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COMMUNITY GROUP STUDY: WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT?
Learning to relate
to Him as a person who is God
Too often we are clear on the personhood of the Father
and Son but the Spirit is seen as a kind of power that’s going to help us serve
God better, rather than a person who wants to have a relationship.
HE IS A PERSON WITH POWER, NOT JUST A POWER
·
The Spirit’s personhood is revealed in many verbs relating to Him. For
example what does Ephesians 4:30 say about how we are to relate to Him? (See
Acts 5:3 also)
·
What does Romans 8:16 say about the kind of relationship one can have
with the Holy Spirit?
THE HOLY SPIRIT AS GOD
Scripture reveals
God as Trinitarian as the diagram shows. God is:
·
Three distinct persons (the Son is not the
Father or the Spirit etc.)
·
Each person is fully God (The Father, Son and Spirit
are each fully God)
·
There is one God (one essence)
Read John
14:16-20, which says much about the persons of the Trinity:
· Who does Jesus ‘ask’? (v.16)
· Who will the Father give to
‘be with you’? (v.16-17)
· Who will ‘come to us’ and be
‘in us’? (v.18, 20)
· What does this mysterious
verse say about the persons of the Trinity?
Do we have a
living relationship with God the Spirit? This has massive implications for us
and those around us,
‘In a culture similar to ours the early believers
seem to have been more effective than we are. I am convinced this is due in
large part to their experience of the reality of the Spirit’s presence.’
(Gordon Fee).
LET’S PRAY IN LIGHT OF WHAT WE HAVE BEEN STUDYING.
DAILY PERSONAL BIBLE DEVOTIONAL WEEK 1
MONDAY: WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT? HE IS A PERSON
There is a danger of thinking of the Spirit as a
power – an ‘it’ rather than a ‘He’. One can think of Him in terms of how He may
help us to achieve more in our lives, which is true, but this a far from having
a living, loving relationship with Him.
The Spirit is often spoken of in metaphors as Gordon
Fee has written,
‘We tend to think of the Spirit in
non-personal terms and refer to him as “it.” Listen to our images: dove, wind,
fire, water, oil. No wonder many regard the Spirit as a gray, oblong blur and
find him so difficult to understand and to relate to.’
THERE IS DANGER OF WANTING
POWER RATHER THAN FRIENDSHIP
It’s not a friendship when one is in it for what the
person can give you rather than aiming for a shared relationship.
Gordon Fee has written,
‘Not only has the coming of Christ changed
everything… so too has the coming of the Spirit. In dealing with the Spirit, we
are dealing with none other than the personal presence of God.’
RESPONSE: READ, MEDITATE AND PRAY OUT OF THE FOLLOWING. THAT THE SPIRIT
WOULD LEAD YOU INTO A DEEPER PERSONAL FRIENDSHIP WITH HIM.
John 14:16-17
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help
you and be with you forever – the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept
him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he
lives with you and will be in you.
John 15:13-15
Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you
servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I
have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have
made known to you.
TUESDAY: WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT? HE IS GOD
The Holy Spirit is a person who is also God, as
fully God as the Father and the Son. Some say that teachings such as the
Trinity are not important. In response I could would say that there is nothing
more important than who God is. If God is not a Trinity then to Call Jesus
Lord, to be devoted to the Holy Spirit, to worship either the Son or the Spirit
is idolatry – a gross sin against God (and the converse is also true). Can you
imagine saying to your spouse, your children, your friend… that you don’t care
that much about who they are, that you just want them to do good things for
you! Seeking to know someone is loving, and the route to growing in love.
A FEW PHRASES FROM THE ATHANASIAN
CREED
· We worship one God in
Trinity, and Trinity in Unity.
· For there is one person of
the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Spirit. (Three distinct
persons)
· But the Godhead of the
Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit is all one, the glory equal, the
majesty coeternal. (God is one)
· Such as the Father is, such
is the Son, and such is the Holy Spirit. (Each of the persons are equal in attributes
and worth)
· The Father uncreated, the
Son uncreated, the Holy Spirit uncreated.
· The Father eternal, the Son
eternal, and the Holy Spirit eternal. And yet they are not three
eternals but one eternal.
· So likewise the Father is
almighty, the Son almighty, and the Holy Spirit almighty. And yet they are not three almighties, but one almighty.
· So the Father is God, the
Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God; And yet they are not three
Gods, but one God
As the Father and Son, the Spirit is worthy of our
worship, trust and obedience. It’s very informative to read what Jesus says
about baptism,
Matthew 28:19 Go
and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name (singular)
of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Baptism is a symbol that one has died and been
raised to a new life of following God; Jesus names God as ‘Father, Son and
Spirit’ making no distinction – We are to worship and follow each and all.
RESPONSE: PRAY THAT YOU WOULD BECOME A GREATER WORSHIPPER AND FOLLOWER
OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
WEDNESDAY: WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT? HE IS YOUR STRENGTH
Each of the persons of the Trinity have all the
attributes of God equally. The Father, Son and Spirit are ‘Almighty’ or
omnipotent. I bring this up because we are all confronted by many challenges
and discouragements. Are you aware of your access to the Spirit in prayer?
PAUL PRAYED FOR THE CHURCH TO BE STRENGTHENED
Ephesians
3:14-16 For this reason I kneel before the Father,
from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I
pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through
his Spirit in your inner being…
THE
SPIRIT’S STRENGTHENING APPLIES TO ALL AREAS OF LIFE
Paul prays for the Roman
church, Romans 15:13
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him,
so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Gordon Fee
comments , ‘In the light of such a text, especially with its
repeated emphasis on “power” one can easily fall into the trap of thinking of
power especially along these lines – of more visible and extraordinary (miraculous)
manifestations of the Spirit’s presence. But this text should stand as a
corrective to that kind of ‘one way’ thinking. The presence of the Spirit
always presupposes power for Paul, but being filled with “joy and peace” and
“overflowing with hope” are equally “accompanying and attesting” evidence of
the presence of “the Holy Spirit with power”.
