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necessary act of the first and second persons in the Trinity whereby they, within the divine
Being, become the ground of the personal subsistence of the Holy Spirit, and put the third
person in possession of the whole divine essence, without any division, alienation or change. p>
<p>The Holy Spirit stands in the closest possible relation to the other persons. In virtue of His
procession from the Father and the Son the Spirit is represented as standing in the closest
possible relation to both of the other persons.
From I Cor. 2:10,11, we may infer, not that the Spirit is the same as the self-consciousness of
God, but that He is as closely connected with God the Father as the soul of man is with man. In
II Cor. 3:17, we read, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is
liberty.” Here the Lord (Christ) is identified with the Spirit, not with respect to personality, but
as to manner of working. In the same passage the Spirit is called “the Spirit of the Lord.” The
work for which the Holy Spirit was sent into the Church on the day of Pentecost was based on
His unity with the Father and the Son. He came as the Parakletos to take the place of Christ and
to do His work on earth, that is, to teach, proclaim, testify, bear witness, etc., as the Son had
done. Now in the case of the Son this revelational work rested on His unity with the Father. Just
so the work of the Spirit is based on His unity with the Father and the Son, John 16:14,15.
Notice the words of Jesus in this passage: “He shall glorify me; for He shall take of mine, and
shall declare it unto you. All things whatsoever the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that
He taketh of mine, and shall declare it unto you.”
d. The deity of the Holy Spirit.
The deity of the Holy Spirit may be established from Scripture by
a line of proof quite similar to that employed in connection with the Son: (1) Divine names are
given to Him, Ex. 17:7 (comp. Heb. 3:7-9); Acts 5:3,4; I Cor. 3:16; II Tim. 3:16 (comp. II Pet. 1:21).
(2) Divine perfections are ascribed to Him, such as omnipresence, Ps. 139:7-10, omniscience,
Isa. 40:13,14 (comp. Rom. 11:34); I Cor. 2:10,11, omnipotence, I Cor. 12:11; Rom. 15:19, and
eternity, Heb. 9:14 (?). (3) Divine works are performed by Him, such as creation, Gen. 1:2; Job.
26:13; 33:4, providential renovation, Ps. 104:30, regeneration, John 3:5,6; Tit. 3:5, and the
resurrection of the dead, Rom. 8:11. (4) Divine honour is also paid to Him, Matt. 28:19; Rom.
9:1; II Cor. 13:13.
e. The work of the Holy Spirit in the divine economy.
There are certain works which are more
particularly ascribed to the Holy Spirit, not only in the general economy of God, but also in the
special economy of redemption. In general it may be said that it is the special task of the Holy
Spirit to bring things to completion by acting immediately upon and in the creature. Just as He
Himself is the person who completes the Trinity, so His work is the completion of God’s contact
with His creatures and the consummation of the work of God in every sphere. It follows the
work of the Son, just as the work of the Son follows that of the Father. It is important to bear