January 13 - The Holy Spirit’s Presence In Our Lives
Jesus - “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. . . . You know Him, because He lives with you now and later will be in you.” (John 14:16-17)
Devotional Thought: The Bible tells us that the Holy Spirit, who is a part of the Triune God, was here from the very beginning, helping to fashion the creation of our world (Genesis 1:2). And in the years after that He was involved in creating human beings (Genesis 1:26, 2:7; Job 33:4), inspiring the people who wrote the Bible (2 Peter 1:20-21), and bringing power to the lives of Old Testament Believers (Numbers 11:25, 1 Samuel 16:13, Judges 9:34). The Holy Spirit was also involved in the birth of Jesus, for the Angel said to Mary in Luke 1:35, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and He will be called the Son of God.” And the Bible goes on to say that after Jesus’ birth He was led and empowered by God’s Spirit (Luke 4:1-2, 14, 18).
Jesus said in John 14:15-17 and 15:26 that the Holy Spirit would come to live in the lives of His followers after He ascended into Heaven. And on the Day of Pentecost that occurred 10 days after Jesus’ ascension into Heaven, the Holy Spirit came into and upon His followers (Acts 2:1-4). And the people who responded to Peter’s sermon on that day received the Holy Spirit into their lives. We know the Spirit of God came into people’s lives on the Day of Pentecost because Peter said to his listeners in Acts 2:38, “Each of you must repent of your sins, turn to God, and be baptized to show that you have received forgiveness for your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
The moment we repent of our sins and place our faith in Jesus, the Holy Spirit comes into our lives. Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:13, “When you believed in Christ, He identified you as His own by giving you the Holy Spirit . . .” So, if you’re a Christian, you have the presence of God’s Spirit living inside you (Ephesians 1:13-14). Billy Graham once said: “I’ve had the Holy Spirit living in me since the day that I received Jesus as my Savior. And everything good and godly that has happened in my life and ministry since that time has been a result of the Holy Spirit working in me and through me.” And since we Christians have God’s Spirit in our lives, that means that He goes where we go; and it also means that He will direct us where to go and what He wants us to go and do.
Prayer Focus: Lord, thank You for forgiving my sins, welcoming me into Your family and giving me the gift of eternal life. But I also thank You for giving me Your Holy Spirit to help me make godly choices that lead to good consequences in my life.
Follow-Up Activity: Write several paragraphs about the changes that you’ve experienced in your life since the Holy Spirit came into your life.
