CHRIST-DAILY
DEVOTIONS
  January 23rd

SPIRIT OF ADOPTION

"For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, 'Abba, Father ' " (Rom 8:15).

We have the Spirit of Christ in us from our Spirit birthing.  Paul is very clear, if we don't have the Spirit of Christ in us, then we are none of His (Rom. 8:9).  We now have Christ in us, and the Spirit of Christ emanates life because of His righteousness (Rom. 8:10). We must have the Holy Spirit fully transform the mind, and live according to the things of the Spirit (Rom. 8:5).  We have some choices to make.  We can choose to be carnally minded and live to that mind, with the results of sin and death.  On the other hand, we can choose to be spiritually minded and live to that mind, with the results of life and peace (Rom. 8:6).  When you live to the carnal mind, you cannot see, hear, or know God (Rom. 8:7).  You just cannot fellowship with God with the carnal mind or please Him either (Rom. 8:8).  The primary purpose of the Holy Spirit in us, is to transform our mind and teach us of Christ and the finished work of the cross (John 14:26; 15:26; 16:13-15).  The primary purpose of Christ in us is to teach of  the Father for fellowship (Matt. 11:27).

We need to be taught by the Spirit and to be led by the Spirit, as we are the sons of God since the Spirit birthing (Rom. 8:14).  We need to step-by-step yield to the Holy Spirit in all spiritual discernment, until He can fully fill the mind of Christ within us (I Cor. 2:13-16). We then need to let the Son within us reveal the Father to us (Matt. 11:27).  Christ removes the burdens of sin and law labor and gives us His rest and grace (Matt. 11:28). Salvation is the given rest He gives to us.  As we enter and live the shared life together on the other side of salvation, the Holy Spirit renews and transforms the mind to know the Christ, who lives in us and the grace of His finished work on the cross (Matt. 11:29).  This transformed mind of Christ in us, brings the found rest to us. The Spirit of Christ in us is the Spirit of adoption.

When Christ was placed in us at our Spirit birthing, the incorruptible seed of the Word of God had everything in it of Christ, His Spirit, character and nature (I Pet. 1:23). To the degree that the Holy Spirit has renewed our mind and we make spiritually minded choices out of the mind of Christ to let Christ fully live and express Himself through us as us, is the degree that the Spirit of Christ flows in us with His Spirit of adoption.  As Christ flows in us as being a birthed son of our Father, the Spirit of adoption operates through "the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, 'Abba Father!' " (Gal. 4:6).  The Spirit of adoption through Christ provides us recognition and fellowship with our Heavenly Father! V

Written by Dwight Davis
Christ-Ministries
 

                                               

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