So is the Holy Spirit God or not?

Question

I was just told that although the Holy Spirit resides in us for comfort, God is not in us.

Either the Holy Spirit is God, or Christianity is not monotheistic.

Answer 1

We can know that the Holy Spirit is indeed a Person because He possesses a mind, emotions, and a will. The Holy Spirit thinks and knows (1 Corinthians 2:10). The Holy Spirit can be grieved (Ephesians 4:30). The Spirit intercedes for us (Romans 8:26-27). The Holy Spirit makes decisions according to His will (1 Corinthians 12:7-11). The Holy Spirit is God, the third “Person” of the Trinity. As God, the Holy Spirit can truly function as the Comforter and Counselor that Jesus promised He would be (John 14:16,26; 15:26).

Answer 2

Holy spirit is not God, and many claiming to be Christians are not monotheistic since they actually try to worship God, the holy spirit, and Jesus.

Does the bible ever tell us that the holy spirit has a name? Yet we know the name of God's Son when he came to earth was Jesus, and that God's name is Jehovah. (Ps. 83:18) Also, in parallel bible accounts, one mentions God's finger was expelling demons (Luke 11:20), and the other says this was done by means of God's spirit (Matthew 12:28). Why would a spirit creature Christians claim to be part of God be referred to as "God's finger" unless God's spirit is not a person?

The teaching that God's spirit was part of a mysterious Godhead was not introduced into Church doctrine until the fourth century. Some King James Versions contain the spurious words to the affect [added, not in the original manuscripts] that God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are one. However, if these were all one person, why did Jesus say at Matthew 24:36, "Concerning that day and hour nobody knows, neither the angels of the heavens nor the Son, but only the Father"? Wouldn't the holy spirit know?

I believe what Jesus said- that the Father is greater than he is (John 14:28). I believe what the apostles believed, which Jesus commended them for discerning- that Jesus is the Son of God. (Matthew 16:15-17) The holy spirit is not a person, but an impersonal force used by God. Otherwise, the impregnation of Mary was not a miracle, but something else entirely....

Answer 3

the place does it say that the father and the Holy Spirit are 2 human beings? It would not. God IS the Holy Spirit. God Is the father. God is interior the son; John 14:9-10, Colossians 2:9-10.

Answer 4

Yes, the Holy Spirit is God, and yes, Christianity is monotheistic. The doctrine of the Trinity has three basic planks, which are:

1) There is one and only one God, eternal, immutable.

2) There are three eternal Persons described in Scripture - the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. These Persons are never identified with one another - that is, they are carefully differentiated as Persons.

3) The Father, the Son, and the Spirit, are identified as being fully deity---that is, the Bible teaches the Deity of Christ and the Deity of the Holy Spirit.



Of course, the Trinity is much deeper than this simple definition, but this will do.

Answer 5

So if the Holy Spirit resides in you than why this question the book 1 JOHN chapter 2 verse 27tells you how greatly you are equipped. And by the way it is written that when the Holy Spirit Willl come over you you Will receive power he will be to you a helper and a comforter

Answer 6

This is a rather interesting question I might add and well thought of. Truly said, "Either the Holy Spirit is God, or Christianity is not monotheistic." This is why it matters what the Bible teaches on this subject. Hence it is incorrect that many claim it to be God or person.

Please note: The Greek pneu′ma (spirit) comes from pne′o, meaning “breathe or blow,” and the Hebrew ru′ach (spirit) is believed to come from a root having the same meaning. Ru′ach and pneu′ma, then, basically mean “breath” but have extended meanings beyond that basic sense. (Compare Hab 2:19; Re 13:15.) They can also mean wind; the vital force in living creatures; one’s spirit; spirit persons, including God and his angelic creatures; and God’s active force, or holy spirit. (Compare Koehler and Baumgartner’s Lexicon in Veteris Testamenti Libros, Leiden, 1958, pp. 877-879; Brown, Driver, and Briggs’ Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, 1980, pp. 924-926; Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, edited by G. Friedrich, translated by G. Bromiley, 1971, Vol. VI, pp. 332-451.)
All these meanings have something in common: They all refer to that which is invisible to human sight and which gives evidence of force in motion. Such invisible force is capable of producing visible effects.

