The Spirit Within

The Spirit within is God’s permanent home in the believer, the source of life and obedience.

Devotional Credit: Days of Heaven by A.B. Simpson
Photo Credit: Unsplash

A.B. Simpson takes us into the heart of God’s promise in Ezekiel 36:27, where the Lord declares that He will put His Spirit within us. This is not merely the gift of a new heart at conversion, but the permanent indwelling of the Holy Spirit who empowers us to walk in God’s ways. It is a reminder that Christian life is not self-improvement, but divine life lived within us. The Spirit Himself becomes the strength and wisdom to keep us in holiness and truth.

Simpson describes this moment as the great crisis of the Christian life, when God Himself comes to dwell in the renewed heart. From that point on, we are no longer left to our own resources, but are held by His power and made His home. The Spirit displaces the self, humbling us, so that our lives are directed by Him rather than driven by our striving. This is not temporary or occasional. It is the steady reality of life lived under His government.

Yet the prophet Ezekiel reminds us that this indwelling does not inflate us with pride. Instead, it brings a sobering recognition of our own inability apart from God. In the brightness of His presence, we see how little we are in ourselves. That realization, rather than discouraging us, lays us low in humility and dependence. The Spirit teaches us that all sufficiency is in Jesus, and we walk not by fleshly power but by surrender.

The highest holiness, Simpson notes, is not found in self-exaltation or self-assurance, but in continual self-denial. This is not grim or joyless, but freeing. The Spirit’s life within us shifts the focus from self to Christ, enabling us to live with quiet confidence that the Lord is doing the work in and through us. The Spirit within us is not only the promise but the power of obedience.

Journal Entry – Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture

My child, I live within you. I am not far off or distant, for I have made My home in your heart. I am the Spirit who gives life, guiding you into the ways of God. You do not need to manufacture holiness or force obedience, for I am the One who works in you both to will and to do for My good pleasure.

Do not be surprised when My presence brings awareness of your weakness. That is My gift to you, for in seeing your lack you discover My fullness. I do not exalt the self, I replace it with the life of Jesus expressed through you. What you cannot do in your own strength, I do as you yield to Me.

Walk in humility, not as one weighed down by unworthiness, but as one set free from striving. The more you trust Me, the more you will know the joy of obedience that flows without burden. For the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus. In Him you are kept, guided, and empowered. Rest in this, for I am within you, and I will never depart.

Scripture References: Ezekiel 36:27, Romans 8:9-11, Philippians 2:13, Galatians 2:20, 2 Corinthians 3:5-6, John 14:16-17, Romans 8:2, Colossians 1:27, Galatians 5:16-18.

Real-Life Analogy

Think of an electric motor that powers a machine. On its own, the machine cannot move. No matter how polished or well-designed, it remains still until the motor within it begins to turn. Once the motor engages, the whole machine comes alive and works as intended. In the same way, our lives cannot function in the way God designed without the Spirit within. His presence is the power, the energy, and the movement of our Christian walk.

Today, when I face a task that feels impossible, I can say with confidence, “Lord, I trust You to live through me in this very moment.” The Spirit within is my motor, my source, and my power. I need not rely on myself, for His indwelling life is enough.

Prayer of Confidence

Lord, I thank You that Your Spirit lives within me as the power and promise of obedience. I am not left to walk in my own strength, for You are my sufficiency. I rest in the truth that You have taken up permanent residence in me, and I rejoice that my life is no longer about self-effort but about Your Spirit expressing the life of Jesus through me. I praise You that this reality is mine today and always.