The Bible describes the Holy Spirit as a person who has been present with the Father and the Son since before time began. The Holy Spirit is connected to all of the things that God does in the Bible.
- The Spirit of God was present at and involved in creation “and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters” (Genesis 1:2).
- The Holy Spirit moved the prophets of God with the words of God, “no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God” (2 Peter 1:21).
- Jesus informed Nicodemus that to be “born again,” to become a Christian, one must be born “of the Spirit” (John 3:5).
Jesus told His disciples that the Father would send the Helper, the Spirit of truth, after Christ went back to heaven. The Spirit would reside in the believer (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) and speak through Christ’s disciples and would remind them of everything Jesus had said to them (John 14:25–26; 15:26–27; 16:7–15).
Throughout the Bible, the Holy Spirit equips people for ministry, gives people specific insight and wisdom, teaches people how to interpret God’s Word, He communicates with the Father on people’s behalf, and empowers Christians to live according to God’s purpose.
Jesus mentions all three persons ‘Father, Son, and Holy Spirit’ (Matthew 28:19). They belong to the Godhead while being distinct from each other within the Trinity. As God, the Holy Spirit can truly function as the Comforter and Counselor that Jesus promised He would be.
The three members of the Trinity show up, together yet distinct, at Jesus’ baptism. As Jesus comes up from the water, the Spirit descends on Him like a dove while the voice of the Father is heard from heaven saying that He is pleased with His beloved Son (Mark 1:10–11).
The Bible is clear that the Holy Spirit is, in fact, God, just as Jesus Christ is God and the Father is God.
Scripture describes the Holy Spirit in personal terms, not as an impersonal force, when it says that:
- He teaches, guides, comforts and intercedes (John 14:26; Romans 8:14; John 14:26; Romans 8:26).
- He possesses emotions, intellect and will (Ephesians 4:30; 1 Corinthians 2:10–14; 1 Corinthians 12:11)
- He can be grieved (Ephesians 4:30).
- He searches all things, even the deep things of God (1 Corinthians 2:10).
- He has fellowship with believers (2 Corinthians 13:14).
Peter reveals lying to the Holy Spirit is lying to God. “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the proceeds of the land?” (Acts 5:3) and concluded by saying “you have not lied to men, but to God” (verse 4).
We can also know that the Holy Spirit is God because He possesses the characteristics of God. For example, His omnipresence is seen in Psalm 139:7-8, “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.”
Then in 1 Corinthians 2:10-11, we see the characteristic of omniscience in the Holy Spirit. “These are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.”
In Zachariah 4:6 we see the omnipotence of the Holy Spirit. “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.”
And in Hebrews 9:14 we see His eternality. “How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!”
As we see, the Holy Spirit possesses all the attributes of deity, omniscience, omnipresence, omnipotence and eternality and He does works only God can do, such as creating, regenerating and sanctifying (Genesis 1:2; John 3:6; 2 Thessalonians 2:13).
He is equally associated with the other members of the Trinity (Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Corinthians 13:14).
Today, the Holy Spirit plays a major role in the application of salvation to the individual. It is the Spirit who brings conviction to the unbeliever and causes him to see the truth of the gospel in a clear light (John 16:8–11).
Those who respond to this conviction and place their faith in Jesus Christ receive eternal life and a new nature (John 3:3-7; Titus 3:5). The Holy Spirit unites the believer with Christ and places him in the body of Christ, the church (1 Corinthians 12:13). He also unites the believer with Christ in His death, enabling him to live victoriously over sin (Romans 6:1-10).
The Holy Spirit controls the believer who yields to God and submits himself to God’s Word (Romans 12:1-2; Ephesians 5:18; Colossians 3:16). And when these conditions are met, the believer lives in the power of the Spirit and produces the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:16, 22-23).
The Holy Spirit indwells the true believer permanently (1 Corinthians 6:19-20), and while the child of God can sometimes fail and sin, the Spirit will never leave the true believer, (Ephesians 4:30).
The Holy Spirit seals the believer (2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:13; 4:30) and guarantees the security of the believer “until the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30), and He sovereignly bestows spiritual gifts and abilities for service to every believer (Romans 12; 1 Corinthians 12; Ephesians 4).
He gives believers the power to share their faith. “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
The Holy Spirit is dynamic and the more you allow Him to guide and direct your life, the more you will become like Christ and experience the love of your Father in heaven.
In conclusion, Scripture indicates that the Holy Spirit is an equal and a true member of what is known as “the Godhead” that is made up of three equal persons living in perfect unity with each other.
Believing this is vital to understanding the powerful role the Spirit plays in the lives of Christians and the way God is active in the world. Therefore, based on biblical evidence, we believe that the Holy Spirit is God in the same way that the Father is God and the Son is God.
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