THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT | Northstar Church

“I don’t want my life to be explainable without the Holy Spirit. I want people to look at my life and know that I couldn’t be doing this by my own power.” ― Francis Chan, Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit.

While there is a lot of discussion about various “spiritual gifts” given to believers through the Holy Spirit, we should not forget that the Holy Spirit Himself is a wonderful gift given to those who believe in Jesus. Jesus calls the Holy Spirit a “gift” who will guide, lead, and empower us. No matter where you are in your spiritual journey, the Holy Spirit and the gift of the Holy Spirit are God’s gift for you. “He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior” (Titus 3:6).

The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, co-equal and co-eternal with the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit possesses all the attributes of God. He is the source of spiritual life, power, and gifts, and works to accomplish God’s purposes in the world.

Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit to be with His disciples and to indwell them after His departure. The Holy Spirit is described as the Helper, who will guide them into all truth and comfort them in their troubles. “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you” (John 14:16-17).

The Holy Spirit’s constant presence in our lives means we are never alone; He is always with us. The Holy Spirit invites us to lean on Him and receive from Him. Growing your relationship with the Holy Spirit is a lifelong journey. It takes time, effort, and surrender to God’s will. But as you seek Him with a humble and open heart, He will reveal Himself to you in ways that will transform your life and draw you closer to Him.

“People who have, in a sense, asked Him to join them on their life journey, to follow them wherever they feel they should go, rather than following Him as we are commanded. The God of the universe is not something we can just add to our lives and keep on as we did before. The Spirit who raised Christ from the dead is not someone we can just call on when we want a little extra power in our lives. Jesus Christ did not die in order to follow us. He died and rose again so that we could forget everything else and follow Him to the cross, to true Life.” ― Francis Chan, Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit“

Discussion Questions:

What questions do you have about the Holy Spirit?
How would you describe the Holy Spirit’s practical work in your life?