The Third Person of the Trinity
Notes
Transcript
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever.
He is the Spirit of truth. The world is unable to receive him because it doesn’t see him or know him. But you do know him, because he remains with you and will be in you.
This week we start on a new journey of discovery. Over the next several weeks we will be asking the question “Who is the Holy Spirit?”. It has been my experience when discussing the role and work of the Holy Spirit many people want to jump ahead to the sign gifts debate. But there is so much more to His work than that. At some point we will talk about this idea.
But this week my goal is to lay down some ground work to help us clear up some common misconceptions and give us the proper context to understand the Spirits work.
So today we are going to look at the Spirit’s role within the Trinity.
Take a look at this short video.
This morning will be a little bit more of an intellectual exercise but a necessary one.
When it comes to the nature of our triune God, God the Father, God the Son, and The Holy Spirit there is probably more confusion on who the Holy Spirit is than any other the three parts of the trinity.
Why is that?
#1 Many never associate or notice the work of the Holy Spirit within the old testament narratives.
#1 Many never associate or notice the work of the Holy Spirit within the old testament narratives.
This makes it seem as if Holy Spirit was absent in the past and popped into existence in the book of Acts.
Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.
#2 Many see the Holy Spirit as less than God the Father and Son.
#2 Many see the Holy Spirit as less than God the Father and Son.
We have instances of God the father speaking audibly and of course we know that Jesus spoke audibly in human flesh, but their are no clear recorded instances of the Holy Spirit speaking audibly in scriptures. Notice I said, “”no recorded evidence of an audible transmission but He, The Holy Spirit , certainly does speak. It is recorded many times that the Holy Spirit spoke but it is debatable whether it was out-loud or simply in visions or to ones spirit.
This can make the Holy Spirit seem less than God.
#3 Many do not associate the Holy Spirit with being God.
#3 Many do not associate the Holy Spirit with being God.
We can clearly see the nature of the Father through out the O.T andin the N.T. the Son. We can see His physical actions and attributes. When it comes to the Holy Spirit, he is harder to define.
For instance. The Father is a spirit and is Holy but He is not the Holy Spirit.
The Pre-incarnate Christ until taking on flesh was also a spirit, Holy, and yet is distinct from the Holy Spirit.
So this leads to some common misconceptions about His nature and Character.
So lets look together at some common misconceptions
I. 3 Common Misconceptions.
I. 3 Common Misconceptions.
A. The Divine Recipe - The Holy Spirit is 1/3 of God.
B. A Polytheistic trinity -The Holy Spirit is a part of the three separate but cooperating gods
C. The Silent Partner - The Holy Spirit is an impersonal abstract force sent by God.
We are not talking Jedi Theology.
The Holy Spirit is of the same essence as the Father and Son. The Holy Spirit has agency or will.
The Holy Spirit is God.
Lets look at
Misconception #1 - The Divine Recipe
Misconception #1 - The Divine Recipe
If I were to ask the question is the Heavenly Father God? I imagine all of you would agree that the Father is God.
If I were to ask you is Jesus Christ, God? I doubt there would be many in this congregation that would disagree, Jesus is God.
If I were to ask is the Holy Spirit God? I think most would agree, but I think their would be a higher amount of uncertainty concerning the deity of the Holy Spirit. However, I Think mostly we would agree the Holy Spirit is God.
On the other hand, what if I rephrased the question in this way: “Is the Holy Spirit self existent?” Meaning, He exists independently from the other two parts of the trinity and yet functions within the Trinity as one God.
How we answer this question will help flush out whether or not we see each part of the trinity with His own personhood. Is He merely part of God or is He God?
Does there exist a divine recipe that when all three parts are put together they make one God or is the Father separate from the Son and the Son separate from the Holy Spirit?
Let’s examine this prophetic verse about Christ.
Approach me and listen to this. From the beginning I have not spoken in secret; from the time anything existed, I was there.” And now the Lord God has sent me and his Spirit.
Let’s first notice the claim.
“From the time anything existed I was there”
“From the time anything existed I was there”
We see very similar claims in John 1.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning.
All things were created through him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created.
Now let’s look at the next part
“And now the Lord God has sent me”
“And now the Lord God has sent me”
Again lets look at the claims of Jesus.
As he was teaching in the temple, Jesus cried out, “You know me and you know where I am from. Yet I have not come on my own, but the one who sent me is true. You don’t know him;
I know him because I am from him, and he sent me.”
But the verse doesn’t end there.
“And now the Lord God has sent me and His Spirit”
“And now the Lord God has sent me and His Spirit”
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever.
He is the Spirit of truth. The world is unable to receive him because it doesn’t see him or know him. But you do know him, because he remains with you and will be in you.
Notice that the Holy Spirit is referred to as “He”. The Holy Spirit has agency or personhood. He is also called “Spirit of Truth” Jesus also claimed this same title for himself.
Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
So this verse is more than just a prophecy about the coming Messiah but rather about the God-head the complete trinity being involved in the redemption story.
So we can clearly see each member of the trinity is distinct yet they are one. This divine mystery that no one can comprehend. Again we find this idea first in the O.T.
Which brings us to Misconception #2
Misconception #2 - A polytheistic Trinity
Misconception #2 - A polytheistic Trinity
The Idea the Holy Spirit is one of three separate Gods that work together.
Again we will turn to the Old Testament to debunk this myth.
