The titles of the Spirit prove His deity.
What is God’s name? (Jehovah?) What is the name of God the Son? What is the Holy Spirit’s given name? (He doesn’t have one.) I don’t know that this is important, but don’t you find that somewhat interesting? The Third Person of the Trinity is pure spirit; He has no material presence. I don’t know, but perhaps this is a part of the reason that He has no specific name. But the fact that He is called the HOLY Spirit tells us what? And what is the conclusion when He is designated as THE Holy Spirit? “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” “Grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.”
The TITLES of the Holy Spirit reveal various relationships, some of which indicate deity. “In the beginning God created the Heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.” Genesis 6:3 – “And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.” The Bible refers to the “Spirit of the Lord, of our God, of Jehovah, of the Lord God,” and “of the Living God” as well as many others. If He is the Spirit of the Lord, or the Spirit of Jehovah, can He be the spirit of anyone else? If we took the time to read all these hundreds of references, we’d have to reach one conclusion: He is somehow intrinsically, essentially, vitally linked to Jehovah. But is the relationship of the Spirit to Jehovah the same as the Christian’s relationship to the Lord? These references indicate the deity of the Holy Spirit.
The titles of the Holy Spirit reveal characteristics of the Spirit which are divine. Hebrews 9:14 – “How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” Romans 1:4 – Jesus was “declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.” II Corinthians 3:17-18 – “Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” I Peter 4:14 – “If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.” There are many references where the Holy Spirit is declared to be the author of God’s Word. And there are many other references where the Holy Spirit is declared to be the teacher of God’s Word. He is the Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding; the Spirit of Truth; and the Spirit of Knowledge.
Some of these verses have already showed us that His titles reveal His divine abilities and works: “Spirit of Glory, Spirit of Holiness, Spirit of Wisdom, Spirit of Truth.” Romans 8:1-2 – “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.” Romans 8:15 – “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” II Corinthians 4:13 – “We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak.” He also is the divine Comforter.
Scripture comparisons prove the deity of the Holy Spirit.
I’d like some of you to turn to Isaiah 6:8-10, and some to Acts 28:23-27. Isaiah 6:8 – “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me. And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.” Acts 28:23 – “And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening. And some believed the things which were spoken, and some believed not. And when they agreed not among themselves, they departed, after that Paul had spoken one word, Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet unto our fathers, Saying, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.”
Some of you turn to Jeremiah 31:31-33, and some to Hebrew 10:15-17. Jeremiah 31:31 – “Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.” Hebrews 10:15 – “Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before, This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.”
Listen to Hebrews 1:1 – “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets.” Now hear II Peter 1:21 – “For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” Which is it? God spoke through the prophets or was it the Holy Spirit?
Even verses within the same context indicate the deity of the Holy Spirit. II Samuel 23:1-3 – “Now these be the last words of David. David the son of Jesse said, and the man who was raised up on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel, said, The Spirit of the LORD spake by me, and his word was in my tongue. The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me, He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God.” Acts 5:1-4 – “A certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession, And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.”
Last week I took you to several scriptures where the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are mentioned at once. What are some of those situations? Jesus’ baptism. Matthew 3:16-17 – “And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” The Baptismal formula of Matthew 28:19: “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.” The closing of II Corinthians 13:14 – “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.”
Are the attributes of the Holy Spirit any different from the Father and the Son?
Why is the He called the HOLY Spirit?
What does Genesis 1:2 suggest about the omnipotence of the Spirit?
He possesses life – eternal life: Romans 8:1-2 – “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
He is omnipresent – Psalm 139:7-10: “Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.”
He is omniscient – I Corinthians 2:10-11 – “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.”
The works of the Holy Spirit prove His deity.
We’ve referred to creation several times.
How much of a role does the Spirit play in salvation?
Conviction. John 16:7-11 – “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.”
Regeneration. John 3:5-7 – “Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.”
Sanctification. II Thessalonians 2:13 – “But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:” I Peter 1:2 – You are “elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.”
Sealing and assuring our glorification. Ephesians 1:13-14 – “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.”
We will look at much of this again in greater detail, but our purpose this morning was to show you that the Holy Spirit is Divine – one of the three Persons of the God-head.