Holy Spirit - God Living in Us

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior.

One of the fundamental doctrines of Christianity is the Triunity of God which means God The Holy Father, God the Holy Word (Son - Human incarnation as Jesus) and God the Holy Spirit. [I prefer the word triunity to trinity since the latter may mean "a group of three" which is not true regarding God]

In his First epistle (Chapter 1. Verse 2), Apostle Peter says we are saved by the Triune God.

God the Father knew you and chose you long ago, and his Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ.

Apostle Paul, in Ephesians 2.18, also vouches that we are saved by the Triune God:

Now all of us can come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us. 22 Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.

Verse 22 makes it clear that the Triune God acts in the life of a saved person to keep him Holy to the end. From the above scriptures, we understand that it is by God the Holy Spirit that a person is made holy (saved) is kept in that salvation. The relation with this personality of God, is very much important in the day to day life of a Christian. I want to share some of the thoughts God gave me about God the Holy Spirit.

Holy Spirit - A Gift

Bible says Holy Spirit is a gift from God to those who believe in Him

Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38

The steps to receive this Holy gift are not so hard. Repent sins, Turn to God and Obey the Word of God!

We are witnesses of these things and so is the Holy Spirit, who is given by God to those who obey him. Acts 5:32

This is a privilage given to the Children of God only. (John 3.16 says how to become a child of God)

And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts ...  Galatians 4:6

From the scriptures, we can understand that the association with the gift of Spirit can be in 3 different dimensions. These states are of equal importance and I believe God wants a believer in all these states all the time.

• State of "having Holy Spirit living in us".
• State of "Living in Holy Spirit"
• State of "being filled with Holy Spirit"

Below, I'm attempting to compile some scriptures describing these dimensions of relationship with God the Holy Spirit.

1. State of having Holy Spirit living in us. 

Apostle Paul makes it clear to the church that Holy Spirit lives in each of us.

Romans 8:11 - The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you.

If Holy spirit lives in us, our fellowship is a temple of God.

1 Corinthians 3:16 - Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you?

Not only the fellowship of the believers, but also each one of us, individually, is a temple of God, since Holy spirit lives in us.

1 Corinthians 6:19 - Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God?

Paul makes it clear that the Holy Spirit indeed is The God and we are being part of His dwelling! We were once not eligible to this privilege. However, though we were gentiles, through Jesus Christ, this great grace has been given to us too

Ephesians 2:22 - Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.

Why God lives IN us? I would like to bring your attention to some of the actions Holy Spirit does in a person to understand the reason why God wants to live in us.

1.1   Gives THE insight to THE truth

There are three levels of enlightenment.

• Insight - Ability to perceive the deep/hidden fact.
• Understanding. - Ability to judge or comprehend the insight.
• Wisdom. - Ability to utilize the understanding.

Paul says in his first epistle to Corinthians (2:10-14) that by His Spirit, God gave us the insight about God. The God's Spirit enabled us to understand the wonderful things about God. Using the Holy spirit we have got the wisdom to explain spiritual things which a common man thinks cannot comprehend!

¹⁰ But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets.

¹¹ No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit.

¹² And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit),so we can know the wonderful thingsGod has freely given us.

¹³ 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.

¹⁴ 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

Verse 10 - Insight: God reveals Spiritual secrets by his Spirit.  These spiritual secrets can start from the basic fact of who God is and what Salvation is. Majority of mankind has the insight that there is "a" God. That is why they try to attain righteousness by their own deeds. By revealing Jesus to the world, the whole mankind has got higher insight on who the true God is and how true Salvation can be achieved. However, only a few strives to continue that insight to the next level of understanding the truth.

Verse 12 - Understanding: Those who received God's Spirit can know and understand Spiritual secrets, which is the next level after the insight or revelation. Understanding follows an open heart and is followed by action on the understanding. For example once a person opens his heart to the insight of how true salvation is achieved, he understands that its by faith and follows the word of God to the act of Confession. (Romans 10.10). However, those who goes through this narrow door are very less.

