“I was talking with a neighbor yesterday,” Stan commented one morning at breakfast, “and he’s feeling so depressed by everything that’s going on in the world that he just doesn’t know what to do.”
“I run into people like that all the time,” I replied. “Is your neighbor a believer?”
“He says he is,” Stan said, “and I’m prayerfully hopeful that what we talked about is going to help him in his faith walk.”
“What’d you talk about?”
“The truth of what the apostle John wrote about in his first letter, concerning the power of the Holy Spirit,” Stan replied.
“What’s that?” I asked.
“That greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world,” Stan said.
“Oh,” I replied. “Greater is He. And this ‘He’ is the Holy Spirit?”
“Sure seems to me that’s what John was writing about,” Stan responded. “The Holy Spirit has been given to all believers to help us with not being dragged down by the world, or the flesh, or the devil, or even by ourselves.”
“But what about people who say they are believers but are dragged down by the stuff of the world?”
“Looks to me like they’d better look more closely at what’s going on,” Stan replied.
“More closely at what?”
“Why, if they have the Holy Spirit living within them,” Stan said, “why does the world seem greater than He who is in them? Maybe they are not letting the Holy Spirit have His way with them.”
“You mean like they may not be surrendered to His leading?” I asked.
“Based on way too much personal experience,” Stan replied with a smile, “I think that may very well be what’s happening. If the Bible says that He who is in me is greater than he who is in the world, and I’m not letting Him be greater, I would say it’s time for some looking, confessing, and repenting.”
“So your life aligns with the truth of what John wrote?” I commented.
“Bingo and Amen!” Stan responded with a smile.
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Bible verses to consider:
Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. 1 John 4:4.
And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you. John 14:16-17.
These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage, I have overcome the world. John 16:33.
For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. Romans 8:6-8.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23.
Prayer: Thank you, Father, for giving your only Son so that all who believe can have life eternally with you when it’s time. Thank you, too, for the gift of the Holy Spirit to live within all believers to help them live their lives manifesting His fruit. Thank you that He is greater than he who is in the world. I confess that too often I do not surrender to the greatness of the Holy Spirit and I am dragged down by the word, the flesh, and the devil. Please forgive that foolishness and help me to follow every step of your lead so I am truly surrendered and I live this life manifesting the greatness of the Holy Spirit. Thank you that I can and do bring these prayers before you in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Think on this: Do you have the Holy Spirit living within you because you have accepted God’s free and gracious gift of life eternally with Him when it is time, along with the gift of the Holy Spirit? If no, why? What’s in the way? If you believe you have the assurance of salvation and redemption, how are you doing with living this life manifesting the greatness of the Holy Spirit? Do you manifest that He who is in you is, in fact, greater than he who is in the world? If you sense the need for some change in this regard, how is that going to happen? Is that what you want? Why or why not?
Waiting for the Train 