The Father begets the Son and the Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. Everything that makes God God is the Holy Spirit as well. Yet again, we do not worship three Gods but One God in Three Persons.
Who Is The Holy Spirit?
Notice that I didn’t say “what” is the Holy Spirit. It is proper to speak of the Holy Spirit as a Person. He is not a force or energy. He is a divine Person. We as Christians are often like the Ephesians in Acts 19:2. We might not say it but the way that we live echoes their concern when they tell Paul, “We have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
The Nicene Creed says, “We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life.” The Spirit is the third Person of the Trinity. As one person says, “The Spirit is not the Son’s twin brother.”1 The Spirit is distinct from the Son but not another God altogether. As the Sun is never without Light, so the Father and the Son are never without the Spirit.
If He proceeds from the Father and the Son then it means He is of the same essence as well. This is why Jesus can say in John 15:26 “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me.” Galatians 4:6-7 says, “And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father’”
The Holy Spirit is breathed out by the Father and the Son in all eternity. As a living person is never without their breath so the Father and the Son are never without the Holy Spirit. The greek word for Spirit is used synonymously with breath and wind. That’s why John 20:22 says, “And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”
There was never a time when the Spirit was not present. He has never had a moment in time when He came into being. He is co-eternal and co-equal with the Father and the Son.
What Does The Holy Spirit Do?
As the Holy Spirit is divine, all of His works are divine. 2 Corinthians 3:17 says, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” What the Holy Spirit does, God does. The massive event in redemptive history that pertains to the Holy Spirit is Pentecost (Acts 2). The Father and the Son send the Spirit to equip the people for the mission of the kingdom. This is God’s master plan. God accomplishes God-sized results by giving Himself to us. He does not stand off from afar as we attempt to complete His mission. He is completing His mission through us by the Holy Spirit.
And if the Holy Spirit is God Himself dwelling in us then it means that the Holy Spirit is not on the JV team. I remember that whenever we were beating teams bad in sports we would send in the JV team just to give them some reps. The Holy Spirit is not a backup player. He’s not an afterthought. One person says, “He is not third in time; not third in rank; but third [only] in order.”2
That’s why Jesus says in John 16:7 “Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.” How could it be to our advantage if Jesus leaves us? It’s only to our advantage if the Holy Spirit is God.
And this is how the Father loves you dear Christian. Michael Reeves says, “The way the Father makes known His love is precisely through giving His Spirit.” Because, as Richard of St. Victor says, “There will be one, single, and same love in all persons.” How much does God love you? He comes to live in you. People with good manners say, “I’m thinking about you.” People who love say, “I’m here with you.”
Why Does It Matter To Know The Holy Spirit?
Here is why it matters. God the Father sends the Son to redeem us while the Father and the Son send the Spirit to apply that redemption. And when He applies redemption to us, He gives us all the benefits that Jesus purchased for us on the Cross. All the promises, all the identity, all the forgiveness. The Holy Spirit is not stingy!
And when the Spirit comes to us, He grants us love for the Father and the Son. He begins to change us back into the image of the Son. Matthew Barrett says, “If the gospel reveals a Trinitarian descent, our reception of that gospel involves an ascent into the Triune life of God.” Don’t you see what he’s saying? The Trinity saves us so that we might have fellowship with the Trinity. How much does the Triune God want to be your friend? So much so that He does everything necessary to make it happen.
It also means this. If the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ who is sent by the Father and the Son, it means that the way we see Jesus treat sinners is the way the Holy Spirit will continue to treat us. The devil loves to deal harshly with you. He loves to make you think that Jesus was mercifully and that the Father might be loving but the Holy Spirit is only here to make you continually feel guilty for your sin. He wants you to think that the Spirit never wants you to feel the peace of God. He wants you to think that the Spirit never wants you to rest in grace.
That is how the dark lord tempts us. He pretends to be the Spirit and sometimes we believe he is. He uses Scripture. He throws out doctrine to us. But, he always does so in ways that twist and deceive. He is not like the gentle and lowly Spirit who deals with us in love.
And this is what you must fight to believe. The Holy Spirit is not harsh with bruised reeds. He is not rough with burdened sinners. He knows how to deal with us in love. Indeed, He only deals with us in love.
Jesus Himself prayed in John 17:3 “This is eternal life that they know you the One true God and Jesus Christ whom He has sent.” Do you hear what Jesus is saying? He is saying that what it means to be saved is to intimately know the Triune God. If we don’t know this Triune God, we won’t experience salvation. What you know influences who you are.
I believe this is from Matthew Barrett but I cannot exactly remember.
Once again, I believe this is from Matthew Barrett.