Day 6 — The Holy Spirit
John 14:16-18 & 23
16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 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. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you…
23 Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.
In the Herbert household, I’m sure as in yours, we’re all trying to work out what is actually important in this season we find ourselves in – family? School work? Health? Food? We find our priorities seem to have changed overnight! It’s the same with church – as Gas Street we love meeting together, as many people as possible gathered to celebrate and praise God – but now we can’t do that, what is actually important? Are we reliant on an online Zoom meeting or the internet to experience God’s presence?
After Jesus’ resurrection he met with his disciples telling them that he would soon go away again – but that they would not be left alone. He told them to wait for one thing only – the Holy Spirit to come. He knew things would be tough but that the key would be the empowering presence of the Spirit. On the day of Pentecost the Spirit came on the disciples like fire – and that fire separated out to rest on each individual person. They were a community but they were also empowered and filled with the Spirit as individuals.
These words of Jesus remind us that – wherever we are – the Holy Spirit has come to live with us. Verse 23 feels like such an incredible promise: ‘My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.’ – there’s no self-isolating going on with God! Whether you are physically on your own at the moment or figuring out family life in lockdown, it will change things to comprehend that the Holy Spirit is in this with you, he has made his home with you. Because of that we can experience the empowering of the Spirit, the compassion of the Father and the renewing presence of Jesus Christ each and every day.
Prayer —
Holy Spirit come and fill me now. And remind me that, while you promise to come and make your home with me today, in an even more profound way you are my home and you call me deeper into your safety and presence.
Ali Herbert
Associate Pastor