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For the discussion, here is what I posted on the nature/nurture thread:

Thank you so very much for the opportunity to speak a little of the Holy Spirit. How I love to talk about Him! IMHO, the best Scriptures to understand the Holy Spirit are the entire Gospel of John, Romans 8 and I Corinthians 2.

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, [even] to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. – John 1:12-13

The story of Nicodemus in John 3 is the example. He was a religious man, a ruler and a Pharisee, and approached Christ saying that He was special because of the miracles. Jesus, looking right into his heart knew what he really wanted to know and told him that “he must be born again” and proceeded to answer Nicodemus’ questions.

Then in John 15, Jesus describes the indwelling further explaining that He (Jesus) is the vine and we are the branches, that we can do nothing apart from Him. We must dwell in Him and He in us. At the end of that chapter and in the next, He explains that when He leaves to go to the Father, He will send the Comforter (Holy Spirit):

But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, [even] the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me: - John 15:26

Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. – John 16:7

BTW, this is an example of the Trinity - God in three persons.

But of everything the Gospel of John has to say of the Holy Spirit and the mystery of the Trinity, the most overwhelming to me is in John 17 where Christ prays for us and explains the significance:

Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, [art] in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. – John 17:20-23

All of these passages are rich and should be read fully and in context. I do them a disservice by just making a few excerpts, but I didn’t wish to swamp the thread either.

In Paul’s testimony we can see the ministry of the indwelling Spirit:

But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed [them] unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.

Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know [them], because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.

For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. – I Corinthians 2:9-16

All of this takes us full circle to Nicodemus – that a Christian must be born again:

[There is] therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. – Romans 8:1-5

And here are a few additional observations I just posted on the devotion thread:

When the person of the Holy Spirit is named as “Spirit” the word is capitalized both in the Old Testament and the New. References to the “Holy Ghost” are always capitalized. Likewise, the term “Comforter” is capitalized in the New Testament. But the name “Holy Spirit” is capitalized only in this passage which says that we may ask for the Holy Spirit and the Father will give Him to us:

If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall [your] heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? - Luke 11:13

Conversely, it is possible to quench the Spirit:

Quench not the Spirit. – 1 Thessalonians 5:19

In these passages, the Spirit in heaven appears as seven fold:

John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace [be] unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne; - Revelation 1:4

And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. – Revelation 3:1

And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and [there were] seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God. – Revelation 4:7

And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth. – Revelation 5:6

I believe the above passages suggest (especially the last one) that God is One as described in John 17, that His persons include the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit but that there does not exist a “bright line” between them. We cannot tell where the Father ends and the Son begins because the Son is that fully surrendered to the Father. Likewise, we cannot tell where the Son ends and the Holy Spirit begins because the Holy Spirit is fully surrendered as well. And in all seven manifestations of the Spirit, we cannot tell where the one ends and the next begins.

An interesting discussion might be whether the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, is one of the seven or the sum.

As a sidebar comment, the term spirit (not capitalized) is also a name for ministering angels:

And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. But unto the Son [he saith], Thy throne, O God, [is] for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness [is] the sceptre of thy kingdom. – Hebrews 1:6-8

But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool? Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation? - Hebrews 1:13-14

So we who are born again have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, the Holy Ghost as described throughout the Gospel of John (especially chapters 3, 15, 16, 17) Romans 8 and 1 Corinthians 2 --- and we also have the help of ministering spirits. Only the Holy Spirit indwells.

Good article. I concur, although paragragh #9, I believe is a bit mistaken when it states there is no evidence in the NT that the Holy Spirit is automatically given upon salvation. Quite the opposite, the salvation itself is evidence of that indwelling.

The topical study would include the sealing ministry of the Holy Spirit.

In Eph 4:30 we are commanded not to grieve the Holy Spirit, whereby we are sealed until the day of redemption.

In 2Cor 1:21,22 we are also mentioned as having been sealed by the Holy Spirit in our hearts as earnest, similar to a down payment or guarantee of our salvation.

