The Spirit is not an impersonal force or a performance enhancer but the personal presence of Jesus in believers, the promised Helper (Paraclete) who makes the meek and lowly heart of Christ available in real time. He keeps the promise, “I will not leave you as orphans” (John 14:18), by uniting us to Christ (Rom. 8:9) and by taking what belongs to Christ and declaring it to us (John 16:14). This reframes spirituality away from spectacle toward consolation: the Spirit’s primary work is not to dazzle us but to settle us in the felt assurance that the One who is gentle and lowly welcomes us today. When anxiety spikes or shame rises, the Spirit does not point us inward to our spiritual temperature but outward to a welcoming Christ, producing rest rather than self-suspicion.
— Dane C. Ortlund, Gentle and Lowly
