Holy Spirit

[Jesus said,] "But the time is coming — indeed it's here now — when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth."

—John 4:23-24 NLT

Key Thought


"Must..."! That is a hard word when spoken by Jesus! So we should pay careful attention when the Lord uses it. Our actions must conform to his words...

 

[Jesus said,] "I will talk to the Father, and he'll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can't take him in because it doesn't have eyes to see him, doesn't know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you! I will not leave you orphaned. I'm coming back."

—John 14:16-18 MESSAGE

Key Thought


The Holy Spirit is all...

 

[Jesus continued,] "The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit." "How can this be?" Nicodemus asked.

—John 3:8 NIV

Key Thought


As a young boy, I remember taking apart an old clock radio to figure out how it worked. I learned a great deal — including the importance of unplugging something electrical before taking it apart! But, I can't figure out the...

 

[Jesus said,] "Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth."

—John 4:23-24 NIV

Key Thought


Jesus' words, spoken to the woman at the well in Samaria, echo down through time. They cut through the worship wars of every era. They rattle our selfish preferences and...

 

[Jesus said,] "If you love me, show it by doing what I've told you. I will talk to the Father, and he'll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you."

—John 14:15-16 MESSAGE

Key Thought


Love is shown by the actions that back up a person's words. We show our love for Jesus by what we do, by obeying what he has taught us. Jesus, however, doesn't expect this demonstrated love for him to be a one-way street. He shows us his love for us by...

 

On the final and climactic day of the Feast, Jesus took his stand. He cried out, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Rivers of living water will brim and spill out of the depths of anyone who believes in me this way, just as the Scripture says." (He said this in regard to the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were about to receive. The Spirit had not yet been given because Jesus had not yet been glorified.)

—John 7:37-39 MESSAGE

Key Thought


Jesus is...

 

For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit. The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands.

—John 3:34-35 NIV

Key Thought


John's gospel declares again and again that Jesus is God among us. He speaks the words of God. His actions are the actions of God. He follows the will of God. On Jesus and in Jesus, the Spirit of God operates with absolute power and authority, yet in complete harmony with the will of...

 

[John the Baptizer said,] "I did not recognize [Jesus] as the Messiah, but I have been baptizing with water so that he might be revealed to Israel." Then John testified, "I saw the Holy Spirit descending like a dove from heaven and resting upon him."

—John 1:31-32 NLT

Key Thought


Even though John the Baptizer and Jesus were relatives, John didn't immediately recognize Jesus as the Messiah. God had to make that clear for John by having the Holy Spirit reveal...

 

[Jesus said,] "So don't be surprised when I say, 'You must be born again.'"

—John 3:7 NLT

Key Thought


We sometimes fail to realize that Nicodemus is the ultimate good guy — he is the best of the best. He is a religious leader and teacher. He has come to Jesus out of darkness to find light. He has noticed what Jesus has said and done and believes the only way Jesus could do those things is that he has come from God. But knowing and saying the right things about...

 

[Jesus continued,] "Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life."

—John 3:6 NLT

Key Thought


Ten times in five verses in the Bible's first chapter we are told that each living thing produced according to its kind (Genesis 1:11-12; Genesis 1:21; Genesis 1:24-25). In today's verse, John reminds us that this principle is still true: Human beings can produce only human life; they can't give birth to true spiritual life. The...