The Forgotten God

The Forgotten God

He is a person

He has intelligence 1 Cor. 2:10-11 He has a will 1 Cor. 12:11

He has emotions Eph. 4:30 He guides Rom. 8:14

He commands Acts 8:29. He intercedes Rom. 8:26

He is to be obeyed Acts 10:19f He can be lied to Acts 5:3

He is Divine : equal to the other two persons of the Trinity

Omniscient 1 Cor. 2:10 Omnipotent Gen. 1:2

Omnipresent Ps. 139:7 Holy Luke 11:13

He works in and through us

Convicts us of our sinful nature John 16:8-11

Regenerates us Titus 3:5 Indwells us. 1 Cor. 10:19

Baptizes us 1 Cor. 12:13 Seals us. Eph. 1:13

Gifts us 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, Ephesians 4

He is our promise for heaven Ephesians 1:14

This morning I want us to study the person and work of the Holy Spirit. Francis Chan wrote a book and has a video series on RightNow Media called “The Forgotten God.” I think that’s an appropriate title for a discussion on the Holy Spirit. We believe in the Trinity, Father, Son, Holy Spirit. 3 in 1. Each fully and totally divine, sharing the very essence of what it means to be God.

Yet we talk about God as our heavenly Father. Rightly so. We talk about Jesus, the son of God who died for our sin. Rightly so. But unfortunately we sometimes forget about the 3rd person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit.

It would take us months to fully cover the person and work of the Holy Spirit, but I am going to try to hit the main aspects of who He is and what He does—and then finish with a reminder of what He does in and through us as believers.

Jesus calls Him our Comforter and our Helper. So who is He?

He is a person (build) So many times I hear people call the Spirit, “it”, like the Spirit is just a force. But the Spirit is as much a person as the Father and the Son. You see this throughout the Bible, particularly in the New Testament.

He has intelligence 1 Cor. 2:10-11

He has a will 1 Cor. 12:11 says He distributes the gifts as He will.

He has emotions Eph. 4:30 says that we can grieve Him.

He guides Matthew 4 says that Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tested.

He commands Acts 8:29 He told Phillip to go get in the chariot of the Ethiopian Eunuch and witness to him.

He intercedes Rom. 8:26 says that when we don’t know how to pray, the Spirit intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.

He is to be obeyed Acts 10:19f He tells Peter to go downstairs and meet the envoys of Cornelius, thus opening the gospel up to not just the Jews, but Gentiles as well.

He can be lied to Acts 5:3 When annias and saphira lied about how much money they gave to Unleashed, Peter said, You didn’t just lie to us, you lied to the Spirit. Then what happened. Carried em out feet first.

He is Divine : equal to the other two persons of the Trinity (build only the 3 characteristic)

Omniscient all knowing “Now God has revealed these things to us by the Spirit, since the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.” 1 Corinthians 2:10

Omnipotent. all powerful “For I would not dare say anything except what Christ has accomplished through me by word and deed for the obedience of the Gentiles, by the power of miraculous signs and wonders, and by the power of God’s Spirit.” Romans 15:18-19

Omnipresent He’s everywhere, He’s everywhere! “Where can I go to escape your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence.” Psalms 139:7

Holy Jesus ascribes the key characteristic to the Spirit. “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?” Luke 11:13

He works in and through us (build without scriptures)

Convicts us of our sinful nature “When he comes, he will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment: 9 About sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will no longer see me; 11 and about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.” John 16:8-11

When I pray for a lost peson, I pray that the Spirit will convict them of their personal sinful nature and convince them that they need a Savior.

Regenerates us “He saved us—not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy—through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit” Titus 3:5

To regenerate is to restore or revive. We were dead in our sins, the ‘bible says, and when we put our faith in Jesus and what He did for us on the cross, the Spirit comes into us and makes us alive, spiritually alive. This is why Jesus said, “You must be born again.”