How the Holy Spirit Embraces Your Heart

Summary

Doubts about salvation disappear when we trust only in Jesus’ completed work on the cross, not our performance. God gives the Holy Spirit as His seal of ownership, assuring believers they are His children and guaranteeing their future inheritance. The Spirit’s presence brings internal confidence, produces obedience, and empowers truth, love, and transformation. Those without the Spirit rely on human instincts, but true believers show evidence of God living within them.

Struggling with Assurance

Am I a Christian? Is Jesus in my life? Will I go to heaven when I die? Doubts plagued my teen years. I had no assurance that I was right with God or that the answer to those questions was yes.

The Problem of Performance-Based Faith

The problem was that I believed that Jesus died on the cross for my sins, and I also had to live my life up to some unknown standard for God to accept me. The part after the “and” was the problem. I had no confidence that I had met the standard--no assurance of salvation.

Finding True Peace with God

In the fall of 1968, I learned I couldn’t attain the right standing with God by living up to His standard. When I trusted solely in what Jesus had done for me on the cross, I experienced peace with God.

How the Holy Spirit Embraces Your Heart

God “has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us” (2 Corinthians 1:22 NLT). God’s Spirit within us proves we live in Him and he in us (1 John 4:13). God puts His Holy Spirit in our hearts because we believe the gospel, not because we obey His law (Galatians 3:5).

The Spirit Assures Our Identity

 “Because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, ‘Abba, Father’” (Galatians 4:6 NLT). His Spirit assures our spirits that we are God’s children (Romans 8:16). This internal confirmation is hard to explain. We know.

The Spirit Guarantees Our Inheritance

This abiding Holy Spirit, God’s mark of ownership, is for Gentiles and Jews. “And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him” (Ephesians 1:13-14 NLT).

Living in Step with the Spirit

Since our purpose is to praise and glorify God, living for ourselves isn’t a God-approved option. Knowing God must result in following God. “And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30 NLT).

 “Those who obey God’s commandments remain in fellowship with him, and he with them. And we know he lives in us because the Spirit he gave us lives in us” (1 John 3:24 NLT).

Without the Spirit

Those without the Spirit follow their instincts (Jude 1:19). At one time, the Gentiles did nothing else.

The Spirit Empowers Our Witness

The Apostle Paul convinced the Gentiles to come in faith to Jesus “by the power of miraculous signs and wonders and by the power of God’s Spirit” (Romans 15:19 NLT). He proved himself God’s messenger to the Corinthians by purity, understanding, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit within, and sincere love (2 Corinthians 6:6 NLT).

The Holy Spirit animates the gospel with the ring of truth for receptive hearts. “For when we brought you the Good News, it was not only with words but also with power, for the Holy Spirit gave you full assurance that what we said was true. And you know of our concern for you from the way we lived when we were with you” (1 Thessalonians 1:5 NLT). Those with the Spirit of truth listen to God’s messengers (1 John 4:6).

Visible Manifestations of the Spirit

At times, the Spirit demonstrates His presence by miraculous signs. About twelve of John the Baptist’s disciples in Ephesus knew nothing about the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:2). Paul baptized them in the name of the Lord Jesus.

He laid his hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. They proved it by prophesying and speaking in tongues (Acts 19:5–6). That was similar to what happened to Jesus’ followers on the Day of Pentecost. See more about the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Final Question

That's how the Holy Spirit embraces your heart. Is He living in yours?

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