Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit to be our power, a means of building the Church He so loves. Many liberal theologians advance the theory of the self sufficiency of man. Many pastors teach that it is the "I" who must do the work of God if it is to be done on the earth: I will edify the saints, I will persevere to glorification.
Whenever man feels that he can do good of his own accord, whenever we begin to believe that it is our works that promote the Kingdom of Heaven on the earth, there is an immediate de-emphasis of the work of the Spirit. We are not gods, nor can our finity ever approach the infinity of God. Because we are limited God gave us His precious Spirit so we could do His work on the earth.
From post Apostolic times to the Reformation era the Church neglected the power of the Holy Spirit in it's everyday life. Pelagianism was in full swing, teaching that only be ascetic acts of holiness would we ever be fit to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Man and man's power was glorified over the omnipotence of God's Plan. God was literally placed in a box.
Following the Reformation the Church once more restored the Word of God to the people. Whereas Romanism limited study and interpretation of the Scriptures to the "holy seers", the Reformation taught that each person should individually study the Scripture under the guidance of God's Spirit.
Arminian thought rose up in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, teaching that salvation was, in fact, a partnership between God and man. The Arminians placed a strong emphasis on the will of man and downplayed the will of God. As man's will was held supreme, the power of the Holy Spirit was de-emphasized in the believer's life.
Following Arminianism came the groups dedicated to Mysticism. The Mystics taught that no Christian needed fellowship with another, that the believer only needed to be submissive to the will of God the Holy Spirit. The Mystic beliefs, formed in opposition to Arminianism and Catholicism, was an excess in the opposite direction, for it ignored Christ's institution of the Church on the earth. If God did not want the Church to fellowship together on the earth then why did He establish the Gifts of Teaching and Pastoring? Again, Mysticism was an excess far removed from Scriptural thought.
Rationalism was another sect that rose up, twisting the Scriptures to suit their needs. Rationalism placed great emphasis on the human facilities of reason as opposed to the guiding hand of God. Many of our modern theologians are rationalists. By stressing the power of man over God, God the Spirit is made to seem superfluous. Many rationalists have even stepped so far beyond Scripture that they teach God as an impersonal force, not a Creator with an all encompassing Will. In the words of the New Age philosophies, "Use the force, Luke"!
In opposition to these excesses there arose groups such as:
Genesis 1:2-3 "And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light."
The Holy Spirit is able to act based on His own intelligence. An impersonal "force" could not do so, nor would it have volition apart from God. The Holy Spirit is a Person.
John 14:26 "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you."
The Holy Spirit, our Teacher, has obvious intelligence, an attribute of personhood. Our Holy Spirit is not just intelligent, but He is super intelligent, for He will teach us all things. If the Spirit does not know all things, then how can He teach all things? The super intelligence of the Spirit is evidenced throughout Christianity. C.S. Lewis, though certainly not an evangelical, was a brilliant theologian directed by the Spirit of God. Francis Schaeffer, another brilliant theologian, has taught thousands of believers as he was led by the Spirit. No mindless force could have imparted the wisdom that these men showed. This wisdom came by a Living God, the Holy Spirit.
Romans 8:27 "And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God."
In this verse we see that the Holy Spirit has a mind, that He manifests the intelligence of His mind by the ministry of interceding for the Saints. That the Spirit is a Person is proven through this manifested act of intelligence. The Spirit is a distinct Person, separate from the Father, because He consciously intercedes in collaboration with the Will of God. because he maketh intercession clearly shows the independent intelligence of the Spirit. Only an intelligent being can have a "will" or a "plan". The second Person (the Father) guides or directs the first Person (the Spirit).
By these different actions within the Godhead we see that the Spirit is a separate Being from the Father. When we as humans make a decision to drink a glass of water we do not tell our hands "Now you fill that glass and hold it to your lips". This would be ludicrous! When we make a decision to do something we perform the act by subconscious direction. The same is true of God's being. The Father does not tell Himself "Now you do this, now you do that". This, too, is ludicrous. If the Spirit were a part of the Father He would not be addressing Him. Instead, the Father is directing another intelligent Person to function in a specific way. By the action of direction and obedience we see that there are two Persons here, both distinct and yet equal in substance. The Father and God the Holy Spirit.
