Fasten Your Seat Belt

 

By Barbara Masters Gardner

Driving alone in my car is quiet time─a time to contemplate the many blessings of God. It is a good time to express my appreciation. Sometimes I begin by saying, “Thank you Father for sending Jesus. Thank you Jesus for sending the Holy Spirit. Thank you Holy Spirit for living in my heart.” When I say the last part, I usually place my hand over my heart. And, of course, under my hand is my fastened seat belt. And it reminds me: That is exactly what the Holy Spirit is. He is our safety belt.

Just before Jesus returned to heaven to take His place beside the Father, He told His disciples:

“And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever. Even the Spirit of Truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him, but ye know Him for He dwelleth with you and shall be in you” (John 14:16-18).

Once we become Christian believers, we are sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise (Ephesians 1:13). We are kept: By the Holy Spirit (Acts 16:6). He fills us (Acts 2:4; 4:8, 31; 9:17). He sanctifies us (Romans 15:16). By the Holy Spirit: we are renewed (Titus 3: 5). Our bodies are His Temple (1 Corinthians 6:19). He causes us to overflow with hope  (Romans 15:13). The Holy Spirit testifies truth to us, and only through the Holy Spirit can we say, “Jesus is Lord” (1 Corinthians 12:3).

The Holy Spirit reveals things to us and teaches us what to say and how to pray (Luke 2: 26; Acts 8:25). When we hurt so deeply that we don’t even know what words to say, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us “with groanings that cannot be uttered” (Romans 8:26).  When we witness to others, sharing our message of truth that Jesus died in our place, that He rose from the grave, and that His shed blood washes away our sins, the Holy Spirit tells us what to say: Mark 13:11; Acts 8:25; Luke 12:12.

The Holy Spirit strengthens us and encourages us (Acts 9:31). We are sealed: By the Holy Spirit for the Day of Redemption (Ephesians 4:30). We await the redemption of our bodies at the Rapture of the church (Romans 8:23). The Holy Spirit testifies to us that our sins are no longer remembered (Hebrews 10:15). Prophecies are spoken through men given by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21).

The Old Testament prophecy of Isaiah 53 clearly speaks of Jesus. He took up our infirmities...He was pierced for our transgressions...He carried our sorrows...He was cut off from the land of the living...His punishment brought us peace…The Peace that passeth understanding...salvation.

“For there is salvation in no one else…”(Acts 4:12). “Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed” (Isaiah 53:1).

Keep telling others. The hour is late. “For we have not followed cunningly devised fables when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His Majesty” (2 Peter 1:16). The prophecies tell us that a day is coming. A day when Jesus will return in the clouds of heaven and His glory will be revealed (Matthew 26:64; Mark 14:62).

The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit worked it all out before the beginning of time. (Ecclesiastes 3:11; Isaiah 46:10; 2 Timothy 1:9). Follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. Our Heavenly Father sent Jesus to save us and then Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to seal, sanctify, and guard us for Himself.

Thank you Father for sending Jesus. Thank you Jesus for sending the Holy Spirit. Thank you Holy Sprit for living in our hearts. Now, put your hand over your heart and make sure that your safety belt is fastened!