Ancient Corinth, at the time Paul writes the letters to them, was filled with the worship of false gods. When the people would be particularly fond of one of these gods, they would build a temple for them, so that the god would actually live among them. Paul understood this principle, and used it to explain this principle to the Corinthians:

1 Corinthians 3:16

16 Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

The word translated know above is the word OIDA. It means to have an active consciousness of something, or to conceive of something as vivid or real. This word connotes more than just a theoretical knowledge, but something that is a reality in your soul.

Paul thought this was so important that he wrote the same thing in the same letter again:

1 Corinthians 6:19

19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?

Whether you realize it or not, your body is now the residence of God the Holy Spirit. At the moment you believe in Jesus Christ for salvation, He takes up permanent residence inside your soul.

This principle can be very humbling (you mean He goes everywhere I go, and sees everything I see, do and say? OUCH!). But I think we need to ask this question: why exactly did God send the Holy Spirit to indwell believers? Look what Jesus said:

John 7:38-39

38 "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, "From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.'"

39 But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

There is a never-ending source of divine thinking, direction, and providence inside of you! The Holy Spirit lives inside each believer for a particular purpose. He’s there to direct you, to teach you, and to intercede in your prayers according to the will of God. Our responsibility as Christians is to learn to recognize the leading of God the Holy Spirit. This can be difficult for us to do, because as you see from these verses, this ministry comes from the INSIDE!

What’s our part in this ministry?

Proverbs 3:5

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart

And do not lean on your own understanding.

We often tend to lean on our own understanding, instead of relying on this ministry of God the Holy Spirit from within us. These two positions are mutually exclusive!

It’s our responsibility as believers to be open and willing regarding this leading ministry, as Paul talks about in Thessalonians:

1 Thessalonians 5:19

19 Do not quench the Spirit;

Quench is the word SBENNUMI, and it means literally to put out a fire, or to suppress, stifle or hinder. When you don’t trust in His leading, and depend on your own understanding instead, you are actually suppressing this ministry that He was sent into your heart to do!

God has promised to give us help with every decision and circumstance we may encounter. The Holy Spirit has taken up permanent residence inside of us for a purpose; He’s not there simply to sit on the sofa and watch TV! Our responsibility is simply to be willing to do whatever it is He guides us to do, and be dependent on Him for guidance.