Zechariah 4:6 – “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the Lord of armies.”
Samuel Chadwick was a Wesleyan Methodist preacher (1860-1932) who wrote a Christian classic The Way to Pentecost. In his book, Chadwick reminds us of something we must cling to in 2021: ‘The Christian faith begins in the power of the Spirit, is developed under His guidance, and sustained by His presence.’ From beginning to end, the Christian life is a supernatural work of the Holy Spirit of Christ dwelling within Christians. So, how does one live by the Holy Spirit?
In John 15, Jesus teaches that if His words remain in us, we can ask anything we wish. Christ then says if we keep His commands we will remain in His love and that His commandment is to love one another as He has loved us (John 15:7, 10, 12).
To live by the Holy Spirit is to walk in accordance with Christ’s love. The Word of God is spirit and life (Jn. 6:63), it is living and active (Heb. 4:12), helping us see clearly where we need to grow in Christ-like love. Our faith can only come up to our knowledge which is why we are to let the Word of God richly dwell in us (Col. 3:16). To grow in knowledge of Christ-like love is to understand how to pray and find Christ’s power to live in accordance to His will.
“Prayer is the test of faith and the secret of power. Is it not true to say that Deity gained new experience of humanity in Jesus Christ? Because Christ touched the feeling of our infirmity, He sympathizes and is mighty to save.” – Samuel Chadwick
May we come boldly to His throne of grace to receive power to walk in Christ-like love in 2021.
Thank you heavenly Father for access to you anytime we need for grace to walk in your love. I pray you reveal any grievous way in me that is out of step with Christ-like love, in Jesus’ name. Amen.