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Strengthened by the Spirit, May 15
That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be
strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man.
Ephesians 3:16
.
Jesus says, “What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe
that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”
Mark 11:24
. There is a
condition to this promise—that we pray according to the will of God.
But it is the will of God to cleanse us from sin, to make us His children,
and to enable us to live a holy life. So we may ask for these blessings,
and believe that we receive them, and thank God that we
have
received
them. It is our privilege to go to Jesus and be cleansed, and to stand
before the law without shame or remorse....
Through this simple act of believing God, the Holy Spirit has begot-
ten a new life in your heart. You are as a child born into the family of
God, and He loves you as He loves His Son.
Now that you have given yourself to Jesus, do not draw back, do
not take yourself away from Him, but day by day say, “I am Christ’s;
I have given myself to Him;” and ask Him to give you His Spirit, and
keep you by His grace. As it is by giving yourself to God, and believing
Him, that you become His child, so you are to live in Him. The apostle
says, “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye
in him.”
Colossians 2:3
.
Some seem to feel that they must be on probation, and must prove
to the Lord that they are reformed, before they can claim His blessing.
But they may claim the blessing of God even now. They must have His
grace, the Spirit of Christ, to help their infirmities, or they cannot resist
evil.
The Spirit furnishes the strength that sustains striving, wrestling
souls in every emergency, amidst the hatred of the world, and the re-
alization of their own failures and mistakes. In sorrow and affliction,
when the outlook seems dark and the future perplexing, and we feel
helpless and alone—these are the times when, in answer to the prayer
of faith, the Holy Spirit brings comfort to the heart.
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