The Holy Spirit (Part One)

We know about God, the Father and God, the Son but what do we really know about the Holy Spirit who is the third member of the Godhead?  Some people refer to Him as an "it" or as if He were some kind of impersonal energy force but He is neither of these things.  He is a Person, not a thing.  He is God.  He is coequal, coeternal with the Father and the Son.  And, He is known by many titles such as:

Spirit of God - The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep.  And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters (Genesis 1:2).  The Holy Spirit was present before the creation of the world.

Spirit of the LORD God - "The Spirit of the LORD God is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor;  He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound (Isaiah 61:1).  This is the Scripture which Jesus read before the people when He was in the synagogue because it is speaking about Him.

Spirit of your Father - "...for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you" (Matthew 10:20). Jesus warned His disciples and us about coming persecutions because they are His followers.  They will be handed over to the courts and flogged with whips in the synagogues. They will stand trial before governors and kings but this will  an opportunity to tell them and other unbelievers about Him.  And when they are arrested they are not to worry about how to respond or what to say.  The Holy Spirit will know what to say and will speak through them.

Spirit of grace - "And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication then they will look on Me whom they have pierced; they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn" (Zechariah 12:10). This is Jesus speaking.  He's the One whom they pierced when He was dead on the Cross.  It is His Spirit, the Spirit of grace, the Holy Spirit which He will pour on His people.

Spirit of Truth - "...even the Spirit of Truth whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you" (John 14:17).  Jesus explains why the world rejects the Spirit who reveals the truth, which is the Word of God, to them. Those who are followers of Jesus have His Spirit dwelling with and in them.  

Spirit of Holiness - "...and declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead" (Romans 1:4).  Jesus is the Son of God because He was confirmed by the Holy Spirit having victory over death. 

Spirit of Life - "For the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death" (Romans 8:2). The Holy Spirit is the One who can help us in our struggle with sin which leads to spiritual and physical death.  The life in Christ is eternal life. And those who have the Holy Spirit have eternal life.

Spirit of Christ - "But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you.  Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His" (Romans 8:9). For us to be Christ's, we must have His Spirit in us.

Spirit of Adoption - "For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father" (Romans 8:15).  We can call God, "Father" because "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God" (verse 14) and The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God (verse 16).

Spirit of His Son - "And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, "Abba, Father!" (Galatians 4:6). Again, as children of God, we will have the Holy Spirit in us.

Spirit of Glory - "If you are reproached (reviled, insulted) for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.  On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified" (1 Peter 4:14).  We know that we have the Spirit of God when we face ridicule or persecution for the sake of Christ because Jesus did say, “If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you" (John 15:19).

Spirit of Prophecy - "And I fell at his feet to worship him.  But he said to me, "See that you do not do that!  I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus.  Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophecy" (Revelation 19:10). The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Prophecy.  "For prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit" (2 Peter 1:21).

My Spirit - And the LORD said, "My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years" (Genesis 6:3).  As we can see, the Holy Spirit as God is long-suffering but then there will come a time when probation will be over.  Just as in the days of Noah when the people were given ample time to repent and turn back to God it will be the same thing in the last days.  Noah preached 120 years to the people but only he and his family (8 people) survived the Flood.  God wants as many people as possible to be saved in the last days but they have to respond to His Gospel.

Holy Spirit - "Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me" (Psalm 51:11). These are David's words when he prayed to God after Nathan, the prophet, confronted him about committing adultery with Bathsheba, the wife of his soldier, Uriah. Nothing can be worse than being cast away from God's presence or having Him take His Holy Spirit from us. However, if we have sinned and we acknowledge and confess, seeking His forgiveness, He will hear and forgive us. David, deeply convicted by what he had done after being confronted, poured out his heart to God.

The Helper - "And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever" (John 14:16).  The Holy Spirit is our Helper whom the Father has given us. He was sent after Jesus returned to the Father.  Jesus didn't want His disciples and us to feel alone because He is not physically there.  He promised,  "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you" (verse 18).  He comes to us through our Helper, the Holy Spirit. So, we are not abandoned. 

"But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things and and bring to your remembrance all the things that I said to you" (John 14:26).  The Holy Spirit is not only our Helper but He is our Teacher.  It is He who brings Scripture to your mind when you are facing temptation or trying to make a decision about something.

Eternal Spirit - "...how much more shall the blood of Christ who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot (blemish) to God purge (cleanse) your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" (Hebrews 9:14)  Here the Holy Spirit is the High Priest and Jesus is the Sacrifice.