The Personality of the Holy Spirit — Part 1

Sermon delivered on January 21st, 2018
Morning Service

By: Pastor Greg Hocson

Scripture Texts: John 14:15-26; John 15:26; John 16:7-14

 

John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments. 16: And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 17: Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. 18: I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. 19: Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also. 20: At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you. 21: He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. 22: Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? 23: Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. 24: He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me. 25: These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you (while I am still with you). 26: But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you (all that I have said to you). 

 

John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me: 27: And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning.

 

John 16:7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you (to your advantage) 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. 8: And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9: Of sin, because they believe not on me; 10: Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; 11: Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. 12: I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. 13: Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 14: He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

 

Introduction

In our past Church's annual theme such as "Behold Your God", we focused on the attributes of our Heavenly Father, then in our "Christ is Precious" theme we contemplated on the preciousness of our Great God and Saviour Jesus Christ, and now it is appropriate to focus on the Person and Work of the Holy Spirit. So, in this year's theme "By My Spirit", I intend to bring a series of sermons on the Holy Spirit.  My earnest desire and prayer is that as we learn about the Holy Spirit, that we would come to know Him and love Him. I pray that we would be spiritually  awakened by Him and empowered by Him as we seek to live our own individual lives, build our homes, and advance the church which Christ loves and had bought with His own blood.

 

One of the most misunderstood doctrines of the Bible is the doctrine of the Holy Spirit. Some deny Him, others simply ignore Him and then again others overemphasize Him. O, how important it is to know the Person and Work of the Holy Spirit, since ignorance and wrong views of the Third Person of the Trinity is both damaging to us and dishonoring to Him. 

 

Hosea 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.

 

One of the first truths that we need to grasp is that the Holy Spirit is a person, not a thing. The Spirit is a living being, a "person", as opposed to a non-living object or influence or impersonal force. There are those who profess to be Christians who completely and openly deny the personhood of the Spirit. To them the Holy Spirit is just a force, an energy or an influence emanating from God. But if we carefully read the Bible and take it seriously we will find that the Holy Spirit is a person. He is the third Person of the Trinity. He is a person just as the Father is a person and just as the Son is a person. He has life just the Father and the Son hath life. He has personality.

 

There are three primary characteristics of personhood: will, mind, and emotions. It should be obvious that a force, like gravity or electricity, cannot possess these properties. However, the New Testament demonstrates that the Holy Spirit has a will, a mind, and emotions. 

1. The Holy Spirit has a will

1 Corinthians 12:11 But all these worketh that one and the self same Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.

Here we told that the Holy Spirit who makes the decision and determines what spiritual gift each respective Christian receives. An impersonal force does not have the ability to make decisions. This is an attribute of persons, not impersonal forces.

 

2. The Holy Spirit has a mind

The Holy Spirit possess great knowledge and understanding.

Romans 8:27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

An impersonal force does not have a mind.

 

1 Corinthians 2:9 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. 10: But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. 11: 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.

When anything is spoken of as having an understanding, it must, in fact, be a person. Inanimate (lifeless, non-living) objects don't have understanding. An influence or force doesn't have understanding.

 

3. The Holy Spirit has emotions

He can be grieved by Christians.

Ephesians 4:30 And grieve (make sad or sorrowful) not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. 31: Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:

Grief is an emotion that is experienced by a person, not a force. Yet, Paul tells us explicitly that we cause the Holy Spirit to grieve when we sin.

 

If the Holy Spirit has a will that decides, a mind that thinks, and emotions that feel, how can anyone rationally claim the Holy Spirit is an impersonal force?

 

The most important passage to support the personhood of the Holy Spirit is John 14—16. At least three things in these chapters confirm that Jesus thinks of the Holy Spirit as a person not a mere force.

 

I — Our Lord Applied Personal Pronouns to the Holy Spirit

The personality of the Holy Spirit is affirmed by the use personal pronouns used about Him.

 

John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments. 16: And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 17: Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. 

