October 6 I Tuesday

Isaiah 26-27

Philippians 2

“This is how we know that we live in Him and He in us: He has given us of His Spirit.” —1 John 4:13

The fundamental need in the gospel is not that we are guilty of sin and need to be forgiven and cleansed, nor is it the assurance of going to heaven. Our real need is to come alive because we are all born spiritually dead. In the Garden of Eden, God warns Adam, “…you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die” (Genesis 2:17). God was not talking about physical death, which may be an ultimate consequence of sin, but spiritual death, which is separation from the life of God.

The purpose of the gospel is to restore the life of God back into human experience. Paul tells us, “But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions…” (Ephesians 2:4-5). Christ in us is what gives us spiritual life and spiritual life has no end. The only way we become spiritually alive is by the intervention of God, imputing to us the life of His Son. Paul also says, “When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory” (Colossians 3:4).

Glory is the moral character of God as exemplified in Jesus Christ. Paul writes, “For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known” (1 Corinthians 13:12). “To know in part,” is the work of the Holy Spirit, conforming us to the character of Jesus. This is an ongoing process that will never reach its fullness in our time on earth. We will only see in part, but we know a change is taking place when we have appetites we never had before for the things of God. This is placed in us by the Holy Spirit who transforms us into the image of Christ with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord (2

Corinthians 3:18). When we stand before God on Judgment Day, we will have been fully conformed to the likeness of Christ and will know Him fully, just as we are fully known.

The Holy Spirit comes into our lives as a deposit, guaranteeing our inheritance in Christ. We can quench Him, grieve Him or even shut Him down, but we will never lose Him. The Holy Spirit seals us forever in Christ with the blessed assurance of one day being fully conformed 
to the image of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Prayer: Father, I thank You for having made me alive in Jesus and I know with certainty that I am Your child. Thank You for the work of the Holy Spirit, transforming me into Your likeness.