Sacrificing by the Spirit

Sacrificing by the Spirit

The most precious sacrifices are those that are pointed out and required by the Spirit. As a human being, I don’t have the ability or sense to be able to sacrifice what is truly precious to God, but the Spirit knows exactly what I should sacrifice.

Jesus took upon Himself a flesh like ours and became familiar with all aspects of that flesh. This is why He had to fight to the death and offer Himself through the power of the eternal Spirit. He entered the strong man’s house, bound him, and plundered his goods. Matt. 12:29.

Our self-will is very strong, and that’s why Jesus decided “not My will, but Yours, O God”, and by doing this, the house was cleansed inwardly. The way through the flesh was opened, and everything that was impossible before now became possible for us. Therefore we need to be poor in spirit in order to follow Him.

The Spirit of Jesus unites with my longing for victory and comes to help me. Rom. 8:26-28. I don’t know what I should pray for, but He helps me in my weakness and leads me to the most precious sacrifices. With perfect precision, He points out my own clever thoughts, self-centeredness, and ambition to have a position. This creates a tremendous need within me and a sincere prayer for help. That puts an end to empty prayers coming from my own understanding, but instead I pray as Hannah did: “My heart rejoices in the Lord; my horn is exalted in the Lord. I smile at my enemies . . .” 1 Sam. 2:1.

Then we can sing Johan O. Smith’s song with thankfulness and joy, no. 362 in WotL. “Jesus’ Spirit among us does reign.” God be praised that it is His Spirit that guides our development.