December 30 – Eager Anticipation

“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.” – Joel 2:28 (ESV)

One thing to know is that we don’t know the time that things will happen – speaking now about prophecy. Prophecies are promises of either blessings or warning. But we DO know with certainty that these promises will happen and they will happen in God’s timing.  This prophetic promise in Joel is part of a promised visitation by locusts and it’s a warning. Chapter 1 is describing an actual invasion of locusts that will devastate the Land. Chapter 2 increases the intensity of that promised plague with specific detail. Our verse is a promise of an abundance of material blessings that will be followed by the outpouring of spiritual blessings. The phrases in the passage “in those days” (Joel 2: 29) and “before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes” (Joel 2:31)), point to a time frame for a fulfillment of the promised Second Coming of Jesus. The fulfillment began on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was poured out, and it continued with the saving grace and miraculous gifts manifested in both Jews and Gentiles. We’re still waiting for the complete fulfillment of this promise which is included in Joel 2:15-32.

 

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July 19 – Sealed With A Pledge

“ He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.” – 2 Corinthians 5:5 (ESV)

Let’s think for a moment on what we learned about yesterday. Faith believers in Jesus Christ have the promise of a new forever perfect body. Compared, for visual purposes, as getting out of our raggedy rotting clothing and putting on our permanent perfect and glorious garment. This passage states emphatically that the believer’s heavenly existence will come to pass according to God’s sovereign promise and purpose. We have complete and perfect confidence of this promise when we recognize and believe that God has given to us the Holy Spirit as a permanent indwelling presence. That’s His guarantee to us. Other words for the same meaning call it a pledge. Like the times when we promise with a pledge support to another person or organization, we’re obligated to fulfill that pledge. Also stated in Ephesians 1:13-14 “having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge.” Paul also stated this earlier in 2 Corinthians 1:22. There is no plausible reason that God cannot be trusted to fulfill this promise to us. It’s an absolute guarantee, a pledge as good as a seal with His name embed in it. 

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May 8 – Moved to Follow

 “I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.” -  Ezekiel 36:27 (NASB)

 

All who truly believe in the Lord Jesus Christ have experienced a great change in our lives. The prophet Ezekiel was used by God to explain in part these words from God. The promise is for us as well. God's plan and promise is that when we believe in Jesus, God's Holy Spirit is sent to dwell, to live within us spiritually. When Jesus was still on earth He also  made this promise of the Holy Spirit and He mentioned several functions which He would fill. One of these promised functions is in today's verse.  The Holy Spirit lives in the hearts of believers to motivate us to obey the Lord. As we trust in Him, we learn to sense the impulse within us often to do what is pleasing to God. In Hebrews 10:24, we are encouraged accordingly: “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,”  It may reading the Bible or hearing the Word preached that our hearts are stirred with the desire to do what God says He wants in His Word. The stirring is the work of the Holy Spirit moving us to follow God's will.

 

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May 6 –A Deposit Which Guarantees

“He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.” -  2 Corinthians 5:5 (ESV)

One fact that we can know and rejoice in is that God has plans for us who have believed and accepted the free gift of salvation. We are reminded of this in our verse. God has and is continuing to prepare us for living with Him in heaven. It is God who had made this happen, for there is nothing we can do to receive the Holy Spirit who is our guaranteed promise. We realize that His plans for us are really beyond our ability to comprehend. God knows, and that is the reason He has given us His Spirit. In part the Holy Spirit's ministry is to show us a bit of what heaven will be like. Even that we take by faith for our eyes have not seen, our ears have not heard, all that God has prepared for us who love Him. The presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives guarantees eternal blessedness for us in heaven. Paul emphatically states that the believer’s heavenly existence will come according to God’s sovereign purpose.  Let’s be sure our hearts are open to what the Holy Spirit wants to teach us about heaven.

 

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February 1 – Truthfully Worshiping In Spirit

“God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” – John 4:24 (NASB)

Worship is an essential element of the life of all who truly believe by faith in Jesus. True faith cannot be separated from the act of worship and remain true faith. We worship not what is a physical or material nature. We worship The Spirit with our spirit. Much more than the popular use of the word ‘spiritual’ which describes some metaphysical feeling or sense of being beyond the physical. This verse represents the classical statement on the nature of God as Spirit. The phrase means that God is invisible as opposed to physical or material. Therefore, when we worship God there is only one absolutely necessary way⸺we must worship God in spirit and truth. That may well relegate much of the ‘acts of worship’ used to day to the ‘unnecessary category.’ While these may help us focus on God, they are a physical and material means. The word “spirit” does not refer to the Holy Spirit but to our human spirit. Jesus’ point here is that a person must worship not simply externally with traditionalism to religious rites and rituals or places and outward appearance but inwardly (“in spirit”) with the proper heart attitude. 

