The Holy Spirit and Paul
By Tammy Lacock
“I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of Truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come.” (John 16:12-13, KJV)
In the above two verses, what were the many things that Jesus spoke about that He wanted to reveal to His disciples, yet they weren’t quite ready for?
After His death and resurrection, Jesus chose the apostle Paul, an extremely learned and devout Jew who was on his way to Damascus to persecute and torture Christians, to spread at least some of these yet untold truths to the world, to both Jews and Gentiles alike. Paul’s life was transformed by his encounter with Christ, and his epistles unwaveringly tell of his love and devotion to Him.
So, what are these truths?
Well, Paul had many messages of truth in his letters, but there is one truth that he repeatedly writes about; it is in more than 140 verses in the New Testament. It is the final gospel that needs to reach the last person before Jesus returns in the air. Although this truth has been right in front of us in all these verses, today’s Christians are only beginning to understand what Paul laid out for us thousands of years ago. It’s the liberating secret that the moment we believe in Christ as our Savior, He becomes our life. We are “born again,” a “new creation,” joined to the Lord as one spirit with Christ. In fact, we are no longer defined by our past; our new identity is Christ. We are not LIKE Christ. Indeed, He is in us, as us.
In his letter to the Galatians 2:20 (KJV), Paul states plainly and clearly, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but CHRIST LIVETH IN ME.”
In his first letter to the Corinthians 6:17, he adds “But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.” (KJV)
In his second letter to the Corinthians 5:17, he proclaims “Therefore if any man be IN CHRIST, he is a new creature: old things passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
And, in Ephesians 1:4 (KJV), he writes, “According as he hath chosen us IN HIM before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love.”
These are only a few of the many verses that reveal Christ in the believer and the believer in Christ. No separation!
So, why are we now starting to “see” and live this liberating secret? God sent the Holy Spirit to work on our soulish area, which is our minds, wills, and emotions. Through our individual life circumstances and situations, the Holy Spirit reveals to us in our due time what it is we need to know about Jesus. Now is that time! Believers all over are beginning to understand and live Christ in them!
During this time of grace, there is and will be an outpouring of the Holy Spirit prompting this final gospel of Paul’s to reach the very last person. By Christ’s Cross, God’s re-birthed children stand blameless in His eyes. Christ IS our righteousness. In time, we will be called up to heaven to live with Him. For that has been God’s intention since before the foundation of the world, to bring us back to Him by the sacrifice of his only begotten Son and by Him birthing His Son’s Spirit in us. Christ IN US is our salvation, our hope of glory (Col. 1:27)!!
