Chapter 11
The Person And Work Of God The Holy Spirit
“And I will
pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide
with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive,
because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth
with you, and shall be in you.” John
14:16-17
As
God the Son is the gift of the Father to his elect, God the Holy Spirit is the
ascension gift of the enthroned Christ to his church and kingdom in this gospel
age. He is described as our Comforter, the Promise of the Father, and the
Blessing of Abraham (John 14:16-17; 1 Thess. 4:7-8; Acts 1:4-5; Gal. 3:13-14).
In his office capacity, the Holy Spirit is distinctly set before us in the New
Testament as the gift of God to his church and people through the mediation of
the Lord Jesus Christ, our exalted Lord and King.
In this day of religious confusion in which
men and women have substituted sentimentality and sensationalism for
substantial gospel truth, in this day when most everybody confuses emotionalism
with worship, there is much need for clear, biblical instruction with regard to
the Person and work of God the Holy Spirit. In this study, I want to show you
six things from the Word of God about the Person and work of the Holy Spirit.
1. The Holy Spirit is himself God, the third person of the holy trinity,
in all things equal with the Father and the Son.
He
is named as one with the Father and the Son, both in the Apostolic benediction
and in the inspired definition of the Trinity given by the Apostle John (2
Cor. 13:14; 1 John 5:7). Far too often men and women think of the Holy Spirit
as a great force, a mighty influence for good, or an emanation of God. Let us
never dishonor him by such low thoughts.
We cannot lie to an emanation, as Ananias and Sapphira lied to the Holy Ghost. We cannot grieve a force,
as believers are said to grieve the Holy Spirit by unkindnesses
done to one another. We cannot blaspheme an influence, as all those do who
willfully turn away from Christ and his gospel in rebellion and obstinate
unbelief. The Holy Spirit is God.
2. The work of the Holy Spirit is as necessary for the salvation of God’s
elect as the works of the Father and the Son.
Far too often we think of the covenant of
grace as a covenant made between the Father and the Son. It was not. It was a
covenant made between the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. God the Father
elected us unto salvation (Eph. 1:3-6; 2 Thess. 2:13-14). He chose us, adopted
us, blessed us, and predestinated us unto heavenly glory. We rejoice in that.
Without election no one could ever have been saved. However, the Father’s
election, by itself, could never save a sinner. We also had to be redeemed.
God the Son, the Lord Jesus
Christ, volunteered to redeem us and became our Substitute (Eph. 1:7-12; Heb. 7:22). As Judah spoke to Israel his father for
Benjamin (Gen. 43:9) and became surety for him, so our Lord Jesus Christ spoke
for God’s elect and became our Surety in the covenant of grace before the world
began, assuming total responsibility for the everlasting salvation of our
souls. The Father trusted the Son with our souls (John 6:39; 10:29; 17:9 Eph.
1:12). They struck hands, as it were, and the covenant was set in motion. Then,
in the fulness of time, Christ redeemed his elect. He bought us with his own
precious blood. The Lord Jesus Christ brought in an everlasting righteousness
by his obedience to God as a man, satisfied the justice of God by his death
upon the cursed tree, and obtained eternal redemption for all God’s elect (Heb.
9:12).
Yet, redemption alone could never bring a sinner
to God. Something else must be done. Redemption is a work of God wrought for
us. Redemption changed our standing; but it did not change us. Though chosen in
eternal election and redeemed by Christ’s effectual atonement, we could never
be saved, we could never enter into heaven until something was done in us,
until grace actually changed us. Redemption alone is not enough. It is written,
“Ye must be born again!”
That is the work of God the
Holy Spirit (John 3:5-7; 6:63; Eph.
2:1-5). God the Spirit agreed to effectually apply the blood of Christ to every
chosen, redeemed sinner, create each one new in Christ, give them faith, and
seal to them all the blessings of the covenant. And that is exactly what he has
done for us (Eph. 1:13-14). In order for a sinner to be saved: -- God must
choose to save him. That is election. -- God must put away his sin and justify
him. That is redemption. -- And God must sanctify him. That is regeneration.
