"And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saithunto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost." - John 20:22
When God created man he breathed into him the breath of life, and he became a living soul (Genesis 2:7). When Jesus appeared to his disciples after his resurrection, he breathed on them and said,"Receive ye the Holy Ghost" (John 20:22). When the breath of God is breathed into us there is a positive infusion of divine life imparted into our spirit. We were dead in our sins, but at the moment we accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior, we became alive unto God! We have his life because we have his breath! Every day we are to breathe in the breath of God! Just as we breathe the air around us to sustain our natural lives, we are to be breathing in the holy breath of God to sustain our spiritual lives. The Greek word for "Spirit" is PNEUMA. It is defined as spirit, but it also implies a movement of air, breath, or wind. One of the most amazing parts to our human anatomy is our breath. The mechanical aspect of our lungs inhaling and exhaling is one thing, but how this inner breath is part of our very being is another. When we speak words we seldom think about how each sound is uttered because of our breath. The air that is exhaled over our vocal chords gives us the ability to speak. But here is the amazing part of it all. When I hear someone speak, I don't think of it as their breath. I think of it as the very life of the person communicating to me what is in their heart and mind. When the Holy Spirit sweeps over our soul or when God speaks to us through his Word, we don't think of it as the breath or wind of God. We think of it as his person, his very own life communicating to us. But in all reality, none of that would even be possible if God's life wasn't breathed "out" and breathed "in" to our spirits. Jesus said, "The words that I speak, they are spirit and they are life" (John 6:63). Even though we know that he was saying that his words carried the Spirit of God and the life of God (words divinely inspired), the truth is, from a natural point of view, every one of us when we speak, our words are spirit and they are life (they are the action of our spirit breathing out the life of our inner thoughts and feelings). Paul told Timothy "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness" (2 Tim 3:16). In other words, God's word is God-breathed. What makes God's word so powerful is they are the spirit of his very being infused into every jot and tittle. Every sound that men heard and inscribed on paper came as a result of the breath of God moving upon them (2 Peter 1:20-21).
When you take in God's word you are inhaling the breath of God. When you allow the Holy Spirit to move upon you, you are receiving the breath of God as it blows over you. How long do you think any of us would live if we did not breathe? When our respiration is hampered, we become faint. We feel weak. It takes our blood being oxygenated to remain healthy and alert. Spiritually speaking, we need the breath of God to maintain our walk in the Spirit so that we can be healthy and alert to the things of God. Jesus said,, "I have come that ye might have life, and that ye might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). I like to think of it this way: Jesus came to breathe into us the breath of God, and we need to keep breathing until our whole spirit, soul, and body are filled with his breath.The more we breathe in, the more life we receive. Take a moment to think about your breath. Every day you breathe without consciously thinking about it. You never question where or not your next breath will be your last. We have an opportunity to breathe in the breath of God - to become filled with the very life and Spirit of God. Once in a while we feel a shortness of breath and what we normally do is stop long enough to breathe in deeply. We feel the need for more oxygen. When was the last time you stop long enough in your relationship with God to breathe deeply? To really feel the need for more of the life of God? Make it point today to breathe in the breath of God. When you read his Word, and when you fellowship with the Holy Ghost know that God's breath is oxygenating your spirit. |