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November 30 – Hope. Peace. Joy.

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” - Romans 15:13 (ESV)

Three words which we use often in our thoughts and conversations. But does our use reflect the power and fullness of these words for us? The first is Joy and this verse should fill our hearts with rejoicing. We fully believe that these blessings are for us today just as they were available to the Christians in Rome to whom these words were written long ago. God desires to fill us with joy. God also offers to us Peace. But the peace God gives is not the peace found in this world. Peace treaties and conferences and summits all mean just one thing – lack of conflict between warring parties. The peace from God is the removal of the hostility that separates us from Him and binds us to His love. If our hearts and minds are disturbed by some crisis or difficulty, God wants to fill us with His peace. If you are wondering about your eternal future God wants to remove the uncertainty and doubt and fill us with His Hope. His joy, peace and hope are our promise today and so we give thanks God for His love.

 

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November 22 – With Us When We Pray

“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.” Romans 8:26 (ESV) 

Our verse is in a context that makes known the creation* and believers* both groan for ultimate restoration, the Holy Spirit does as well. One of the last promises Jesus made to His disciples was that he would send a helper and fulfilled it through the Holy Spirit sent from God our Father. The groanings too deep for words is communication within the Trinity that cannot be expressed in words. It is the Holy Spirit that works with our Lord Jesus in His high priestly work of intercession. All on our behalf for all who have believed in Jesus as their Savior, have the Holy Spirit in their lives. The Holy Spirit is helping us to pray by praying with us to our Heavenly Father. To start with, we really don't know in ourselves how we should pray. God promises that if we ask the Holy Spirit to guide us He will impress on our hearts what things to pray for and even how to pray. As we pray we can trust the Spirit to pray with us and we can depend on Him. We can also trust that God will hear and answer our prayer.

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* For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. Romans 8:22-23

November 1 – Accomplished by the Spirit

 “Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he shall bring forward the top stone amid shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’”” – Zechariah 4:6-7 (ESV)

After seventy years as exiles, taken from Israel to Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar, Cyrus the Persian King freed the captives and about 50,000 returned to Jerusalem. They immediately began to rebuild the temple, but opposition from neighbors from without, and the people’s indifference from within, the work stalled and was abandoned. Zechariah, a priest and a prophet⸺contemporary with Haggai was commissioned by God to stir up the people to finish building the new temple. God give Zechariah the prophet a vision for Zerubbabel to take up the task and finish the job. But a caution and a promise are also given that we can learn from and trust as a promise for ourselves. Whatever our duty, neither our might, wealth, or physical stamina will be sufficient for us to complete the work God gives to us. Only an abundant supply of the power of the Holy Spirit, will enable us to carry out the task. Because the outcome is guaranteed, any mountain-like opposition will be ultimately squelched and leveled by God to become like a flat surface. As was promised to those rebuilding the Temple of God it was completed 4 years later in 516 B.C.

 

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October 18 – Direct Access

“For through Him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.” – Ephesians 2:18 (ESV)

One precious truth about believing in Jesus Christ that is not offered in any other religion is that we have access to God our Father. No sinner has any right or worthiness in himself for access to God, but believers have been granted that right through faith in Christ’s sacrificial death. The resources of the Trinity belong to believers the moment they receive Christ, and the Holy Spirit presents us before the heavenly throne of God the Father, where we are welcome to come with boldness at any time. We might think of our access as our introduction to the Father. But it seems better to understand that Christ gives us access to our heavenly Father as our Savior and our advocate. This access is also by faith into the grace of God in which we stand (Romans 5:2). In the next verse we are promised standing as citizens with all who are set apart in holiness and therefore in God’s household. We are IN by faith in Jesus through what the Holy Spirit has provided to us, direct access to God. We need no human intermediary, God accepts our prayers, our confessions, our faith one on one.

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October 4 – A Worthy Walk

“Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;” – Philippians 1:27 (NASB)

As believers professing Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior we are called to live our lives in such a way that other’s notice a difference from those who don’t believe. Paul the Apostle frames this as ‘conduct that is worthy of the gospel.’ The Greek for ‘gospel’ means the Good News. We live and walk in Christ because of the good news of the Lord Jesus. The Old Testament spoke of the suffering and resurrection of Christ so this was not a new message. We know of the resurrection, believe in it, and have been saved by it. (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)  Standing firm in one spirit with one mind introduces Paul’s theme of unity that core to his words of encouragement. Paul’s call for sincere unity of heart and mind is based on: 

1. the necessity of oneness to win the spiritual battle for the faith (Phil. 1:28–30); 
2. our love of others in the fellowship (Phil. 2:1-2); 
3. genuine humility and self-sacrifice (Phil. 2:3-4); and 
4. Jesus Christ our example who proved that sacrifice produces eternal glory (Phil. 2:5–11). 

