The Assurance of Spiritual Life

John 3 verses 3 and 5, Jesus said, “I assure you and most solemnly guarantee to you, unless a person is born from above... spiritually transformed, renewed, sanctified... you cannot enter nor even SEE the kingdom of God.” AMP

And in verse 6 He said, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

If you are born of the Spirit, you have a spiritual life. Anyone who does not have the Spirit born spiritual life is still DEAD in their sins.

Rom. 8:2, ...the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death. The liberating law of the life-giving Spirit has freed us from the enslaving law of death-giving sin.

Rom. 8:3-4 God, by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man as an offering for sin, condemned sin in the flesh, so that the righteous requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us who do not live our lives in the ways of the flesh guided by worldliness, but live our lives in the ways of the Spirit guided by His power.

The “righteousness of the law” IS Christ, which God our Father wants to “fulfill” in us here and now.

Eph. 1:13-14 says, In Him (we) also trusted, after (we) heard the word of truth, the gospel of (our) salvation; in whom also, having believed, (we) were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, Who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.

Our inheritance is eternal life. There is no eternal life without spiritual life which is fellowship with God through the sacrifice of Jesus. He, God, made us, who were DEAD in sin, alive in Him, Christ. That life is forever. A spiritual life of fellowship with God is guaranteed. What is not guaranteed is our WANTING TO grow into the mature man, to the measure... (standard of judgment; determined extent, which is lofty) ...the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; which is our spiritual completeness in Him. It’s not guaranteed because that part is up to us, and apparently there are some believers in the world who either don’t know that we have to grow into it (because of ignorance of the word), or have decided it’s not necessary (which is complacency).

Eph. 2:4-5 says, But God,who is rich in mercy, for his
great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, has quickened us together with Christ.

“Quickened” is a word in the KJV and similar translations meaning “made alive” ...because we were dead. The spiritual life with Christ IS not only eternal life, imparted and guaranteed to believers at their conversion, as Col 3:4 says, Christ, is our life... but believers are also guaranteed a spiritual life here and now. What is not guaranteed is “perfecting” that spiritual life, or maturing fully into Christ. You know that we, being “born again” come into God’s “family” as babes in Christ. But after forty years I do not want to still be a babe.

Eph. 5:30 says, For we are members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones.

Whoever is a member of the Body of Christ, is a member of His flesh and of His bones.
This can only be by and in the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Christian faith can be “practiced” without tapping into spiritual power. We see this all around us. When this is done, Christianity becomes a human religious pursuit, relying on well-organized tenets advocating morality and good deeds (works), but devoid of the power of God. 2 Cor. 13:5 says, Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?

1 Corinthians 3:16, Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

Rom. 8:9 says, But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.

Paul says to the Corinthians, I, brethren, am not able to speak to you as to spiritual, but as to carnal—as to babes in Christ; 1 Cor. 3:1. Paul speaks to Corinthians but cautions all Christians!

 Spiritual growth is expected of the believer.

 Paul says to the Hebrews in chapter 5... by this time you ought to be teachers, but you... have come to need milk and not solid food. Everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe.

 In fact, believers should also be diligent to NOT “fulfill the desires of the flesh and of the mind” anymore, because to do so, is to sin. And I’m not talking about vile, perverted sins of the flesh, but the subtleties like covetousness, or jealousy, or pride that creep in because we have convinced ourselves that “We ARE going to sin” instead of listening to Jesus Who says, “SIN NO MORE!” Fulfilling desires of the flesh, grieves the Holy Spirit, and “kills” the spiritual life.

Eph. 1:22-23,  And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him Who fills all in all.

Christ completes the Church... and the Church “completes” Christ!

Eph. 4:11-16 says, And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of ---Christ.

The world, which is going down the tubes, does not see the perfection of Christ in the mature believer. I believe we will have to answer for that.

Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus.