For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit…
Summary: When we delve into the spiritual realm, it is hard to fully grasp what is going on. Paul explains why in 1 Corinthians 13:12 (KJV) when he says, “For now we see through a glass, darkly…”
Do you believe in spirits?
As kids, many of us were ridiculed if we admitted we believed in “ghosts.” Ridicule is a powerful social tool. It shames us for being afraid to express thoughts the “group” doesn’t want to hear.
Whether you see them or not, the problem with “ghosts” is that they are, in fact, spirits. Admitting to the reality of spirits is an important step toward believing in God because, after all, God is Spirit (John 4:24).
The secular version of ghosts is that they’re disembodied souls, stuck somewhere between heaven and hell, as if there were no God. But biblically, God is sovereign over all spiritual beings. Under God’s rule, spirits must obey. Demons are spirits who disobey, but even they are subject to God’s authority.
The point of this meditation isn’t to argue about ghosts. Instead, it’s about how Satan uses the idea of ghosts to condition us not to believe in spirits at all. By making us afraid of spirits or confused about them, he distracts us from the truth: there is a spiritual realm, and God is the sovereign ruler over it all. The Holy Spirit is the one who guides and empowers believers, and even the dark spirits must answer to God.
So what are we to make of Paul’s comment? He says:
“For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit…”
Is this just a nice way of saying, “Hey, I’m thinking of you!,” or is it something more? We each get to decide the answer to this for ourselves, but on the way to a decision, here are some things to ponder:
First, not only is God Spirit, but so is Jesus. We know this because Jesus and the Father are one (John 10:30). We have numerous other examples of Jesus’ spiritual nature as well. Stephan sees him at the right hand of God (Acts 7:56) and, Paul’s own encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus was not what we would call “natural.”
Second, Jesus himself promises to send us the Holy Spirit (John 14:26). The Holy Spirit comes from the Father, or as Jesus explains, “goes out from the Father” (John 15:26).
If believers have God’s Spirit in them, and there is only one Spirit, then it seems reasonable that we are all connected by God into one spiritual body (1 Corinthians 12:27).
In my experience as a Christian, I have noticed that some people are more attuned to the Spirit in them than others. For example, I can be downright tone-deaf when it comes to listening to the Spirit. Then, at other times, I hear God’s voice clearly.
How about you? Do you hear God’s voice in your life? Do you feel the presence of God’s Spirit?
Paul had an especially close relationship with the Spirit. Could he be “absent in body” but still spiritually connected to other believers in the body?
He said so.
His words are in the Bible.
I’m inclined to believe him.
Application: Pay special attention to God’s Spirit in your life.
Food for Thought: What do you imagine it would be like to be “present with [other believers] in spirit?”
This is a difficult question to answer lol.
There are times when the Lord lays someone on my heart for no discernable reason. There is just a “call for connection with them” and may be that they are in need (help or encouragement) or to share in the joy of the Lord. Given that I believe that with God all things are possible, and that those that serve Christ serve the same Christ in the same Spirit, I can imagine that one could be given more specific revelations or insight about another believer. To feel “the weight” of another prayers. I want to be clear though, I’m not talking about being a “physic.” There is no “conjuring up” or being “pressed upon” with unclear ideas that confuse. I imagine the insight would be based in love. Love for Christ and love for another in and through Christ. I imagine it would be more of the mysterious and miraculous workings of the Spirit, but one based in the common desire to serve God.
Colossians 3:14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.
Well answered, Chris!
I appreciate what you mean by “To feel ‘the weight’ of another prayers.” Your clarification about not being “psychic” is important, too. Like all things, there are spiritual things within God’s will and others outside of God’s will.
What do you imagine it would be like to be “present with other believers in spirit?”
Proverbs 27:17, As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.
We are spiritual beings having a human experience, We exist in our Omnipresent, All knowing Creator God who is the power of life in each of us. We are confined to these bodies during our life on earth, while our eternal spirits will stand before God at judgement,
Genesis 2:7, Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.
John 4:24, John 3:6, James 2:26, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, Acts 19:12
Think about the times when you have simply rescheduled your priorities, and gone to visit a friend only to find they really needed the company of another believer.
Is there a hymn you sing in church where the voices of all believers singing with joy touches your heart and tears of joy run down your face.
Have you sat with a brother or sister and experienced the joy of the Spirit as you spent hours sharing the wonders and blessings of life as a child of God? How deep and rich His word has become over the passage of years as a believer?
Have you gone on a weekend retreat into the country, separated from all noise producing devices, with only the voices of other believers to be heard? Have you and another brother gone off and for hours sat surrounded in the creations of God, sharing truths about God in your lives, and returned to a noisy, ugly built up area called your city, wishing you were back in the beautiful woods?
We can say, our spiritual relationship in isolation with our Lord, in His creation, is far beyond everything offered by this physical world. It is the act of separation from this world, that gives our life meaning and purpose.
Spiritual connections with other believers are like providing color, surround sound, and wide screen, multi-dimension effects to a black and white little old tube transmitter.
Spirituality is about our relationship with the divine . It’s about finding our path to happiness, as we recognize and live in our spiritual relationship with our creator and others of faith.
Wow, Ron.
Beautifully said! Thank you!
What do you imagine it would be like to be “present with [other believers] in spirit?”
………. what Ron said is great. I’ll go with his answer.