The Holy Spirit

 

ARTICLE BY VICTOR S E MOUBARAK - LINK HERE 

We all have a picture in our imagination as to what God looks like. An old man with a beard is how He has been depicted by the old masters in their paintings.

And of course we all know what Jesus looks like. We've seen Him often enough in films and on TV. He mostly always looks the same.  

But how about the Holy Spirit. What does He look like and who is He? A ghost? A spirit? A wisp of wind? A presence? A feeling? A dove? Or a lot of flames on peoples' heads?

What is, or who is, the Holy Spirit to you?

To me, He is a person. The third person of the Holy Trinity, consisting of God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit. He is a living spiritual being who, together with the Father and the Son are God. 

I think this photo will demonstrate it well.

As you can see, all three are separate "persons" but all three are God. It's a mystery that, for now, we are asked to believe and accept without understanding. See also this article for further explanation: Click HERE.

The Holy Spirit is a living spiritual being who is always at hand ready to help us and guide us throughout this life whenever we need Him. He does that by entering our souls, our very being, and becomes one with us. I appreciate that this is very difficult to understand or believe. How can a spirit be within us? The reality is that today's society is more willing to believe that the Devil can possess people without their permission or willingness; yet they find it difficult or impossible to believe in the Holy Spirit within us.

There are many instances in the Bible where we read that Jesus cast out demons from people who were possessed. This can still happen today. It is so serious that many churches have appointed their own trained exorcist priests. 

The Devil can possess people and the Holy Spirit can and does abide within peoples' soul. The very important difference is that the Holy Spirit will not enter a person without our invitation; and when He does so we experience a total change in our lives.

At Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit descended into the Disciples and followers of Jesus they experienced this total change. After the Resurrection of Christ and after He ascended into Heaven, the followers of Jesus were in prayer indoors, afraid of the authorities and what would happen to them. They received the Holy Spirit in the form of tongues of fire which appeared on their heads. Suddenly they experienced the power of the Holy Spirit. From fear they became confident and courageous enough to preach about Jesus to everyone willing to listen. Not only that, but they did it in many languages which beforehand they did not know or speak. 

Imagine this happened to you. Not only are you confident enough to teach others about God and Jesus, but you can do so in any language.

When people have the Holy Spirit within them they are transformed in many ways. They are at peace within themselves and with the world. They are not concerned or fearful no matter the situation. They know for certain that God is in control and that all will turn out well.

It is our natural human condition to suddenly have to deal with a situation when things go wrong. It's our human instinct coming to the fore. We focus on the matter or the problem at hand and, momentarily, we perhaps forget about God. 

But when we settle down a little, and pray to God, with the help of the Holy Spirit we will know for certain that all will be well.

How do we get the Holy Spirit within us?

“Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 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 11:11 onwards.

The Holy Spirit? What's it all about?

 

There’s some logic which sometimes escapes us Christians.

We say we believe in God. We also believe in Jesus His only Son. And … hesitantly perhaps … we also believe in the Holy Spirit.

I say hesitantly because most people believe even though they might not know what to believe. And that’s not always their fault.

Sure, they’ve heard what happened at Pentecost, and how the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles. They’ve heard of the Annunciation and the Virgin Birth, and the Holy Spirit appearing at Christ’s baptism.

But apart from these and other stories about the Holy Spirit, people are left with a void, a mystery. To many, the Holy Spirit is something or someone to believe in without question. To them, the Holy Spirit is confined to the pages of the Bible, to be believed in and not dwelt upon for too long.

The important questions are rarely asked:

Is the Holy Spirit relevant to them today? Is the Holy Spirit here now?

Of course He is. And what is more, He is here to guide us throughout our lives, through difficult times and good ones, showing us the way, and teaching us what to say and do.

Yet many people, Christians in every other respect, are unaware of this fact. 

