Clothed In, Filled Up: Living From Union With Jesus
Clothed in Christ, warmed by the Spirit’s present filling.
Devotional Credit: Abide Above, Miles Stanford, selection titled “BAPTIZED INTO—FILLED WITH”
Photo Credit: Unsplash
We are not dangling on the edge of grace. In the gospel, the Holy Spirit placed us into Jesus, and that position is settled. Miles Stanford reminds us that the Spirit’s baptism united us with the Lord, not as a feeling that comes and goes, but as a fact anchored in the finished work of the Son. I am in Him, and He is in me. That is home.
Stanford also points out something tender and practical. While our position in Jesus is fixed, our daily experience is meant to be filled, refilled, and filled again with the Spirit’s life. The book of Acts shows believers filled on one day, then filled again on another. Not because union was lost, but because the Spirit loves to animate what is already true in Christ. He keeps bringing the reality of our union into our moments.
This is not a ladder to climb. The Father did not place us in Jesus, then send us off to maintain it by our own effort. The Spirit gives living knowledge. He opens our eyes to the Father and the Son, and He assures our hearts that we are seen with affection, supplied with grace, and invited into fellowship. Christian position is the Spirit’s once-for-all work. Christian condition is the Spirit’s ongoing overflow.
Friend, I am grateful for Stanford’s steady hand here. He turns our gaze from self-management to abiding. From trying to be close, to recognizing we already are. Then, moment by moment, the Spirit applies the sweetness of that union to real life. Position secured. Presence enjoyed. Life expressed.
Journal Entry: Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture
I placed you into Jesus, and you are clothed with Him. I joined you to His death and resurrection, so your old mastery is broken, and you now live unto God. I sealed you as mine, and I made my home in you. Your position in my Son is not fragile. It is my work, and I do not undo what I finish.
I also fill you, again and again, so that your steps match what is already true. I bear witness with your spirit that you are a child of God. I strengthen you in the inner person so that the life of Jesus is seen in your mortal body. I pour love into your heart. I set your mind on the things above where Christ is, and I lead you as you walk by me.
Think of your day. I am near. When you open the Scriptures, I give light. When you pray, I intercede. When you serve, I energize. When you suffer, I comfort. When you are weak, I make Jesus your sufficiency. I do not call you to produce life. I call you to trust the Life who is in you. Your labor is not to gain favor. Your labor is the fruit of my presence.
Abide in what is true. Consider yourself alive to God in Christ Jesus. Present yourself to me, and I will express the character of the Son through you. I will teach you to walk, one step at a time. I will keep you in peace. I will make fellowship with the Father your joy. And when you stumble, I will remind you that your footing rests on grace, not on performance. You are mine.
Real-Life Analogy
Think of slipping on a well-made jacket before stepping out into a chilly morning. The jacket is already yours. You are in it. That is your position. Now, as the wind picks up, you zip it, tuck in your hands, and let the lining hold warmth close. That is like the Spirit’s filling. You are clothed with Jesus already, and the Spirit keeps bringing that warmth into the changing weather of your day.
Try this today. When a conversation turns tense, or a task feels bigger than your margin, pause internally and turn toward the Lord who lives in you. Whisper from the heart, Lord, I entrust this moment to You. Live Your life through me in this conversation. Then proceed with honesty, gentleness, and clarity that does not have to be forced, since the Spirit is expressing the life of Jesus through you.
Prayer of Confidence
Father, thank You for placing me in Your Son. Thank You that my life is hidden with Christ in You, and that nothing can shake that position. Thank You for giving me the Holy Spirit, who keeps filling my moments with the life that is already mine in Jesus. I gratefully receive Your provision today. I rest in Your finished work, and I walk expecting the Spirit to express the character of Jesus through me in all things. Amen.
Scripture References for the Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture Section
Galatians 3:27, Romans 6:3-11, Colossians 2:12, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Ephesians 1:13-14, John 14:16-20, Acts 2:4, Acts 4:8, Acts 4:31, Acts 9:17, Romans 8:9-16, 2 Corinthians 4:7-11, Romans 5:5, Colossians 3:1-4, Galatians 5:16-25, John 15:4-5, Philippians 2:12-13, Isaiah 26:3, 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24, 2 Corinthians 13:14