In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit was promised to be given to all of God’s people. This promise was fulfilled in the New Testament by the Apostles on the day of Pentecost. The Feasts in Leviticus 23 were prophecies and the foreshadowing of what the messiah would do. God told Moses to celebrate the Feast of Weeks which is forty-nine days after Passover. On the fiftieth day after the feast of weeks, God commanded the Israelite’s to make a special offering to the Lord. The fiftieth day is called “Pentecost.”
“You shall also count for yourselves from the day after the sabbath, from the day when you brought in the sheaf of the wave offering; there shall be seven complete sabbaths. ‘You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh sabbath; then you shall present a new grain offering to the LORD.”
(Lev 23:15-16 NAS)
The word “Pentecost” comes from the Greek word “Pentēkostē,” meaning “fiftieth.“ In the Book of Acts, on the day of Pentecost, God poured His Holy Spirit upon all of God’s people. The Book of Acts recounts this event.
“And when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent, rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. … And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance… this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel.”
(Acts 2:1-16 NAS)
The Apostle Peter taught that the day of Pentecost was a direct fulfillment of the prophecy in the book of Joel.
“And it will come about after this That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and daughters will prophesy, Your old men will dream dreams, Your young men will see visions. “And even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days. “And I will display wonders in the sky and on the earth, Blood, fire, and columns of smoke.” The sun will be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. “And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of the LORD Will be delivered; For on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem There will be those who escape, As the LORD has said, Even among the survivors whom the LORD calls.”
(Joel 2:28-32 NAS)
God promised that He would pour out His Holy Spirit upon all mankind. By “all mankind,” God is referring to all those whom He calls to Himself.
“Turn to my reproof, Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you.”
(Prov 1:23 NAS)
“For I will pour out water on the thirsty land And streams on the dry ground; I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring, And My blessing on your descendants.”
(Isa 44:3 NAS)
Zechariah prophesied about the Holy Spirit being given after the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. This was fulfilled in Jesus Christ being crucified. Zachariah wrote,
“And I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him, like the bitter weeping over a first-born.”
(Zec 12:10 NAS)
The Holy Spirit is given to all who truly believe in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.
This outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon God’s people causes them to be born again.
The Holy Spirit causes spiritual regeneration. Spiritual regeneration is what the Bible calls “new birth” or being “born again.” Everything that is given to us, spoken to us, revealed to us, or otherwise made known, comes from God through His Spirit. We do not cause ourselves to be born again.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
(1Pe 1:3 NAS)
“He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior.”
(Tit 3:5-6 NAS)
Jesus told Nicodemus that he must be born again in order to enter the Kingdom of God in the gospel of John. Jesus told Nicodemus,
“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ “The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
(John 3:5-8 NAS)
Only by the renewing of the Holy Spirit can we be saved. Regeneration is not something we do to ourself. Being “Born Again” is completely a work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit gives us everything freely and not from ourselves, it is a gift from God because He loves us.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
(Eph 2:8-10 NAS)
The Holy Spirit applies salvation to His people.
Nobody can accept God or have faith in God without the Holy Spirit. Left to our own will and desires, we would reject God. But, because God loved us first, He applies His Spirit to us who believe.
“But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.”
(1Co 2:14 NAS)
“For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God.”
(1Co 2:10 NAS)
The only reason anybody can understand anything about God is because of the Holy Spirit. God’s Holy Spirit regenerates His people, bringing them into newness of life.
“Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.”
(Rom 6:4 NAS)
“But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.”
(Rom 7:6 NAS)
The Holy Spirit causes God’s people to have good fruit.
If anyone has love, it is because of the Holy Spirit. Peace, love, joy and righteousness all come from the Holy Spirit. Nobody can boast in their own love and peace, because, they have no peace without God’s Spirit.
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”
(1John 4:7-8 NAS)
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
(Gal 5:22-23 NAS)
True peace and love only come from the Holy Spirit. If anyone has any semblance of peace or love it is because of the Holy Spirit alone. Apart from the Spirit of God, nobody has love or peace.
“For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.”
(Rom 8:6-9 NAS)
The Apostles taught that the Holy Spirit was sent by God to help His people in all things. God’s people are taught by His Holy Spirit. We can only understand God’s Word through God’s Holy Spirit.
“Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.”
(1Co 2:12-13 NAS)
The Holy Spirit is our helper.
The true knowledge of God only comes through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit alone enables us to understand Gods Word in order to apply it to our life. The Holy Spirit helps us in all things.
“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”
(John 14:26 NAS)
“So that we confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What shall man do to me?”
(Heb 13:6 NAS)
“And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not become anxious about how or what you should speak in your defense, or what you should say; for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”
(Luke 12:11-12 NAS)
God’s Holy Spirit will even give us the words to say. God Himself molds our minds to the direction in which He wishes us to go. He increases our knowledge to the point of having no fear of anything or anyone.
“So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace, being built up; and, going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it continued to increase.”
(Acts 9:31 NAS)
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God.
God is not a man sitting in some location in outer space looking down upon the earth hoping we someday do what He wants us to do. God transcends through all matter, to the infinite dissection of every particle, to the farthest location in the vastness of outer space. The Spirit of God is Himself God. The Holy Spirit comprehends the depths of God, something only God can truly know.
“For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man, which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God.”
(1Co 2:10-11 NAS)
“God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
(John 4:24 NAS)
When you offend God, you are offending His Holy Spirit. God’s Spirit can grieve and be provoked to anger when people who have no regard for His Spirit.
“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”
(Eph 4:30 NAS)
Offending God’s Holy Spirit is a personal attack on God Himself. Anyone who personally attacks God’s Spirit will have no redemption.
“Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven men, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. “And whoever shall speak a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever shall speak against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age, or in the age to come.”
(Matt 12:31-32 NAS)
The eleventh lesson of the Apostles’ Creed, “I believe in the Holy Spirit,” highlights the fulfillment of God’s promise to pour out His Spirit on His people, a promise realized on the Day of Pentecost. This outpouring, rooted in Old Testament prophecy and fulfilled in Acts 2, marked the beginning of spiritual regeneration, what Scripture calls being “born again.” The Holy Spirit gives life, understanding, and faith, applying the redemption of Christ to believers and transforming their hearts. It is through the Spirit that God’s people receive love, peace, joy, and the power to live in righteousness. The Holy Spirit is not merely a force but is God Himself, dwelling within believers, teaching, guiding, and sustaining them. He enables true worship, reveals divine truth, and empowers God’s people to persevere. Blaspheming the Holy Spirit is the gravest offense, as it is a direct rejection of God’s own presence and work. In all things, the Holy Spirit is the source of spiritual life, knowledge, and the intimate connection between God and His people.