The Work of the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the person of the Trinity who is most prominently with us today in the church age. “The work of the Holy Spirit is to manifest the active presence of God in the world, and especially in the church” (Grudem, Wayne, Systematic Theology (Inter-Varsity Press: Leicaster, 1994), 634). Although most mentioned or implied in the New Testament, the Holy Spirit was active in the Old Testament period as well, moving over the face of the waters in Genesis. The outpouring of the blessings brought by the Holy Spirit in the current age was even predicted by the prophet Isaiah (see Isa 32:14-18, 44:3). These blessings are: empowerment, purification, revelation, and unification. These blessings, or activities, of the Holy Spirit are not given automatically but rely on the faith and obedience of the believer and should never be taken for granted. Because of this, the Holy Spirit also gives the believer evidence of the presence and blessings of God, based upon the believer’s response to Him.

The Holy Spirit gives power for service in both the Old and New Testaments, equiping Joshua with leadership skills, David with the power to become king, and by equiping Jesus and the apostles for ministry. The Holy Spirit is also responsible for giving Christians spiritual gifts to equip them for ministry (1 Cor 12:17), interceding for us in our prayer lives (Rom 8:26; Eph 2:18), and empowerment to overcome spirtual opression to the preaching of the Gospel (Matt 12:28; Acts 13:9-11;1 Cor 12:10).

The Holy Spirit purifies by both giving the believer life and the power for service. Throughout the Bible, the Holy Spirit is connected with the giving and sustaining of human and animal life (Ps 104:30; Job 34:14-15) and also gives us new life through regeneration (John 3:6-7, 6:63; 2 Cor. 3:6). It was the Holy Spirit who conceived Jesus in the virgin body of Mary and it is the Holy Spirit who will give life to the resurrection bodies of believers when Christ returns. When someone becomes a Christian, they are given a spiritual “hosing off” which initially washes them through the doctrine of justification but are internally made clean by the internal cleansing and sanctification process (cf. 1 Cor 6:11; Rom 8:13) which brings forth the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control) within(Gal 5:22-23).

Prophets and apostles have received special revelation from the Holy Spirit (2 Pet 1:21; John 16:13) and He also reveals God’s presence by pointing attention to Jesus and to God the Father and by making His own presence known by His effects on people and by visual manifestations such as transforming into a dove (John 1:32) and sounding like a rushing wind and visible tongues of fire (Acts 2:2-3). The Holy Spirit further makes revelation by guiding and directing God’s people (as in the book of Acts), providing a Godlike atmosphere when he manifests His presence, giving the believer assurance (Rom 8:16), and by teaching and illumining them so that they can comprehend certain things (John 14:26, 16:13).

Believers are unified by the Holy Spirit by the creation of the church at Pentecost and in the new unity between Jews and Gentles. Also, the dispersement of spiritual gifts to different individuals amplifies the need and power of Christian fellowship. Each believer has been given a different tool to accomplish her part in building the kingdom of God. When believers get together much more can be “built” a lot faster.

If the believer continues to follow the guidance of the Spirit, she will be led down a path full of Godly blessings and she will have the honor of having God accomplish His work through her. If she resists, the blessings will diminish and she will separate herself from God.