We Have Spirit-Security

Most everyone scrimps and saves for retirement. This is done in different ways. Some people have money automatically taken from their paychecks. Others invest in the stock market. Then there are those who don’t believe in long-term investments or the stock market, so they simply stash money away into a savings account.

No matter how much money a person saves away, there is no certainty it will always be there. This uncertainty can cause a great deal of anxiety and worry. As Christians we need not to worry about the future. We have a security system far greater than any that this world can offer. WE HAVE SPIRIT-SECURITY. This security is ours all through life. 1) We Have Protection. 2) We Have Identity.

1) We Have Protection

It’s been said that an alarming percentage of our population is without any sort of benefits. Whether its extra money for retirement funds or something as important as simple health insurance, many people are without protection. That’s true of us all spiritually. We need protection. We need a benefits plan that offers complete protection and coverage. We need the ultimate death benefit.

Paul reminds us that we are subject to the cruelty of death. As sinners, we are mortal, death-oriented. Sin is the reason we must face death in our lives. Even while we live we are subject to death. Our present bodies are subject to weakness, sickness, pain, and aging. They have defects and deformities. Many of us wear glasses, hearing aids, artificial limbs, or pacemakers. Many people depend on medicine to keep their fragile bodies alive. Some day death will claim our mortal bodies and hold us in the ground.

We need protection, but there’s no way we can afford good coverage. That’s where the apostle’s words are so comforting to us: “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.”

We have protection and coverage from the effects of sin and death. We are covered in Christ through the Spirit. His suffering and death has paid for our spiritual death benefits plan. Because Christ died we will live. We have a new life in Christ Jesus, which is given by the Holy Spirit. The ultimate goal of this new life is the resurrection of our mortal bodies from death to new, eternal life in Christ.

The Spirit already gives this new life in Christ to us. He has worked faith in our hearts. We believe in Christ and resolve to live for him right now. This is God’s way of assuring us that he has paid for our benefits package. We have a death benefits package in Christ. We benefit from his death. His death on the cross has secured life for us in heaven.

The Holy Spirit is proof that the price for our security has been paid. We have complete coverage in the Spirit. Paul explains this: “For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.”

Our sinful minds can often deceive us. We often try to convince ourselves that we have no spiritual security, so we might as well live life for the moment. “Don’t be concerned about the future”, our sinful heart says, “life for today! After all, you don’t really think that God could offer you anything better than this world can, do you?”

So we try to cancel the Spirit’s security policy, and go through life without any protection. The result is that we sin against our own bodies. We hurt ourselves. Now-a-days people will sin against their own bodies in an attempt to find security, since they have rejected God. There is a warning here, and it doesn’t just apply to marriage. The warning is this: we cannot turn away from God, refuse his protecting love, and expect to have his blessings. It doesn’t matter what it is – marital unfaithfulness, drunkenness, stealing, lying, hatred, slander, or gossip – to continue to live in these ways is to live in self-delusion. Paul says we fool ourselves if we think we can live in sin without the Spirit’s security.

That’s why we need the Holy Spirit. Where the Spirit dwells, his power dwells and he puts to death the “misdeeds of the body.” The Holy Spirit actually slays these evil acts and desires. He does this with his Word. God’s Word shows us our sins. We see that we are utterly corrupt and sinful. We can’t live for God our one another. When we look at ourselves, we see that we’re unprotected. We have no basis for security. The Holy Spirit slays all evil thoughts and actions by leading us to repentance. The simple words, “Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner” are a powerful weapon. Those words cut down sin, lead us to trust in Christ alone, and reveal that we have forgiveness in his name. We have the Spirit’s security.