Acts 5:9 "Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door, and shall carry thee out."
Ephesians 4:30 "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption."
Isaiah 63:10 "But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them."
The Holy Spirit may be grieved, vexed, saddened, angered, and tempted. These are all attributes of a Person, not a force.
Now that we have seen sufficient evidence that the Holy Spirit is a distinct Person from the Father, can we determine whether or not this same Spirit is equally divine in Being?
Isaiah 6:8-9 "Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me. And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not."
Acts 28:25-26 "And when they agreed not among themselves, they departed, after that Paul had spoken one word, Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet unto our fathers, Saying, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive:"
In these parallel passages we see direct proof of the deity of the Holy Ghost. In the Old Testament prophecy of Isaiah, we see that this Word came by the "voice of the Lord". The Hebrew word for "Lord" is ADONAY, a word used only for the Almighty God. We see the same word used in Isaiah 7.7, which reads:
".. Thus saith the Lord God .."
By reading our parallel in Acts chapter 28 we see that the Apostles applied the prophecy of Isaiah (which came by the voice of the Lord) specifically to the Holy Spirit (spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias). This is a clear indication that the Holy Spirit is equal in His Deity to God.
Acts 5:3-4 "But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God."
The Holy Ghost is equal in deity to God. This is clearly emphasized by Peter in this text alone. The Apostles did not consider the Holy Spirit to be a thing, or an extension of God, but co-equal with God while completely separate from the other Members of the Godhead.
1 John 4:16 "And we
have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love;
and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him."
We can also prove that the Holy Spirit is a separate member of the Godhead, though completely equal with it's other Members. God recognizes Himself as perfect love. In order for Him to have recognized this attribute in Himself, He must have experienced love. God does not grow or change:
James 1:17 "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning."
He does not increase in perfection daily. Any attributes (characteristics) that God possesses have been His for as long as He has been in existence. God is infinite in His Being, and since He is infinite then these attributes have been with Him throughout eternity. Love is one of these eternal attributes of God.
Since the Love of God has been in evident in Him from eternity past, then it was in operation before the Creation of man and the Angelic Hosts. Love must have an object to be exercised. You can not love just yourself and recognize true pure love in yourself. Self love is selfishness. There must be an object for love. Since God's attribute of love is eternal, the object that the attribute is exercised on must be eternal also. For God to recognize Himself as perfect love, it must indeed be an unconditional love that He shows to love's object. If the object of God's love is lesser than Himself, then the love He exercises would be conditional. If the object of God's love is greater than Himself, then the love He exercises would be slavish or servantile. The object of God's love must be equal to God Himself, else it would not be unconditional and perfect love.
In order for God's love to be completely unconditional,
God would need to exercise that love on at least two other Persons
equal to Himself. Why? If God the Father exercised love toward only
God the Son, He would be exercising that love knowing that it must
be returned. God the Son would also have to exercise His attribute
of love in order that recognize it in Himself. The only way God could recognize
Himself as unconditional love from eternity would be if He exercised that
attribute toward two other Beings equal to Himself. God the
Father could love God the Son who could love God the Holy Spirit who in
turn could love God the Father. Each Member of the Godhead would be giving
unconditional love, giving and expecting nothing in return. This is a deductive
proof of the Trinity of God. If we remove one of than members from
the Trinity by stating that the Holy Ghost is not a Separate Person, then
we proclaim, by this very belief, that God is less than perfect.
A proper understanding of the unique Person of the Holy Spirit is not only
essential to any proper study of the Trinity, it is also essential to any
proper understanding of the Infinity and Perfection of God.
1 Corinthians 2:10-14
"But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth
all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things
of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of
God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the
spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know
the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak,
not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost
teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man
receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness
unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
We need to have a proper understanding of God and His Word now, more than ever. Not only the unregenerate, but the fearful regenerate as well, have come up with the unfounded belief that the Bible is errant in it's content, that the Holy Word of God contains contradictions. Many theologians are turning from the long proven truths of the Bible to erroneous doctrines such as because of fear. They fear what the man-made sciences have "discovered" as "truth". Many Christians fear science like a rabbit fears a wolf. This should not be! The reverse should be true, for we are the Children of the Almighty, the Creator of all that science studies.
