Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
When we think about God, our minds are soon overwhelmed by the majesty of His Person. We cannot understand His eternal existence. . . He never had a beginning and will never have an end. We cannot grasp His amazing perfections of character. . . all-powerful, all-knowing, all-present, holy, unchangeable, sovereign, and loving, to speak of a few. We see His wonderful creation and marvel at how He could create a universe so vast. Our finite minds cannot fully comprehend the greatness of the infinite God. Not understanding everything about God should not lead us to doubt, but to believe what the Word says about Him. It should lead us to a greater appreciation of who He is and a deeper worship of Him.
One of the mysteries about our God which we don’t understand but accept by faith is that of the Trinity. We cannot fathom how God can be one and yet exist in three Persons. Many illustrations have been presented to try to explain the Trinity, but they all fall short. While we know much about God the Father and God the Son, we often have a nebulous idea about the third Person. Last month we began a study of the Holy Spirit, our Divine Comforter. We established that He truly is a Person. But in this study we will answer the question: “The Holy Spirit: Is He Really God?” The Holy Spirit is a Person, but that does not necessarily mean that He is God. There are other personal beings, such as angels and man, neither of which is divine. How can we know that He is God? Let’s examine four areas of evidence that He is God.
He is divine in His totality.
He possesses all the attributes or perfections of God.
He is omniscient—He has complete knowledge of all things (Isa. 40:13; I Cor. 2:9-12).
He is omnipresent—He is present everywhere at the same time (Psa. 139:7-10).
He is omnipotent—He possesses all power (Job 33:4; Psa. 104:30; Luke 1:35).
He is eternal—He has always existed and always will exist (Heb. 9:14).
He is holy—He is set apart from sin and from all creation (Luke 11:13).
He is truth—He is the very standard of truth and always bears witness to the truth (I John 5:6).
He is divine in His activity.
He does what only God can do.
In regard to creation, He was present and active in the creation of the universe and of man (Gen. 1:2; Job 26:13; 27:3; 33:4; Psa. 33:6; Psa. 104:29-30).
In regard to salvation, He is involved in the following aspects: conviction (presenting the truth in a clear light—John 16:7-11), regeneration (imparting spiritual life—John 3:5-8; Rom. 8:2), justification (declaring the believer righteous—I Cor. 6:11), sanctification (setting apart the believer to God—II Thess. 2:13), and resurrection (giving life to mortal bodies—Rom. 8:11).
In regard to the Scriptures, He was the primary source in inspiration as He moved holy men to record God’s revelation to man (II Tim. 3:16; II Pet. 1:21).
In regard to the ministry to believers, He provides instruction (teaching us the truth of His Word—Luke 12:11-12; I Cor. 2:9-16; I John 2:20, 27), consolation (comforting and encouraging us—John 14:16), ordination (setting us apart to ministry—Acts 13:1-5; 20:28), and intercession (aiding us in prayer—Rom. 8:26-27).
He is divine in His identity.
He is identified as God.
He is called “God” (Acts 5:3-4) and “the Lord’ (“the Lord, who is the Spirit”—II Cor. 3:18, ESV).
He is identified in the New Testament as Jehovah of the Old Testament (compare Isa. 6:8-9 with Acts 28:25-26; Jer. 31:31-34 with Heb. 10:15-17).
He can be blasphemed as God (Matt. 12:31-32).
He is divine in His equality.
He is presented as equal to the Father and the Son in the Trinity.
He is mentioned equally with the Father and the Son (Matt.28:19; II Cor.13:14; I Cor.12:4-6; I Pet. 1:2; John 14:16-17).
He appears with the Father and the Son at the baptism of Christ (Matt. 3:16-17).
He is called the Spirit of the other two Persons (Acts 16:7; Rom. 8:9; I Cor. 6:11).
(Resources used: The Great Doctrines of the Bible, William Evans, pp. 111-112; The Holy Spirit, Charles Ryrie, pp. 17-22; Basic Theology, Charles Ryrie, pp. 344-345; Major Bible Themes, L. S. Chafer, p. 89)
It makes a difference that the Holy Spirit is God. As God, He is equal to the Father and the Son and must receive proper respect as God. As God, He can work mightily in our lives, providing the power to live the Christian life. As God, He can fulfill all the ministries attributed to Him in the Word of God. Let’s yield moment by moment to the Spirit’s control!
Because of His Grace—Pastor Charlie