Bad Fruit.

For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another. But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.– Galatians 5:13-21 ESV One of the accusations the party of the circumcision leveled against Paul and his message of grace and freedom from the law was that it produced license. They most certainly used the teachings of Paul against him at this point. In his letter to the Romans, Paul wrote, “where sin increased, grace abounded all the more” (Romans 5:20 ESV). And yet, Paul went on to say, “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?” (Romans 6:1-2 ESV). Grace was not a license to sin. The freedom it provided from the Mosaic law was not ticket to live as we pleased. It freed us from having to keep the law in order to earn favor with God. The law held us captive to our sin and in bondage to our own weakness to do anything about it. But the salvation offered in Christ set us free. It was William Barclay who wrote, “the Christian is not the man who has become free to sin, but the man, who, by the grace of God, has become free not to sin.”

That is why Paul warned his readers to not use their freedom as an opportunity for the flesh. Their new-found freedom from having to keep the law did not mean they were free from having to live in keeping with the law. At one point in His ministry, Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment of God was. He responded, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:37-40 ESV). Paul used these very words of Jesus to admonish his readers. Loving God meant living according to His holy will. Loving others required loving them selflessly and sacrificially, which is why Paul said, “through love serve one another.”

In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul provided an entire chapter on the subject of love. In it he wrote, “If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don’t love, I’m nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God’s Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, ‘Jump,’ and it jumps, but I don’t love, I’m nothing. If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love” (1 Corinthians 13:1-7 MSG).

But this kind of love is only possible with the help of the Holy Spirit. Without His help and our reliance upon His power, we will tend to live in the power of our own sinful flesh. We will become selfish and self-centered. We will tend to gratify the desires of our old nature, which Paul describes with painful accuracy. These fleshly desires are the exact opposite of what the Spirit wants to produce in us. They are counter to the will of God and reflect a love for self more than a love for Him. They most certainly don’t model a love for others. Look at Paul’s list: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, and wild parties. Each of these “works of the flesh” reveal a disdain for God and a dislike for those around us.

The moral, ceremonial and civil sections of the Mosaic law were designed to regulate the lives of the people of Israel regarding their relationships with God and with one another. But as Jesus said, all of the commandments could be summed up by two simple commands: Love God and love others. Loving God meant not loving other gods. Loving others meant not becoming jealous of them, getting angry with them, lusting after them, or taking advantage of them. Notice that his list has more to do with our relationships with one another than our relationship with God. There is a reason for this. The apostle John wrote, “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen” (1 John 4:20 ESV). The greatest expression of our love for God is to be found in our love for those whom He has made. When we love one another, we are loving God. When we live selflessly and sacrificially, we are exemplifying the very character of God. When our lives are marked by self-control and a focus on the needs of others, we reflect the nature of God. But all of these things are only possible when we live according to the power of God’s indwelling Spirit.

A life continually characterized by the works of the flesh is a life devoid of the Spirit of God. Those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ have received the Spirit of God. They are no longer slaves to sin, incapable of living righteous lives. They have been given the Holy Spirit and have the power to love God and love others. That’s why Paul told the Romans, “But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all)” (Romans 8:9 NLT). The presence of the Spirit within us does not guarantee that we will live sinless lives, but it does mean that we don’t have to live sin-dominated lives. Living according to our own sinful flesh will always produce bad fruit. But living according to the Spirit of God produces good fruit that pleases God and blesses others.

Just Faith = Justification.

But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party. And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?” We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified. – Galatians 2:11-16 ESV

During the early days of the church’s growth after Pentecost, there was a natural or better yet, a supernatural division of effort. Peter, along with James and John, “had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised” (Galatians 2:7b ESV). Yet Paul wrote, “ I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised” (Galatians 2:7a ESV). Paul had been given his commission directly from Jesus. He had declared Paul “a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel” (Acts 9:15 ESV). God had divided up the responsibilities when it came to disseminating the gospel, but He would not tolerate a dividing of the gospel message. It would be by grace alone through Christ alone in faith alone.

That is why Paul claimed, “when Cephas [Peter] came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned” (Galatians 2:11 ESV). Those are bold words and can come across as a bit arrogant, but they simply reflect Paul’s determination to proclaim the gospel message he had received from Jesus Himself. As a former Pharisee, he knew all too well the pantheon of rules and regulations associated with Judaism. Paul still considered himself a Jew. But he also knew that, when it came to salvation and man’s justification with God, the works of the law were worthless, “because by woks of the law no one will be justified” (Galatians 2:16 ESV).

