Romans 8:9, consider the name, the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit is the Spirit of the Father and of the Son, but there is something else hiding in that name. This is worth sitting with, because it is reflection, not a doctrine you will find spelled out in a dictionary, the Spirit of Christ is the Spirit of the one who was betrayed and abandoned and who cried out in the garden and who was raised from the dead. The Spirit who dwells in you is not a distant force, he is the Spirit of the one who knows what it is to be human, to be tired, to be misunderstood, to be left, and he dwells in you, not because you are impressive, because you are his.
You do not belong to God, because you have your life together, you belong to him, because he chose you and sealed you and put his Spirit in you as the guarantee. And nothing about your performance can undo a seal, nothing about your failures can cancel a down payment, the Spirit of Christ is not a reward for good behavior, he is the mark of a family you were adopted into. And the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you right now, that is Romans 8:9, that is what it means.
The Spirit is not a feeling you have to chase, it is not a standard you have to reach, it is a fact you can rest on. If you are in Christ, you have the Spirit of Christ and the Spirit of Christ is the proof, he is the one who cries abba, Father in your heart. The Spirit of Christ is the one who leads you and grows fruit in you and seals you as God’s own, he is the down payment on everything God has promised and he is the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead. The Spirit of Christ dwells in you and if the Spirit of Christ dwells in you, then you are his, not because of what you have done, because of what he has done and because of who he is.
The Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, two names, one Spirit, one answer, you belong to him and nothing in all creation, not death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, is able to separate you from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. You are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit and if you have the Spirit of Christ, you are his, rest in that, because it is true.
You do not belong to God, because you have your life together, you belong to him, because he chose you and sealed you and put his Spirit in you as the guarantee. And nothing about your performance can undo a seal, nothing about your failures can cancel a down payment, the Spirit of Christ is not a reward for good behavior, he is the mark of a family you were adopted into. And the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you right now, that is Romans 8:9, that is what it means.
The Spirit is not a feeling you have to chase, it is not a standard you have to reach, it is a fact you can rest on. If you are in Christ, you have the Spirit of Christ and the Spirit of Christ is the proof, he is the one who cries abba, Father in your heart. The Spirit of Christ is the one who leads you and grows fruit in you and seals you as God’s own, he is the down payment on everything God has promised and he is the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead. The Spirit of Christ dwells in you and if the Spirit of Christ dwells in you, then you are his, not because of what you have done, because of what he has done and because of who he is.
The Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, two names, one Spirit, one answer, you belong to him and nothing in all creation, not death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, is able to separate you from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. You are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit and if you have the Spirit of Christ, you are his, rest in that, because it is true.