Strong to the Finish

You may remember the popular comic book series about Popeye the Sailor. Popeye had tremendous forearms, and he always had a pipe in his mouth. He succeeded in overcoming his archrival Bluto because he had a secret weapon – spinach! At the last minute, Popeye would eat that can of spinach and he suddenly gained superhuman strength. That’s the way the Holy Spirit operated in the Old Testament.

A king or a judge would receive the power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish a task, but when the task was complete the Spirit would depart. In the New Testament the Holy Spirit comes to reside in the believer at the moment he receives Jesus Christ as Savior, and from that moment we have the power of the Spirit within us all the time. The Spirit comes to dwell in us, and He guides us, and protects us, and teaches us how to pray. But the primary role of the Spirit is to glorify Jesus. Let Him do that in you today – and every day.