 

John 14:25 These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. 26: But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you

 

John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

 

John 16:7 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. 8: And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9: Of sin, because they believe not on me; 10: Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; 11: Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. 12: I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. 13: Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 14: He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. 

 

The use of these personal pronouns when referring to the Holy Spirt is a very strong proof that the Holy Spirit is a not a thing or a force or an energy but that He is a person.

 

II — Our Lord Attributed Personal Actions to the Holy Spirit

1. He teaches

John 14:25 These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. 26: But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

 

Luke 12:11 And when they bring you unto the synagogues, and unto magistrates, and powers, take ye no thought how or what thing ye shall answer, or what ye shall say: 12: For the Holy Ghost shall teach you in the same hour what ye ought to say.

 

Our Lord treated the Spirit not as a force, or influence, or activity of another person, but as a person in His own right, hearing from the Father and the Son, and teaching and bearing witness to men.

 

The Holy Spirit is not merely an illumination that comes into our minds, but He is a Being who Himself knows the deep things of God and who teaches us what He Himself knows.

 

2. He testifies

John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

 

3. He reproves

John 16:7 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. 8: And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9: Of sin, because they believe not on me; 10: Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; 11: Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. 12: I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. 

 

4. He guides

John 16:13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 14: He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. 

 

5. He speaks

John 16:13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 

 

Acts 28:25 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,

 

1 Timothy 4:1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;

 

Revelation 2:7 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

 

Again and again in the Scriptures actions are ascribed to the Holy Spirit which only a person could perform.

 

III — Our Lord Ascribed Personal Characters to the Holy Spirit

Jesus calls the Holy Spirit "Comforter". Four times over the Lord Jesus referred to the Spirit as "The Comforter." 

 

John 14:16: And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 17: Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. 

 

The word is used of the third person in the Holy Trinity here, and in ...

John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

 

John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

 

John 16:7 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.

 

Take note that our Lord in John 14:16 did not merely refer to the Holy Spirit as a "comfort" but as "Comforter". Non-living and impersonal things can makes us comfortable, but only living personal being can be a "Comforter".

 

When Jesus calls Him a Comforter, He treats the Holy Spirit as a person not a force. And when He calls Him "another Comforter," He means, "He will be a Comforter like me." The Holy Spirit is a Comforter like Jesus is—He is a person. The Comforter will come as person not as an influence or power.

 

Closing Thoughts

Brothers and sisters in Christ! This morning we have been reminded that God the Holy Spirit is a person. He is not a thing nor an impersonal force or energy. God the Holy Spirt is a real living being. He is a personal being. 

 

And now, beloved, it says ...

John 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever (to be with you for ever); 17: Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. 

 

We are not indwelt by an impersonal force or energy. We are indwelt by a divine person. And that is the great promise of the new covenant that the Spirit will not just dwell among His people but will dwell IN His people. In the Old Testament the Spirit of God dwelt in the Temple of God and He dwelt among His people. But He only indwelt people for the purpose of certain task such as kings, or judges or soldiers or warriors. But the promise of the New Covenant is that every person who is in Christ will be given the gift of the Holy Spirit.

 

Here is the secret of a real Christian life. Wherever you are, wherever you go, if you are a Christian, the Holy Spirit is in you and if you really want to enjoy the blessings of salvation, you do so by knowing that your body is His temple. To have the ever-present Holy Spirt as Comforter and Spirit of Truth with you and in you is the true Christian living. It is a life of liberty and joy and power and fullness.

 

Let me close with this ...

Romans 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

Paul's words are clear and convicting. One of the clearest marks of all true believers is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. And he who does not have the Spirit does not have Christ. He who does not have Christ does not have forgiveness of sins. He who does not have forgiveness of sins does not have title to Heaven.

 

So, do you have the Spirit of God dwelling in you? The only way you can have the Spirit is by receiving Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord. 

John 7:38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. 39: (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

 

AMEN!