The Human mind has a God-given capacity for logical system, not confusion. We were created this way because we were created by Him in the image of God. The textbook which God gave to man for our good is systematic and complete in it's content, and when we study it we need to approach it as a complete work. You can see the system of Scripture through teachings like the Ten Commandments. In the first part of the Commandments we are told to love God. In the second part of the commandments we are told to love our neighbor.
When man fell into sin, he fell from the stability that God put in him into confusion. The only way we can return to this former stable state of mind is by accepting Jesus Christ as our Savior. At the point of salvation the Holy Spirit regenerates us (makes us spiritually alive again) so that we can have a right relationship with God, along with peace of mind.
Isaiah 26:3 "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee."
The Christian who fears what science has to say about the Word of God is needlessly giving up that peace. Those who condemn the Word from the standpoint of science are unregenerated unbelievers. They are in a confused state! They have no power to understand that wonderfully systematic work of teaching set forth in God's Word. It is only natural for the unbeliever to attack the Bible as contradictory or full of error. To fear that which an unregenerate person says is true is foolish. The unregenerate mind does not have the capacity to perceive the pure truth of the Word.
2 Peter 1:20-21 "Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."
The Holy Spirit is the literary agent of the Holy Scriptures. How much of the writing came from man, and how much from the Spirit?
"by the Holy Ghost" The word by in our passage is the Greek HUPER. In the passive voice (which it is in this text) it denotes direct agency. The Holy Spirit was in complete and direct control of the prophecies given; both in reception and in transmittal. The Spirit controlled the writers of Scripture in such a way that there could be no error. As the woodworker uses tools to create masterpieces, the Spirit used the writers to create the masterpiece of the Scripture. The Word of God is completely and totally free of error, as God would not transmit error to His children.
Psalms 95:7-11 "For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work. Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways: Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest."
Hebrews 3:7-11 "Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways. So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.)"
By paralleling these two verses we can, again, see that the Holy Spirit wrote the Scriptures. But did the Spirit alone write our Scriptures, or was it a work created by all Members of the Trinity? The Israelites believed that it was God the Father who spoke to them through David, yet the New Testament passage clearly indicates that it is the Holy Ghost who spoke. The Father was the source of the writing of Scripture, and directed the Spirit in its writing. The Holy Spirit was the author of the writing. He personally directed man in the writing. Christ made the writing of the Scripture possible. If He had not agreed to become a substitutionary sacrifice for our sins then there would have been no need for the work. Without the regeneration provided through salvation we would be spiritually unfit to receive the truths of Scripture. Without the Son's substitutionary sacrifice we would be living a empty life without hope of salvation. What the Son did made it all possible, and in this capacity we recognize Jesus as the direct reason for the writing.
John 14:16, 26 "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; ... But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you."
Since the Holy Spirit is the direct Author in the writing of Scripture, who is better qualified to teach its content? There are teachers in the Body of Christ, placed there by God to disciple His sheep, yet without the internal teaching ministry of the Spirit, the Believer could never comprehend what he was being told. When false teachers enter the Body of Christ, it is the illumination of the Holy Spirit that keeps us from falling into error.
Mark 13:22 "For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect."
False prophets and Christs will try to seduce the Christian (notice the phrase, "if it were possible"), yet it is not possible. Why? If a person is truly born again, and is indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God, then God protects His people from falling into blasphemous false doctrine. The truly saved are protected from the false prophets by the Spirit of God, if they heed His call!
2 Timothy 3.14-17 (Greek Textual Translation) "But you, Timothy, abide in the things you have learned, and of which you have become certain. Knowing from you have learned them, and that from a babe you have learned the holy writings, which are able to make you wise unto salvation, through faith which is in Christ Jesus. Every Scripture is God breathed and inspired of God, profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for discipline in righteousness; that the person of God will reach maturity, completely equipped to do every good work.."
