Sunday Words of Encouragement October 10, 2021

We enjoyed Sunday School again this morning with an excellent lesson I hope to share another day. In church we had moving worship that led to time with Spirit before Pastor shared his sermon. As Pastor noted, God is always moving but do we respond? We need to be willing to break through the ceiling or the walls of comfort and resistance. The believer should always be pushing to reach new levels in our relationship with God.

This comment fit in with Pastor’s conclusion to the series Walking With Jesus. Our ultimate companion and partner, is Jesus, and the Holy Spirit living in us. As stated in the earlier messages, our roots should grow into Him. Colossians 2: 6-7.

We are all familiar with company products and limited warranties that deliver failed promises. But we can always rely on the promises of God. Jesus promises the Holy Spirit will dwell with the believer. He sends us the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, as His representative. John 14:15-29.

The Point: True intimacy with God is possible because the Holy Spirit lives in us.

Abraham was given a promise, before he ever had a child, that he would be the father of many nations. Jesus died for believers so we might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith. Galatians 3:13-14.

Submitting to the Holy Spirit helps us become more like Jesus. It is more than WWJD (What Would Jesus Do). It is being more like Jesus. God has that goal for you. We are children in the family of God and share in sufferings so that we may share in God’s glory. Romans 8:15-17.

The Holy Spirit and our spirit long for connection and intimacy. The flesh pushes against the spiritual connection. As Francis Chan says, our job is to put our flesh to death.

“The Bible admonishes us in Romans 8:13 to put to death the deeds of the sinful flesh by the Holy Spirit so that we might truly live.” See Chan’s blog - The Ordinary Christian.

The Holy Spirit leads us to life with Christ, to accomplish God's purpose.

“When we are at our wits’ end for an answer, then the Holy Spirit can give us an answer. But how can He give us an answer when we are still well supplied with all sorts of answers of our own? -Karl Barth-” ― Francis Chan, Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit.

And why does it take us so long to get to God’s way?
A sure sign of the Holy Spirit's working in us is that Jesus is magnified through us.

“The Christian’s life in all its aspects—intellectual and ethical, devotional and relational, upsurging in worship and outgoing in witness—is supernatural; only the Spirit can initiate and sustain it. So apart from him, not only will there be no lively believers and no lively congregations, there will be no believers and no congregations at all. -J. I. Packer-”
― Francis Chan, Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit.

Today is the day to move and respond to the Holy Spirit. Now...and at all moments. You cannot be led and follow without worshiping and magnifying Him. We should worship the one God magnifies – Christ Jesus.

I chose this song for today “Yahweh”:

Verses for Today:
Romans 8:15-17 NIV
15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.


Lord, keep me close to you through the Holy Spirit. Help me fight the flesh that leads me against Your Will.