Whenever we recite the Apostles’ Creed, we proclaim that we believe in God the Father Almighty, in Jesus Christ His only Son our Lord, and in the Holy Ghost, or, the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the third Person of the Trinity; and faith in the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential to the Christian life.
In fact, without the Holy Spirit there would be no Christianity.
This is true, first of all, because the God we worship would not be the same God, were He not the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was there, in the very beginning, with the Father and the Son, creating all things out of nothing.
But the second reason there would be no Christianity without the Holy Spirit is that, if it weren’t for the Holy Spirit, there would be no Christians.
- The Holy Spirit inspired the prophets to record God’s promises in the Old Testament, and He inspired the apostles to record the fulfillment of those promises in the New Testament.
- Furthermore, it is only by the power of the Holy Spirit that anyone comes to believe God’s Word. Only by the power of the Holy Spirit can we be raised from the dead and born again to a living hope in Christ Jesus.
The Holy Spirit daily preserves the Christian’s soul as he goes through life. The Holy Spirit is the Helper and the Comforter, sent by the Father and the Son to guide, sustain, and strengthen the Christian. The Spirit of Truth (as Jesus calls Him) sanctifies the children of God, setting us apart for a special purpose, forming us into the image of Christ, making us more like Jesus, and enabling us even to obey God’s commandments from a pure heart. What a miracle!