Access to the Father by one Spirit

Access to the Father is another important ministry of the Holy Spirit to believers. Paul wrote, "For through Him (Jesus) we have access by one Spirit unto the Father" (Eph. 2:18). "God is holy" (1 Pet. 1:16). He is "the mighty God" (Isa. 9:7). He is "the eternal God" (Deut. 33:27). We are to "fear God" (1 Pet. 2:17). It is no wonder that we sometimes feel so unworthy to come to God for "help in time of need" (Heb. 4:16).

Oh, but dear people, the Holy Spirit "helps our infirmities" (Rom. 8:26) and gives us liberty to have access unto the Father. This is a reality as we walk in the Spirit. So much of the Christian life depends on us relying on the Holy Spirit to live the way we should. 

If you are struggling in your prayer life, you are probably not fully walking in the Spirit. This really makes a difference in your prayers. We have "access by the Holy Spirit to the Father." That is not just religious talk; it's the essential ingredient to coming to God and seeing powerful answers to our prayers.

The big hindrance in most Christians' lives is unconfessed and unforsaken SIN. You be the judge! David wrote, "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me" (Ps. 66:18). We read in 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

Oh, dear people, live "the normal Christian life" by confessing those sins and asking "according to the will of God" for the Holy Spirit to take control of your life DAILY, if not HOURLY. When you do this, you will have access to the throne of grace and see answers to your prayers and have "life more abundantly" (John 10:10).

Prayer: Father, bless Your children reading this. May they learn to walk in your Spirit and depend on You. May they gain that abundant "access by the Spirit" to Your throne of grace. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Quote for the Day: "I'm convinced that the man who has learned to meditate upon the Lord will be able to run on his feet and walk in his spirit. Although he may be hurried by his vocation, that's not the issue. The issue is how fast his spirit is going. To slow it down takes a period of time." —Charles Stanley

 

Choose or Lose

Joshua told the Israelites, "Choose for yourselves today whom you will serve… but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord" (Josh. 24:15). Forty years before, Joshua and Caleb had been scorned by their own people. The faithless Israelites would not believe God nor the reports of Joshua and Caleb, so they were not allowed to enter the Promised Land. They paid an awful price, wandering aimlessly and shamelessly until they all died in the wilderness (Num. 14).

Joshua could have gotten his feelings hurt and moped and mourned. But instead, he continued to follow the Lord and serve under Moses (Num. 11:28). God later chose Joshua to lead the people into the will of God, into the Promised Land. What a switch!

Soon, we will celebrate the day that a group of men chose to be free and signed the Declaration of Independence. Our freedom came at an enormous price. Thousands died so we could have liberty.

The whole world is facing a decision today. We must choose whether or not to be free from terrorism here and free from the terror of a holy God hereafter by believing and receiving the only true God and His Son, Jesus Christ. Our spiritual freedom cost the Lord a great price. Jesus suffered and died for our sins, paid our debt in full, rose again and was seen by hundreds after His resurrection (1 Cor. 15:1–4).

Choose you this day the Lord Jesus as your Savior. The Bible says, "As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God" (John 1:12). It also says, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved" (Acts 16:31). Don't be the person who hears this from God: "Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?" (Luke 6:46).

Prayer: Father, may people, by the hundreds, receive the Lord Jesus and make Him Lord of their lives right now as they read this message. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Quote for the Day: "Character is the sum and total of a person's choices." —P.B. Fitzwater

Liberty for All

One of the primary ministries of the Holy Spirit to believers is spiritual liberty. Paul wrote, "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty" (2 Cor. 3:17).

Oh, dear people, here is one of the sweetest ministries of the Holy Spirit in all of the Bible. Paul contrasts the bondage of the law with the liberty of the Spirit. Multitudes of Christians are in bondage to legalism, or self, or the world, or religion. We used to hear a lot of preaching on what you can't do as a Christian. How we need to know what we can do in the power and presence and liberty of the Holy Spirit!

I would much rather be known for what I stand for instead of what I stand against. When you live under the control of the Holy Spirit, you find liberty.

I see so many people who are bogged down and bound up. Many children of God are burdened with fears, frustrations and formalism. So many are afraid to be themselves; they put on a big front. But you can be yourself and still live in liberty, walking in the Spirit, filled with the joy of the Lord.

Get to know this wonderful person, the Holy Spirit. Let Him control you and run your life and you will have a liberty that the world knows nothing about.

Prayer: Father, may Your children be released from the bondage of sin and legalism. Help us learn to live under the control of the Holy Spirit. Help us to radiate liberty and joy in our daily lives. In Jesus' name, Amen. 

Quote for the Day: "I would rather belong to a poor nation that was free than to a rich nation that had ceased to be in love with liberty." —Woodrow Wilson

The Holy Spirit is in You

The Lord Jesus suffered and died for our sins on the cross, paid the debt for our sins in full, rose again, was seen by hundreds, went back to heaven, and sat down because He had finished what He came to do. Ten days later, He sent the Holy Spirit to take up where He left off, and the Holy Spirit took over the work of God on earth. Look Who came to live with us!

The Bible says, "Now, we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God, that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God" (1 Cor. 2:12). Romans 8:9 says, "If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His." Any man who does not have the Spirit is not saved! What a tragedy that too many Christians do not know they have the Holy Spirit living in their bodies (1 Cor. 6:19). 

When we receive Jesus as our Savior, the Holy Spirit ("HS") comes to live within us as well. The Bible says, "What, know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost, who is in you?" (1 Cor. 6:19). Receiving Christ makes you a Christian. Putting the Holy Spirit in the driver's seat of your life makes you a spiritual Christian. But first, you have to take the flesh out of the driver's seat and allow the Holy Spirit to control your life.

John 1:12 says, "As many as received Him, to them He gave the power to be the sons of God." We are God's children; the Holy Spirit will never leave us. Now that is eternal security! Oh, dear people, we must learn all we can about this wonderful Person, the Holy Spirit, and let Him do what He came to do.

Prayer: Father, bless Your child and may the Holy Spirit fill him and transform him into the image of Christ. In Jesus' name, Amen.  

Quote for the Day: "Many folks want to serve God, but only as advisers." —Author Unknown