20. The Gift of the Holy Spirit

Having spoken of three things God has done for us and three things we must do for ourselves, we have now come to the proper place to consider other aids our heavenly Father offers us at this point. "He has provided a Lamb for a sin offering," and "Jesus has made full atonement." He has also given us "the light of life" — the words of Jesus faithfully written out; and he has invested Him as the Son of Man with all authority, heavenly and earthly, so that He may lead many sons to glory and give eternal life to all who are given to Him.

We have also believed all this; repented of our sins, and been baptized into Christ. We have accepted Him as our Leader — our Prophet, Priest, and King; and placed ourselves under His guidance. Having rejected the great apostate and his ranks, enlisted under the Messiah, and taken sides with the Lord's Anointed, He now proposes to put His Holy Spirit within us to equip us for the good fight of faith and to anoint us as the sons and heirs of God.

Some will ask, Hasn't this gift been given to us to make us Christians? Indeed, no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit. As noted in its proper place, the Spirit of God is the perfecter and finisher of all divine works. "The Spirit of God moved upon the waters;" "The hand of the Lord has made me, the Spirit of the Almighty has given me life;" "By His Spirit He has adorned the heavens, His hand has formed the crooked serpent," the Milky Way; "The Spirit descended upon Him;" "God Himself bore witness to the Apostles by various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His will;" "Holy men of old spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit;" "When the Spirit of truth, the Advocate, comes, He will convict the world of sin because they do not believe in me, and of righteousness because I am going to my Father;" "God was manifested in the flesh and justified by the Spirit."

The Spirit of God inspired all the spiritual ideas in the New Testament and confirmed them by miracles; and He is ever present with the word He inspired. He descended from heaven on the day of Pentecost and has not formally ascended since. In the sense in which He descended, He certainly has not ascended: for He is to animate and inspire with new life the church or temple of the Lord. "Do you not know," you Christians, "that your bodies are temples of the living God;" "The temple of God is holy, which temple you are;" "If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, God will give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you," etc.

Now we cannot separate the Spirit and word of God and assign so much power to one and so much to the other; for the Apostles did not do so. Whatever the word does, the Spirit does; and whatever the Spirit does in the work of converting people, the word does. We neither believe nor teach abstract Spirit nor abstract word — but word and Spirit, and Spirit and word.

But the Spirit is not promised to anyone outside of Christ. It is promised only to those who believe in and obey Him. These it actually and powerfully assists in the mighty struggle for eternal life. Some, indeed, ask, 'Do Christians need more help to gain eternal life than sinners do to become Christians? Isn't the work of conversion more difficult than the work of sanctification?' Hence, they emphasize the work of the Spirit in conversion more than the work of the Spirit in sanctification. This, however, is a mistaken view, whether we reason from analogy or divine testimony. Is it not easier to plant than to cultivate corn, the vine, or the olive? Is it not easier to enlist in the army than to be a good soldier and fight the battles of the Lord; to start the race than to reach the goal; to enter the ship than to cross the ocean; to become a citizen than to be a good citizen; to enter into marriage than to be an exemplary husband; to enter life than to retain and sustain it for seventy years? And while the commands, "believe," "repent," and "be baptized," are never accompanied by any suggestion of particular difficulty, the commands to use the means of spiritual health and life; to form the Christian character; to attain the resurrection of the just; to grasp eternal life; to make our calling and election sure, etc., are accompanied by such exhortations, warnings, and cautions as to make it a difficult and critical matter, requiring all the help of the Spirit of our God, all the means of grace, and untiring diligence and perseverance on our part; for it seems "the called" who enter the stadium are many, while "the chosen" and approved "are few;" and many, says Jesus, "will try to enter the heavenly city and will not be able;" "Let us labor, therefore, to enter that rest, lest anyone fall after the same example of unbelief."

Sanctification, in one sense, is unquestionably a progressive work. To sanctify is to set apart; this may be done in a moment, and as far as mere state or relation is concerned, it is as instantaneous as baptism. But there is the formation of a holy character: for there is a holy character as well as a holy state. The formation of such a character is the work of means; "Holy Father," said Jesus, "sanctify them through the truth; your word is truth;" "And may the God of peace sanctify you completely," says Paul to the Thessalonians, "and I pray that your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." Christians, then, are to "pursue peace with all men, and sanctification, without which no one will see the Lord." Therefore, it is the duty and work of Christians "to perfect holiness in the fear of the Lord."

This requires help. Hence, assistance is to be prayed for; and it is promised. Now as the Spirit of God, under Christ’s administration, is the author of all holiness in us — He is called the "Holy Spirit," "the Spirit of holiness." Hence, while we have the phrase "Holy Ghost" or Spirit ninety-four times in the Christian Scriptures, it is found only three times in all the Jewish writings. The Holy Spirit is, then, the author of all our holiness; and in the struggle for victory over sin and temptation, "He helps our weaknesses," and comforts us by timely bringing to our remembrance the promises of Christ, and "strengthens us with all power, according to His glorious might, in the inner person." And thus "God works in us to will and to act according to His good purpose," "while we are working out our own salvation with fear and trembling." Christians are, therefore, clearly and unequivocally temples of the Holy Spirit; and they are quickened, energized, encouraged, and sanctified by the power and influence of the Spirit of God working in them through the truth.

God "gives His Holy Spirit to those who ask Him," according to His revealed will; and without this gift no one could be saved or ultimately triumph over all opposition. He knows little of the deceitfulness of sin or the struggle of temptation who thinks himself able to wrestle against the combined forces of the world, the flesh, and the devil. Hence, the necessity of "supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings," or praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Holy Spirit, and watching with all perseverance, and making intercession for all the saints, our fellow soldiers in this good warfare.

To those, then, who believe, repent, and obey the gospel, He actually gives of His Good Spirit. The fruits of that Spirit in them are "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control." The character traits that distinguish the new person are each communications of the Holy Spirit, and thus we are the sons of God in fact as well as in title, under the administration of the Holy Spirit.

We have, then, everything done for us after our conversion that we need for that "holiness without which no one will see the Lord." Thus God has provided for us a sin offering; a prophet to explain it; a priest to present it; a king, with universal dominion, to govern and protect all who are reconciled to God by it. And when through faith, repentance, and baptism, we have accepted Him as our rightful Sovereign, by His Holy Spirit, in answer to our prayers, He works in us, by us, and for us all that is necessary for our present, spiritual, and eternal salvation.