The Greatest Donation (1 John 3:24)
“Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.” (1 John 3:24)
The blessed Spirit, proceeding from the Father and the Son, stand as the greatest gift of heaven. He is a donation, not compensation; a gift given, not a wage earned. Laden with sin and bound by corruption, how could we earn such a gift lest it was purchased for us by someone spotless and blameless as our Savior, Jesus Christ? His work has procured for us a gift of infinite value in the person of the Holy Spirit. How quietly the Spirit works, yet how powerful are His effects! On the one hand, we find the Spirit as the mortifier of sin. So often, we find ourselves assailed by sin, yet the Spirit sanctifies. We find ourselves among a path with many detours on the left and right, yet the Spirit guides us down the straight and narrow. We see sin crouching at our door, yet how powerfully does the Spirit restrain it!
On the other hand, how often does the Spirit work life in us? When we find ourselves weak, the Spirit strengthens us in the inner man. When we find good works abounding, it is the Spirit producing fruit in our life. When we find our lives defined by holiness, it is the Spirit sanctifying us through and through. How desperately we need His work, and how gracious is our God to provide His presence. As Peter Gerhardt penned, “Come with unction and power, on our souls Your graces shower; Author of a new creation, make our hearts Your habitation.” Oh, gracious Spirit, bear witness in our hearts and our lives of Your presence that we may live as God’s children on earth.