OZTheology

  Having considered the activity of the Holy Spirit as recorded in the book of Acts, we now turn to the teaching concerning Him in the rest of the New Testament.   The Pauline epistles contribute the majority of data on the Holy Spirit and several themes emerge in addition to His identity as a person and God.   Genuine spirituality is derived from the Holy Spirit.   No one can be a Christian without receiving the Holy Spirit (Galatians 3:2 cf. Romans 8:9).   The Christian life is the life of the Holy Spirit expressed through the voluntary submission of each believer (Galatians 2:20 cf. 5:16, 22-23).   It is not legal observance through human effort but a higher way of life (Romans 8:1-4 cf. 7:6).   The Holy Spirit is “the Spirit of Christ” (Romans 8:9 cf. 1 Corinthians 6:17; 2 Corinthians 3:17; Galatians 4:6 and Romans 8:14ff.) and as such no one can claim to speak by the Holy Spirit while speaking against Christ (1 Corinthians 12:3).   This i...

   Last time, we considered the missing person in the life and ministry of Messiah Jesus, who promised this person would come as another comforter.  This promise was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came and filled the disciples gathered in waiting at Jerusalem (Acts 2:1-4).  The remaining chapters of this historical book document His activity through the newly constituted Church and it could be better named the Acts of the Holy Spirit, instead of the Acts of the Apostles.  The experience of the early church is foundational to our understanding of the ministry of the Holy Spirit, but it should be remembered that this is a transitional period.  The introduction of a new sphere of divine operation necessitates a transition from the old to the new and with it some unique aspects of divine activity. THE DAY OF PENTECOST   This signified the beginning of the Spirit's ministry in the new era of the Church.   Associated with His...