First as one soldier standing at his post, then as a team resisting a common foe.

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August 23 – The Way to Test.

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God.” – 1 John 4:1-3 (ESV)

The mention of the Holy Spirit in the previous chapter (1 John 3:24) motivates John to advise his readers that other spirits exist, such as demonic spirits, who produce false prophets and false teachers to spread their false doctrine. We are warned repeatedly through Scripture of the danger of apostasy, especially in later times. (1 Timothy 4:1-2). We are in later times as it is the period from the first coming of Christ until His return for his Church and judgment of the world. Do be on guard against falling prey to false teaching that tickles our ears and stirs our desire for the things of the world. Our promise is this, we can know and do know the Holy Spirit of God if we by faith given to us have believed in Jesus and His sacrifice on our behalf. We are definitely in a time where the opposition is increasing in the free world and it is wise for us to cling to this instruction. We can test the spirits by discerning whether they confess Jesus as Lord and Savior. Those who do not so confess, but pretend to be preachers and teachers, are apostates.

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July 24 – When In Need: Restoration

“Create in me a clean heart, O God,
    and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence,
    and take not your Holy Spirit from me.” – Psalm 51:10-11 (ESV)

David, King of Israel, made a serious error in judgment and broke God’s Law. His lust for Bathsheba led him into adultery and the murder of Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband. David, about whom God testified to be “a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do,” (1 Samuel 13:6; Acts 13:22) failed to do so always. It does not have to be any acts of such serious consequence in order to reflect on our own lives and the times when we have failed in obedience to God’s commandments. David writes this Psalm after he is confronted by Nathan, God’s prophet who was sent for that purpose. David confesses his sin and begs forgiveness from God. This promise, we have from God, is found throughout the Scriptures – God is merciful and loving. God will forgive all who come to Him in repentance, confessing their sins. Just as 1 John 1:9 confirms for us, God is faithful and just. He promises to forgive and cleanse us from sin and its residue. David’s request was for a clean heart and a right spirit within himself. God promises that when we acknowledge our failings.

Read 2 Samuel 11-12 – For context

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May 27 – Being Overcomers

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world” … “Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” 1 John 4:1 & 4 (ESV)

The first letter written by the apostle John that we have in our Bible is a powerful letter of truth. A great amount of encouragement is given to those who have by faith, believed in Jesus Christ as the Son of God. When we accept Christ’s offer of forgiveness and in faith believe that He is our Lord and Savior, we overcome the false teaching and false teachers. They are everywhere and we must be on our guard not to be tripped up by them. In another verse we share today from John’s letter is this: “I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.”  1 John 2:14 (ESV) We know that all who believe and have the word of God abiding in them have by God’s will the strength to overcome evil. Since John addresses “little children” and “fathers” and “young men” we know that none are excluded from this promise. All faith believers overcome evil and false teaching. All are made strong in God love. 

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May 16 – A Part of The Family of God

“The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” Romans 8:16 (NIV)

The popular Southern Gospel song, “Family of God” includes the lyrics “I'm so glad I'm a part of the family of God.”  Our verse selected today reminds us of this important work of the Holy Spirit. When we believe and accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, we are brought into the family of God. God puts within us His Holy Spirit to live in our hearts. It is the Holy Spirit who makes the knowledge of our joining the family of God very real to us. Others might tell us this fact and we can read and sing about being children of God but in order for it to become really meaningful for you and I we need to hear confirmation from the Holy Spirit.  How wonderful that the Spirit of God Almighty testifies with us that we are His children. Children of God by Spiritual re-birth and by God the Father’s adoption of us into his family. There need be no question about it and no doubt at all. Let's just listen to Him and let Him convince us each day that we have been adopted and full members of God's family of love.

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May 11 – The Power Dwelling Within

“If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.”  Romans 8:11 (ESV)

If we were to look back two verses we find that the Apostle Paul was confirming that all who have God’s Spirit dwelling in them are no longer bound like a slave to their old life of desires and actions of the flesh (the natural man). We know that when Jesus Christ rose from the dead it was a marvelous miracle. It was something that only God could do. It was the very action that gives us new and eternal life. Our verse today reminds us that God's power is available to us even while we're living here on earth in our earthly bodies. Yes, God has made this power available to us through the Holy Spirit. The things that we could never do in our own strength we can do by His Holy Spirit power. So when we find it difficult to do God's will in specific instances we can trust God through His indwelling Holy Spirit to enable us to do it. God does this for us using the same marvelous power that raised Christ from the dead. Since we have the Spirit of God dwelling in us we are assured us of this promise.

