Category: indwelling Holy Spirit

The Spiritual Dexterity of Our Physical Posterity #44

Thursday, July 2, 2026

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word” (Psalm 119:9 KJV).

If our physical posterity could augment its spiritual dexterity, exactly what would that entail?

Some of the most unfortunate verses, written forever (!) in the Holy Bible, are 1 Corinthians 3:1-3: “And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual [filled with the Holy Spirit], but as unto carnal [fleshly], even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?” Paul had preached the Gospel of the Grace of God (1 Corinthians 15:3,4) to these Corinthians in Acts chapter 18, prior to writing them. Considering the passage of time, they should have matured in the faith, gaining a capacity for solid food. Yet, remarkably, they were still spiritual newborns, sucking on a baby bottle of milk! It made no sense at all, but we can easily understand what happened. They depended on philosophers (human “thinkers”), assuming these could bring them the life and words of God. How terribly mistaken they were!

Dispensational Bible study is the only system that has been proven useful in extracting maximum profit from the Word of God. We do not deny that even denominationalists get a little something here and there out of the Scriptures. Yet, this “little something” is equivalent to snacking on miniscule appetizers and sipping froth from a diluted beverage. They could be feasting and growing rapidly, developing exponentially to become spiritual adults who actually possess an awareness of what God would have them believe and what He desires to accomplish in and through them. Alas, like the Corinthians, they are in the snare of the Devil, taken captive by him at his will, existing in a spiritual nursery (manmade system) where they struggle to think, walk, and speak even the simplest of sentences. We can rest assured that they are no bother to Satan, for his evil world system has indoctrinated them to be exactly where he strove to have them.

It does not have to be this way….

The Spiritual Dexterity of Our Physical Posterity #43

Wednesday, July 1, 2026

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word” (Psalm 119:9 KJV).

If our physical posterity could augment its spiritual dexterity, exactly what would that entail?

For advanced practical truth, which is situated in the context of the invisible and spiritual battle of Ephesians 6:10-18, turn to Ephesians 5:14-18: “Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;….”

Similar to the nation Israel spiritually asleep in the satanic darkness of Isaiah 60:1-3, the Ephesians languish in a spiritual drunken stupor and are dead practically (their Christian life not functioning). No soldiers can afford to sleep while in the midst of a war! Foolishness or senselessness has no place amongst soldiers! If we are to have any hope or prayer of standing and withstanding the wiles (schemes, tricks, stratagems, tactics) of the Devil, we must “walk circumspectly” (looking around, having careful or cautious conduct, and awareness of our surroundings). We should understand the will of the Lord, for our Superior Officer has given orders for us to follow. If we are “filled with [controlled by] the Spirit,” “the word of Christ dwell[s] in [us] richly in all wisdom” (Colossians 3:16), and then not even Satan himself can cause us to fall. Problems arise when we lean upon our own intellect, depend on the weapons we fashion—and then we end up conquered, frustrated, and unhappy!

Christian living is not we “doing the best we can” and then letting Christ do the rest. No, that is guaranteed failure, so do not even bother with it. Christian living is 100% Christ living. There is never a single defeat as long as we remember and trust the absolute, total, complete victory He secured forever at Calvary for us. If only more believers would simply understand that, they would have much more peace and joy than they are relying on the flesh and the world to give them….

The Spiritual Dexterity of Our Physical Posterity #42

Tuesday, June 30, 2026

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word” (Psalm 119:9 KJV).

If our physical posterity could augment its spiritual dexterity, exactly what would that entail?

Dear friend, imagine warriors preparing for battle. They put on baggy jeans with holes, cheap and thin shirts, and shabby shoes with worn-out soles. Also, they take up plastic trashcan lids as shields, plus baseball caps and butterknives. They get into formation—and are slaughtered when the enemy attacks! Look at the panorama of corpses scattered across the ground. The stench of death is tremendous. Here and there a severely maimed or disfigured body groans and moans—a life not ended but permanently ruined nevertheless. Similar massacres occur every second in the spiritual realm. After our denominations “arm” us with nothing of any real significance, they send us to stand against Satan’s attacks. This has eternal, spiritual results whose full scope we will not realize until the Lord sits in judgment.

