What or who is The Holy Spirit (Holy Ghost)?
"Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 2:38 (NIV)). "And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit" (Ephesians 1:13 (NIV)). The Holy Spirit, also known as The Holy Ghost and The Spirit of Truth, teaches Christians 'all things' and reminds them of everything Jesus (Yeshua) said in scriptures of The Holy Bible (John 14:16, John 14:26). "I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better" (Ephesians 1:17 (NIV)).
"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8 (NIV)). The Holy Spirit can become so powerful within Christians that they can perform miracles in the name of God (Matthew 21:21), in comparison to people whom are far weaker than The Holy Spirit (Ephesians 2:8,9). An essential fact to learn is that the power of The Holy Spirit within a Christian can be grieved and quenched due to that person sinning, including both voluntary and involuntary sins (Ephesians 4:30, 1 Thessalonians 5:12-24). The longer a Christian avoids sinning, the more powerful The Holy Spirit becomes. The more powerful The Holy Spirit becomes, the easier it is to avoid sinning because self-control is a fruit of The Holy Spirit. "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22,23; 2 Timothy 1:7 (NIV)). These fruits of The Holy Spirit, especially self-control, can empower a Christian to easily overcome any temptation to sin. To be the most effective, however, a Christian must be cognitively aware of all the potential temptations that might be encountered throughout each day so that specific scriptures can be recalled in defense. "I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you" (Psalm 119:11 (NIV)).
A Christian has the capability to strengthen The Holy Spirit at any time (2 Timothy 1:6,7 (NIV)). "Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Ephesians 5:18-20 (NIV)).
Please read, "fruits of The Holy Spirit".
Commentary
It is possible to believe in The Messiah without accepting Him as your Savior and Lord of your heart, soul, and mind. It's also possible to believe in The Messiah without receiving The Holy Spirit. The devil is a prime example of one who believes in The Messiah, but hasn't been baptized in The name of The Father, and The Son, and The Holy Spirit (James 2:19). All the devil worshippers, who are 'human beings', also believe in God, but haven't been baptized in The name of The Father, and The Son, and The Holy Spirit. Other believers (in Judaism, the Pharisees, and even many unsaved 'Christians') who have failed to develop personal and loving relationships with The Messiah, haven't been baptized in The Holy Spirit, so The Messiah said He doesn't 'know' those believers. Sadly, there are many Mormon, Catholic, and also many 'Christian' believers, whom think they are 'saved' but are not going to 'find' the 'narrow way' to the 'small gate' of Heaven (Matthew 7:14). Those believers will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 7:21-23).
A 'saved' Christian's body becomes a temple for the Holy Spirit, who is a living gift given to you by God (1 Corinthians 6:19). The Holy Spirit urges believers to fellowship with other Christians, and urges them to study The Bible, which is the word of God. Equally important, The Holy Spirit urges Christians to maintain a personal, loving relationship with The Father and The Son. A 'saved' Christian should be reminded, and feel urged, to pray at least five times a day: after waking from sleep, before each meal, and before going to sleep (Luke 22:17-21; Colossians 3:17). These things are not burdensome in any way for a Christain who is filled with The Holy Spirit, despite all the socio-economic demands of the world on our daily lives. Are you all talk and no action, which is also referred to as, having faith but no works (James 2:14-26)?
The daily prayer is quite short, and yet, it includes forgiving other people for their sins (also known as debts or trespasses), so forgiveness is obviously very important to God. If our Father is to forgive the sins of His children, those Christians must forgive the people who have sinned against them (Colossians 3:13). If believers fail to forgive other people for their sins, especially if the sins are so minor as not to be referenced in The 10 Commandments, the salvation of those believers is questionable. The Messiah shed His blood and sacrificed His life on the cross to forgive our sins. What have you done to forgive?
Do you love God with all your heart, soul, and mind (Matthew 22:36-40)? One way to know for sure is to analyze whether or not you keep His commandments, which are not burdensome (1 John 5:2,3). If you truly love and follow The Messiah, you will keep His commandments without even having to think about keeping them because love fulfills the law (Romans 13:8-10). As you love The Messiah, so you should also love your neighbors as you love yourself. You must love because it's The Messiah's first commandment and because God is love (1 John 4:8). It's easy to love those who love you, but have you learned how to love your enemies yet (Matthew 5:44-47)? Your enemies are waiting to become Christians and your greatest allies.
Have you heard of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-20)? How are you doing with it? Would you say you are hot, cold, or lukewarm (Revelation 3:15,16). Would you say you're a temple for The Holy Spirit? Do you think The Messiah really knows you? God loves you so much He sent His Son to die for you, and He wants you to be born again and join Him in Heaven for eternity. Getting saved by God's grace is a miracle, so please honor and respect His grace by learning and living His scriptures. If God wanted you to merely sit back and revel in your salvation through God's grace, there would be little need for a majority of the scriptures in The Holy Bible.
I'll join you in prayer for us all.
Please read, The Messiah said, "I do not know you".
List of the most important questions with answers and information about YaH (God), Yehoshua (Jesus 'The Christ'), The Holy Spirit and The Holy Bible.
The Holy Bible chapter and verse references of the scriptures and gospels are quotes from:
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