The Spirit Man
ICS Daily Devotions
1 Corinthians 4:14 (NKJV) But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
We are a three-part being, comprising of spirit, body, and soul. If we want to know how the Holy Spirit speaks to us, we must identify ourselves in the spirit being.
Our “spirit man” is a new creation. Because God is Spirit, He will speak to our “spirit man”. The heart, “inner man” and “spirit man” are all interchangeable. It is the “inner man” that is sensitive to the Holy Spirit. He can communicate with us at all times because we are connected to the Holy Spirit through the “inner man”, but we need to learn how to identify His voice because all of us are so used to reacting in the flesh and our senses.
Generally speaking, the “spirit man” is located in our belly because it does not refer to our physical heart. We will sense the inner witness of the Holy Spirit near where our belly is located. If it is a warning, we will experience an inexplicable unsettling in our hearts even when everything may seem good to our minds, especially if supported by data and reports. If it is a release to do something, we will experience the peace to proceed. Both are always felt near the belly area.
Before we were saved, we may not have understood spiritual things because the opening Scripture says that they are spiritually discerned, but after we have been saved, we will be more sensitive to the Holy Spirit concerning what is right and wrong, because our conscience has been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ. Nonetheless, we must be open to learning about spiritual things and the work of the Holy Spirit.
Another struggle is that we do not see the Holy Spirit, nor do we know of His ways. Therefore, we must have a good foundation of the Word of God. Otherwise, how will we know if what we think we are receiving from the Lord is correct? No matter how educated we are, our minds are still finite. Therefore, we will have difficulty understanding the things of the Spirit of God because we need to use the “spirit man” to discern them.
The “spirit man” longs for God and loves to worship God. The spirit is eternal, but it looks exactly like our physical body in the spiritual realm. The spirit is the “real us” which is the core of our being, through which the Holy Spirit leads us. We need to be conscious that God is inside us through the Holy Spirit. He is with us and our designated helper, but we must tap into His help.
Sermon Series: How to Be Led by the Holy Spirit in Your Daily Life?
