INTRODUCTION

Every Christian tradition has an emphasis. Some traditions emphasize worship. Some emphasize doctrine and truth. Some emphasize social involvement and good works. Some emphasize unity among believers. Some emphasize vibrant Christian living. And these are all good emphases.

But there is one underlying reality, often overlooked by many Christians, that unites all of our emphases. He is the one from whom all these good things in the body of Christ flow. He is the person that encourages and empowers us in these and all other areas of the Christian faith. He is always with us, laboring to apply salvation to us. He is the very life within us. He is none other than the Holy Spirit of God.

This is the fourth lesson in our series on The Apostles' Creed. And we have entitled this lesson "The Holy Spirit" because we'll be focusing on the article of faith in the creed that affirms belief in the Holy Spirit, the third person of our Triune God.

The Apostles' Creed directly addresses the subject of the Holy Spirit in the single line:

I believe in the Holy Spirit.

The only other statement about him in the creed is that the Holy Spirit conceived Jesus in Mary's womb. As you can see, the creed says relatively little about the Holy Spirit, at least explicitly. But it implies many important truths about him that have been crucial to believers throughout history.

Our discussion of the Holy Spirit will divide into three parts. First, we will talk about his divinity, his full membership in the Godhead. Second, we will consider his personhood, noting that the Holy Spirit is a true person, and not simply a divine force. And third, we will explore the work that he did in the past, and that he continues to do today. Let's begin with the divinity of the Holy Spirit.

DIVINITY

To explore the Holy Spirit's divinity, we'll look in two directions. On the one hand, we'll see that the Apostles' Creed affirms belief in the Spirit's divinity. And on the other hand, we'll look at the biblical basis for the creed's teaching. Let's start with the way the Apostles' Creed affirms the divinity of the Holy Spirit.

Apostles' Creed

When it comes to talking about the person of the Holy Spirit, one of the questions that people often ask is whether or not the church always affirmed or professed the divinity of the Holy Spirit. And certainly we have in the historical record that the Nicene Creed and the Council of Nicea did not clarify that completely about the person of the Spirit, and so there was a another council called, I believe, the council of Chalcedon, in which the council of Chalcedon affirms that the Holy Spirit is to be worshipped as fully divine along with the Son. That has caused some people to say, "Well the church didn't always confess the divinity of the Holy Spirit." I think that's wrong. The councils were never called to articulate a new doctrine. The councils were always called to clarify what the understanding of the church's historical and traditional teaching had been in the face of heresy. And therefore you can say that because of the declaration of the council we have very good reason to believe that from the apostolic era onward, and through the proclamation of the apostolic fathers and the early theologians of the church, that we can trace a teaching of the divinity of the Holy Spirit. [Dr. Steve Blakemore]

From the outset, we should admit that the Apostles' Creed does not explicitly state that the Holy Spirit is divine. But it implicitly affirms the Spirit's divinity in at least two ways. First, its Trinitarian structure equates the Holy Spirit with the Father and the Son in important ways. And second, the creed's description of Jesus' conception indicates that the Holy Spirit is divine. Let's look at both of these issues, beginning with the structure of the creed itself.

Structure

You'll recall that in an earlier lesson, when we approached the creed from the perspective of the doctrine of God, we mentioned that the Apostles' Creed can be viewed as consisting of three main sections, each beginning with the statement "I believe." The first section speaks of belief in God the Father. The second section is about belief in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. And the third section summarizes belief in the Holy Spirit, and lists his active ministries.

As we saw in a prior lesson, the Apostles' Creed developed over time, and its earliest versions were local baptismal creeds. Some of these early creeds included the words "I believe" before the articles concerning Jesus. But others simply used the word "and," like the version of the creed that was standardized around A.D. 700. But regardless of their specific wording, the idea was the same: the creed was divided according to the three persons of God. And this division has been universally recognized by the church. This Trinitarian formula expresses the belief that there is only one God, and that he exists in three persons, namely the persons of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

The early church father Hippolytus, who lived from A.D. 170 to 236, explained that the baptismal creed in use in his day made the Trinitarian structure very explicit. This creed probably began as a local creed, but it appears to have grown into fairly widespread use. Its language is very similar to the modern Apostles' Creed, and the way it was used in baptismal ceremonies highlights its strong Trinitarian emphasis.