There are three very important points that we can gather from the above passage:
(1) The Scriptures play a very important part in the role of salvation. Though Salvation is through faith in Christ alone, the Scriptures point us in the direction of Christ. They guide us to accepting Jesus, convict us to repentance so we can enjoy the regeneration of the Holy Ghost. This guidance of the Scriptures comes to every man by the preaching of the Gospel by holy men of God gifted in ministry. Preaching is a function of God's Common Grace to mankind.
The scriptures call all men to salvation, even though this pathway is spurned by many. God is entirely just and righteous to all; those who reject His offer of salvation have only themselves to blame for their eternal damnation.
2) The Apostle recognized all of the Scripture as inerrant, totally free from error. states. Paul said Every Scripture, not just those which we agree on. What does this specifically mean?
a. The narrative parts of the Bible are exactly recorded, word for word, as they were spoken. Just because God exactly recorded these words does not mean that He agreed with all that was recorded. When He recorded Satan's raving "I will be like God" (Isaiah 14.13), God did not exactly record the statement so as to affirm that He agreed with it. But God recorded the statement exactly as it was made.
b. The doctrinal passages are exactly and absolutely true. We may not understand portions of the Scripture in it's entirety (such as the difficult doctrine of the Trinity), yet this does not diminish the truth of the passage.
3) The Scriptures were given to man so that we can reach
and retain a certain level of Spiritual maturity. The Scriptures are the
means of sanctifying the Christian when his mind is illuminated
by
the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit.
There are two degrees of revelation from God. They
are:
Special Revelation: This is the mode of communication where the Holy Spirit directly and personally speaks to man. The Word of God, Visions, Dreams, prophetic trances, and certain historic events (The Cross and The Exodus) are all forms of Special Revelation.
General Revelation: This is the mode of communication by which God speaks to man through impersonal and mediatorical ways. Nature is a form of General Revelation. In nature you cannot see a clear message of God because of the taint of sin on it, yet you can see by it's design that there had to be an intelligent Creator.
Doctor B. B. Warfield advanced the idea that there were three periods of time where the Holy Spirit revealed God to man through Special Revelation. He states:
"Revelation has been given to man in three fairly marked periods of time ... the Patriarchal Age, the Prophetic Age, and the Apostolic Age. In the Patriarchal Age revelation was given largely through outward manifestations (burning bush,, Pillar of Fire, etc.) ... It was given by symbols, by Theophanies (The Appearance of God in human forms) ... In the Prophetic Age, this was the age of internal suggestion. The Holy Spirit moved on the hearts of the Prophets and the Prophets gave to men words that God was giving to them .. In The Apostolic Age, this was the age of concursive operation. .. The Age of the Spirit through the medium of the written word by human organisms .."
Of the accuracy of these forms of revelation, Doctor Warfield states:
".. As light that passes through the colored glass of a Cathedral window is light from heaven, but is stained by the attempts through the glass in which it passes, so any Word of God that is passed through the mind and soul of man must come out discolored by the Personality through which it is given (and just to that degree ceases to be the pure Word of God). But what if this personality itself has been formed by God into precisely the personality it is for the expressed purpose of communicating, to the Word given through it, just the coloring which it gives? What if the colors of the stained glass window have been designed by the Architect for the expressed purpose of giving the light that floods the Cathedral precisely the tone and quality it receives from them? What if the Word of God, that comes to His people, is framed by God into the Word of God it is precisely by the means of the qualities of the men formed by Him for the purpose through which it is given? When we think of the Lord giving by His Spirit a Body of authoritative writings to His people, we must remember that He is the God of Providence and of grace ... and that He holds all the lines of preparations as fully under His directions as He does the specific operation, which we call technically in the narrow sense, by the name of inspiration.."
2 Peter 1:19-21 "We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."
To what extent did the Holy Ghost inspire or authorize the texts of the original Autographa? The word used for moved in the above verse is the Greek PHERO, which translated means "to bear along, to lift up and carry". The same word would be used when speaking of carrying a crippled person to bed. The word does not mean moving in the sense of a father telling a lazy son to go to work. It also does not imply a forced moving. The prophets were moved or controlled by God the Holy Spirit while writing the Scriptures, but not forced into this movement. They were carried along by the Spirit while surrendering their wills to Him. How much of the Bible, then, is of God and how much is of man?