His primary problem with Peter seemed to be his hypocrisy. When Peter came to Antioch to witness the ministry there firsthand, he gladly associated with the Gentile believers, even eating with them. But when a group of men showed up who represented “the circumcision party,” Peter disassociated himself from the Gentiles. Who these men were, we are not told. Paul indicates that they came from James. They could have been members of his church in Jerusalem. But it does not seem that they were sent by James, because he had endorsed Paul’s ministry (verse 9). But these men were strong proponents of requiring the Gentile believers to be circumcised, and when they showed up in Antioch, Peter was intimidated by their presence and disassociated himself from the Gentile believers. And his actions influenced Barnabas and the other Jewish believers in the church there to follow his example. In essence, he divided the body of Christ and Paul would not stand for it – regardless of whether Peter was an apostle of Jesus Christ or not. As far as Paul was concerned, Peter stood condemned. He was guilty as charged. Paul boldly claimed, “their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel” (Galatians 2:14 ESV). They were guilty of adding unnecessary requirements to the gospel, and were, in essence, preaching a different gospel.

Paul had opened his letter with words of warning, “there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed” (Galatians 1:7-8 ESV). Peter’s actions were hypocritical, but also divisive. They were causing the Gentile believers to doubt the veracity of their salvation. Because they had not been circumcised, they were tempted to see themselves as somehow lesser Christians or perhaps, not Christians at all. They would have also wondered why Paul had not told them about circumcision if it was a non-negotiable requirement for salvation. So Paul’s ministry and message was at risk of being undermined.

But for Paul, there was no question as to the truth of his message. He was confident that salvation was through faith in Christ alone. Circumcision was not necessary. He even reminded Peter and the other Jews, “we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified” (Galatians 2:16 ESV). Paul made this same claim in his letter to the Romans:

But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.– Romans 3:21-25 ESV

Paul would stubbornly hold to his belief that salvation could only be received by faith, not by any human effort. Nothing was to be added to the offer of salvation. There were to be no addendums or alterations of any kind. Salvation was the work of God, not men. We bring nothing to the table. We are made right with God not by what we do, but by what Christ has done for us. All men stand before God as sinful and worthy of condemnation. His judgment against our sin is just and righteous. Our penalty of death is well-deserved and well-within in rights as the righteous judge of the universe to enforce. But He provided a means by which all men, Jews and Gentiles might be restored to a right relationship with Him, in spite of themselves. “God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16 NLT). Faith alone in Christ alone. That is the only requirement.

For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law. Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since God is one—who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. – Romans 3:28-30 ESV

We are made right with God by believing in what Christ has accomplished for us on the cross. He died so that we might live. He rose again so that we might have eternal life. He has done it all.

Protecting the Gospel’s Purity.

Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me. I went up because of a revelation and set before them (though privately before those who seemed influential) the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles, in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain. But even Titus, who was with me, was not forced to be circumcised, though he was a Greek. Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in—who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery—to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you. And from those who seemed to be influential (what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)—those, I say, who seemed influential added nothing to me. On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised (for he who worked through Peter for his apostolic ministry to the circumcised worked also through me for mine to the Gentiles), and when James and Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do. – Galatians 2:1-10 ESV

As Paul continued his defense of his apostolic ministry and message, he related how he had been actively ministering the gospel among the Gentiles for another 15 years before he would return to Jerusalem. Paul records that he and Barnabas made the trip together. According to Luke’s account in the book of Acts, Paul had been helping Barnabas minister to the Gentiles in Antioch. Luke gives us some important insight into what had been happening. It seems that after the stoning of Stephen in Jerusalem, many of the followers of Christ, fearing for their own lives, fled for their safety. Luke tells us, “And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles” (Luke 8:1 ESV). Paul, up until his conversion, had played a major role in that persecution, and Luke goes on to say that it resulted in believers moving even further away from Judea.

Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews. But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists also, preaching the Lord Jesus. And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord. The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose, for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord. – Acts 11:19-24 ESV

That is when Barnabas, knowing of Paul’s ministry to Gentiles, decided to pick him up and enlist him in the ministry going on in Antioch. Not long after that, Paul would return with Barnabas to Jerusalem in order to report all that he had seen. More than likely, Barnabas wanted Paul there as an expert witness.

