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Bread of Life and Light of the World John 8:12 where Jesus states: "I am the light of the world: he who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."

Who Is The Holy Spirit? Who is God the Holy Spirit?BIBLWORDThe Holy Spirit is mentioned often in the Bible, mostly in th...
09/06/2022

Who Is The Holy Spirit?


Who is God the Holy Spirit?

BIBLWORD
The Holy Spirit is mentioned often in the Bible, mostly in the New Testament. He is called by various names, such as “Spirit of God” (Genesis 1:2, 1 Samuel 10:10), “Spirit of the Lord” (Isaiah 61:1), “Spirit of truth” (John 14:16-17), “Spirit of Jesus” (Philippians 1:19), or “Holy Spirit” (Psalm 51:11, Matthew 28:19). So who is this Holy Spirit and what is his work?

The Holy Spirit is God
The Holy Spirit is one Person of the triune God, besides God the Father and God the Son. He is not just an impersonal force, but a fully divine Person.

One text showing that the Holy Spirit is just as much “God” as the Father and the Son, is Matthew 28:19-20: “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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” Other texts show that the Holy Spirit has divine attributes indeed:

He is eternal (Hebrews 9:14)
He is omnipresent (Psalm 139:7-10)
He is omniscient, meaning that He knows everything (1 Corinthians 2:10-11)
He is almighty (Luke 1:35-37)
He is holy (Romans 1:4)
What is the work of the Holy Spirit?
The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are one God, but they have different roles. They perform these roles in full cooperation with the other members.

The Holy Spirit is clearly at work throughout the world’s history; in creation, in the incarnation of the Son, in the new birth of humans, in the inspiration and illumination of the Bible, and in transforming believers.

Was the Holy Spirit involved in creation?
The Bible begins with the clear statement that in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The second verse makes clear that the Holy Spirit was actively involved in the process of creation: “And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” (Genesis 1:2) The Hebrew word for “spirit” as it is used here, can also be translated as “breath”. That is what most Bible translations do in Psalm 33:6, which reads:
“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
And by the breath of His mouth all their host.”
Another verse about the Holy Spirit’s creative power is Job 33:4,
“The Spirit of God has made me,
And the breath of the Almighty gives me life.” (compare Genesis 2:7)
So, although the Bible does not explain in detail what the Holy Spirit’s role in creation was, it is clear that He was actively involved.

What is the Holy Spirit’s role in the incarnation of Jesus?
When God the Son became human, He was born from a virgin, Mary. When the angel Gabriel announced his birth, he explained: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.” (Luke 1:35) Just like the Holy Spirit hovered over the face of the waters at creation, He overshadowed Mary to create a baby in her womb while she was a virgin.

The Holy Spirit gives spiritual life
The ultimate life goal of humans is to know and love God, and to honor Him with their whole life. But since humans are sinful, they are not able to fulfill this goal anymore. They are spiritually dead (see Ephesians 2:1-3). It is the Holy Spirit’s task to make people spiritually alive again.

The decisive turning point for becoming a Christian, is metaphorically called “the new birth” or “being born again“. The Holy Spirit has a central role in that process, as Jesus explains: “Truly, truly, I say to you, 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. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit” (John 3:5-8).

The Holy Spirit convicts people of their sins and points them to Jesus’ atoning death. If people come to faith and accept God’s offer of forgiveness, the Spirit testifies that they have received eternal life and are children of God (Romans 8:16).

The Spirit transforms believers
The Holy Spirit is God, and yet He dwells in the heart of everyone who comes to faith in Jesus. Read for example Romans 8:9 – “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.”

The Spirit dwells in believers and teaches them the truth of God’s Word, so that they will be focused on Jesus: “the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened” (Ephesians 1:17-18).

The indwelling of the Holy Spirit leads to purification and sanctification, meaning that the power of sin is broken and believers become more holy as they grow in faith. The fruit of the Spirit proves God’s work in someone’s life. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23).

The Holy Spirit will raise our bodies from the dead
Not only does the Spirit make people spiritually alive, He will also raise their bodies: “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.” (Romans 8:11)

The Holy Spirit and the church
After Jesus’ resurrection and ascension into heaven, the apostles should spread the Gospel. But they could only do so when they were empowered by the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. And still, the Holy Spirit transforms believers into witnesses of their faith, so that the Gospel is spread worldwide.

The Holy Spirit is also at work within churches. He gathers and protects them. But He also purifies the church, so that ultimately she will be holy and blameless and above reproach before God (Colossians 1:22). In all this, the Holy Spirit is not focused on himself, but on the glory of Jesus (see John 16:13-14).

What are the gifts of the Holy Spirit?
The Bible mentions several gifts that the Holy Spirit gives to believers. The apostle Paul lists “the utterance of wisdom, … the utterance of knowledge, … faith, … gifts of healing, … the working of miracles, … prophecy, … the ability to distinguish between spirits, … various kinds of tongues, … the interpretation of tongues.” (1 Corinthians 12:8-10) Not every individual does receive every gift, but there are varieties of gifts given for the common good (1 Corinthians 12:4; 12:7).

