The following is a ****tion of noted Bible scholar and imminent Christian
theologian John Gill's larger work entitled "A Body Of Doctrinal
Divinity."
This lesson centers on the distinct personality and deity of God the Holy
Spirit.
May God bless,
Carl
my website -- http://www.nettally.com/saints/
my blog -- http://www.anniemayhem.com/cgi-bin/wordpress/
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Of The Distinct Personality, And Deity Of The Holy Spirit
by John Gill
What only remains now to be considered, under the article of the Trinity,
are the personality and divinity of the Holy Ghost; to prove that he is a
Person, a distinct Person, from the Father and Son; and a divine Person,
or
truly and properly God.
1. First, That he is a Person, and not a mere name and character, power or
attribute of God; which will appear by observing,
1a. That the description of a Person agrees with him; that it subsists and
lives of itself, is endowed with will and understanding, or is a willing
and
intelligent agent. Such is the Spirit of God; as the Father has life in
himself, and the Son has life in himself, so has the Holy Spirit; since he
is the author of natural and spiritual life in men; which he preserves
unto
eternal life; and therefore called, the Spirit of life; which he could not
be, unless he had life in himself; and if he has life in himself, he must
subsist of himself: he has a power of willing whatever he pleases: the
apostle, speaking of his influences, administrations, and operations,
says,
"All these worketh the one and the self-same Spirit, dividing to every man
severally as he will", (1 Cor. 12:11) and that he is an intelligent agent,
is clear from his knowing the things of God which none can know but him;
and
from his teaching men all things, and guiding them into all truth, and
giving the spirit of wisdom and knowledge to one and another; now "he that
teacheth men knowledge, shall not he know?" (1 Cor. 2:11, 12:8; John 14:26
16:13; Ps. 94:10).
1b. Personal actions are ascribed unto him; he is said to be a reprover
and
convincer of men; to reprove or convince the world of sin, righteousness,
and judgment (John 16:8). Now he that convinces another of his mistakes,
brings him to a sense and acknowledgment of them, and to repentance for
them, must be a Person, and not a mere name and character. He is spoken of
as a teacher, that teaches all things, all doctrines necessary to
salvation,
and all the duties of religion: an human teacher is a person, and much
more
a divine one, (John 14:26; 1 John 2:27) he is promised as a Comforter,
(John
16:7) and which he answers to, by shedding abroad the love of God in the
hearts of the Lord's people; by taking the things of Christ, and showing
them to them; by applying to them exceeding great and precious promises;
by
declaring to them the pardon of their sins; by pronouncing the sentence of
justification in their consciences; and by being the earnest and seal of
their future happiness; all which are personal actions: he is one of the
three witnesses in heaven, (1 John 5:7) who particularly testifies of
Christ, of his Deity, son****p, offices, and grace, (John 15:26) and bears
witness to the spirits of saints, that they are the children of God, (Rom.
8:16) which a mere name and character could not do; but a person. He is
represented not only as a Spirit of grace and supplication, and an helper
of
the infirmities of the saints in prayer, but as making intercession for
them, according to the will of God (Zech. 12:10; Rom. 8:26, 27). Now as
the
advocacy and intercession of Christ, prove him to be a Person, and a
distinct one from the Father, with whom he intercedes; so the intercession
of the Spirit, equally proves his personality, even his distinct
personality
also: to which may be added, that the Spirit is the giver of gifts to men,
whereby they are qualified for the work of the ministry, (1 Cor. 12:8-11)
and he calls them to that work, and appoints and sets them as overseers of
particular churches, to feed them with knowledge and understanding, (Acts
13:2, 20:28) and, to observe no more, he is often described as an
inhabitant
in the saints, that dwells in their bodies, and in their souls, and will
always abide in them, until he has wrought them up for that self-same
thing,
eternal glory and happiness; now to dwell with any person, or in any
place,
is a personal action, and describes a person, (John 14:16, 17; 1 Cor.
3:16,
6:19; Rom. 8:9, 11).
1c. Personal affections are ascribed to the Spirit; as love, grief, &c. we
read of the love of the Spirit, as well as of the Father, and of the Son;
and which appears in the regeneration and sanctification of men, and in
the
application of grace unto them, (Rom. 15:30) and of the Spirit's being
grieved with the sins of God's people, and their unbecoming behavior
towards
God and one another, (Eph. 4:30) and of his being rebelled against, vexed,
and provoked; as he was by the Israelites (Isa. 63:10). All which could
not
be said of him, was he not a person. He is, moreover, said to be lied
unto;
as by Ananias and Sapphira, (Acts 5:3) and to be blasphemed, and sinned
against with an unpardonable sin, (Matthew 12:32, 33) which could never
be,
nor with propriety be said, was he not a Person, and a divine Person too.
