Day 5: Holy Spirit

God's Holy Spirit is not something we earn or summon. The Spirit takes up residence in our heart the moment we believe in Christ. The Holy Spirit becomes part of our cognition (teaching us) and intellect (helping us to reason). But, the “family” relationship afforded with God by this advocate/comforter involves more than one's mind. God's Spirit moves us from deep within to trust the one who has been perfectly and consistently loving. Trusting the benevolent almighty creator gives us confidence to follow where ever He leads…we “feel” safe and secure in our position in the family.

The Holy Spirit serves a “translator” role between our heart and God's mind, or our mind and God's heart, or both. It's a complicated thing. But, I believe God inserted “mother” into the biological-family so we can better understand. Across cultures and time, consider how the average father and the average mother interact differently with their young children. Now, evolve that mental image from “average” to “ideal” if you can. Relating intimately with their kids, good fathers tend toward prompts and interactions that address intellect and physical strength.

A mother's interactions tend toward gentleness and shared emotions. Researchers observed that children tend to be less respectful to the mother than to the father. Children tend to “test” the mother’s rules and constraints more than they test the father’s, regardless of who the disciplinarian in the family is. The researchers who observed this theorize that children tend to assume that Mom is a permanent fixture whereas a father’s attachment is less certain.

A quick search on the differences between human fathers and mothers reveals striking patterns. The impact of sin on the family is evident, but not all differences are explained by sin. Family was designed as an analogy of the relationships within the triune God (the Holy Trinity). The best modern families fall far short of the relationships between father, mother, and child as God intended. Yet, imagining an ideal family allows you to see blurred reflections of relationships within the Holy Trinity.

Imagine The Holy Spirit as the mom whose love is non-negotiable and who can never leave. She lovingly facilitates the relationship with the family authority figure, Dad. They exist in perfect unity and invite the children to flourish within that unity. Though the three persons in the Holy Trinity are one, we can imagine distinctions of each Person through this analogy.

John 3:5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the solemn truth, unless a person is born of water and spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must all be born from above.’ (NET)

Rom 8:14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery leading again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness to our spirit that we are God’s children. (NET)

In a human family, what are the differences between being born into the family and being adopted into the family? Why do you think we see both analogies in scripture?

I was in a private gym the other day and saw a girl exercising. Her exercise form was terrible and she didn't do many repetitions. But, her father was smiling as he watched…because she was 18 months old and he was honored that she was joyfully imitating him. I enjoy that man as a friend. However, you must know that she looks at him differently than I do…and he looks at me differently than he does at her. She knows him as “daddy.” God's Spirit living within us allows an intimate relationship with the God of the universe...our Father in heaven.

Life In His Presence