There are two categories of people in the world; those controlled by the flesh (sinful mature) and those controlled by the Holy Spirit. The Bible records in Galatians 5:16-18 that there are two natures in conflict in humankind, the flesh and the Spirit manure that one yields to become the lord over one’s life. Those under the flesh manifest the thinness of the flesh. Such people, though may be living well and enjoying their lives, have no peace with God. Their happiness and stability depend on the things in the world. They trust the wisdom of the world and their experiences in making decisions because the Word of God is not in them.
Life in the Holy Spirit
Those that are controlled by the Spirit give themselves fully to Christ. The Eves depend solely on Him. They pattern their lives after Christ. They live for Him alone and are always ready to please Him. This month, children will have an opportunity to know the importance of the Holy Spirit in the lives of believers. They will also learn various ways through which the Holy Spirit operates.
Children also need the Holy Spirit, but they cannot be imparted if the teachers are not filled with the Holy Spirit. No believer can live victoriously without the Holy Spirit and no worker can make any impact without Him. Children cannot understand the message of Christ if the lives of the teachers are not filled with the Spirit of God because the life of the teacher is a mirror through which the children see and understand God’s Word.
The Promised Holy Spirit
It is natural for one to feel sad when one’s loved one is about to travel, relocate, or die. (Ask the children how they feel when someone they love relocates or travels. Allow children to respond). This is the same feeling the disciples had when Jesus was about to die. At the tail end
of Jesus’ ministry on earth, He began to announce His departure to His disciples. They were troubled and began to ask questions. Jesus knew their worries and was ready to leave the Spirit of truth with them. Open your Bibles to John 14:15-21,25-27 to learn more.
Read John 14:15-21,25-27
Jesus was soon going to leave His disciples physically, and He knew how they would feel. He knew that His leaving would create a vacuum to be filled. So, He said, ‘I will not leave you as orphans.'(Ask the children who is an orphan). An orphan is a child or someone whose parents are dead, or who has been abandoned by his parents. The death of Christ would make the disciples to be like orphans. So, He told them He would ask the Father to send the Advocate. The Holy Spirit is God Himself. He is a significant Person to believers. He is the very presence of God. He helps believers to live as God wants and to build Christ’s Church on earth.
Those who love and obey God’s commands are the people who will receive the Holy Spirit. Jesus said in verse 21,”Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and l too will love them and show myself to them. “It means that His followers would show their love for Him by obeying Him. The Holy Spirit as God Himself will only live in those who hear Christ’s Word and obey Him. No wonder he said, ‘If you love me, keep my commands.’
The world will not accept the Holy Spirit because they cannot see Him or know Him. He is the Confidant and Assurance for believers in any circumstances. When doubt and numerous other forces are at war within you, the Holy Spirit offers you peace.
The Holy Spirit is the Advocate and the Spirit of Truth. He is God Himself in the lives of believers. He is the Encourager, Helper, and Strength in the Christian journey. He is your peace in the face of trouble. The Holy Spirit will come only to those who love Christ and are ready to obey him. Accept Christ today, and obey His Word.
Holy Spirit: The Teacher
The Holy Spirit is the third one of the Trinity. After Jesus Christ had finished His work on earth, it was the Holy Spirit who came to dwell in believers. Without the Holy Spirit, a believer’s life is empty and powerless. The Holy Spirit is the believers’ companion in the Christian journey. He leads believers and teaches them all the truth
Read John 16:5-16,14:26
Jesus, who is all-knowing, continued to reveal what would happen to the disciples after His departure. Though He was going for a while and would still come again (John 16:16), they were still grieved by His sayings. They could not think of Jesus Christ leaving them. Meanwhile, He was going in fulfilment of His assignment on earth. If He did not die, He could not have removed sins and would not have resurrected. If He did not go back to the Father, the Holy Spirit would not have come. Christ’s leaving meant He could be present with believers in the whole world through the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit has three important tasks)To convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment;2)To teach believers and guide them into all truth; and 3) To glorify Jesus. If a sinner confesses his sins and accepts Christ, the death of Christ on the cross will atone for them, declare them righteous, and deliver them from judgment. The Holy Spirit will continue to guide those who are Christ’s. Jesus had been the disciples’ teacher for three years, but there was still more for them to learn. So, they would need the Holy Spirit to teach them all things.
The Holy Spirit is always available to plant the truth in your heart, convince you of God’s will, and restore you when you stray from it. He is indeed the teacher.
Do you need a teacher who will always stand by you in every situation and remind you of the teachings of Christ as a believer? Are you in need of a teacher who will help you to understand and remind you all that you are being taught in school? I present to you the Holy Spirit, the great Teacher who can help you through. Entrust your life into His hands and He will minister to you in all ways.
Living in the Spirit
A man had a dream where he saw himself walking at the seashore. He noticed four footprints on the sand as he walked along the seashore. After a while, he noticed the footprints had reduced to two. The understanding that the other two footprints apart from his own belong to God, who had been taking care of him in his journey. He asked God,
“Why did you leave me to journey alone? “God answered him, “I did not leave you alone, rather l carried you in my hands because you were too weak for…(Galatians 5: 16-26).
