Who or What Is the Holy Spirit?

 

The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, the promised Helper sent by the Father and the Son to dwell in believers. The Holy Spirit is not merely a force or influence but a divine person who teaches, guides, empowers, and sanctifies. Walking in Jesus’ footsteps is impossible without the Holy Spirit’s presence and work.

 

Jesus taught about the coming of the Holy Spirit:

 

“And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate, that He may be with you forever; the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him. You know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.” (John 14:16–17, LSB)

 

The Holy Spirit’s role is to indwell believers, guiding them into truth and empowering them to live obediently. Without the Spirit, believers would lack the ability to follow Christ in a hostile world.

 

Jesus also said:

 

“But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” (John 14:26, LSB)

 

The Spirit teaches and reminds believers of Jesus’ words, enabling them to walk as true disciples.

 

Furthermore, Jesus made it clear that the Holy Spirit would bear witness to Him:

 

“When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will bear witness about Me.” (John 15:26, LSB)

 

Walking in Jesus’ footsteps means bearing witness to Him, something we can only do by the power of the Spirit.

 

The Spirit also convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment:

 

“And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment.” (John 16:8, LSB)

 

Believers rely on the Spirit for strength against sin, wisdom for righteousness, and perseverance through trials. Paul confirms that life in Christ depends on the Spirit:

 

“But I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.” (Galatians 5:16, LSB)

 

The Holy Spirit also produces the character of Christ in believers—the fruit of the Spirit:

 

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” (Galatians 5:22–23, LSB)

 

Thus, the Holy Spirit is not optional but essential. Without the Spirit, one cannot truly know Christ, follow Him, grow in holiness, or bear fruit for the Kingdom. The Spirit is the life of Christ within the believer, making it possible to walk as He walked.

 

 

 

Referenced Scriptures (LSB):

 

 

John 14:16–17, “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate, that He may be with you forever; the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him. You know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.”

 

John 14:26, “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”

 

John 15:26, “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will bear witness about Me.”

 

John 16:8, “And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment.”

 

Galatians 5:16, “But I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.”

 

Galatians 5:22–23, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”