For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. Romans 8:14, NIV

 

There are two kinds of people in this world, according to today’s verse. The first kind are those who do not allow the Holy Spirit to lead them on the journey of life. They are not children of God. This does not mean that they are bad people. This is the story of humanity since Genesis 3 – the fall of man. They can be good people, living exemplary lives, doing good wherever they go. They might make a huge positive difference in this world, without being persons of faith. These people did not hear or heed the call of the Holy Spirit to follow Christ yet. They might have heard about the love of Christ, but did not commit to his Lordship yet. They are not God’s children yet. He loves them very much, but the broken relationship between God and them has not been mended yet.

 

The second group of people are those who have heard the calling of the Holy Spirit in their lives. He has convinced us of the brokenness of this world after the fall of man. He came to teach us about the love of a heavenly Father, who desires to live in a relationship with us. The Spirit introduces us to Christ, our Saviour, who came to this world to make God’s love personal and visible. The Holy Spirit has led us to Jesus, by many different ways. Some were born into loving Christian families, serving Christ since they were very young. Others heard of the love of God by reading the Bible, some saw Christ in the life of Christian friends. Some were in crisis times, searched for the meaning of life and found Jesus.

 

Regardless of how we came to know Christ, the journey of faith always starts at the cross of Jesus, where we discover how deep the love of God is for the people of this world. From there, it continues on to the empty grave, where we see that we are serving a living Lord. The empty tomb bears witness that the price of Jesus was accepted; Christ paid our admission price into the kingdom of God. When we commit our lives to Christ, John 1:12-13 becomes true for us, "Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God – children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

 

By faith, we become children of God. Then the Holy Spirit steps in, helping to transform our lives to grow spiritually. The goal is to be more Christ-like every day. He transforms us by filling us with God’s light and love, enough to share with the world in need around us.

 

Prayer: Holy Spirit, thank you for introducing me to the love of Christ. Thank you for showing me that I am loved, when I see the cross. Thank you for the empty grave and the joy of following a living Lord in my life. Thank you for transforming my life, helping me to be more like Jesus in the way that I am and act. Thank you for leading me on the right path until I reach the house of my Father. Amen.