Posted on 09/02/2015 11:34:39 AM PDT by metmom
“There is one body and one Spirit just as also you were called in one hope of your calling” (Ephesians 4:4).
Although there were distinctions of ministry, one and the same Holy Spirit has been at work in both the Old and New Covenants.
The famous radio broadcast of October 30, 1938, in which Orson Welles and his fellow actors fooled many of the American people into thinking an actual invasion from Mars was occurring, is a classic example of how miscommunication can drastically distort people’s understanding of the facts. Because many listeners failed to hear the disclaimer about the fictional nature of the War of the Worlds dramatization, thousands were panicked into believing that Martians were beginning to invade New York City and the rest of the East Coast. Not many hours after the program ended, most people realized it was not a broadcast of actual events. Nevertheless, apologies and clarifications were necessary in subsequent days.
Scriptural truth is seldom miscommunicated with that same kind of sensational result. But that doesn’t mean we never need to correct previous thinking about certain doctrines. One of these concerns the Holy Spirit. Due to popular teaching on the dissimilarities between the Old and New Covenants, many Christians have understood the Spirit’s Person and role as being sharply different between the Testaments.
But the apostle Paul makes it clear in Ephesians 4:4 that there is but one Spirit (also see 1 Cor. 12:11, 13). Paul also knew that since the Holy Spirit is God, He is therefore unchanging; the same Spirit has been at work throughout redemptive history. We can believe with certainty that the Holy Spirit will always be the saving agent who draws people to the Lord. That’s what Jesus taught when He instructed the Jewish teacher Nicodemus about the new birth (John 3:5-10).
There are important distinctives between the Holy Spirit’s Old Covenant and New Covenant roles (see Acts 1:5). His New Covenant work is more intimate and personal for believers, but His essential character has always been the same.
We should rejoice that there is no confusion between two Spirits, but that there is one Holy Spirit who has been active in God’s plan, from Genesis 1:1 right to the present and for all eternity.
Suggestions for Prayer
Thank the Lord for giving you a clear understanding of the Holy Spirit’s oneness.
For Further Study
Read John 3:1-15.
What should Nicodemus already have understood about the new birth? How far back does Jesus reach to make an analogy about God’s method of salvation?
ping
Revelation 4:5 And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings, and voices. Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.
Nelson, Thomas (2009-02-18). Holy Bible, New King James Version (NKJV) (pp. 1187-1188). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
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 knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.
Nelson, Thomas (2009-02-18). Holy Bible, New King James Version (NKJV) (p. 673). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
“We should rejoice that there is no confusion between two Spirits, but that there is one Holy Spirit who has been active in God’s plan, from Genesis 1:1 right to the present and for all eternity.”
Indeed, when you read the Old Testament and see all the references to “the Spirit of the Lord”, it becomes pretty clear that the Holy Spirit has been active all throughout human history.
I was wondering if the Holy Spirit has 7 distinct jobs and wondered if there is a correlation to the 7 churches. God the Father has many names but is One, as the Trinity is One. We’ll find out when we can see through the fog. I’m overloaded as it is.
Seven is the number of completion, so the “seven spirits” are one. There are seven churches because that is the complete set of churches. In binary, seven is 111, so a trinity of ones is complete, or one.
The Ein Sof manifests Himself in His creation as the Trinity, Father, Son, Holy Spirit as a consequence of how He created the Universe:
And He created His universe with three books (Sepharim), with text (Sepher) with number (Sephar) and with communication (Sippur).
Kaplan, Aryeh (2004-03-15). Sefer Yetzirah: The Book of Creation in Theory and Practice (Kindle Locations 445-449). Red Wheel Weiser. Kindle Edition.
The Universe is an accounting system. That is how we, as sinners, can be saved by believing in Jesus Christ so that His Righteousness is credited to our account.
There is an interesting passage in 2Thess2, where Paul refers to 'the restrainer' being taken out of the way, so the full measure of the lawlessness can be revealed ...
A lot of people say that the “restrainer” is the Holy Spirit, Himself, but if you look at the last 2000 years of history, it looks to me as if the “restrainer” has been the called out ones who are filled with the Holy Spirit, i.e., the Invisible Church. When the Netchatef, aka Harpazo, aka Rapture happens and the Invisible Church is taken, the “restrainer” will be gone, but the Holy Spirit will remain to lead those who are left behind to Yeshua HaMashiach (aka Jesus Christ).
This difference is somewhat foreshadowed in the harvest times of Israel. The Barley is harvested by waving the stalks and the breeze separating the seeds from the stalk. The wheat harvest however required the 'tribulum' crushing of the crop to press the seeds out from the husks. The Barley would correspond to the Church Age of believing and being indwelt, and the wheat would represent the pressing the harvest to get the seed/fruit. The very last is the grape press, to crush the grapes out to yield the juices.
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