Wind

John Ritenbaugh, endeavoring to build an intensified appreciation for God's Holy Spirit, maintains that our sense of responsibility should also intensify when we realize that our calling was not random. The term "spirit" is associated with wind in both Greek and Hebrew, indicating a power that is invisible but forceful. God gave mankind distinctions no other animal ever received, including being fashioned in His image, enabled to manage the resources of the earth, having communication skills and memory, having the capacity to marry and express love and finally, realizing that sin carries a punishment. God has singled each one of us out individually, calling us, gifting us with capabilities, and preparing us for eternal life as members of His family. The birth Christ described to Nicodemus could be rendered both "from above" (as the wind comes from above) or "again" (referring to a totally new spiritual creation). If we are in Christ, having His mind, we are indeed a new creation. God is creating us and gifting us as we move along. We require the Holy Spirit to aid us in this transformative sanctification process. In this process, God might very well place us in situations we feel are above our head but He will also always supply the tools to accomplish the work He has given us. . Like the apostles Paul and Peter, we could not get by without the gifting of God's Holy Spirit. As we use the prompts and gifting of the Holy Spirit, realizing that God has initiated everything, we (as the early disciples) become elevated from servant to friend to sibling of our Elder Brother Jesus Christ.

John Ritenbaugh, differentiating Pentecost from the other High Holy Days, suggests that its uniqueness consists of the extra-special gift to God's called-out ones, namely the precious additive of God's Holy Spirit, enabling us to perform the tasks God has prepared, giving us the power to overcome, build character, and attain membership in His family. Without God's Holy Spirit, our carnal nature is hostile to all His purposes. In the context of physical death, there is no difference between the spirit of man and the spirit of an animal. But, with the sealing of God's Holy Spirit is the promise of becoming His offspring and serving productively in His family. The spirit in man separates mankind from animals, giving man the ability to plan, analyze, create art, music and literature, developing technology that makes our heads spin. Without God's Holy Spirit, mankind has never been able to live at peace. When we yield to God's Holy Spirit, we receive the power to do the things God has prepared His firstfruits to accomplish, adding exponentially to the capabilities and the achievements of the spirit in man.

David Grabbe, reminding us that God's Holy Spirit is an integral part of Pentecost, clarifies some understanding about the term "spirit," a word which has been interpreted into 14 different words throughout the Scriptures. On Pentecost AD, God began to pour His Holy Spirit upon the Church, enabling His called-out people to receive the very essence of His Mind. Spirit refers to the intellectual part of man's center of reason, alternately referred to as heart and mind. In this context, spirit determines a mood and frame of mind. The world also has a spirit; it is the world's attitude. God's Holy Spirit refers to the mind of God/mind of Christ which is added to our human spirit, to create a sound mind, extinguishing fear with God's love, and giving us the power to achieve spiritual goals according to God's purpose for us and to witness for Him by thinking and acting as He does.

Charles Whitaker, commenting on the symbol of wind in Scripture, suggests that there are both positive and negative connotations. Wind can be frightfully powerful, as depicted by tornadoes and hurricanes. Wind has the function to broadcast seed and disperse pollen. Wind can damage soil through erosion. Mankind has difficulty controlling or harnessing the wind; God Almighty controls and channels wind, an invisible medium, making it an ideal symbol for God's Holy Spirit, having both powerful and gentle properties—as a still small voice of a gentle breeze. When we consider the voice mechanism, the power to articulate the vocal bands is wind from the lungs. Through the spirit in man, mankind can produce audible vocal symbols called words, symbols of concepts, referred to by the Greeks as logos. Words are intended to convey meaning. Thought without words cannot be communicated. Without words, we have no access to spirit whether it is the spirit in man, a demonic spirit, or God's Holy Spirit. Wind is a major factor in determining the weather, as well the psychological environment of our mind—a kind of zeitgeist having the power to encourage or discourage attitudes. God's breathing life into Adam was a precursor of the later granting of His Holy Spirit. Through God's Words empowered with His Holy Spirit, we can be transported into His Kingdom.

To many, one of Christ's greatest miracles is His calming of the storm on the Sea of Galilee, showing His awesome power over His creation. Martin Collins explains that the miracle not only highlights Jesus' glory, but it also reveals the disciples' need of greater faith.

John Ritenbaugh reiterates that we are to follow Abraham and Sarah's example of relying on God's guidance, learning to trust in the wisdom of Almighty God rather than the world. In order to avoid strife, Abraham allowed his forward nephew Lot first choice. Likewise, the apostle Paul admonished the New Testament church to refrain bringing law suits before the public. Abraham and Sarah were willing to suffer loss in order to achieve peace. Regarding the current scattered flocks, any spirit of competition is the way of enmity and strife. The sheep do not belong to any man or any one group, but they belong to Christ, given to Him by the Father. It is Christ's, not the minister's responsibility to get the sheep into the Kingdom of God. The Church of the Great God sees the other splinter groups as brethren in the greater church of God rather than competitors. Unlike certain understandings in our previous fellowship, each person is directly and individually responsible for his own submission to God's government. No external coercion will develop character or submission to God. Throughout history, the large congregation has been the anomaly rather than the norm. The scattering of the flock has been a blessing, forcing people to take individual responsibility to develop godly character, responding to a still small voice rather than to brazenly get out in front of God. The Bible is replete with examples of great leaders, with hubris, presumptuousness, or pride who got out in front of God (Satan, Abraham, Sarah, Korah, and Josiah) causing irreparable consequences for their descendents. The antidote to presumptuousness involves patiently waiting on the Lord, following God's lead, resisting any impulse to get out in front of God.

