By Edwin D. Roels


Introduction

Before Jesus left his disciples, he promised that he would send the Holy Spirit to them when he returned to heaven. The Holy Spirit would come to them, live within them, and help them live the kind of life Jesus wanted them to live. He would also serve as their counselor and guide, bringing to their minds everything Jesus had taught them while he was on earth.

Through the Holy Spirit, the disciples and all other believers would be able to produce spiritual fruit that would glorify God. The Spirit would purify their motives, fill them with joy and help them to be all that Christ taught them to be. The Holy Spirit would also enable them to witness to others with such power that many people would be attracted to Christ and to the fellowship of believers.


1.  Who is the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit is God, just as the Father is God and the Son is God. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament make frequent references to the Holy Spirit. In the Old Testament he is usually referred to simply as the Spirit of God, while in the New Testament he is often referred to as “the Holy Spirit.” Christians refer to the Holy Spirit as the third person of the Holy Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Scripture References

The Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. . . . no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. (1 Corinthians 2:10-11)

Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? (1 Corinthians 3:16)

God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts. (Galatians 4:6)


2.  Does this mean that there are three separate Gods called the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit?

No. The Bible repeatedly emphasizes that there is only one true God. However, the Bible also teaches that the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. Believers therefore refer to the one true God as the Holy Trinity (Tri-Unity or three-in-one). Though we cannot fully understand this teaching, we accept it as a truth which God has made known to us in the Bible. When we honor and worship the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, we are worshiping the one true God.

Scripture References

Jesus said: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 28:19)

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 Corinthians 13:14)


3.  Is the Holy Spirit a divine Person or simply a spiritual influence?

The Holy Spirit is a divine Person as the Father and the Son are. The Holy Spirit thinks, loves, feels and acts. He also comforts us, prays for us, hears our prayers, teaches and guides us, purifies us and lives within us.

Scripture References

Jesus said, “The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” (John 14:26)

The Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand. (Acts 1:16)   

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth. (John 16:13)

They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Acts 2:4)

The apostle Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit . . . You have not lied to man, but to God.” (Acts 5:3-4)

And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. (Ephesians 4:30)


4.  When do we first read about the Holy Spirit in the Bible?

We first read about the Holy Spirit in the second verse of the Bible. The Holy Spirit was involved in the creation of the world and continues to be involved in the creation of all new life in the world.

Scripture References

The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. (Genesis 1:2)

When you send forth your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the ground. (Psalm 104:30)


5.  What is the role of the Holy Spirit in our spiritual life?

The Holy Spirit is the creator and source of spiritual life just as he is the source of natural life. He produces spiritual fruit in us, leads us into the truth, gives us victory over temptation, comforts us in times of sadness and sorrow, encourages us in times of weakness, assures us of forgiveness when we sincerely confess our sins, empowers us to be faithful witnesses to Jesus, and helps us to become more like our Savior Jesus.

Scripture References

Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. (John 3:5-6)

He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit. (Titus 3:5)

Jesus said, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses.” (Acts 1:8)

They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness. (Acts 4:31)

Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. (Romans 8:9)


6.  How can we receive the Holy Spirit into our own hearts and lives?

We must repent of our sins, trust in Jesus for forgiveness, and ask our Father in heaven to give us the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Scripture References

Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:38)

If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13)


7.  What kind of spiritual fruit does the Holy Spirit produce in the lives of believers?

The Holy Spirit enables us to produce spiritual fruit that glorifies God and blesses others. Without the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts and lives, we would never be able to become the kind of people God wants us to be.

Scripture References

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23)

Those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. . . . to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. (Romans 8:5-6)

If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. (Galatians 5:25)


8.  How does the Holy Spirit help us resist and overcome temptation?

When we humbly follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, we are able to be victorious over temptations of every kind. The Holy Spirit actually lives within us, helping us to focus on things that are pleasing to God and enabling us to resist the temptations of our flesh (sinful nature). The Holy Spirit may also bring to our minds truths that we have forgotten. He helps us to remember that we belong to God and that we are not our own masters. And he creates a renewed desire in our hearts to live for the Savior who died for us.

Scripture References

Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. (Galatians 5:16)

You . . . are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if the Spirit of God dwells in you. (Romans 8:9)

Those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. (Romans 8:5)


9.  Is it possible for believers to disobey the Holy Spirit and lose the blessing and joy of living for Christ?

Yes, at least temporarily. When we deliberately choose to sin, we grieve the Holy Spirit and lose the peace and joy he gives us when we obey him. But if we have truly been born again, the Spirit will bring us back to the way of life after we have wandered away from it.

Scripture References

Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. (Ephesians 4:30)

Do not quench the Spirit. (1 Thessalonians 5:19)


10. How does the Holy Spirit help us in our prayer life?

The Holy Spirit not only helps us to pray but he also prays for us.

Scripture References

The Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us . . . And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. (Romans 8:26-27)

Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. (Ephesians 6:18)


11. What are some of the spiritual gifts which the Holy Spirit gives to believers?

The Holy Spirit gives a wonderful variety of gifts to believers. He distributes these gifts to believers in a way and at a time that he himself chooses.

Scripture References

Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. (Romans 12:6-8)

There are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. . . . To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge . . . to another faith . . . to another gifts of healing . . . to another the working of miracles . . . to another prophecy . . . to another the ability to distinguish between spirits . . . to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills. (1 Corinthians 12:4-11)


12. Is the Holy Spirit concerned about the unity of believers?

Very much. The unity of the church is of great importance for the spiritual growth of believers and also for their witness to the unbelieving world.

Scripture References

(Be) eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace . . . until we all attain to the unity of the faith . . . and mature manhood. (Ephesians 4:3, 13)

Jesus prayed: “[May they] all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me . . . I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.” (John 17:21, 23)


13. Why should we always follow the leading of the Holy Spirit and use our bodies to honor and glorify God?

Our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit who lives within us. We are not our own masters. We belong to God!

Scripture References

Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? (1 Corinthians 3:16)

We are the temple of the living God. (2 Corinthians 6:16)

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)


14. What promise is given to believers concerning the future resurrection of their bodies?

When Jesus returns to earth again, our earthly bodies will be raised as new glorious bodies that will never die.

Scripture References

And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. (Romans 8:11)

When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” (1 Corinthians 15:54)


15. Can we be sure that we are truly saved?

Yes. When we trust in Jesus as our Savior and seek to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit assures us that we are children of God.

Scripture References

All who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God . . . The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. (Romans 8:14-16)

By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. (1 John 4:13)

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. (1 John 5:13)


Last modified: Monday, August 6, 2018, 12:02 PM