The Spirit of God dwells in you
If you believe in Jesus, the supernatural power of God dwells within you
If you believe in Jesus then you have been purified by that faith [Acts 15:8-9 and 1 John 5:12] and the Holy Spirit lives in you [1 John 4:13-15].
Acts 15:8-9
God, who knows the heart, showed that He accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as He did to us. He made no distinction between us and them, for He purified their hearts by faith.
×1 John 4:13-15
We know that we live in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God.
×This is an incredible truth: Because you believe in Jesus and because of that simple childlike trust, the supernatural power of God — the same Power who raised Jesus from the dead — dwells in your mortal, corruptible body [Romans 8:11 and 2 Corinthians 4:7].
Romans 8:11
If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you.
×2 Corinthians 4:7
We have this Treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.
×You have the Holy Spirit. If you did not have the Holy Spirit in your life then you would not be saved [1 John 4:2-3a].
1 John 4:2-3a
This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God.
×However, you can have more of the Spirit’s power in your life. You gain more of Him by allowing Him to have more of you.
Before Jesus, the Spirit of God came on certain people in Old Testament times to empower them for various tasks. The first mention in the Bible is of Bezalel, who received artistic gifts [Exodus 31:1-5], and there were many others, including Moses, Gideon, Samson and King David. These people received the touch of God but, because they did not carry the righteousness of the sinless Christ, it was not possible for the Holy Spirit to make them His dwelling place.
Exodus 31:1-5
Then the LORD said to Moses, “See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts — to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of craftsmanship.
×You can have more of the Spirit’s power in your life by allowing Him to have more of you
At the Last Supper, Jesus promised the coming of the Holy Spirit. Jesus called Him the Comforter and the Counsellor [John 14:15-17,26 and John 16:7-14].
John 14:15-17,26
If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counsellor to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you.
But the Counsellor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
×John 16:7-14
But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counsellor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. When He comes, He will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: in regard to sin, because men do not believe in Me; in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see Me no longer; and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to Me by taking from what is Mine and making it known to you.
×When Jesus rose from the grave the gospel was announced in all its glory. The New Covenant, with the promise of the forgiveness of sins, had been sealed through His blood, shed on the cross of Calvary. Now the promise of eternal life was demonstrated through Jesus rising from the dead. That is the point at which He breathed on the disciples and said that they were receiving the Holy Spirit [John 20:19-22].
John 20:19-22
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After He said this, He showed them His hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent Me, I am sending you.” And with that He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”
×Fifty days later, at the Feast of Pentecost, these same disciples were baptised in the Holy Spirit [Acts 2:1-4]. They already had the Holy Spirit, through faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection, but now they received a bath, so to speak, in the power of God.
Acts 2:1-4
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
×And it did not end there. Some while later, these same disciples were filled again with the Holy Spirit. They received more power from above [Acts 4:31].
Acts 4:31
After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
×As Christians, we are exhorted to be filled over and over again with the Spirit [Ephesians 5:18].
Ephesians 5:18
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
×Be assured that the Holy Spirit dwells in you. This is Treasure beyond imagining. Value Him. Do not take Him for granted. Do not despise this great gift [Matthew 12:31]. We need His power to endure to the end and, because we leak, in a manner of speaking, we do well to ask God to take over more and more of our lives and to fill us repeatedly with the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 12:31
And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.
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