The
short answer to this question is, yes, the Holy Spirit as described in the
Bible is fully God. Along with God the Father and God the Son (Jesus Christ),
God the Spirit is the third member of the Godhead or the Trinity.
Those
who challenge the idea that the Holy Spirit is God suggest that the Holy Spirit
may simply be an impersonal force of some kind, a source of power controlled by
God but not fully a person Himself. Others suggest that perhaps the Holy Spirit
is just another name for Jesus, in spirit form, apart from His body.
Neither
of these ideas lines up with what the Bible actually says about the Holy
Spirit, though. The Bible describes the Holy Spirit as a person who has been
present with the Father and the Son since before time began. The Spirit is
integral to all of the things that God is described as doing in the Bible.
The
Spirit of God was present at and involved in the creation (Genesis 1:2; Psalm
33:6). The Holy Spirit moved the prophets of God with the words of God (2 Peter
1:21). The bodies of those in Christ are described as temples of God because
the Holy Spirit is in us (1 Corinthians 6:19). Jesus was clear that to be “born
again,” to become a Christian, one must be born “of the Spirit” (John 3:5).
One
of the most convincing statements in the Bible about the Holy Spirit being God
is found in Acts 5. When Ananias lied about the price of a piece of property,
Peter said that Satan had filled Ananias’s heart to “lie to the Holy Spirit”
(Acts 5:3) and concluded by saying that Ananias had “lied to God” (verse 4).
Peter’s words equate the Holy Spirit with God; he spoke as if the Spirit and
God were one and the same.
Jesus
told His disciples that the Holy Spirit, the Helper, was different from
Himself. The Father would send the Helper, the Spirit of truth, after Christ
departed. The Spirit would speak through them about Jesus (John 15:25; 16:7).
All three Persons Jesus mentions are God while being distinct from each other
within the Trinity.
The
three members of the Trinity show up, together yet distinct, at Jesus’ baptism.
As Jesus comes up from the water, the Spirit descends on Him like a dove while
the voice of the Father is heard from heaven saying that He is pleased with His
beloved Son (Mark 1:10–11).
Finally,
the Bible describes the Holy Spirit as a person, not a mere force. He can be
grieved (Ephesians 4:30). He has a will (1 Corinthians 12:4-7). He uses His
mind to search the deep things of God (1 Corinthians 2:10). And He has
fellowship with believers (2 Corinthians 13:14). Clearly, the Spirit is a
person, just as the Father and the Son are persons.
Indeed,
the Bible is unequivocal that the Holy Spirit is, in fact, God, just as Jesus
Christ and the Father are God.
O
Spirit of life, O Spirit of God,
in
every need thou bring us aid,
proceeding
forth from heaven's throne,
from
God, the Father and the Son;
O
Spirit of life, O Spirit of God.
O
Spirit of life, O Spirit of God,
increase
our faith in our dear Lord;
unless
your grace the power should give,
none
can believe in Christ and live;
O
Spirit of life, O Spirit of God.
O
Spirit of life, O Spirit of God,
make
us to love your sacred word;
the
holy flame of love impart,
that
charity may warm each heart;
O
Spirit of life, O Spirit of God.
O
Spirit of life, O Spirit of God,
enlighten
us by that same word;
teach
us to know God's radiant love,
lead
us to Christ who reigns above;
O
Spirit of life, O Spirit of God.
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