The Bible term “Holy Ghost” is God +
Host combined into one word. When God comes to live in a person, the part of the anatomy He resides
in is the spirit.
“God is a spirit and the reason He
gave humans a spirit (along with our body and soul) was so He could touch us,
and the connection we have with God is in our spirit,” says Preacher Richard Jordan. “The
references to Spirit and Holy Spirit are references to the function of the person. That’s kind of a
close thing but you’re looking for the emphasis of the text and that’s why it’s
that way.
“When that term is used about this ‘third
person of the godhead,’ the emphasis every time in the text is on His person; the
person who dwells in you who’s connected to you. When you find Him referred to
as the Holy Spirit and the Spirit’s being talked about, you’ll find the text’s
referring to His activity in relationship to you.
“You know how you discover that? You
start looking at where the Spirit’s referred to as ‘it.’ Why would He say ‘it’?
It’s that THAT’S the function. Paul
tells us, ‘The spirit itself maketh intercession.’
What’s He talking about? The function of the Holy Spirit.
“By the way, He doesn’t CAUSE you;
you’re ‘being filled’ isn’t one of instant ‘speak as the Spirit
gives you utterance,’ but it’s as you appropriate by FAITH God’s Word. So it’s
an indirect empowerment through faith in His Word. It’s important to follow these
things.”
*****
“I
hope we recognize that the Holy Spirit is a real person; it’s not an influence,
not an idea, not a philosophical system, not a force, not a power,” says
Preacher Alex Kurz. “I hope you don’t think ‘walking after the Spirit’ is some
kind of New Age concept where we’re walking after some nebulous metaphysical
force, influence or unidentifiable thing. When the Bible talks about the Holy Spirit
or the Holy Ghost, He’s as real a person as the Father and the Son!
“In
Acts 5:3-4, Peter says, ‘Ananias, you lied to the Holy Ghost.’ And then he says
in the next verse, ‘You didn’t lie to men; you lied to God.’ Verse 3 says ‘Holy
Ghost’ and the next verse says ‘God.’ I took algebra; what we know from this is
the Holy Ghost is God. He’s a person, a member of the godhead.
“I
Corinthians 2 says, [9] But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear
heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath
prepared for them that love him.
[10] But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth
all things, yea, the deep things of God.’
“Question.
Is there any possible way for you to know anything about God via this
self-generated, self-initiated, introspective, subjective ‘moving of the heart’?
Your heart cannot know anything about God. Jeremiah says, ‘The heart is
deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?’
“God
doesn’t use the eye; He does not use this external, visible, scientific . . . God
does not use the scientific approach when it comes to knowing God.
*****
“Paul
writes in Romans 8, [1] There is therefore now no condemnation to them
which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit .
. .
[4] That the righteousness of the law might be
fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
[5] For they that are after the flesh do mind the
things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the
Spirit.
[6] For to be carnally minded is death; but to be
spiritually minded is life and peace.
“Walking
after the Spirit is just meditating, reflecting upon, minding the things of the
Spirit and the one all-consuming passion of God the Holy Spirit is what Jesus Christ
is doing and we’re invited now to let Him lead us.
“Romans
8:16 says, ‘The Spirit itself beareth
witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.’
“The
Holy Spirit is consumed in telling us what Jesus Christ achieved on our behalf,
and if we’re going to walk after the Spirit, we’re going to MIND those things,
and the more we mind the things of the Spirit, the more we learn all about
those details.
*****
“Verse
2 says, ‘For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free
from the law of sin and death.’
“You
understand what a law in science is? In a law, at what speed does an object
drop? If you drop an object 10 million times, will it always fall at the same
rate? Yep, that’s an established law.
“The
idea of a law is it’s an established, fixed rule. An established, fixed rule is,
‘You sin and the consequences are death. ‘The wages of sin is death.’ Whether
it’s literal, spiritual or functional, it’s death, death, death.’