3. The advent of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost was a once for
all, never to be repeated, climatic event.
There
is much confusion about what happened on the day of Pentecost in Acts chapter
two. The charismatic movement, with its emphasis on works, free-will, tongues,
visions, and miracles, is one of the
horrible evils of divine judgment upon this generation (2 Thess.
2:7-10). The revivalist theology of modern religion, with its emphasis on decisionism, works and free will, upon euphoric feelings
and experiences in temporary spasms of religious convulsion, is a reflection of
the same divine judgment (2 Thess. 2:7-12).
Believers know that these
things are the workings of antichrist and not of Christ. Yet, those who pretend
to have the Holy Spirit and those apostolic gifts by which Christ’s ministry
was announced and confirmed in the Book of Acts, point to the day of Pentecost
in Acts 2 as proof that their doctrine, claims, and experiences are biblical.
What really happened on that momentous day?
The
day of Pentecost in Acts 2 signaled the advent of the Holy Spirit. As the
virgin birth was the advent of the Son of God in his office capacity as our
Substitute and Redeemer, so the day of Pentecost and the events recorded in
Acts 2 signaled the advent of the Holy Spirit in his office capacity as the
Comforter and Sanctifier of God’s elect. Yes, the
Holy Spirit was in the world before, even as the Son of God was in the world
and working in the world before his advent. But now the Holy Spirit has come in
his office capacity to fulfill his part in the covenant of grace.
“At
Pentecost the Holy Spirit came as He had never come before. Something then
transpired which inaugurated a new era for the world, a new power for
righteousness, a new basis for fellowship. On that day, the fearing Peter was
transformed into the intrepid evangelist. On that day, the new wine of
Christianity burst the old bottles of Judaism, and the Word went forth in a
multiplicity of Gentile tongues (A. W. Pink).”
On that remarkable day, 3000
souls were regenerated and converted to Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit.
What happened on that day? Four things specifically…
First, on that day the Lord Jesus Christ baptized his church, his kingdom, his
body into the Holy Spirit as had been promised by John the Baptist (Mk. 1:8). This was the inaugural gift
of King Jesus to his church. When he ascended on high and began his rule as our
Redeemer-King, he immersed his kingdom into the realm of the Spirit. There are
seven references in the New Testament to this baptism “in the Holy Spirit.” (Matt. 3:11; Mk. 1:8; Lk. 3:16; John 1:33;
Acts 1:5; 11:16; 1 Cor. 12:13)
In each of these places
where we are told of baptism “with the
Spirit,” the word “with” would be
better translated “in.” As a person
who is baptized with water has been dipped in water, so one who has been
baptized with the Holy Spirit has been immersed in the Spirit. The Person who
did the baptizing is the Lord Jesus Christ. The people baptized are the church
of God. The element into which the church was baptized is the Holy Spirit. When
reading these references to baptism with
the Holy Spirit, we should always read them as speaking of baptism in the Spirit. [1]
The first five of these
references were prophetic, spoken in anticipation of Pentecost. Acts 11:15-17
looks back to what had happened at Pentecost. When the Gentiles in Cornelius’ household experienced the same thing the
believing Jews experienced at Pentecost, Peter remembered the promise of Christ
and said, “This is the same thing!” It
was confirmed to him that the gift of the Spirit was to the Gentiles, too (Acts
11:17).
1 Corinthians 12:13[2]
also refers back to Pentecost. In Christ, by the Spirit of God, all true
believers are one. All racial, social, cultural barriers have been broken down
(Col. 3:11; Eph. 2:13-22). Every truly regenerate person has been baptized in
the Holy Spirit, not when he is born again, not when he is baptized in water,
but at the day of Pentecost when Christ immersed his church into the realm of
the Spirit. When a person is born again, he is born into that body, that
family, that church which was baptized in the Spirit on the day of Pentecost.
