1 Corinthians 2:10-13
Be Still: Lord Jesus, as I enter into your word today, would you bring stillness to my body and peace to my mind as I prepare for you to speak to me. Amen.
Read: 1 Corinthians 2
The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. 13 This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. (v. 10b-13)
Encounter: When someone has made a commitment to following Jesus (either for the first time, or for the first time in a long time) it’s always in response to revelation of who Jesus is. In other words, the Holy Spirit has revealed to them something of who God is, what he has done for them and what he will do for them in the future. What’s more, when we respond to Jesus and invite him into our hearts, he comes to live in us by the Holy Spirit. In 1 Corinthians 2, Paul explains that the Holy Spirit is the one who reveals who God is to us. He’s suggesting that there are forms of knowledge that are so deep and wonderful that they can only be revealed to us by the indwelling Holy Spirit.
It has been said that the journey of knowledge from our head to our heart takes a lifetime. And it’s true. God’s revelation to us is ongoing through the Holy Spirit. And that’s so exciting because there is always so much more of God to know, his peace to experience and his love to enjoy. Being a follower of Jesus isn’t about collecting facts about God – that’s missing the point. Rather, being a follower of Jesus is about growing in knowledge and experience of him. The knowledge of God that is revealed to us by the Holy Spirit leads us to greater love and affection towards him as we become even more wrapped up in the wonder of who he is, what he has done and what he has promised to do.
Apply: There’s a balance to be had from these verses. On the one hand, we can’t sit back and assume that God will reveal to us everything we need. It’s a two-way relationship. Whilst it is the Holy Spirit who reveals to us the depths of who God is, we also need to make space for God to do that through study and engagement with his Word. Are there ways that I can engage more deeply with God’s Word than I am already pursuing?
Devote: Thank you, Holy Spirit, that you are the one who reveals to me who God is. I ask today for a fresh infilling of revelation that I might be on fire for you in a new way.