The Holy Spirt?
Who Is the Holy Spirit? – 5 Things You Need to Know.
'If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” Then He said to them, “Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given. For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.”' Mark 4:23-25
Jn 14:4And where I am going you know the way. Jn 14:5Thomas said to Him, Lord, we do not know where You are going; how can we know the way? Jn 14:6Jesus said to him, I am the way and the reality and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me. Jn 14:7If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and henceforth you know Him and have seen Him. Jn 14:8Philip said to Him, Lord, show us the Father and it is sufficient for us. Jn 14:9Jesus said to him, Have I been so long a time with you, and you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how is it that you say, Show us the Father?
Who Is the Holy Spirit? – 5 Things You Need to Know.
He 9:1Now then the first covenant also had ordinances of service, and its sanctuary was of this world.
He 9:2For a tabernacle was prepared, the first, in which were the lampstand and the table and the loaves that were set forth, which is called the Holy Place;
He 9:3And after the second veil, a tabernacle, which is called the Holy of Holies,
He 9:4Having a golden altar and the Ark of the Covenant covered about everywhere with gold, in which were the golden pot that had the manna and Aaron’s rod that budded and the tablets of the covenant,
He 9:5And above it cherubim of glory overshadowing the expiation cover, concerning which it is not now the time to speak in detail.
He 9:6Now these things having been thus prepared, into the first tabernacle the priests enter continually, accomplishing their worship;
He 9:7But into the second, only the high priest enters, once a year and not without blood, which he offers for himself and for the sins of ignorance of the people,
He 9:8The Holy Spirit thus making this clear, that the way of the Holy of Holies has not yet been manifested while the first tabernacle still has its standing,
He 9:9Which is a figure for the present time. According to this tabernacle both gifts and sacrifices are offered, which are unable to perfect, according to conscience, him who worships,
He 9:10Consisting only of foods and drinks and various washings, being ordinances of the flesh, imposed until the time of setting things right.
He 9:11But Christ, having come as a High Priest of the good things that have come into being, through the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made by hands, that is, not of this creation,
He 9:12And not through the blood of goats and calves but through His own blood, entered once for all into the Holy of Holies, obtaining an eternal redemption.
He 9:13For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who are defiled sanctify to the purity of the flesh,
He 9:14How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
He 9:15And because of this He is the Mediator of a new covenant, so that, death having taken place for redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, those who have been called might receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.
He 9:16For where there is a testament, the death of him who made the testament must of necessity be established.
He 9:17For a testament is confirmed in the case of the dead, since it never has force when he who made the testament is living.
He 9:18Hence neither was the first covenant initiated without blood;
He 9:19For when every commandment according to the law had been spoken by Moses to all the people, he took the blood of the calves and the goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the scroll of the covenant itself and all the people,
He 9:20Saying, “This is the blood of the covenant which God has commanded to you.”
He 9:21And both the tabernacle and all the vessels of the service he sprinkled in like manner with the blood.
He 9:22And almost all things are purified by blood according to the law, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.
He 9:23It was necessary therefore for the examples of the things in the heavens to be purified by these, but the heavenly things themselves, by better sacrifices than these.
He 9:24For Christ did not enter into a holy place made by hands, a figure of the true, but into heaven itself, to appear now before the face of God for us;
He 9:25Nor in order that He might offer Himself often, just as the high priest enters into the Holy of Holies year by year by the blood of other creatures;
He 9:26Since then He would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world. But now once at the consummation of the ages He has been manifested for the putting away of sin through the sacrifice of Himself.
He 9:27And inasmuch as it is reserved for men to die once, and after this comes judgment,
He 9:28So Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time to those who eagerly await Him, apart from sin, unto salvation.
John 14:4-9 https://my.bible.com/bible/114/JHN.14.4-9
Jn 14:4 And where I am going you know the way.
Jn 14:5 Thomas said to Him, Lord, we do not know where You are going; how can we know the way?
Jn 14:6 Jesus said to him, I am the way and the reality and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.
Jn 14:7 If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and henceforth you know Him and have seen Him.
Jn 14:8 Philip said to Him, Lord, show us the Father and it is sufficient for us.
Jn 14:9 Jesus said to him, Have I been so long a time with you, and you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how is it that you say, Show us the Father?
What are God’s attributes? When we talk about the attributes of God, we are trying to answer questions like, Who is God, What is God like, and What kind of God is he? An attribute of God is something true about him. While fully comprehending who God is impossible for us as limited beings, God does make himself known in a variety of ways, and through what he reveals about himself in his Word and in his creation, we can begin to wrap our minds around our awesome Creator and God.
God is unlike anything or anyone we could ever know or imagine. He is one of a kind, unique and without comparison. Even describing him with mere words truly falls short of capturing who he is – our words simply cannot to justice to describe our holy God.
Still, God possess attributes that we can know (even in just in part) and he’s given us his Word as a means to understand himself. We’ve complied a list of 15 of God’s attributes; some are what theologians call “incommunicable” (qualities possessed by God alone) and others are “communicable” (qualities that both God and we possess, though only he possesses them perfectly).
"And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together." - Colossians 1:17
“Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure” – Psalm 147:5
The fact that God is self-existent -- that he was created by nothing and has always existed forever -- is perhaps one of the hardest attributes of God for the believer to understand. In our limitedness, grasping the nature of our limitless God is like holding onto water as it rages down a river. Indeed, Tozer writes this about the confusing, head-spinning attribute of God’s infinity:
‘To admit that there is One who lies beyond us, who exists outside of all our categories, who will not be dismissed with a name, who will not appear before the bar of our reason, nor submit to our curious inquiries: this requires a great deal of humility, more than most of us possess, so we save face by thinking God down to our level, or at least down to where we can manage Him.”
