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Who is the Holy Spirit? What Does He DO?
Q "Who or what is the Holy Spirit? I've seen this name/phrase on your site in a few places. The Holy Spirit, The Holy Ghost, The Comforter, and many other names. I am confused about Who or what he/it is."
A The Holy Spirit is a real person who came to reside within Jesus Christ's true followers after Jesus rose from the dead and ascended to heaven (Acts 2). Jesus told His apostles...
"I will ask the Father, and He will give you another
Helper, that He may be with you forever; the Spirit of truth, whom the
world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, but
you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you. I will not
leave you as orphans; I will come to you."
John 14:16-18
The Holy Spirit is not a vague, ethereal shadow, nor an impersonal force. He is a person equal in every way with God the Father and God the Son. He is considered to be the third member of the Godhead. Jesus said to His apostles...
"All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on
earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching
them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always,
even to the end of the age."
Matt. 28:18-20
God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And all the divine attributes ascribed to the Father and the Son are equally ascribed to the Holy Spirit. When a person becomes born again by believing and receiving Jesus Christ (John 1:12-13; John 3:3-21), God resides in that person through the Holy Spirit (1Cor. 3:16). The Holy Spirit has intellect (1Cor. 2:11), emotion (Rom. 15:30), and will (1Cor. 12:11).
A primary role of the Holy Spirit is that He bears "witness" of Jesus Christ (John 15:26, 16:14). He tells people's hearts about the truth of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit also acts as a Christian's teacher (1Cor. 2:9-14). He reveals God's will and God's truth to a Christian. Jesus told His disciples...
"The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will
send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your
remembrance all that I said to you."
John 14:26
"When He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide
you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but
whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is
to come."
John 16:13
The Holy Spirit was given to live inside those who believe in Jesus, in order to produce God's character in the life of a believer. In a way that we cannot do on our own, the Holy Spirit will build into our lives love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Gal. 5:22-23). Rather than trying to be loving, patient, kind, God asks us to rely on Him to produce these qualities in our lives. Thus Christians are told to walk in the Spirit (Gal. 5:25) and be filled with the Spirit (Eph. 5:18). And the Holy Spirit empowers Christians to perform ministerial duties that promote spiritual growth among Christians (Rom. 12; 1Cor. 12; Eph. 4).
The Holy Spirit also performs a function for non-Christians as well. He convicts people's hearts of God's truth concerning how sinful we are -- needing God's forgiveness; how righteous Jesus is -- He died in our place, for our sins; and God's eventual judgment of the world and those who do not know Him (John 16:8-11). The Holy Spirit tugs on our hearts and minds, asking us to repent and turn to God for forgiveness and a new life.
What does the Holy Spirit Look Like?
As you explore the Word of God, you will find that there is more to the Person of the Holy Spirit than we could ever possibly imagine. He's colorful, lively, magnetic, and wonderful - I mean that literally. He's filled with wonder. And one of the many things I love about the Holy Spirit is His mysterious nature. The mystery surrounding the Holy Spirit is partly due to the fact that He primarily points to Jesus. Glorifying the Son, the Spirit removes the attention from Himself.
Another point of mystery is the Holy Spirit's appearance. The Bible gives us glimpses at the Father and the Son, but does the Bible mention anything about the Holy Spirit's appearance? According to the Bible, what does the Holy Spirit look like?
At the baptism of Jesus, the Holy Spirit took on the physical appearance of a Dove. Matthew 3:16, Mark 1:10, and John 1:32 all describe the Holy Spirit descending upon Jesus like a dove. This cannot just be a metaphor, since all accounts are describing a physical sight in the exact same manner. Whatever form the Holy Spirit took, that form reminded witnesses of a dove. In fact, Luke's gospel puts a finer point on it:
and the Holy Spirit, in bodily form, descended on him like a dove. And a voice from heaven said, "You are my dearly loved Son, and you bring me great joy."
Luke 3:22
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Got Questions?
GotQuestions.org is a ministry of dedicated and trained servants who have a desire to assist others in their understanding of God, Scripture, salvation, and other spiritual topics. We are Christian, Protestant, evangelical, theologically conservative, and non-denominational. We view ourselves as a para-church ministry, coming alongside the church to help people find answers to their spiritually related questions.
We will do our best to prayerfully and thoroughly research your question and answer it in a biblically based manner. It is not our purpose to make you agree with us, but rather to point you to what the Bible says concerning your question. You can be assured that your question will be answered by a trained and dedicated Christian who loves the Lord and desires to assist you in your walk with Him. Our writing staff includes pastors, youth pastors, missionaries, biblical counselors, Bible/Christian college students, seminary students, and lay students of God's Word.
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