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Chapter 12The Holy SpiritWho is He? |
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The topic for our consideration in this chapter is the deity of the Holy Spirit. In the previous chapter we saw that the Holy Spirit has the characteristics that make it evident that He is a person like God the Father and Jesus. The Bible ascribes the qualities of personality to Him — He has feelings and emotions, He reasons and speaks — in short, He does everything that distinguishes a personal, living being from mere power, influence, or thing. THE HOLY SPIRIT IS GODThe Holy Spirit is God, equal in every way to God the Father
and God the Son. In a previous study we discussed the Trinity. We saw there
is only one true and living God, yet existing simultaneously as God the
Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
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Divine Names of the Holy SpiritHe Is Called God — In the last chapter we learned that Ananias and Sapphira lied about their offering to God, and paid with their lives. Peter told Ananias he had lied to God and not to men. It is clear from the passage that Ananias and Sapphira had lied to the Holy Spirit whom Peter called God. Peter said:
The Holy Spirit Is Called Lord — Not only is the Holy Spirit called God, but He is also called Lord:
Here Paul wrote, "Now the Lord is the Spirit." At the time the New Testament was written, the term "lord" meant a deity or a god. In those days people worshiped many gods in the Mediterranean area. Each city and village had its own god. When one referred to a lord, he was referring to the god of a particular city or village. When Paul ascribed lordship to Jesus Christ, he meant Jesus was more than a superior individual; he meant He was God Himself. The same is true when the Holy Spirit is called Lord. He is called "the Lord" and is thereby recognized as God Himself. Divine Nature of the Holy SpiritThe Holy Spirit Is Eternal — Another way to distinguish the deity of the Holy Spirit is to notice that He possesses the same divine qualities that God the Father possesses. For example, in Hebrews 9:14, He is called "the eternal Spirit." No one is eternal except God, because every created thing had a beginning point in time. Therefore, only God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are eternal. Existing eternally and having immortality are not the same thing. Immortality does not mean that one has always existed; it only means that one will not stop existing from now on. The word "eternal" means that one has existed forever without beginning and without end. We possess eternal life because we partake of the life that comes from God — His life — eternal life. The Holy Spirit Is Present Everywhere — Just as God the Father is present everywhere at one time, so is the Holy Spirit. Psalm 139 expresses it this way:
The Spirit of God is always present everywhere to help us in our time of need. We can rely upon Him to help us whenever we need Him on the basis of the finished work of Jesus Christ. All that we have and all the benefits of the Godhead toward us rest exclusively upon the finished work of Jesus and never upon our goodness or merit. If we think we can call upon God because we have lived a life pleasing to Him, we are wrong. No one is righteous in His sight:
Only that which is done through the empowerment of the Spirit of God is acceptable to Him. The Holy Spirit Is All-Powerful — The Old Testament prophet Zechariah wrote, "'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the Lord" (Zechariah 4:6). The Apostle John taught "greater is He who is in you [the Holy Spirit] than he who is in the world" (1 John4:4). Satan is the spirit now working in the sons of disobedience (Ephesians 2:1). He is the one "who is in the world." The Holy Spirit is greater than Satan and all his kingdom put together! The Holy Spirit Knows Everything — Finally, the Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit knows even the deep things of God. Paul wrote to the church in Corinth:
The Holy Spirit is the one who understands the very thoughts of God. Since He knows everything, He can teach and instruct us about the things of God. He Is Associated in Divine WorksAssociated in Creation — Divine works are also ascribed to the Holy Spirit. In the second verse of the Bible, the Spirit of God is associated in the creation. Genesis 1:2 says, "And the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters." The Spirit of God, right at the beginning of the Bible, is instrumental, with God the Father and God the Son, in the creation of the world. It is amazing how God uses different passages from Scripture to lead people to Christ. I once heard about a man whose life's story was portrayed on the famous radio program, "Unshackled." He read the second verse of Genesis, and because the Spirit of God was mentioned in that verse, he was so interested that he kept reading. He read until finally he was led to faith in Jesus. The book of Job also shows that the Holy Spirit has a part in creating and sustaining man.
Associated in Regeneration — In the New Testament, while speaking with Nicodemus, Jesus ascribed to the Holy Spirit the power of regenerating lost men. He is the agent in the new birth. This is discussed in more detail elsewhere in this book. You cannot be born again without Jesus Christ, but neither can you be born again without the Holy Spirit: "He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit" (Titus 3:5). Associated in Resurrection — He was involved in the resurrection of Jesus according to Romans: Jesus "was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness" (Romans 1:4). This verse says clearly that the Spirit raised Jesus: "But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who indwells you." (Romans 8:11). He Is Associated with the Father and SonFinally, the deity of the Holy Spirit is shown by His association with God the Father and God the Son in several places in the New Testament. At the Incarnation — He was active with the Father in the incarnation of Jesus Christ: "And the angel answered and said to her, [Mary] 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High [God the Father] will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy offspring shall be called the Son of God'" (Luke 1:35). The incarnation is the embodiment of Jesus in the form of a man. The Holy Spirit, God the Father, and God the Son all appear in one verse in this account of the incarnation by Luke. At the Baptism of Christ — The Spirit was also present at the baptism of Jesus Christ. At that time, the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus in the form of a dove: "And after being baptized, Jesus went up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming upon Him" (Matthew 3:16). Then, the Father spoke from heaven (Matthew 3:17), thereby associating the three members of the Godhead at the baptism of Jesus. At the Great Commission — When Jesus gave the great commission He said, "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19). There again the Holy Spirit is associated in one verse with God the Father and God the Son. Both the personality and the deity of the Holy Spirit are seen in Christ's words. As one writer noted, Jesus did not and could not say, "baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the wind or force." That would have made no sense at all. It would have denied the personality of the Holy Spirit and His association with the Father and the Son. Make It PersonalWe can rejoice because the Holy Spirit has come to live in our hearts. He is Himself a person who can fellowship with us and help us with the various needs of our daily lives. Because He is God, He has sufficient power to do everything that is necessary for our well-being. Not only is He able, but He is also willing to do every thing we need. Thank God we have not been left alone. Jesus said, "I will not leave you as orphans" (John 14:18), and He did not! We have the power and presence of the Spirit of God, to whom, along with the Father and the Son, be praise and glory in the Church, now and for all time.
Do you know for sure that you will spend
eternity in Heaven? The Bible speaks clearly about how you can know for
sure if you are Heaven-bound. Return to How Not to Get Burned table of contents. Phone: (813)920-2264 Fax: (813)920-2265 Updated Thursday, 24-Jan-2008 10:30:26 EST by BAP |