Verse 13 - Wisdom: Those who understood Spiritual Secrets are given Spiritual Wisdom by the Holy Spirit. This is when the doors of the Word of God is opened to a person to perceive the mysteries in the spiritual knowledge.

Daniel had this spirit of God which made him capable to stand before the King.

Daniel 5:14 - I have heard that you have the spirit of the gods within you and that you are filled With insight, understanding, and wisdom.

This gift is not a one time activity. God wants us to keep on attaining the understanding and wisdom, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.

Ephesians 1.17 - ..... God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.

This is a special privilege given to us.

Ephesians 3:5 - God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his Spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets.

1.2   Leads to THE truth

The initial level of insight about God given by the spirit of God leads man to the ultimate truth, that is Jesus Christ.

Jesus vouches that Holy Spirit leads into the truth and the truth is nothing but Jesus himself.

John 14.17 - He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.

John 14.6 - I am the way, the truth, and the life.

The Holy Spirit continues to lead the children of God in this truth

Romans 8:14 - For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.

1.3   Keeps IN THE truth (Keeps one Holy)

Once a person is led to the ultimate truth, Holy Spirit continues his work by making that person holy before the God the Father

1 Peter 1.2 - God the Father knew you and chose you long ago, and his Spirit has made you holy....

Through the faith in Jesus Christ, one gets cleansed by the Holy Spirit which leads him to the salvation.

2 Thessalonians 2:13 - ... a salvation that came through the Spirit who makes you holy and through your belief in the truth.

1 Corinthians 6:11 - ... you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God..

When a person repents his sins, the change of heart is brought by the Holy Spirit.

Romans 2:29 - And true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by God’s Spirit.

From the scriptures, we can understand that the Holy Spirit lives in us to enable us to keep this holiness through out the Christian life. In all the aspects of our life, Holy Spirit helps us to keep our conscience clean. Lets examine some of the ways by which Holy Spirit does this in our lives.

1.3.1   Saves from natural instincts.

The natural instinct of Human beings is to sin. Even Paul says in Romans 7. 15 that he wants to do right but does what he hates.

Apostle Jude tells about the ungodly people that they do evil because they don't have Holy Spirit.

Jude 1:19 - They follow their natural instincts because they do not have God’s Spirit in them.

In that case, if we do have God's Spirit, we should not follow our natural instinct. God wants us to be controlled by Holy Spirit in all our ways 

Romans 8:9 - You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you.

1.3.2   Helps to obey men of God.

A person who is led by Holy Spirit learns to be obedient to the men of God and never rebels against the church leadership.

1 John 4:6 - 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.

1.3.3   Advocates and Testifies for us

Holy Spirit is the only companion in our life who never leaves us.

John 14: 16 - And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you.

He is our faithful advocate even during our toughest trials where everyone may forsake us.

Mark 13:11 - But when you are arrested and stand trial, don’t worry in advance about what to say Just say what God tells you at that time, for it is not you who will be speaking, but the Holy Spirit.

Apostle Paul quotes Holy Spirit as his advocate when he swears his passion for the salvation of the souls.

Romans 9:1 - ...My conscience and the Holy Spirit confirm it.

1.3.4   Brings forth the intimacy to God

We got Holy Spirit becuase we are his Children and Holy Spirit continously reminds us about this parental relation and makes us bold enough to call our God as our father.

Galatians 4:6 - And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.”

Romans 8:15 - ...you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.”

1.3.5   Fills hearts with Love 

The love of God is manifested in our life by our love to our fellow beings. Apostle Paul vouches that the love of God is perceived only by the help of Holy Spirit

Romans 5:5 - he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

Apostle John, iterates the fact that one who knows the love of God loves one another. If Spirit of God lives in us, we will love each other as God loved us.

1 John 4.12,13 - No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us. And God has given us his Spirit as proof that we live in him and he in us.