2. Secondly, The Holy Spirit is not only a Person, but a distinct Person
from the Father and the Son; and besides his distinctive relative
property,
spiration, or being the breath of them both, and so distinct from each;
the
following things may be observed:
2a. His procession from the Father and the Son: of his procession from the
Father express mention is made in (John 15:26) and therefore must be
distinct from the Father, from whom he proceeds; which, whether it
respects
his nature or his office, proves the same: it was once a warm controversy
between the Greek and Latin churches, whether the Spirit proceeded from
the
Son or from the Father; which was denied by the former, and asserted by
the
latter; and which seems most correct; since he is called the Spirit of the
Son, (Gal. 4:6) however, since he is the Spirit of the Son, he must be
distinct from him whose Spirit he is.
2b. The mission of the Holy Spirit, by the Father and the Son, clearly
evinces his distinct personality from them; of his being sent by the
Father,
see (John 14:16, 26) and of his being sent by the Son (see John 15:26,
16:7). Now as a mere name and character, quality, power, and attribute,
could not be said to be sent, but a Person; so the Spirit that is sent,
must
be a distinct Person from the Father and Son, said to send him.
2c. The Holy Spirit is called another Comforter, (John 14:16) the Father
of
Christ is one; he is the God of all comfort; that comforts his people in
all
their tribulations, (2 Cor. 1:3, 4) and Jesus Christ is also a Comforter;
one of his names with the Jews is Menachem, a Comforter[1]; a name well
known with the Jews: hence good old Simeon is said to be waiting for the
"Consolation of Israel", (Luke 2:25) that is, for the Messiah; whom the
Jews
expected as a Comforter: and now the Holy Ghost is another Comforter,
distinct from both; from the Son, who prayed for him as such; and from the
Father, prayed unto on that account.
2d. The Holy Spirit is represented as doing some things distinct from the
Father and the Son; particularly, as directing into the love of God, that
is, the Father; and into a patient waiting for Christ; and so is
distinguished from them both, (2 Thess. 3:5) and also as taking of the
things of Christ, called likewise the things of the Father, and showing
them
to them that are Christ's; in which also he is distinguished from the
Father, and from Christ, whose things he takes and shows (John 16:14, 15).
Song regeneration, renovation, sanctification, and conversion, are
distinct
things, and very peculiar to the Spirit.
2e. There are some distinct appearances of the Spirit, which show his
distinct personality; as at the baptism of Christ, when he descended as a
dove and lighted on him; and thereby was distinguished from the Father,
whose voice was heard from heaven; and from the Son, who was baptized in
Jordan, and on whom the Spirit lighted, (Matthew 3:16,17) and on the day
of
Pentecost the Spirit descended on the apostles, in the form of cloven
tongues, as of fire; and with respect to this the apostle Peter says, that
Christ "being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the
Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this which ye now
see and hear"; meaning the effusion of the Holy Ghost, and his
extraordinary
gifts; and who is plainly distinguished from the Father, who made promise
of
him, and from the Son, who received this promise, and shed his gifts in
the
manner he did.
2f. The Holy Spirit is represented as a distinct person in the ordinance
of
baptism; and the form of it being to be administered in his name, as
distinct from the name of the Father and of the Son, in whose name also it
was to be administered, (Matthew 28:19) and so he is mentioned as a
distinct
witness from the Father and the Word, in the record bore in heaven; for if
he is not a distinct person from them, there could not be three
testifiers,
or three that bore record in heaven (1 John 5:7).
