His Cross Our HopeSample

Salvation without the gift of the Holy Spirit would be like a ticket without the benefit of the tour.

The early morning tour of the Roman Forum was quickly morphing into a walk through the stifling humidity of midday in ancient Roma. Our tour coordinator held our tickets, but a mix-up delayed the guide responsible for leading us through the historic site. The coordinator did his best while we waited, telling us all he could about what we’d see once allowed in. But even his vivid descriptions were no substitute for experiencing the ancient ruins for ourselves.

This moment was a glimpse of what Jesus wanted the disciples to understand when He said, “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come” (John 16:13).

The disciples were grieving the fact that Jesus was about to leave them. They wanted more.

But Jesus had already told them all they could handle. The more they longed for needed to come from the Holy Spirit within them. Jesus was done working from the outside. His next work needed to be done from the inside.

And that could only happen if He went away. Up to this point, the disciples had seen Christ with their eyes. It was time to see Him with their hearts.

This heart-level seeing would be the work of the Holy Spirit living within them. He would convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8-11). It would bring the disciples more than head knowledge about the Man they’d spent the past three years walking beside. It would allow them access to the life-changing truth of the gospel.

In the busy, noisy world around us, we often “see” Jesus by reading or hearing the Bible. But experiencing the heart of Jesus comes through being attentive to the work of the Holy Spirit within us.

Today, let’s live tuned into the guidance of the Spirit of Truth within us, trusting our steps and our future to His loving direction.

~Lori Altebaumer

Writer, blogger, and speaker