1346. The Naming of the Spirit
The Naming of the Spirit
"In Whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the Word of Truth, the Gospel of your salvation: in Whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise.
"That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of Glory, may give unto you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him" (Eph_1:13, Eph_1:17).
Three names are given the Spirit in the key verses above. These names enlighten us as to certain ministrations of His in behalf of saints. We will take them up one at a time.
1. The Spirit of Promise
God has many blessings ahead; blessings which are to be entered into, upon the redemption of our bodies. Not until we are raised from the dead or changed in the rapture, will these riches of grace begin to unfold. Unto the realization of these things we are sealed by the Spirit (this sealing we will notice in our next division), and the Holy Spirit Who seals is named the Holy Spirit of promise.
Blessed name! God has given us a pledge, a kind of promisory note, that He will bring us through and that pledge is "the Holy Spirit of promise."
God could sware unto Abraham by none greater, and so He swore by Himself, and Abraham obtained the promise, first, in the birth of Isaac and afterward, in the birth of Christ.
God has sworn unto us by Himself, and His oath covers many promises, including our immortality. All of these promises are yea and amen in Christ Jesus. But we, beyond Abraham, have God the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of promise, which is God's pledge unto the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of His glory.
In 2 Corinthians 5 after telling us about our house which is from Heaven, we read in 2Co_5:5 : "Now He that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, Who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit."
This "earnest of the Spirit" bears the same message as "the Spirit of promise," and it always makes us confident.
In Rom_8:15 we are spoken of as having received "the Spirit of adoption" whereby we cry "Abba, Father." In Rom_8:16 the Spirit bears witness to our sonship and our heirship, while in Rom_8:23, we who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, are groaning within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
Thus we have in three passages, the Holy Spirit of promise, as God's pledge until the redemption of His purchased possession.
2. The Spirit of Revelation
The Holy Spirit is not only the promiser of coming things, but He is their revealer.
What a field for study then lies before us! The Spirit of God is He Who gives us assurance concerning the things to come. He delights to lay before our eyes panoramic views of those riches of grace toward which we are traveling.
The Holy Spirit of revelation delights in the prophetic Scriptures. He delights to reveal unto us things that eye hath not seen, nor ear heard; things that have never entered into the heart of man.
It was the Holy Spirit of revelation Who, of old, came upon the Prophets of God and testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glory-that should follow (see 1Pe_1:11).
It was the Holy Spirit of revelation Who, of old time, moved upon holy men and gave unto them the prophetic Scriptures which shine as a lamp in the dark place until the day dawn (see 2Pe_1:19-21).
It was the Holy Spirit of revelation of Whom Christ said: "He will show you things to come" (Joh_16:13).
3. The Holy Spirit of Wisdom
The Holy Spirit is not only the Spirit of revelation in the knowledge of Him, but He is also the Spirit of wisdom. He opens the eyes of our understanding in order that we may "know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints," etc.
In this verse we have the same truth that is taught in 1 Corinthians 2, which, summed us, is simply this: "The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned" (1Co_2:14).
Who can grasp the mighty workings of the power of God which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him from the dead? Who can understand how believers are quickened and raised and seated together with Christ? Those and only those who are taught by the Spirit of wisdom and revelation.
Autor: R.E. NEIGHBOUR