But Paul makes it clear that he returned to Jerusalem because of a vision he had received from God, not because of the invitation of Barnabas. It would seem that God wanted this matter of the conversion of the Gentiles made a top priority in the growing church. It was essential that all of the apostles be on the same page regarding how these newly converted Gentiles were to be handled. There were still some who were expecting them to be circumcised and even keep many of the Jewish rules and rituals. Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles had been hounded by a group of individuals who were demanding that all Gentile converts be circumcised in order to validate their salvation. Paul had vigorously opposes this teaching as a distortion of the gospel message, exposing it for what it was: a blatant contradiction to the message of faith in Christ alone.

These opening verses in chapter two are Paul’s attempt to let his readers know that he had been willing to stand up to even the apostles, Peter, James and John. He had not been starry eyed or awestruck by his meeting with these men. If anything, Paul saw them himself as their equals. They had each received their commission from Jesus Himself. He clearly stated his purpose for going to Jerusalem: “to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain”  (Galatians 2:2 ESV). Paul had no doubts about the accuracy of his message, but he was very concerned that if those who were demanding circumcision of the Gentiles were not stopped, the purity of the gospel would be damaged. He was preaching salvation as made possible by the grace of God alone through faith in Christ alone. No kinds of works were necessary. Adding a requirement of circumcision would undermine that message and add an unnecessary barrier or roadblock to the path of salvation. So his trip to Jerusalem was intended to defend his God-given message and convince his peers that his ministry to the Gentiles was valid and his message was complete, needing nothing more added to it.

As Paul would tell the believers in Rome, circumcision was a matter of the heart, not the flesh. “For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God” (Romans 2:28-29 ESV). While circumcision had been a God-given sign or seal of the unique relationship the people of Israel had with Him, Paul argued that the indwelling Holy Spirit was God’s  new seal of approval. Paul told the Gentile believers in Ephesus, “In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit” (Ephesians 1:13 ESV).

Man has always been obsessed with the idea that there is something he must do to earn a right standing before God. We are wired to believe that we must work our way into God’s good graces, but the beauty of the gospel is that everything has been done for us. There is nothing for us to add to the equation. It is Jesus plus nothing. So that no one can boast or brag. Salvation is the work of God, from beginning to end. As the great old hymn, Rock of Ages, says…

Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to the cross I cling.

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Bright Lights In A Dark Place.

And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. – 2 Peter 1:19-21 ESV When it comes to man’s relationship with God, it seems that everyone has an opinion, but not everyone’s opinion counts. It really doesn’t matter what I think. What you determine to be the truth about God, sin, righteousness, salvation or any of a number of other important spiritual matters is unimportant if what you believe does not come from the Word of God. Peter was preparing his readers for a rather in-your-face attack on false teachers and prophets – those individuals who were rising up among the people and secretly bringing in destructive heresies (2 Peter 2:1). Peter will accuse them of blaspheming the way of truth with false words (2 Peter 2:2, 3). He will warn the people to avoid them like the plague. But why should his opinion matter? What made Peter any different than anyone else when it came to spiritual truth?

Peter has already made it clear that he was an eye-witness to the majesty of Christ, having been there when Jesus was transfigured on the mountain top. Peter was a hand-picked follower of Jesus and had been privileged to see the words of the Old Testament prophets concerning the coming Messiah literally come to life in Jesus. That is what he seems to mean when he says, “we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed” (2 Peter 1:19 ESV).  That day on the mountain, he, James and John had heard God audibly declare, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him” (Matthew 17:5 ESV). God had testified as to the deity of Jesus. He was the Son of God. They had heard from the mouth of God Himself that Jesus was the fulfillment of all the words of the prophets. And they were to listen to Him. Which is why Peter tells his readers, “you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place” (2 Peter 1:19 ESV). What Peter and the other apostles were teaching was the truth of God as revealed directly from the Son of God. They were carrying out the commission given to them by Jesus.