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May 10 – Moved to Follow

““I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.” Ezekiel 36:27 (NASB)

The context of this promise is God speaking to His people Israel through His prophet Ezekiel. After having centuries of repeatedly turning from God for pagan non-gods, He was promising that one day He will do for them what they needed to follow His Way always. Those of us who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ have experienced a great change in our lives. God's plan and promise is that when, by faith, we choose to believe in Jesus, God's Holy Spirit is sent to live in us. When Jesus was on earth He made this promise and including several functions which He would fill. One of these promised functions is in today's verse.  The Holy Spirit is living in the hearts of believers to enable us to obey the Lord. As we trust in Him, we learn to sense the impulse in us to do what is pleasing to God. It may be through reading the Bible or hearing the Word preached that our hearts are stirred with the desire to do what God says He wants us to do in His Word. The stirring is the work of the Holy Spirit moving us to follow God's will.

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May 8 – A Deposit With Guarantees

“He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.” 2 Corinthians 5:5 (NASB)

Context is important. The passage in 2 Corinthians 5:1-10 explains what Paul wrote at the end of the previous chapter, 2 Corinthians 4:16-18. One truth that we can know and rejoice in is that God has plans for those who have believed and accepted the free gift. We are reminded of this truth in our verse today. God has prepared us for living with Him in heaven. We realize that his plans for us are really beyond our ability to comprehend. Because God knows that, He has given us His Holy Spirit. Paul writes that God has prepared us “for this very thing,” but what is that thing? It is to be covered with a resurrected body and the future glory that God already has prepared for us. To put it differently, God has for us, an existence of which the unspoiled life of Adam and Eve in paradise is a reflection. God has given us the Holy Spirit as a pledge concerning matters that will be revealed in the future. Now we are receiving a taste of the Spirit but in the hereafter we will receive the full allotment that God has in store for us.

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March 13 – Verily True

“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.” – John 16:13 (ESV)

We learn through these passages and others that a primary objective of the Holy Spirit of God was to reveal truth. For three years Jesus had taught and demonstrated by example who He was and the program of God as it would be worked out.  Recorded in chapter 14, that same evening, Jesus had said, The Helper, the Holy Spirit, … he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” It was not going to be possible for the apostles and disciples to remember all that they had be taught and would proclaim to the nations. Especially those who would be writing the books and letters in the New Testament. That was the role of the Holy Spirit. One God indivisible, The Spirit was with the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit would be the one to remind to the apostles and others who would be inspired to record what the Father says and the Son did. It was what made the inspired scriptures truly the Word of God. All that they remembered and all that was revealed to them would come through the Spirit of truth. 

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January 24 – A Bundled Package of Fruit

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”  Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV)

It is common that these verses are misread and mistaught on a pretty regular basis. The error comes in the word ‘fruit’ which is read as ‘fruits.’ These nine qualities of character are a bundled package. Together they are the fruit produced by the Holy Spirit in the life of an obedient follower of Jesus. As listed there, this fruit is the evident mark one may expect from a life in which the Spirit of God is living and reigning and Jesus is Lord. Jesus also implied that one’s character of life can be determined. In Matthew 7, the test for false prophets is, among other things, the kind of life they live. Consequently, even though Jesus did prohibit disapproving criticism of others by his followers (Matthew 7:1), He encouraged fruit inspection. The secret to exhibiting spiritual fruit in abundance is described in John 12:24. Using as an illustration a grain of wheat sown in the ground, Jesus encourages death to self and to the desires of the old nature and resurrection to the new life of “much fruit.” Our promise is this fruit produced in our lives if we live according to the Spirit of God.

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October 14 – Unhindered Access

“For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit”. Ephesians 2:18 (NIV)

No other religions in the world are like Christianity and Christianity is not a religion.  To be a Christian is having a personal relationship with God in Christ by the Holy Spirit’s indwelling. That is why this promise is so very precious and wonderful. Every person who has believed in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior has direct access to God the Father.  It is among the spiritual blessings that are ours here and in heaven. All other religions require a person to reach up to a god and grasp ahold of whatever it is by their own efforts. Christianity is the only belief where the true and only God reaches down to humans. In this letter from Paul to the church in Ephesus, the Apostle is teaching that the distinctions between all people has been removed. Those far off and excluded have now been brought close and joined with those who are near. Giving BOTH direct access to God. No more intermediaries are necessary for us to appeal to and worship God. This is a promise that in Christ we have the only mediator we’ll ever need. (1 Timothy 2:5)

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