Holy Spirit

Among all the Christian doctrines, the nature of the Holy Spirit is among the most difficult to understand, and one that is commonly misconstrued.

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

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.

God's Holy Spirit typically refers to the mind of God and Christ, which is added to our human spirit to create a sound mind by which we witness of God.

Most of Christianity believes in the Trinity, but a slim minority holds to a much older belief, one that hearkens back to the earliest Christians.

The Father and the Son are two separate personalities, with the Father having pre-eminence. The Bible contains no evidence of a third person in the God family.

There are varieties of spirit, motivating people to 'go with the flow' and conform to a sheep-like mob psychology. Satan's spirit encourages sinfulness.

The architects of the trinity doctrine admit that it is a 'somewhat unsteady silhouette', requiring assumptions and inferences, but unsupportable by Scripture.

Just as our human spirit can be grieved, God is grieved by willful sinful behavior—sullying, suppressing, or stifling the Spirit that identifies us as His.

God's Spirit is the essence of His mind rather than a third person. With this Spirit, God opens our minds, dwells in us, and transfers His nature to us.

Being 'in Christ' does not refer to location, but instead our 'concern with' or 'involvement with' Him—and He with us.

God's Spirit will never prod us to do anything that is not godly love, and because it a spirit of a sound mind, it will never motivate us to do crazy things.

Theologians, misapplying grammatical gender and personification, falsely deduce a phantom third person, propped up by a spurious insertion (I John 5:7-8).

When we receive God's Spirit, we cannot escape the responsibility of using it, being a light to the world in the correct way of living. Hi Spirit is His power.

How do we lie to the Holy Spirit? Does this mean that the Holy Spirit is the third person in the Godhead? What does the "whole counsel of God" say?

Jesus taught about the Holy Spirit's function to carry out God's work, including inspiring one to speak the words of God and to resist the power of Satan.

We receive more of God's Spirit as we respond to His calling, drawing near to His presence and reversing Adam and Eve's fatal errors.

We are intrigued by supernatural power, and many seek to display it. Yet the Scriptures show the activity of the Holy Spirit in ways that are commonly missed.

In most biblical contexts, 'spirit' refers to the invisible, internal activating dimension of the mind. Synonyms include heart, mind, and thoughts.

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.

The true understanding of Elohim dismantles the entire trinity argument. God is reproducing Himself; we are being prepared to become a part of Elohim.

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?

God personally handpicks individuals with whom He desires to form a reciprocal relationship. This relationship must be dressed, kept, tended, and maintained.

If fleshly things become more important, we are on a trajectory toward death. We must exercise control, drawing on the power of God's Spirit.

Spirit is an invisible force, the effects of which are clear by its manifestations. Spirit can be discerned by thinking through and evaluating its effects.

God controls the invisible wind—powerful or gentle—making it an ideal symbol for His Spirit. God's breathing life into Adam foreshadowed giving the Holy Spirit.

The Bible frequently uses the symbol of fruit. Here is an in-depth look at what it means to bear fruit, and the work of the Holy Spirit in us.

Paul's use of the presence-absence dichotomy clarified that absence does not materially affect the Work of God because the same Holy Spirit is always present.

The Apostle John exhorts us to test and discern the spirits, judging between the true and the false, using the scripture as the steady standard of truth.

Paul admonishes the Corinthians to resist contentions, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambition, backbiting, whispering, slander, conceit, and agitation.

Martin Collins asks us whether God can be limited by mankind. God has self-imposed limitations when we go against His commands, testing His patience, purposely limiting the Holy One of Israel by our faithlessness, thereby robbing ourselves of God's blessin. . .

The Holy Spirit is never venerated as a separate being. Our hope is the indwelling of Christ, used interchangeably with 'Spirit of God' and 'Spirit of Truth.'

When we yield to God's Spirit, we receive the power to do the things God has prepared His firstfruits to accomplish, adding to the capabilities of the spirit in man.

Christ frequently used 3rd person titles, such as the Son of Man and the Helper. Just as Christ sent the Helper—Himself—so Yahweh sent His Angel—Himself.

God provides the gift before it is actually needed so that when it is needed, everything is prepared for the person to do as he has been commissioned to do.

Adherents to the Pentecostal movement try to mimic some of the superficial surface manifestations of Acts 2 rather than follow the teaching given on that day.

The seven churches of Revelation 2-3 all existed simultaneously and the characteristics of five of them will apparently be extant at the return of Christ.

We cannot assume that angels are immortal and share the same kind of spirit God Almighty has; we cannot assume they are indestructible.

Jesus Christ and God the Father are one in spirit and purpose, purposing to draw us toward that same kind of unity that currently exists between them.

The five parakletos sayings of Christ prove that the Holy Spirit is the essence, mind, and power of God and Christ in us, providing us assistance and counsel.

Pentecost is known for its stupendous signs, particularly in Acts 2. Yet it teaches us of another witness: our own display of Christ's way of life in us.

The blending of paganism with inspired Scripture has degraded and obscured the meaning and glory of what happened in the announcement of Jesus Christ's birth.