Daily Bible Verses for 5/21/2017
Daily Verse(s)
That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Reading Notes
The Holy Spirit applies to all believers the personal presence of God in our lives. A presence which is real and felt by all those who place their faith in Jesus. This is because the Holy Spirit indwells all of us who have placed our faith in Christ Jesus our Lord, and His indwelling presence is one of the many gifts of our salvation. Moreover, the Holy Spirit’s presence, along with the resurrection of Jesus, together make up the proof and the guarantee of our salvation. The Holy Spirit helps to keep us till the day of our glorification when we go home to be with the Lord. This is because the Holy Spirit is working in us, transforming our hearts and minds through God’s process of spiritual growth called “sanctification.” It’s the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives whereby we grow in Christ. And one of the many byproducts of the process of sanctification, is a supernatural love which grows stronger in us, as we grow in the knowledge of Jesus and His word. As a result of this growth in us, carried out by God, we now have a new love, a supernatural love, which He builds stronger in us as we walk with Jesus. Because of our salvation, we gain a new love for Jesus, a new love for God, a new love for His word and for the church.
The church is made up of all believers who come together under the lordship of Jesus, we are all co-laborers in God’s kingdom work. Moreover, through God’s work in us, we gain a new love, a profound love for others, especially the lost who do not know Jesus. This supernatural love which can now be found in us, is a natural outcome of living a life of faith in Jesus, and a lifetime spent studying His word, the Bible. A faith which produces fruit in our lives pleasing to God and helpful to others. Dear child of God, it’s from this love that we produce good works, and they are a result of the Holy Spirit’s work inside of our hearts! Why is this so important to understand? Because it’s these things we do out of love which truly honor God and glorify Christ. Any other works not done out of our love for Jesus and our love for others, is nothing more than a clanging cymbal, meant not to glorify God, but ourselves. Therefore, as we grow in Christ and we have a continuing trust in His lordship over our lives, we will grow in fruitfulness and become more effective for the kingdom of God. Because, as we mature in our faith, the Holy Spirit lays down an ever growing foundation of love in us. A foundation built on Jesus alone, by faith alone, which produces a self-giving and people-serving love for God, love for His church and a special love for those who are lost in a world that is at enmity with God.