22/07/2021

E
ven as Christians, it’s possible for us to be unaware of one of God’s most awesome blessings. Although we may know we’ve been saved, we might not realize that the Holy Spirit came to live within us at that moment. And even if we’ve heard this truth, we may not understand who the Spirit is or why His indwelling presence is significant. The Scripture tells us everything we need to know about this amazing gift of the Holy Spirit sent to us from our heavenly Father to enable us to become and do what He desires.

Consider these special attributes of the Holy Spirit:

He convicts us of sin (John 16:8).

He permanently indwells us (John 14:16-17).

He seals us (Eph. 1:13).

He teaches us (John 14:26).

He guides us into all truth (John 16:13).

He reminds us (John 14:26).

He bears fruit through us (Gal. 5:22-23).

He comforts us (John 16:7).

He equips us with spiritual gifts (1 Cor. 12:4-7).

He fills us (Eph. 5:18).

He empowers us (Acts 1:8).

Although the Spirit comes to indwell us immediately upon salvation, His work within us takes a lifetime. His job is to enable us to do everything God desires and to transform us into the people He wants us to be. Since we now have a constant Helper reminding us who we are in Christ and equipping us for each day’s challenges, we never have to struggle through life in our own strength. This doesn’t mean we’ll never have difficulties, conflicts, or misunderstandings; but through them all, He guards our way and gives us His wisdom. And when we sin, He immediately convicts us so we can confess and receive forgiveness (1 John 1:9).

The Holy Spirit is our source of power.

When Jesus gave His disciples the task of preaching the gospel to the entire world, they had absolutely no power to carry it out (Luke 24:49). That’s why Jesus told them to wait until the Spirit came. In the same way, if we hope to accomplish what God desires in our lives, we need to see Him as our source of power and strength.

The power of the Holy Spirit is God’s divine ability and authority released in believers’ lives for the purpose of godly living and fruitful service. When we walk in the Spirit, we’re relying on His strength to accomplish God’s will. As a result, we experience the following benefits:

We may get tired, but we won’t burn out.

We won’t get discouraged by obstacles, knowing the Spirit within us will enable us to do whatever He’s called us to accomplish.

We’ll trust God rather than trying to manipulate our circumstances.

We may experience distress, but we won’t become desperate.

When we do God’s work in His strength, in His way, and with His wisdom, we’ll be blessed no matter what goes on around us. Walking in the Spirit doesn’t make life easy, but we never have to walk through it alone because our Helper is always with us.

What does it mean to be filled with the Spirit?

Although we’re sealed and indwelt by Him when we’re saved, this is not the same as being filled. To be filled with the Spirit means we have surrendered our lives to Him, acknowledging that He owns us and has the right to lead us. When we are fully yielded and walking in obedience to His will, then He has full control and fills us with Himself.

16/06/2021

Jesus Is Love


1 John 4:16 ESV
So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

John 3:16 ESV
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

1 John 4:8 ESV
Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

1 John 2:5 ESV
But whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him:

1 Peter 2:13-14 ESV
Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.

Matthew 22:36-40 ESV
“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

Galatians 3:28 ESV
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

John 21:25 ESV
Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.

Leviticus 25:44-46 ESV
As for your male and female slaves whom you may have: you may buy male and female slaves from among the nations that are around you. You may also buy from among the strangers who sojourn with you and their clans that are with you, who have been born in your land, and they may be your property. You may bequeath them to your sons after you to inherit as a possession forever. You may make slaves of them, but over your brothers the people of Israel you shall not rule, one over another ruthlessly.

1 John 4:10 ESV
In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

2 Timothy 1:7 ESV
For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

Luke 6:35 ESV
But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.

3 John 1:2 ESV
Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.

1 John 3:10 ESV
By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.

Romans 8:14-15 ESV
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”

John 3:36 ESV
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

John 3:1-36 ESV
Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. ...

2 Corinthians 9:7 ESV
Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

1 Corinthians 13:1-13 ESV
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; ...

Romans 8:1-39 ESV
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For 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. ...

John 10:10 ESV
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

John 8:32 ESV
And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Luke 6:27 ESV
“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,

Matthew 5:44 ESV
But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

Numbers 23:19 ESV
God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?

Romans 13:10 ESV
Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

Romans 5:8 ESV
But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:5 ESV
And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

Romans 1:1-32 ESV
Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, ...

Luke 6:38 ESV
Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”

Matthew 5:43 ESV
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’

Leviticus 18:22 ESV
You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.

Exodus 21:20-21 ESV
“When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave dies under his hand, he shall be avenged. But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the slave is his money.

Acts 2:1-47 ESV
When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. ...

16/06/2021

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. ... If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love.

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