What Is the Holy Spirit?

The holy spirit is God's power in action, his active force.  (Micah 3:8; Luke 1:35)  God sens out his spirit by projecting his energy to any place to accomplish his will. -Psalm 104:30; 139:7. 

In the Bible, the word "spirit" is translated from the Hebrew word ru'ach and the Greek word pneu'ma.  Most often, those words refer to God's active force, or holy spirit.  (Genesis 1:2) However, the Bible also uses those words in other senses:  

Breath. -Habakkuk 2:19; Revelation 13:15.

 Wind.-  Genesis 8:1; John 3:8.

The vital, or animating, force in living creatures. -Job 3:4, 14, 15.

A person's disposition or attitude.  Numbers 14:24.

Spirit persons, including God and the angels. -1 Kings 22:21; John 4:24. 

These meanings all share the sense of something invisible to humans that produce visible effects. Similarly, the spirit of God, "like the wind, is invisible, immaterial and powerful. " -An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, by W.E. Vine.T

The Bible also refers to God's holy spirit as his "hands" or "fingers." (Psalm 8:3; 19"1; Luke 11:20.  Compare  Matthew 12:28. ) Just as a craftsman uses his hands and fingers to do his work, God has used his holy spirit to produce such results as the following:  

The universe. -Psalm 3:3, 6; Isaiah 66:1, 2.

The Bible. -2 Peter 1:20, 21.

The miracles performed by his ancient servants and their zealous preaching. - Luke 4:18; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 12:4-11.

The fine qualities displayed by people who obey him. - Galatians 5:22, 23

Next time: What Is the Holy Spirit?-The holy spirit is not a person.

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