1.3.6   Guarantees the eternal life

Holy Spirit even assures us even when we have slightest doubts on our salvation.

Romans 8:16 - For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.

Furthermore, Holy Spirit is the guarantee or the certificate that we are redeemed to acquire all the inheritance of God as His children.

Ephesians 1:14 - 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.

Holy Spirit is going to change our mortal body to the glorified immortal new bodies.

2 Corinthians 5:4,5 - ... Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.

Romans 8:11 - And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.

Not only did we get Holy Spirit as the advance token of the glorified life in heaven, but also we are now tasting the sample of that peaceful life with God.

Romans 8:23 - ... we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory ...

2.   State of Living IN Holy Spirit

Once we understand that Holy Spirit dwells in us, it is our responsibility to keep in fellowship with him. It is a huge privilege that God lives in us. For the same reason, we should not take it for granted. God wants us to take the relation to the next level by listening and submitting to the voice of the Holy Spirit.

Genesis 6.3 - My Spirit will not put up with humans for such a long time, for they are only mortal flesh

Yes, God is a patient God. However, He is a consuming Fire too. Our words and deeds can put out the light of the spirit.

1 Thessalonians 5:19 - Do not stifle the Holy Spirit.

Instead, God wants us to live in (or live by) Holy Spirit. This essentially means to let Holy Spirit to take control of ourselves, leading us to truth and making us holy as we have seen in section 1.

Romans 7:6 - Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit.

Living in the spirit rewrites living by the old style of living. If we follow the leading of the Spirit in every part of our lives, we are living in him.

Galations 5:25 - Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.

Apostle John also vouches this and affirms that this is not a one time activity but a continuous way of living.

1 John 3:24 - 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 4:13 - And God has given us his Spirit as proof that we live in him and he in us.

2.1   How do we know if we are living in Him?

Jesus said:

Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. - John 15:5

We live in Him if we bear fruit.

Galations 5:22 - But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

3.   State of "being filled with Holy Spirit"

The next dimension of the relation with Holy Spirit is being filled with Holy Spirit or getting immersed in Holy Spirit. This not synonymous to the baptism by Holy Spirit but is the experience of being completely controlled and dominated by the Holy Spirit to attain the spiritual power to know God more. We can understand from Paul's words that its not an optional experience for a Christian and every one should strive for it.

Ephesians 5:18 - ......, be filled with the Holy Spirit .....

In the words of Jesus, being filled with Holy Spirit is manifested by Power from Heaven.

And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven. - Luke 24:49 

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. Acts 1.8

This was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost

Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. Acts 2.2  

Being filled with Holy Spirit is all about the experiencing the spiritual power from heaven. To be raised to this level, we must have a desiring heart and an open mind. Jesus says:

So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him. - Luke 11:13

In Acts, we understand that Holy Spirit filled the people who prayed for the power from heaven.

After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. - Acts 4.31

It can happen when you are alone or in a fellowship. Acts 2nd chapter and 4th chapter shows that power filled the believers during their fellowship. In Acts 9, Ananias prays for Saul (Paul) to be filled with Holy Spirit when he was all alone. You need not be in a church meeting to be filled with Holy Spirit. Luke 4th chapter shows Jesus was filled with Holy Spirit when he was all alone, fighting with Satan

It can happen when we face our toughest battle in spiritual war fare. Acts 4.7-9 shows that Peter was filled with Holy Spirit when he was brought to trial before the leaders of the people. Luke 4th chapter shows Jesus was filled with Holy Spirit when he fought with the Satan.

It can happen again and again. In Acts 2:4, it says, “...Everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit.” But then again in Acts 4:31, it say of many of the same believers, “They were all filled with the Holy Spirit.”

Outcome of being filled with Holy Spirit

The gifts experienced after being filled with Holy Spirit may be different in different people. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12. 11

It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.

Regardless of which gift is being reflected in our lives, the dimension of being filled with Holy Spirit is obviously distinguishing before others. Such a person is recognized by others as someone who is special.