Hippolytus explained that baptism was performed by immersing a person three times. At each immersion, the person being baptized was to affirm the section of the baptismal creed pertaining to one of the persons of the Trinity. First the person confessed belief in the articles of faith relating to the Father; then the person was immersed. Then came affirmation of the articles of faith pertaining to the Son, followed by a second immersion. And finally, the affirmation of the articles related to the Holy Spirit, and the third and final immersion. Through this and similar practices in the early church, we can see that the structure of the creed itself was intentionally designed to highlight the divinity and work of each person of the Trinity, including the Holy Spirit.

The second way that the Apostles' Creed affirms the divinity of the Holy Spirit is through its description of Jesus' conception.

Jesus' Conception

The Apostles' Creed says that Jesus Christ, the Son of God,

Was conceived by the Holy Spirit.

This statement does not explicitly declare that the Holy Spirit is fully divine, but it strongly implies this belief. When speaking of Jesus' conception, the creed alludes to Luke 1:35, where the angel spoke these words to Mary:

The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God (Luke 1:35).

In this verse, the Holy Spirit is equated to the power of the Most High. As we will see later in this lesson, only God can have the power of the Most High. So, by alluding to this verse as an example of the Holy Spirit's work, the Apostles' Creed affirms the Spirit's full divinity. This conclusion is confirmed by Hebrews 10:5-7, which says:

Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: "Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased. Then I said, 'Here I am — it is written about me in the scroll — I have come to do your will, O God'" (Hebrews 10:5-7).

Here, we are told that creating Jesus' human body was specifically the work of God. In light of verses like these, it is safe to say that when the Apostles' Creed attributes Jesus' conception to the Holy Spirit, it intends to affirm the Spirit's divinity.

Now that we've seen how the Apostles' Creed expresses belief in the divinity of the Holy Spirit, let's look the biblical basis for what it says.

Biblical Basis

There is great value in recognizing that the faith we affirm today has been consistently affirmed throughout the centuries. This is one reason that it is so helpful to understand what the Apostles' Creed teaches about the divinity of the Holy Spirit. Even so, our greatest confidence is drawn from Scripture itself. We value the creed as a summary of Scripture, not as a replacement for Scripture. And for this reason, it's always important for us to make sure that what the creed says is biblical.

I think we see at least four senses in which Scripture points us to affirm the deity of the Holy Spirit. First, the fact that the Holy Spirit is used interchangeably with God in certain texts. A second line of evidence for the Holy Spirit's deity is the fact that certain attributes that only God possesses are attributed to the Spirit. Third, the Holy Spirit also performs works that only God can perform. And finally, we notice that the Holy Spirit is included in the single name — Matthew 28 — in which Christians are baptized. [Dr. Keith Johnson]

The biblical basis for believing in the divinity of the Holy Spirit can be demonstrated in many ways. But for our purposes, we will focus on the names he is called, the attributes he possesses, the work he performs, and the Trinitarian formulas that refer to him. Let's begin with the different names attributed to the Holy Spirit in Scripture.

Names

The Holy Spirit is called by a host of names in the Bible. Some of these names suggest his divinity in a very implicit manner. Others are very explicit in calling him divine. And still others fall on a continuum between these two extremes.

Perhaps the name that implies his divinity in the most implicit way is the name "Holy Spirit." The term "holy" can be used of aspects of creation that are not divine in any way. The word "holy" generally refers to things that are distinct from their common counterparts because they are special to God in some way. So, the word "holy" does not by itself indicate that the Holy Spirit is divine.

Even so, it is important to note that throughout the Old Testament, it is God who is repeatedly referred to as "the Holy One." We see this in dozens of passages, such as 2 Kings 19:22, Isaiah 30:11-15, and Hosea 11:9-12. And there are other passages that seem to refer to God himself by the name Holy Spirit, such as Isaiah 63:10-11. We also see this type of naming in ancient but uninspired Jewish literature, such as in the Book of Wisdom, 9:17. Against this Old Testament backdrop, it is legitimate to see in the name "Holy Spirit" an implication of divinity.

With these very implicit names in mind, let's look at some names that indicate the Holy Spirit's divinity in a way that lies between very implicit and very explicit. These names include "the Spirit of the Lord," "the Spirit of God," and "the Spirit of the Living God." Also, "the Spirit of Jesus," "the Spirit of Christ," "the Spirit of Jesus Christ." And "the Spirit of your Father," "the Spirit of his Son," and "the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead." All these names suggest that the Holy Spirit is divine by indicating that God is united to the Holy Spirit in the same way that a human being is united to his own spirit. Paul explicitly made this connection in 1 Corinthians 2:11, where he wrote these words:

Who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God (1 Corinthians 2:11).

