If you have been with me for awhile, you may remember my post concerning “Life’s Greatest Mystery.” Paul talked about it in Colossians 1:27, when he said it’s Christ in you which is the Hope of Glory.
From my perspective, that is a concept which we cannot overemphasize. In essence, it is the very heart of what Christianity is all about. it’s not about rules and regulations – as with other religions. It is about the cleansing we received as believers – through the blood of Jesus – and it’s about the fact that the Holy Spirit now lives within us. We are truly temples of the Living God – right here on earth.
Now as I say these things, I am quickly reminded of two misconceptions which always come up when we discuss these topics. The first misconception is that every human on earth is right now a temple of the Holy Spirit – and that is not true. It is true that every human is created in the image of God, and as such, has the capability of becoming a temple of God’s Spirit, but first they have to be cleansed. They have to receive the forgiving, cleansing gift of Jesus and the price He paid. Then they can become temples of the Holy Spirit.
The second misconception is that when we are directed by the Holy Spirit, we have no rules and regulations at all. Anything goes.
No, no, no. That’s not it at all. This is the tricky part and sometimes hard to understand.
God has given us the gift of salvation through the blood of Jesus, and then He has given us the gift of His Holy Spirit to live within us. Yet this Holy Spirit will always agree with the Word of God and the principles outlined in God’s Word. He will never lead us into disobedience of the Word.
In a nutshell, you might say that the rules don’t make us righteous. Only the cross of Jesus can do that. However, once we are made righteous and we are being led and empowered by God’s Holy Spirit, we by our new nature want to follow God’s plan. And the more we spend time praying and reading His Word, the more we realize that we find fulfillment when we follow his plan.
And not only do we want to follow God’s Word, we have the ability to do so through God’s grace which is poured out through His Spirit.
I can hear the Star Wars music going off in heads right now, but believe me, this is better than Star Wars. This is reality – and it’s better than Star Wars!
So when we talk about living from the inside out, we’re talking about something miraculous.
As we face each day, it’s so easy to get up, dress, drink our coffee, and tackle our problems from the outside. And what do I mean? I mean we look at our list (if we are organized), and we start checking off the items. Done. Done. Done. When interruptions come up, we face them. And at the end of the day, we are exhausted and unfulfilled.
When we are living from the inside out, we have a different take on life. We start with prayer and God’s Word, and we start with an attitude of prayer and awareness. We are thankful for the many small blessings which are coming our way as we move through the maze of our day. And we are aware of God’s Holy Spirit helping us as we proceed.
One of the many benefits of this type of living is that we set ourselves up to be aware of God’s guidance. That guy behind us in the grocery line. That person at the next desk. There may be someone in our path who needs encouragement – or our prayers. When we are sensitive to the Holy Spirit, we can be the vessels of God pouring out into their lives.
Inside out living can turn the most mundane day into one of excitement. And it can turn a seemingly boring job into one of great pleasure.
It can also turn any life into one filled with joy and contentment.
I want to live from the inside out, being guided and empowered by the Holy Spirit within, every step of the way.
Forever Upward,