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” – Matthew 28:18-20 ESV

Peter was simply teaching what he had been taught by Jesus. He was expanding upon the teachings of Jesus and clarifying the nature of the good news as revealed in His death and resurrection. As Peter has already stated, what he was teaching was not “cleverly devised myths” (2 Peter 1:16 ESV), but “the prophetic word” (2 Peter 1:19 ESV). And “no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation” (2 Peter 1:20 ESV). In other words, the prophets didn’t make up what they wrote. It was given to them by God through the inspiration of the Spirit. In fact, Peter asserts, “no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21 ESV). Which is exactly what Paul confirmed when he wrote:

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. – 2 Timothy 3:17-18 ESV

Peter’s primary concern seems to be that his readers stay attentive to the Word of God. He wanted them to recognize the truth that Jesus was the fulfillment of the prophetic words of the Old Testament. The good news was to be like a “lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts” (2 Peter 1:19 ESV). This appears to be a reference to the return of the Lord for His bride, the Church. Peter is speaking of the rapture. Like the morning star that appears in the sky and foreshadows the coming of the dawn, Jesus will one day return for the Church and that day will usher in the dawn of a new day, the day of the Lord. Peter wanted them to live with that day in mind. They were to keep their minds focused on the reality of Christ’s eventual return.

For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. – 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 ESV

The false prophets and teachers were attempting to mislead the people by teaching something other than what the prophets wrote and the apostles declared. So Peter was warning his readers to not lose sight of the truth of God’s Word and the promise of Christ’s coming. They were to stay focused on the task at hand. They were to not allow themselves to be deceived or distracted from the calling they had received from God. Jesus had appeared to them like a bright light in the darkness, illuminating their sin and eliminating their guilt and shame. Now they were to be bright lights in the darkness surrounding them. They were to live like Christ, fully reliant upon the Spirit of God and obeying the Word of God.

Paul wrote to the believers in Philippi, “Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain” (Philippians 2:15-17 ESV). That was Peter’s desire as well. He wanted his readers to shine as lights in the world – bright lights in a dark place. But to do so, they would have to stay committed to the truth of God as revealed in the written Word and the Living Word. God did not leave His plan of redemption up to the opinion or interpretation of men. The apostle John made perfectly clear God’s grand plan for the redemption of mankind:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. – John 1:1-5 ESV

We have that light shining within us. And we would do well to recall the words of Paul, written to the believers in Corinth.

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. – 2 Corinthians 4:6-7 ESV

Taught By the Spirit.

But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ. – 1 John 2:27 NLT The Holy Spirit is our teacher. He teaches us the truth about God, the Son, ourselves and the Word of God. Jesus told His disciples, “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” John 14:26 ESV). He went on to explain the role the Holy Spirit would play in their lives. “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come (John 16:13 ESV). He is the Spirit of truth. He speaks on behalf of the Father and the Son. He knows the mind of the Father. There is absolutely no chance of Him misleading you or misrepresenting the truth. That is why John reminds his readers that the Holy Spirit is to be their primary source of truth. He was not suggesting that the Spirit be their sole source of truth or their only teacher. John was not eliminating the need for human teachers in our lives, otherwise he would not have written his gospel account or his three epistles. John was dealing with a situation where false teachers were having a strongly negative influence over a local church. They were teaching false doctrine. They were denying the reality of sin and therefore, the need for a Savior. They were teaching a different gospel than the one Jesus Himself taught. And their teaching was confusing the faithful.

It would seem that John is suggesting that the Holy Spirit within us is there to help us discern false teaching from what is true. He equips us with the tools to tell the difference between what is a lie and what is truth. Paul told the believers in Corinth, “When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths. But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means” (1 Corinthians 2:13-14 NLT). It is the presence of the indwelling Spirit of God that makes it possible for us to comprehend spiritual truth. He provides us with the capacity to listen and learn discerningly. He does not eliminate the need for human teachers in our lives, but He makes sure we are able to tell which ones are dangerous and to be avoided.

Anyone who teaches a different version of the gospel, a different Jesus, a different way to be saved, or a different version of the truth of God, is to be avoided at all costs. The Holy Spirit exists to teach us the truth about all of those things. And He uses the Word of God to inform and instruct us. We must always rely on the Scriptures for our truth. The Holy Spirit will always confirm the Word of God, not contradict it. He will agree with the teachings of Jesus, not replace them. And while false teachers will always exist, attempting to substitute the truth of God with their own version of the truth, we will always have the Spirit of truth to help us know the difference. When writing to the church in Corinth, Paul had some very strong words. “Dear brothers and sisters,when I was with you I couldn’t talk to you as I would to spiritual people.I had to talk as though you belonged to this world or as though you were infants in the Christian life. I had to feed you with milk, not with solid food, because you weren’t ready for anything stronger. And you still aren’t ready, for you are still controlled by your sinful nature” (1 Corinthians 3:1-3 NLT). They had the Spirit of God within them, but they were not relying in His help. They were living according to their old nature, giving in to their flesh and experiencing a stagnancy in their spiritual growth. All because they were not listening to the Spirit within them. We can all do it. We do it every day. We have a choice to live according to the Spirit or according to the flesh. And when we choose to live according to or by the power of the Spirit within us, we receive a steady does of truth. He opens our eyes to see the truth regarding God, sin, forgiveness, grace, mercy, and our own sanctification. He helps us recognize our ongoing need for His transforming work in our lives. He reveals our weakness and reminds us of the power of God that is available to us each and every day of our lives.

