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With a perversity as pathetic as it is impoverishing, we have become preoccupied today with the extraordinary, sporadic, non-universal ministries of the Spirit to the neglect of the ordinary, general ones. Knowing God (The Love of God, 130)
Today the doctrine of the Holy Spirit's personal divinity is seldom given much attention. Books about him tend to gloss over who he is and concentrate almost entirely on what he does. This is a pity, because the works of the Holy Spirit cannot be understood unless his divine personhood is acknowledged.God Has Spoken (725)
The Spirit and the Word must be combined. If I look to the Spirit alone without the Word, I lay myself open to great delusions also. If the Holy Ghost guides us at all, He will do it according to the Scriptures and never contrary to them. Answers to Prayer (11)
Your flesh is a square peg, and the Spirit is a round hole. The two don't go together!
The operation of the Spirit in believers, the communion of the Holy Ghost, is a great mystery. He works more on them than they feel and know; and they feel more than they can express in words; and they express more than any that have not received "the same spirit of faith" (2 Cor. 4:13) can understand. But this we know, that whenever the Spirit of Christ applies His grace and power to the heart of a sinner, there is something wrought that day which shall last to eternity. There is, by this finger of God, that impression made upon the soul and that mark left upon it that shall never wear out and that sin and Satan shall never be able to blot out again, but it shall remain and grow and be seen at the coming of Christ at the last day (Phil. 1:6).
The Holy Spirit is often moving in the consciences and affections of carnal creatures, counseling, rebuking, and exciting them, so that upon His suggestions, some warm affections are raised in them to that which is good, but presently all is quashed and comes to nothing and the Spirit driven away by the entertainment He finds. Again, you cannot know by the common gifts of the Spirit— illumination, conviction, restraining grace, and assistance to perform the external part of religious duties; these are gifts of the Spirit, but such as do not prove he hath the Spirit that hath them. These gifts are beamed from the Spirit of God and show that the kingdom of God is come nigh such an one, but they do not demonstrate that God is come into that soul and hath taken possession of it for His temple.
The Holy Spirit who is given to work grace in us, He is also given to witness grace unto us and to make us "know the things that are freely given to us of God" (1 Cor. 2:12). He is a free and sovereign agent indeed, and He works and witnesses in them in whom He worketh as He pleases. He giveth assurance of peace with God as much as He pleases and as soon, and no more and no sooner, than He pleases (1 Cor. 12:11).
But how shall I know the witness of the Spirit from a delusion? Answer: The Spirit of God always witnesses according to the word, as the echo answers the voice. Enthusiasts speak much of the Spirit, but they leave the word. That inspiration which is either without the word or against it is an imposture. The Spirit of God did indite the word (2 Peter 1:21). Now if the Spirit should witness otherwise than according to the word, the Spirit should be divided against itself; it should be a spirit of contradiction, witnessing one thing for a truth in the word and another thing different from it in a man's conscience.
If we desire the Spirit, we must wait in the way of duty, as the apostles waited many days before the Comforter came. We must also empty our souls of self-love and the love of the world and willingly entertain those crosses that bring our souls out of love with it. The children of Israel in the wilderness had not the manna till they had spent their onions and garlic; so this world must be out of request with us before we can be truly spiritual. Through grace, labor to see the excellency of spiritual things. How despicable then must all the glory of the world appear! These things, duly considered, will raise our desires more and more toward spiritual and heavenly objects.
If we cannot endure the Spirit going up and down with a candle and lantern to search our hearts, how can we abide the day of Christ's coming and stand when the Sun of Righteousness shall appear, for He is like refiner's fire and like fuller's soap? Justice, humility, repentance, though now they be but poor and low things with man, yet when the judge shall take the bench more visibly, how high will they be with God? Sincerity, though it be a silent grace at this time and dwells in obscurity, ere long, I hope, will carry the day and bear away the bell.
The Spirit exactly knows the heart of God to the creature, with all His counsels and purposes concerning Him: the Spirit searches all things, the deep things of God (1 Cor. 2:10). And what are those deep things of God the apostle means but the counsels of love which lie deep in His heart, till the Spirit draws them forth and acquaints the creature with them, as appears by verse 9? And also He knows the whole frame of man's heart. It were strange if He that made the cabinet should not know every secret box in it.
The supreme work of the Holy Spirit is to focus attention on, and to point to, the Lord Jesus Christ.
For the Father works all things by the Spirit. By him God creates, sustains, moves, gives life, strengthens, and preserves all things. By the self-same Spirit, he regenerates his faithful people, sanctifies them, and endues them with diverse kinds of graces. Thus, in the description of him mentioned above, his principal powers and effects which show themselves by their working in men, are comprised in four members. I said that he illuminates, regenerates, sanctifies, and fulfils the faithful with all good graces.The Decades, https://www.monergism.com/decades-ebook
the Holy Ghost in man increases or fills, and diminishes or departs: not that there is any change to be found in God (who, as commonly and truly said, neither receives more or less); but because man, according to his capacity, either receives the Spirit plentifully and liberally, or else measurably and sparingly, even as it pleases the Holy Ghost.The Decades, https://www.monergism.com/decades-ebook
The Holy Ghost is the third person in Trinity, to be worshipped, very God, proceeding from the Father and the Son. He enlightens, regenerates, sanctifies, and fulfills the faithful with all good graces. The Decades, https://www.monergism.com/decades-ebook
the Holy Ghost generally works on the heart of man through the use of means. The Word of God, preached or read, is generally employed by Him as an instrument in the conversion of a soul. He applies that Word to the conscience: He brings that Word home to the mind. This is His general course of procedure.Old Paths, Chapter X
We cannot explain how and in what way the Almighty Spirit comes into man, and operates upon him; but neither also can we explain a thousand things which are continually taking place in the natural world.Old Paths, Chapter X
When we read Scripture, the focus will be on God the Father or Jesus Christ the Son. However, it seems that the Holy Spirit is most honored when we accept his conviction of sin, his transforming and sanctifying work within us, and his guidance in life and ministry, and when in response to his leading we prostrate ourselves before Jesus... trinitarian worship need not be balanced, if by balanced we mean giving the three persons of the Godhead equal time and space. True Christian worship focuses particularly on ChristFor the Glory of God (53)
What the Holy Spirit personally does, is to direct faith to the revealed knowledge of God, to explain and apply this revealed knowledge of God to the heart according to its particular need, and also to quicken in the soul a lively sense of truth; but along this individual way He does not impart an increase of content.Principles of Sacred Theology, 351
The presence of the Holy Spirit within us reminds us of our sonship, yes, our adult sonship. We are not infants, the very term means that we are grown sons and have reached full age. We are sons in the fullest sense and in the possession of all our faculties. The clear realization of this gets rid of the spirit of bondage again to fear.Spiritual Depression (172)
Every day of faith is a day of the supernatural work of the Spirit in our lives. Every time we're filled with love for God, every time we become aware of how glorious Jesus is, every time ewe read God's Word and understand and believe it, every time we choose to obey God and turn away from sin, every time we selflessly use our abilities to serve others-the Holy Spirit is powerfully working in us.Dug Down Deep (187)
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