Questions 93 & 94

The Holy Spirit is God. He is one with God the Father and God the Son. He knows all things that God knows. He has all the power that God has. He is always present in all places at all times. There is no place that we can go where the Spirit* is not there.[1]

 

There is nothing in heaven* or on earth that the Spirit does not know.[2] Like God the Father and the Son, the Holy Spirit thinks and feels and chooses. He is a person[3] The Holy Spirit speaks, teaches, and searches the hearts* of all people.[4] To lie to the Holy Spirit is to lie to God. The Holy Spirit is the person who is carrying out God’s will in the world. He is working in such a way that God’s will is being done and will be done. The Holy Spirit is active in working all things out for God’s good purposes. This is true, not only in the lives of those who follow Jesus. The Holy Spirit also teaches people who do not follow Jesus. The Holy Spirit shows the people of the world the truth about sin.* He shows them what is right and what is wrong. And he tells them what it means to be judged.[5]

 

When we read the Old Testament*, we find out many things about the Holy Spirit. He was there at work in creation.* He showed the prophets* what they were to say. He gave people the power to do the work that God gave them to do.[6]

 

The New Testament* says much more about the work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was there when Mary* gave birth to Jesus. The Holy Spirit was there when Satan* tempted* Jesus in the desert. The Holy Spirit was with Jesus when John* baptized* him.

 

Jesus said many things about the Holy Spirit. He promised the disciples* that he would send the Holy Spirit to them. He said that the Spirit would come upon them after he went back to be with the Father. He called the Holy Spirit , ‘the one who will come close to help.’ The Spirit would always bring glory* to Jesus and he would help the disciples to do that too. Jesus promised them that they would not be alone. He would send another Counselor that would guide them, just as he had. The Holy Spirit was coming to carry on the work of Jesus. He would teach them and give them help as they did the work Jesus gave them to do.[7]

 

Fifty days after Jesus rose from the dead, The Holy Spirit came as Jesus promised[8]. The Spirit would give the words of Jesus to the disciples[9]. Just as the prophets spoke by the authority of the Spirit, so would the apostles*.[10] So, when the disciples spoke in the book of Acts, they spoke by the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

Jesus promised his disciples that the Spirit would guide them into all truth. The Holy Spirit would help them remember the things that Jesus said and did.[11] The Spirit would carry them along to help them to write what they remembered. And when they were finished, the words they had written were the very words of God.[12]

 

The Holy Spirit gives us new birth through the word of God. And the Spirit uses this word to make us holy*.[13]

 

From the start to the finish, the Holy Spirit works in us. He gives us new life as we are born into God’s family. The Holy Spirit is the one who helps us to serve God. The Holy Spirit gives us wisdom when we do not know what to do. The Holy Spirit works in us to give us power to turn away from sin. He works to make us holy in what we do and what we think.[14] The Holy Spirit helps us be confident that we are God’s children. He helps us trust that God has forgiven* our sins. He helps us know that we are safe forever in Christ. He comforts us when we are sad. He gives us gifts that help us serve God.

 

It is the Holy Spirit who gives us a desire to live a holy life. It is the Holy Spirit who helps us to trust God, who gives us faith.* It is the Holy Spirit who gives us hope.* It is the Holy Spirit who helps us see and feel God’s care for us. The Holy Spirit helps us see the world and the future as God says it is and as God says it will be.

 

He helps us to trust in God alone. He helps us to worship* God alone, to honor* him, and to serve his glory. It is the Holy Spirit who helps us to desire God and to delight in him. He works in us so that our joy is to know God’s joy. And the Holy Spirit helps us to love and delight in Jesus. Because the Holy Spirit lives in us, Jesus is always with us.[15]

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[1] Psalm 139:7-8
[2] 1 Corinthians 2:10-11
[3] Ephesians 4:30; 1 Corinthians 12:7
[4] Acts 1:16; Acts 8:29; Acts 13:2; John 14:26; John 15:26; 1 Corinthians 2:11; Acts 5:3
[5] John 16:8-11
[6] Genesis 1:2; Psalm 33:6; Isaiah 61:1-6; Exodus 31:2-6; Judges 6:34; Judges 15:14-15
[7] John 16:6-7
[8] Acts 2:1-4
[9] Matthew 10:20; Luke 12:12
[10] John 16:13; Acts 2:4; 1 Corinthians 2:4-5; 1 Thessalonians 1:4-5
[11] John 14:26
[12] 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:21
[13] John 17:17; 1 Peter 1:23-25; James 1:18
[14] Romans 7:6; Romans 8:13; Philippians 1:19
[15] 1 Thessalonians 1:6; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Romans 8:10; 2 Corinthians 4:6-7; Galatians 2:20; Ephesians 3:16-17; Colossians 1:27