Genesis 41:38 - So Pharaoh asked his officials, “Can we find anyone else like this man so obviously filled with the spirit of God?

We do not need publicize that fact. It is an automatic outcome that, those filled with Holy Spirit are recognized by others. Even before Jesus doing any miracle, his fame had spread in the whole region since he was filled with Holy Spirit. People saw "something different" in him.

Luke 4:14 - Then Jesus returned to Galilee, filled with the Holy Spirit’s power. Reports about him spread quickly through the whole region..

In our words and deeds, we should be distinguished personalities. Above all we will look great in the eyes of the Lord, and we will have a purpose in the life.

Luke 1:15 - for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord. He must never touch wine or other alcoholic drinks. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth

• Praising God in Spiritual Songs - Worshiping in Spirit and Truth

Ephesians 5: 18 continues as follows:

...be filled with the Holy Spirit, 19 singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, and making music to the Lord in your hearts. 20 And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The right way of worshiping the God in Holy Spirit is a demonstration of being filled with Holy Spirit. We will be able to sing in spirit, make music in heart, and give thanks to God for everything.

Music is appreciated or evaluated only when it has volume. However, making music in heart cannot be heard by a man but when Holy Spirit makes music in one's heart, that becomes a spiritual song that praises God.

The above verse explains that the way the Triune God is worshiped is Praising God the Father, in the name of God the Word, being filled with God the Spirit

• Speaking in Other tongues

The most prominent attestation of being filled with Holy Spirit is displayed right on the day the first Christian Church was born.

Acts 2:4 - And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.

Speaking in unknown tongues is a gift of Spirit as one of the signs of being filled with Spirit. There is a common misunderstanding that being filled with Holy Spirit is (only) characterized by speaking in tongues. I understood from the scriptures that gift of tongues is not the only proof that a person is filled with Holy Spirit. When a person is baptized in Holy Spirit, he is blessed with Spiritual gifts and speaking in tongues can be one of them.

There is no proof in the Holy Bible that this gift is ceased after the death of first Apostles. On the contrary, the importance of this gift is emphasized several times!

Those who speaks in tongues speaks to God and edifies himself in spiritual growth.

1 Corinthians 14:2 - For if you have the ability to speak in tongues, you will be talking only to God... You will be speaking by the power of the Spirit..

The gift of tongues will enable us to pray in Spirit.

1 Corinthians 14:14 - ... if I pray in tongues, my spirit is praying.

It is very obvious that only with the power from the heaven that we can pray in Holy Spirit.

And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don't know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. - Romans 8:26

• Other Spiritual gifts

Several other spiritual gifts are given when a person is filled with Holy Spirit. 

In the Book of Luke, we can see that, Zechariah, father of John the Baptist, prophesied when he was filled with Holy Spirit

Luke 1:67 - Then his father, Zechariah, was filled with the Holy Spirit and gave this prophecy:

God may fill a person with Holy Spirit to do the ministry of miracles and wonders in order to convince some people. 

Romans 15:19 - They were convinced by the power of miraculous signs and wonders and by the power of God’s Spirit.

In 1 Corinthians 12.8 -10, Paul mentions nine gifts of Holy Spirit. These are special abilities to:

1. Give Wise Advice
2. Deliver Message of Special knowledge
3. Have Great Faith
4. Healing the sick
5. Perform Miracles
6. Prophesy
7. Discern what is Godly and what is not
8. Speak in tongues
9. Interpret Other tongues

To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge. 9 The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. 10 He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said.

• Becoming Bold

Before the experience on the Pentecost day, all the disciples were afraid of the Jews. They were in fact hiding with the fear of persecution. However, when the Holy Spirit came upon them, they became powerful and bold. Peter was filled with courage and did a mighty preaching which caused 3000 people to join the church.