How completely preposterous it is that soldiers could ever expect to win any war with such unacceptable clothing and feeble weapons! Moreover, if these causalities occurred in combat—because of saggy pants (instead of snug clothing secured with a belt), a low-quality shirt (not a breastplate), a pair of busted shoes (instead of boots with soles that grip), and a baseball cap (not a strong helmet); and holding a flimsy plastic disk (instead of a metallic one) and a butterknife (not a sharp sword)—these misfortunes could have been foreseen and prevented entirely had the troops used more suitable armor and tools. Did they not have sense to know any better?! Were their commanding officers not more competent than this?!

Satan is always assaulting us believers, but God has given us armor to survive the attack in Ephesians 6:13-18. Essentially, it is sound Bible doctrine (dispensational Bible study) with prayer (talking to God in light of that doctrine, with prayer activating or energizing as the Holy Spirit works in us). We put on this armor by faith, but we cannot believe it unless we are first made aware of it. Manmade materials (denominational doctrine, philosophy or man’s wisdom, church tradition, and so on) are no substitute for the whole armor of God….

The Spiritual Dexterity of Our Physical Posterity #36

Wednesday, June 24, 2026

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word” (Psalm 119:9 KJV).

If our physical posterity could augment its spiritual dexterity, exactly what would that entail?

The saints at Corinth were the secular humanists of the Bible. How greatly they venerated man—worshipping human wisdom and obsessively pursuing pleasure/entertainment. Intellectualism or philosophy was their downfall, as numerous resultant sins further overcame their assembly. Since they were not thinking or behaving according to grace (the grace standard of Romans), the Holy Spirit reproved them, told them their faults. You can read all 16 chapters of 1 Corinthians and all 13 chapters of 2 Corinthians.

One word of warning from which we can profit is 1 Corinthians 3:9-15: “For we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building. According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed [be careful!] how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try [evaluate/test/assess] every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.”

The Christians of Corinth are here reminded of the Judgment Seat of Christ, when Christ Himself (the Builder Inspector!) will one day expose and destroy all the garbage/worthless information (wood, hay, stubble) they built into their inner man. Only the edifice of sound Bible doctrine (gold, silver, precious stones) will remain, and just that will equate to a reward; everything else will be a loss of reward. Unfortunately, most of our churches and schools these last 2,000 years have placed more emphasis on attendance and revenue than they have on the quality of the information they teach. They have not learned this lesson of Corinth that they should have….

The Spiritual Dexterity of Our Physical Posterity #35

Tuesday, June 23, 2026

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word” (Psalm 119:9 KJV).

If our physical posterity could augment its spiritual dexterity, exactly what would that entail?

Remember, the God of the Bible purposes to build a house (“oikos”) of doctrine in our inner man (soul and spirit) as members of the Church the Body of Christ. “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord [by faith; verse 5], so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up [‘epoikodomeo’] in him, and stablished [stabilized] in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving” (Colossians 2:6,7). Such edification, building up of a structure/edifice, will lead to us becoming, in practice, “the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15).

“In whom all the building [‘oikodome’] fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together [‘sunoikodomeisthe’] for an habitation [dwellingplace, house] of God through the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:21,22). “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are” (1 Corinthians 3:16,17). “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” (1 Corinthians 6:19,20).

Mark this well. Take whatever religious/philosophical/theological system you want, and you can live according to that system’s values without their founders (Muhammad, Joseph Smith, Socrates, Buddha, Plato, Confucius, et cetera) living in and through you. HOWEVER, you cannot enjoy Christian living (grace principles) without Jesus Christ living in you! Hence, the goal of sound Bible doctrine is to have “Christ formed in you” (Galatians 4:19), the indwelling Holy Spirit working to make Jesus Christ’s life real in our lives. Therefore, it is so (!) extremely (!) critical (!) that we build the correct doctrine in ourselves and in those who hear us….

The Spiritual Dexterity of Our Physical Posterity #14

Sunday, May 31, 2026

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word” (Psalm 119:9 KJV).

If our physical posterity could augment its spiritual dexterity, exactly what would that entail?

