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DAY 20 – Created In God’s Image

Planetboom Team

3 August 2020

Devotion

Living a Spirit-led life is one of the most important aspects of our relationship with God. The Bible promises us that when we put our faith in Jesus, the Holy Spirit comes and lives inside us. Might seem like a crazy thing to imagine, but believe it! God's own Spirit has taken up residence in you. The same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead, the same Spirit that hovered over darkness before the world was created, the same Spirit who fell like fire in the book of Acts—He lives in you!!!!! Jesus said that it was better that He go back to heaven so that the Holy Spirit could come to us. Why was it better? Because everything that Jesus was for His disciples here on earth, the Holy Spirit wants to be for you. But He isn't just there sometimes.. He's available for every single one of us, in every single moment, in every single place, 24/7. The Holy Spirit was sent to be our helper, our standby, our comforter, our encourager, our strengthener, our teacher and our friend. We don't have to live this life for God in our strength and ability; it is the Holy Spirit who gives us the power and the desire to live for God. He doesn't just show us what to do, but when He comes to live inside us, He literally changes us to be like Him and He produces His fruit in our lives (we'll read about this delicious fruit in these scriptures). As you read through these scriptures, think about what life would look like if you involved the Holy Spirit in every moment of it.

Scripture

John 16:12-15 (NLT)
“There is so much more I want to tell you, but you can’t bear it now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me. All that belongs to the Father is mine; this is why I said, ‘The Spirit will tell you whatever he receives from me.’
Galatians 5:16-25 (NLT)
So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses. When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.
Romans 8:9-17 (NLT)
But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.