MORE ABOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT AND YOU

“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” Romans 8:14-17

WHEN WE ARE FEARFUL

“For you have not received the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but the Spirit of adoption as sons (and daughters), by whom we cry, Abba Father”.

Two spirits are contrasted here: the spirit of slavery/the Spirit of adoption as sons (and daughters).

Not long ago I was reading this scripture in the new Norwegian translation N11BM. The translation read: “you have not received the spirit that the slaves have..”

It was an eye-opener for me, the more traditional rendering being rather harder to get hold of.

WHAT KIND OF SPIRIT WOULD A SLAVE HAVE?

There would have been:

–a fear of being beaten, harassed and abused in every way!

-no privacy!

-no dignity!

-no belonging, except to a taskmaster!

WHAT DOES THE SPIRIT OF ADOPTION SAY?

The Spirit witnesses that we are the sons and daughters of God! We belong! We have come home to our Father’s house! We are loved and highly esteemed!

This is the message the Holy Spirit brings to our heart.

This is the truth he bears witness to!

And, THIS is the Spirit we are being led by (v. 14)

We are heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ. Provided we follow in the same path as Christ, through suffering to glory. But please read from v. 18 to the end of the chapter!

The Holy Spirit does not make you fearful, or treat you like a slave owner. Instead, he whispers the love of the Father into your heart, that you are dearly beloved.

And, he has a plan for you!

SO, WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE FEAR?

First of all, fear is common to mankind. We fear for many things.

And we should say that some fear is good, in that it mobilises the body for flight or fight mode, when facing some acute danger.

However, the type of fear that Paul is dealing with here in Romans, relates to our service to God, our relation to him. Of this he is saying: Fear not! I love you! You are mine.

And from this basic fact, many other fears lose their grip on us!

For, when we fear it becomes difficult if not impossible to hear God speaking to us. Our mind becomes trapped.

When we are really gripped by fear, we can experience mental paralysis, we are in lockdown mode, unable to do anything.

The mind has become a slave, serving under a taskmaster.

How different is this to when the Holy Spirit speaks to us.

Our mind is set free, faith comes, the world of the Holy Spirit opens up to us, and we can be inspired by him and receive from him. We see possibilities, we are creative. And PEACE RULES!

To Timothy, Paul writes:

“for God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7 KJV

The word which is translated “sound mind”, in the KJV, is sōphronismos (σωφρονισμος), which means sound judgement – or self control, which many other translations use.

The point is this, that when we are racked by fear, the peace which the Holy Spirit brings has left us, as has the sound mind which he brings, as has the sound judgement which he brings, as has the self control which he brings. We should try and avoid making important decisions in a state like this.

The power, and the love and the sound mind need to return to us, under the influence of the Holy Spirit.

[I should stress that I am here talking about a Christian, and not a secular mind.]

THE RIGHT STRATEGY TO DEAL WITH FEAR!

Paul was no stranger to fear! In 2 Corinthians 1,8, he says that he despaired of life itself!

But God´s word to us through Paul is this:

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayers and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4,6-7

So, let’s get it fixed in our mind! FEAR, is no part of God´s strategy with us, not part of his dealings with us through his Spirit! Step back from it, turn to the Father, confess your fears! Ask for his help!

Do what Philippians 4,6-7 says!