The Holy Spirit: The Air We Breathe

By Gates Whiteley

Why does the church not preach the Holy Spirit? He was present during the creation moment, he is the author of Scripture, and he is the Helper Jesus left behind. Though Scripture warns not to grieve or quench the Spirit, he is most often ignored, misunderstood, and even feared. The creeds of the church say the Spirit is to be "worshipped and glorified," and yet he is hardly mentioned from the pulpit.
When the Holy Spirit comes to live in believers, the process of sanctification begins. Sanctification is what God wants for his people. It is through the work of the Spirit living in our hearts and minds that the church is to be sanctified.
In this book, you will read about the Helper that Jesus left behind. You will learn about the Spirit and his role in believers' lives, and some of your beliefs may be challenged. With time and practice, this mysterious being who was first introduced in Genesis will become your faithful companion.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Resource Publications
• Release date: Dec 11, 2023
• ISBN: 9798385201143

Gates Whiteley

Gates Whiteley is a retired attorney, deacon, and teacher. His prior works include Percy: Life as a Runaway & Hobo; William: The Man, The Myth and The Mafia; and The Uncomfortables, a title he borrowed from a Sunday School class he taught for over twenty years. He and his wife, Joan, live in San Antonio, Texas.

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Introduction

Not many years ago, I was unaware of the role of the Holy Spirit. He had never been the subject of any Sunday school class I had attended, and despite my efforts, I could dredge up no memory of any sermon preaching the Spirit. The first Bible I received as a child was a King James version. After that, the Spirit was referred to as a ghost almost everywhere I read. Like you, perhaps, I did not learn to trust ghosts as a child.

Before you read further, please pause to think about your faith journey. If you consider yourself a non-believer (agnostic or atheist), or just a none, you may want to go directly to the chapter A New Atheism. There, and in the remaining chapters, I will welcome your attention. We will discuss your views and some of the reasons for them.

If, on the other hand, you are a believer, please understand that I have no reason to dwell on doctrinal issues. If you google the subject, you will find fifteen or twenty points that theologians and Biblical authorities believe divide the church. I have not seen the Holy Spirit on any such list. But, as you will see in the following pages, that omission is telling.

A word about sources: there are many writers whom I have quoted or whose works have been referenced in the accompanying bibliography. Credit must be given to those who helped me on my journey and whose words I have used to clarify and explain my beliefs. Yet each of these writers has written something I cannot accept or do not believe to be true. Is this so different from your own reading experience? You will doubtlessly discover in this book the same reality. Even the Scriptures that I rely upon may speak to you a different truth. What you will not find in this book is any attack on the views of other believers. When I submit my ideas and convictions, it is not necessary (or helpful) to try and bolster them by criticizing or demeaning the religious convictions of others.

Theologians who may somehow come across this little book will quickly discern that I have spent only a little time considering the works of their brethren. And while I discuss differing views of the Holy Spirit, I am aware that the views of theologians are best debated amongst themselves. In his book Essential Truths, R. C. Sproul begins his preface by declaring that we are all theologians, for better or worse. Though we may not be academically or professionally trained, we are always actively involved in learning about God.

My views of the Holy Spirit are grounded in my understanding of Scripture and creeds. Theology is not nice and tidy, and theologians do not agree with these Scriptural interpretations. They call it exegesis, which means interpretation or explanation. Like theologians, we laymen are free to disagree. Above all, it must be admitted that, unlike C. S. Lewis, I am a very, very ordinary layman in a Presbyterian Church. I recommend reading Lewis’s preface in Mere Christianity. Like Lewis, I am not trying to convert anyone to a particular Christian denomination.

As for creeds, it is the Nicene Creed that I refer to. This ecumenical creed has a voluminous history, but my focus is primarily on the work of the Council of Constantinople in 381 AD, which added these words to the statement: "And in the Holy Ghost, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets."

My study of the Holy Spirit began while teaching a Sunday school class named The Uncomfortables, a title I borrowed to write a previous book. The class encountered R. C. Sproul’s book Essential Truths of The Christian Faith three to four years ago. Part Five of Sproul’s book is devoted entirely to the Holy Spirit. The Spirit’s deity, the Spirit’s personality, and his role as comforter, companion, and source of wisdom are presented in lucid, convincing language. Under the sub-heading, The Holy Spirit as Comforter, Sproul writes,

The Spirit is sent to be Christ’s substitute; he is the supreme vicar of Christ on earth.¹

When Sproul wrote on page 115 that we might pray to the Spirit, he captured my full attention.

In the pages that follow, you will read about the helper that Jesus left behind. You will learn about the Holy Spirit and his role in our lives as believers. You will find that we are called to pray to the Holy Spirit (as the Nicene Creed states). You will encounter some authors I have learned from, and some of your beliefs may be challenged as mine were. I hope this mysterious being we first met in Genesis will become your faithful companion.

Lastly, the reader should know that I have endeavored to present in a revelatory manner what is found in these pages. Rather like a faith journey, the story unfolds gradually to allow the reader to make up his own mind.