To the followers of Jesus gathered together at Pentecost, receiving the Holy Spirit was a real event in their lives. It was not something they had read about in some old scrolls, or heard about it from some prophet. To them this was real indeed. And it became real for the rest of their lives. When they met and spoke about receiving the Holy Spirit they meant exactly that. To them, receiving the Holy Spirit was a life-changing event.

Imagine for instance some major event happening in your life. Imagine having to describe this event to others who had not been there ... to you, this event was and will always be a reality. It happened. You witnessed it. You were there. And now you can tell others about it. It's not just a story you are telling. It is real.

Sadly though, with the passage of time, the story of Pentecost, or more precisely, the significance and understanding of receiving the Holy Spirit, has been diluted over the years.

Perhaps it's because people don't understand the Holy Spirit. They have not been told, they have not been taught. Perhaps too it is because of their confusion in accepting and comprehending the Holy Spirit in-dwelling within ourselves.

Why is the church sometimes so reticent in proclaiming this – the greatest news and central message of our Christianity?

God, Christ, is/are with us right now. Through the Holy Spirit. In-dwelling in our souls if we so desire.

The Holy Spirit

 

I make no apologies for returning to this subject, but it seems from what I read in social media and on TV that many do not understand what, or Who, is the Holy Spirit.

Just before Jesus was raised to Heaven, after His Resurrection, He promised His disciples that He will send them the Holy Spirit to help and guide them. They probably did not understand what He meant; but a few days later, at Pentecost, they experienced the Holy Spirit descending on them.

The Holy Spirit is a living spiritual Being. He is not an "it"; but  "He". God is a living Spirit. Jesus is a living Spirit and has always existed. He became visible in human form on earth when He was born of a virgin. But He always existed as a Spirit. The Holy Spirit has always existed too.

Don't try to work it out. It is not a puzzle and there's no prize for the right answer. It is a mystery of the Christian faith and we are asked, (invited), to believe it without explanation. Not in this life at least.

The Holy Spirit, let's call Him the very soul of God as an explanation, descended on the disciples and transformed them by giving them Christ's peace in their hearts, the courage to speak up and proclaim the truth they had witnessed about Jesus, and the knowledge of what to say and do and when to do it.

Today, the Holy Spirit can descend on an individual and guide and help them through life; heal them also. All you have to do is ask earnestly and honestly for God to send the Holy Spirit upon you.

I have seen it happen. I have known people with the Holy Spirit. They are usually very calm, serene and peaceful. Nothing seems to stir them and they are confident that God is in control of their lives and of everything.

Would you not wish to be always calm, and at peace with yourself and the world, totally sure that God is by your side and whatever happens all will be well with you and yours?

These days the message of Pentecost has been confused or deliberately obfuscated through time. I guess it is partly because the world has become more secular and unbelieving.

I say more about the Holy Spirit in my latest book, "Searching for God".

The Holy Spirit

 

Father Ignatius was helping a few volunteers clearing out a storeroom deep in the basement of the church. It was dark and somewhat humid down there as well as dusty amongst the cobwebs that accumulated over the years.

The intention was to redecorate the basement, connect it to the mains electricity supply, and use the area reclaimed from years of neglect to more profitable use than just storage space for unwanted bits and pieces.

The helpers had brought with them extension cables and lit up the place a little. Slowly they took out old bits of furniture, wooden boxes full of books and other knick-knacks, church ornaments, statues and whatever else had been deposited there by previous generations.

Father Ignatius and an antique dealer friend started cataloguing the items as they were recovered from the bowels of the church in order to decide whether they were of any value and worth keeping, or whether they would be sold or got rid off.

“Rather musty in here,” commented one of the volunteers carrying a large vase.

“Creepy too … if you ask me,” complained another, “I wouldn’t be surprised if this place is haunted. Is there not an old crypt at the end of this corridor?”

“Boooo … hooo !!!!” moaned another helper eerily covering his head with an old blanket.

“Grow up George …” cried out Sonia.

“Are you having fun down there?” enquired Father Ignatius from the top of the stairs as he catalogued yet another candlestick.