Many tend to think of the
Spirit’s empowering as relating to the more miraculous things of life. Do you
see that you need Him for every day, every relationship, every circumstance? We would all agree that the Holy Spirit is strong, but
do we see Him as our strength – living our lives in active dependence upon the
empowering of the Spirit?
RESPONSE: LET THE FOLLOWING WORDS OF SCRIPTURE SEARCH YOU; ARE YOU
DEPENDING ON HIS STRENGTH?
Zechariah 4:6 So he said to
me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power,
but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.
THURSDAY: WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT? HE IS ‘ANOTHER ADVOCATE’
JESUS
PROMISES TO BE WITH US BY THE SPIRIT
Before His death
and ascension Jesus promises to remain with them. Jesus came to them and has
come to us in the person of the Spirit. The Spirit is to be like having Jesus
with us as He was with the first disciples!
HE
COMES TO US AS THE ‘ADVOCATE’
The Spirit is
called ‘another advocate’ or ‘helper’ (ESV). This speaks of many things:
· ‘Another’
– Points to the
Spirit being a person distinct from Jesus.
· ‘Another’
– (‘Allos’
of the same kind) speaks of the Spirit’s ministry as similar to that of Christ.
· ‘Advocate’ –
(Paraklētos) means one who
comes alongside to help – active assistance
This means that
Jesus’ ministry to us is continued by the Holy Spirit. Jesus called His
disciples to follow Him and taught them; He continues to call people to follow
Him and teach them. He comes along side each Christian to help them in their
lives.
When children are
small a parent will come alongside, hold their hand and help them across the
road. At some point we trust and allow children to do this for themselves. This
is never true of our relationship with God! We never mature so as to need Him
less – He is our Father who, by the Spirit, comes alongside to lead us through
life.
REPONSE: MEDITATE AND PRAY THROUGH THE
FOLLOWING VERSES. PRAY FOR A DEEPER FRIENDSHIP WITH THE ‘ADVOCATE’.
John
14:16-20 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you
another advocate to help you and be with you forever – the Spirit of
truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor
knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in
you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to
you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see
me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will
realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.
FRIDAY: WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT? HE WANTS A RELATIONSHIP WITH US
In Genesis 2-3 we read of God walking with mankind
in the Garden. They were made for close relationship with God but this was
broken as they chose to rebel. God reveals His will to be among the people as
He gave Israel the tabernacle/temple, where He dwelt among them.
Our relationship with God is
not what it will be
All of history is working toward God restoring His
presence among His people and in the earth; through Jesus, God is restoring a
state of perfection. Christians experience a taste of this future now, but it
will be fully realised at the end of history. In these days we are invited to
walk with God by the Spirit; our relationship is not what it will be, but it is
a foretaste of the glory that is coming. Paul says of the era that we live in,
1 Corinthians
13:12 For now we see only a reflection as in a
mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I
shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
THE
FIRST DISCIPLES’ RELATIONSHIP WITH CHRIST WAS LIMITED
The disciples had
Jesus with them but even that glorious relationship was limited. On one
occasion Peter, James and John accompanied Jesus up a mountain where ‘He was transfigured before them. His face
shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light.’ (Matt.17).
Like these disciples, we are called to a true and living relationship with the
Spirit but there is a greater and more glorious era coming!
RESPONSE: USE THIS TEXT TO INSPIRE YOUR
WORSHIP AND PRAYER FOR YOURSELF AND THE CHURCH
David expresses what is surely our heart and, by the
Spirit, can be our experience,
Psalm
84:1-4 How lovely is your dwelling place,
Lord Almighty! My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of
the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God. Even the
sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may
have her young – a place near your altar, Lord Almighty, my
King and my God. Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever
praising you.
SATURDAY: WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT? HE CAN BE GRIEVED OR ‘PROMOTED’
Can
we behave so as to diminish and damage our relationship with the Holy Spirit,
or, alternatively, to ‘promote His work among us? This question must be handled
sensitively; there are some who are given to guilt and self-doubt who, on
hearing that the Spirit can be grieved, will immediately assume that they are
such people and are failures in some way. Others – those who need to hear this!
– are actually, wilfully sinning and need to repent. There are still others who
believe in the Spirit’s work in theory but need to give Him space to work.
LET’S PROMOTE THE WORK OF
THE SPIRIT AMONG US
Wayne
Grudem has written, ‘We must recognize that
these activities of the Holy Spirit are not to be taken for granted, and they
do not just happen automatically among God's people. Rather, the Holy Spirit
reflects the pleasure or displeasure of God with the faith and obedience-or
unbelief and disobedience-of God's people.’
Isaiah
63:10 Yet
they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit. So he turned and became their enemy
and he himself fought against them.
Ephesians 4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for
the day of redemption.
1 Thess. 5:19-22 Do not quench the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt, test
them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil.
WE
CAN EXPERIENCE MORE OF HIS ACTIVITY
An individual or a church can experience more or less
of the Spirit’s. Jim Cymbala in his book Fresh wind fresh fire wrote,
‘If
we do not yearn and pray and expect God to stretch out his hand and do the
supernatural, it will not happen. That is the simple truth of the matter. We
must give him room to operate. If we go on, week after week, filling the time
with lectures and nothing more, God has little opportunity in which to move…God
will manifest himself in direct proportion to our passion for him. The
principle he laid down long ago is still true. “You will seek me and find me
when you seek me with all your heart’
RESPONSE: TAKE SOME TIME TO REFLECT AND PRAY OUT OF TODAY’S STUDY.
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