Life in Christ can be exciting.  Jesus said, “You don’t know where [the wind] is coming from and where it is going; so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit” (John 3:8).  When you’re born of the Holy Spirit, it may be difficult to pin down exactly where you’ve been and where you’re going next.  The good news is that we get to trust God in the process of the journey.  And even when it feels like we’re stuck in a holding pattern, He’s still there and still trustworthy.

There’s no substitute for the Holy Spirit in our lives.  He intercedes for us before the Father (Romans 8:26-27), He is the comforter and the counselor/strengthener (John 14:16; 15:26).  He gives us power (Acts 1:8), is endowed with wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, and the knowledge and fear of the Lord (Isaiah 11:2), and enables us to have love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).

One of the great things about the Holy Spirit is that He teaches us and reminds us of the things that God has said (John 14:26).  Revelation from God about Himself, His ways, and how we can live that out here on earth comes easier when the Holy Spirit is alive and active in our lives.

When we lose – or simply don’t have – a relationship with the Holy Spirit in our lives, we have to fill that gaping hole with something else.  Often, we start with the Bible.  It is the Word of God, so it has some of the same qualities of the Spirit of God (including revelation and instruction).  But the Bible without the Holy Spirit quickly becomes little more than a formula for how something has worked rather than a revelation of what God is doing through you, right now, and where He is bringing you in the future (besides the ultimate arrival in heaven).

We see this manifested in Christian communities that tend toward systematic theology.  There’s nothing wrong with learning theology, but it can never take the place of the Holy Spirit in your life.  Let me explain.

When you rely on theology, there is a set final goal: Learning and believing what the theology says is true.  You learn to interpret the Bible to fit the logic of the theological system, and you get to apply it to your everyday life.  There is some benefit to this.  But after you’ve learned the theology, you’ve reached your goal.  There’s little else to learn, nothing else to achieve to, nowhere else to go.  You’ve already made it.

Having “made it” is a bit of a survival existence because there is no hope for more revelation except that you’ll die someday and get to heaven.  I believe this is part of why Christians lose the “joy of their salvation” (Psalm 51:12).  There’s not much more room to grow when you’ve already worked out how the entire thing is supposed to be.

This is why it’s so important to live by the Spirit.  You can know theology, but in the Spirit, there are boundless opportunities to explore new facets of God.  He’s so completely without limits in His nature that we could get to know Him forever and still be discovering new revelations about Him and Who He is.  He is more than a logical system.  He’s more than a perfect set of beliefs.  He’s, well, God.

We need to be lifelong learners when it comes to revelation from the Holy Spirit.  Obviously, we should be checking out the “revelation” with what is written in the Bible.  I’m guilty of asking God, “Can You give me a Bible verse for this?  Because it makes sense with what I know about You, but I also want a bit better foundation than just liking what I’m thinking is true.”  Interestingly, He often answers that request – with a verse that either confirms or what I think is true or assures me I’m not on the right track.

There is hope living by the Spirit, because we don’t have it all figured out.  That can be a little frightening sometimes, but it’s also freeing.  You’re not stuck; you have the freedom to move and be moved; God can give you revelation for what you’re facing right now, and you can continue to learn more and more about God.  He’s so much more than we could ask, think, or imagine.  And we have been invited into this living, breathing, vibrant, experience of living life on this earth with Him and with the Holy Spirit inside of us (1 Corinthians 6:19).