Like wise when they were summoned by the leaders of the people to be questioned on their ministries, Peter was filled with Holy Spirit and spoke boldly to them quoting the scriptures, better than a pharisee.

Acts 4.8 - Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of our people...

It might not be impossible to a person to be able to deliver a speech from the bible after learning some scriptures. But, speaking authentically with full confidence and courage needs the help from Holy Spirit. Only a person who is filled with Holy Spirit can preach the word of God with boldness because the insight, understanding and the wisdom of the Word of God can be attained only with Holy Spirit.

Acts 4:31 - After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness.

Such a person will be strong and brave to call out others' sin

Micah 3:8 - But as for me, I am filled with power— with the Spirit of the Lord. I am filled with justice and strength to boldly declare Israel’s sin and rebellion.

A person filled with Holy Spirit is confident that no curse can touch them and no magic has any power against a child of God since the God of all wonders are with them. That is why Paul was courageous to rebuke the sorcerer who was feared by all the people.

Acts 13:9 - Saul, also known as Paul, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he looked the sorcerer in the eye.

• Becoming Wise, Able and Expert

Holy Spirit gives distinguished wisdom in order to make us stand out from others. In exodus, we see that God filled the craftsmen with Holy Spirit to make them wise so that they build the best crafts for the God.

Exodus 28:3 - Instruct all the skilled craftsmen whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom.

God also filled their leader Bezalel with Holy Spirit to give him the wisdom and ability to lead the workers. Holy Spirit can make us experts in what we do.

Exodus 31:3 - I have filled him with the Spirit of God, giving him great wisdom, ability, and expertise in all kinds of crafts.

Conclusion

When we are filled with Holy Spirit, the ultimate hope gives us the peace which cannot be given by this world. Our inner eyes open to see that the worldly comforts are temporary and what matters is the spiritual joy.

Romans 15:13 - I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Only Holy Spirit can fill us with joy. 

Luke 10:21 - At that same time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit

Acts 13:52: And the believers were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

Once the peace and joy in the Holy Spirit is filled in us, our lifestyle changes and we tend to live a life of goodness... Then the kingdom of God is revealed in our lives.

Romans 14:17 - For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 

Let us submit ourselves to lead a life which is filled with the hope and peace of the Holy Spirit.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the  fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 Corinthians 13:14)

Your Brother In Christ,
Finny Samuel

Finishing is better than Starting

In Ecclesiastes 7:8 Solomon says: finishing is better than starting. Interestingly, the one who wrote this wise saying did not finish well! Solomon had a dream-like starting in his reign. God himself appeared before him and gave him the greatest gift of knowledge and wisdom. He was considered the greatest king of Israel. Yet, in the end, tempted by his wives, Solomon drifted from God's path and led the Israel to worship foreign Gods...

Solomon was not the only person who had this ill fate. Samson, who was a Nazirite (dedicated to God) right from the womb of his mother, fell for a woman named Delilah, which in turn was the cause of his death with the gentiles. During his young age, Samson had done several mighty things for the God of Israel. He was spirit filled and guided by God. But he could not get a good end due to the lust which overcame him.

Lot had a good start with Abraham to set out to the promised land. Though he did not have a direct calling from God, he believed Abraham's God and wanted to submit himself to God.. But on the course of his journey, the physical blessings of the plains of Jordan tempted him to part with Abraham and his God.. Even after God saved him and his family from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, his wife could not resist the temptation while they were running to safety, which caused her destruction then and there itself. We know Lot also did not have a good ending.

Adam was created in God's own image and had the blessing from God to be fruitful and to rule the earth. However, he and his wife were tempted for a mere fruit which caused their expulsion from the garden of Eden. Moreover, he caused the spiritual death of all the mankind.
There are many more instances of great men falling on the course of their spiritual life. Worldly temptation was the reason for the fall of all these great people.. They thought about the earthly body more than the heavenly body which caused them to fail in the ultimate mission.

God wants us to learn from the people who ended well.

