God dwells with us and keeps us

Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him." John 14:23

What a comfort to know that Jesus did not abandon us and leave us to our own devices after He suffered and died on the cross for our sins and rose again. As He promised in Matthew 28:20, He is with us always, even to the end of this world, and He and the Father dwell with us and in us by the Holy Spirit.

A few verses before our text, Jesus said (John 14:15-18): "If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever -- the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you." Jesus promised His disciples that He would send the Holy Spirit to abide with them forever. Then Jesus said: "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you."

In John 14:23, Jesus said: "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him." Thus, we see that, through the indwelling Holy Spirit, the Father and the Son also take up residence with us and in us! We are indeed the temple of God (cf. 1 Cor. 6:19-20; 2 Cor 6:16; Eph. 2:19-22).

Is the Holy Spirit given to us because of our love for Jesus? No! Rather, we love God as a fruit of faith in Christ, which is the gracious work of God's Holy Spirit through the hearing of God's Word (Rom. 10:17; Eph. 1:13-14; Gal. 5:22). Through the hearing of God's Word, the Holy Spirit moves us to repent, trust in Christ Jesus and be baptized in His name for the remission of all our sins. And God graciously gives to us the gift of the Holy Spirit (cf. Acts 2:38-39; Eph. 1:13-14; Tit. 3:4-7). As a fruit of God-given faith in Christ, we love Him and desire to walk in his ways, and He gives us the Holy Spirit to strengthen and keep us in the true and saving faith unto life eternal.

As Jesus said, "The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you" (v. 26). The Holy Spirit, working through the Word, enlightens us and reveals to us Christ Jesus and His great love and mercy toward us (cf. John 15:26). The Spirit assures us of forgiveness and life in Jesus' name and teaches us the truth, preserving us in the true and saving faith unto life everlasting (cf. 1 John 2:27).

Come and dwell in our hearts by Your Holy Spirit, O God, and strengthen and preserve us in faith in Christ Jesus, our Savior. Amen.

[Devotion by Randy Moll. Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.]

Editorial on 05/18/2016