Inside Information

Living in the Spirit:

     But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you....
     The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
     We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.
      This is what we speak, not in the words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words.
      The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.
     The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment.

Scripture: John 16:13-14; 1 Corinthians 2:10b-15

Defining Moments:

     That ocean of relief and refreshment that you felt as you turned your back on sin and turned your life over to Jesus Christ's control was the Holy Spirit of God rushing into your heart, filling you with the raw power of everlasting life. The Bible says: " Having believed, you were marked in him ( in God) with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance" ( Ephesians 1:13b-14). Sort of like earnest money on the house God's building you in heaven.
     Once we get there, we'll understand all that our salvation means. We'll see why we had to go through some of the tough times we faced on earth. Maybe we'll even find out how God pulled off that Red Sea thing, or why He thought it best to put our big nose right in the middle of our face.
     But until then, God has given us His Spirit, so that we don't have to rely on our own vague observations and knowledge about spiritual things in order to do what He wants, to understand His plans for us, to put ourselves into position to serve Him with power and freedom.

Next Up: Oh--by the way--along with the gift of the Holy Spirit comes your own custom-made package of spiritual gifts, which can take you far beyond your natural abilities.

When the Spirit of the living God dwells inside you, you're a whole lot smarter than you think.

     " There is no one who magnifies Christ as the Holy Spirit does. His most intense desire is to reveal Jesus Christ to men."
      -R.A. Torrey