Second,
on the day of Pentecost the promise of the Father was fulfilled (Acts 1:4-5; Gal. 3:13-14). This
promise of the Father was an unconditional promise of covenant grace. Baptism
in the Holy Spirit was not dependent upon the will, works, worth, or spirituality of the people, but upon the
faithfulness of God. That which took place on the day of Pentecost was not a
possibility, but an absolute certainty.
As all of God’s elect were
redeemed by Christ at one time, so, too, all were baptized by Christ into the
Spirit at one time. As we now receive and experience the benefits of redemption
day by day, so, too, we receive and experience the benefits of this baptism day
by day. But the baptism itself will never be repeated. There is no need. There
is no more need of another Pentecost than there is of another Passover. Once
redeemed, forever redeemed! Once baptized in the Spirit, forever baptized in
the Spirit!
Third, this great advent of the Spirit fulfilled the Old Testament type set
forth in the Feast of Pentecost (Ex.
34:22; Deut. 16:10; Lev. 23:15). The crucifixion of Christ took place on the day
of atonement, when the paschal lamb was to be slaughtered, because that is what
the passover represented. And the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit took place on
the day of Pentecost, because this is what Pentecost represented. The
Feast of Pentecost was at the beginning of the harvest season when wheat was
harvested. On the day of Pentecost, Israel was required to present two loaves
to God called, “The firstfruits unto the
Lord.” These loaves represented the firstfruits of Christ’s atonement. That
is exactly what believers are (James 1:18). The first wave loaf represented the
ingathering of God’s elect from among
the Jews (Acts 2 - 3000 in one day). The second wave loaf represented God’s
elect gathered from among the Gentiles (Acts 10).
Fourth, this mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost also fulfilled
the typical Shekinah (Num. 9:15-22; 2 Chron. 7:1-3). As the glory of the Lord led the
children of Israel, so the Spirit of God leads us through this world. As the
glory of the Lord protected Israel, so the Holy Spirit now protects God’s
elect. As the glory of the Lord filled the temple in Solomon’s day, so the
Spirit of God fills and abides with the church, the temple of God, in this day
of the Prince of Peace (1 Cor. 3:16-17).
Let us ever seek, by the
grace of God, to be taught by the Spirit, led by the Spirit (Rom. 8:14), filled
with the Spirit (Eph. 5:18), and to walk in the Spirit (Gal. 5:17-23). But we
do not seek the baptism of the Spirit. We have that if we are born of God.
4. The works of the Holy Spirit, in general, are fourfold.
I use the word “general” only for lack of a
better word. There is nothing general about these four works of supernatural,
divine power which are ascribed to the Holy Spirit. Creation is a work in which God the Holy
Spirit participates with the Father and the Son (Gen. 1:2). “The Spirit of the Lord hath made me, and
the breath of the Almighty hath given me life” (Job 33:4).
Providence, like creation, is a work
of God the Holy Spirit. “Who hath
directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counselor hath taught him? With
whom took he counsel?” (Isa. 40:13-14). It is the Spirit of God who turns
the king’s heart withersoever he will.
Inspiration is
the work of the Spirit (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:21). The Book of God is his Book.
He inspired it. Every word was written, every sentence was formed, and the
order in which the whole Book was written was by his supernatural, unerring,
infallible direction. Though many instruments were used to write the Book, God
the Holy Spirit is its only Author.
The incarnation and virgin
birth of Christ are works attributed to the Holy Spirit (Matt. 1:20; Heb. 10:5). The holy
human body and soul of Christ was created by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the
virgin Mary. It was God the Holy Spirit who prepared a body for our Savior in
which he could both obey the law of God and satisfy its justice by the
sacrifice of himself as our Substitute.
5. It is by the sovereign, irresistible work of God the Holy Spirit that
lost sinners are born again and brought into a living union of faith with
Christ (Ps.