In discussing the Holy Spirit and the Trinity, John Ritenbaugh reiterates that the Holy Spirit is never venerated as a separate being (Revelation 22:1-3, John 10:30, John 17:3). Spirit (ruach-Hebrew or pneuma-Greek), something never seen, is manifested or personified in many diverse ways such as truth, adoption, anger, courage, grace, faith, (states of mind or emotion, character, or personality) etc. In every instance it is preceded by the words "spirit of." Spirit applies to an invisible force or power within man or beast or angelic being making them unique. Our hope of glory is the "indwelling of Christ" and is used interchangeably with "Spirit of God" and "Spirit of Truth." Jesus promised a spirit of power from on high made available for His disciples (as diverse spiritual gifts) to witness of Him. The Holy Spirit, as a force or power dwelling in us, enables us to keep God's law and to receive our new nature. Pneuma and ruach represent that invisible power applied in many diverse ways manifesting in us the power of God making it possible to have an intimate family relationship with God the Father and Jesus Christ, perfectly unified in purpose and composition, analogous to the relationship of husband and wife—at one in a family relationship. Ruach Ha Kodesh or Pneuma Hagion (Christ in us) provides the metaphoric glue to make this cleavage possible - making our God-family relationship manifest.

After debunking the popular assumption that this is the only day of salvation, Martin Collins describes the minuscule spring harvest (the first resurrection) and the abundant fall harvest (the second resurrection), which are the respective times of calling and glorification. The Holy Spirit has the following effects or functions: It1) combines with our human spirit, bearing witness that we are the children of God; 2) impregnates us with God-life, enabling us to become heirs; 3) gives us the spirit of understanding; 4) imparts the love of God within us; 5) gives us faith (by which Jesus performed His miracles); 6) enables us to overcome, transferring us from self-centeredness to God-centeredness; 7) enables us to produce holy character, fulfilling God's purpose of reproducing Himself.

Martin Collins asserts that presumptuous self-justification is one of mankind's most deceptive or blinding sins. Glibly stating, "God will understand," we practice a dangerous and foolish form of situation ethics. God pays close attention to the small or insignificant things we may overlook or excuse in ourselves, sins we commit in weakness. God's patience does not constitute approval of our sin. God's truth penetrates and exposes our secret sins. Nothing can be concealed from Almighty God. The reverence and fear of God leads to hating evil and obeying God in both public and private contexts. Regarding our presumptuous thoughts and behaviors, God will certainly understand (Ecclesiastes 12:14).

What have we founded our lives upon? Jesus asks this question in a parable in His Sermon on the Mount. Having a strong, sturdy foundation will allow us to weather the storms of life and prevail.

Richard Ritenbaugh, focusing upon Peter's Pentecost sermon, suggests that the accompanying signs attracted attention, confirmed God's Word through His servants, and provided symbolic meaning to the unseen effects of the Holy Spirit. Both wind and fire have destructive potential, providing threat or negative reinforcement. The positive reinforcement or motivating power of the Holy Spirit consists of God's Word—or the still small voice, preached through His messengers. If we continue undergoing the sanctifying process and exercising righteous judgment, we will not have to worry about the negative reinforcement (the Day of the Lord). We have the choice of falling under God's wrath or calling out to the Savior for protection, yielding to His Holy Spirit, preparing ourselves for His Kingdom.

John Ritenbaugh identifies spirit as the most important element in the whole salvation process. Spirit (ruach in Hebrew, pneuma in Greek) can be defined as that invisible, immaterial, internal activating agent which impels or creates. There are varieties of spirit (generated through advertising, cheerleading, or political rallies) motivating people to "go with the flow," conforming to a sheep-like mob psychology. Satan begets or inspires a spirit or mood (Ephesians 2:2; John 8:44) that captivates all of us before our calling, leading us to follow sinful appetites. God's Spirit is vastly different in that 1) it is holy, 2)provides a tap into infinite knowledge, and 3) provides us an interface with the mind, wisdom, and character of God (I Corinthians 2:9).

John Ritenbaugh reveals that the architects and custodians of the trinity concept admit that it is a "somewhat unsteady silhoette," unsupportable by Scripture unless one forces external presuppositions, assumptions, and inferences onto it'as did Catholic theologians at the end of the fourth century. The Holy Spirit (designated as ruach in the Hebrew and pneuma in the Greek) constitutes the non-physical, invisible essence of God's mind (I Corinthians 2:10,16) which He miraculously joins to the minds of those He calls (John 6:44), transferring His thoughts, attititudes, and character, and enabling us to have the will and the ability to carry out the creative work of God the Father (Philippians 2:13; John 14:10).

In this Pentecost message, John Ritenbaugh emphasizes that the receiving of God's Holy Spirit is not so much for our use as it is for God's use that He might carry out His creative effort in our lives. Metaphorically, the Holy Spirit can be compared to the water which the potter uses to bring the clay to the right consistency. God's Spirit brings about a transformation- turning something from a state of destruction into a state of purity. God desires to give us His Spirit and gifts in abundance, but on the condition that our motives for wanting them are unselfish. God uses His Spirit: (1) as a bridgehead through which He works His spiritual creation,(2) to empower the church, and (3) to empower us to yield to Him.

John Ritenbaugh reiterates that the trinity doctrine, never taught by Jesus or the apostles, arrived on the scene 400 years later, derived by a flawed premise and deductive logic. The trinity must be "read into" the scriptures, not "derived from it." Our Elder Brother torpedoes the co-equal three-in-one concept by his words, "My father is greater than I," acknowledging the Father's sovereignty. Theologians, misapplying grammatical gender and personification, falsely deduce a phantom spirit not supported by scripture — except by an insidious insertion of spurious scripture (I John 5:7) totally absent in the original writings. The apostles, in their greetings referring to the Father and the Son, totally ignore the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, sometimes pictured as a dove, water, wind, breath, or oil, is a creating force emanating from God's mind, the very power of God.