The individual style of the writer is retained by the writer himself. Yet on further consideration might we not also agree that God, being sovereign, prepared each writer from birth so that the Word of God could be manifest through that writer's peculiar style of writing? The Bible is a work of God in its entirety. Surely there is no jot or tittle within it that was not placed there by God the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 1.22 -- Greek Textual Translation: "Now this whole thing has come to pass in order that which was spoken directly by the Lord through the intermediate agency of the Prophet might be fulfilled."
The Prophets were only intermediate agents that
the Lord used, as tools, in order to accomplish His Work. Were they forced
into this position? No, but they were persuaded (with a persuasion
that they did not want to refuse) to do the holy work they were called
to do.
There are two ways of learning the truths we find
in the Word of God, neither method inseparable from the other. The human
element in Bible research is called "Inspiration". We use our God
given capabilities of logic and reason to seek to understand the whole
of the Bible. This method is finite, and subject to failure. Often
human
emotion creeps into what we would otherwise intelligently comprehend. This
rampant emotionalism often leads us to accept that which
"feels right" as Biblically accurate.
Our Father understands our fallibility. Because of this He created a second means of learning Scripture. To facilitate this means the Father sent the Holy Spirit to earth to indwell the believer. The Spirit's activity in teaching us the Word is known as Illumination. Through Illumination the Spirit empowers our understanding so we can grasp (understand) the truths of our infinite God. There are many radio waves in the air around us at this very moment. We cannot hear what is being said without using a radio receiver. Even so, the Holy Spirit is our radio receiver for the spiritual things of God.
1 Corinthians 2:14 "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
The natural men are those who do not possess the Holy Spirit. They do not hear the directives of God, for they are unable to do so. Even if they heard them, they would still refuse to follow these directions, for they could not comprehend them. The unbeliever is totally dead to the preaching of the Gospel, dead to the call of God Almighty.
1 Corinthians 3:1 "And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ."
The carnal Christian has slipped back into the sin of his old ways. This is a person totally out of fellowship with God, and therefore not attuned to The Holy Spirit of God. When we first accepted Christ as Savior it is quite natural that we be babies. Yet when we have been in Christ for many years, and are yet unable to explain the rudimentary doctrines of Scripture, then it is certain that we are fallen from fellowship with God. Every time the Christian sins, he commits an act which to some degree impedes his spiritual growth. Maturity in the Body of Christ is not measured by time. You may have been a Christian for fifty years and even now be a baby in spiritual maturity. Our growth is measured by our willingness to follow the directives that God the Holy Spirit has given us. The pupil who will not pay attention to the teacher will perhaps grow a little. Yet it is certain that he will not grow as much as he would have if he had been more attentive in class. So it is with the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit. The Christian that is out of fellowship with the Lord will grow only a little, if at all. The Christian will only see true growth when he is in submission to the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit.
The two facets of learning, interpretation and illumination, are inseparable. The Christian must "Study to show himself approved" so he can place in his mind materiel for the Holy Spirit to teach or illuminate. The Lord God expects us to participate in our progressive Sanctification. We must participate in our own growth if we are to grow at all. Many have the idea that, after salvation, they can lay back and say "Ok Lord, Grow Me!". Nothing is farther from the truth. We either participate in our growth by studying God's Word, or we remain carnal and useless within the Plan of God.
On the other hand, the unbeliever cannot study God's Word and hope to gather anything of worth out of it. If you do not have the Holy Spirit in your life illuminating that which you study it is only dead and useless text. A good example is Isaac Asimov's study of the Bible. A very scholarly work, very thorough, and yet very dead.
John 14:16-17, 26 "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.... But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you."
It is God's Plan for your life that your learn His Word. Christ said, "he shall teach you all things". If the Christian falls out of fellowship the Father will chastise him until he repents and returns to the fold. God wants us to grow, to participate in our sanctification through the illumination of the Spirit. It would be well if all of us, would remember this maxim:
"Unless the Spirit empowers the work it shall only be like trash before the eyes of God."
