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Who is the Holy Spirit?

All three Persons of the Trinity have a role in the salvation of man. The Father elects, The
Son died for, and the Holy Spirit regenerates all those who will be saved. In our class we
have been talking about the Holy Spirit and Regeneration for several weeks. We said that
every person is born dead in trespasses and sins and because of this no one will ever
desire Christ apart from the regenerating work of the Spirit. And so we have spent the
majority of our time talking about regeneration. Now as we move on to sanctification, I
just wanted to do a brief lesson on the Holy Spirit Himself. This will be elementary for
some, but will perhaps clear up some misconceptions for others. So the question is:

Who is the Holy Spirit ?

I. He is not a spiritual force , He is a person.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses call the Holy Spirit, “God’s active force in the world,” as if the
Holy Spirit is a force like electricity is a force. But the Bible makes it clear that the Holy
Spirit is a person.

Acts 13:22While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set
apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them."

A. He speaks , the Holy Spirit said

B. He uses personal pronouns , "Set apart for Me

Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.

C. He claims people for His own, "Set apart for Me Barnabas

and Saul

D. He calls people to a work, "Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for
the work to which I have called them."

E. He has His own specific work, for the work to which

I have called them."

II. The Holy Spirit is God .

Acts 5:3-4 3Then Peter said, "Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that
you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you
received for the land? 4Didn't it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold,
wasn't the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have
not lied to men but to God."
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Here are some ways that the Bible identifies the Holy Spirit as God.

A. The Spirit took part in creation .

Genesis 1:22 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the
deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

Job 33:4 4 The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life.

B. The Holy Spirit is to be baptized into.

Matthew 28:19 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the
name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

C. The Holy Spirit can be blasphemed .

Luke 12:10 10And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven,
but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.

D. When Israel resisted the Holy Spirit, they were resisting God.

Nehemiah 9:2020 You gave your good Spirit to instruct them. You did not withhold your
manna from their mouths, and you gave them water for their thirst.

Acts 7:5151"You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like
your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit!

Hebrews 3:7-117So, as the Holy Spirit says:” Today, if you hear His voice, 8do not
harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the desert,
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where your fathers tested and tried Me and for forty years saw what I did. 10That is why I
was angry with that generation, and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray, and
they have not known my ways.' 11So I declared on oath in My anger, 'They shall never
enter My rest.' "

III. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity.

The doctrine of the Trinity is simply that there is one eternal being of God - indivisible, infinite.
This one being of God is shared by three co-equal, co-eternal persons, the Father, the Son, and
the Spirit….It is necessary here to distinguish between the terms "being" and "person." It would
be a contradiction, obviously, to say that there are three beings within one being, or three persons
within one person….The Bible tells us there are three classifications of personal beings---God,
man, and angels. What is personality? The ability to have emotion, will, to express oneself. Rocks
cannot speak. Cats cannot think of themselves over against others, and, say, work for the
common good of "cat kind." Hence, we are saying that there is one eternal, infinite being of God,
shared fully and completely by three persons, Father, Son and Spirit. One what, three who's.
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NOTE: We are not saying that the Father is the Son, or the Son the Spirit, or the Spirit the Father.
It is very common for people to misunderstand the doctrine as to mean that we are saying Jesus
is the Father. The doctrine of the Trinity does not in any way say this! 1

A. The three Biblical doctrines that describe God as Triune

are:

1. There is only one God, eternal and immutable.

Deuteronomy 6:44 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.

2. There are three eternal Persons described in

scripture.

a. Scripture makes careful distinction between

Father, Son, and Spirit.

Matthew 3:16-17 16As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that
moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and
lighting on him. 17And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I
am well pleased."

b. John the Baptist bore witness to this distinction, (

John1:29-34).

I talked to someone from the United Pentecostal Church that believes Jesus is the Father
and the Holy Spirit, and that Matthew 3:16-17 was just the Bible giving a metaphor about
what God is like. But John describes what he saw. The baptism of Jesus wasn’t a
metaphor, John actually saw the Spirit descend on Jesus like a dove.

John 1:29-34 29The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the
Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30This is the one I meant when I said,
'A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.' 31I myself did
not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed
to Israel."32Then John gave this testimony: "I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a
dove and remain on him. 33I would not have known him, except that the one who sent me
to baptize with water told me, 'The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and
remain is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.' 34I have seen and I testify that this is
the Son of God."

Here are some other places in Scripture that show the distinction between the three.

2 Corinthians 13:14 14May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and
the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Ephesians 2:18 18For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
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James White: A Brief Definition of the Trinity, Alpha and Omega Ministries
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In my opinion, this is the best place in the whole Bible that shows distinction between the
Father and the Son; Notice where the Father calls the Son “God.”

Hebrews 1:1-11 1In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many
times and in various ways, 2but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom
he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. 3The Son is the
radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by
his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right
hand of the Majesty in heaven. 4So he became as much superior to the angels as the name
he has inherited is superior to theirs.
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For to which of the angels did God ever say,
"You are my Son;
today I have become your Father"? Or again,
"I will be his Father,
and he will be my Son"? 6And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he
says,
"Let all God's angels worship him." 7In speaking of the angels he says,
"He makes his angels winds,
his servants flames of fire." 8But about the Son he says,
"Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever,
and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom.
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You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions
by anointing you with the oil of joy." 10He also says,
"In the beginning, O Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
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They will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.

3. The Bible identifies all three Persons as fully God.

This needs no more discussion since we have examined this point already. As we move
forward with the topic of sanctification, I hope that you will have a new appreciation for
who is doing the work within you to make you more like Christ.