Who is the Holy Spirit?

Who Is the Holy Spirit? from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo.

This is message one in a four part series on the Holy Spirit 

So exactly who is the Holy Spirit?

He Was There In the Beginning:
(Genesis 1:1–2 NKJV) “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.”

The Holy Spirit is eternal and was here at the beginning of what we know as “time.” He could be considered as “The Breath of God.”

John tells us that Jesus was the Word of God: (John 1:1 NKJV) “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

In Genesis 1:1 the word used for “God” (“Elohim”) is plural, but the verb “created” (“Bara”) is singular. So we have the Father speaking, Jesus is His words, and the Holy Spirit His breath, all working together right at the beginning, completely in unison.

Then Genesis 1:26 reads “Then God said Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.” “Said” is singular, but “Us, and Our” are again plural.

When Isaiah had a vision of the Lord on His throne, he said: “I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?” (Isaiah 6:8 NKJV)

Again we have a singular action with I, then plural with “Us.” Scripture reveals three distinct Persons who are God. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

The first of the three mentioned in the Bible individually is the Holy Spirit: “And the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.”

What Does The Holy Spirit Do?

The Holy Spirit is our direct contact on earth, and He is God. In the book of Acts, Luke wrote: “As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them” (Acts 13:2 NKJV).

The Holy Spirit was speaking clearly as God with: “for the work which I have called them.”

The Holy Spirit powered the prophets: (2 Peter 1:21 NKJV) “for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.”

The Holy Spirit “narrated” the Bible to the people that wrote it: (2 Timothy 3:16–17 ESV) “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

The Holy Spirit “convicts” us of sin: (John 16:7–9 NKJV) “Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment”

He is our “Guide” and shares with us things that are coming on the earth: (John 16:13 NKJV) “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”

He “intercedes” for us when we do not know what to pray for: (Romans 8:26–27 NKJV) “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.”

He “Teaches us all things” and also helps us remember the word of God: (John 14:26 NKJV) “But 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 things that I said to you.”

One of my favorite teachers, Derek Prince, made a discovery that in every stage of redemption each Person of the Godhead played a unique and distinctive part, as indicated by the following outline:

1. The conception of Jesus. God the Father caused Jesus to be conceived in the womb of Mary by the Holy Spirit. See Luke 1:35.

2. The beginning of the ministry of Jesus. When Jesus submitted Himself to the baptism of John, the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in the form of a dove and the Father acknowledged Him as His Son. See Luke 3:21–22.

3. The ongoing ministry of Jesus. Peter sums this up in Acts 10:38: “God [the Father] anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil. . . .”

4. The sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. “Christ . . . through the eternal Spirit [i.e. the Holy Spirit] offered Himself without spot to God [the Father]. . . .” See Hebrews 9:14.

5. The resurrection of Jesus. God the Father resurrected Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit. See Romans 1:4; 8:11.

6. Pentecost. Exalted to the right hand of God the Father, Jesus received from Him the gift of the Holy Spirit and poured it out on the waiting disciples. See Acts 2:33.

The Holy Spirit is the One that speaks to us:
Jesus is in heaven with the Father. The Holy Spirit is the One operating here on earth. He is the one that speaks to us. He is our “Contact”.

Mark 13:11 And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit.

Why is He Called A Spirit?
In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word behind “Spirit” is “Ruach” meaning “Air in motion.” It is the same word used for “breath” and also means “life.”

Spirit: “Air in motion, Breath of God, Life.”

In the New Testament, the Greek word behind “Spirit” is “Pneuma”, which means “A current of air, breath, a breeze, or Spirit.” It is where we get the english word pneumatic, as in “An air-powered tool is called pneumatic.” We are “air-powered” people.

The Hebrew and Greek words are talking about moving air, breath, the wind. Jesus told us:

The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit" (John 3:6-8, NKJV).

Genesis records how God formed Adam, the first man:(Genesis 2:6-7, NKJV) "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 being.”

God breathed the Holy Spirit into Adam, and he became a living being. Our very life comes from the breath of God. The same thing happens when we are “Born of the Spirit”, when we are “Born again.”

The gospel of John records that Jesus breathed on His disciples: (John 20:21-22, NKJV) "Peace to you! As the Father sent me, I also send you. And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said, 'Receive the Holy Spirit.”

The term “Holy Ghost” sounds distant or even spooky, but you have to understand that the Holy Spirit is something very close to you, He is as close to you as your very breath. We literally breath in the Spirit of God, that is how we are filled with His Presence.

Paul said “for in Him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28 NKJV). He is all around us. The praise song that goes: "You are the air I breathe, Your holy Presence in me" is very scriptural.

Job wrote: “The Spirit of God has made me, And the breath of the Almighty gives me life” (Job 33:4 NKJV).

A psalmist (probably David) wrote: “You take away their breath, they die and return to their dust. You send forth Your Spirit, they are created; And You renew the face of the earth” (Psalms 104:29–30 NKJV).

Some Names of the Holy Spirit:
The Holy Spirit is also known at “The Holy Ghost”, “The Comforter”, “The Counselor”, and “The Helper.”

* The Spirit of Grace (Hebrews 10:29).
* The Spirit of Glory ( 1Peter 4:14).
* The Spirit of Wisdom ( Ephesians 1:17).
* The Spirit of Truth ( 1John 4:6).
* The Spirit of Life (Romans 8:2).

There are many aspects of the Holy Spirit. Isaiah the prophet lists seven distinct aspects of the Holy Spirit that would set apart Jesus as the Messiah, the Anointed One.

(Isaiah 11:1–3 NKJV) “There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall grow out of his roots. The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD” .

In the book of Revelation (3:1, 4:5, 5:6), John speaks of the “Seven Spirits of God.” I believe that this should be taken as the “Sevenfold Spirit of God”, the complete Holy Spirit as revealed in Isaiah chapter 11.

Is Holy Spirit a He or an It?:

The Holy Spirit is both a “He” and an “It”, but never a “She.” The original language of the New Testament is Greek, and Greek has three genders: Masculine (He), feminine (She), and neuter (It).

The Greek word for Spirit, “pneuma”, is neuter, gender neutral, but in several places the Holy Spirit is directly referred to as “He” or both “He and It”. As in John 16:13: “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; (John 16:13 NKJV).