A vocabulary regarding the Holy Spirit is of fundamental understanding when studying these issues. Discern between indwelling, filling, grieving, and quenching.

Upon faith in Christ and faith alone, we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit.

Indwelling is not the same as the filling of the Spirit, although our initial salvation is accompanied by a filling of the Spirit.

The indwelling of the Spirit provides a temple for the indwelling of the Son in each and every believer.

Man is body, soul and spirit. Since Adam and the fall in the Garden, man is initially dichotomous or simply body and soul, dead or separate from a living spirit.

Upon faith in Christ and Christ alone, the Holy Spirit makes that faith efficacious for salvation by the creation of the living human spirit in the believer.

We are sealed by 5 sealings associated with the Holy Spirit.

I. Seal of Efficiacious Grace. God the Holy Spirit puts His seal upon the faith alone of the unbeliever to make it effective for salvation.

II. The sealing of Eternal Life. God the Holy Spirit guarantees eternal life at the point of salvation by creating the human spirit, which God the Father imputes eternal life.

III. The seal of eternal security in time.

At the moment of salvation, God the Holy Spirit seals us for eternal security. No believer can undo what God has done. To sin is to grieve the Holy Spirit. Quenching the Holy Spirit is the act of human volition choosing not to continue to grow and/or walk through Christ. To be filled with the Holy Spirit is to allow the Holy Spirit control the battlefield of the soul, while the indwelliing of the Holy Spirit is a permanent seal of the Spirit by the creation of the human spirit and our spirit being alive which is only from God.

Eph 4:30 And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, in whom ye were sealed unto the day of redemption.

Whenever we sin, as believers we have been faced with a temptation and have chosen by our own personal volition to think independently of the Spirit. As soon as our thinking strays from Him, not the temptation or initial thought, but the consequential thinking when we stray, we have given control of our thinking to the old sin nature vice remaining filled with the Spirit. That sin is not merely a change in our own state, but it also grieves the Holy Spirit.

Our sins are forgiven and they have already been paid for by Jesus Christ on the Cross. The sin and salvation are not really the issue here. That has already been settled. What is the issue and the battle objective is the volition of the believer in choosing God, remaining filled with the Spirit, in order that the many rewards predestined for us and placed in escrow for us in heaven might be rewarded to us when we arrive. Where we grieve the Spirit, we don't get away with anything.....we still have salvation, but we lose many of those rewards which would have been ours had we remained faithful in all things through Christ continually.

IV. The sealing of our personal invisible gifts.

The Father has provided the annoiting and sealed us by a 'down-payment' of the Spirit in our hearts,...(portion of our thinking which is a matured essence developed after dynamic thinking which is characterized as our selves) Recognition of the Spirit in our hearts is another seal of our eternal security.

2Cor 1:21,22 Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, [is] God;...Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.

Anointing or unction [1 Jn 2:20,27] is identified with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, but is not identical with the 'filling of the Holy Spirit'. [Acts 4:27, 10:38; 2 Cor 1:21]

1 Jn 2:20,27 But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things....As for you, let that abide in you which ye heard from the beginning. If that which ye heard from the beginning abide in you, ye also shall abide in the Son, and in the Father.....And this is the promise which he promised us, even the life eternal....And as for you, the anointing which ye received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any one teach you; but as his anointing teacheth you; concerning all things, and is true, and is no lie, and even as it taught you, ye abide in him.

Acts 4:27 for of a truth in this city against thy holy Servant Jesus, whom thou didst anoint, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, were gathered together,

Acts 10:38 even Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.

V. The Holy Spirit seals us for the Redemption of the Body.

Redemption of the soul occurs at the moment of salvation. Redemption of the body occurs on the Rapture or Resurrection

Rom 3:24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

Gal 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed [is] every one that hangeth on a tree

Eph 1:7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

Col 1:13-14 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated [us] into the kingdom of his dear Son: ..In whom we have redemption through his blood, [even] the forgiveness of sins:

Rom 8:23 And not only [they], but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, [to wit], the redemption of our body.