1 Corinthians 6:19–20 “Or do you not know that your body is
a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you
are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God
in your body.” NASB
The fact of the
indwelling Spirit is not revealed through any experience whatsoever;
nevertheless that fact is the foundation upon which all other ministries to the
child of God must depend. It is impossible for one to enter into the plan and
provision for a life of power and blessing and ignore the distinct revelation
as to where the Spirit is now as related to the believer. It must be understood
and fully believed that the Spirit is now indwelling the true child of God and
that He indwells from the moment the believer is saved. (1) The Bible
explicitly teaches this, and (2) reason demands it in the light of other
revelations. He That is Spiritual, L.
S. Chafer.
Most of us before
and after our salvation feel helpless
in this world. Let face it, life can be overwhelming sometimes. But Christians
must contemplate our helplessness and consider carefully the emphasis given to
this truth in the New Testament to become aware of the greatness of the gift
which provides the indwelling Spirit. From the beginning, the early Christians
knew this to be a sign of their new estate and many were amazed that God would
provide such a wonderful gift to the Gentile people. Although the Bible
explicitly tells us in Acts 11:17, “Forasmuch,
then as God gave them the like gift as he did unto us, who believed on the Lord
Jesus Christ; what was I, that I could withstand God?”
We all (Jew and
Gentile) now receive the Holy Spirit upon salvation as He lives within us;
whereby men of the Old Testament were at one time merely “overshadowed” with
His presence. These men of old, were given revelation by God through His Spirit
but He never indwelled men of old, but only for short periods of time (such as
writings of the Old Testament, messages and warnings spoken in God’s behalf to
the people and to His prophets, priests, and kings) We now have all the ministries of the Spirit in this
age known as the Church Age.
Think about this. We live in one of the greatest times here
on earth. Although the world may throw things at us now and again, we have God who
resides in us, in His personage as the Holy Spirit. We have something men
never had prior to Pentecost. For thousands of years, men would listen to those
who were overshadowed by God’s Spirit and then sought to strive to lead a life
of holiness without the Helper! Now each one of us in this age, who know Jesus
as Savior, have the Spirit of God living in us and He gives us power to live
our lives; a life of holiness. It is now possible to do things we know our ancestors
never had, and it all began when we trusted Jesus as our Savior!
Think about this aspect as Christmas quickly starts to wind
up and share the love of God with someone who needs all the help they can get.
Only God can provide every help they need this season. Remember, people
experience more pain and suffering during this time of the year than ever. As
they struggle missing their loved ones or finances, share with them the love
and indwelling power He seeks to share with them this holiday season. Then they
too can have all the ministries ready and available to them via the Holy
Spirit!
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