Who is the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit is not an impersonal force: He is a Person, fully God, whom Jesus promised to send to dwell in His people, teach them, and bear witness to Him. The entire New Testament assumes that He is present and active in every believer.
This question arose from studying Who is God the Father? and Why does Jesus call the Spirit 'another Helper'?.
Begin by reading
Go into the Word
Not a summary of these passages: the passages themselves. Read them, then come back to the study below.
The study
What the Scripture says
The Spirit is a Person, not a force
Scripture speaks of the Spirit as someone who speaks, teaches, testifies, guides, and can be grieved. He is not an 'it': Jesus calls Him 'the Helper' and uses personal pronouns. A force cannot be lied to; a Person can. This is why the Spirit is Someone to know, not something to use.
But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and will remind you of all that I said to you.
“When the Counselorhas come, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will testify about me.
However when he, the Spirit of truth, has come, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not speak from himself; but whatever he hears, he will speak. He will declare to you things that are coming.
Don’t grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
Jesus promised Him as 'another Helper'
In the upper room, Jesus promised that the Father would send the Spirit of truth to dwell with His people: 'another' Helper, of the same kind as Jesus Himself. He even said it was to our advantage that He go away, because the Helper would come. The Spirit is the presence of Jesus with us now.
I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, that he may be with you forever,— the Spirit of truth, whom the world can’t receive; for it doesn’t see him, neither knows him. You know him, for he lives with you, and will be in you.
His central work is to glorify Jesus
The Spirit does not draw attention to Himself. He takes what belongs to Christ and declares it to us, and He bears witness to Jesus. Whenever the Spirit genuinely works, Jesus becomes more real and more glorious, never less.
However when he, the Spirit of truth, has come, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not speak from himself; but whatever he hears, he will speak. He will declare to you things that are coming. He will glorify me, for he will take from what is mine, and will declare it to you.
“When the Counselorhas come, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will testify about me.
He dwells in every believer
Paul writes that anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Christ, and that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is the seal and the deposit: God's guarantee that we belong to Him and that the inheritance is coming.
But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if it is so that the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if any man doesn’t have the Spirit of Christ, he is not his.
Or don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which you have from God? You are not your own,
in whom you also, having heard the word of the truth, the Good News of your salvation—in whom, having also believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is a pledge of our inheritance, to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of his glory.
He transforms us from the inside
The Spirit produces His fruit in our character: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self-control. He gives gifts for serving others, and when we don't know how to pray, He Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Now there are various kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are various kinds of service, and the same Lord. There are various kinds of workings, but the same God, who works all things in all. But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the profit of all. For to one is given through the Spirit the word of wisdom, and to another the word of knowledge, according to the same Spirit; to another faith, by the same Spirit; and to another gifts of healings, by the same Spirit; and to another workings of miracles; and to another prophecy; and to another discerning of spirits; to another different kinds of languages; and to another the interpretation of languages. But the one and the same Spirit works all of these, distributing to each one separately as he desires.
In the same way, the Spirit also helps our weaknesses, for we don’t know how to pray as we ought. But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which can’t be uttered. He who searches the hearts knows what is on the Spirit’s mind, because he makes intercession for the saints according to God.
As you read, you may wonder…
Scripture raises the next question
Studying the Word naturally opens more of it. Follow what you just read: it leads somewhere.
Continue this trail
Is the Holy Spirit God?→“But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back part of the price of the land? While you kept it, didn’t it remain your own? After it was sold, wasn’t it in your power? How is it that you have conceived this thing in your heart? You haven’t lied to men, but to God.””What is the Trinity?→“Go,and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”How do I receive the Holy Spirit?→“Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you, and to your children, and to all who are far off, even as many as the Lord our God will call to himself.””How does the Spirit convict the world of sin?→“When he has come, he will convict the world about sin, about righteousness, and about judgment; about sin, because they don’t believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to my Father, and you won’t see me any more; about judgment, because the prince of this world has been judged.”What are spiritual gifts, and how do they work?→“Now there are various kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are various kinds of service, and the same Lord. There are various kinds of workings, but the same God, who works all things in all. But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the profit of all.”Why does Jesus call the Spirit 'another Helper'?→“I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, that he may be with you forever,— the Spirit of truth, whom the world can’t receive; for it doesn’t see him, neither knows him. You know him, for he lives with you, and will be in you.”How is the Holy Spirit at work in the Old Testament?→“The earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep and God’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.”Can we really understand the Trinity?→“The secret things belong to Yahweh our God; but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.”How do I know the Spirit is leading me?→“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are children of God.”Are the 'sign' gifts still active today?→“For to one is given through the Spirit the word of wisdom, and to another the word of knowledge, according to the same Spirit; to another faith, by the same Spirit; and to another gifts of healings, by the same Spirit; and to another workings of miracles; and to another prophecy; and to another discerning of spirits; to another different kinds of languages; and to another the interpretation of languages.”How do I discover my gift?→“As each has received a gift, employ it in serving one another, as good managers of the grace of God in its various forms.”What is the fruit of the Spirit?→“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”What does it mean to be baptized with the Holy Spirit?→“For John indeed baptized in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days from now.””How do the Persons of the Trinity relate to one another?→“Go,and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”What is the unpardonable sin?→“Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, neither in this age, nor in that which is to come.”What is speaking in tongues, and is it for today?→“They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other languages, as the Spirit gave them the ability to speak. Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under the sky. When this sound was heard, the multitude came together, and were bewildered, because everyone heard them speaking in his own language. They were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Behold, aren’t all these who speak Galileans? How do we hear, everyone in our own native language?”What is the difference between resisting the Spirit and grieving the Spirit?→“Don’t grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”Why did the Spirit wait until Pentecost?→“Being assembled together with them, he commanded them, “Don’t depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which you heard from me.”What is the difference between the fruit of the Spirit and the works of the flesh?→“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”What is the difference between the Spirit's baptism and His filling?→“For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether bond or free; and were all given to drink into one Spirit.”What is the difference between the world and the kingdom of God?→“Jesus answered, “My Kingdom is not of this world. If my Kingdom were of this world, then my servants would fight, that I wouldn’t be delivered to the Jews. But now my Kingdom is not from here.””What is the difference between a talent and a spiritual gift?→“But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the profit of all.”Hold onto these
Verses to meditate on
I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, that he may be with you forever,— the Spirit of truth, whom the world can’t receive; for it doesn’t see him, neither knows him. You know him, for he lives with you, and will be in you.
However when he, the Spirit of truth, has come, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not speak from himself; but whatever he hears, he will speak. He will declare to you things that are coming. He will glorify me, for he will take from what is mine, and will declare it to you.
But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if it is so that the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if any man doesn’t have the Spirit of Christ, he is not his.
Or don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which you have from God? You are not your own,
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
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