By Heny Albert Erdmann

Chapter 12

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN OUR DAILY LIFE

Ephesians 1:3, 4, 13

3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

4. ccording as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love.

13. In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise.

II Corinthians 1:21, 22

21. Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God;

22. Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.

Ephesians 2:17, 18

17. And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.

18. For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.

I Corinthians 12:13

13. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we he bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

Ephesians 3:16-19

16. That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;

17. That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,

18. May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;

19. And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.

Ephesians 4:24.

24. And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

Ephesians 5:9, 10, 17, 18

9. (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)

10. Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.

17. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit.

Ephesians 6:17

17. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Our thought for this chapter is taken largely from the Epistle to the Ephesians. Nearly every line of thought in this Epistle runs from the past eternity, across the little isthmus of time, into the coming eternity. In it we find some of the deepest thoughts ever penned on divine subjects. We go out farther here than elsewhere in God, through Christ, by the Spirit. We scale the highest heights; we fathom the lowest depths. We climb the summits of salvation and look out into heaven's immensity; we plunge into the sea of divine fullness. We stand in the secret council chambers of eternity and look upon the emergence of divine purposes into divine accomplishments. In this Epistle we have brought to our attention what the Holy Spirit wants to be, and is, in our everyday life.

All spiritual blessings are to be found in Christ, and these are revealed to us through the Spirit. Nothing of God is left out of Christ, and nothing of Christ is left out of our salvation. The word Places in our Scripture, is in italics, showing that it is not in the original, and should not be in the text. Men always make a mistake when they attempt to help out God. "Heavenlies" means heavenly peace, rest, comfort, happiness, submission, obedience, faith, joy, victory.

Jesus never knew the peace of pardon. He never had sinned, and therefore was never pardoned. Hence we must reach entire sanctification in order to enjoy our Savior's peace, rest, love, submission, joy, and victory. The character of these spiritual blessings is unfolded to us in Ephesians 1:4-14. "The heavenlies" implies an experimental knowledge of Christ in the human heart, into which Christ comes and brings His own life. When we are born again we enter the heavenlies. When we are baptized with the Holy Ghost His kingdom is set up within us. Now, while we are still on earth and in the body, we can roam the fair fields of light, having fellowship with heaven, though we are plainly citizens of another world. We are in the Kingdom, and the Kingdom is in us. We are in the heavenlies, whose sum and center is Jesus Christ. And in Christ there are stored up spiritual forces surpassingly greater than all the forces of nature combined. Yet millions of so-called Christians go defeated through life, because they do not know the riches of the glory of their inheritance.

The resurrection and ascension of our Lord Jesus exalted Him above all government and power and might and law and every name that is named, both in the present age and in all the ages to come. Think of all the names you know, all the powers you fear and all the foes you dread. He is far above them all. And He is there, not for Himself, but for you and me. He is head over all things in the interest of His body, the church.

THE SPIRIT OF ACCESS AND COMMUNION (Eph. 2:18)

Having seen the glory of our ascended Lord, we are next admitted, by the Holy Spirit, through communion, into His presence. "For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father"

The door is open now to God, and we can go in and out with the freedom of children, drawing from His fullness, strength for weakness, and grace for grace. This is made possible by the Spirit. It is He who gives us the sense of our need of divine aid, the spirit of prayer, the confidence to come to God, the witness of His acceptance of our all, and the blessed fellowship of constant communion with Him.

Now we have a far greater vision. We have seen the glory yonder within the heavenly gates, amid the splendors of the throne. We have been permitted to enter through the open door of prayer, to gaze upon heaven itself, and draw from its stores. But now the Holy Spirit brings it all down to us and puts it into our heart. The heaven above becomes the heaven within. The Savior enthroned at God's right hand becomes the enthroned Lord of our entire being; God Himself removes His tabernacle from heaven to earth and dwells in very deed with men, in the temple of the believing heart. This office work of the Spirit is two-fold:

First: It is accomplished in the whole church as the body of Christ. "In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord; in whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit."

Second: It is accomplished in the heart of each individual Christian.

OBJECTIVES OF PRAYER (Eph. 3:16-18)

This carries us forward to the closing and crowning experiences of the Christian life. Here we have a scene of conflict and fierce temptation. We are wrestling with principalities and powers, with the rulers of the darkness of this world, with spiritual wickedness in the heavenlies. The enemies of the soul are thickest at the very gates of Heaven. However, think it not strange that we should find fierce conflicts at the very portals of Glory. Do not be terrified. That Christ was far above principalities and powers, we are told in the first chapter of Ephesians. They were conquered foes -- in Christ we are more than conquerors.

But how shall we meet these forces of evil? Thank God, the Holy Spirit will be our Helper. "When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him." We have at our command the sword of the Spirit, and we have the privilege of praying to the Spirit.

WHAT SHOULD BE OUR ATTITUDE TOWARD THIS HEAVENLY FRIEND?

We have the answer beautifully expressed in Ephesians 4:30. "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption." He has set Himself upon accomplishing in us, and for us, the highest possibilities of love and blessing. It grieves Him when we fail to yield to His wise and holy will; when we refuse to let Him educate us, mold us, separate us from things that weaken and destroy us; when we do not let Him fit us for the weight of glory that He is preparing for us. If the Comforter could weep, we would see the tears of loving sorrow upon His gentle face. Let us not grieve Him; let us not disappoint Him. Let us not hold back from Him. "Grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption."