The Daily Guide-Daily Devotion grow. pray. study. from The Resurrection United Methodist Church in Leawood, Kansas, UnitedStates for Thursday, 3 2015 - "The Holy Spirit: Jesus' presence with us"

 The Daily Guide-Daily Devotion grow. pray. study. from The Resurrection United Methodist Church in Leawood, Kansas, UnitedStates for Thursday, 3 2015 - "The Holy Spirit: Jesus' presence with us"

Daily Scripture: John 14:

16 and I will ask the Father, and he will give you another comforting Counselor like me, the Spirit of Truth, to be with you forever. 17 The world cannot receive him, because it neither sees nor knows him. You know him, because he is staying with you and will be united with you. 18 I will not leave you orphans — I am coming to you. 25 “I have told you these things while I am still with you. 26 But the Counselor, the Ruach HaKodesh, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything; that is, he will remind you of everything I have said to you. 27 “What I am leaving with you is shalom — I am giving you my shalom. I don’t give the way the world gives. Don’t let yourselves be upset or frightened. 16:7-15 7 But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I don’t go away, the comforting Counselor will not come to you. However, if I do go, I will send him to you. 8 “When he comes, he will show that the world is wrong about sin, about righteousness and about judgment — 9 about sin, in that people don’t put their trust in me; 10 about righteousness, in that I am going to the Father and you will no longer see me; 11 about judgment, in that the ruler of this world has been judged. 12 “I still have many things to tell you, but you can’t bear them now. 13 However, when the Spirit of Truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own initiative but will say only what he hears. He will also announce to you the events of the future. 14 He will glorify me, because he will receive from what is mine and announce it to you. 15 Everything the Father has is mine; this is why I said that he receives from what is mine and will announce it to you.

Reflection Questions:

The disciples had been with Jesus for three years. It must have been impossible to imagine Jesus' ministry going on without him present. Yet just before the crucifixion, Jesus promised his disciples another Companion, the Holy Spirit. John used the Greek word paraclete, which in a variety of settings meant someone who stood beside another and helped them. Jesus said the Spirit was the continuation and extension of his presence with the disciples.

• Jesus said the Father “will send another Companion” (verse 16). Just two verses later, he said, “I won’t leave you as orphans. I will come to you.” Again we meet the paradox of Christian teaching about the Trinity—there is only one God, yet we meet this one God as three persons, each of whom is God (not just a part of God). Does this mystery about God frustrate you and create distance between you and God, or does it open ways of relating to God you might not otherwise have?
• Even before Jesus died, he had provided for an active Companion to be with us until the end of time and space as we know it. Jesus has not forgotten or deserted us—he is with us constantly through the Holy Spirit. What word or phrase in today’s verses about the Holy Spirit speaks most to your heart? When have you most sensed Jesus’ presence with you?

Today’s Prayer:

Come, Holy Spirit! I ask you to draw me to yourself by pointing me to Jesus. Remind me of his teachings and help me apply them to the specifics of my everyday life. Amen.

Insights from Janelle Gregory

Janelle Gregory serves on the Resurrection staff as a Human Resources Specialist.
Years ago I was in a small group talking about the Holy Spirit. I was describing the Spirit’s work in my life. “The Spirit guides me and directs me. It encourages me. It tries to keep me from making stupid decisions… which is a job and a half.”
That’s when someone stopped me with, “You’re saying ‘it.’”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“You’re using the wrong pronoun for the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is a person, not an object.”
I have to be honest that up until that point, it never dawned on me to think of the Spirit as a person. God the Father as a person? Sure. Jesus as a person? Most definitely. But the Spirit? I suppose I thought of the Spirit as more of the energy or essence of the Father, resembling a wispy cloud or rolling fog. I didn’t see him as an individual.
I knew about the Trinity, but despite the “Tri,” my Trinity was made up of 2, perhaps 2.5, at best. But God is three persons in one. God is Father. God is Son. God is Spirit.
Realizing Spirit is a person rather than an object was a game-changer for me. I listened to him more closely and took his guidance more seriously. It’s easy to ignore a wispy cloud, but when you understand that you are hearing from someone rather than something, your ears perk up and your heart is more open to his work in your life.

The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, Kansas 66224 United States
913.897.0120
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