Dear young reader, abstain from all drugs and alcohol. Cigarettes and vapes contain poisonous, addictive chemicals that increase the risk of various cancers (mouth, throat, tongue, et cetera). Intoxicating beverages shrink the brain, destroy the liver, stress out the heart, and negatively affect the stomach. All these products age the body, people ending up ill in a hospital or prematurely dead in a morgue. Frankly, you can locate millions of individuals today whose bodies are permanently disfigured or ruined because of drugs and alcohol (cf. 1 Corinthians 11:30)—missing limbs, blindness, extensive scarring, cirrhosis, brain damage, and a plethora of additional health complications. Some are even doomed to live with the knowledge of having taken other’s lives. I have a friend who repeatedly overdosed on illegal drugs, almost dying on those occasions. A lady I knew smoked cigarettes for 50 years, nearly perished because of diminished lung capacity, quit smoking, and then spent her last 20 years finding it increasingly harder to breathe!

Since it is human nature to seek entertainment—to be thrilled, frightened, delighted, and so on—drugs and alcoholic beverages are tremendously appealing. Yet, Paul the Apostle reasoned: “All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power [mastery, control, domination] of any” (1 Corinthians 6:12). Indeed, there is freedom under grace, but the absence of an express prohibition does not necessarily mean an action is “expedient” (profitable, useful, beneficial). Once identified, any and all addictions should be avoided. As opposed to being under the influence of wine (or any other mind-altering substance/addiction), the Holy Spirit should control our thinking and conduct: “See then that ye walk circumspectly [cautiously, looking around], not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;…” (Ephesians 5:15-18).

NOTE: In order to bring you a special study tomorrow (a commemoration of 15 full years of “333 Words of Grace!”), we will temporarily break away from this devotionals arc….

Continue #10

Friday, May 15, 2026

“Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee” (1 Timothy 4:16 KJV).

A single word can mean the difference between victorious Christian living and notorious Christian dying….

For over a decade in my denominational system, I was comfortable in ignorance and childishness (the death of my Christian life)… but that all changed when two faithful brethren gave me the Bible verses I needed to recover myself out of the snare of the Devil (the revival of my Christian life). For almost 20 years now, I have striven to pass on to others what saved me from spiritual kindergarten, that any poor souls willing to listen and believe may come unto the knowledge of the truth as well.

“Continue” distinguishes between the Christian life surviving (it working as God intended) and the Christian life dying (it separated from its function). Those who “depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrine of devils” (1 Timothy 4:1) have no one to blame but themselves. They did not remain with the Dispensation of the Grace of God the resurrected, ascended, and glorified Lord Jesus Christ delivered them through the Apostle Paul’s ministry of Romans to Philemon. Having the completed Bible canon and the indwelling Holy Spirit to teach us, we have no excuse whatsoever for being unaware, immature, or deceived.

“Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all. Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee” (1 Timothy 4:15,16). To “meditate” is “to revolve in the mind, think deeply about, care for, attend to carefully.” Stated another way, Timothy is to contemplate what he has been given in the epistle of 1 Timothy (and 2 Timothy, its companion). Along with the two Timothy Books, Titus and Philemon form the four Pauline pastoral epistles—the handbooks of the local church. Pastors and teachers would do well to concentrate on those four formal doctrinal letters, that they minimize what the Devil does in their assemblies and among their congregants. They should give themselves wholly (completely, entirely) to these words of God’s grace. Let us do likewise, brethren, also depending less and less on man’s intellect and man’s ability. 🙂

Mother: A Virtuous Woman

Sunday, May 10, 2026

“Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies” (Proverbs 31:10 KJV).

Today is Mother’s Day, so we dedicate this devotional to godly women (specifically mothers). I especially dedicate this to the virtuous woman who has been in my life for almost 38 years… my mom!

Today’s Scripture is the first verse of the Bible’s “Virtuous Woman” passage (Proverbs 31:10-31). King Solomon explained that the virtuous woman:

  • has a husband who safely trusts in her (verses 11,12).
  • is not lazy, but is strong because she works to feed and clothe her family and herself (verses 13-19,21,22,24,25,27).
  • pities the poor and needy (verse 20).
  • has a husband who is well-known because of her godly lifestyle (verse 23).
  • opens her mouth with wisdom, and speaks kindly and lovingly (verse 26).
  • has children and a husband who praise her (verse 28).
  • excels in what she does (verse 29).
  • has works that praise her (verse 31).

Verse 30 explains the virtuous woman is “a woman that feareth the LORD.”