1 . Sproul, Essential Truths,

125

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Who Is the Holy Spirit?

Before creation, a heavenly host existed. Among this vast host were three entities, coequal with separate identities, personalities, and abilities. We came to know them as the Holy Trinity. Within the first thirty words, the creation account in Genesis identifies God, the creator of heaven and earth, and his Spirit (also referred to as a wind from God) who hovered over the waters. Likewise, we learn in 1 Pet 1:20 and John 1:1–2 that Jesus, the Word, was with God in the beginning. See also John 17:5.

Similarly, God later placed three beings in Eden, apart from the other creatures in the animal kingdom. The origins of Adam and Eve are described in Gen 1:26–27, and the presence of Satan is acknowledged in Ezek 28:11–19 (referring to the king of Tyre). Note verse 13: You were in Eden, the garden of God . . .

We move on from the secular trio to focus on the third member of the heavenly Trinity, this shadowy figure who is mentioned throughout Scripture. Here are several Scriptural references that offer additional insights into the identity and the role of the Holy Spirit:

Psalms 51:10–12, Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your holy spirit from me. Restore to me your salvation, and sustain in me a willing spirit. Did you notice that two spirits are mentioned here? One is identified as holy and belonging to God while the other seems to reside in the psalmist. One is divine while the other is human.

Isaiah 11:2, The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of understanding and the fear of the Lord.

Galatians 5:22, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

Ephesians 3:16–17, may . . . you be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and (may) Christ dwell in your hearts through faith as you are being rooted and grounded in love.

John 14:15–17, And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him because he abides with you, and he will be in you.

John 15:26, When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf.

Matthew 12:31–32, . . . people will be forgiven for every sin and blasphemy, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven . . . whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or the age to come.

Who is this mysterious figure that we find in both the Old and New Testaments, and what are we to do with him? He was gifted to us by our Father God and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who speaks of him as the advocate, the counselor, and the helper. And yet, we do not know him.

If you are a believer, you might have walked with Christ by your side for a long time. You may regard the well-known poster showing only one set of footprints on the beach as a great visual for how Jesus responds when you turn to him. He is always there for us. He is ready to carry us through the troubles of life. He does not promise the moon. He does not say we are immune from sickness, injury, disappointment, or struggle, but he does promise to help us.

You may be surprised now to read that the helper I am writing about in this book is other than Jesus. He is a member of the Holy Trinity, a person that Jesus has always known, even before the creation moment. We are introduced to him in the first chapter of Genesis—within the first thirty words, you will find him there. The Hebrew word is ruach and may refer to wind or spirit, depending on the context. From now on, we will use the names Spirit and Holy Spirit for the third person of the Trinity.

Consider Dr. Sproul’s claim found in the introduction that the Holy Spirit is Jesus’ substitute. Some of us may find that claim troublesome, even offensive. However, the term may no longer seem offensive after you study what Scripture says about the role of the Spirit, including Jesus’ own words, he will take what is mine and declare it to you (John 16:7–15).

In the book of Acts (Acts 1–2), you will find the story of the disciples huddling in a room on the second floor of a building in Jerusalem. Jesus had already appeared to them, breathed on them to deliver the Spirit, and commissioned them for the work to be done, but they were still immobilized for fear of the Jews. So then, as Jesus promised, the Spirit appeared as wind and fire to enable and equip the disciples. As a result, each is enabled to speak in a foreign language they had never spoken. Instead of using Aramaic or pigeon Greek, these newly impassioned disciples descended into the streets of Jerusalem and began shouting and speaking in languages that could be understood by the foreigners who heard them.

When the disciples, filled with the Spirit, left the upper room and rushed into Jerusalem’s streets, shouting and speaking in different languages, they spoke to passersby who understood what they were saying. And how is it that we hear, each of us in our own language? Parthians, Medes, Elamites . . . (Acts 2:8).

The Holy Spirit came to stop the dithering, eliminate the doubt, overcome their indecision, and literally drive the disciples to action. And the church grew. The Holy Spirit did not retreat to sit on the left hand of God. Instead, he stayed on, and he is still present among us.

For those of you who may not be familiar with the story, Jesus told his disciples that he had to leave them so the Spirit could come and that he was coming as a helper to take his place on Earth (Luke 24:49; John 16:7–15; Acts 1–2). While he was in human form, Jesus was not limited in power, but before his death and resurrection, Jesus was limited by geography. He walked to most places he visited and was in only one place at a time until after his resurrection, when he appeared to his disciples and apostles in several places.

The Spirit is everywhere, in every time zone, on every continent. He is in the air we breathe. He never tires, and he never quits. He comes to help everyone who trusts God and takes Jesus as his savior. The Spirit is our intercessor here on earth. He is the essence of God and Jesus Christ and goes where he will (John 3:8), speaking what he hears from them (John 16:13).

When we say God is active in his creation, we acknowledge (though perhaps unknowingly) the Holy