For just as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body—so also is Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and we were all given one Spirit to drink.

1 Corinthians 12:12-13 CSB

Welcome back, friend!

I hope you’ve enjoyed this week’s examination of God’s good and perfect gift of the Holy Spirit, a gift that fully embodies the concept of, “But wait, there’s more!”.

Today I’d like us to look at one more, “there’s more”.

I’ve been seeing this meme on Facebook lately that declares some variation of, “If the apostle Paul were still alive today, the church would be getting a letter.” And I have no doubt that the statement is accurate.

In fact, I’d like to propose that all of Paul’s letters to the early church are 100% meant for the church today as well. And when I say, “the church”, I don’t mean a specific denomination or building or congregation. I mean, the global church, as in, God calls all those who believe on Jesus Christ, the church no matter where they live on earth or what physical church building (or lack thereof) they go to for worship services.

Paul explains the concept of the global church as a body, sharing that all believers on Christ are members of one body.

How is that possible?

“But wait, there’s more!” (Sorry, I couldn’t help myself.)

You guessed it.

It’s possible through Holy Spirit.

Paul says that all believers on Christ are baptized by one Spirit into one body; no matter who you are or where you’re from or how you worship or what version of the Bible you study, if you believe Jesus is the Son of God and have confessed yourself a sinner, asked for forgiveness, and believed on Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then you are “the church”, a member of one body.

1 Corinthians 12 goes into great detail about the benefits of being a member of one body in Christ and how to be a beneficial member to the rest of the body. I encourage you to check it out.

For today though, I’d like to focus on a specific gift within this gift by taking us to Paul’s second letter to the church at Corinth in which he wrote:

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. – 2 Corinthians 13:13 CSB

Specifically, I’d like us to think about “the fellowship of the Holy Spirit”.

Five or six years ago, a young man came into the office where I worked for an interview. The position was a good one, a step up on the professional ladder for most folks in my profession, a good salary in my state’s economy. Needless to say, men and women, young and old, dressed in varying degrees of professional suiting and personal nerves had been in and out of the office for three days interviewing. Not a part of the interview committee myself, I paid them little mind, preferring to stay in my office and be productive (you know my history with the need to produce by now). In truth, I avoided the front of the office all together and made restroom trips and trips to other offices by slipping out the back.

But on the last day of interviews, as I was leaving for the day, I needed to drop some paperwork off with our secretary, so I passed through the front. I shared some pleasantries with our secretary, gave her my paperwork, and started for the door. When she noted that I was leaving an hour early, I told her I’d taken time off to get a jumpstart on my commute because it was VBS (vacation Bible school) week and I was teaching and didn’t want to be late.

It was then that I looked up and saw this dapper young man sitting in the “waiting to be interviewed seat” – mind you, I was 36 at the time, so when I say young, I mean mid-20s, if that – he was looking at me too, as if he knew me and instantly, I felt that I should know him and that I needed to stop and talk to this young man. He was slight of frame, with a neatly trimmed little beard and sharp haircut. He could have easily been 15 if not for the beard. Honestly, I recall thinking that he was a bit out of his depth being so young. At 36, I was the youngest person in the office and one of the youngest professionals in the entire organization. I was fairly certain I did not actually know him despite feeling as though I should.

Still, something inside said, “Stop”.

So, I did. We exchanged pleasantries. I vaguely recall noticing that he had a set of bracelets on with Christian iconography (fish, cross, something to that effect). Then, he brought up my departure for VBS. Reminded of my need to get out of the state capitol before traffic picked up, I excitedly, but quickly shared a few details of our VBS with him and left.

The interview committee was a tight-lipped bunch, so it was a few days before I learned that we had hired that young man. I was pleased, but also shocked – like I said, he was young, really young for the position he was being awarded. Would he know enough to support those we served? Would he be politically savvy enough to operate in state government? Would he be able to hold his own against some of the bigger personalities that we worked with out in the field?

All those questions were answered within days. He absolutely embodied the fruit of the Spirit in attitude, speech, and action. We were fast friends from day one and though we no longer work together, I still consider him a dear friend. Our instant connection is one I’ve come to know as a “Holy Spirit connection”. The Spirit in me called to the Spirit in him and vice versa. We share the same Spirit, Holy Spirit. Over the years we worked together we had many conversations about Jesus and walking with Jesus. We prayed for each other’s concerns, spoken and unspoken. I came to think of him as a little Brother, due to his age, but in truth, I believe him to be more spiritually mature than me, more self-disciplined in his walk with the Lord. It may be more accurate to say, I am his little, older Sister.

I share this story with you because it exemplifies one of many interactions in which Holy Spirit has revealed to me a Brother or Sister, has drawn me to talk to someone I may have rushed past or dismissed (oh, the Lord and I work on my busyness and my pride quite a bit). I’m betting you have stories like that too, where Holy Spirit has called you to someone or called someone to you, a stranger that you just knew you knew, a moment when you instantly clicked in conversation or on a project with someone who turned out to be another believer.

God’s good like that – to give us community, to place us in one body as one church through the pull and power of Holy Spirit. Just as He is three-in -one, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, God ensures that we have fellowship and companions in this life, Brothers and Sisters to join us for a short time or a long time as we all journey toward an eternity with Him.

As we go into the weekend, let us be mindful of the wonderful gift of Holy Spirit, of the still small voice that corrects, teaches, guides, intercedes, grows fruit, and draws into fellowship with other believers. Let us take time to intentionally thank God for His good and perfect gift of Holy Spirit, for all of the “there’s more” we’ve discussed and all of the “there’s more” that we did not get to this week.

Thank you, God for Holy Spirit and all that He does for us, through us, with us, and in us!

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