A spiritually symbiotic relationship

The unspiritual self, just as it is by nature, can’t receive the gifts of God’s Spirit. There’s no capacity for them. They seem like so much silliness. Spirit can be known only by spirit—God’s Spirit and our spirits in open communion. Spiritually alive, we have access to everything God’s Spirit is doing, and can’t be judged by unspiritual critics. Isaiah’s question, “Is there anyone around who knows God’s Spirit, anyone who knows what he is doing?” has been answered: Christ knows, and we have Christ’s Spirit. (I Corinthians 2:14)

Trying to understand God with your earthly intelligence? Won't work! God isn't meant to be known by our earthly intelligence, but by our spiritual 'self' communing with his Spirit. Open communion - meaning open and honest two-way conversation. Not just us telling God what we need, how he needs to work in our lives, and what he should be doing for others, but us actually listening intently for what he wants to reveal to us in those times of communion. I walk each day and see all kinds of things that make me think about him. Nature has a way of revealing God in wonderous ways, but as I walk, I see others, head hung down, looking a little worried or deep in thought. I can lift up a quick prayer for them. I pass the fire department doors and pray for their safety on each call of the day - strength for what they face, security for their families, and rest for their sometimes very weary bodies. We all have the ability for two-way conversation, but when we are open to what God wants us to be thinking on as we are sharing that communion with him, we might just see things we have sometimes missed. I walk with earbuds in, Christian worship both elevating my spirit and drawing me into the presence of God. It isn't that I am blocking out the world - I am inviting God into mine.

  

I like the part of this passage that reminds us we cannot be judged by unspiritual critics. If you have ever lived with the concern about others 'judging' you for your walk with Christ, making a bit of fun for your choice to live a little bit 'holier' than they do, you know what it is like to be criticized by the 'unspiritual critic'. God reminds us we CANNOT be judged by those critics - their 'judgment' holds absolutely no weight in his eyes. Christ knows what is behind our outside appearance - every choice we make and why we make it. He knows our motivation and our even our discouragement. Try as others might, they cannot destroy this closeness we hold with Jesus. He is part of us, and we are part of him - it is a symbiotic relationship on more than a physical plane as symbiosis would suggest - it is a spiritual symbiosis. We have Christ's Spirit indwelling ours - bringing us into a closeness that can be both felt and known, but not with our earthly intelligence. It is more like a 'spiritual intelligence' - the mind of Christ helping us to see how he moves, what he desires, and where we need his help in our lives. It is time to stop listening to the 'unspiritual critics' in your life. It is time we remember that we are indwelt with the Spirit of Christ and nothing, absolutely nothing, can separate us from his love and protection. Just sayin!