Bearing fruit

But you are not like that, for the Holy One has given you his Spirit, and all of you know the truth. So I am writing to you not because you don’t know the truth but because you know the difference between truth and lies. 1 John 2:20-21 NLT

From the text, John provides the contrasting image of a person who is in Christ compared from those who denied Christ. Christians were given the Holy Spirit and they know the truth. They not only know Jesus as their Lord and Savior but they rely upon the Spirit of God to help them live the life they received from Him. They bear witness in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ and they are always looking up to Him. The believer who is filled with the presence of the Holy Spirit is able to discern truth from error, oppose false teachings, and able to withstand the attacks of Satan. The Lord Jesus Christ, on His way to the cross, promised His disciples that they will not be left alone for they will be given the Holy Spirit. “He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you” (John 14:17). Because of the presence of the Holy Spirit in the believer’s life, they know the truth: “the Holy Spirit—He will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you” (John 14:26). Christians speak the truth of God’s Word for the Spirit of truth is in them. If you have known and had received Christ in your life, you have the Holy Spirit. But the Holy Spirit has to have all of our lives so He can fill us so we can bear fruit. “The Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!” (Galatians 5:22-23). Christians need not feel that they are deprived to fully experience the life God wants them to experience. But it will be up to the believers to submit and yield to God so that they can be filled with His presence through the Holy Spirit. To know Jesus is to know who possesses all knowledge: “In [Christ] lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3). To have the Holy Spirit in our lives is to live our lives for God’s glory for the Holy Spirit will “bring [God] glory by telling you whatever he receives from [God],” Jesus went on and told the believers, “‘All that belongs to the Father is mine; this is why I said, ‘The Spirit will tell you whatever he receives from me’” (John 16:14-15).

Blessings,