THE DEITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Invisible force of power cannot be compared to an individual person of deity.
Many have argued that the Holy Spirit is simply an invisible force of the power of the Almighty God. They argue that the Holy Spirit has no deity and is “not a person” and that it is an impersonal force God uses to complete His will. The Bible teaches however, the Holy Spirit is a person. A person is a self-conscious and rational being. In order to qualify as a person there needs to be certain components present such as knowing, thinking and communicating. Let us look at these passages of scripture:
“And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.” (John 16:8) He is a personal pronoun indicating a person who is communicating.
“Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.” (John 8:13) Guide you into all truth whatsoever he shall hear indicates knowing and thinking and speak and shew is communicating.
“As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.” (Acts 13:2) The Holy Ghost said, indicating communication. “I”, is a first person pronoun indicating a person. In these passages the Holy Spirit is demonstrating those traits of a person. By communicating, thinking and knowing, and being described with personal pronouns, the Holy Spirit is acting as a self-conscious person.[1]
The Five-fold Indication of the Deity of the Holy Spirit.
The scriptures clearly assert the deity of the Holy Spirit in five ways.
First, divine names were given to the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is called God as Ananias is talking in Acts 5 verse 4, “Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? And after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? Why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? Thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.” The Spirit is also called Lord in 2 Corinthians 3:18, “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” In the Lord’s Day, the title ‘Lord’ as used of Christ was applicable only to the Deity, to God. Therefore this reference is applicable to the Deity.
Second, the Holy Spirit is in possession of divine attributes. Hebrews 9:14 indicates He is eternal in His nature. Psalms 139:7-10 speaks to the omnipresence of the Holy Spirit. Luke 1:35 speaks to how the Holy Spirit is omnipotent and 1 Corinthians 2:10 and 11 speaks to the omniscient Holy Spirit through the trinity.
Third, the Divine works are ascribed to the Holy Spirit. Genesis 1:2 and Psalms 104:30 give indication to the divine works in creation. Regeneration is indicated in Job 33:4, “The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.” Romans 8:11 brings out the Holy Spirits involvement in the resurrection, “But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.”
Fourth, the name of the Holy Spirit gets associated with the Father and the Son. In Baptism there is the personality of the Spirit. Baptism is done in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. When it comes to the distribution of Spiritual gifts the Holy Spirit is on equal footing with the Father and the Son. “Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all.” (1 Corinthians 12:4-6)
Fifth and last, some scripture passages in the Old Testament referring to God are also in the New Testament referring to the Holy Spirit. Compare Isaiah 6:8-10 with Acts 28:25-27 and compare Exodus 16:7 with Hebrews 3:7-9.[2]
R.A. Torrey writes, “To sum it all up, by the ascription of all the distinctively Divine attributes, and several distinctly Divine works, by referring statements which in the Old testament clearly name Jehovah, the Lord, or God as their subject to the Holy Spirit in the New Testament, by coupling the name of the Holy Spirit with that of God in a way that would be impossible to couple that of any finite being with that of Deity, by plainly calling the Holy Spirit God, in all these unmistakable ways, God in His own Word distinctly proclaims that the Holy Spirit is a Divine Person.”[3]
Come back for the conclusion in the next post. Click here for the CONCLUSION.
God bless your day today,
“The Tubthumper”
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