“Hey Father … look what I’ve found down here,” replied Sonia coming up the stairs followed by the other helpers who needed a short break.

She carefully carried a large framed picture with the glass still intact. The wooden frame needed a little cleaning but otherwise it looked in reasonable condition. The helpers wiped the dirt from the frame and glass to reveal a brightly coloured painting of a dove flying high with rays of light or fire descending on a heart.

“Wow … this is beautiful,” said George.

“Isn’t it just …” said Sonia.

“It’s the Holy Spirit …” exclaimed Father Ignatius, “I wonder how long this has been down there.”

“Why is He depicted as a dove?” asked one of the volunteers, “and fire too … The Holy Spirit is a bit of an enigma I think.”

“I understand what you mean …” reflected Father Ignatius, “the Holy Spirit can seem an enigma to some …

“He appeared as a dove at Christ’s baptism, and as tongues of fire at Pentecost when He descended on the apostles.

“I suppose many people still misunderstand who the Holy Spirit is.

“We are taught about God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit …. He doesn’t seem to have a title or a description.

“It was St Hilary of Poitiers, a Bishop in the 3rd Century AD, who first described the Holy Spirit as ‘the gift’.

“He is the gift given to us by God after Jesus ascended into Heaven. He is the very Spirit of God Himself. His very soul come back to us on earth to dwell within us and to help us in our Christian life.

“That’s why He is sometimes referred to as the Helper, the Counselor, God’s own Being living within us.”

“God living within us …” repeated George.

“Yes …” said Father Ignatius, “can you imagine that? God. Living within us. Guiding us. Helping us. Teaching us. Advising us when to speak and when to remain silent. What to say and what to do.

“Isn’t that wonderful? Or is it too difficult to imagine or believe?

“Isn’t it a tragedy that these days many people are too willing to believe that the devil can possess an individual unwillingly and reap havoc in their lives; which of course is true.

“Yet … they find it difficult to understand that the Holy Spirit of God is willing to abide within us and lead us to an eternal better life in Heaven. And He only does so when we ask Him, when we invite Him in our hearts …

“All we have to do is believe … and ask Him.”

They reflected silently for a few seconds when eventually Sonia said “I think we should hang this picture prominently in church.”

“I agree …” replied Father Ignatius, “and it will give me an opportunity to talk about the Holy Spirit in my sermon this Sunday.”

MORE FATHER IGNATIUS STORIES HERE

The Holy Trinity - Explained

 

.

THE HOLY TRINITY - EXPLAINED

(Six minutes)

Excerpt from the book

REFLECTIONS FOR THE SOUL

CLICK HERE

The Holy Trinity

PLEASE SPEND 10 MINUTES LISTENING TO THIS

The Missing Logic

There’s some logic which sometimes escapes us Christians.

We say we believe in God. We also believe in Jesus His only Son. And … hesitantly perhaps … we also believe in the Holy Spirit.

I say hesitantly because most people believe even though they might not know what to believe. And that’s not always their fault.

Sure, they’ve heard what happened at Pentecost, and how the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles. They’ve heard of the Annunciation and the Virgin Birth, and the Holy Spirit appearing at Christ’s baptism.

But apart from these and other stories about the Holy Spirit, people are left with a void, a mystery, something or someone to believe in without question. To them, the Holy Spirit is confined to the pages of the Bible, to be believed in and not dwelt upon for too long.

The important questions are rarely asked:

Is the Holy Spirit relevant to them today? Is the Holy Spirit here now?

Of course He is. And what is more, He is here to guide us throughout our lives, through difficult times and good ones, showing us the way, and teaching us what to say and do.

Yet many people, Christians in every other respect, are unaware of this fact.

Perhaps because they don’t understand, they have not been told, they have not been taught. Perhaps too because of their confusion in accepting and comprehending the Holy Spirit in-dwelling within ourselves.

Why is the church sometimes so reticent in proclaiming this – the greatest news and central message of our Christianity?

God, Christ, is/are with us right now. Through the Holy Spirit.

