God is in you

God is with us, and God is for us. Is there anything greater than that? Yes! God is in us. We find this wonderful truth in the writings of both Paul and John.

Paul speaks of the Holy Spirit dwelling in you in 1 Corinthians 6:19: “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own.”

John writes (4:4.16), "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…God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him."

God, the Holy Spirit, dwells in every born-again believer. Jesus Christ said that He would not leave His disciples - and therefore also us - as orphans.

He promised them a Comforter, Advocate, or Helper who would be in them and abide with them forever. And He made His promise come true. The Holy Spirit makes His dwelling in every born-again believer. He is in us now. And this wonderful Person gives us the power to overcome the world, sin and Satan.

With the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the love of God has been poured into our hearts. The Spirit of God assures us that God loves us. He bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. He enables us to live the new life and make the fruit of the Spirit visible in our lives. These are things such as: Love, joy, peace, gentleness, longsuffering, self-control.

We cannot do this by ourselves. Instead, the Spirit who dwells in us helps us and brings this fruit about.

Love is the first thing mentioned in the fruit of the Holy Spirit. This makes it very clear that God wants this love to be visible in our lives.

Jesus Christ said (13,35), “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35).

Love is, so to speak, the proof that we are indeed disciples of Jesus. Love is the proof that the Holy Spirit dwells in us. And this is not about love expressed with beautiful words.

It’s about love in deed and truth. And this is always shown by being willing to give something for others and to make sacrifices.

In Galatians 2:20, Paul writes, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.”

We have received Christ as our life. And He lives in us in the power of the Holy Spirit. This means that we have the capacity now to live morally as the Lord lived here on earth. It is possible in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus Christu is our example. He is our goal and He is our life. The life of Jesus shall become visible in our bodies.  

This is an enormous task - but it becomes reality when the Holy Spirit can freely work in us.

Therefore, remember: you are not alone.

God is with you, He is for you, and He is in you. What wonderful grace!

J.P.S.

Article series: You are not alone