Union and Communion…
I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, so that He may be with you forever; the Helper is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him; but you know Him because He remains with you and will be in you.
But I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I am leaving; for if I do not leave, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.
But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take from Mine and will disclose it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine; this is why I said that He takes from Mine and will disclose it to you.”
John 14:16-17 John 16:7, 13-15
In reading through the last chapters of John, I see that Jesus is closing in ranks. He is moving from larger crowds of people to only those closest to Him, His disciples. What a gift to them that as He was headed towards death, knowing how confusing this was and would be to them, He spent much time telling them what was to come. As I read through this, I was struck with how many times He says to them, I am sending you a helper, the Holy Spirit. And we read in Acts how after His ascension, there was a day when they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. We also read about how others like Peter and Paul were “filled with the Holy Spirit.”
So how can we live under the Spirit’s control? This brings us back to Easter, to the power of the cross…each of us daily remembering and recognizing the implications of Jesus death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. As Pete often says…as FORGE men, we are deeply loved, REDEEMED sons of the most high God! We have been brought into UNION with God and given the opportunity to live in COMMUNION with Him
There is a practical way I try to live this out on a daily basis. As I begin my DAWG time, I offer up three words in a prayer, Know…Consider…Present.
Father, as I begin this new day…
I know and understand that I am dead to sin and alive to God because of my union with the crucified and resurrected Christ, even when I sin today.
As I consider this reality right now for my life, I agree and embrace it wholeheartedly but please make it more real.
So now as I come before you and as I go out into the world today, I present and surrender my life to You to be a used by You in the lives of others however you lead.
If you have time, read Romans 6 and notice these words, Know…Consider…Present are the focal words to tell us how to “work out” these Truths.
What then does it mean for Forge men to live Spirit-filled lives…a life of surrender to God?
Pastor Randy Pope answers it this way…It means that you must regularly confess your inability to do anything good and your total dependence on His work in your life. Jesus said…apart from me you can do nothing. If you have an “I can do it” attitude of moral determination, you will fail. But, if, on a daily basis, you humbly admit your dependence on Him, His Spirit will fill you with the power you need to be who He wants you to be and do what He wants you to do.
For all of us as Forge Men, will you join me in praying we will daily remember who we are as sons and in thinking about what that means, we will daily present ourselves in surrender to Gods’ will Gods’ way…this is Spirit Filled living!
Thankful to be “filled up” with my Forge brothers…Kelley