65:4; 110:3; John 6:63).
Regeneration, the new birth, is his work (John
3:3-8). It is the Spirit of life who gives life to dead sinners. The revelation
of Christ is the Spirit’s work (John 16:13-14; 2 Cor. 4:6). We know Christ only
as God the Holy Spirit makes him known to us and in us. We know the things of
God only as he makes them known (1 Cor. 2:10-14). Chosen, redeemed sinners are
convinced of their sin, of righteousness established by Christ, and judgment
finished by his blood atonement, only by the almighty, efficacious grace of the
Spirit of God. (John 16:8-11).
Effectual calling is the
work of his omnipotent, irresistible grace (1 Thess. 1:4-5). As David sent Ziba to “fetch” Miphibosheth, so
the Lord Jesus Christ, our King, sends his Spirit, at the appointed time of
love, to “fetch” the objects of his covenant love to himself. The fact that
they are all by nature unwilling to be fetched is no difficulty with him. He is
just an influencer. He is God the Holy Spirit. He
makes the chosen willing in the day of his power and causes them to come home
to Christ (Ps. 65:4; 110:3). He converts those whom he calls and effectually
gives them faith in Christ by the operations of his omnipotent grace (Eph. 2:8-9;
Col. 2:12).
6. It is by the work of God the Holy Spirit that the believer’s life is
ordered and protected, and preserved in this world unto eternal glory.
Believers
are people who have been born again and live in the realm of the Spirit, the
realm of faith (Rom. 8:5-9). God lives in us and we live in God. God the Holy
Spirit takes up residence in every believer permanently from the moment of
regeneration. He dwells in every believer forever. He works in every believer
continually. He is the sanctifying influence of every believer’s life. He is
the earnest of our inheritance and gives us the assurance of salvation (Rom.
8:16; 2 Cor. 1:22; Eph. 1:14). The Holy Spirit is the Comforter, the Teacher,
the Illuminator, the Unction of God’s saints in this world (John 14:16-18; 1
Cor. 2:9-12; Eph. 1:17; 1 John 2:20, 27). He leads the believer in obedience
and service to Christ (Rom. 8:14; Gal. 5:16; Acts 8:27, 29; Heb. 8:10). The
Holy Spirit calls, qualifies, and equips men for special service in the kingdom
of God (Acts 13:2-4). He distributes spiritual gifts in the body of Christ as
he will (1 Cor. 12:4-11). He gives us the power and grace to do what we are
called of God to do (Acts 1:8; 1 Cor. 2:4; 1 Thess. 1:5).
The Spirit of grace produces
in every believer the fruit of grace (Gal. 5:22-25). They are the produce of
his grace, not of our works. It is the Spirit who teaches us to pray according
to the will of God (2 Sam. 7:27; Rom. 8:26-27; Gal. 4:6). The Holy Spirit
directs the believer’s heart in worship (John 4:23-24; Phil. 3:3). In the last
day, God the Holy Spirit will be the agent of Christ (Rom. 8:11-23) in the
resurrection of our bodies (the second resurrection), as he has been in the
resurrection of our souls (the first resurrection – Rev. 20:6).
[1] If the word should be
translated “in” instead of “with,” why
is it translated “with?” One answer to that question is obvious. The
translators of our Authorized Version were all ministers in the Church of
England. They were all working under orders of the King. As such, they labored
hard to make room for some mode of baptism other than immersion. Not only did
they refuse to translate the word baptize,
(Baptize is a transliteration, not a translation of the Greek word baptidzo. A translation would be “dip, plunge,
or immerse.”), but they also translated the word “in” (en) as “with” almost
every time it is used in the New Testament in connection with baptism.
[2] The context of 1 Corinthians
12:13 demands that we understand this statement as referring to the water
baptism of the believer. Our baptism speaks both of our identification and
union with Christ as our Substitute and of our identification and union with
his people in the life of the Spirit.