Get the Point?
Theme of the Week: Listen to the Spirit
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
 1 of 1
Key Bible Verse: "The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost … shall … bring all things to your remembrance" (John 14:26 KJV). Bonus Reading: John 14:15-17, 25-26
One problem with language is that it changes. Without realizing it, we can be misled into repeating phrases that have lost their original meaning. One example is the way the King James Bible refers to the Holy Spirit as the "Comforter." The seventeenth-century translators didn't envision a sympathetic ear.
The Bayeux tapestry helps us comprehend what the word meant. This massive cloth was produced in France to commemorate the Norman invasion of Britain in 1066, and their victory at the Battle of Hastings. It depicts one of Duke William's supporters prodding a reluctant Norman soldier into battle with the point of a spear in his rear. Underneath is the incisive comment that King William "comforteth his soldiers"!
The comfort the Holy Spirit brings is not an arm around us, but an empowering and equipping to mobilize us for battle. His anointing power isn't only for the healing of the broken-hearted, but also for the defeating the enemy. That power does make him a great "Comforter"—just not in the sense the word conveys today.
—Clive Calver in On the Front Line
My Response: When have I sensed the Spirit giving me an empowering push rather than a hug?
Thought to Apply: Jesus promised his followers that "The Strengthener" would be with them. This promise is no lullaby for the fainthearted. It is a blood transfusion for courageous living. —E. Paul Hovey (Idaho pastor)
Adapted from Jesus, Lord of Your Personality (Howard, 2002) by permission.
Copyright © 2008 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine.
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Teach me, Lord, how to tune out distractions and to pick out and respond to the voice of Your Spirit.
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