Those Who Are Led by the Holy Spirit (3)

 

 


[Romans 8:14-17]

 

 

Look at Romans 8:16: "The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God." The Apostle Paul is speaking of the Holy Spirit (v. 16). Who is the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit is God. And the Holy Spirit possesses the attributes and qualities that only God has. These attributes and qualities can be summarized in three points:

  1. The Holy Spirit is eternal.
    Look at Hebrews 9:14: "How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" The Holy Spirit is referred to as the "eternal Spirit."

  2. The Holy Spirit is everywhere.
    Look at Psalm 139:7-8: "Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there." The Holy Spirit, being God, is present everywhere. He also dwells within us, His children. However, Satan, being a created being, is not present everywhere. Satan does not dwell within those of us who believe in Jesus, although his minions try to infiltrate us.

  3. The Holy Spirit does what only God can do.
    What are the things that only God can do?
    (a) Creation.
    Look at Genesis 1:1-2: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters." Here, "the Spirit of God" refers to the Holy Spirit.
    (b) The Holy Spirit gives life.
    Look at Romans 8:2: "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death." The Holy Spirit is the God of life. He is the Creator of life. He gives us life.
    Look at Romans 8:11: "But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you." When Jesus returns, the Holy Spirit who dwells in us will give life to our dead bodies. We will be resurrected. We will live again.

In Romans 8:16, the apostle Paul speaks about "children of God," and here we can think of four aspects of "God":

  1. God is our "Abba Father" (v. 15).

  2. God is the Self-Existent One.
    Look at Exodus 3:14-15:
    “God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM.’ And He said, ‘Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, “I AM has sent me to you.”’ Moreover, God said to Moses, ‘Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: “The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.” This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.’”

Exodus 3 is the chapter in which God calls Moses. In this chapter, Moses asks God, “When I go to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” (v. 13). God’s response was: “I AM WHO I AM” (v. 14). God is the Self-Existent One. His existence is not dependent on anyone.

  1. God gives everything that is needed for all creation.
    How does God live? We live with the help of others, but God lives by Himself.
    Look at Acts 17:25: “Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things.” God is self-sufficient and, in turn, provides all that is needed for all of creation. He gives life and breath.

  2. God is the God of covenant.
    God is a God who makes covenants. He is a God who promises and swears.
    Look at Exodus 3:15: “God also said to Moses, ‘Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: “The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.”’”

The phrase “The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob” indicates that God is a God of covenant. God made a covenant with Abraham, and He made a promise: “The LORD appeared to Abram and said, ‘To your descendants I will give this land’” (Genesis 12:7). God also made a promise to Isaac, Abraham’s son: “Dwell in this land, and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and your descendants I give all these lands” (Genesis 26:3). God made a similar promise to Jacob, Abraham’s grandson: “Then the LORD stood above it and said, ‘I am the LORD God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants’” (Genesis 28:13).

God is a God who makes covenants and faithfully fulfills what He has promised.

Look at Exodus 3:16:
“Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying: "I have surely visited you and seen what is done to you in Egypt.”’”

God sent Moses to Egypt to lead the approximately 2 million Israelites, who had been slaves in Egypt for about 430 years, out of Egypt and into "a beautiful and large land, a land flowing with milk and honey, that is, the land of Canaan" (v. 8). Moses led the people to the Jordan River, but then God called him and appointed Joshua, who ultimately led them into the promised land of Canaan.
Look at Joshua 21:43, 45:
“So the Lord gave to Israel all the land of which He had sworn to give to their fathers, and they took possession of it and dwelt in it... Not a word failed of any good thing which the Lord had spoken to the house of Israel; all came to pass.”

God made a covenant with Adam. Look at Genesis 2:17:
“But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

But Adam broke this covenant of works (he disobeyed and ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil). Therefore, God made a covenant of grace with Adam. Look at Genesis 3:15:
“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”

God fulfilled this covenant in Genesis 3:15 at the cross of Jesus Christ.
Look at John 19:30:
“So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, 'It is finished!' And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.”

Look at Revelation 21:6:
“And He said to me, 'It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts.'”

Here, the phrase "It is done!" is translated as "It is finished" in the Korean, King James, and Chinese Bible translations.

God has already completed what He promised on the cross of Jesus Christ (“already”), and He will complete it when Jesus returns (“not-yet”). What covenant will God fulfill when Christ returns?
Look at John 14:3:
“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.”

Also, look at 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17:
“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.”

Look at Revelation 19:6-8:
“And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, 'Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns! Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.'”

Therefore, we can praise God by singing the hymn "In Christ Alone" (new hymn 370) with the 4th verse and chorus:
“The covenant I made with my Lord is eternally unchanging; until I reach His kingdom, He will always protect me. While praising the Lord, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, though the way ahead is long and difficult, I will only follow the Lord.”

God’s faithful covenant is unchanging. God has fulfilled it, is fulfilling it, and will finally fulfill it. Therefore, we should live according to the guidance of the Holy Spirit with faith in the covenant-making God. Our Abba Father, the self-existent God, will surely fulfill the covenant He made with us. With this faith, we will live according to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and, ultimately, enter His kingdom and participate in the marriage supper of the Lamb, enjoying eternal life and bliss.