January 26 - We Have Hope Through the Spirit's Power
Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost. - Romans 15:13
Simon, the sorcerer, saw men and women receiving the Holy Spirit, and he offered Peter money, saying, "Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost." Acts 8:19.
Simon had not learned that the Holy Spirit is the gift of the Father to every surrendered individual. No man is good enough to earn the resources of heaven. No one is rich enough to purchase the treasures of the kingdom.
Consider God's gifts to us. He has given us His only begotten Son as our Saviour. He offers us the gift of eternal life, and He gives us divine power through the Holy Spirit. How can we spurn such love? How can we reject the treasures of our heavenly Father, who empties heaven to draw us homeward?
A son ran away from home, and his wealthy father spent thousands of dollars searching for his boy. Advertisements were placed in hundreds of newspapers. Radio stations broadcast the father's appeal. Five months of searching finally brought results. The young man was found, forgiven, and restored to the family.
"How much money did you spend in your search for your son?" asked a newspaper reporter.
"Over half my wealth," the father replied. "But I'd have given everything if necessary to bring him home."
God emptied heaven to save man, and now He sends the Comforter, the divine Guest, to dwell in him. Truly, the Christian's "body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own." 1 Corinthians 6:19. Will you not accept the Father's precious gift? Your greatest joy should be in allowing God to possess His own property - your heart. "If it were only a little mending, a little patching, a little turning over of a new leaf, then man might do this. But when it is a new translation, a creation, a resurrection, God must do it." God will do it if you make room for the working of the Holy Spirit in your life and allow His energizing power to take full possession of you. - Neff
author tnoe@squatterz.com
January 26 - We Have Hope Through the Spirit's Power
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