Grace vs man made rules

Praise God for His Holy Spirit in us!  We are more than conquerers because of Him!

But sadly...some people are not aware of what this truly means and how it effects our entire life as a Believer.  Simply not knowing our gift of the Holy Spirit in us is sad, but adding man made rules instead of trusting ourselves to Him can become so legalistic and imprisoning.

Once again I am sending you to Recovering Grace for an excellent post by Ileata, January 18, 2012, "Finding the Key", where her testimony makes clear what joy it can be when we discover how precious is having the indwelling of Him:

Sometimes, I think the story of my Christian life, up until recently, could be summarized in another verse from Galatians. “Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now going to be made complete by the flesh?” (Gal. 3:3).

Even though I (hopefully) had looked to Jesus alone for Salvation, I was looking to the flesh for sanctification. Just following Him wasn’t enough to avoid sin. I had to add a few extra rules.

But, that doesn’t keep me from sinning. Sure, I didn’t kiss my husband until our wedding day. I kept my promise. But does that mean I didn’t sin during our engagement? Absolutely not! Not kissing him didn’t prevent me from wishing I could kiss him and then some. And it didn’t conquer lust.

Ileata ends with:

I’m so thankful for the realization that it’s “Not by strength or by might, but My Spirit, says the Lord of Hosts” (Zech. 4:6). I’m so excited about this life that is completely by grace through faith, empowered by the Holy Spirit. Talk about limitless possibilities! And limitless power to conquer sin. Again, I realize that God’s way really is best! “Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far and grace will lead me home.

Glory to God for His grace to give us the Holy Spirit!