When I was a new Christian it was explained to me that the role of the Holy Spirit was to help me "live in obedience to Christ." Certainly a crucial component of a relationship with Christ is obedience. After all, Jesus Himself said, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” Further, the Holy Spirit does empower us to live in obedience to Christ (Ephesians 5:18; Galatians 5:22-23). Yet a thriving relationship with Christ is much more than obedience.
This Sunday we’ll take a closer look at the Samaritans who believed the gospel, were baptized, but had not yet received the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:14-17). There experience is not one that we share in that we receive (are sealed in) the Holy Spirit when we believed the gospel (Ephesians 1:13). God’s unique purpose for these early Christians serves to showcase the relational purpose of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
Pastor and author Francis Chan has written an excellent book on the Holy Spirit entitled, The Forgotten God. In this clip he shares with his church his motivation for writing the book. Romans 8:17 tells us, “The Spirit Himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God’s children.” If your relationship with Christ has grown stale, let me encourage you to grab your Bible and spend some time meditating on Romans 8:12-17. God loves you. Don’t take my word for it… Let God tell you Himself.
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