Our spirits are part of what makes us human. And there is nothing inhuman about them. They are entirely human. In the same way, the Holy Spirit is entirely divine. And this is what enables him to know the mind of the Father. So, by his work of revealing God's mind to Christians, the Holy Spirit demonstrates himself to be God.

Finally, there are some passages that very explicitly refer to the Holy Spirit by the name "God." Listen to Peter's words to Ananias in Acts 5:3-4:

Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? … You have not lied to men but to God (Acts 5:3-4).

In this passage, Peter first said that Ananias had lied to the Holy Spirit. And then Peter explained what he meant by saying Ananias had lied to God. Here the apostle Peter plainly called the Holy Spirit "God."

So, as we consider the names by which the Holy Spirit is called in Scripture, we can see that many of them indicate his divinity in ways that range from very implicit to very explicit.

A second way the Bible demonstrates the divinity of the Holy Spirit is by ascribing divine attributes to him.

Attributes

Christian theologians have traditionally spoken of God as having two distinct types of attributes: communicable attributes and incommunicable attributes. On the one hand, he has communicable attributes, which can be "communicated" or "shared" in some way with his creatures.

For instance, God possesses the attribute of reason, which he communicates or shares with human beings. As finite creatures, human beings do not comprehend God's reasoning perfectly. But we still have the capacity to think in reasonable ways. Of course, this doesn't mean that we are divine. It simply proves that we were created by a rational God who communicated a measure of his attribute of reason to us. Our reason is derived from his; we reflect his attribute of reason because we are his creatures.

Another communicable attribute of God is his love. And many places in Scripture teach that our love for other people, and even for God, derives directly from God's attribute of love. We see this in places like Galatians 5:22, Ephesians 5:1, 2 Timothy 1:7, and 1 John 4:7-21.

But God also possesses incommunicable attributes — attributes that by their very nature cannot be shared with his creatures. The most familiar incommunicable attributes of God are things like his omniscience, which is his infinite intelligence, knowledge and wisdom; his omnipotence, which is his infinite power; his omnipresence, which is his existence in all places at the same time; and his eternality, which is his everlasting and unbreakable self-existence. Because God's incommunicable attributes can only belong to him, we can prove that the Holy Spirit is God by showing that he possesses one or more of these attributes. And as we survey Scripture we find that, in fact, he possesses them all. Consider first the Holy Spirit's omniscience.

Scripture says that the Spirit perfectly knows the mind of God. We see this idea in Ephesians 1:17 and 1 Corinthians 2:10-11. Of course, God's mind is infinite, requiring an equally infinite mind to know it perfectly. By the Holy Spirit's ability to comprehend God's omniscient mind, the Holy Spirit himself is proven to be omniscient. And because he is omniscient, he must also be God.

The Holy Spirit is also proven to be God by his omnipotence. His power is the unlimited power of God. Many passages in Scripture speak of the power of the Holy Spirit, such as 1 Samuel 10:6, Romans 15:19, 1 Corinthians 12:11, and 1 Thessalonians 1:5. Consider the Holy Spirit's association with God's power in Genesis 1:1-3:

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light (Genesis 1:1-3).

As we have mentioned before, Old Testament references to God generally refer to the entire Trinity. But it is also legitimate to see an emphasis on one person or another, according to the language and context. In this case, the emphasis is on the person of the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of God. So, the work of creating the light was done by the Holy Spirit. The same is true of everything else that God created in this chapter. But in order for the Holy Spirit to have had such omnipotence, in order for him to have created something out of nothing, he must have been fully divine.

Another incommunicable attribute the Holy Spirit possesses is omnipresence. Passages like Psalm 139:7-10 teach us that the Spirit is present throughout every part of creation, from the heights of heaven to the depths of the sea.

And the Holy Spirit also has the attribute of eternality. Hebrews 9:14 refers to the Holy Spirit as the "eternal Spirit," meaning that he has always existed, and will continue to exist forever.

Through these incommunicable attributes, and others like them, the Bible clearly indicates that the Holy Spirit is God.

