John 14:16-18
"And I (Jesus, added) will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that he may abide with you forever—the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you."
This is one of the Bible's most dramatic promises, spoken to the disciples directly by the mouth of Jesus Christ. In these words, Jesus promises every believer the Spirit's touch, the Spirit of truth, the Helper for our lives. His promises is that God the Father would send the Spirit to dwell not only with us, but in us.
So whom is the one in which the Spirit dwells? Is it everyone who is sincere in seeking after an unknown god? Is it every person who has ever lived since all are loved of God. Jesus explains, the Spirit does not dwell with those belonging to the world, but to any who have turned from the world and turned to faith in Jesus Christ. This is the Church, the people of faith. With us, the Spirit dwells. In us, the Spirit makes his abiding home.
While Jesus may have ascended to Heaven to prepare a place for us, we've not been left to live alone as orphans. Jesus may not be standing here with us, but in his place, the Spirit has come upon us, dwelling in and through us. In the Spirit we know the same God we worship each day and together on Sundays. It is the Spirit who is here always with us, and we rejoice in his presence.
One of the main things I like about the Spirit is that He is a testifier of truth. When we search the Spirit living within us, we can rightly discern right from wrong in terms of God's will, we can rightly make moral decisions, and we can understanding the Lord's revelation to us in the Bible. The Spirit is truth, and this truth always testifies of Jesus Christ.
LORD JESUS
Lord, I thank you for your everlasting abiding presence as the Spirit in us. May I always seek to know you more by looking to your Spirit. Amen.
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