Category: Our God Groans

Galatians 5:25 (NLT) – Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.

“We groan because we have the Spirit. Once the Spirit, with his demand for holiness, enters our lives, we sense as never before just what God wants us to be.  As a result, the Spirit increases our frustration at not meeting God’s standard and our yearning to be what he wants us to be.” [Douglas Moo, NIV Application Commentary: Romans, 267]

Romans 8 reveals that we are a “Spirit People.” We live by the Spirit, operate in the Spirit, and are constantly being filled by the Spirit. Living in the Spirit is the main mode of Christian life.

Prayer: “Lord, will you continue to form and mold us, from among all our churches, to be a ‘Spirit People’ whose main mode of operation is life in the Spirit. Increase the Spirit’s activity in our missional groups, campuses, families, and outreach efforts. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Let us worship to the song “Mighty God (Another Hallelujah)” by Elevation Worship (click here).

-GW

Romans 8:11 (NIV) – And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.

What a vivid image of the resurrection power we have! Because of the Spirit in us, we have everything we need to live a supernatural life.

“Clearly, the Holy Spirit is the down payment of our life in God in the next age. This supernatural life extends to every area of our experience… If we study the New Testament with an open mind, we are compelled to acknowledge that the whole life and experience of the early Christians was permeated in every part by the supernatural. Supernatural experiences were not something incidental, or additional; they were an integral part of their whole lives as Christians. Their praying was supernatural; their preaching was supernatural. They were supernaturally guided, supernaturally empowered, supernaturally transported, supernaturally protected.”  [Derek Prince, The Holy Spirit in You, 71-72]

Prayer: “Lord, may you increase your Spirit’s activity in and around me so that I, together with the church, can live in the fullness of the Spirit’s power. Help me also to minister to others in supernatural love. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Let us worship to the song “Fall Afresh” by The Belonging Co. (click here)

-GW

Let’s read aloud together from Romans 8:26-27 (NIV):

²⁶In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. ²⁷ And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

“To our great delight we are not left to ourselves, looking for ways merely to cope as we live in the radical middle.  Nor is the Spirit present simply to give us a show of power now and then as a reminder that we belong to the future after all.  Rather he is present as our constant companion, both to lead and to empower us.  At no point is this empowering more significant than in our life of prayer.”  [Gordon Fee, Paul, the Spirit, and the People of God, 149].

Let’s pray aloud together: “Lord, teach me to pray in the Spirit.  May my prayers resonate with the groans of the Spirit, the Spirit who prays for us, with us, and deep within us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Let’s worship to “Strong in Us” by Bethel (click here).

-GW

Psalm 6:4, 6 (NIV)
⁴Turn, Lord, and deliver me;
save me because of your unfailing love.
⁶ I am worn out from my groaning.
All night long I flood my bed with weeping
and drench my couch with tears.

As we received on Sunday, creation groans, humanity groans, and the Spirit groans.  One of the reasons the Spirit “groans” is because God recognizes our pain and suffering in this sin-marred world.

“The Spirit’s groaning, reminiscent of the groaning of creation and of believers (8:22-23) assures them that God is not unaware of, or unconcerned about, their plight.  Just as God heard the ‘groaning’ of his people in slavery in Egypt and was sympathetic with their suffering, so he continues to sympathize with the suffering of his people in all times and places.” [Frank Thielman, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament: Romans, 415]

Not only does God know the details of what we go through, the Spirit groans in us so that we can experience greater intimacy with Jesus.

Prayer: “Lord, you know my pain and struggles. Thank you that you invite me into intimate relationship with you, where I can experience the Spirit’s groans in and through me. Help me today to have a fresh supernatural encounter with you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”

Let’s worship to “Here With Me” by Tim Hughes (click here).

– GW

Let’s read aloud together from Romans 8:14-17 (NIV):

14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Pray this prayer aloud: “Lord, thank you that I am a child of God. I know this is the truth because the Holy Spirit in me testifies that I am no longer a slave that lives in fear, but a child of God who can cry, ‘Abba, Father.’ Help me today to live in this assurance and reality. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Let’s worship to “No One But You” by Hillsong (click here).

-GW