The Holy Spirit is the third
Person of the Holy Trinity, of the same essence and equal rank as the Father
and the Son. "And the Spirit is the witness, because the Spirit is the
truth. There are three witnesses, the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and
these three agree" (1 John 5:7-8). The Holy Spirit as God is revealed
in many verses in scripture: "Why has Satan filled your hearts to lie
to the Holy Spirit. . . you have not lied to men, but
to God" (Acts 5:3-4); also "there are varieties of gift, but
the same Spirit . . . the same Lord. . . it is the sane God" (1
Corinthians 12:5, cf. Mt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14). The Godhead of the Holy Spirit
comes directly from the Father. As the Son is begotten by the Father, the Holy
Spirit also is proceeded from the Father, for "When the Counselor
(the Holy Spirit) comes, whom I (Christ) shall send to you from the
Father, even the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear
witness to me" (John 15:26). The Church has proclaimed this truth that
the Holy Spirit is of the same substance with the Father and the Son in the Godhead
of the Trinity. The Church has incorporated this truth in the Nicene Creed as
pronounced by the Second Ecumenical Synod (381). It states "And (I
believe) in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of Life, Who proceeds from the
Father, Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified;
Who spake by the prophets."
The Holy Spirit in truth remains in the Church,
protects and preserves its Truths and sanctifies its members. The Holy Spirit
is the Power and Comforter of the believers, and was promised by Christ. Being
the third Person of the Holy Trinity does not mean He is not equal in substance
with the Father and Son. The Spirit is the life-giving energy and power which
makes the Church "the pillar and ground of the truth" (1
Timothy 3:15). The Holy Spirit was
the divine instrument in the birth of Jesus Christ as
God-Man. "The Holy Spirit will come upon you (Virgin Mary), and
the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore, the child to be born
will be called Holy, the Son of God" (Luke 1:35).
The Holy Spirit is the Author of the Bible and the Source of inspiration for
its writers through those years. This is why the Bible although it was written
by different persons and in different eras over the span of 1000 years, is
coherent and consistent in substance and meaning. This is a remarkable and
overwhelming fact. There is no other literature in the world which has this
outstanding coherence, while written over such a period of time and by
different writers. What was prophesied in the Old Testament, dating back
hundreds of years, was fulfilled in time, and in detail, in the New Testament.
This is an extraordinary phenomenon. This coherence of the Old with the New was
an evolutionary process in the course of time between the divine promise and
its realization. This was not because of any change of the Truth as such, but
because of its development for human acceptance, for "when the time had
fully come, God sent forth his Son. . . God has sent the Spirit of his Son into
our hearts" (Galatians 4:4-6).
The Holy Spirit throughout the centuries revealed the divine Truths and
inspired chosen Prophets and Apostles to spread and proclaim them to all
peoples of the inhabited earth. It was in the Design of Almighty God that
chosen personalities were indispensable in teaching and preaching these Truth to "all nations." These chosen
personalities did not proclaim their own ideas or philosophies, but
personalities did not proclaim their own ideas of philosophies, but only used
their own abilities, inspired by the Holy Spirit, to serve The Will of God.
These chosen personalities proved themselves outstanding co-workers of God. The
Prophets, Apostles and all chosen personalities considered themselves
instruments of the Holy Spirit, and they spoke with authority, as Christ said
to the Apostles: "Receive the Holy Spirit" (John 20:22). The
"gift" of the Holy Spirit is not a static one, but a transforming and
sanctifying power leading the chosen one to accomplish the Will of God. Chosen
personalities are exhorted to "Take heed to yourselves and to all the
flock, in which the Holy Spirit has make you guardians, to feed the church of
the Lord" (Acts 20:28). This "gift" of the Holy Spirit is
given to both the clergy and laity who belong to the true Church.
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