Print Article
Author's Bias | Interpretation: conservative | Inclination: promise | Seminary: none
While the Holy Spirit is the active presence of God in the world and the church, the Old Testament uses names that
identify the Holy Spirit with God.
The Spirit of God
The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the
Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. (Gen 1:2)
The Spirit of the Lord
The Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he judged Israel. When he went out to war, the
Lord gave Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand, so that he prevailed over Cushan-rishathaim.
(Jud 3:10)
Here in this account, God's covenant name, Yĕhovah, is used.
The Spirit of the Lord God
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
Because the Lord has anointed me
To bring good
news to the afflicted;
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to captives
And
freedom to prisoners; (Isa 61:1)
Jesus uses names for the Holy Spirit that reflect His Deity and something about His relationship to human beings.
The Spirit of Your Father
For it is not you who speak, but it is the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.
(Matt 10:20)
The Promise of My Father
And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the
city until you are clothed with power from on high. (Luke 24:49)
In this instance, Jesus is making a reference to the New Covenant.
The apostles use names for the Holy Spirit that express His Deity and as part of God's triune nature.
The Spirit of the Lord
When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; and the
eunuch no longer saw him, but went on his way rejoicing. (Acts 8:39)
The Spirit of Him Who Raised Jesus from the Dead
But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ
Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
(Rom 8:11)
Spirit of Our God
Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified
in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. (1 Cor 6:11)
Spirit of the Living God
You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men; being manifested
that you are a letter of Christ, cared for by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not
on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. (2 Cor 3:2-3)
The Spirit of His Son
Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying,
"Abba! Father!" (Gal 4:6)
The Spirit of Jesus Christ
What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed;
and in this I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your
prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will
not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body,
whether by life or by death. (Phil 1:18-20)
[Quoting a classroom teacher of her youth] "To be a Christian you must face and accept the life that Christ faced
and lived;
you must enjoy things as He enjoyed things;
be as happy as He was at the marriage at Cana,
know the peace and happiness that it means to be in harmony with God and with God’s will.
But you must also, as He did, what it means to be alone in the Garden of Gethsemane,
to
feel that all your friends have forsaken you, that those you love and trust have turned away from you, and that God
Himself has forsaken you.
Hold on then to the belief that that is not the end. If you love, you will suffer,
and if you do know love, you do not know the meaning of a Christian life."
Agatha Christie
Copyright ©
2016
Helpmewithbiblestudy.org. All rights to this material are reserved. We encourage you to print the material for personal and
non-profit use or link to this site. If you find this article to be a blessing, please share the link so that it may rise in
search engine rankings.