Romans 5:5 (NIV) – “And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”

Romans 8:15-16 (NIV) – “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.’ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.”

“The NIV’s ‘God’s love’ may also be translated as ‘the love of God’, and this may be understood in two ways. First, as our ‘love for God’ — the presence of the Holy Spirit then creating in us a love for God. Second, it could be understood as ‘God’s love for us’ — the Holy Spirit filling us with a sense of God’s love for us. Two considerations support the latter: (i) In the immediate context Paul goes on to describe the outstanding nature of God’s love for us (Romans 5: 6-11, esp. 5:8: ‘God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us’); (ii) In Romans 8:15-16 Paul says, ‘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”. The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children’. In this case the Holy Spirit creates within believers a sense of their filial relationship with God, a sense of God’s love for them as his children. “ [Colin G. Kruse, The Pillar New Testament Commentary: Paul’s Letter to the Romans, page 231]

Prayer: Father, thank you that Your Spirit testifies in my heart that I am your child. Would you fill me once again with your love through your Holy Spirit?   In Jesus’ name. Amen

“No Longer Slaves” written by Brian Johnson, Joel Case, Jonathan David Helser. Link: https://youtu.be/f8TkUMJtK5k

– EK