You and the Holy Spirit

Aug. 19, 2023 .6 min read

Who is the Holy Spirit? Before we know what the Holy Spirit is, we must know what the Holy Spirit is not.

• He is not a thing.
• He is not another god.
• He is not any other spirit.
• He is not for only certain people.
• He is not just for power, prophesying, or miracles.

Who, then, is the Holy Spirit?

His first mention was in Gen.1:2. He is the Spirit of God who is also called the Spirit of the Lord in some other verses. In the Old Testament, He is always seen to come upon whoever God would use for a certain thing and a period. This is more visible in the life of Samson. Coming to the New Testament, we see John the Baptist being filled with the Holy Spirit from birth and then Jesus, who is the example we follow. Though Jesus was the Son of God, we see Him go through water baptism, and immediately after, the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in the similitude of a dove. In the same vein, we see Jesus tell His disciples to tarry in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit had come upon them (Acts 1-2). We see the house of Cornelius get filled with the Holy Spirit, even before water baptism, just as they were listening to the Word with faith in their hearts (Acts 10). And we also see Paul asking people who were already disciples to know if they had received the Holy Spirit. And when they said they had not, Paul laid hands on them, and they did receive (Acts 19).

From these and more, we can safely conclude that whoever will live as Jesus did must receive the Holy Spirit. Yes, you’re born again, but you also NEED the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Have you received the baptism of the Holy Spirit? The only prerequisite is to be Born-again. If not, you can ask for the baptism right in your room or find a fellow believer that can join his faith with yours (Luke 11:13). If you have been baptised by the Holy Spirit, what have you been doing with the Holy Spirit????

Let’s start with the things Jesus Himself spoke about the Holy Spirit.

John 7:38-39: For the Scriptures declare that rivers of living water shall flow from the inmost being of anyone who believes in me.” (He was speaking of the Holy Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him; but the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet returned to his glory in heaven.)

John 14:26: But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

Acts 1:8: But I promise you this—the Holy Spirit will come upon you and you will be filled with power. And you will be my messengers to Jerusalem, throughout Judea, the distant provinces—even to the remotest places on earth!”

Who then is the Holy Spirit to us?

1. He is meant to be the rivers (not one o) of living water in us that not only exists but flows to others.

Ordinary water is something no one can live without for 7 days without injury, not to talk of “living water.” And this living water exists as “rivers” in us; each river with a purpose, and not just giving us life but flowing out of us to all around us to also give them life. I like to see it as one river for each assignment, each duty, and each aspect of life. But the extent of the welling up within and flowing out of the river is dependent on our continual belief in the Lord. This belief flows from your consistent communion with and obedience to Him.

2. He is to be our teacher in all things and, at the same time, one who reminds us.

Yes, He will first teach us about God, help us to understand the Scriptures, and remind us of the Scriptures at strategic times, but that is not all. He wants to teach us about other things we have to do. The subjects, courses, career goals, tasks, seminars, exams, etc. Has He been teaching you? Do you engage Him in all that you do? The Holy Spirit does much more than a good teacher can do for a student. Are you enrolled as His student? Have you been consistent in showing up in His daily class? Have you been doing assignments and submitting them on time?

3. He is to fill us with power.

Power is the ability to act or produce an effect (Merriam-Webster’s dictionary). Take a look at this:

Let me put this question to you: How did your new life begin? Was it by working your heads off to please God? Or was it by responding to God’s Message to you? Are you going to continue this craziness? For only crazy people would think they could complete by their efforts what was begun by God. If you weren’t smart enough or strong enough to begin it, how do you suppose you could perfect it? Did you go through this whole painful learning process for nothing? It is not yet a total loss, but it certainly will be if you keep this up! Gal. 3:2-4

Without constantly and continuously engaging the Holy Spirit, we put our lives at risk. We will keep going in circles, making a mess of our lives, families, careers, etc. Our mantra should be that “Without Him, I can do nothing!” John 15. Without the power He fills us with, our lives will be completely void of what should make us true messengers/ambassadors of Christ. Why?

What are you doing with the Holy Spirit? How well do you acknowledge and listen to Him?

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