The Holy Spirit – A Brief Introduction

The Holy Spirit – A Brief  Introduction

He – not  it -  is the oft neglected third Member of the Trinity.  Many of us are guilty of ignorance of who He is and of what He does.  Not knowing these things makes it harder for us to properly relate to, respect, receive from and respond to Him. 

First, we need to understand that He is a PERSON.  He is no mere force or power of the Divine.  His personality is seen in the way He relates to others and the way we are to relate to Him.  We see in Scripture that He can be grieved and lied to. He prays for us, and guides us.  See

John 14:26, 16:13; Acts 5:1-5; Romans 8:26-27; Ephesians 4:30.

Next, we need to realize that He is DIVINE.  He is fully a member of the Trinity.  He is God just as much as the Father and the Son are God.  Irrefutable evidence of this is seen in the things He can do and the freedoms He has.  For instance, we see that He has all knowledge, and power, and is ever present.  See 1 Corinthians 2:10-11; Acts 5:3-4; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Psalm 139:7; John 14:17; Matthew 28:19.

         Seeing some of who He is, let us examine what He does, His roles.  This is seen to be different in two distinct periods.  The dividing point is the Day of Pentecost seen in Acts 2.  Prior to His coming to all that trust in Christ, He operated in a much different way.  Scripture tells us He was present in Creation and in all life giving.  We also see that He dwelt or came upon people as opposed to in people.  This was a temporal ministry for some special task or job that needed to be done.

          Remember the case of Saul and David in 1 Samuel 16?  Here we see God's Spirit leave Saul and then come upon the newly anointed King David.  The Spirit is referred to prophetically in the Old Testament and in the Gospels prior to Jesus' ascension.  Joel 2 gives an example of the promise of the general outpouring of the Holy Spirit to be given.  Peter later shows this is fulfilled in the Day of Pentecost.  See Genesis 1:2, 26, 6:3; Judges 3:10, 11:29, 16:20; Psalm 51:11; John 7:39; Luke 1:15, 41, 57; Joel 2:28-32; Acts 2:1-21; John 13-16. 

What is the present role of the Holy Spirit?  The fact that He is continually called the HOLY Spirit is another clear indication of His deity.  Who alone is inherently holy but God?  His present role is quite different from what we have already seen.  We see that He now comes INTO, not upon, ALL who trust in Jesus alone for salvation, and brings about the new birth.  He dwells in us from the very moment we receive Jesus, and is completely present.  

 He makes us part of the Body of Christ, the Church, and gifts us to serve.  He seals and secures us until Jesus comes for us or we go to be with Him at death.  He longs to control, guide and teach us truth from God's word, which He had written by committed men.  He is ever present in all believers and seeks to develop Christ-likeness in us.  See John 3:5-6, 14:16-17, 26, 16:12-13; 1 Corinthians 2:4-16, 12:13; Galatians 5:16-25; Ephesians 1:13-14, 4:30, 5:18-21; 2 Corinthians 3:17-18; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 1 Corinthian 12-14; Ephesians 4-5.

The Holy Spirit – A  Biblical Investigation

Man and machine differ greatly! Living Beings can do many things inanimate (lifeless) machines cannot do. Read each of these passages and list the things you see the Holy Spirit doing that no machine or mere force could do (no, not even a Mac or PC)? Which attributes or characteristics of person-hood are seen?

v  Ephesians 4:30

v  Acts 5:3-4

v  Romans 8:26-27

v  John 14:26

v  John 16:13

v  1 Corinthians 2:9-12

 

What are some of the things the Holy Spirit does according to these verses?

v  John 16:8

v  John 3:5-6

v  John 14:16-17

v  1 Corinthians 12:13

v  John 14:26

v  John 16:12-13

v  Acts 1:8

Note how we are to relate to the Spirit:

v  He is to continually ___________________________________________.  (Ephesians 5:18)

v  We are to allow his ________________________ to be developed and seen in our lives,

and to __________________________ by His power. (Galatians 5:22-23, 25)

Kerry S. Doyal - Pastor

      Christ
           Community
               Fellowship  (an EFCA)
Sarver, PA   - http://www.ccffriends.org/

N.B.: A Reminder to Be Mindful of God

An oldie...

A Reminder to Be Mindful of God
 Kerry S. Doyal

You never know when or where God will remind you of an important truth. A recent chance encounter at a hotel continental breakfast bar reminded me of God's passion to teach us. It reminded me of the need to be mindful of Him.

Our family was traveling back to Kingsport recently when my son and I met a kind retiree from Oklahoma. Coincidentally, she too who was on her way to Kingsport, to visit a daughter and family.

By the way, it is said that a "coincidence" is when God chooses to work anonymously. Lucky for us - yes, that was a joke - He does this often.

Having noticed that she looked Hispanic or Native American and that she had on a shirt saying "Mexico," I asked if she was Mexican or Cherokee. She was in fact first generation Mexican American and she then relayed an interesting life development.

Our new friend told how she used to think in Spanish as well as she could in English. But, in the past few years, she has noticed that skill slipping. At a recent reception, she was able to speak to someone in Spanish. Yet, much to her chagrin, she got stuck in efforts to communicate.

Having no one to speak Spanish to on a regular basis has made it harder to think in Spanish as easily as she used to. What used to be natural to her now takes effort due to lack of practice, less use.

Hmmm... With a long drive ahead and being a person prone to parabolize, apt to allegorize, this got me to thinking about my thinking. (I will not be offended if you need to re read that sentence.) How fluent do I stay in thinking about God, His word, His truths, His will and ways?

Can I, with Willie Nelson, sing to my sweet Lord, "You were always on my mind?" Being on the road again, I could not outlaw that line of thinking.

How consistently do I meditate on Him, His word, mulling Him over? How well do I think biblically? Have my skills and habits of thinking in God's language - the Bible - stayed strong or have they slipped?

We are to love God with all our minds, as well as our hearts, soul and strength. A lack of use of our language of re-birth can lead to one dimensional living and thinking - a life that is too earthy (see Psalm 1).

To my new friend, I say "mucho gusto, mucho gracias mi amiga y Dios Te bendaga." "Good to meet you, thank you very much my friend and God bless you!" I hope you are duly impressed, that is half of my Spanish. And, yes, I had it double checked!

To my Lord, who has provided cleaner, clearer thoughts for us to think, I say thank you for the reminder. Feel free to keep me mindful to keep you in mind.

"Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God's right hand in the place of honor and power. Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth. For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God." Colossians 3:1-3 (NLT)

"And now, dear brothers and sisters, let me say one more thing as I close this letter. Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise." Philippians 4:8 (NLT)

"This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success." Joshua 1:8 (NKJV)