Believers must recognize the importance of the Holy Spirit in God’s redemptive purpose. Many Christians have no idea what difference it would make if there were no Holy Spirit in this world. Without the Holy Spirit, there would be no creation, no universe, no human race. Without the Holy Spirit, there would be no Bible, no New Testament, no power to proclaim the gospel. Without the Holy Spirit, there would be no faith, no new birth, no holiness, no Christians at all in the world.
Throughout scripture, the Holy Spirit is a person with an individuality all His own. He is a divine person like the Father and the Son. Therefore, we may never think of the Holy Spirit as a mere influence or power. He has personal characteristics, for He thinks, feels, wills, and can love and enjoy fellowship. The Father sends the Holy Spirit to bring believers into the intimate presence and associate of Jesus. In the light of these truths, we should treat Him as a person and regard Him as the infinite living God with our hearts, worthy of our worship, love, and surrender.
The Holy Spirit is an agent of salvation, convicting us of guilt, revealing the truth about Jesus, giving us new birth, and incorporating us into the body of Christ. We receive the Holy Spirit and become participants in the divine nature at conversion.
The Holy Spirit is an agent of sanctification. The believers are indwelt by the Holy Spirit and come under the sanctifying influence at conversion. Notice some of the things He does as He lives in us. He sanctifies, cleanses, leads, and motivates us into holy lives, delivering us from sin’s bondage. He tells us we are children of God, helps us in our worship with God and in our prayer lives, and intercedes for us as we cry out to God. He produces Christlike graces of character that glorify Christ. He is our divine teacher guiding us into all truth, disclosing Jesus to us, and governing us into fellowship and oneness with Jesus. He continually imparts God’s love and gives us joy, comfort, and help.
The Holy Spirit empowers believers for service and witness. He gives spiritual gifts to individuals to edify or strengthen the church. These gifts are a manifestation of the Spirit through individuals by which Christ’s presence, love, truth, and good standards are made real to the fellowship of believers for the common good.
The Holy Spirit is an agent that incorporates believers into the body of Christ that lives and builds the church. He inspires her worship, directs her mission, appoints her workers, gives gifts to the church, anoints her preachers, guards the gospel, and promotes her righteousness.
The various activities of the Spirit are complementary and not contradictory. Simultaneously, these facets of the Holy Spirit work are interlocked and cannot be fully separated. We cannot experience the fullness of new life in Christ, righteousness as a way of living, the power of witness for our Lord, fellowship in His body without becoming involved in all four.