Do We Have the Holy Spirit, or Does He Have Us?
Jesus declared: “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” — Acts 1:8.
With the Holy Spirit in our lives as believers, His presence must become a living revelation. The question is not merely whether the believer has received the Holy Spirit, but whether the Holy Spirit has been given His rightful place in our lives. This question first arose as a prompting of the Lord during my time of morning prayer; These words seemed to rise up from within, not through my mind: Do you have the Holy Spirit, or does He have you?
Why has the Holy Spirit come to dwell within the believer? Is His presence intended only for our personal blessing, our encouragement and edification, or is there a greater purpose, that of the will of the Father being able to be accomplished in and through our lives?
As believers, it is imperative that we understand that there is a vast difference between receiving the benefits of the Holy Spirit and allowing Him to work the purposes of Almighty God through us. Jesus said: “If a man love Me, he will keep My words: and My Father will love him, and We will come unto him, and make Our abode with him.” — John 14:23
The indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit brings tremendous blessing. Yet the believer must not limit His ministry to simply satisfying our personal needs. The Father’s longing desire is to manifest His will and purposes through those who belong to Him.The Holy Spirit represents the will of both Jesus and His Father. With the person, presence and power of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit:
- Of course, we would receive the blessing.
- Of course, we should benefit from having the Spirit of the Lord in our lives, but there is so much more.
I could ask this question to a person who attends a place of fellowship. When you go to church, does your attendance benefit your life, or do you benefit others? If it were not for the grace of the Father, we would still be in a fallen condition, groping in the dark and shut out of the salvation that Jesus has purposed for our lives. Now that we are born again through the Word of God, it is of tremendous importance that we understand why the person, the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit dwell in our lives.
With the Holy Spirit within us, we are qualified to become earthly vessels through whom the Father can manifest His will and purposes not only for our lives, but to touch and minister His life into the lives of humanity.
There are many; I, for one, have always thought that having the Holy Spirit in my life was to edify me. But there are far more important things than having the Spirit of God indwelling my inner man to benefit my life personally. The will and purposes of the Father are so vast that I must not put limitations on the Spirit of the Lord.
Jesus promised His disciples that they would not be left comfortless. He would send the Helper, the Spirit of truth, who would abide with them. “For He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.” — John 14:17–18.
The Holy Spirit is not merely a promise for some future time, nor is He an occasional visitor. He dwells within the believer, making the believer a temple of His presence. This reality must become firmly established in the heart of every believer:
- The Holy Spirit is within the believer to empower them for service.
- He is present to lead the believer’s life.
- He teaches the believer the ways of the Lord.
- He strengthens the believer to fulfil the Father’s purposes.
The purpose is not simply to know that the Holy Spirit is present, but to walk in fellowship with Him and allow Him to have His rightful place. Is the Holy Spirit’s presence being treated merely as a source of personal blessing, or is the believer becoming a yielded vessel through whom the Father can fulfil His purposes?