But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. 10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
Romans 8:9-11
These verses certainly emphasize the indwelling nature of the Holy Spirit in the believer. What does it mean to be indwelt by the Spirit? It means having a “new nature” (2Co 5.17). It means having guide for our walk in Christ (John 16.13). It means to have a Helper or Comforter as we face daily problems (John 14.16). It means He is there to convict us of sin (John 16.7-11), urging us to confess (1John 1.9) and repent.
The indwelling Spirit is associated with the new nature we have in Christ. But there seems to be a constant struggle between the old and the new nature. Paul confirms this in the letter to the Romans (Rom 7.15-25). “The devil made me do it” is not really an excuse! The problem is, so many times, we yield to our old nature, we are not aware of the “indwelling Spirit”. How do we yield to the indwelling Spirit?
We yield by obedience, obedience to the word of God. How do we know the desires of our Lord, it is through the word? The Spirit given word is a lamp guiding us day by day. That’s why it is so important to have it open before us as we struggle with the days problems. It is the word of God that the indwelling Spirit uses to combat the old nature within us.
John 14:15-17 “”If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you foreve— 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
John 16:13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.
The Holy word is our sword; the Spirit speaks to us through the word. The Lord has not left us alone! Just a thought for the morning.
Carl
