"I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that 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 abides with you and will be in you." John 14:16-17
It was during a conversation with the apostles that the Savior uttered these bittersweet words. The words were bitter in that he was informing them of his imminent departure. The words were sweet in that he was also informing them (and us) that we would not be left as orphans but that he would come to us.
Beloved it is critical that we understand the importance of these words. It was necessary for Jesus to be taken from the world physically in order to pay our debt. The good news, however, is twofold. First, his willing sacrifice enables us to become children of God rather than remaining orphans. Second his presence would not only be with us but within us! Through the Helper, also called the Comforter and Holy Spirit, we become temples because the presence of God has moved in! You will recall that in Acts 2:38, we are given the gift of the Holy Spirit upon repentance and baptism. We also know that the Spirit, among other things is God's assurance of our redemption and inheritance, Eph 1:13-14.
Not only are we never alone after we have accepted Christ, he has told us that we will never be alone again. God truly lives within you.
Rejoicing in the Lord,
Lee
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