By This We Know.

By his we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us his Spirit. – 1 John 4:13 ESV How do you know that you're truly saved? What gives you the rock-solid assurance that you have placed your faith in Christ and that God has accepted you as His child? John gives us one, very reliable proof: The presence of the Holy Spirit within us. “And God has given us his Spirit as proof that we live in him and he in us” (The New Living Translation). John had already talked about this matter once before back in chapter three. “Those who obey God’s commandments remain in fellowship with him, and he with them. And we know he lives in us because the Spirit he gave us lives in us” (1 John 3:24 NLT). Our very ability to obey God's commands is due to the presence of the Spirit of God within us. We would be unable to live obediently without Him. When we sinned, we would experience no conviction without His help. It is the Holy Spirit who provides us with the assurance of our salvation. Paul described Him as a kind of down-payment or guarantee of things to come. “It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, and he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us” (2 Corinthians 1:21-22 NLT). This was a favorite theme of Paul's. He said the very same thing to the church in Ephesus. “The Spirit is God's guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him” (Ephesians 1:14 NLT). In his letter to the believers in Rome, he added a slightly different twist: “The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Romans 8:16 ESV).

By THIS we know. It is the Holy Spirit within us who should provide us with an overwhelming since of peace and confidence that we belong to God. The very fact that He lives in us and is constantly attempting to guide, convict, comfort, and transform us, should let us know that God is in us and we are in God. The Holy Spirit provides us with the ability to understand the truths of God. Paul told the believers in Corinth, “we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths” (1 Corinthians 2:13 NLT). Then he went on to explain the sad, but true facts concerning those who don't have the Spirit of God within them. “But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means” (1 Corinthians 2:14 NLT). Concerning the Holy Spirit, Jesus told His disciples, “The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” (John 14:17 NET). He promised His followers that the Holy Spirit would take up residence within them. And His indwelling presence would make it possible for them to understand the words of Christ in ways they never could have before.

The Spirit provides us with assurance that we are in Christ. He lets us know that we are God's children. But it is possible to live as if He does not exist. We can treat Him as if He is not there. When we sin, we grieve Him, because we are refusing to rely upon His strength and listen to His voice in our lives. When we attempt to live the Christian life in our own strength, we quench Him. We effectively tell Him we don't need Him. And when we do, we lose all sense of assurance. We begin to doubt. We wonder why we don't seem to see any transformation in our lives. Paul saw the believers in Corinth doing the very same thing and told them, “Dear brothers and sisters, when I was with you I couldn't talk to you as I would to spiritual people. I had to talk as though you belonged to this world or as though you were infants in the Christian life” (1 Corinthians 3:1 NLT). They were not acting like Spiritual people. Yes, they had the Spirit of God within them, but they were not allowing Him to do what God had sent Him to do. They were resisting Him. They were ignoring Him. And they were living their lives as if He didn't even exist. Their lives looked more like those who who are lost and lack the Spirit altogether. Not exactly a rousing endorsement from the apostle Paul.

One of the ways we can tell if someone belongs to God is how they respond to the truth of God as found in the Word of God. When it is preached, they respond favorably. The Spirit within them either convicts or comforts them. John said that his teachings came from God and those who had the Spirit of God living in them were able to hear his words with spiritual ears. “But we belong to God, and those who know God listen to us. If they do not belong to God, they do not listen to us. That is how we know if someone has the Spirit of truth or the spirit of deception” (1 John 4:6 NLT). Spiritual people, those who have the Spirit of God living in them, are able to accept spiritual truth. It makes sense to them. They may not always accept it or obey it, but they get it. They have a choice to listen to it and allow the Holy Spirit to use it to transform their lives, or they can simply choose to act as if they never heard it. But they know what they heard. They know what the Spirit has said. So even in our disobedience we know that He is there. And that too, should give us assurance. Conviction should be comforting. It should remind us that God is there, in the form of His Spirit. By this we know that we are His children, because He has placed His Spirit within us, to comfort, convict, guide, empower, help and teach us.