Notice a comparison of Bible texts that refer to the holy spirit shows that it is spoken of as ‘FILLING’ people; they can be ‘baptized’ with it; and they can be “anointed” with it. (Luke 1:41; Matt. 3:11; Acts 10:38) None of these expressions would be appropriate if the holy spirit were a PERSON.

Jesus also referred to the holy spirit as a “helper” (Greek, pa·ra′kle·tos), and he said that this helper would “teach,” “bear witness,” “speak,” and ‘hear.’ (John 14:16, 17, 26; 15:26; 16:13) It is not unusual in the Scriptures for something to be personified. For example, wisdom is said to have “children.” (Luke 7:35) Sin and death are spoken of as being kings. (Rom. 5:14, 21) While some texts say that the spirit “spoke,” other passages make clear that this was done through angels or humans. (Acts 4:24, 25; 28:25; Matt. 10:19, 20; compare Acts 20:23 with 21:10, 11.) At 1 John 5:6-8, not only the spirit but also “the water and the blood” are said to ‘bear witness.’ So, none of the expressions found in these texts in themselves prove that the holy spirit is a person.

The correct identification of the holy spirit must fit all the scriptures that refer to that spirit. With this viewpoint, it is logical to conclude that the holy spirit is the active force of God. It is not a person but is a powerful force that God causes to emanate from himself to accomplish his holy will.—Ps. 104:30; 2 Pet. 1:21; Acts 4:31.

Does the Bible teach that the “Holy Spirit” is a person and God?

The New Catholic Encyclopedia admits: “The majority of N[ew] T[estament] texts reveal God’s spirit as something, not someone; this is especially seen in the parallelism between the spirit and the power of God.” (1967, Vol. XIII, p. 575) It also reports: “The Apologists [Greek Christian writers of the second century] spoke too haltingly of the Spirit; with a measure of anticipation, one might say too impersonally.”—Vol. XIV, p. 296.

A Catholic Dictionary: “On the whole, the New Testament, like the Old, speaks of the spirit as a divine energy or power.”

Catholic theologian Fortman: “The Jews never regarded the spirit as a person; nor is there any solid evidence that any Old Testament writer held this view. . . . The Holy Spirit is usually presented in the Synoptics [Gospels] and in Acts as a divine force or power.”

In conclusion, do any of the scriptures that are used by Trinitarians to support their belief provide a solid basis for that dogma?

A person who is really seeking to know the truth about God is not going to search the Bible hoping to find a text that he can construe as fitting what he already believes. He wants to know what God’s Word itself says. He may find some texts that he feels can be read in more than one way, but when these are compared with other Biblical statements on the same subject their meaning will become clear. It should be noted at the outset that most of the texts used as “proof” of the Trinity actually mention only two persons, not three; so even if the Trinitarian explanation of the texts were correct, these would not prove that the Bible teaches the Trinity.

Answer 7

The Holy Spirit is not God.
Fact is, the Holy Spirit is not even a person.
It is a force.
The power God has to accomplish things.
Acts 2:4 says about the early christians:
"They all became filled with holy spirit . . ."
It would be strange to think they were filled with a person.
Ephesians 5:18 adds:
" . . .keep getting filled with spirit."
God can direct his 'energy', 'force', 'power' to enable us to accomplish things we thought not possible.

Answer 8

Dear happykid,

Whenever you have a question about spiritual things, the best place to find the answer is the Bible. People can give their opinions or thoughts on a subject but they are not the authority. The Bible is the authority.

We read in the Bible, "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one." (1 John 3:7)

Our little minds cannot understand an infinite God. We can only go by what the Lord has given to us in the Bible. We know that there is one (1) God: "Look into me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else." (Isaiah 45:22). God is singular. However, God is a tri-unity or trinity. He is 3 in 1. Our minds cannot fathom this but it is true because the Bible declares it.

Answer 9

The Holy Spirit is God, the third person of the Trinity.

"For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, The Word (Jesus), and The Holy Ghost, and these three are one.

1 John 5:7

See also John 16:7-14

Answer 10

I still see a father god as the one God and Jesus and the other spirital beings as separate. Long ago, the Holy Spirit was thought to be God's wife and Jesus' mother. Why can't God be within you and around you at the same time if you're his creation and child?