Work

A third evidence in Scripture for the divinity of the Holy Spirit is the type of work he does. We will investigate the Holy Spirit's work in much greater depth later in this lesson. At this point, we simply want to take a quick look at a few of his works in order to see how they demonstrate his divinity.

Part of the proof for that in Scripture is looking at his works. The Spirit of God is the one who bears witness of Christ, joins us to Christ, brings about new life, brings about resurrection, is involved in creation. All of these works are nothing less than the works of God. They are not applied to humans; they are not applied to angelic figures or any other created thing. They are only that which God himself does. And on that basis then, we see that the Holy Spirit does the very works of God, and thus is not only personal, but also deity. [Dr. Stephen Wellum]

The Holy Spirit performs many works that the Bible indicates are appropriate to God alone, and that exhibit divine power and attributes. For example, he creates new life when he regenerates our spirits, as we read in Romans 8:11. He is our access to the Father, as we are taught in Ephesians 2:18. He applies salvation to us, as we learn in Romans 5–8. His is the power behind the miracles of the prophets, and even of our Lord Jesus, as we see in passages like Romans 15:4,19. Although the list of the divine works of the Holy Spirit is nearly endless, let's focus our attention on just a couple prominent examples for the sake of illustration.

In the first place, the Holy Spirit inspired the writing of Scripture, which is the very word of God. And in recognizing that the Word of the Holy Spirit is the Word of God, we acknowledge that the Holy Spirit is God himself. We find this idea in Matthew 10:20, John 3:34, Acts 1:16 and 4:31, and Ephesians 6:17.

As just one example, listen to Peter's words in 2 Peter 1:20-21:

No prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:20-21).

In this passage, Peter taught that to be carried along by the Holy Spirit is to speak from God. Scripture is the word of God because it is inspired and spoken by God, specifically, the Holy Spirit, who is the third person of God.

As another example, the Holy Spirit's work as Counselor shows that he is divine. In John 14–16, Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit as the counselor who does things like reveal truth, convict the world of sin, and testify to Jesus. And as odd as it may sound at first, this ministry makes the Holy Spirit even more valuable than the immediate earthly presence of Jesus himself. As Jesus said in John 16:7:

I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you (John 16:7).

Think about this for a moment. According to Jesus himself, the church is better off with the presence of the Holy Spirit than we would be with the immediate bodily presence of Jesus. But a created, finite being could never outmatch the blessing of the earthly presence of Christ. No, in order for the Holy Spirit to be more beneficial to us than God the Son, the Spirit must himself be God.

Formulas

A fourth way Scripture asserts the divinity of the Holy Spirit is through Trinitarian formulas that include his name alongside those of the Father and the Son.

A Trinitarian formula is a passage in Scripture that explicitly mentions all three persons of the Trinity on a relatively equal basis, typically by demonstrating their cooperation. By mentioning the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit as equal partners, the Bible indicates that the Holy Spirit is just as divine as the Father and Son. We find these formulas in Romans 15:30, 1 Corinthians 12:4-6, 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14, and several other places. Let's look at just two examples of these formulas.

The first one can be found in Matthew 28:19, where Jesus gave this command:

Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19).

In this formula, Jesus indicated that baptism was to be performed in the name or authority of all three persons of the Trinity. This command makes no distinction between the relative honor of the persons of God. Instead, it presents all three as equals.

A second clear example appears in 2 Corinthians 13:14, where Paul wrote these words:

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all (2 Corinthians 13:14).

In this closing benediction to his letter, Paul grouped together: the Son, namely the Lord Jesus Christ; the Father, whom he simply referred to as God; and the Holy Spirit. In doing so, he presented all three persons as equal partners in providing the blessings of salvation.

Formulas like these indicate that the Holy Spirit is an equal person in the Godhead. They demonstrate that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are equal to each other in matters that involve essential divine attributes and activities, such as providing grace and salvation to sinners, and receiving honor and worship as God.

The Christian doctrine of the Trinity teaches that one God eternally exists in a unity of being as three persons. Because the Holy Spirit is God, it's right and appropriate that we not only pray to him, but honor him as God. [Dr. Keith Johnson]

Now that we have considered the divinity of the Holy Spirit, we are ready to turn to our second topic: his personhood. In this section, we will look at the fact that we have to deal with the Holy Spirit as a true person and not simply as a divine force or power.