We run our website the way we wished the whole internet worked: we provide high quality original content with no ads. We are funded solely by your direct support. Please consider supporting this project.

holy spirit

The Holy Spirit Behind the Scenes

In John 17 we read Jesus’ prayer to be one with each another in Christ. Jesus prayed that his disciples

… may be one. As you, Father are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us. … I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. … I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them. (John 17:21, 23, 26)

Our union with the Father reflects and participates in the union of the Father, Son, and Spirit. The same glory that the Father ascribes to the Son is now given to all who are in the Son, which is to say, we participate in the glory of God. However, this passage only mentions the Father and Son, leaving out the Holy Spirit. Why is this the case?

I argue that the Holy Spirit is very much included in our participation in the Father and Son’s love for one another, but he is so as a “silent partner.” The particular way that the Spirit lovingly and submissively participates in our dance with the triune God is by working behind the scenes, as it were, to make it all happen. The Spirit is not the explicit object of the dance but the one working on the inside to open the dance up for us to participate.

Here are some of the ways that the Spirit does this. The Holy Spirit:

  • works in our hearts to open us up to trust in Christ Jesus (John 3:5; 1 Cor 12:3).
  • reconciles us to the Father through Christ (Eph 2:18).
  • abides in us (1 John 3:24).
  • teaches us (John 14:26; 16:13).
  • transforms us (2 Cor 3:17-18).
  • empowers us (Acts 1:8; Rom 8:13).
  • leads us (Rom 8:14; Gal 5:18).
  • sets us free from the law (Rom 7:6; 8:2-4).
  • mediates the abundant life of the Trinity to us (John 7:38-39; Rom 8:14; 16; 26-27).

The Holy Spirit causes the love the Father has for us to abide within us and flow through us (Rom 5:5; Col 1:8). Thus the unity of the church—our being one as the Father and the Spirit are one—is the unity in the Holy Spirit.

Our participation in the love of the Father for the Son and the love of the Son for the Father is a participation in the Holy Spirit, for the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of both the Father and the Son (Rom 8:9-11). The Holy Spirit works and abides within us, pointing us to Christ, placing us in Christ, all the while causing us to participate in and be transformed by the love the Father has for the Son and the love the Son has for the Father.

Adapted from Repenting of Religion, pages 39-41

Photo credit: Sint-Katelijne-Waver on Visual Hunt / CC BY-NC-ND

Category:
Tags: , ,

Related Reading

Reversing Babel

Several generations after the flood, we read in Gen 11 how humans were still living in one locale and had one common language and culture. Then someone came up with the brilliant idea that they should construct an enormous tower that would reach “to the heavens” in order to make a name for themselves and…

Podcast: Did Jesus Experience Genuine God-Forsakenness? (parts 1 and 2)

Greg discusses Jesus’ experience of God-Forsakenness, and looks at possible implications for the perfection of the trinity. Part One: http://traffic.libsyn.com/askgregboyd/Episode_0178.mp3 Part Two: http://traffic.libsyn.com/askgregboyd/Episode_0179.mp3

Overcoming the Flesh

In Monday’s post, we talked about the nature of the flesh. Here let’s introduce the work of the Spirit in overcoming the flesh. The Holy Spirit’s goal in pointing us to Christ is to replace the destruction of deception (the flesh) with the wholeness of truth. By leading us into an experience of truth, the…

Participating in the Divine Nature (Love)

When God created the world, it obviously wasn’t to finally have someone to love, for God already had this, within himself. Rather God created the world to express the love he is and invite others in on this love. This purpose is most beautifully expressed in Jesus’ prayer in John 17. Jesus prays to his…

What God Requires

The reason we were created and what we are called to be is summed up in one word: love. The central defining truth of those who follow Jesus is that in Christ God ascribed unsurpassable worth to us, and thus the central defining mark of those who live in love is that they ascribe the…

Friday Lights: Glimpse of the Kingdom

We interrupt the constant stream of violence and brokenness to bring you this glimpse of the Kingdom of God. Image via broken pencils are pointless