For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
This is one of the most familiar prophecies about the birth of the messiah. We love this passage of scripture especially around Christmas time due to Handle’s Messiah. But Notice the unity in trinity concerning the prediction of Jesus Christ.
What are the names for Jesus used in this passage?
Counselor, Mighty God , Eternal father, Prince of peace. We see that Jesus is separate in personality yet He is called all of the same names used by us to describe the other members of the trinity. They are separate yet they are the same. Again a divine mystery.
Of course growing up in church we have tried so hard to describe the Holy Spirit. He is an egg. He is an acorn.
Misconception #3 - Impersonal Force
Misconception #3 - Impersonal Force
But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property.
However, he kept back part of the proceeds with his wife’s knowledge, and brought a portion of it and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
“Ananias,” Peter asked, “why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the proceeds of the land?
Wasn’t it yours while you possessed it? And after it was sold, wasn’t it at your disposal? Why is it that you planned this thing in your heart? You have not lied to people but to God.”
Notice the clear connection of the Holy Spirit to God. Ananias and Sapphira lied to the Holy Spirit. This was indeed lying to God.
Lets look at the attributes associated with the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is eternal
The Holy Spirit is eternal
how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works so that we can serve the living God?
The Holy Spirit was involved in creation
The Holy Spirit was involved in creation
Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.
The Holy Spirit is omniscience.
The Holy Spirit is omniscience.
Now God has revealed these things to us by the Spirit, since the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.
For who knows a person’s thoughts except his spirit within him? In the same way, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
Both eternality and omniscience are attributes that belong only to Yahweh God.
The Holy Spirit is part of the redemptive process.
Who Is the Holy Spirit? Attributes and Works of God
Most importantly, redemption is a Trinitarian work. The Father sent the Son into the world (1 John 4:14). The Son performed all the work that was necessary for our salvation—living a life of perfect obedience and dying to make a perfect satisfaction (Phil. 3:9; 1 Cor. 15:3). But none of these things avail for our benefit until they are applied to us personally. Therefore, the Father and the Son send the Holy Spirit into the world to apply salvation to us (John 15:26; Gal. 4:6). The role of the Holy Spirit chiefly and principally in the New Testament is to apply the work of Christ to believers.
The nature of the relationship within the Trinity.
The nature of the relationship within the Trinity.
We live in a society that views any type of submission as a sign of inequality or weakness.
Yet in the Trinity we see a type of submission made evident between The Father and the Son. The Son and the Holy Spirit. Yet all three are equal and equal.
We see the Son repeatedly submitting to the Father’s will. Yet there is never an instance recorded that the Father submits to the Son or to the Holy Spirit.
So in this we see relational submission. Each person of the trinity is equal in essence, power, and value. Yet in a real practical sense the scriptures points us back to Jesus’s submission to the Cross to bring glory to the father.
There is no structure like this anywhere in the world. It is hard to understand because there is little to compare it too.
“Biblically, all three Persons of the Trinity have the same essence, nature, and glory, but each One has different roles or activities when it comes to how God relates to the world. For example, our salvation is based on the Father’s power and love (John 3:16; 10:29), the Son’s death and resurrection (1 John 2:2; Ephesians 2:6), and the Spirit’s regeneration and seal (Ephesians 4:30; Titus 3:5). The different tasks that we see the Father, Son, and Spirit perform are the result of the eternal relationship that exists among the Persons of the Trinity.”
https://www.gotquestions.org/subordination-Trinity.html
The closest we see is the example of a biblical marriage relationship.
A Wife is equal to her husband in substance and value, yet she is instructed to submit to her husband. A good husband will choose to use his authority to serve and love His wife.
In this same way, the scripture is not demeaning or devaluing woman by instructing them to submit to their own husband. Husbands and wives are equal but function differently. Just as Jesus is not devalued or demeaned by submitting to the Father.
We would never claim that Jesus submission to the Father proves He is of less value, power, or unequal to the father. They are one yet He voluntarily obeyed the Father’s will.
The Father functions differently than the Son and the Holy Spirit.
So today I have given you a lot of information. Now for the answer to the question that is on most peoples minds.
What does this mean for me?
What does this mean for me?
How do I apply this information?
The Holy Spirit is pure, for He is the Holy Spirit. He is wise, for He is the Spirit of wisdom. He is true, for He is the Spirit of truth. He is like Jesus, for He is the Spirit of Christ. He is like the Father, for He is the Spirit of die Father. He wants to be the Lord of your life, and He wants to possess you so that you are no longer in command of the little vessel in which you sail. You may be a passenger on board, or one of the crew, but you definitely are not in charge. Someone else is in command of the vessel.23
To know the Holy Spirit is to know God
To obey the Holy Spirit is to live out and continue the mission of Christ.
To Live empowered by the Holy Spirit is to know , to love and to live as God has intended us to live. Full of power, boldness and effectiveness for the kingdom.
To Live empowered by the Holy Spirit is to know , to love and to live as God has intended us to live. Full of power, boldness and effectiveness for the kingdom.
Listen to Acts
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
One of the lies that the enemy has sold the church today is that we are powerless and weak. That we are incapable of meaningful and impactful lives . Yet the very word of God say’s that you will receive power when the Holy Spirit come upon you. The church in the US has forgotten who we are..... We are not children of weakness, We are children of Power indwelled by the very Spirit of God, The God of creation. Who holds in his hands very power of life and death. When you choose to stop believing the lie of the enemy is when you finally awaken to your true purpose and understand what you were made to accomplish. It is in this that you will learn to love God and live your life for Him