The Holy Spirit

"But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all. . . And as for you, the anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing teaches you about all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you shall abide in Him" 1 John 2:20,27

Devotion #12 of 14

THE MINISTERING SPIRIT, #8 Strength in the inner man

"That he would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your heart by faith, that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend . . . " (Eph 3:16-18). Spiritual strength is not common in our day. Men associated with religion are falling all around us. Religious organizations and enterprises are crumbling. As a whole, the contemporary church is weak and vacillating. It is not able to stand amidst the aggressive assault of the evil one. But all of this can be corrected! God can grant us strength within "according to the riches of His glory." The "riches of His glory" is the all sufficiency of His Person. Our fellowship with Christ is the means through which the "inner man" receives strength. Those that choose to live at a distance from God, remaining insensitive to and disinterested in His "eternal purpose," cannot be strong "in the inner man." It is tragic that so many religious people do not see this. God's "glory," or the revelation of His Person, is abundant with spiritual strength-- strength to resist sin; strength to appropriate grace; strength to stand against the wiles of the devil. Notice, however, that our text goes beyond this. The strength brought by the Holy Spirit enables Christ to dwell in our hearts through our faith. This is necessary to our establishment in the faith. When Christ "dwells" in our hearts through faith, we become spiritually stable: "rooted and grounded." We are not easily moved from the hope of the Gospel, and are able to launch initiatives against the adversary of our souls. This indwelling also results in comprehension; understanding the magnitude of the love of God. In that understanding confidence is generated, enabling us to make progress in the face of great adversity. And how are all of these marvelous benefits brought to us? The Holy Spirit strengthens our inner man that we may have them! Thanks be unto God for this wonderful advantage. Obeying the truth "Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently" (1 Pet 1:22). How is it that individuals come to "obey the truth." Much is involved in this accomplishment. Those that "obey not the Gospel" will be forever excluded from the presence of the Lord and the glory of His power (2 Thess 1:9-10). For some, obeying the truth is simply accepting a set of steps that consummate in identity with a religious body. But this cannot be the case, because our souls are "purified" by obeying the truth! Is there a sane person that would dare to affirm he had cleansed his own souls? The obedience is ours, to be sure! Our wills enter into the matter. We hear and ponder a message from heaven. With conviction, we turn from a life of sin, choosing to appropriate eternal life. We are buried with Christ by baptism into death. Those are all things that we do; and if we do not do them, they will not be done! Notwithstanding, it is "through the Spirit" that we have obeyed the truth. The power necessary to do what was required of us came from God's Holy Spirit. He strengthened our wills, assisted us in seeing the issues, and enabled us to believe a Gospel that could not be confirmed by the senses. The result of our obedience proves this to be the case. Personally, our souls were purified. We also appropriated the "unfeigned love of the brethren." Our preference for them and attraction to them prove that we are partakers of the divine nature!