The Gift

Father Ignatius was helping a few volunteers clearing out a storeroom deep in the basement of the church. It was dark and somewhat humid down there as well as dusty amongst the cobwebs that accumulated over the years.

The intention was to redecorate the basement, connect it to the mains electricity supply, and use the area reclaimed from years of neglect to more profitable use than just storage space for unwanted bits and pieces.

The helpers had brought with them extension cables and lit up the place a little. Slowly they took out old bits of furniture, wooden boxes full of books and other knick-knacks, church ornaments, statues and whatever else had been deposited there by previous generations.

Father Ignatius and an antique dealer friend started cataloguing the items as they were recovered from the bowels of the church in order to decide whether they were of any value and worth keeping, or whether they would be sold or got rid off.

“Rather musty in here,” commented one of the volunteers carrying a large vase.

“Creepy too … if you ask me,” complained another, “I wouldn’t be surprised if this place is haunted. Is there not an old crypt at the end of this corridor?”

“Boooo … hooo !!!!” moaned another helper eerily covering his head with an old blanket.

“Grow up George …” cried out Sonia.

“Are you having fun down there?” enquired Father Ignatius from the top of the stairs as he catalogued yet another candlestick.

“Hey Father … look what I’ve found down here,” replied Sonia coming up the stairs followed by the other helpers who needed a short break.

She carefully carried a large framed picture with the glass still intact. The wooden frame needed a little cleaning but otherwise it looked in reasonable condition. The helpers wiped the dirt from the frame and glass to reveal a brightly coloured painting of a dove flying high with rays of light or fire descending on a heart.

“Wow … this is beautiful,” said George.

“Isn’t it just …” said Sonia.

“It’s the Holy Spirit …” exclaimed Father Ignatius, “I wonder how long this has been down there.”

“Why is He depicted as a dove?” asked one of the volunteers, “and fire too … The Holy Spirit is a bit of an enigma I think.”

“I understand what you mean …” reflected Father Ignatius, “the Holy Spirit can seem an enigma to some …

“He appeared as a dove at Christ’s baptism, and as tongues of fire at Pentecost when He descended on the apostles.

“I suppose many people still misunderstand who the Holy Spirit is.

“We are taught about God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit …. He doesn’t seem to have a title or a description.

“It was St Hilary of Poitiers, a Bishop in the 3rd Century AD, who first described the Holy Spirit as ‘the gift’.

“He is the gift given to us by God after Jesus ascended into Heaven. He is the very Spirit of God Himself. His very soul come back to us on earth to dwell within us and to help us in our Christian life.

“That’s why He is sometimes referred to as the Helper, the Counselor, God’s own Being living within us.”

“God living within us …” repeated George.

“Yes …” said Father Ignatius, “can you imagine that? God. Living within us. Guiding us. Helping us. Teaching us. Advising us when to speak and when to remain silent. What to say and what to do.

“Isn’t that wonderful? Or is it too difficult to imagine or believe?

“Isn’t it a tragedy that these days many people are too willing to believe that the devil can possess an individual unwillingly and reap havoc in their lives; which of course is true.

“Yet … they find it difficult to understand that the Holy Spirit of God is willing to abide within us and lead us to an eternal better life in Heaven. And He only does so when we ask Him, when we invite Him in our hearts …

“All we have to do is believe … and ask Him.”

They reflected silently for a few seconds when eventually Sonia said “I think we should hang this picture prominently in church.”

“I agree …” replied Father Ignatius, “and it will give me an opportunity to talk about the Holy Spirit in my sermon this Sunday.”

The missing logic.

There’s some logic which sometimes escapes us Christians.

We say we believe in God. We also believe in Jesus His only Son. And … hesitantly perhaps … we also believe in the Holy Spirit.

I say hesitantly because most people believe even though they might not know what to believe. And that’s not always their fault.

Sure, they’ve heard what happened at Pentecost, and how the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles. They’ve heard of the Annunciation and the Virgin Birth, and the Holy Spirit appearing at Christ’s baptism.

