Building Together: The Holy Spirit
I. The Holy Spirit in Salvation
A. Titus 3:5
He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit
B. Ephesians 1:13
In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit
C. 2 Thessalonians 2:13
But we should always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth.
II. The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament
A. Present at Creation
1. Part of Trinity; didn’t start existing at Pentecost
2. Genesis 1:2
The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
B. Present with God’s Chosen
1. Joseph - Genesis 41:38
And Pharaoh said to his servants, “Can we find a man like this, in whom is the Spirit of God?”
- Pharoah recognizes a divine presence / ability in Joseph that is the
Spirit of God enabling Joseph to interpret dreams and lead a country and a large portion of the known world through famine
2. Moses - Numbers 11:24,25
So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord. And he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tent. 25 Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the Spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders.
And as soon as the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied. But they did not continue doing it.
3. Judges - Othniel - Judges 3:7-10
7 And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. They forgot the Lord their God and served the Baals and the Asheroth. 8
Therefore the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia. And the people of Israel served Cushan-rishathaim eight years. 9 But when the people of Israel cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer for the people of Israel, who saved them, Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s
Building Together: The Holy Spirit
younger brother. 10 The Spirit of the Lord was upon him, and he judged
Israel. He went out to war, and the Lord gave Cushan-rishathaim king of
Mesopotamia into his hand. And his hand prevailed over
Cushan-rishathaim. 11 So the land had rest forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died.
- The Holy Spirit empowered Othniel to judge Israel and deliver
Israel from her enemies
4. Saul and David - 1 Samuel 16:13,14; Acts 4:25
Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah. 14 Now the Spirit of the
Lord departed from Saul, and a harmful spirit from the Lord tormented him.
- Peter and John have been charged by Jewish leaders not to preach anymore about Jesus. They come and tell their friends all that has happened, then they all pray for boldness.
- Acts 4:25
“Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, 25 who through the mouth of our father
David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit,
“‘Why did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples plot in vain? 26 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together, against the Lord and against his Anointed’’
- The disciples recognize the Holy Spirit was present in the
Old Testament
III. The Holy Spirit in the New Testament
*The Holy Spirit is present with the disciples, apostles, and believers throughout the New
Testament; however, this study only focuses on the Holy Spirit in Jesus’ life.
A. Present with Jesus
1. At Birth
a. Isaiah 11:1,2
There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.
And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
- From this verse we see that the Holy Spirit was with Jesus, but we also get a greater understanding of who the Holy Spirit is. Because
He is the Spirit of God, He is also the Spirit of wisdom,
Building Together: The Holy Spirit
understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, and the fear of the
Lord.
b. Matthew 1:20
But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
c. Luke 1:35,39-41
And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.
In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, 40 and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted
Elizabeth. 41 And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit
- We see the Holy Spirit so strong in Jesus that Elizabeth’s baby in her womb can hear and sense the Spirit of God traveling through
Mary’s womb and out of her mouth! Others should be able to hear and sense the Holy Spirit in us! Just as Pharaoh recognizes the
Holy Spirit in Joseph, and John the Baptist (in Elizabeth’s womb!) responds to the Holy Spirit, so too, we should be so full of the
Holy Spirit that when we speak, others are aware of the Spirit of
God.
2. In life
a. Anointed for Ministry - Luke 4:18,19 (Isaiah 61:1)
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
b. Anointed to Cast out Devils - Matthew 12:26-28
And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? 27 And if I cast out demons by
Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. 28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
-The Holy Spirit enables Jesus to cast out demons, and in doing so, release the Kingdom of God on the earth c. Anointed with Power - Acts 10:38
Building Together: The Holy Spirit
how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.
- The Holy Spirit filled Jesus with power to do the works of
God
IV. The Holy Spirit in Believers
A. The Promise of the Holy Spirit
1. Luke 24:49 - “And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high”
2. Joel 2:28,29 - “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my
Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.”
3. Acts 2:38,39 (Also Acts 1:5; 2:33)
“Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy
Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.”
B. The Impartation of the Holy Spirit
a. Received through Repentance and Belief (see Acts 2:38) b. Received directly from God (sound, tongues of fire, fill, fell)
Acts 2:1-4
When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested[a] on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the
Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Acts 10:44,45
While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. 45 And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles.
- Note that the Holy Spirit is a GIFT
c. Received through laying on of hands
Acts 8:12-17
But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13 Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and
Building Together: The Holy Spirit
great miracles performed, he was amazed. 14 Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of
God, they sent to them Peter and John, 15 who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.
- The Holy Spirit is someone we receive; sometimes He
doesn’t just fall on you; sometimes you need hands laid on you
Acts 19:1-7
And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland[a] country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. 2 And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy
Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” 3 And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John’s baptism.” 4 And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” 5 On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the
Lord Jesus. 6 And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy
Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying. 7 There were about twelve men in all.
- They believed but had not yet been filled with the Holy
Spirit; when Paul laid hands on them, they received the
Holy Spirit and began speaking in tongues and prophesying
C. The Fruit of the Holy Spirit
1. He dwells in us.
Romans 8:5-11
For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the
Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the
Building Together: The Holy Spirit
dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
2. He teaches us.
1 Corinthians 2:12-14 (Also John 14:25; 1 John 2:27)
Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. 13 And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. 14 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.
3. He convicts us.
John 16:8-11
And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
- We don’t know what is holy, right, and pure without the Holy Spirit. He convicts us when we sin.
4. He guides us.
John 16:13
When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
- A few things here
- The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth
- He hears directly from God and only speaks what God speaks
- Where does he lead us? He leads us into truth. Remember we don’t know sin unless the Holy Spirit convicts us. We don’t know where to go unless the Holy Spirit leads us.
- Remember in Acts 19 that when Paul laid hands on the men in Ephesus, they began to prophesy. So did the elders in Numbers when the Holy Spirit came upon them. The Holy Spirit can declare to us things that are to come
(prophecy) because He is the Spirit of Truth. John 16:13 tells us that He will declare to us the things to come because He stands outside of time and knows the beginning from the end.
5. He empowers us
Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.
Building Together: The Holy Spirit
John 14:12-14
Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do;
and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. 13
Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.
John 15:16,17
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.