The Holy Spirit is referred
to as the third person of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit bears witness that Jesus
was born and died. He is the Spirit of truth. The Father, the Word and the
Spirit are all one (1 John 5:6-7). The
Spirit directed the pen of the authors of God’s Word (2 Peter
1:21). In the same way, the Holy Spirit
helps us to know all things (1 John 2:20).
This allows us to keep God’s commandments, so that we can dwell in Him and
Jesus dwells in us by His Spirit (1 John 3:24, 4:13).
Everyone who confesses that
Jesus Christ is God who came in the flesh as the sacrifice for our sins does so
only by the anointing of the Holy Spirit of God (1 John 4:2). God dwells in the spirit of every Born Again Believer
by His Spirit (Luke 11:13;
John 7:38-39; Acts 2:38). God gives us
His Spirit as a down payment of all that He has in store for us (Ephesians
1:12-14). By the Spirit, we have access
to God the Father. The Spirit is building us, the Saints, together as a
dwelling place for God (Ephesians 2:18, 22).
The Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil as soon as he was baptized (Matthew 4:1), but Jesus used the Word of God to resist the devil (Matthew 4:2-11). He calls us to follow His example when we are tempted. The Spirit also leads us to obey God, in order to prepare us for what lies ahead in our life (Acts 13:2,4). Jesus cast out demons by the Spirit of God and proved that the Kingdom of God was then present on the earth (Matthew 12:28).
God anointed certain
individuals in the Old Testament to enjoy the depth of the Spirit that every
Believer has access to today. David valued his relationship with God so much
that when he sinned, he pleaded with God not to remove His presence or to take
His Spirit from him. He requested that God restore to him the joy of his
salvation and to lift him up by His Spirit (Psalms 51:11-12). David also spoke by the Holy Spirit (Mark
12:36).
When Israel rebelled against
God, they vexed God’s Holy Spirit so much that He turned into their enemy and
actually fought against them. But then they remembered the days of old, and how
God helped them to cross the Red Sea. Therefore, they asked God to put His Holy
Spirit within them again (Isaiah 63:10-11). By the Holy Spirit, God conceived Jesus in Mary (Luke
1:35). When Joseph assumed that Mary had
an affair, the Lord calmed him and confirmed the truth to him that Jesus came
from the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:18-20).
John the Baptist was filled
with the Holy Spirit of God from his mother’s womb (Luke 1:1). His father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost,
and prophesied (Luke 1:67). The Holy
Spirit was upon Simeon, a devout man of Jerusalem. The Spirit revealed to him
that he would not see death before he saw the Lord’s Christ, and this came to
pass when Mary and Joseph presented Jesus at the temple (Luke
2:25-27).
God baptizes us with water,
the Spirit and with fire (Matthew 3:11; John 3:5-6; Acts 11:15-16). At salvation, we are baptized with the Spirit (Romans
8:9). Then we follow Jesus’ example with
water baptism (Matthew 3:15-16). The baptism of fire often
refers to trials, which God sees each Believer through. The Spirit of God is
also represented as fire, because He enlightens and energizes our soul,
penetrating our deepest recesses of spirit and soul and transforming us into
the image of Christ (John 3:5).
When we come to God for salvation, His Spirit moves
into our life (Romans 8:9). This
happened to Jesus when John baptized Him (Matthew 3:16-17). From then on, Jesus did not speak His own words, but
only that which the Spirit of God spoke through Him (Matthew
10:20). Jesus commissions every believer
to go into all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and
Holy Spirit (Matthew
28:19). Jesus teaches us that when we
encounter persecution, the Spirit of God will speak through us also (Mark
13:11; Luke 12:12).
Jesus said, that if He did not go away, then the Holy Spirit could not come to Believers (John 16:7). He departed and sent the Holy Spirit to us. The Holy Spirit dwells in us, comforts us and abides with us forever. He is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive; and He leads us into all truth. He shows us things that are to come, teaches us all things and brings them to our remembrance when we need them. He reveals sin, righteousness, and judgment. He glorifies Jesus and not Himself (John 14:16-17, 15:26, 16:7-14). (More about the Spirit in tomorrow’s post on this blog).
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, the Holy Spirit
came to the disciples in the upper room and filled them with Himself, and they
spoke in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance (Acts
2:2-4, 4:8, 31, 10:44-47). Then they
went about praying for others to receive the Holy Spirit as well, and they
spread the gospel into the regions all around them (Acts
8:15-19, 9:31, 11:24, 15:28, 16:6-7, 19:2-6). Your words were fulfilled when You gave commandments to Your chosen
apostles through the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:2). Give us this same filling of Your Spirit and allow
us to follow Your disciples’ example.
Thought for the Day:
The
Holy Spirit gives power to Believers everywhere to bear witness about Christ in
our family, city, state, nation and the world (Acts
1:8, 5:32).