But apart from these and other stories about the Holy Spirit, people are left with a void, a mystery, something or someone to believe in without question. To them, the Holy Spirit is confined to the pages of the Bible, to be believed in and not dwelt upon for too long.

The important questions are rarely asked:

Is the Holy Spirit relevant to them today? Is the Holy Spirit here now?

Of course He is. And what is more, He is here to guide us throughout our lives, through difficult times and good ones, showing us the way, and teaching us what to say and do.

Yet many people, Christians in every other respect, are unaware of this fact.

Perhaps because they don’t understand, they have not been told, they have not been taught. Perhaps too because of their confusion in accepting and comprehending the Holy Spirit in-dwelling within ourselves.

Why is the church sometimes so reticent in proclaiming this – the greatest news and central message of our Christianity?

God, Christ, is/are with us right now. Through the Holy Spirit.

God Relations.

Intelligence and knowledge increases from one generation to the next. What you and I know, our parents didn’t. And what our parents knew, their parents and grandparents didn’t.

The same applies to relationships and the nature of relationships, I suppose.

Some people today have a personal relationship with God and His Son Jesus. They are not just characters in a book, or in the Bible. They are living Beings with whom we communicate and who communicate with us, help us, guide us, and protect us throughout our lives in preparation for the next.

These are no glib words; but a true reality for some people today.

Others, however, believe in God alright, but He is a little distant. Sitting somewhere up there in the clouds, on His throne, looking at us, and ready to help us when we ask Him. They go to church alright, but to them at least, their relationship with their maker is not a close one. Full of reverence, of course, and perhaps tinged with a modicum of fear.

Our grandparents' sermons were full of God’s wrath, fire and brimstone, and the dread of eternal damnation in hell.

But today, a sermon like that would not go down too well – would it? It would probably not be taken too seriously by church attendants, never mind those who don’t go to church.

So how do we communicate God, Jesus, Heaven and hell in today’s sophisticated modern world full of cynicism, bitterness and bile?

Some describe hell as being in the complete absence of God for eternity. But then, there are those in this state right now, in this very lifetime; so how can they see or understand the concept of hell, never mind fear it?

Perhaps one way is to accentuate the positive in a personal and close relationship with God. Not then … in Heaven … sometime in the future.

But here and now, today, and every day.

Through the Holy Spirit. The third person in the Holy Trinity. The gift. As described by St Hilary of Poitiers, (Bishop in the 3rd Century AD). Sent to us by Jesus after He was raised to Heaven.

Not much is said about the Holy Spirit in church these days.

Yet He is here, living, loving, and ready to guide us in this life, in preparation for an eternity with God, in the next.

If we let Him.

And these are no glib words either ... but meant quite literally.

The Holy Spirit.

Today, many churches celebrate Pentecost which commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles. You can read about it in Acts 2.

The Holy Spirit came upon the disciples in shapes of flames which touched each person there. They were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to preach in many languages.

So, who is the Holy Spirit?

We are taught about God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit …. He doesn’t seem to have a title or description.

St Hilary of Poitiers, a Bishop in the 3rd Century AD, described the Holy Spirit as “the Gift”.

He is the gift given to us by God after Jesus ascended into Heaven.

He is the very Spirit of God, God Himself, come back to us on earth to dwell within us and to help us in our Christian life.

That’s why He is sometimes referred to as the Helper, the Counselor, God’s own Being living within us.

Can you imagine that?

God. Living within us. Guiding us. Helping us. Teaching us. Advising us when to speak and when to remain silent. What to say and what to do.

Isn’t that wonderful? Or is it too difficult to imagine or believe?

Isn’t it a tragedy that in this day and age, when many are too willing to believe that the devil can possess an individual unwillingly and reap havoc in their lives; yet … they find it difficult to understand that the Spirit of God is willing to abide within us and lead us to an eternal better life in Heaven.

But only if we ask Him to.

Thank you Lord for your Holy Spirit.