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Chapter Two
When we think of a person, we generally consider how he looks, dresses, acts, talks, thinks—mostly how he looks. It is hard to think of a person without in some way thinking of his appearance.
It is easy to visualize Jesus as a Person (even though we don't know what He looked like) because of the life He lived on the earth. And Jesus is a Person, just as God the Father is a Person.
But what can we know about the Holy Spirit? Is He a Person? Is He divine? What part does He have in our Christian lives? This chapter will help you discover answers to these questions.
A PERSON OR AN INFLUENCE?
In the following verses what activities of the Holy Spirit reveal that He is a Person?
Acts 13:2
John 14:26
John 16:13
Rom. 8:26
Eph. 4:30
In the Bible the Holy Spirit has several names: Holy Ghost, Comforter, Spirit of Truth, Spirit of Christ, Spirit, Spirit of Jesus, Spirit of God and others.
IS THE HOLY SPIRIT GOD?
According to Genesis 1:2 (Select correct answer.)
What characteristics of God belong to the Holy Spirit?
Heb. 9:14
Psa. 139:7
When Ananias and Sapphira forfeited their lives (Acts 5:1-10) to Whom had they lied?
In verse 3
In verse 4
Does the Holy Spirit have a part
In giving men life? (Job 33:4)
In giving men new life? (John 3:5,6)
HIS RELATIONSHIP TO US
In Salvation
Each of the following verses reveals some phase of the Spirit's work in bringing men to eternal life in Christ. (Write correct references after statements.)
Rom. 8:16
John 16:8
John 6:63
I Cor. 12:13
I Cor. 6:19
I Cor. 12:3
He convinces of sin.
He enables men to call Christ Lord.
He baptizes people into the body of Christ.
He gives spiritual life.
He comes to dwell in the believer.
He gives assurance of salvation.
Compare Ephesians 1:13,14 and I Corinthians 6:19. As the Holy Spirit takes up permanent residence in each believer at the time he trusts Christ, He becomes God's seal and guarantee that he is a child of God.
In Daily Life
"All that has been done by God the Father and by God the Son will be useless to us, unless the Spirit shall reveal those things to our souls."
—Charles H. Spurgeon
According to I Corinthians 2:12-14
Whom has a Christian received into his life?
How does God teach us the things which nonbelievers can't understand?
Because the Holy Spirit is our Teacher (John 16:13,14)
Into what will He guide us?
Whom will He glorify?
What else will He reveal?
What does the Spirit do for every believer?
I Cor. 3:16
Rom. 8:14
What is the product of the Holy Spirit's working in a Christian's life called? (Gal. 5:22)
List the nine qualities of the fruit of the Spirit. (Gal. 5:22,23)
In Service
Read I Corinthians 12:7-11
Does every believer have some gift (ability) from the Holy Spirit?
Who decides which gifts are given to a believer?
For what purpose are the gifts given? (Also see I Peter 4:10)
In addition to the gifts mentioned in the passage above, what are some others? (Rom. 12:6-8)
"He who has the Holy Spirit in his heart and the Scripture in his hands has all he needs."
—Alexander Maclaren
In Acts 1:8
What does the Holy Spirit give Christ's followers?
What should be the result?
Acts 2:1-42 is the account of the Holy Spirit's coming to give power to Jesus' disciples—power to glorify God and to bring men to faith in Christ. As you read it, notice how this event fulfilled Christ's promises in John 14:16-18 and John 16:7.
What part does the Holy Spirit play in directing and helping Christians in their service?
Acts 13:2,4
Acts 16:6,7
I Cor. 2:4
Because of the Holy Spirit's importance in our life and ministry, what warnings are given about our relationship to Him?
I Thess. 5:19
Eph. 4:30
Acts 7:51
What are some things that grieve the Holy Spirit? (Eph. 4:29-32)
"It is not the fact that we disagree, but it is our disagreeable ways, our harsh words and our unforgiving spirit which grieve the Holy Spirit."
OUR RESPONSIBILITY
In Ephesians 5:18-21
What is God's command to us concerning the Holy Spirit?
List several results of being controlled (filled) by the Spirit. (Verses 19-21)
"There is no such thing as a once-for-all fullness; it is a continuous appropriation of a continuous supply from Jesus Christ Himself: a moment-by-moment faith in a moment-by-moment Saviour, for a moment-by-moment cleansing, and a moment-by-moment filling."
—Charles Inwood
What are some other results of being filled with the Spirit?
Acts 4:31
Acts 11:24
Rom. 5:5
Every true believer in Christ has the Holy Spirit—the Spirit has taken up residence in his life. But the fullness—the control—of the Holy Spirit depends on yielding to Jesus Christ and continually obeying Him, as Romans 6:13 stresses. The Spirit-filled life is simply walking in oneness with the Lord Jesus, and with one another.
What verse or truth most challenges you in this chapter?
How does it challenge you, and how will it affect your thinking or actions?
The Trinity
God exists as three Persons (referred to as the Trinity)—and yet He is One. The three Persons of the Trinity are God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. It may help to understand this by considering a man who is a father, a son and a husband. Each of his responsibilities is different in its relationships, yet it is the same person who fulfills each of them. So it is with God—He is One yet He reveals Himself to men in three different ways—as Father, as Son and as Holy Spirit.
—The Father is God invisible—John 1:18.
—The Son is God revealed—John 1:14-18.
—The Holy Spirit is God working in men—John 16:8; I Corinthians 6:19,20.
Other passages that teach us about the Trinity are: Matt. 3:16,17; Matt. 28:19; John 14:16; II Corinthians 13:14; and I Peter 1:2.