It is vital that we understand that the Holy Spirit is not an optional extra to the Christian faith. He is promised by Jesus and represents a good gift given by the Father. He serves to help us, both individually and as a corporate Body. Our maturity and our effectiveness as a witness of God is dependent upon the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

After the resurrection of Jesus, we see two ways the Holy Spirit interacts with Believers.

First, the Holy Spirit infills us when we are born again, that is, at the point we receive Christ as our Savior. We see this in Scripture in John 20:22, "And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit."

Second, Believers can be baptized, or immersed, in the Holy Spirit. When this happens, the Holy Spirit comes upon them in a strong and powerful way. Throughout the book of Acts, we see Believers speaking in tongues as evidence of their baptism encounter.

In Matthew 3:11, John the Baptist mentions this experience when he says, "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."

And in Acts 1:8, Jesus declares, "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

So we see two distinct ways we encounter the Holy Spirit, through infilling and baptism.

While there are numerous ways the Holy Spirit helps us live out our faith, His purpose is to draw us into deeper relationship with God and to empower us to represent God in creation.

The revealing work of the Spirit

The Holy Spirit loves to open the eyes of our understanding and reveal Jesus to us. He woos us into an encounter with God, knowing that we become more like Jesus as a result of the experience.

Jesus explains in John 16: 12-14, “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.  However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.  He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. "

The Apostle Paul also speaks of the teaching and revealing work of the Holy Spirit in his letter to the Corinthians.  

"But as it is written:

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,

Nor have entered into the heart of man

The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”

But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.  For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.  Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God." (1 Corinthians 2:9-12).

So we see that the Holy Spirit reveals truth. He helps us understand and experience the heart of God, which draws us deeper into transforming fellowship with Christ. We are dependent on the revealing work of the Holy Spirit, not the wisdom of man, to accurately understand the nature and ways of God.

The empowering work of the Spirit

The Holy Spirit wants to take us deeper in our personal relationship with God, but He also wants to flow through us to effectively advance the Kingdom of God here on the earth. Jesus commanded his disciples to wait until they were "endued with power" before they were released to minister (see Acts 1: 4-8).

It's important to note that it is the power of the Holy Spirit working through us that touches lives, so we must grow in our understanding of how He works.

One example of the empowering nature of the Holy Spirit can be found in 1 Corinthians 12. The Holy Spirit gives gifts to believers, for the purpose of building up the Body and expanding the Kingdom.

"But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills" (1 Cor. 12: 7-11).

Throughout Scripture we also see the Holy Spirit confirming the word and work of God through miracles.

Hebrews 2:4 states, "...God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit."

Indeed our Heavenly Father knows how to give good gifts. He not only sent His Son, Jesus, to bring us into eternal life, He also sent our divine helper, the Holy Spirit to tutor and empower us while we remain on earth!

Want to hear more about the Holy Spirit. Check out our You Tube playlist, "Fresh Wind from Heaven." This eight part video series will increase your understanding of the role the Holy Spirit plays in putting your faith in action.