“Even the spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you” – John 14:17
LIGHT FOR NOW: The believer is the dwelling place of God.
The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is the action by which God takes up permanent residence in the body of a believer in Jesus Christ. In the Old Testament, the spirit would come and go from the saints, empowering them for service but not necessarily remaining with them (See Judges 15:14; 1Chronicles 12:18; Psalm 51:11; Ezekiel 11:5). Jesus revealed to His disciples the new role the spirit of truth would play in their lives (John 14:17). The Apostle Paul wrote, “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God. You are not your own; you were brought at a price. Therefore, honour God with your bodies” (1Corinthians 6:19-20).
When an individual accepts Christ as his Saviour, the Holy Spirit gives the believer the life of God, eternal life, which is really His very nature (Titus 3:5; 2Peter 1:4), and the Holy Spirit comes to live within him spiritually. The fact that the believer’s body is likened to a temple where the Holy Spirit lives helps us understand what the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is all about. The word “temple” is used to describe the Holy of holies, the inner sanctum in the Old Testament tabernacle structure. There, God’s presence would appear in a cloud and meet the high priest, who came once a year into the Holy of holies. On the Day of Atonement, the High Priest brought the blood of a slain animal and sprinkled it on the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant. On this special day, God granted forgiveness to the priest and His people. Today, there is no Jewish temple in Jerusalem, and the animal sacrifices have ceased. The believer in Christ has become the inner sanctum of the spirit, as the believer has been sanctified and forgiven by the blood of Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:7). The believer in Christ becomes the habitation of the spirit of God. Glory!
INSTRUCTION: You are the dwelling place of God, think about this.
CONFESSION: I affirm that God’s spirit dwells in me eternally, in Jesus Name, Amen.
QUOTE: The blood of Christ births forgiveness and sanctification.
DAILY READING: MORNING: JOHN CHAPTER 14; EVENING: JOHN CHAPTER 16
LIGHT FROM THE WORD 