Text: John 14:16-20

16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;  17 Even the Spirit of truth;  whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him:  but ye know him;  for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. 18 I will not leave you comfortless:  I will come to you. 19 Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more;  but ye see me:  because I live, ye shall live also. 20 At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you. 

Tuesday, 2^nd April 2024        

THE HOLY SPIRIT IS A PERSON

Text: John 14:16-20

Memory Verse: John 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever.

The most important passage to support the first truth of the Holy Spirit as a person is in John 14–16. At least three things in these chapters confirm that Jesus thinks of the Holy Spirit as a person not a mere force.

Jesus called “Him” the Holy Spirit "another Counsellor", "I will pray the Father and he will give you another Counsellor to be with you for ever, even the Spirit of truth". When Jesus calls him a Counsellor or Comforter, he treats him as a person not a force. And when he calls him "another Counsellor," he means, "He will be a counsellor like me." The Holy Spirit is a counsellor like Jesus is, He is a person. In John 14:17, Jesus says, "You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you." Then in verse 25 he says, "I have spoken to you while I am with you." Jesus virtually identifies the Spirit with himself. "I am with you and will be in you" is the same as saying, "I am with you and the Spirit will be in you." "You know me now as flesh and blood Son of God. You will know me soon through the Spirit who will be given to you." Therefore, the Spirit is not less a person than Jesus is.

The Holy Spirit is described not merely as the voice of God's teaching but as a teacher in his own right. John 14:26, “The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things." And in John 15:26 he is a witness in his own right, "When the Counsellor comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness to me." And lest we think that the Spirit is just the extended teaching activity of the Father and the Son, John 16:13 says that the Spirit first hears and then teaches: "He will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak." The Spirit is treated not as a force, or influence, or activity of another person, but as a person in his own right, hearing from the Father and the Son, and teaching and bearing witness to men.

It will make a great deal of difference in your own life if you believe that you are being indwelt and led and purified not by impersonal forces from a distant God, but by a person who in his essence, is the love of God.  

CGDS HYMN 28: SS&S 190: 

COME, HOLY SPIRIT, COME

1. Come, Holy Spirit, come;

Let Thy bright beams arise,

Dispel the darkness from our minds,

And open all our eyes.

2. Revive our drooping faith,

Our doubts and fears remove,

And kindle in our breasts the flame

Of never-dying love.

3. Convince us of our sin,

Then lead to Jesus' blood,

And to our wondering view reveal

The secret love of God.

4. ‘Tis Thine to cleanse the heart,

To sanctify the soul,

To pour fresh life in every part,

And new-create the whole.

5. Dwell therefore in our hearts,

Our minds from bondage free ;

Then we shall know, and praise, and love

The Father, Son, and Thee !  

   Prayers:

1.  Holy Spirit, make Yourself real to me as my very present help in all things.

2.  LORD God Almighty, give me counsels always through Your Holy Spirit to me in Jesus’ name. Amen.    

3.  Pray for others in this regard.