The Progressive Development of the Spirit (1)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Bible Verses ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gen.1:2 But the earth became waste and emptiness, and
darkness was on the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of
God was brooding upon the surface of the waters.
John 7:39 But this He said concerning the Spirit, whom those
who believed into Him were about to receive; for the Spirit
was not yet, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Words of Ministry ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(Part 1 of 3)
The revelation in the Bible concerning God, Christ, and the
Spirit is progressive. This revelation begins in Genesis 1
and develops progressively until it reaches its consummation
in the book of Revelation. The first mention of the Spirit in
the Scriptures is found in Genesis 1:2, where we are told
that the Spirit of God was brooding over the waters (Heb.).
In relation to God's creation, the Spirit is specifically
called the Spirit of God.
God's relationship with man, of course, is more intimate than
His relationship with creation. Hence, in speaking of God's
relationship with man, the title of the Spirit is the Spirit
of Jehovah (Judg. 3:10; 1 Sam. 10:6). At the time of the
conception and birth of Christ, the term Holy Spirit was used
(Luke 1:35; Matt. 1:20). This title of the Spirit is related
to holiness, sanctification, and separation unto God. Through
the Holy Spirit something in man is sanctified, made holy. In
Greek, Acts 16:7 speaks of the Spirit of Jesus. The Lord's
life on earth was a life of suffering. Thus, the title "the
Spirit of Jesus" refers in particular to the Spirit in
relation to the Lord's suffering. In Romans 8:9-11 Paul
speaks of the Spirit of Christ. According to the context of
these verses, the Spirit of Christ is related mainly to
Christ's resurrection. We have seen that in 1:19 Paul speaks
of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. ...the Spirit of Jesus Christ
is related both to suffering and resurrection. In his
imprisonment Paul was enjoying the Spirit both as the Spirit
of Jesus in suffering and as the Spirit of Christ in
resurrection. As he was suffering, Paul was enjoying Christ's
resurrection. Since he was experiencing both suffering and
resurrection, to him the Spirit was the Spirit of Jesus
Christ.
John 7:39 speaks of "the Spirit," telling us that before the
Lord Jesus was crucified and resurrected, "the Spirit" was
not yet. The Spirit of God was there from the beginning (Gen.
1:1-2), but "the Spirit" as the Spirit of Jesus Christ was
"not yet" at the time of John 7:39, because the Lord had not
yet been glorified. After His resurrection, the Spirit of God
became the Spirit of the incarnated, crucified, and
resurrected Jesus Christ. Even though, before the Lord's
death and resurrection, the Spirit of God was the Spirit of
Jehovah and the Holy Spirit, "the Spirit" was not yet. This
term--"the Spirit"--is used often by Paul in his Epistles and
by John in the book of Revelation. Instead of saying the
Spirit of God or the Holy Spirit, Paul often said "the
Spirit"--the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit of the Triune
God.
(Continued tomorrow)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(c) Living Stream Ministry. Bible verses are taken from the Recovery
Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Witness Lee, Life-study
of Philippians, pp. 41-42. Both are published by Living Stream
Ministry, Anaheim, CA.
Please visit us at www.emanna.com
Comments to: comment@emanna.com.
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Message Date: 01/26/2009
