Day 31
She knew she didn’t have much time left on this earth, in this body that was decaying at an accelerated rate. In the spring of 2020, my sweet mother knew that her life was coming to an end and she began to share important truths, memories, and requests with me. Things she needed me to remember and take care of once she was gone.
One of those tasks involved her lovely and extensive collection of rings. She wanted each of her granddaughters to have a specific ring. She asked me to bring her jewelry box to her bed. We opened it and one by one, she picked up a ring, told me the story behind it and which granddaughter she wanted to have it. I took notes as she spoke. I knew that soon I would need to wrap these gifts with a note for each of the girls. It was obvious from her selections that she knew her granddaughters intimately. Each ring a unique match and reflection of Gran’s love for them.
My mother knew that her time was coming to a close. She didn’t spend those last six months talking about the weather. She shared what was most important for me and others to know. The same was true for Jesus as He shared a last meal with His disciples the night before He died. It was during this Upper Room Discourse that Jesus chose to talk about a gift that the guys and all believers would receive after He died - the promised Holy Spirit.
Read John 14:15-26
When it comes to the Trinity - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - without a doubt, the Holy Spirit is the most mysterious of the three. It’s the person within the Trinity we know the least about. It’s intriguing that some of Jesus’ last words to his disciples are filled with teaching about the Holy Spirit, which shows how important He is. As we dig into Jesus’ final instructions, we learn more about who the Spirit is and what He does.
Who the Spirit Is
First, who is the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity and is co-equal, co-eternal, and fully God alongside the Father and Son. Having just instructed His disciples to love one another as He has loved them, Jesus recognizes that this will be no easy task for them. He will “ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor” (v 16) to join them once He is no longer with them. A legal term, meaning “advocate or helper,” Jesus also refers to the Counselor as “the Spirit of Truth.” He shares the same divine nature as God the Father and Jesus Himself; a personal being with a mind, emotions and will. And just as Jesus only does the will of the Father, so does the Holy Spirit, acting as the active presence of God in the world.
What the Spirit Does
Second, what does the Spirit do? The Holy Spirit was prominent in creation and throughout the Old Testament, bringing calm and order to chaos. As early as Genesis 1:2 we read, “Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.” The Spirit was visibly present for Jesus when He was baptized in the Jordan River at the start of His ministry and then led Him into the wilderness for 40 days of temptation.
Jesus assures His disciples that they know the Spirit; He will indwell Jesus’ followers forever, functioning as a divine emissary in his physical absence. Later, the promise of the divine presence with Jesus’ followers includes not only the Spirit, but Jesus and the Father as well. “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” (v 23) Not a mere force or feeling, the Spirit is a divine person who indwells believers, providing counsel, comfort, and sanctification. The Spirit guides believers toward truth and inspires righteous living. The Spirit also convicts individuals of sin, leading them to repentance. After salvation, the Holy Spirit lives inside Christians permanently, literally tabernacling within them with God’s presence, much like the pillar of cloud that would hover over the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy Place within the tabernacle and temple. No longer must believers go to the temple to enter God’s presence. The Holy Spirit resides within, empowering them to live godly lives, helping them pray, and unleashing spiritual gifts.
The Apostle Paul shares an appropriate prayer for the Ephesian Church, specifically citing the Holy Spirit’s role:
“For this reason I kneel before the Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named. I pray that he may grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with power in your inner being through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. I pray that you, being rooted and firmly established in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the length and width, height and depth of God’s love, and to know Christ’s love that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Now to him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us - to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” (Eph 3:14-21)
Big Picture Question for Today:
* How do you see evidences of the Holy Spirit in your life?
Pray for better understanding and reliance on the Holy Spirit for counsel, power, courage and peace.
Finally, I’d love to share a song that has long reminded me of the depth and breadth of the Holy Spirit and His work in my life. Often in hymns and worship music, a clear understanding of the third Person of the Trinity seems to be quite narrow. We sing about Him as if His sole purpose is to liven up our services by showing up when we ask Him to, give us warm feelings as well as the occasional spiritual gift.
“Holy Spirit Living Breath of God,” written in 2005 by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend, seeks to point to the central vitality of the Spirit in every area of our lives: applying the word of God to our lives; bearing His multi-faceted fruit in us and shaping us into the likeness of Christ. If you’re anything like me, you’ll play this song on loop for the remainder of the day.
Holy Spirit Living Breath of God (Official Lyric Video) - Keith & Kristyn Getty
Holy Spirit Living Breath of God, Keith Getty and Stuart Townend
Holy Spirit, living breath of God,Breathe new life into my willing soul.Let the presence of the risen Lord,Come renew my heart and make me whole.Cause Your Word to come alive in me;Give me faith for what I cannot see,Give me passion for Your purity;Holy Spirit, breathe new life in me.
Holy Spirit, come abide within,May Your joy be seen in all I do.Love enough to cover every sin,In each thought and deed and attitude.Kindness to the greatest and the least,Gentleness that sows the path of peace.Turn my strivings into works of grace;Breath of God show Christ in all I do.
Holy Spirit, from creation’s birth,Giving life to all that God has made,Show Your power once again on earth,Cause Your church to hunger for your ways.Let the fragrance of our prayers arise;Lead us on the road of sacrifice,That in unity the face of ChristMay be clear for all the world to see.
Keith Getty & Stuart Townend Copyright © 2005
