"And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters." (Genesis 1:2)

"It is the Spirit who gives life..." (John 6:63a)

March 21, 2026

Dear friends,

Today, I'm thinking about, and deeply appreciating, the blessing we have as Christians to be indwelt by the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit is Lord, and the One who gives life. Just as he, with the Father and Son, brought goodness, order, and life to the first creation, so he raises us up from spiritual death and chaos, opening our eyes to the truth about Jesus, convicting us of sin, leading us to faith and repentance. He brings new life and order to our dark and broken worlds.

He comes to us to indwell us (forever), seals us in Christ, and makes us to be God's temple. He makes us aware of our adoption as children of God, and thus, he is the Spirit of sonship. He himself is the guarantee (pledge, first installment, ἀρραβών [arrabōn]) of our future inheritance and thus, gives us an experience of the creation to come.

He is personal ("he"), the third person of the Trinity, also called the Helper (or Advocate, Counselor, παράκλητος [paraklētos], one called alongside to help)(John 14:16). He brings strength to God's children to be holy, bold, obedient, and steadfast. He leads and influences with gentleness, not force. He leads and empowers us to walk in God's way and to say "no" to sin and evil. The Holy Spirit actively works against the sin which still indwells us. He is holy.

He gives us insight into God's word as we study it and enables us to apply truth in the proper manner. He is the Spirit of Truth. He brings conviction as well as comfort from the Scriptures. He gives us boldness to be witnesses for Christ. He gives each of us special gifts (God-given abilities) -- serving, teaching, showing mercy, healing, and such -- for the benefit of others. The Spirit himself is the unity of the Body of Christ, and all Christians share a spiritual bond through the Holy Spirit.

He is the Spirit of freedom and transformation. He brings forth the character of Christ as fruit in our lives as we walk with him. We are gradually being transformed by the Holy Spirit into the image and character of Jesus in preparation for the fullness of the kingdom of God. He intercedes for us with "groanings too deep for words" (Rom 8:26). He stays with us until the work of redemption is complete.

I think it's noteworthy that, as the book of Revelation closes, the Spirit is pictured, not coming for the Church, but beside the Church, with her even in final moments of preparation: "The Spirit and the Bride say, 'Come.' And let the one who hears say, 'Come.' And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price." (Revelation 22:17)

In Genesis, the Spirit hovered over the precreation waters to bring forth goodness, order, and life, but it was ruined through sin. Christ's death and resurrection began a new creation, which will be permanent and eternal, and the Holy Spirit is hovering over this work of redemption and is now preparing a bride for Christ -- you, me, all believers -- who are being prepared by the Spirit for this new, beautiful, and perfect world. (Are you getting ready??) The Spirit will not rest till we're all safely home.

So, that's what I'm thinking about today! I hope you'll join me in thankfulness for the presence and work of the Holy Spirit!

Sandy

Afterwords is an occasional newsletter on topics of interest to me (Sandy Young) since my retirement from full-time pastoral ministry. 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.