3. Thirdly, The Holy Ghost is not only a person, and a distinct person
from
the Father and Son, but a divine person, or truly and properly God; which
was denied by the Macedonians of old[2], and by the Socinians of late[3];
and generally by all that oppose the divinity of Christ: but the Deity of
the Spirit is to be proved by the same mediums and arguments which are to
be
fetched from the same sources as the Deity of the Son. And,
3a. From the names which are given unto him; as particularly the name
Jehovah, peculiar to the most High; it was Jehovah, the Lord God of
Israel,
that spake by the mouth of all the holy prophets from the beginning of the
world; and it is certain that they spake as they were moved by the Holy
Ghost, (Luke 1:68, 70; 2 Peter 1:21) it was Jehovah, the Rock and God of
Israel, that spake by David; and it is clear that it was the Holy Ghost
that
spake by him; for so Peter says, "This scripture must needs be fulfilled,
which the Holy Ghost, by the mouth of David, spoke before concerning
Judas",
(2 Sam. 23:2, 3; Acts 1:16) it was Jehovah, the Lord God, whom the
Israelites tempted, proved, and provoked in the wilderness; and this the
Holy Ghost speaks of as done to himself; "Wherefore, as the Holy Ghost
saith, Today if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the
provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness, when your fathers
tempted me, proved me", me, the Holy Ghost, (Ps. 95:6, 7; Heb. 3:7-9; see
Isa. 63:10) it was Jehovah that said to Isaiah, "Go and tell this people,
hear ye indeed", &c. and according to the apostle Paul, the same was the
Holy Ghost; for to the Jews he says, "Well spake the Holy Ghost by Isaiah
the prophet, saying, Go unto this people, and say, hearing ye shall hear",
&c. (Isa. 6:8, 9; Acts 28:25, 26). The Greek word kuriov, used in the New
Testament, answers to Jehovah and Adonai in the Old; and this is said of
the
Holy Spirit, he is that Spirit which is the Lord, and is called the Lord
the
Spirit (2 Cor. 3:17, 18; see also 2 Thess. 3:5). Moreover the Holy Spirit
is
very plainly called God in scripture: when Ananias lied to the Holy Ghost,
he is said to lie not unto men but unto God; wherefore if lying to the
Holy
Ghost is lying to God, it follows that the Holy Ghost must be God (Acts
5:3,
4). The saints of God are called the temple of God, and the reason proving
it is, because the Spirit of God dwells in them, and because their bodies
are the temples of the Holy Ghost, they are exhorted to glorify God in
their
bodies: Now if the Holy Ghost is not called God, or meant by God in these
passages, there is no force of reasoning in them (1 Cor. 3:16, 6:19, 20).
Moreover the apostle gives to the Holy Ghost the divine names of Spirit,
Lord, and God, when he is speaking of the diversities of his gifts,
administrations, and operations; for of him only is he speaking by whom
all
these are (1 Cor. 12:4-6).
3b. The Deity of the Spirit may be proved from the perfections of God,
which
are manifestly in him, as eternity; hence, as some think, he is called the
eternal Spirit, (Heb. 9:14) however he was present at the creation of the
heavens and the earth, and was concerned therein, (Gen. 1:2; Job 26:13)
and
therefore must be before any creature was, before time was, and so from
eternity; as God the Father never was without his Son, so never without
his
Spirit; when it is said in some places that the Spirit was not yet, and
that
there were some that had not heard that there was any Holy Ghost; this is
to
be understood of the wonderful effusion of the gifts of the Holy Spirit on
the apostles at Pentecost, which was not to be until after the
glorification
of Christ; and of which dispensation the disciples at Ephesus had not then
heard (John 7:39; Acts 19:2). Omnipresence, or immensity, another divine
perfection, is ascribed to the Spirit; says David, "Whither shall I go
from
thy Spirit? and whither shall I flee from thy presence?" (Ps. 139:7) he is
not to be shunned and avoided; there is no going any where from him, for
he
is every where, otherwise he might be avoided; and if every where, he must
be the omnipresent God: the saints are his temples in which he dwells, and
he dwells in them all, at all times, in all places; which he could not do
if
he was not immense and omnipresent. Omniscience is another divine
perfection
to be observed in the Spirit of God; he knows all things, even the deep
things of God, the thoughts, counsels, and purposes of his heart; which he
could not know, if he was not the omniscient God (1 Cor. 2:10, 11) nor
could
he teach the saints all things, nor guide them into all truth, and much
less
show things to come, (John 14:26, 16:13) as he did under the Old
Testament,
when he testified beforehand, by the prophets, the sufferings of Christ,
and
the glory that should follow, (1 Peter 1:11) and under the New Testament,
witnessing to the apostle Paul that bonds and afflictions should abide him
in every city, which he found to be true; and foretelling, by Agabus, that
there would be a great dearth throughout the world, which came to pass in
the times of Claudius Caesar (Acts 20:23, 11:28). Omnipotence is
predicated
of him; he is called the power of the Highest, and the finger of God; his
concern in creation, and in the formation of the human nature of Christ,
the
miraculous signs and wonders wrought by his power, the gifts that he
bestows, and the grace that he works in the hearts of men, loudly proclaim
his omnipotence; and if such perfections, which are peculiar to Deity, are
to be found in him, he must be truly and properly God.
