“Our Daily Bread”   

http://odb.org/2012/10/13/corn-palace/

The Daily Devotions of Greg Laurie                                  

http://www.harvest.org/devotional/daily-devotions/home.ht

Romans 8:5-6… For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. ⁶ For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.  (NKJV)

People are either filled with the Holy Spirit, or they are not…  God gives every Christian a life long Helper, the Holy Spirit, at the moment they are received into His family as a Christian…John 14:26… And as a child of God, the Christian is given the mind of Christ…

1 Corinthians 2:14-18…  But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. ¹⁵ But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. ¹⁶ For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ.  (NKJV)

The only way a Christian can be filled with (controlled by) the Holy Spirit, is if they remain humbled to following all the urgings the Holy Spirit will give them to keep the Christian on the path God wants them to follow…   Apostle Paul gives us wise advice in this scripture, in…Colossians 3:2…  Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.  (NKJV)

The simple truth is that if the Christian stays focused on the Lord with all of their heart, mind, and soul as the most important part of their life; and steers clear of people, places, and situations that they know will be tempting to them to sin…they have a good chance of remaining righteous in God’s eyes… The strength to resist the temptations that Satan and their own flesh will try to use to draw them away from God, can only be realized if the Holy Spirit is left in total control… 

Our own flesh is weak… And falling into Satan’s evil web of sin, can start a Christian down a slippery slope that will eventually leave them in no better place that the “natural man” the Apostle Paul writes about in the opening scripture, who hasn’t a clue what absolute peace is all about… I believe a Christian cannot loose their salvation… But they can forfeit the blessings of absolute peace and joy; and many other blessings like kindness, and self-control, and a stress free life that living for the Lord will have Him providing to those who are walking in His will and His ways…

This reminds me of a sermon preached way back in 1859, by the Rev. C. H. Spurgeon, on…”Grieving the Holy Spirit”… Here is the link for this excellent sermon… http://www.spurgeon.org/sermons/0278.htm

When we grieve the Holy Spirit as a Christian, we are not listening to His loving guidance… We decide in our own mind that the sin we want to commit is more important at that moment in time, than what God would want us to do… The Lord has done so much for the Christian, and yet we turn our backs on Him… Our God given peace and our joy will leave us as we continue to live in sin… I only wish you would take the time now, or bookmark this eye opening sermon by the Rev. C. H. Spurgeon, on what can happen to the backsliding Christian…

The absolute supernatural peace God will provide to the Spirit filled Christian, has to be experienced to be believed… It truly goes beyond what our mortal minds can comprehend…Philippians 4:6-7… Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; ⁷ and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.  (NKJV)

Heavenly Father, I pray that Your Word would ignite a new passion of fire for You with-in those You have graced with the free gift of salvation…  I pray that all of Your less than Spirit filled children would confess and repent of any and all known sins that are keeping them from being righteous in Your sight…1 John 1:9… May we be filled with the Spirit; and as obedient children walking in Your will and Your ways, be blessed by the supernatural peace Your servant the Apostle Paul refers to in Your Word above… I pray for this absolute peace that only You can provide, in Jesus’ most precious name and for His sake…Amen…

written by bruce r mills