The Holy Spirit- A Power, A Force or A Divine Person ?

Ezekiel 8:2 And I [Ezekiel] looked, and
behold, a likeness as the appearance of
fire, from the appearance of His loins
[waist] and downward, like fire, and
from His loins and upward, as the
appearance of brightness, like the
color of polished bronze.
---Literal Translation Version (LITV Bible)

Ezekiel 8:3 And He put forth the form of
a hand and took me by a lock of my
head. And the *Spirit lifted me up [with
the outstretched hand] between the
earth and the heavens and brought me to
Jerusalem (in the visions of God), to the
opening of the inner gate facing north,
where there was a seat of the image of
jealousy, which causes jealousy.
---Literal Translation Version (LITV Bible)

•New Revised Standard
•Ezekiel 8:2 (NRS) I looked, and there was a figure that
looked like a human being; below what appeared to be
its loins it was fire, and above the loins it was like the
appearance of brightness, like gleaming amber.
•Revised Standard Version
•Ezekiel 8:2 (RSV) Then I beheld, and, lo, a form that
had the appearance of a man; below what appeared to
be his loins it was fire, and above his loins it was like the
appearance of brightness, like gleaming bronze.

• New Living Translation
• Ezekiel 8:2 (NLT) I saw a figure that appeared to be
a man. From what appeared to be his waist down, he
looked like a burning flame. From the waist up he
looked like gleaming amber.
•The Complete Jewish Bible
•Ezekiel 8:2 (CJB) I looked and saw what seemed like a man
made of fire. From what appeared to be his waist downward
was fire, and from his waist upward was what appeared to be
a gleaming amber-colored brilliance.

• The Bible in Basic English
• Ezekiel 8:2 (BBE) And looking, I saw a form like fire;
from the middle of his body and down there was fire:
and up from the middle of his body a sort of shining,
like electrum.
• Good News Translation
• Ezekiel 8:2 (GNT) I looked up and saw a vision of a fiery
human form. From the waist down his body looked like fire,
and from the waist up he was shining like polished bronze.

Dove
Seal Fire
Matt. 3:16–17;
10:16; Jn. 1:32
Ps. 87:7; Jn.
7:37–39
Water
Rain
Ps. 72:6; Hosea6:3
River
John 7:38; Ps. 1:3
Dew
Ps. 110:3; Prov. 19:12;
Hos. 6:4; 14:5
Wind
Jn. 3:8; Acts 2:1 Gen.2:7; Ez.
37:9; Jn. 3:8 ,Acts 2:2; Zech 4:6
Lk. 4:18; Jn. 8:12; Acts
10:38; Heb. 1:9
Oil
2 Tim. 2:19, Jn. 6:37; 2 Cor.
1:21–22; Eph. 1:13; 4:30.
Ex. 13:21; Acts 2:3;
Heb. 12:29; Matt. 3:11

The nature of the Holy Spirit is a mystery; it is not clearly revealed, and you will
never be able to explain it to others, because the Lord has not revealed it to you. It
is not essential for you to know and be able to define just what the Holy Spirit is.
Christ tells us that the Holy Spirit is the Comforter, and the Comforter is the Holy
Ghost, “the Spirit of truth, which the Father shall send in my name. There are many
mysteries which I do not seek to understand or to explain; they are too high for
me, and too high for you. Lt7-1891. para 13-15
Dove
Water Oil Seal Fire

The Nature of the Holy Spirit
Dove
Matt. 3:16–17;10:16;Jn. 1:32
Water
Ps. 87:7; Jn. 7:37–39
Fire
Ex. 13:21; Acts 2:3;
Heb. 12:29; Matt. 3:11
Seal
2 Tim. 2:19, Jn. 6:37; 2 Cor.
1:21–22; Eph. 1:13; 4:30.
Rain
Ps. 72:6; Hosea 6:3
River
John 7:38; Ps. 1:3
Dew
Ps. 110:3; Prov. 19:12;
Hos. 6:4; 14:5
Wind
Jn. 3:8; Acts 2:1
Gen.2:7; Ez. 37:9; Jn.
3:8 ,Acts 2:2; Zech4:6
Oil
Lk. 4:18; Jn. 8:12;
Acts 10:38; Heb. 1:9

Isn’t the Holy
Spirit an “ ”?

Because the bible sometimes refersto the Holy Spirit with the third
person singular pronoun “it,” to our opponents, this means that the
Holy Spirit is not a personal being as is God the Father and Jesus
Christ. Here are some of the verses they will point to:

Isn’t the Holy Spirit an “ ”?
John 1:32 And John bare record, saying, I saw
the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove,
and it abode upon him.
1 Peter 1:11 Searching what, or what manner of
time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did
signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings
of Christ, and the glory that should follow.

