for His children. We may at times be overwhelmed when the knowledge of God is revealed to our believing mind. When faced with so many large topics it is sometimes good for us to remember the basics. The Bible says; All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely. Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love. 1 Cor 13:12-13 (NLT) We notice here that Paul, who was highly educated, said that he only knew a part of God’s great plan for us. However, as seen above, he clearly states the basics of a Christian life.

Someone said that faith was better felt than told. They were probably right but there are still things we can talk about. Hebrews says several things about faith including the only actual description of faith which is in chapter eleven. But let us look instead at an application of our faith. The Scripture says; And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. Heb 10:19-20 (NLT) The Most Holy Place for many years was a place of instant death for a human being. Do we have the faith to go where no man ever went before Jesus came to die in our place? Yes, it takes our faith to believe that through the Savior we may now approach God face to face. Christians must by faith relate with God on a one to one basis. It is surprising how many people are willing to believe that Jesus died for them but will not believe that they need to face the Almighty and talk to Him as our loving Father. The only way we can walk through the opening in that curtain and face the Almighty with any peace is to dedicate our life totally to Him.

After we learn to use our faith, as the compass of our life, there is still the grind of this old world which lasts year after year. Maybe hope was given to us as part of basic Christianity because we need assistance to maintain our spiritual life until the end of our days. It is reassuring to read; We who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary. Heb 6:18-19   It is interesting that hope also leads us through the new opening in the curtain and that it no longer stops us from meeting with God. This hope begins early in our spiritual life and stays with us until the very end. It is nice to know that we have an anchor that holds us steady while this life flows all around us. Paul said; I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13 (NLT) Trusting God with our life (faith) and then relying on our anchor (hope) will give us the reward of peace and joy in our life.

The subject of love is a little more difficult. Everyone is not lovable which means we must somehow be motivated to love them anyway.  We are instructed; Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. Heb 10:23-24 (NLT) The Scripture says we should think of some way to show love to others. Some of us need more guidance than others but if we expect God to keep his promise to us then it our job to figure out how to love others. Many times we can show love by simply supporting others in their Christian walk. The servant of God said; We must not just please ourselves. We should help others do what is right and build them up in the Lord. For even Christ didn’t live to please himself. Romans 15:1-3 (NLT) Jesus was the ultimate example of self-sacrifice. He and the other New Testament writers encourage us to become involved in self-sacrifice in order to help others and to be like our Savior.

In order for us to do our best in the Christian walk it is necessary to be part of a group of believers. It is not possible for us to show our love for others if we stay to ourselves and do not share what we have with other Christians. Most of us are familiar this next verse; And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. Heb 10:25 (NLT) This also shows the world that we are a group that has the same faith and hope in our God. Most worldly people are even aware that when someone needs help (love) they can petition the local assembly of believers for help. When we are doing our very best with these three basics, the Lord then ask us to have; Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised. Heb 10:36 (NLT) There may be many things that the Spirit will ask us to do but they will all begin with faith, hope, and love.