What He Is
Advocate – intercedes for the saints (Romans 8:26-27)
God’s seal – that we are His (2 Corinthians 3:3)
Inspirer – toward good (Galatians 6:8-9)
Spokesman – makes known the things to come (John 16:13)
Spirit – not of fear (2 Timothy 1:7)
Oil of joy – gladdens even in sorrows (Psalm 45:7)
Life-giving Spirit – frees us from the law of sin (Romans 8:2)
Deposit – assuring us of our inheritance (Ephesians 1:14)
Convictor – of sin, of righteousness and of judgment (John 16:8)
Baptizer – with power for service (Acts 1:8)
Healer – through the gifts of healing (1 Corinthians 12:9)
His Sword – the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17)
Guide – into all truth (John 16:13)
Indweller – lives in us (John 14:17)
Prophet – spoke through the holy men of God (2 Peter 1:21)
Dew – to water Israel (Hosea 14:5)
Witness – testifies about Christ (John 15:26)
Interpreter – of human and angelic tongues (1 Corinthians 12:10)
Comforter – reminds us of Christ’s words (John 14:26)
Lighthouse – brings enlightenment (1 Corinthians 2:9-10)
Praiser – glorifies Christ (John 16:14)
King – whose reign gives freedom (2 Corinthians 3:17)
Miracle-worker – shown in the working of miracles (1 Corinthians 12:10)
Sound – from heaven (Acts 2:2)
Will be given – to those who ask for Him (Luke 11:13)
A corner – He was not poured out in some hidden corner (Acts 26:26)
Bridle – to direct and to restrain (Acts 16:6-9)
Revealer of secrets – that we may know God’s grace (1 Corinthians 2:11-13)
A little boy stopped in front of the entrance of a church. At that moment he saw the priest coming out. When the priest saw him, he said:
– “Come inside, I want to show you something.”
– The boy answered: “But someone will steal my bicycle!”
– The pastor reassured him: “Don’t worry, the Holy Spirit will guard it for you.”
The boy went inside, and the priest said to him:
– “Let me show you how to make the sign of the cross. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. Now you try.”
– The boy said: “In the name of the Father and of the Son, Amen.”
– “But what became of the Holy Spirit — why did you leave Him out?” the pastor noticed.
– The boy answered: “Don’t you remember? He is outside — guarding my bicycle!”
Today is Pentecost — the day set apart in the church year to mark the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon Jesus’ followers. Like the boy in the story, many people carry all sorts of odd notions about who the Holy Spirit is and what He does. So we will do well to turn to the Scriptures for more accurate information on this question.
Advocate – intercedes for the saints (Romans 8:26-27)
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. (Romans 8:26-27)
God’s Seal – that we are His (2 Corinthians 3:3)
3 You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. (2 Corinthians 3:3)
Inspirer – toward good (Galatians 6:8-9)
8 Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:8-9)
Spokesman – makes known the things to come (John 16:13)
13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. (John 16:13)
Spirit – not of fear (2 Timothy 1:7)
7 For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. (2 Timothy 1:7)
Oil of Joy – gladdens even in sorrows (Psalm 45:7)
7 You love righteousness and hate wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy. (Psalm 45:7)
Life-giving Spirit – frees us from the law of sin (Romans 8:2)
2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. (Romans 8:2)
Deposit – assuring us of our inheritance (Ephesians 1:14)
14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory. (Ephesians 1:14)
Convictor – of sin, of righteousness and of judgment (John 16:8)
8 When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: (John 16:8)
Baptizer – with power for service (Acts 1:8)
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
Healer – through His gifts of healing (1 Corinthians 12:9)
9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, (1 Corinthians 12:9)
His Sword – the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17)
17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (Ephesians 6:17)
Guide – into all truth (John 16:13)
13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. (John 16:13)
Indweller – lives in us (John 14:17)
17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. (John 14:17)
Prophet – spoke through the holy men of God (2 Peter 1:21)
21 For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:21)
Dew – to water Israel (Hosea 14:5)
5 I will be like the dew to Israel; he will blossom like a lily. Like a cedar of Lebanon he will send down his roots; (Hosea 14:5)
Witness – testifies about Christ (John 15:26)
26 “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me. (John 15:26)
Interpreter – of human and angelic tongues (1 Corinthians 12:10-11)
10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines. (1 Corinthians 12:10-11)
Comforter – reminds us of Christ’s words (John 14:26)
26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. (John 14:26)
Beyond everything else, the word parakletos was also a military term. Greek soldiers went into battle in pairs, so that when the enemy attacked, they could stand back to back and thus be protected on the side where they had no line of sight. The comrade-in-arms who guarded the soldier’s back was called parakletos. When the Lord sends us out to fight the good fight of faith, He does not send us alone. The Holy Spirit is our “comrade-in-arms,” who guards our back and fights against our adversaries to keep us safe.
Lighthouse – brings enlightenment (1 Corinthians 2:9-10)
9 However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”—the things God has prepared for those who love him— 10 these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. (1 Corinthians 2:9-10)
Praiser – glorifies Christ (John 16:14)
14 He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. (John 16:14)
King – whose reign gives freedom (2 Corinthians 3:17)
17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. (2 Corinthians 3:17)
Miracle-worker – shown in the working of miracles (1 Corinthians 12:10)
10 to another miraculous powers, (1 Corinthians 12:10)
Sound – from heaven (Acts 2:2)
2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. (Acts 2:2)
Will Be Given – to those who ask for Him (Luke 11:13)
13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:13)
A Corner – He was not poured out in some hidden corner (Acts 26:26)
26 The king is familiar with these things, and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner. (Acts 26:26)
Bridle – to direct and to restrain (Acts 16:6-10)
6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. 7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. 8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. 9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. (Acts 16:6-10)
Revealer of Secrets – that we may know God’s grace (1 Corinthians 2:11-13)
11 For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12 What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. 13 This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. (1 Corinthians 2:11-13)