Some of our Adventist brethren will also point to
some of the writings of Sister White, like to the
following quote:
"The Lord Jesus acts through the Holy
Spirit; for it is His representative."
-Messages to Young People, 55

Hence the claim that the Holy Spirit is merely
an active force, or something to that effect.
Those who reason this way should consider a
couple of points. First, the Dictionary tells us
that the word “it” can also refer to living
beings, even human beings:

Webster’s II Dictionary
It: pron. – Used to refer to non-human entity, an
animal or human being of unknown sex, a group of
persons, or an abstraction.
Have you ever said to a brand new mom, “… it’s so
cute!”? Or have you ever said, “that group won the
super-bowl, it’s the best of them all!”? Or how
about… “tag! Your it!”?

As funny as these examples may be, even the
dictionary uses some of these to explain this word:
The Newbury House Dictionary of American English
It: pron. Third person singular pronoun… 7: to be
“it”: in children’s games, to be the one who chases
or finds others: In tag, children take turn being “it.”

Now let’s give some bible examples of the
word “it” being used to refer to living, active
people or it may be Used to refer to a group
of people. Notice theses verse:

Notice in the bible Babies and Children are called “ ”
Exo 2:3 And when she could not longer hide him, she
took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with
slime and with pitch, and put the therein; and
she laid in the flags by the river's brink.
Exo 2:9 And Pharaoh's daughter said unto her, Take
this away, and nurse for me, and I will give thee thy
wages. And the woman took the , and nursed .
Rth 4:16 And Naomi took the , and
laid in her bosom, and became nurse unto .

2Sa 12:18 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that
the child died. And the servants of David feared to tell
him that the child was dead: for they said, Behold, while
the child was yet alive, we spake unto him, and he would
not hearken unto our voice: how will he then vex himself,
if we tell him that the child is dead?
2Sa 12:21 Then said his servants unto him, What
thing is this that thou hast done? thou didst fast and
weep for the , while was alive; but when
the child was dead, thou didst rise and eat bread.

1Ki 3:20 And she arose at midnight, and took from
beside me, while thine handmaid slept, and laid in her
bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom.
1Ki 3:21 And when I rose in the morning to give
my suck, behold, was dead: but when I had
considered it in the morning, behold, was not ,
which I did bear.

1Ki 3:26 Then spake the woman whose the
was unto the king, for her bowels
yearned upon her son, and she said, O my lord,
give her the , and in no wise slay .
But the other said, Let it be neither mine nor
thine, but divide it.
1Ki 3:27 Then the king answered and said,
Give her the living , and in no wise slay :
she is the mother thereof.

Luk 2:16 And they came with haste,
and found Mary, and Joseph, and
the lying in a manger.
Luk 2:17 And when they had
seen , they made known abroad
the saying which was told them
concerning this .

Rev 12:4 And his tail drew the
third part of the stars of heaven,
and did cast them to the earth:
and the dragon stood before the
woman which was ready to be
delivered, for to devour
her as soon as was born.

Notice in the bible Nations are called “ ”
Jeremiah 5:15 Lo, I will bring a nation upon you
from far, O house of Israel, saith the LORD: it is
a mighty nation, it is an ancient nation, a nation
whose language thou knowest not, neither
understandest what they say.
Isaiah 26:15 Thou hast increased the nation, O
LORD, thou hast increased the nation: thou art
glorified: thou hadst removed it far unto all the
ends of the earth.

Notice in the bible Devils are called “ ”
Luke 8:26-29
26 And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes,which is over
against Galilee.27 And when he went forth to land, there met him
out of the city a certain man, which had devils long time, and ware
no clothes, neither abode in any house, but in the tombs.
28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and
with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son
of God most high? I beseech thee, torment me not.
29 (For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the
man. For oftentimes it had caught him: and he was kept bound with
chains and in fetters; and he brake the bands,and was driven of
the devil into the wilderness.)

Luke 8:30-31
(30) And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy
name? And he said, Legion: because many devils
were entered into him.
(31) And they besought him that he would not
command them to go out into the deep.
Here we notice something important. The “it” is a Legion of
many spirits, and not just one. As in the verses above, we here
have yet another example of the word “it” referring to “a
group of persons.”

Luke 8:30-31
(30) And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name?
And he said, Legion: because many devils were
entered into him.
(31) And they besought him that he would not
command them to go out into the deep.
Here we notice something important. The “it” is a Legion of
many spirits, and not just one. As in the verses above, we here
have yet another example of the word “it” referring to “a group
of persons.”

Luke 9:38-39
(38) And, behold, a man of the company cried
out, saying, Master, I beseech thee, look upon
my son: for he is mine only child.
(39) And, lo, a spirit taketh him, and he
suddenly crieth out; and it teareth him that he
foameth again, and bruising him hardly
departeth from him.

