The Holy Spirit
"And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters." (Genesis 1:2c)
"The Spirit and the Bride say, 'Come.'” (Revelation 22:17a)
September 9, 2024
Dear friends,
We are relishing the arrival of cooler, delightfully cooler, fall weather here! It refreshes the mind and body to sit on the porch and watch the autumn breezes rustling through the trees in our yard. I am reminded so often that this is an image of the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
According to Scripture, the animating power of wind is a metaphor for the Holy Spirit. Jesus said to Nicodemus, "The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (John 3:8) The Holy Spirit may be less emphasized as a Person of the Trinity -- or, at least a more mysterious Person -- yet he is no less important!
J. I. Packer wrote, "John records our Lord's disclosure of the mystery of the Trinity: three persons, and one God, the Son doing the will of the Father and the Spirit doing the will of the Father and the Son. And the point stressed is that the Spirit, who comes to Christ's disciples 'to be with you forever' (John 14:16), is coming to exercise the ministry of a comforter in Christ's stead. If, therefore, the ministry of Christ the Comforter was important, the ministry of the Holy Spirit the Comforter can scarcely be less important. If the work that Christ did matters to the church, the work that the Spirit does must matter also." (J. I. Packer, Knowing God)
In the opening words of Genesis, we read that "the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters." This Hebrew verb has been translated “hovering” or “moving”, like that of a bird brooding over her young (see Deut. 32:11). Throughout the Bible the Spirit of God brings life and order to God's creation. Without the Holy Spirit there would be no life upon the earth. There would be no God-led ministry of the judges, kings, and prophets of the Old Testament. There would be no apostolic ministry, and no inspiration resulting in the written word of God (2 Tim 3:16). By the Spirit descending, John the Baptizer recognized Jesus to be God's Son. Without the Spirit's coming at Pentecost there would be no church. Since he gives the new birth, without him there would be no believers in Christ upon earth. From Genesis to Revelation, he abides forever with God's people. "The Spirit and the Bride say, 'Come.'” (Revelation 22:17) Notice that the perspective of the Spirit's speaking is from the earth, alongside the church, calling for Jesus' return. Jesus said the Spirit would be with us forever.
Personally, I recognize that without the ministry of the Holy Spirit my eyes would never have been opened to my own spiritual need and to see and feel God's mercy and grace toward me in Jesus. I would not have known the truth about God's Son, who is the Truth. I would not have known to pray to God as Father, I would not have derived comfort from the Bible, nor understood it deeply, nor would I have the courage to speak to others about Christ. I would not have known power to be something other than what I was apart from God. Without the Spirit I would not have the heart, the motivation, or the strength to live a holy life for the Lord. Without the Spirit I would not know the joy of salvation, the love of fellow Christians, nor would I have persevered longer than a day (or less). I would have no special gift to use in building up the body of Christ. Without him I would be a dead, lifeless tree in a barren and windless land.
In his work on the Holy Spirit, Abraham Kuyper wrote, "To lead the creature to its destiny, to cause it to develop according to its nature, to make it perfect, is the proper work of the Holy Spirit." That is wonderful to me -- "to lead the creature to its destiny..." The Spirit of God leads us along from birth to glory. He gives us life, gives us understanding, sanctifies us, and provides strength and courage and joy. And so, he leads us to our destiny as the children of God.
Kuyper writes elsewhere: "This is the work of the Comforter. It is not yet the heavenly state, which will be all joyous when even the memory of our sin not only, but of the fact of our ever having been sinners will be taken from us, and will be cast into the depth of the sea. Here we still feel that we undergo a Divine, artistic operation. By having our understanding darkened and by being blinded and forsaken we are reminded again and again of the antithesis between this glorious indwelling of the Holy Ghost, and the fact that we have been born in sin. With us the Holy Spirit continuously reacts against our sinful nature. And therefore here on earth he is and remains our Comforter. For this is the blessed comfort of a child of dust, that while on one side he still sinks away in misery, yet under it all and with it all he remains conscious of the blessed presence of the Holy Ghost. That the Holy Spirit does not go away, that he does not allow himself to be sent away, that he does not give us up, but continues to dwell with us, and to take us as we are, is his infinite, his Divine love." (To Be Near Unto God, chapter 83)
We should ask ourselves, are we honoring and submitting to the Holy Spirit in our life? If you are a Christian, give thanks today for the blessing of God's Spirit indwelling you forever!
IN OTHER READING.
-- Read more of Kuyper on the Holy Spirit here and here.
-- C. S. Lewis has hit upon a profound observation in his article, "Meditation in a Toolshed." Here it is read and illustrated, chalkboard-style.
-- "...it’s always better to decide what you believe about big ideas by reading, learning, and talking to others in a space that doesn’t immediately reward you. Wisdom is slow work, and glory from others is a hindrance to it..." (Samuel D. James)
FINAL QUOTE.
"The essence of the Christian religion consists therein, that the creation of the Father, destroyed by sin, is again restored in the death of the Son of God and recreated by the grace of the Holy Spirit to a Kingdom of God." (Herman Bavinck, The Sacrifice of Praise, 1922)
That's it for this week!
Sandy
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.