Who is the Holy Spirit?

The knowledge of who the Holy Spirit is, His purpose and ministry in the lives and of the believers, is crucial to the Christian life. Many believers haven’t learn much about the Holy Spirit, and many are being taught the wrong doctrines with regards to the Holy Spirit. In this article, I focus on three importance functions and ministries of the Holy Spirit in the lives of those who are saved. You can find additional material on this topic in An Introduction to the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is the third Person of the Godhead. He is God. He is not mere feeling or force. In the Bible, He is often referred to as either the Holy Spirit, the Holy Ghost, or simply the Spirit (with capital ‘S’). Christian life begins by the Holy Spirit, it will also end with the work of the Holy Spirit. In the meantime, the Spirit is working through the believers. – An Excerpt from An Introduction to the Holy Spirit.

1. He is Christ in Us

The indwelling Holy Spirit is Christ in the believer. When a person receives the knowledge of the truth and believes the gospel, he is regenerated. He is from that point considered to be “in Christ” and “Christ in” him. This is part of what happens at salvation.

Colossians 3:8-11 But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. 9 Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; 10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: 11 Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.

Ephesians 3:17-19 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; 19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.

John 14:20 At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.

This is made possible by the indwelling Holy Spirit. The fact that the Spirit will abide with us is one of the promises of Christ before His passions. In John 14:16, Christ promises:

John 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

The word “comforter” from the above verse is the Greek word paráklētos (παράκλητος – pronounced par-ak’-lay-tos) which means one called alongside to help, an intercessor or a consoler. The same word is translated “advocate” in 1 John 2:1. Therefore Christ functions today in the believers in two forms, He functions as:

• our advocate with the Father – 1 John 2:1, and as
• our comforter with us – John 14:16

Christ is the believer’s Paraclete with the Father when he sins; the Holy Spirit the believer’s indwelling Paraclete to help his ignorance and infirmity and to make intercession – C.I Scofield.

1 John 3:23-24 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. 24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.

God in Us

The presence of the Holy Spirit in us also makes us the Temple of God. This is also God in us! We are closer to God in fellowship than ever before because of His Spirit that dwells in us.

1 Corinthians 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

2 Corinthians 6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Ephesians 2:21-22 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: 22 In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

For more on the functions of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the believers, please see The Functions of the Holy Spirit or watch out for upcoming articles.

2. He is God’s Seal on the Believers

The Holy Spirit is the Seal of God on those who have put their trust in Christ. The seal is a mark of God on the believers signifying that he/she belongs to God. He Himself is the Seal, He is also the One who seals us. This is an amazing truth of the gospel.

2 Timothy 2:19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

This seal remains on the believer until glorification. In fact, its presence on the believer is partly to guarantee glorification.

In Ephesians 1:13-14, the Bible says:

“In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.”

The Holy Spirit is the One who makes salvation happen. He is active in regeneration and the new birth. Salvation is effected when you hear and believe the word of truth, the gospel of salvation. At the moment of belief, the Holy Spirit comes in, regenerates, and begins to indwell the believer.

He will abide with the believer perpetually until the day of redemption, “the redemption of the purchased possession”, that is, until our glorification.

Ephesians 4:30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

John 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

The sealing of the Holy Spirit also guarantees our heavenly inheritance. The Bible says in Ephesian 1:14 that this seal of the Spirit is the “earnest” of our inheritance, the down payment of our redemption, the guarantee of our salvation.

The word “earnest” here is the Greek word ‘arrhabṓn’ (pronounced ar-hrab-ohn’) which means a pledge, an  earnest money, down payment, or according to Strong’s Greek Dictionary, “part of the purchase-money or property given in advance as security for the rest”.

The presence of this Seal confirms our redemption, adoption, and heavenly inheritance. It makes God’s ownership of us and our inheritance with God a reality. It symbolizes a finished transaction, nothing can separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Roman 8:9-11,35-39; 2 Corinthians 1:20-22).

3. He is the One Who Takes Us Home

Until Christ returns for us His redeemed, we’ve been marked and set aside for God, we are sealed and protected by the Holy Spirit. He is also the One who will take us home at Rapture. The Spirit ensures that the Work started in us is completed.

Romans 8:11 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.

Believers are guaranteed eternal security. We can never lose our salvation or be removed from the grace and the love of God. Contrary to popular teachings, the Holy Spirit will never leave the believers. The Bible says that those whom God predestinated are called, those who are called are justified, and will also be glorified. Christ also confirms this in His own words:

John 10:27-30 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. 29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand. 30 I and my Father are one.

One of the greatest things about salvation, is the believers’ hope of that day when we will leave this world of sin and go to be with Christ. We will be changed and be given the glorified body that is fit for our Heavenly Home.

Philippians 3:20-21 For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: 21 Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.

1 Thessalonians 4:14-18 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

This amazing blessing of salvation calls for proper response by the believer. Our response should be that of worship, living for Christ and not for ourselves, loving and serving Him, because He loved us first. Nothing that we do, or will still do, can make us more loved or more saved. We must worship and serve with the assurance that we’re secure in Christ and Christ in us, nothing can remove us from Him.

Depart from iniquities, live soberly and righteously unto Christ, be zealous of good works, all to the glory of Christ.

Titus 2:11-14 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; 13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; 14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

For more on Holy Spirit topics, please see the Related Articles below. Thank you for reading!