Holy Spirit, Gift of

Acts 5:32 declares that God gives His Spirit to those who obey Him, yet some argue that keeping God's law is not necessary. What is the truth?

The receiving of God's Spirit is for God's creative effort in our lives. God's Spirit transforms us from a state of destruction into a state of purity.

Even theologians admit that the Holy Spirit is a mystery to them. Yet the confusion comes from pagan thought patterns that have affected how Scripture is read.

What is the Holy Spirit? What does it do? Who has it? How does it work? What does it produce?

God gives the ability to determine the source of a spiritual manifestation. However, this gift depends on a thorough knowledge and understanding of God's Word.

Ted Bowling recalls his early days in a Pentecostal Church where the key doctrine, deriving from a misapplication of Acts 2:4 and Acts 2:38, led the members to believe that glossolalia (speaking in 'tongues') was the unmistakable sign that God has accepted. . .

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 . . .

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. . .

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 i. . .

John Ritenbaugh marvels that human beings, having been given free moral agency, can accomplish what God had intended them to do all along. The apostle Peter, using the details of fulfilled prophecy (couched in David's psalms), convicts the crowd of their c. . .

Matthew 25:1-13 contains the well-known Parable of the Ten Virgins, an instruction brimming with end-time relevance: Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. ...

God's grace is so wonderful and undeserved that, to many of us, it is almost unfathomable. Perhaps we have such a hard time understanding it because we tend to think of it as a "thing" that God dispenses. John Ritenbaugh shows, however, that "grace" is a t. . .

John Ritenbaugh reiterates that what a person believes is a major driving force of his conduct, determining the outcome of his life. At the time of the end, iniquity is going to be so pervasive and so compelling a force that our only resource for enduring . . .

Martin Collins, continuing the exposition of the Book of Joel, reiterates that the locust plague serves as a vivid precursor to the impending Day of the Lord. Joel assures the victims of the devastating plague that, if they would repent of their sins, retu. . .

Pride is a perverted comparison that elevates one above another. Because of its arrogant self-sufficiency, it hinders our faith. Faith depends on humility.

John Ritenbaugh suggests that whether we do or do not make it to the Feast of Tabernacles next year depends on our faithfulness at stirring up the gift of God's spirit within us through consistent prayer, Bible study, and hearing God's word. Distractions b. . .