“If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever-- the Spirit of truth. 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. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” John 14:15-18 (NIV)
“Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.” John 15:4 (NIV)
Just as a branch of a tree that has no life giving sap running through it is dead and must be pruned, so too, one who claims faith but lacks the indwelling Holy Spirit’s power. We are incapable in the flesh of producing fruit in keeping with repentance apart from the indwelling power of the Spirit. One of the greatest follies of the prideful human heart is shown by the blatant boldness to neglect Gods’ warning regarding this in Scripture. Paul tells us in Romans 8:9: “You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.” It is He who gives life to our mortal bodies. We are not to flatter ourselves into thinking that we are the exception as we will be woefully mistaken. It is God that empowers the saint with the Holy Spirit, equipping and enabling them to do eternal works prepared in advance for them to do.
The Holy Spirit is the promised gift to every believer in sweet Jesus. He so loves His people that He abides and lives with them forever – bestowing power and authority according to His good pleasure as various circumstances present. The joy of the Spirit within the saint revives, strengthens and nourishes our souls, comforting and refreshing us even if all outward comforts are taken away. He also bears witness that we belong to God – He is the seal signifying that we are His. He moves us to be conformed to Jesus so that He will be the firstborn among many brothers. We must take great care in listening to and obeying His still small voice within as He draws our hearts towards God and His glory ever working towards perfecting our sanctification.
Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation--but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” Romans 8:12-15 (NIV)