3c. The works which are ascribed unto him are a clear and full proof of
his
divinity: creation, a work of divine power, is attributed to him; he not
only moved upon the face of the waters that covered the earth, at the
first
creation, and brought the rude and unformed chaos into a beautiful order,
and garnished the heavens, and bespangled them with the luminaries and
stars
of light; but by him, the Breath, or Spirit of the Lord, the heavens and
the
host thereof were made and established, (Gen. 1:2; Job 26:13; Ps. 33:6)
yea
man, the most excellent and curious part of the creation, is made by him,
as
Elihu owns, "The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the
Almighty
hath given me life" (Job 33:4). The work of providence he is jointly
concerned in with the Father and the Son; "Who hath directed the Spirit of
the Lord, or being his counsellor hath taught him? with whom took he
counsel
(the Spirit of the Lord) and taught him in the path of judgment? and
taught
him knowledge, and showed to him the way of understanding?" (Isa. 40:13,
14)
that is, how to govern the world, and manage and direct all affairs in it.
The editing of the scripture is of him; "All scripture is given by
inspiration of God"; by the Breath or Spirit of God, (2 Tim. 3:16) this is
a
work purely divine, and is of the Spirit; "holy men spake as they were
moved
by the Holy Ghost" (2 Peter 1:21). It was the Holy Spirit that formed the
human nature of Christ; what was conceived in the Virgin was of the Holy
Ghost; that was fearfully and wonderfully made by him, and curiously
wrought
by him, in the lowest parts of the earth, (Matthew 1:20; Ps. 139:14, 15)
and
was richly anointed by him with his gifts and graces; even above his
fellows, and without measure, (Ps. 45:7; Isa. 61:1; John 3:34) and the
miracles of Christ were by him, the finger of God; and those which the
apostles wrought for the confirmation of the gospel, were by the power of
the Holy Ghost, (Matthew 12:28; Luke 11:20; Rom. 15:19; Heb. 2:3, 4) the
work of grace in the heart is his work; regeneration and renovation are of
the Holy Ghost; sanctification is called the sanctification of the Spirit;
this is not by might nor power of man, but by the Spirit of God; and in
which there is such a display of the exceeding greatness of divine power,
as
is equal to that which was exerted in raising Christ from the dead, (Titus
3:5; 1 Peter 1:2; Zech. 4:6; Eph. 1:19) yea, the resurrection of Christ
himself from the dead, is attributed to the Spirit of holiness; and it is
by
him the Spirit which dwells in the saints, that God will quicken their
mortal bodies (Rom. 1:4, 8:11).
3d. The wor****p which is due to the Spirit of God, and is given unto him,
proves him to be God; for were he not, such wor****p would never be paid
him;
not only temples are erected by him, but for him, in which he is
wor****pped
and glorified (Eph. 2:22; 1 Cor. 3:16, 6:19, 20). Baptism, a solemn act of
religious wor****p, is administered in his name, as in the name of the
Father
and the Son (Matthew 28:19). Swearing, which is another act of wor****p, a
solemn appeal to the omniscient God, and is mentioned as a branch of
serving
him, (Deut. 6:13) is made by the Spirit, and he is called upon as a
witness
to facts (Rom. 9:1). And prayer, a very principal part of wor****p, is
directed to him, sometimes singly, as in (2 Thess. 3:5; Song 4:16) and
sometimes, in conjunction with the other divine Persons (Rev. 1:4, 5). All
which prove him to be truly and properly God; and therefore we should be
careful to give him the honour and glory due unto him, as to the Father
and
the Son; and as we trust the Son with the whole affair of our salvation,
and
trust in him for it; so we should trust the Spirit of God with the work of
grace upon our souls; and be confident that he that has begun it, will
perform it; since "it is God that works in us, to will and to do, of his
good pleasure".
My Treatise on the Trinity, was written near forty years ago, and when I
was
a young man; and had I now departed from some words and phrases then used
by
me, it need not, at such a distance of time, be wondered at: but so far
from
it, that upon a late revisal of it, I see no reason to retract anything I
have written, either as to sense or expression; save only, in a passage or
two of scripture, before observed, which then did not stand so clear in my
mind, as proofs of the eternal generation of the Son of God; but, upon a
more mature consideration of them, I am inclined to think otherwise, and
have accordingly altered my sense of them; which alteration, as it is no
ways inconsistent with the doctrine as before held by me, so it serves but
the more strongly to confirm it.
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ENDNOTES:
[1] Talmud Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 98. 2.
[2] Vid. Aug. de Haeres. c. 52. & Danaeum in ibid.
[3] Cateches. Racov. c. 1. p. 35. & c. 6. p. 214.
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