Notice in the bible Persons are called “ ”
Eze 18:4 Behold, all souls
are mine; as the soul of
the father, so also the
soul of the son is mine:
the that sinneth,
shall die.

Conclusion
So we gather that the word
“it” can be used to refer to
living, intelligent human
beings, either of a group of
people, kids, or infants.

The Spirit of
Prophecy usage of
the word “ ”

The Spirit of Prophecy usage of the word “ ”
“ The soul that God has created and
Christ has redeemed is of great value
because of the possibilities before it, the
spiritual advantages that have been
granted it, the capabilities that it may
possess if vitalized by the word of God,
and the immortality it may gain through
the hope presented in the gospel. ”
-Acts of the Apostles ,p.370.2

“There must be a power working from
within, a new life from above, before men
can be changed from sin to holiness. That
power is Christ. His grace alone can
quicken the lifeless faculties of the soul,
and attract it to God, to holiness.”
-Steps to Christ ,p.18.1

“The greatest hindrance to our receiving the
divine illumination is that we do not depend on
the efficiency of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is
freely given us of God if we will appreciate and
accept it. And what is it?—the representative
of Jesus Christ. It is to be our constant helper.”
—Letter 38, 1896, pp. 1-4.
(To S. N. Haskell, May 30, 1896.)

“The Holy Spirit is the Comforter, in
Christ's name. He personifies Christ, yet
is a distinct personality. We may have
the Holy Spirit if we ask for it and make
it [a] habit to turn to and trust in God
rather than in any finite human agent
who may make mistakes.”
—20 Manuscript Release ,pp.324.2

“ We need to realize that the
, who is as much a person
as God is a person, is walking
through these grounds.”
—Manuscript 66, 1899
(From a talk to the students at the Avondale School.)

ALONZO T. JONES
"...the Holy Spirit IS A PERSON. This great truth is not
recognized, indeed it is NOT believed, by more than a very
few even of Christians....The Holy Spirit is a Person,
ETERNALLY A DIVINE PERSON. And he must be ALWAYS
RECOGNIZED and spoken of as a Person, or he is not truly
recognized or spoken of at all...the Scriptures
make perfectly plain the truth that the Holy Spirit is, none
other than a living, speaking, divine, and eternal person.
Exactly as Christ is a person and as God is a person..."
---A.T. Jones, Medical Missionary, March 27, 1907 , pg. 98

J.H WAGGONER
“ I have thought considerable about the matter
you wrote of, though I have been too busy to
apply my mind to it. But there is one query
which will arise in my mind. It is on question of
the personality of the Holy Spirit. The more I
think of it the more I am inclined to believe that
the generally received view [i.e. the Trinitarian
view] is correct... "
----Letter from J.H. Waggoner to James White - July 28, 1879
(discovered by Denis Kaiser in the Center or Adventist Research)

J.H WAGGONER
“We [Seventh-day Adventists in 1879] ordinarily use IT
instead of he - perhaps it is allowable. But, to it are
ascribed attributes of personality, as power, intelligence,
emotions: - it instructs, guides, moves to speak or do, is
grieved, etc. But most of all, we are baptized into name of
the Holy Spirit. ... in the rite of baptism the name of the
Holy Spirit is placed with those of the Father and Son,
and to the Holy Spirit is given such prominence in
creation, in redemption, in everything. ”

J.H WAGGONER
“As much as I have studied on this subject -and
you know that for years my study in the Spirit
has not been small- I am not prepared to take a
positive position. I am yet a student, or an
inquirer, ready to be convinced by sufficient
reasons. I can appreciate this, that
. ”

J.H WAGGONER
“Perhaps, in the light of Matt. 12:22-37, no
greater error could be committed. It is this which
has, for years, prevented my speaking with
positiveness on the subject. But
with the Father and Son, then it would be an
offense against the Spirit [not to give him
that position]. ”

URIAH SMITH
"...[the Spirit is]
[the Father's and Jesus'] and by which they
have knowledge and power through all the universe,
. Christ is a person,
now officiating as priest in the sanctuary in heaven;
and yet
...."
---Uriah Smith, "In the Question Chair", Review and Herald,
Oct. 28, 1890, pg. 664

URIAH SMITH
"... [the Spirit] is called the Eternal Spirit; it is a spirit
that is omniscient and omnipresent; it is the spirit that
moved, or brooded, upon the face of the waters in the
early days when chaos reigned, and out of the chaos
was brought the beauty and the glory of this world ...
it is the medium through which all God’s blessings
and graces come to his people. ...."
---Uriah Smith, “The Spirit of Prophecy and Our Relation
To It,” The General Conference Bulletin, Vol. IV, March 18,
1891, pg 146, 147