In his article on Christianity.com, Dr. Adrian Rogers writes about the self-existence of God: “The name Jehovah is used some 6,800 times in the Bible. It is the personal covenant name of Israel's God. In the King James Version of the Bible, it's translated Lord God. Not only does it speak of God's strength, but also it speaks of the sovereignty of God and the goodness of God. The root of this name means "self-existing," one who never came into being, and one who always will be. When Moses asked God, "Who shall I tell Pharaoh has sent me?" God said, "I AM THAT I AM." Jehovah or Yahweh is the most intensely sacred name to Jewish scribes and many will not even pronounce the name. When possible, they use another name.”
“I the Lord do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.” Malachi 3:6
God does not change. Who he is never changes. His attributes are the same from before the beginning of time into eternity. His character never changes – he never gets “better” or “worse.” His plans do not change. His promises do not change.
This ought to be a source of incredible joy for believers. Sam Storms writes this about the good news of God’s unchanging nature: “What all this means, very simply, is that God is dependable! Our trust in him is therefore a confident trust, for we know that he will not, indeed cannot, change. His purposes are unfailing, his promises unassailable. It is because the God who promised us eternal life is immutable that we may rest assured that nothing, not trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword shall separate us from the love of Christ. It is because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever that neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, not even powers, height, depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom. 8:35-39)!”
“For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.” – John 5:26
As limited humans, we have incredible needs, which left unfulfilled, result in death. God, however, has never once been in need of anything. As Tim Temple writes, “God is perfectly complete within his own being.”
In a blog post on Reformation21.org, Scott Swain writes that the self-sufficiency of God means he “possesses infinite riches of being, wisdom, goodness, and power in and of himself (Gen 17:1; John 5:26; Eph 3:16). Because he possesses these unfathomable riches in the perfect knowledge and love of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matt 11.25-27; John 17:24-26), God is the "blessed" or "happy" God (1 Tim 1.11; 6:15).”
Because God is self-sufficient, we can go to him to satisfy all our needs. We never have to worry about “drying up” his never-ending well of goodness, peace, mercy and grace. “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us…” (Ephesians 3:20)
“By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth.” – Psalm 33:6
“Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty? They are higher than the heavens above—what can you do? They are deeper than the depths below—what can you know? Their measure is longer than the earth and wider than the sea. If he comes along and confines you in prison and convenes a court, who can oppose him? Surely he recognizes deceivers; and when he sees evil, does he not take note?” – Job 11:7-11
Omnipotent means to have unlimited power (omni = all; potent = powerful). God is able and powerful to do anything he wills without any effort on his part.
It’s important to note the “anything he wills” part of that statement because God cannot do anything contradictory or contrary to His nature. Hebrews 6:18 puts it like this: “God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged.”
In his devotional Forward, Ron Moore puts it like this: “God's attribute of omnipotence means that God is able to do all that He desires to do. When He plans something, it will come to be. If He purposes something, it will happen. Nothing can prevent His plan. When His hand is stretched out to do something, no one can turn it back. Omnipotence comes from two Latin words. Omni means "all," and potens means "powerful." God's decisions are always in line with His character, and He has all the power to do whatever He decides to do.”
“Scripture is clear that God is strong and mighty (Psalm 24:8). Nothing is too hard for Him to accomplish (Genesis 18:14; Jeremiah 32:17, 27; Luke 1:37). Often God is called "Almighty," describing Him as the One who possesses all power and authority (2 Corinthians 6:18; Revelation 1:8). In fact, Paul says that God is "able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine" (Ephesians 3:20).”
“Although such power might seem frightful, remember that God is good. He can do anything according to His infinite ability, but will do only those things that are consistent with Himself. That’s why He can’t lie, tolerate sin, or save impenitent sinners.” – John MacArthur
“Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please” - Isaiah 46:9-10
God is omniscient, which means he knows everything. Debbie McDaniel writes this about the omniscience of God, “He can be everywhere, at the same time. And He never sleeps or slumbers, He's aware every moment of every day, exactly what we're up against. He knows our way, and is with us always. There's no place on this earth we can go that He doesn't see and know of.”
Tozer writes this about God’s omniscience: “God perfectly knows Himself and, being the source and author of all things, it follows that He knows all that can be known. And this He knows instantly and with a fullness of perfection that includes every possible item of knowledge concerning everything that exists or could have existed anywhere in the universe at any time in the past or that may exist in the centuries or ages yet unborn.”
Because God is all-knowing, we can trust that he knows everything we’re going through today and everything we will go through tomorrow. When we meditate on this truth, especially in light of his other attributes of goodness and love, it makes it easier to trust him with all we have going on in our lives, from the very serious to the silly and mundane.
“Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me.” Psalm 139:7-10
“‘Am I a God at hand,’ declares the Lord, ‘and not a God afar off? Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him?’ declares the Lord. ‘Do I not fill heaven and earth?’ declares the Lord” - Jeremiah 23:23-24
To be omnipresent is to be in all places, at all times. Yet, it is important to understand that for God, “to be” in a place is not the same way we are in a place. “God’s being is all together different from physical matter,” the website Ligonier.org explains. “He exists on a plane wholly distinguishable from the one readily available to the five senses.”
Nevertheless, he is with us. The fullness of his presence is all around us. “Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.” The psalmist proclaims God’s omnipresence in Psalm 137.
This ought to bring deep comfort to Christians who struggle with loneliness and deep sorrow. In a very real way, God is always near us, “closer than our thoughts,” writes Tozer. “The knowledge that we are never alone calms the troubled sea of our lives and speaks peace to our soul.”
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