Doctrine of the Holy Spirit
Doctrine
of Pneumatology
The work done to understand the doctrine of Christ is
foundational in formulating the concept of the Trinity. However, it seems this effort
is so extensive it uses up much of our theological energy to the neglect of the
Holy Spirit. Scripture is not as explicit about the person of the Holy Spirit.
With less information to draw on, a full understanding is elusive. This parallels
the metaphorical imagery we have of the person of the Spirit. Comparisons to
breath and wind are more enigmatic and intangible than father and son. During
this present time in human history the Spirit is carrying out ministry in
service to the Father and Son. Like Christ’s earthly subordination of function
this is temporary and does not change the fact they all share the same will.
All these reasons together have led to a devaluing of the Spirit in many
traditions. A resurgence of interest in the person and work of the Spirit has
led some traditions to swing the pendulum the other way and over emphasize the
Holy Spirit’s role. A corrective is certainly necessary but not at the expense
of the Trinity.
Our first hints of the Holy Spirit’s work in the Old
Testament begin with creation of the earth as well as humans (Gen 1:2; Job
33:4). We do not find the term Holy Spirit, rather the titles “Spirit” or “Spirit
of God” are used. The Spirit of God is credited with working to empower people
to do the will of God and perform the works of God in sustaining life.
Sometimes this was denoted as an extension of God’s presence, but in the Old
Testament the Spirit was not an identifiable person. When people were enabled
by God’s Spirit it was temporary and often with a specific work in view. Bezalel
was filled with the Spirit of God to enable him to have the skill required for
the creative work of crafting the tabernacle (Ex 31:2). It is notable that the
first mention of a person being filled with the Spirit was to perform an act of
creation, mirroring the Spirit’s work in the creation itself.
In
addition to the works attributed to God’s Spirit, there was also a prophetic
expectation of a coming anointed servant who would have the Spirit on him to
bring justice to the nations (Isa 42:1). Linking the Old and New Testaments, in
Acts 2:17 Peter explicitly ascribes the events of Pentecost to a fulfilment of
Joel’s prophesy to pour out the Spirit on all people (Joel 2:28). This
expectation of a new way God’s Spirit would interact with his people is found in
connection with the new covenant and God’s promise to put his Spirit in them
(Jer 31:31-34; Ez 36:25-27).
It
makes sense that the person of the Spirit was not uniquely defined as such in
the Old Testament because of its monotheistic emphasis in contrast to the
polytheistic cultures surrounding Israel. Even the New Testament does not
clearly affirm the deity of the Spirit. We must build on the work done in
Christology establishing Jesus’s deity and use similar tools to see what is
presupposed by the scriptures. When we tease out the statements made about the
Spirit and the attributes of the Spirit, we find they can only be true of God, and
must conclude the full divinity of the Spirit (Acts 5:3-4; 1 Cor 3:16-17; 1 Cor
2:10-11, Luke 1:35; Heb 9:14). We see the Spirit knows the thoughts of God (1
Cor 2:11), has the power of the Most High (Luke 1:35), works in regenerating
human hearts (Jn 3:3-5), and is eternal (Heb 9:14). In other passages we read
of the Spirit’s unique role in the baptismal formula and additional Trinitarian
texts (Mt 28:19; 2 Cor 13:14; 1 Cor 12:4-6).
As
a doctrine of the Spirit was worked out, a major point of debate in church
history was how to understand where the Spirit proceeded from. Was it from the
Father alone or both the Father and the Son? In the Niceno-Constantinopolitan
creed the Spirit was said to proceed from the Father. However, the western
church added the Latin term filioque, meaning “and from the Son” to
refer to the idea of a double procession. Many believe this contributed to the
split between the eastern and western churches in the 11th century. The
issue of filioque is a matter of debate through history. The Cappadocians and
Greek theologians wanted to distinguish the Son and the Spirit as the Word of
God and the Breath of God, respectively. Their aim in this was to ensure the
two persons were not seen as two sons of the same Father while keeping the
principle of the Father as the sole origin and source of all divinity. However,
Augustine argued that the Spirit had to be thought of as proceeding from the
Son and cited John 20:22 where Jesus breathes upon his disciples and says:
“Receive the Holy Spirit.” The western approach sees the Spirit as the Spirit
of Christ and thus depersonalizes the Spirit and overemphasizes the work of
Christ. As important as these arguments are I think they reveal a need for
balance in our understanding of the Spirit. It is not surprising that the
language we use to define (literally, mark the boundaries of) will never
dependably describe the exact state or nature of our infinite God. Each of
these positions gets at an important distinction and must be held in tension.
