July 01, 2007
How God works in me through His Spirit
I read just 4 little verses today using the tools for digging deeper in the Living Beyond Yourself online Bible Study. I decided that the "dead works" mentioned in Hebrews 9:14 refer to things I do from a sinful heart without acknowledging God or seeking His will, and without allowing the Spirit to empower me and guide me to do what is right. This verse reminds me that the Spirit kept Jesus faultless, pure, sinless, and unblameable...completely free of dead works! The Holy Spirit can also eliminate dead works from my life.
In Philippians 2:13, I was reminded that God is working in my by the power of the Holy Spirit to demonstrate His power and love, and to fulfill His purpose in my life.
When I read John 3:7, I focused on what "born again" meant and decided it meant that I am made completely new and can begin again by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Finally, looking at Ephesians 5:18, I recognized that the Spirit wants to fill me up, to enter every area of my life, to complete and perfect me. He will only do that if I empty myself of sins by laying them before the Lord, and pour out my worries, concerns, selfishness to Him...if I am full of all of these things, how can the Spirit fill me? My husband and I baked a cake and frosted it yesterday. The cake itself was good, and the frosting made it even better. Some cakes turn out too dry though, and they need frosting just to make them palatable. Is my life dry? Am I letting the Spirit be like the frosting on the cake...there to make me palatable? Or am I allowing God to completely change the recipe and transform me from within, taking out the ingredients that would make me less than perfect, and filling me with His perfect (even secret!) Ingredient. The Spirit wants to be more than just the icing on the cake in my life...He wants to transform the cake from within, making it the best cake in the world.
Posted by jennbeck at July 1, 2007 07:23 AM