Joseph was hated by all his brothers for the visions he had. They did not believe in what he believed and tried to sell him away to make sure that his dreams would not come true. But he was faithful to God in these trials that God started to raise him step by step... He had to go through another trial even when he had successfully passed in the test of temptation in the incident with the wife of Potiphar. Since he was faithful even in the jail he was made in charge of the jail! We know how Joseph was blessed by God to be made the highest official in Egypt and how his visions were fulfilled.

Noah, the preacher of righteousness, might have been mocked by all his fellow neighbors for believing in the phenomenon of rain which was not heard of till then. Despite the fact that nobody listened to him, he was faithful to God and did all that was commanded to him. In the end, as Peter says (1 Peter 3.20) only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water.

Job was faithful to God even when he lost everything in a single day. He was tempted by his wife to curse God. But In all this, Job did not sin (job 2.10). In the end, we know that, The LORD blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part. (Job 42.12).

Abraham was so faithful to God and trusted God even in improbabilities which then resulted in God calling him as His friend!

Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away. (Genesis 5.24 - NIV)
Moses, David, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, many more to quote as examples of faithfulness, and those who attained a good end.

However best our start may be, if we do not finish well, its all in vain. We might have started well with Jesus by accepting Him as our savior and Lord. However our end will be made to light when God sits on his throne of judgement and separates the people one from another as a shepherd separates sheep from goat. (Matthew 25:31–46)

We might have been saved, baptized and waiting for his return. But if we are not ready at the moment of his return, we will be left behind. Remember the parable of the 10 bridesmaids. All the 10 were waiting for the bridegroom. However, 5 foolish bridesmaids were not prepared with enough oil with them and while they were gone to get some, the bridegroom came and they were left behind. All the waiting they did went in vain... The door of the grace was closed forever.

Later, when the other five bridesmaids returned, they stood outside, calling, ‘Lord! Lord! Open the door for us!’ “But he called back, ‘Believe me, I don’t know you!’ (Matthew 25: 11,12)

It does not matter how much we worked for God and how much God worked through us. God can use any person to complete his work in here. That does not give the guarantee that he/she is accepted by God.

Mathew 7.22,23 - On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’

What is a good finish

“Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. (Matthew 7:22)

Its not doing His will every now and then. Consistency is what God wants from us.

Mark 13.13: The one who endures to the end will be saved.

Consistency is all about "Being faithful resisting the temptation of the world and keeping the eyes on Him"

Hebrews 3:14: For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ..

Good finish is marked by being faithful to the end. It is characterized by a trust As firm as we had when we first believed. In this world there are so many things which tries to take away our attention from God.

1 John 2: 16,17 For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.

God wants us to win over these cravings and trust in God till the end.

How to finish well?

What should we do to achieve this faithfulness?

Hebrew 12.:1,2 And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.

Keeping our eyes on Jesus - When Lot separated from Abraham, the things which were on his eyes was the physical pleasure of the plains of Jordan. Once he changed his vision from spiritual blessings to physical blessings, he started to lose his track. This happened to his wife too. She could not resist herself from looking back to the physical blessings they had. Had she set her eyes to the mountains before her, she could have run to that refuge.

So it all depends on our vision. How clear is our vision? Instead of looking down to the earthly possessions and physical blessings, we need to keep our eyes focused to Jesus and his promises of eternal life. All from the world is fading away.. Only those who please God will live forever.

Eyes are very important in keeping one's concentration. All the sins start from the cravings of eyes, just as in the case of Eve.

Genesis 3.6 - She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious.

The sin started right when the fruit "looked delicious". So the sin started in her eyes.
Lets test ourselves to 'see' if we 'see right'. When we look something, do our eyes tempt us to look away from God? Are our eyes concentrated on the Calvary always? The author of book of Hebrews says the following about Moses:

He kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible. (Hebrews 11: 27)

We can keep on going if we keep our eyes on the one who is invisible. We can do this not by our merits but only through spirit.