URIAH SMITH
“ It is the Comforter; it is the Spirit of Truth; It is the vital
connection between us and our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ; for the apostle tells us that if we “have not the Spirit
of Christ,” were are “none of his.” It is a spirit which is
tender; which can be insulted, can be grieved, can be
quenched. It is THE AGENCY through which we are to be
introduced, if ever we are introduced to immortality....”
---Uriah Smith, “The Spirit of Prophecy and Our Relation To
It,” The General Conference Bulletin, Vol. IV, March 18, 1891,
pg 146, 147

URIAH SMITH
“....the apostle brings to view the THREE
GREAT AGENCIES which are concerned in this
work: God, the Father; Christ, his Son; and the
Holy Spirit...."
---Uriah Smith, “The Spirit of Prophecy and Our Relation To
It,” The General Conference Bulletin, Vol. IV, March 18,
1891, pg 146, 147

URIAH SMITH
“Do the Scriptures warrant praise to and worship of
the Holy Sprint? ...in the formula for baptism, the name
“Holy Ghost,” or” Holy Spirit,” is associated with that of
the Father and the Son. And if the name can be used
thus, why could it not properly stand as a part of the
same in the hymn of praise, “Praise Father,
Son and Holy Ghost”?”
-- Uriah Smith (“U.S.”), In the Question Chair, Review and
Herald, 1896, Vol. 73, No. 43, pg. 685

“ There is a loose habit of thought prevalent among Christians
which so separates the gospel dispensation from the one
preceding it that one would almost conclude that the very
nature of the Godhead was changed at that time. But it is not
so. In the very first chapter of Genesis we have revealed the
great triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. "And let us
make man in our image." "And the Spirit of God moved upon the
face of the waters." Gen. 1:26, 2. It needs only the inspired
interpretation of the New Testament to fill out this picture and
reveal to us Father, Son, and Holy Spirit working together to
bring light, harmony, and order out of the darkness and chaos of
the beginning. See John 1:1-5; Heb. 11: 3. ”
THE HOLY SPIRIT

Ellen G. White
Final Remarks
On the Godhead

“ As the saints in the kingdom of God are
accepted in the beloved , they hear: “Come, ye
blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the
world.” And then the golden harps are
touched, and the music flows all through the
heavenly host, and they fall down and worship
the Father and the Son AND the Holy Spirit. ”
---E.G. White, Manuscript 139, 1906.

"...let us consecrate to Him ["the Lord"
our God] all that we are, and all that we
have, and then may we all unite to swell
the songs, “Praise God, from whom all
blessings flow; Praise him, all creatures
here below; Praise him above, ye
heavenly host; Praise Father, Son, AND
Holy Ghost.”
---E.G. White, RH January 4, 1881

“When we have accepted Christ, and in the
name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the
Holy Spirit have pledged ourselves to serve
God, the Father, Christ, AND the Holy Spirit --
the three dignitaries and powers of heaven--
pledge themselves that every facility shall be
given to us if we carry out our baptismal vows
to "come out from among them, and be . . .
separate, . . . and touch not the unclean thing.”
----E.G. White, Manuscript 85, 1901

“ God says, "Come out from among them, and be ye
separate, . . . and touch not the unclean thing; and I
will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye
shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord
Almighty." This is the pledge of the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Spirit; made to you if you will keep your
baptismal vow, and touch not the unclean thing... ”
-E.G. White, Signs of the Times, June 19, 1901

“ ... In order to deal righteously with the world, as
members of the royal family, children of the heavenly
King, Christians must feel their need of a power, which
comes only from the heavenly agencies that have
pledged themselves to work in man's behalf. After we
have formed a union with the great THREEFOLD
POWER , we shall regard our duty toward the
members of God's family with a sacred awe.”
-E.G. White, Signs of the Times, June 19, 1901

“ You are baptized in the name of the Father, of the
Son, and of the Holy Ghost. You are raised up out of
the water to live henceforth in newness of life--to
live a new life. You are born unto God, and you
stand under the sanction and the power of
THE THREE HOLIEST BEINGS IN HEAVEN,
who are able to keep you from falling... ”
-E.G. White, 1906, Manuscript Release, Vol.7, pgs. 267, 268

“ When I feel oppressed and hardly know how to
relate myself toward the work that God has given
me to do, I just call upon THE THREE GREAT
WORTHIES, and say: You know I cannot do this
work in my own strength. You must work in me,
and by me, and through me... this is the prayer that
every one of us may offer... ”
-E.G. White, 1906, Manuscript Release, Vol.7, pgs. 267, 268

The Holy Spirit- A Power, A Force or A Divine Person ?

The Holy Spirit- A Power, A Force or A Divine Person ?

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The Holy Spirit- A Power, A Force or A Divine Person ?