A Pentecostal Guide to Understanding the Holy Spirit in Daily Life
The Pentecostal church has several well-known identifying features, one of which is belief in the Holy Spirit and His work (you may have even heard Pentecostals called ‘Spirit-filled Christians’!).
As a Pentecostal church and part of the C3 Global movement, C3 Powerhouse’s core values include ‘believing in the person and work of the Holy Spirit with His fruit and gifts available in the church’.
So if you want to discover more about understanding the Holy Spirit and how He operates in our lives, we’ve put together this guide to help you on your spiritual development journey.
Read and learn more, or if you’re looking for a Sunshine Coast church that believes in the Holy Spirit, join us on Sunday!
What is The Holy Spirit?
This Pentecostal guide demonstrates the basics of the Trinity, to understand who the Holy Spirit is, and then dives into His impact in our daily life.
Starting with God and the Trinity
An understanding of the Holy Spirit starts with an introduction to the Trinity.
Why? Because the Holy Spirit is the third divine person of the Trinity.
The doctrine of the Trinity means God is three in one. He is one God, who exists as three distinct persons; the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Each one fully God, but distinctly different people. For example, the Father is not the Son, and the Son is not the Holy Spirit, but all are God.
This means the Holy Spirit is God. He’s not a mystical force or one piece or expression of God.
The Trinity, also referred to as the Godhead, is a deep theological study you can go on as you start to learn more about the Holy Spirit. However, the basics to start studying the Holy Spirit and His work in our daily lives in this guide include:
- The Trinity is not three different Gods. There is only one God.
- God exists as three persons. God manifested as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
- The three persons are equally God and equally one divine being, not God split three ways.
If you want to study more about the Trinity with scripture references and Biblical teaching, we recommend Christian Theology, An Introduction, by Alister E McGrath.
The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit
So what is the Holy Spirit? A definition and importance
The Holy Spirit is God, and the third Person of the Trinity. He is equal to God the Father and God the Son.
Characteristics of God include that He is eternal, self-existent, omnipresent, omniscient, creator of the world and sovereign.
Jesus described the Holy Spirit as a counselor, and He is also known for being our comforter, who gives us spiritual gifts, gives us wisdom and brings conviction of sin.
Symbolically, the Holy Spirit is often depicted as fire, wind, or a dove.
What does the Holy Spirit do?
In the New Testament, Jesus refers to the Holy Spirit as the ‘helper’ (John 14:26). Jesus told the disciples He would send the Holy Spirit after Him (John 15:26), and we later read in Acts about the day of Pentecost, where the Holy Spirit was poured out on the believers (Acts 2).
The Bible also talks about how the Holy Spirit lives in us (1 Corinthians 3:16), and that the fruit of His spirit that we then experience is His ‘love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control’ (Galatians 5:22).
The Holy Spirit has many other roles and the New Testament shares a lot about what He does including:
- He is our teacher and guide (John 14:26)
- He convicts us of sin (John 16:7-8)
- He empowers believers with spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12:4-11)
- He gives us wisdom (1 Corinthians 2:10-11)
- He intercedes for us (Romans 8:26-27)
The Holy Spirit in the New Testament: A pentecostal guide
The Holy Spirit is weaved throughout the Bible. He was hovering over the waters at creation in Genesis, and played a primary role in the prophetic portion of the Old Testament, moving through prophets, judges, and warriors.
It is in the New Testament, however, where we see Him move into the forefront of the Bible’s teaching, and where we learn how He operates in our daily lives.
Jesus sent the Holy Spirit after Him, and in Acts 2 you can read about the day of Pentecost, where the Holy Spirit poured out on the believers and was seen as tongues of fire on their heads in the upper room where they were gathered. The Holy Spirit empowered them to speak in different languages, and three thousand people were added to the church that day.
The Holy Spirit is then weaved all throughout the New Testament and is referred to through the later epistles.
The Holy Spirit in our Daily Life
With an understanding of who the Holy Spirit is, and what the scriptures say about Him, we can go deeper into understanding His impact on our daily Christian life, and what the Pentecostal church believes.
The Holy Spirit in the Pentecostal Church
So what does the Pentecostal church believe about the Holy Spirit then?
Firstly, being filled with the Holy Spirit happens separately from salvation.
In the New Testament we see this outlined in Acts 8:14-17,
‘When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.’
The Holy Spirit still plays a role in salvation, convicting of sin and regenerating the person’s spirit as they are born again. But the infilling of the Holy Spirit shown in Acts by Peter and John happens secondarily and is often accompanied by the gift of speaking in tongues. For some Pentecostal churches, they call this the ‘second blessing’.
Additionally, the Pentecostal churches theology is underscored by continuitionism. This stance is that the Spirit continues to give us and the church the gifts listed in 1 Corinthians 12:7-11
‘The Holy Spirit is given to each of us in a special way. That is for the good of all. To some people the Spirit gives a message of wisdom. To others the same Spirit gives a message of knowledge. To others the same Spirit gives faith. To others that one Spirit gives gifts of healing. To others he gives the power to do miracles. To others he gives the ability to prophesy. To others he gives the ability to tell the spirits apart. To others he gives the ability to speak in different kinds of languages they had not known before. And to still others he gives the ability to explain what was said in those languages. All the gifts are produced by one and the same Spirit. He gives gifts to each person, just as he decides.’
What Does this Mean for our Daily Life?
The Holy Spirit actively speaks and is alive and moving right now as you read this.
He is ready to speak to you and make an impact in your daily life.
You can talk to Him, and He can fill you with His love, power and gifts.
As you spend time with Him, you’ll discover the fruit of the Spirit from Galatians 5 start to become part of your life, as He brings you love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
How to Learn More About the Holy Spirit
There are lots of ways to grow in your knowledge of God and the Holy Spirit. If the Holy Spirit is of particular interest, here are some resources to continue your scripture-informed Bible study from a Pentecostal lens:
See our preaching series on ‘The Helper’ on our YouTube Channel. Messages from Ps John Pearce include ’10 Things About The Holy Spirit’ and ‘Being filled with the Holy Spirit’.
There are many many books you can read to learn more including:
An Introduction to the Holy Spirit by John Bevere
Good Morning, Holy Spirit: Learn to Recognize the Voice of the Spirit by Benny Hinn
Moving in the Spirit by Phil Pringle
You can also try a number of Bible study programs to delve into the early church and the Holy Spirit, with studies on the book of Acts and other New Testament books. Trash Your Bible, for instance, has a number of theologically sound, Biblically led New Testament studies.
Your Invite into the Presence of God at a Local Church
The easiest way to learn more about the Holy Spirit is to develop your personal faith in a church community, where you can learn and grow with others.
This is how the early church grew in the book of Acts, meeting together daily with prayer, worship, and hospitality in homes, that grew to churches.
Finding a community of like-minded Christians to study with and grow in your faith is the key to supercharging your Bible study journey.
Everyone is welcome at C3 Powerhouse
If you are looking for a Bible-believing, Holy Spirit filled church to join this weekend, you are welcome at C3 Powerhouse on the Sunshine Coast.
We would love to see you and have study groups, Sunday sermons and even Bible College where you can learn more and grow in your theological understanding of God, the Bible and the Holy Spirit.