It may be that we may not agree on phrases but agree on the principles behind
the words. Many concur that the Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the
Son and shares the same will and divinity, yet each person of the Trinity has
unique and complementary roles. With each side we must look at the implications
of our theology and be aware of the blind spots each position creates.
While
some western traditions relegate the Spirit to a behind the scenes role in the
Trinity, more recently others have given a place of prominence to the work of
the Spirit. The Charismatic movement in the last century has birthed new
questions of the role of the Holy Spirit in the ongoing work of the church.
Those with a cessationist view, whether strong or mild, have put borders down
on what the Spirit is credited with or capable of doing in believers today.
While I understand the hesitation to believe in supernatural manifestations of
the Spirit, I think that limiting our understanding of the Spirit’s work will
lead to more error than a cautious discernment. I consider myself open to
spontaneous expressions of the Spirit because I do not want to be guilty of
putting God in a box. However, the mere presence of these gifts does not prove
spiritual maturity or create ‘super believers.’ God is free to do as he likes,
and the Holy Spirit moves in unseen ways. We must be aware of the ways
spiritual gifts have been abused, as not everything attributed to the Spirit
comes from the Spirit. Additionally, we need to remember an expression of a
spiritual gift is not the final authority and its reliability must be tested.
As
for the ministry of the Spirit I have been puzzled by my more careful reading
and study for this class. It seems clear that the Spirit plays an important
role in conversion by convicting the world of sin and righteousness (Jn
18:8-9). However, my understanding of the role of the Spirit in the life of a
believer with regards to sanctification is now tenuous. I formerly believed the
Spirit convicted believers of sin and that sanctification was an act to bring
believers into maturity. Yet, as I searched for passages to confirm my
presuppositions I was left wondering if the sanctifying ministry of the Spirit
was more in line with what we consider justification. The renewal and washing
of rebirth mentioned in Titus 3:5 seems to lend credence to that hypothesis.
Still, the fruit of the Spirit mentioned in Galatians 5 appears to be the
practical work of the Spirit to bring about good works in the life of a
believer so I cannot entirely exclude the Spirit’s work in spiritual maturity.
Galatians 3:1-5 also points to the work of the Spirit in continuing belief and
growth in the life of a believer. Whether growth and maturity should be
described as a work of sanctification is still up for debate.
A sailboat is at its best when it opens the sails wide to receive and be moved by the wind. It would be futile to try to capture the wind and use it for propulsion; a boat only receives the power to move by submitting itself to being pushed. Considering the metaphors of wind and breath it is similarly impossible to contain the Spirit and its work. We must hold our arms and theology receptive to the possibilities that God may bring. As we keep these doctrines in tension, we can stay alert to the way our theological sails tend to direct us and make course corrections as we move with the Spirit.
An excellent video explaining the Hebrew word Ruakh:
Bibliography
Bird, Michael F. Evangelical Theology : A Biblical and Systematic Introduction. Second ed. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Academic, 2020.
Erickson, Millard J. 2013. Christian Theology. 3rd ed. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Academic.
Fairbairn, Donald, and Ryan M Reeves. The Story of Creeds and Confessions : Tracing the Development of the Christian Faith. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, a division of Baker Publishing Group, 2019.
McGrath, Alister E. 2017. Christian Theology : An Introduction. 6th ed. Newark: Wiley.
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