living in the spirit

God has given to us His Spirit to make Him personal to each of us, to give us power to live this life, and has also given us gifts to communicate His power to the world.

Romans 8 gives us a picture of the true Christian life. This life is possible, and God expects it from each one of us. The flesh is still in us, but we are not in the flesh (Romans 8:9, 12-13). It is our privilege, in the Spirit’s power, to have daily, hourly and constant victory over the flesh and over sin. But the victory is not in ourselves, not in any strength of our own. Left to ourselves, deserted by the Spirit of God, we would be as helpless as ever. It is all in the Spirit’s power. If we try to take one step in our own strength, we will fail.

Has the Holy Spirit set you “free from the law of sin and death”? (Romans 8:2). Will you let Him do it now? Simply give up all self-effort to stop sinning. Believe in the divine power of the Holy Spirit to set you free, and give yourself to Him to do it. He will not fail you. Then you can triumphantly cry with Paul, “The law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:2).

Only when we put away our own righteousness will we find the righteousness of God (Philippians 3:4-9; Romans 10:3). Only when we put away our own wisdom will we find the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 3:18; Matthew 11:25; 1 Corinthians 1:25-28). And only when we put away our own strength will we find the strength of God (Isaiah 40:29; 2 Corinthians 12:9; 1 Corinthians 1:27-28).

Emptying must precede filling. Self must be poured out so that Christ may be poured in. We must be taught daily by the Holy Spirit to understand the Word of God. I cannot depend today on the fact that the Spirit taught me yesterday. Each new contact with the Word must be in the power of the Spirit. That the Holy Spirit once illumined our minds to grasp a certain passage is not enough. He must do so each time we confront that passage.

The Christian life is not to be lived in the realm of natural temperament but in the realm of the Spirit. And Christian work is not to be done in the power of natural endowment but in the power of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit eagerly desires to do His whole work for each of us. He will do for us everything we will let Him do.

The Holy Spirit is Christ in us, teaching us to love through reading the Word. Guiding us in our walk through this life to let Him use us in spreading God's word for this suffering world.
We are filled with the Spirit by faith, enabling us to experience intimacy with God and enjoy all He has for us. The essence of the Christian life is what God does in and through us, not what we do for God. Christ’s life is reproduced in the believer by the power of the Holy Spirit. To be filled with the Spirit is to be directed and empowered by Him. By faith, we experience God’s power through the Holy Spirit (EPHESIANS 3:16-17). 

Ephesians 3:16-17. It is a model for how you should pray daily for yourself: Study God's Word. Depend on the Holy Spirit to help you obey, and begin to obey. This is what it means to be filled with the Spirit. His power will be displayed in your life as you trust Him and begin to obey His Word.
Amen!

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