“So
what’s the purpose of the Holy Spirit? Hey, He’s made us FREE! We don’t live
under the operating system of that sin debt. We’re living ‘in newness of life.’
Verse 3 says, ‘For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the
flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin,
condemned sin in the flesh.’
“The
Holy Spirit is preoccupied with who you are and what you have in Jesus Christ.
That’s what He’s thinking about. And if we want to walk after Him, where are we
thinking? We’re minding the same things.”
*****
“Let’s
get rid of all of the Christian silliness about what it means to be walking ‘after
the Spirit.’ It’s not all this craziness you hear about being moved or having impressions—inner
impulses, burning desires, feelings, sentiments.
“In
Acts 2, we see some Holy Spirit-produced activity and it’s supernatural—visions,
dreams, tongues, etc.—but when we’re introduced to the ministry of the Holy Spirit
in Romans 8, we don’t see any of that. We’re focused on, ‘What are you THINKING
about?’
“Paul
prays in II Corinthians 13:14, ‘The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the
love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.’
“It’s
not YOUR love for Him; it’s ‘the love of God.’ Remember Romans 5:5: ‘And hope
maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts
by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.’
“He
wants you to live and be possessed by His unconditional acceptance of you and His
unconditional love of you; the highest regard the God of the universe could
ever have towards you. That’s where we’re supposed to be dwelling. It’s
supposed to possess our thinking.
*****
“Are
you having communion with the Holy Ghost? What does it mean to have COMMON
UNION; notice it’s communication? Are
you having communion with the PERSON of the godhead? It isn’t to be ‘slain in
the Spirit’ via some strange experience as the result of your praying in the
closet and then, ‘Kaboom!’
“How
do I enjoy this deep fellowship and common union with the Spirit? If I’m
preoccupied with the things He’s preoccupied with, guess what I’m having?
“Here’s
one illustration in Exodus 25:22: ‘And there I will meet with thee, and I will
commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims
which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee
in commandment unto the children of Israel.’
“How
is Jehovah God going to commune with Moses? He says, ‘I’m going to give you
some information, Moses, that you will now transmit and entrust to the nation
Israel.’
“It
means we lend a listening ear, hopefully two ears. Jesus Christ in the Book of
Isaiah says, ‘I have given mine ear as the learned.’ God the Father is
instructing His Son in the ways of edification.
“I
cannot mind the things of the Spirit, according to what the Scriptures teach,
unless He’s telling me something.
*****
“Communing
with the Holy Ghost is objective. It’s via an objective means of communicating
and revealing information. It’s not through some whispered voice. You’ve heard
this one: ‘I heard the voice of God speaking to me.’
“You
know, why do people resort to those kinds of crazy clichés instead of just
study, ‘What saith the Scripture?’
“Philippians
2:1-2 says, ‘If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of
love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies,
[2] Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being
of one accord, of one mind.’
*****
“Paul
says in Ephesians 5:18, 'And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be
filled with the Spirit.'
“Why
would Paul make that kind of a connection? You understand
what alcohol ultimately does? It takes control. It begins to possess you; it
influences you. It distorts reality.
"Paul says, ‘Don’t be drunk with (the lusts of the flesh),
but instead be saturated, be consumed, be intoxicated with the Spirit.’
“The
Spirit of Almighty God is consumed in the glorious eternal achievements of Jesus
Christ, who did it ALL FOR FREE FOR WHO? For YOU! You don’t think that excites
God?!
"Oh, you better believe, when God can take 'earthen vessels'; those of us
who were consigned to Satan himself for Satan’s own personal use, and give us LIFE . . .
“And
the Holy Spirit is so fired up and excited, He’s busting at the seams! The things
that excite God the Holy Spirit are the things we have in Jesus Christ, and the
Spirit just enjoys revealing, through the objective, authoritative source of Scripture, all the glorious details. . .
"He says, ‘Look what you got! Look at who
you are! Look at WHO you have! Look at what’s going to happen to you!’ ”