Galatians 3:3 How foolish can you be? After starting your Christian lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort?

No human effort can make us perfect. The perfecter of our faith is Christ (Hebrews 12.2)

1 Corinthians 1:8 He will keep you strong to the end so that you will be free from all blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns.

Yes keep our eyes on Him and he will keep us strong to the end.

What is the prize?
The result of finishing good is awaiting us on the judgement day.

Revelation 2:10 - But if you remain faithful even when facing death, I will give you the crown of life.

The crown of eternal life is only for those who remain faithful to the end.

2 Timothy 4:7,8 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return.

This crown is what we are looking for. This crown is our vision. For this crown have we considered everything in this world as waste! If we do not get this at the end, ours will be a pathetic situation.

Acts 20:24 But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus.

Conclusion:
If we have started in spirit, lets end this in spirit. Lets keep our focus on Christ and complete this race faithfully.

Revelation 2. 5 - Look how far you have fallen! Turn back to me and do the works you did at first. 

• Remember - Lets look back and see where we were
• Repent - Lets turn back to God and ask his forgiveness for losing the focus
• Return - Lets get back to the track and race again with full concentration

God bless.

Your Brother In Christ,
Finny Samuel

Friendship with God

How often do we consider God as our best friend? Is it right to even think like that? Is it biblical? Does God consider us as his friends? What does it mean to be God's friend?

Well, lets try to understand the answers for above questions from the light of the Word of God.

Each person may have unique definitions about the relationship with God. God is a Father, a Creator, a Master, a King, a Savior, may be an "all-in-all"... Yes, we can see the attributes of all these relations in God. However, the intimacy and depth of a mutual relation is best reflected when God become our friend!

Webster defines friend as 'One attached to another by Affection'. The intimacy of this attachment is the level of friendship. In this world, we may find casual friends, close friends, communal friends, conditional friends, internet friends, imaginary friends etc. Of all these types of friendships, best friend or closest friend is the type which has its depth and intimacy. Friendship is defined as "form of interpersonal relationship generally considered to be closer than association". For a person to be one's best friend, there should be

• a tendency to desire what is best for the other
• honesty in all actions to the other
• mutual understanding
• enjoyment of each others' company
• trust in one another

God surely has a desire for our best, He is the most honest person to us, He understands us the most, He enjoys our company and He even trust us! Yes, He is our true friend! Now the question is do we have the same feeling back? I mean, all the time, constantly? God wants us to be His friends.
John 15: 15 - I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.(NIV).

God wants us to know (understand) His "business" so that we may be his friends - those who trusts him, those who are honest with him, those who thinks about the best of the spirituality, and those who enjoys His company.

John 15:14 - You are my friends if you do what I command.
Acquaintance Vs Friendship: We may want to ask ourselves if God is just an acquaintance (merely an association) or do we consider him as our friend. To consider him as friend, based on John 15:15, we need to understand His business. What is God up to? Why did He came to save us? Whats out there for us? Once we fully understand the purpose of salvation, we would love to call God as our Friend.


Abraham the Friend of God

In old testament, God was not ashamed to call Abraham as his Friend.
Isaiah 41:8 - “But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, you descendants of Abraham my friend,..." (NIV)
The people of Israel did know that God was proud to be referred as Abraham's friend!
2 Chronicles 20:7 - Our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend?

They even called God as friend when they desperately needed Him
Jeremiah 3:4 - Have you not just called to me: ‘My Father, my friend from my youth, ... (NIV)

What made Abraham to be raised to the position of God's friend? Apostle James answers this question in his epistle:
James 2:23 - And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend.

Abraham believed (trusted) God.. He believed that God nothing is impossible to God. We often calculate the probabilities to judge on possibilities. But trusting the God for the improbable makes us believers!

