Get to Know the Holy Spirit Pt. 1

The Holy Spirit- The Answer : November 2022

Getting to know the Holy Spirit is a pretty deep topic. So we will take some time to unpack this. Over the following weeks we will look at the different attributes of the Holy Spirit. Understanding who He is and what amazing gifts He has to offer, is the miracle grow to your relationship with God and experiencing the “moreness” that’s in store for you! This is true because the Holy Spirit, Himself, is the “more”. So let’s get right into it. 

Who is the Holy Spirit? He is 1/3 of the Trinity God. There is God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was the One who was left here on earth with us after the ascension of Jesus to Heaven following the resurrection. He came at Pentecost during the early church in Acts. You can read about this in Acts chapter 2 for more context. He is the very Spirit that is within the almighty, living, creative God of the universes of universes. And the most amazing thing is He is in you and me, (the born again Christian). Take a second here to really think on that. The same Spirit that is within the God of all, lives in you. That has to mean something big! Romans 8:11 AMPC “And if the Spirit of Him Who raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, [then] He Who raised up Christ Jesus from the dead will also restore to life your mortal (short-lived, perishable) bodies through His Spirit Who dwells in you.” 

Jesus gives us His explanation of the Holy Spirit in John 14:26 AMPC “But the Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will cause you to recall (will remind you of, bring to your remembrance) everything I have told you.” Simply, the Holy Spirit is our answer to all things. He is also called in the Bible the Spirit of Truth and the Spirit of Wisdom. Since He is the Spirit of the all-knowing God, the Holy Spirit is our answer to everything. Any question, any decision or any direction, the Holy Spirit has the answer for you. Then later in John 16:12-13 it explains AMPC “I have still many things to say to you, but you are not able to bear them or to take them upon you or to grasp them now. But when He, the Spirit of Truth (the Truth-giving Spirit) comes, He will guide you into all the Truth (the whole, full Truth). For He will not speak His own message [on His own authority]; but He will tell whatever He hears [from the Father; He will give the message that has been given to Him], and He will announce and declare to you the things that are to come [that will happen in the future].” I love how direct Jesus is here. He doesn't say that the Holy Spirit will be difficult to hear or that it will be hard to understand what He is saying. Jesus says the opposite. He is very clear that the Holy Spirit wants to be evident in communicating truth to us. Satan likes to play a mind game with us and whisper lies that “it’s hard to hear from God” or “you can’t hear God” or “God doesn’t talk to you”. Of course he doesn’t want you to listen to the direct life line to the mind of God. Because then you’d outsmart him. Shut those thoughts down! Instead believe the clear message found here in John, that says the Holy Spirit will announce and declare to you all the truth! 

1 John 2:20 & 27 NLT “But you are not like that, for the Holy One has given you His Spirit, and all of you know the truth… But you have received the Holy Spirit, and He lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what He teaches is true- it is not a lie. So just as He has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ.” I cannot begin to tell you how many times in my life the Holy Spirit has given me the truthful answer. Even back in my school days, my parents taught us that when we were taking a test if we didn't know the answer, ask the Holy Spirit and He will tell you. That may seem trivial or make you wonder “why would He even care about that?”, but hey I got good grades and He always gave me the right answer. He wants to be involved even in the seemingly small parts of our lives. I have had many times where I didn’t know what to say in a situation whether it was to another person or even during a public presentation, and I would pray in the Spirit (to myself). Then shortly, I would have the exact thing I needed to say. Just like it says in Luke 12:12 NLT “for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what needs to be said.” And then of course, we have all had many times where we had a decision to make or a direction to choose, and we just felt at a loss for the answer. Again, in those times, I would pray in the Spirit, get in the Word, and listen. I would wait on the Lord to hear Him, because I knew He would tell me the truth and that He would tell me “the things to come.” And surely that true and wise answer would come and I would all at once just know through peace what I was to do. I can also tell you about how I use this daily. About 2 years ago now, I moved home to work as the estimator at my parent’s construction company. Even though I grew up with a dad that knew how to build just about anything, I myself, knew not one thing about construction. BUT, would you guess who knows all things about construction? Yep, you got it, the Holy Spirit, who just happens to live within me and who teaches me everything! Yes, my dad has been teaching me over the last 2 years. However, construction is what seems to be a never ending thing to learn. My dad can only teach me so much while also running a business. So I had to take on some learning myself. There’s been many jobs where I am looking at the blue prints and it literally looks like Greek to me. But, that’s when I close my eyes, I pray in the Spirit, I ask Him to teach me, and sit and listen for a moment. And wouldn’t you know understanding begins to flood my mind and I start to see exactly what I need to see. I don’t have a degree in architecture and I’ve never built a thing in my life, but the all-knowing teacher of all things lives in me and empowers me to be a constantly improving construction estimator. 

The Holy Spirit is our edge on life. The world walks around in the dark just trying things out until they maybe find something that sorta kind of works for them. We have the magnificent privilege of getting to do this life with the Spirit of the one and only God of all things, living right on the inside of us. He is ready and willing and wanting to give us every answer. You, believer, have that so don’t let it go to waste.

We will pick up next week on getting to know the Holy Spirit. I pray this weekend is blessed and full of rest and fun of all kinds!

I like to close each teaching with an invitation to salvation for anyone that has not yet welcomed Jesus into their life. Maybe you’ve read this and felt a pull on your heart. Maybe you’re in a place where you just need a solution. If so, this was meant for you and if you’re ready for the “moreness” of God, then believe in your heart and say out loud the following prayer: “Jesus, I repent for my sins, please forgive me for living a life apart from You. I believe that you are the Son of God and that you died on the cross for my sins and were raised to life again. I confess you as Lord over my life. Take my life and do something with it. And I ask you to fill me with your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ Name amen.”

It’s as simple as that. Welcome to the family! That is solely the most important decision you will ever make. If you prayed that prayer, please send us an email and let us know. We would love to help get you connected to a Life-filled church in your area and help you get started on your journey of “moreness” with God. Click the chat button at the bottom of each page and send us a message!