When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, 'You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.' (Luke 3:21-22

Perhaps no biblical subject is more controverted and less understood than the Holy Spirit and His work in our salvation. This misunderstanding begins with what and who He is. Jehovah’s Witnesses even deny His personality. “... the holy spirit is the active force of God. It is not a person but is a powerful force that God causes to emanate from himself to accomplish his will” (Reasoning. 381). In an earlier work they had claimed He “may be likened to a radar beam” (“Watch Tower.” 433).

All We can know about the Holy Spirit is what the Lord has chosen to reveal in His word (Deuteronomy 29:29). In this study we will prove the proposition, The Holy Spirit is a divine Person.

Person

By “person” I do not mean He is human or has a physical body. When He descended upon Jesus at His baptism to identify Jesus to John as the Christ (John 1:32-34), He assumed the form of a dove, even as angels, who are bodiless spirits (Hebrews 1:7,14; Luke 24:39), may assume the form of men (Genesis 19:1-16). By the term “person” I mean “a being characterized by conscious apprehension, rationality, and a moral sense ... a being possessing or forming the subject of personality” (Webster). A person may be in a material body or be a spirit without a body.

When Jesus Christ promised He would send the Holy Spirit to His apostles, He employed pronouns that refer to a person ten times.

However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you (John 16:13-15)

The Holy Spirit has attributes that only a person possesses, i.e., they are personality characteristics. He possesses knowledge (1 Corinthians 2:11), love (Romans 15:30), and will (1 Corinthians 12:1). No mere force has these traits.

He performs tasks that only a person can perform. The Spirit of God speaks (1 Timothy 4:1), teaches (1 Corinthians 2:13), forbids (Acts 16:6-7), and searches (1 Corinthians 2:10).

Furthermore, the Spirit of Truth suffers the slights and injuries only a person can suffer. He is grieved (Ephesians 4:30) and insulted (Hebrews 10:29) and can be lied to (Acts 5:3).

Undoubtedly the Holy Spirit is a Person rather than an impersonal force.

Divine

By “divine” I simply mean the Holy Spirit possesses the attributes that belong to God alone (Acts 17:29). The Holy Spirit is God, deity.

The apostle Peter implicitly called Him God. Ananias tried to deceive Peter into thinking he had given all the money from the sale of his land (Acts 5:1-4). But, since Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 4:8), when Ananias tried to deceive Peter, he was really lying to the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:3). But when he lied to the Holy Spirit, Ananias lied to God (Acts 5:4). The Holy Spirit is God.

Furthermore, the Spirit possesses the peculiar attributes of deity, qualities that belong to God alone. The Holy Spirit is eternal (Hebrews 9:14), all-knowing (1 Corinthians 2:10-11), and present everywhere (Psalm 139:7-10).

Finally, He does the work of deity, work only a divine person can do. He participated in the creation (Genesis 1:1-2), He provides for the creatures of the great deep their sustenance (Psalm 104:25-30), and is the author of miracles (Matthew 12:28; 1 Corinthians 12:7-11). God alone is able to do such work.

Conclusion

Our proposition is sustained. Far from being a mere impersonal force from God, the Holy Spirit is a divine Person. The Holy Spirit is that divine Person who issues the invitation for all to come to Christ (Revelation 22:17). “And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.”

Works Cited

Reasoning from the Scriptures (Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania, 1985).
“The Watch Tower.” July 15, 1957.
Webster’s Third New International Dictionary [unabridged]. 2:1686.