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For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. (2 Tim 1:7)

All fears are ultimately based in a fear of death: The following verse is so powerful because it shows how great a salvation we have received, ‘[Jesus] release[d] those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.’ (Heb 2:15) And often our fears are hidden, simply because we have no answer to them. To acknowledge our fears would make us face a problem for which we have no solution. But here Paul trumpets the good news, that the Spirit that God puts within us has no fear. What a wonderful release that is!

Moreover, it is a Spirit of power. Not just to perform miracles, but to face difficulties, to overcome disappointments, to tackle the daily issues of life, triumphantly. There is a wonderful little phrase in Romans, ‘those … will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. (Rom 5:17b): the power to reign in all of life’s trials and tribulations! And a Spirit of love. It is inconceivable to image that the Spirit of God would not love all of th“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Rom 13:9) And therefore one of the wonders of the indwelling spirit is that He brings a deep love for God. But we also read that God so loved the world (John 3:16a). And the indwelling Spirit also brings a love for the world, not for its frivolities, fascinations and follies, but a love for all the people that live in it!

And lastly a spirit of a sound mind. This word is sometimes translated self-control, but must be distinguished from the word translated the same way in Galatians etc. This word has the meaning of having a sane or sober mind that will demonstrate itself, by a life style of self-control. What a blessing the incoming spirit of God is, that He brings a sanity to our thinking and behavior that will mark us out from the folly that is so often seen in the world. What a great three fold blessing we have received from God’s infilling us with the Holy Spirit!