The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my mind and heart in Philippians 1:18-19,
As Paul reflects on his plight of imprisonment with joy, he points to the reason: the prayers of the Philippian believers on his behalf, as well as the provision of the Holy Spirit which led to productive and profitable ministry for Paul in sharing the gospel - whether imprisoned or not - as well as his "deliverance."
In speaking of this provision of the Holy Spirit, I am reminded of what Jesus Christ taught us in John 14:16-17, "I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you." Also, John 16:7, 12-15, "... it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you... I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the 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 glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you." Peter teaches us the Scriptures were produced by men who were "carried along by the Holy Spirit" 2 Peter 1:20-21.
As we can see, the Holy Spirit plays a vital role in the life of every believer. These days some groups are fond of thinking they are the only ones with the manifestation of the Holy Spirit in their lives. This is not what the Lord taught us, it is not what Paul taught us and it certainly is not what all of us believers know to be true and experience in our own lives. Paul tells us that if we do not have the Holy Spirit abiding within us, then we don't belong at all to Jesus Christ, "You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you." Romans 8:9-11. Again, we see the vital role of the Holy Spirit in the life of every believer.
We are told we have been baptized by the Holy Spirit to join the body of Christ, "For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink." 1 Corinthians 12:13. We have been marked with God's seal, the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 1:13, a sealing for our day of redemption, Ephesians 4:30. We have access to God through the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 2:18. As the church, we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, a reality in which God actually lives within us, Ephesians 2:22. The Holy Spirit provides us power, Ephesians 3:6 and we can be filled with the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 5:18. The Holy Spirit is also very involved in our lives to conform us, step by step, into the wonderful likeness of the perfections of Jesus Christ, "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." Galatians 5:22-23.
On another note, we can grieve the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 4:30.
We are told the Holy Spirit endows, "gifts", believers with special ability to serve one another, "for the common good." 1 Corinthians 12:7. That gifting is to be used, as it is in fact, the grace of God he wishes to express to those who are his from others who are his, "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms."
We are also taught that the Scriptures are the "sword of the Spirit", Ephesians 6:17, providing believers with an inestimable weapon in the conflict that rages in the spiritual realm.
The provision of the Holy Spirit is not merely a theological nicety we can reference in our theological expressions. The presence of the Holy Spirit within the life of every believer is vital, necessary, and ordained by God. When we embrace Jesus Christ in faith, we receive our provision of the Holy Spirit, connecting us with other things of God.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
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