Read Galatians 5:16-26
To live is to reside in a place. Hence to live in the Spirit is to reside in the Spirit. Believers need to live in the Spirit, so as not to fulfil the desires of the flesh. The reason God wants His children to live in the Spirit is because sinful nature does not want anyone to do what is right. The Spirit on the other hand always wants believers to please God.
To please God, therefore, you must live in the Spirit. Those who live in the Spirit will be led by the Spirit. Being led by the Spirit helps one to overcome the sinful nature. The Law works hand in hand with works of the flesh, which are: sexual immorality, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, self-ambition, dissensions, friction and envy, drunkenness, orgies, and the like.
Christians are warned against such acts because those who live in them will not enter the kingdom of God. Those who live in the Spirit will demonstrate love and joy. They will have peace, and be patient. They will be kind, and show goodness and faithfulness in all things. They are gentle in character and can control themselves in all situations. (These attitudes are known as the fruit of the Spirit).
All those who show these attitudes live in the Spirit and are encouraged to keep in step with the Spirit. To keep in step with the Spirit is to stay in the Spirit, doing things according to what the Spirit of God requires: Finally, those who live in the Spirit will be conscious of other people’s interests. They will not feel more important than others, neither will they provoke nor envy them.
Living in the Spirit is pleasant. Those who live in the Spirit are dead to the works of the flesh. They are controlled only by God’s Spirit. Pray, and ask God now to give you His Spirit that will always guide your steps.
Grieve Not the Holy Spirit
Every day before Tolu leaves for school, her parents warn her.” Tolu! Remember you are going to school to study; therefore, don’t fight, don’t abuse anyone, and don’t take what does not belong to you”. But Tolu always does everything she is asked not to do, and this attitude grieves her parents. Open your Bibles with me to Ephesians 4:17-32 to learn how to avoid grieving the Holy Spirit.
Read Ephesians 4:17-32
Apostle Paul made it clear to his readers that Christ’s death and the coming of the Holy Spirit brought them the freedom to live as Christ had lived. Therefore, they are expected to be doers of the Word. He admonished the believers not to live as the Gentiles (sinners) do. Those who continue to live in sin have their understanding darkened and are separated from the life of God. They are no longer interested in the things of God, rather they are involved in impurity and greed-evil practices.
Apostle Paul reminded the Ephesian Christians not to join themselves with the unbelievers. Those who put on the new self will not grieve the Spirit of God but will tell the truth always. Attitudes that grieve the Holy Spirit include anger, stealing, unwholesome talk, bitterness, fighting, slander, and malice.
Apostle Paul also encouraged those who get angry easily and would not let go, to forgive. Those who steal are to stop stealing by getting a job or doing something legal that will fetch them money. Those who gossip or talk anyhow should be careful not to pull others down with their words.
Words spoken should build others up and people should also benefit from them. The Holy Spirit of God will be glad for those who are kind, and compassionate to others, and forgive the offenses of other people just like Jesus has forgiven them.
Likewise, you have been raised together with Christ; so walk with Him, and do not grieve the Holy Spirit inside of you.
Children, you should not grieve the Holy Spirit. If you fight, keep malice, steal, or get angry with or without cause, God wants you to stop. God’s Spirit is righteous and holy, gentle and peaceful. The Holy Spirit Himself can help you not to grieve Him. Ask Him to help you never to grieve Him whether in your thoughts or actions.
Praying in the Spirit
Praying in the Holy Spirit (in tongues) strengthens the believers spiritually and enhances the workings of the Holy Spirit in their lives It also stirs up or activates the believer’s inherent gifts and potentials as it charges them up in the Spirit. Open your Bibles with me to Ephesians 6:10-18.
Read Ephesians 6:10-18
What is prayer? Prayer is communication with God. Whenever you study the Bible or listen to a sermon, God speaks to you. The only medium Christians speak with God is through prayer. Therefore, for Christians to communicate effectively with God and to receive answers to their prayers, they have to depend on the Spirit’s help. In Romans 8:26, the Bible clearly says “…We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.” Verse 27 emphasizes the Spirit searching the mind of the person praying. The need for the searching is to know if the one praying does so according to God’s will.
One of the works of the Holy Spirit is to help believers know the mind of God in prayer. People who will pray in the Spirit must be children of God who believe in God’s power to do all things. Such people must put on the whole armour of God and stand against Satan’s arrangements always. They understand that they are fighters who must win the battle against flesh and blood (that is self), powers and authorities of darkness in the high places.
The full armour will help them to stand and always be ready to fight self, sin and the devil as they pray in the Spirit. The armour to put on as God’s children includes: a belt of truth (which is buckled around the waist), breastplate of righteousness, feet fitted in readiness to preach the gospel of Christ, shield of faith (faith always moves the Spirit of God into action), helmet of salvation (those who will pray in the Spirit must have be enslaved. Salvation is the helmet that shields God’s children from attack against the evil ones), and the sword of the Spirit (the Word of God).
Are you finding it difficult to pray in the Spirit or don’t even know how to pray? Ask God to clothe you with His Holy Spirit.