The Holy Spirit and His Ministries In The Old Testament
Doctor B. B. Warfield "..the Doctrine of the Holy Spirit of God is exclusive to the Bible. It is foreign to Hellenism, it is foreign to thoughts outside the world of the Bible."
The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit is not exclusive to the New Testament. In the Old Testament the Spirit is mentioned in all but sixteen books. In both Old and New Testaments the Holy Spirit was active in three spheres in connection with man:
1) In the world: The Holy Spirit was active in creation. He was active in forming its order.
2) In the Theocracy: The Holy Spirit was concerned with the creation of the people of God. He installed order and government in Israel and the Church. He worked to prepare a kingdom for these people for when they have reached full maturity.
3) In the Individual: The Spirit ministers to the people of God. He individually prepares a people for the Kingdom of God. His ministries of Calling, Justification, and Sanctification are evidenced in this sphere of activity.
Genesis 1:2 "And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters."
This is the first mention of the Holy Spirit in the Bible. Please note there is no introduction nor explanation of who He is or where He came from. From this fact we can say that the Hebrews fully understood the presence of the Holy Spirit. If not, if they were just becoming to understand Him, then why were they so familiar in their speech toward Him?
We can learn more about the Holy Spirit from this text by looking at it in the original languages. The Hebrew for moved in this passage means: "To hover over as a bird hovers over its young". We can see the Holy Spirit's attitude of love toward creation.
Job 33:4 "The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life."
Genesis 2:7 "And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul."
How did the Spirit of God work in the Creation of man?
God the Father is the Chief Executive of the Godhead. God the Holy Spirit
is the Active Agent in the Godhead. The Father speaks and directs, the
Spirit moves in obedience to this direction. Specifically:
The Holy Spirit of God is not only the source of all spiritual life in creation, He is also the source of all physical life. Man is not self sufficient. If God the Spirit were to draw back from this earth for but a moment, then all that was life before His withdrawal would cease. We would all become just so much dust.
The Holy Spirit is also the source for the retention of all decent life in the world. He wills order in society to cause us to create governments and laws for our own preservation. Because of the Holy Spirit's prompting of mankind we have laws like the Rules of the Geneva Convention (which protect the soldier against cruelty from the enemy during tines of war). In this country we have freedom to worship God as we will. We have the freedom to accrue materiel possessions, and laws to protect our freedom.
Psalms 104:30 "Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth."
When life was created in the Garden this was not the only time that the Holy Spirit was to perform this ministry. He repeats the act of creation somewhere in the world every day by delivering new life. Every time a baby is born it is because the Holy Spirit has united the sperm and ovum of its parents. Every time a plant grows, it is because the Holy Spirit breathes life into it. We live and breathe because of the loving ministry of the Holy Spirit.
Genesis 6:3 "And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years."
What is this passage telling us? In the Hebrew text the word translated spirit is the word RUACH, which means "spirit, wind, or conscience". The Holy Spirit also ministers to mankind by directing our conscience.
Romans 2:14-15 "For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)"
The Holy Spirit directs mankind into external acts of good. He does this by either of two ways: (a) He persuades the conscience of man into doing that which is right, and (b) Using peer pressure the Spirit creates laws and governments that work together to protect creation.
Our verse in Genesis also states that the Spirit shall
not
always strive with man. The Hebrew word for
strive
is DUWN, meaning "to contend with or remain among". What do you think the
effect will be when the Holy Spirit no longer influences mankind to external
good? Imagine walking into the department store knowing that you might
not get home. Imagine having to carry a weapon with you no matter
where you go. Imagine having no Bible to read from nor to cherish, for
even if they were still printed, owning one would be an open invitation
to death. Imagine all these things, and worse, and you will have a proper
conception of a world devoid of the control of the Holy Spirit. When the
Spirit withdraws there will be an equal insinuation of evil into the vacuum
left by His departing. When the Spirit departs the morality of mankind
will also break down, along with civilization and government.
.
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