In return God trusted Abraham too!!! Genesis 18:17 - Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing . . . ? Wow! that's powerful and amazing!! A mutual relation where there are no secrets! The depth and intimacy of that relation reflects in the numerous face to face meetings God used to have with Abraham

Moses the friend of God

Moses was also referred to as someone like a friend to God.
Exodus 33:11 - The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend.
In one of those several occasions, Moses's face became radiant. I should say he was so close to God when he talked that he started reflecting God's radiance. God knew Moses very closely and he was a man of God's mind.
Deuteronomy 34: 10 - Since then, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face.
I would like to challenge the readers to have a passion to be like Moses in the relationship with God. Let us pray that God talk to us face to face, like a friend, showing his radiance.. Let our eyes be blessed to see God's radiance, Let our ears be blessed to hear His Voice and Let our mind be blessed to understand His Words.
God trusted Moses too.
Exodus 33:17 - And the LORD said to Moses, "I will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know you by name."
'I know you by name' - In other words, I know you personally. Like a friend. What a privilege it is! To be someone close to God's heart!
Moses was not ashamed to trust God against all probabilities. He set aside all the human logic when he went to Pharaoh without any support. He trusted the God so blindly that he boldly commanded the king to let the Israelites go.
Here also we see that mutual trust marks the foundation of the friendship.

Friends of Christ

Coming to new testament, we already saw that Jesus called us as friends (John 15:15) and laid out the way how we can be His friends (John 15:14,15).
He shows us that he is our best friend by laying his life for us in Calvary. John 15:13 - Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
That's the depth of his friendship to us. Are we ready or willing to lay our lives for the cause of Calvary? Can we imagine a moment when we and/or our loved ones are at a point blank gun point and challenged to deny Jesus to get our lives back? What would be our reaction in such a situation? Would we prove ourselves as friends of Jesus at such a moment? Would we really remember the following verse then?
Luke 12:4 - “I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more.

Jesus considered even Judas Iscariot as his friend! Matthew 26:50 - Jesus replied, “Do what you came for, friend.” A man like Judas will not be referred to as 'Friend' by anybody. Judas was very far from the friendship with Jesus. Yet, He considered Judas as a friend. With all our iniquities, our selfishness, our dishonesty God still is our friend!! Even when we break our relationship with Him, or forgets His existences, he stills calls us are friends - John 21:5 - He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” This was when his disciples went back the the fishing (from where they were delivered once) after the Crucifixion. Hasn't it happened that sometimes we just drift from His love and turn back to sins where we were delivered from? Lets submit ourselves to hear His loving call to bring us back in the relationship...

When do the friendship with Jesus start in a man's life? The moment a person believes in Him. Luke 5:20 - When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” Faith makes God as our friend! The trust that nothing is impossible to God is the mark of our friendship with Him! This is true in the case of Lazarus as well. Lazarus and his sisters were friends of Jesus. John 11:11 - After he had said this, he went on to tell them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.”

We can see Jesus referring the relationship to us as friendship even in some of his parables:

Matthew 20:13 - “But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius?

Matthew 22:12 - He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’

Luke 5:34 - Jesus answered, “Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while he is with them?

Biblical definition of friendship

• Good Samaritan: Jesus explains a true friend through the parable of Good Samaritan. [Luke 10: 30 - 37]. Yes Jesus had been a Good Samaritan for us. Not only did he saved us from the death from the sin, but also he paid for our eternal life
• Solomon says friends love at all times [Proverbs 17:17] Very true. If there is one friend whose love never ceases, that's Jesus
• Job explains that friends is one who pleads for us [Job 16: 21]. Obviously Jesus intercedes for us to the Father all the time.
• Solomon says wounds from friend can be trusted [Proverbs 27:6]. There are certain times when some wounds are made to make us more strong, more bonded. But we can trust Him that he never cause any harm to us.

Let us pray God to make our relationship mutual with Him in a true, deep, intimate and consistent friendship. Lets long to hear his voice directly and to talk to Him as if we do to our human friends..

God Bless You.

Your Brother In Christ,
Finny Samuel
PS: Bible quotes from NIV