Summary:
Though we have received the Holy Spirit, are we truly renewed day by day, becoming a new man? Or do we continue to give in to our desires? The Holy Spirit can give us the strength to change - if only we allow Him to change us!

Tit 3:5

not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,

This talks about water baptism as well as the Holy Spirit.

We have already been baptised to come under the name of the Lord Jesus. In this new man, we should have the behaviour of the new man. In the flesh, man is still weak. Jesus has promised to give us this Holy Spirit, because He knows that we are weak. We need the power of the Holy Spirit to help us. We know that without the Holy Spirit, we don’t have the guarantee of entering heaven. But the Holy Spirit is not just that - the Holy Spirit is to enter us and renew us.

We allow the updates to the phone make the phone better and we enjoy the benefits it brings. Have we allowed the Holy Spirit to renew us? Or do we grieve the Holy Spirit? Whatever we say, do or think, are they the words of God? What are we thinking of? Ask ourselves this question - before we pray, are there areas in our lives that we have not made good with God yet?

When you know that you have grieved the Holy Spirit, how can the Holy Spirit renew you and change you? Although the Holy Spirit is willing to help you, you always give in to your flesh. You might say, “It’s too difficult” or, “I didn’t say I can’t do it, but I don’t have the strength to do it…”

Time is short. When Jesus comes again, are we truly prepared? Have we gotten rid of all these desires in the flesh? We should not give in to the flesh. If we give in to the flesh, we only remain where we are as an old man. We are still in the old man, and in the old man, we are not able to grow in our life of faith.

Gal 5:16-18

16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.
18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

In us, there are two things at war - the lust of the flesh and the Spirit. Which one do we want to be victorious? This is your choice. When we walk in our life of faith, what is our decision? When we want to put off the old man, the one governed by the lust of the flesh, then we will do the right thing. This requires our effort. We cannot always blame the devil and say he tempted us. Why did you ALLOW the devil to tempt you? This is your choice. Blame yourself. You still remain in the old man. You did not allow the Holy Spirit to renew and change you. You are still giving in to the lust of your flesh. You may say, “Oh it doesn’t matter, I can change tomorrow.”

This is a testimony of a brother who was once a smoke addict. He smoked all day long. He was not able to change. Later on, his children came to believe in Jesus. They hoped the father would change. When you entered his home, the walls were yellow because of the smoke. You can imagine the colour of his lungs! He came to observe in church. One day, he went fishing and brought along a pack of cigarettes. He lit one up and the lighter fell into the water. But he had a plan. Before the first cigarette went out, he would light up the next. You can see that he was really ensnared by this habit. That day, he did not catch any fish, but smoked the whole pack. He could not change. Until he received the Holy Spirit. One day, when he smoked, it was as if the cigarette went bad. He threw it away and lit up another one. Why is it bad? He took out many more, but they were all bad. So he stopped smoking.

Soon, his children told him, since you have been baptised and become a new man, and received the Holy Spirit, should we not whitewash the smoke filled walls? He replied, “No. This will become a testimony! When people come, I can bear testimony. That in the past, I gave in to the flesh and I was not able to change. No matter how much I tried, I could never change. But when the Holy Spirit entered me, He helped me to change. The smoke-filled walls become my testimony. I want to witness for the Lord.”

We should be filled with the Holy Spirit. Allow the Holy Spirit to renew us and change us. So that we no longer remain as an old man. Become a new creation. To have the likeness of Jesus Christ in us. To manifest this glory. This is a goal that we should strive towards. Those who have received teh HS, have we continued to allow Jesus to renew us and change us so that we may become a new creation? Are we submissive to the guidance of the HS? If the whole church can pray that we are filled with the same one spirit, then it will not be difficult for the church to grow.

Let’s pray for the Spiritual Meeting. May the spirit of God lead and guide all of us. That the Holy Spirit can open our hearts to receive and accept His words.