Work of Holy Spirit

Introduction:      There are certain works which are more particularly ascribed to the Holy Spirit.  We will attempt to explore the work of the Holy Spirit in the general economy of God and in the special economy of redemption.

 1         In the general economy of God: In general it may be said that it is the special task of the Holy Spirit to bring things to completion by acting immediately upon and in the creature.  Just as he himself is the person who completes the trinity, so his work is the completion of God’s contact with his creatures and the consummation of the work of God in every sphere.   It follows the work of the Son, just as the work of the Son follows that of the Father.  It is important to bear this in mind, for if the work of the Holy Spirit is divorced from the objective work of the Son; false mysticism is bound to result.  The work of the Holy Spirit includes the following in the natural sphere:

(a)        The generation of life:    As being is out of the Father and thought through the Son, so life is mediated by the Spirit (Gen.1:3; Job 26:13; Ps.33:6; 104:30).  In that respect he puts the finishing touch to the work of creation.

            (b)        The general inspiration and qualification of men: The Holy Spirit inspires and qualifies men for their official tasks, for work in science and art etc. (Ex.28:3; 31:2-6; 35:35; 1 Sam.11:6; 11:6; 16:13-14).

2In the sphere of redemption:Of even grater importance is the work of the Holy Spirit in the sphere of redemption.  Here the following points may be mentioned:

            (a)        Preparation and qualification of Christ for his mediatorial work:   The Holy Spirit prepared Christ a body and thus enabled him to become a sacrifice for sin (Lk.1:35; Heb.10:5-7).  In the words: “a body thou didst prepare for me,” the writer of Hebrews follows the Septuagint.  The meaning is: Thou hast enabled me by the preparation of a body to become a real sacrifice.  At his baptism Christ was anointed with the Holy Spirit (Lk.3:22) and received the qualifying gifts of the Holy Spirit without measure (Jn.3:24).

            (b)        The inspiration of Scripture:       The Holy Spirit inspired Scriptures, and thus brought to men the special revelation of God (1 Cor.2:13; 2 Pet.1:21), the knowledge of the work of redemption which is in Christ Jesus.

            (c)        Formation and augmentation of the church:        The OT uses the figure of dew as a sign of the grace of God (Hos.14:5).  This is a fitting symbol for the Holy Spirit.  The renewing work of dew is mysterious and constant; it falls on each blade of grass and covers the whole field.  The same idea of a gift for each and for all is expressed in the fire at Pentecost when one great flame manifested the presence of the Spirit with the whole company in the upper room and from it tongues separated the rest upon each disciples.  Such is the work of the Holy Spirit always.  He creates the fellowship of the Church and empowers the individual.  He convicts each man of sin and convinces him of salvation in Christ.  But the experience of the presence and power of the Spirit is never received by a man, by and for him; it is a corporate and shared experience.  The Spirit takes a man out of isolation and brings him into the fellowship of the church.  He continues his work within the fellowship which he creates and sustains, providing the growth necessary to life in Christ and building up each man as a member of the Body.  Therefore, there are some who think it better to speak of the individual first and the church second.  But it is more important to see the work of the Holy Spirit as a whole than to argue as to which aspect is prior.

            In short, the Holy Spirit forms and increase the church, the mystical body of Jesus Christ, by regeneration and sanctification, and dwells in it as the principle of the new life (Eph.1:22-23; 2:22; 1 Cor.3:16; 12:4ff.).

            (d)        Teaching and guiding the church:           The Holy Spirit testifies to Christ and leads the church in all the truth.  By doing this he manifests the glory of God and of Christ, increases the knowledge of the Savior, keeps the church from error, and prepares her for her eternal destiny (Jn.14:26; 15:26; 16:13-14; Acts 5:32; Heb.10:15; 1 Jn.2:27).  The continued presence of the Spirit in the church preserves its true nature as the Body of Christ.  He works through the organization of the church, through the Word and Sacraments and all means of grace; and inspires the worship and witness.  He also preserves the church as a spiritual fellowship safeguarding it against the dangers of tradition, ritualism, legalism, and mere reliance on authority.  Without him the church cannot be the church.

Conclusion:       We have seen the work of the Holy Spirit within the community of Christian faith and with the manner in which the reconciling work of Christ is applied by the Spirit within this community.