Have you ever questioned whether you had the Holy Spirit when things were not going well?  Have you ever wondered if the following Scripture applied to you?  Matthew 7:21 – 23 – “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter.  On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’  But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws

How can we know we have the Holy Spirit?

A number of Christians have told me they could feel the Holy Spirit come into them.  There was no doubt in their mind that they had received God’s Spirit.  I have never felt the Holy Spirit.  I thought I may have missed something.  I have never spoken in tongues or have been slain in the Spirit.  So I prayed many times that somehow I would feel His love and His presence.  Into my mind came this thought.  I don’t need a sign.  This was the same problem the Jewish leaders were having.  They kept asking Christ for a sign.  At once I realized I didn’t need a sign that I had the Holy Spirit.  I have accepted the Holy Spirit on faith because Christ said He would come to those who accepted Jesus as the Son of God, repented of their sins and accepted Him as their Lord.  I did and my life completely changed. Wasn’t that sign enough? There was a sense of having within me a power that empowered me and gave me purpose and direction.  I received new values.  I allowed my life to be lived in the Spirit and by the Spirit.  There were times in my Christian life that I felt no sensation or anything was happening, just an emptiness.

Some were telling me that I could tell the Holy Spirit was with me because I would receive gifts to do His work.  I wasn’t sure if I had been given any gifts or they were natural talents.  However, I began to realize that I was receiving the fruit of the Spirit as described in Galatians 5:22 – 23 – “But 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!”  I didn’t have them and now I do.  That had to be some sort of sign that I just hadn’t recognized.

My body and my soul became a servant in order for God to use me.  There were times I was given tasks to perform that I knew others could probably do a better job.  I felt blessed that I had been chosen to do His will.  What it did was increase my faith to the point I believed I could do anything God directed me to do.  My goal was to live to please Christ and never embarrass Him.  Prior to salvation, I lived to please myself with worldly pleasures.  What a change.  That should have verified I had His Spirit.

We must ask ourselves: “How precious is Jesus to you”?  The more Christ means to us the greater will be our desire to serve and please Him.  So what does God require of us?  He asks that we have a love that comes from our heart, from the very depth of who we are.  I believe a person who has the Holy Spirit dwelling within, will be a person who is totally surrendered and is living according to their knowledge of Scripture.  The Spirit will lead a person to the truth.

The Bible tells us that we will be sealed with the Holy Spirit.  It is this sealing that is the confirmation that God has accepted us into His family.  I do not believe it is given unless we have made a commitment to live according to the light we have received.  Ephesians 4:30 – “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”

I am convinced that if a person is unwilling to live the lifestyle that the Holy Spirit would require will not receive the Holy Spirit.  We may be willing to seek salvation in our head but many are not willing to accept Christ into their heart and without a repentant heart, we may be that one who Christ says: “I never knew you.”    Have you known of professing Christians who have never surrendered their lives to God?  They were unable to become detached from the ways of the world.  In fact they could never become totally committed and surrendered.

When we receive the Holy Spirit people can see a definite change in our lifestyle.  Ask yourself: “Are you different, do you leave a favorable impression on others?  Do they see Christ in you?  If you have accumulated material things, do you have them or do they have you?  What would happen if all were gone, as some Christians have recently had happen, because of the foreclosing of homes?  Was that your main source of security or did your security come from Christ?

You may never feel that you have the Holy Spirit but you will know it as your desires change, you have a change in attitude and feel your guilt has been taken away.  You may be like me.  I know the Holy Spirit dwells in me because I have seen a complete life change.  I know Scripture and I know what God promises and I have fulfilled the requirements.  There is no doubt!  I know where I will be in eternity and you can too.