The Apostle Paul wrote that godly women should: not slander/gossip, not be controlled by alcohol and emotions (sober minded), be teachers of good things, love their husbands and children, be cautious and modest, maintain the home, be “good,” and should obey (respect) their husbands… “that the word of God be not blasphemed” (Titus 2:3-5). A Christian woman, especially a mother, should be a virtuous woman in beliefs as well as in deed. She needs to set an example for her children (especially her daughters).

A Christian woman and/or Christian mother places her faith in this sound Bible doctrine, the indwelling Holy Spirit will then take that doctrine and transform her for God’s glory (1 Thessalonians 2:13). Her mind will be renewed by sound Bible doctrine, and that will transform her outward activity (Romans 12:1,2).

Are you a Christian woman or Christian mother who desires to be the woman God intends you to be in Christ Jesus? Place your faith in this sound Bible doctrine, and God will take care of the rest!

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY TO OUR READERS WHO ARE MOTHERS!

*Adapted from a larger Bible study with the same name. The Bible study can be read here or watched here.

Archived: “What does the Bible say about motherhood?”

The Fulness of Him That Filleth All in All #3

Friday, May 1, 2026

“Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all…” (Ephesians 1:23 KJV).

What is the definition of this obscure expression, “the fulness of him that filleth all in all?”

Read carefully the wording of Ephesians 1:22,23, today’s Scripture with the prior verse: “And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.” Obviously, “the fulness of him that filleth all in all” is a title of the Church the Body of Christ.

“Fulness” (a variant spelling of “fullness”), of course, is the state of being full or complete. The Church the Body of Christ is the Lord Jesus Christ’s “fulness,” or what completes Him, as in a complement. Some Bible readers needlessly struggle to understand this (“How could Jesus be ‘incomplete’ without us?!”), but, as long as we are mature saints, it really is not complicated. In order to facilitate His exaltation in the heavenly places, He needs the Church which is His Body. That group is an extension of His own influence as the God-Man, we as individuals being vessels of His life. As we govern the heavenly places in eternity future, so He reigns in and through us.

The “filleth all” links to Father God’s plan to fill us with Christ’s life, Father God’s very life, which the indwelling Holy Spirit makes real in our life. “In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation [dwellingplace] of God through the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:21,22). “…[T]o be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith;… that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God” (Ephesians 3:16,17,19). “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:…” (Ephesians 4:13). “…[B]ut be filled with the Spirit;…” (Ephesians 5:18). “When Christ, who is our life,…” (Colossians 3:4).

Let us now break down “in all….”

Heir by Position, Pauper by Practice #23

Tuesday, January 27, 2026

“Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ” (Galatians 4:7 KJV).

Saints, we in Christ are spiritual winners and heirs by position, but we can choose to be spiritual losers and paupers by practice!

Courtesy of spiritual immaturity—people not letting the Bible define its own vocabulary—there is great misunderstanding about adoption in the Holy Scriptures. Adoption here is not taking a child from his biological family and legally placing him into a foster family: it is not God removing a lost person from Adam and putting him into Christ. Rather, adoption in the Bible is the father declaring his biological son to be mature, full-grown, or an adult (see Galatians 4:1-7). It is someone who has already been trained in the curriculum and can therefore make wise decisions without having to be led by the hand like a little child (cf. Galatians 3:22-26).

Father God has pronounced us Christians as His adopted sons positionally, for the indwelling Holy Spirit enlightens and empowers us to work in the family business of exalting Jesus Christ (Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:5-7). He would like to pronounce us believers as His adopted sons practically, though this cannot come to fruition unless we choose to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18; 1 Thessalonians 5:19)—and this is mature Grace, not immature Law (Galatians 5:16-26). Alas, like Christendom now, the Galatian saints did not walk according to Romans truth. The Christian life will not operate on the basis of ignorance because it cannot operate on the basis of ignorance. We must have a clear understanding of grace living, Romans to Philemon—and precious, precious, precious few souls ever do (this is not God’s fault!).

Thankfully, at the resurrection or redemption of our body, God will ultimately declare us His sons practically (the “adoption” of Romans 8:23 and Ephesians 1:5). Again, adoption is not simply being the sons of God by position, but by practice too. Here is spiritual maturity, being acknowledged as full-grown sons. We do not have to wait until Heaven to grow up: we can grow up now! This is what the Galatians needed to understand in today’s Scripture, and it is what we need to learn even now….