Another Helper
“I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever – the Spirit of truth” (John 14:16-17).
The Holy Spirit is a Person in the Godhead, and His activity and energy are seen throughout the Bible, beginning with Creation: “And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:2). The Spirit of God was in operation in the Old Testament in building the Tabernacle (Exodus 31:3); in writing the Scriptures (2 Timothy 3:16); in the lives of the prophets (2 Peter 1:21) and kings, like David who refers in Psalm 139:7 to the Holy Spirit’s omnipresence, when he asks, “Where can I go from Your Spirit?” Whenever God acts, the Holy Spirit is working. This is especially so in the life of Christ. Of the Incarnation we read: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you: therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:35). When Jesus begins His ministry, the Holy Spirit is active “…the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him…” (Luke 3:22). When Jesus reads from Isaiah in Nazareth, He begins with the words: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…” (Luke 4:18).
The Holy Spirit’s presence and power were not only evident throughout Christ’s life, but in His sacrifice: “Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God…” (Hebrews 9:14). The Holy Spirit is mentioned by the resurrected Christ as part of the Trinity in Matthew 28:19. At the end of Mark’s Gospel Jesus speaks of the powerful signs of the Holy Spirit. In Luke 24:49 Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit, whose coming down was the evidence of the Saviour’s ascension and glory: “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart shall flow rivers of living water. But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified” (John 7:38-39).
The Spirit of God was also active and vital to the birth of Christ’s Church at Pentecost: “…you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit not many days from now” (Acts 1:5, ESV). And it is through the Holy Spirit’s gifts and ministry in the hearts and lives of Christ’s disciples that the Church grows: “…the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all” (1 Corinthians 12:7). The ministry of the Holy Spirit looks forward to Christ’s return. The Holy Spirit is in the first chapter of the Bible, and in its last chapter: “The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” (Revelation 22:17).
It is both humbling and uplifting to understand that this glorious Person dwells in us: “Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s (1Corinthians 6:19-20). The Lord Jesus humbled Himself to become our Saviour: the Holy Spirit came down to be our Helper and to continue His caring ministry. His work is to glorify Christ and to produce the fruit of the Spirit in us – to make us Christlike. He helps us in our weakness. When we don’t know what to pray for, He expresses all our needs with a depth of understanding which is beyond words, and comes from the very heart of God (Romans 8:26). He fills our hearts with worship and, as the Spirit of Truth, guides us through the word of God, the “sword of the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:17). He empowers our witness (Acts 1:8). The Lord Jesus has not left us isolated.
“I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 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. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:16-18, NIV).
