In discussing the topic of the Trinity, we must consider the personhood of the Holy Spirit. When I refer to the personhood of the Holy Spirit, I am not suggesting that the Holy Spirit is in any way human. But rather, He is a living spiritual being with unique characteristics. Many believe that the Holy Spirit is not a spiritual being but merely the active force of God. However, in my opinion, this view is dangerous because it degrades and minimises a member of the Godhead. Admittedly, much about the Holy Spirit is hard to understand. But, that said, there is still much we can learn from scripture, particularly the New Testament, about the Holy Spirit. It is also possible to refute from scripture the idea that the Holy Spirit is a force and make the case that He is a divine being who participates and helps form the Triune nature of God.
So since some believe that the Holy Spirit is only a force, lets consider some of their arguments and examine them in light of scripture. So, what are the arguments that people make to support the idea that the Holy Spirit is merely a force or a power?
1. The Holy Spirit is a concept personified.
Sometimes to make a concept more tangible, Biblical writers and teachers often personify it. We see this method of teaching being utilised in various parts of scripture but especially in Proverbs. In Proverbs 8, we read that wisdom “calls out”, “she takes her stand”, and speaks in the first person. It’s not that the writer of Proverbs believes that wisdom is a real person, but personifying wisdom as a lady makes her easier to explain and, therefore, easier to grasp. Consider also lady folly in Proverbs 9:13-18. In Genesis 4:7, as a warning to Cain regarding his anger towards Abel, God says, “sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.” Of course, sin wasn’t literally a beast crouching outside Cain’s body. God wisely externalised sin and described it as a beast to help Cain see the danger he was in because of his attitude towards Abel. Since the Bible externalises and personifies various concepts, some suppose that Biblical writers are using the same technique when they refer to the Holy Spirit using personal pronouns and describing Him with specific attributes. They believe these are not in any way meant to lead us to conclude the Holy Spirit is anything but the active power of God. As a force or a power, the Holy Spirit cannot really hear, think or do anything of its own volition.
However, this view of the Holy Spirit is highly problematic for several reasons. Firstly, when Biblical writers apply literary devices such as externalising or personifying, it is usually self-evident that is what they are doing. Additionally, often the Holy Spirits’ personal qualities and attributes are mentioned across various genres and alongside other personalities that are clearly not personified. For instance, in John 16:5-15 Jesus is speaking plainly to his disciples about the truth of his impending departure from this world back to God. In doing so, He speaks of the coming of the Holy Spirit and describes activities that only a being could undertake. Jesus says that when the Holy Spirit, the “Counsellor”, comes, He will “convict” the world of sin and righteousness. A force cannot counsel nor can it convict. Jesus goes on to say that the Spirit would “guide” the apostles into all truth, “speak” what He “hears”, and “tell” (explain) of things to come. He would also “take” information from Jesus and make it known to the disciples. The Holy Spirit, in this passage, is mentioned as a person alongside Jesus, and would be able to interact as a person with real people such as the apostles. There is nothing in this passage to suggest personification. As a person, the Holy Spirit can counsel, convict, guide, speak, hear, explain and take.
In Acts 5:1-10, the incident regarding Ananias and Sapphira would be the most inappropriate time for Luke to use personification. It was a severe incident that led to two deaths. Also, the book of Acts, in general, is not of a genre where you would expect to find the use of personification in a major way. Looking more closely at the passage, we see various people who are real in every sense. Satan, Ananias, Sapphira, Peter, the young men, God and even Jesus are mentioned. I doubt anyone would consider that these people are concepts personified. That being the case, why would the Holy Spirit be the exception? Since the Holy Spirit is mentioned as a person alongside real identities, it makes sense that He is also real. Adding to the weight of evidence in favour of the Holy Spirit being a person and not a force is what Ananias and Sapphira did to the Holy Spirit. They lied to Him. You can’t lie to a force or power. The Spirit was also “tested” by Ananias and Sapphira. You can’t test (They tested the Spirit in their effort to get away with evil) a force or power in the way they did it. Interestingly, those who believe that the Holy Spirit is a force seem to have no problem believing that Satan, mentioned in this passage, is a living spiritual being even though he could easily be explained as a concept personified using their criteria.
In Ephesians 4:30, Paul, amidst instructions on avoiding evil, writes, “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you are sealed for the day of redemption.” Personifying a force makes no sense in this section of scripture. In addition, the Holy Spirit is mentioned alongside Jesus and the Father (consider 4:18, 20, 32 and 5:1). No one would conclude that the Father and Jesus are concepts personified in this section, so why conclude that about the Holy Spirit? What makes Ephesians 4:30 particularly interesting is Paul’s allusion to the fact that the Holy Spirit has feelings. Specifically, according to this passage, the Holy Spirit can be grieved. A power or force does not have emotions and, therefore, cannot be grieved.
Also consider Acts 10:19, 13:3, and 15:28, where the Holy Spirit directed people, provided instructions and spoke. These are passages where the technique of personification doesn’t make sense, and the Holy Spirit is mentioned alongside real people to work with them and through them for the kingdom’s sake.
The belief that the personal attributes of the Holy Spirit can be explained away by literary techniques such as personification doesn’t make sense in many passages. Therefore, it is reasonable to conclude from these that the Holy Spirit is a spiritual being who is a member of the Godhead.
2. Living beings can’t fill people.
Another argument that some offer in favour of the Holy Spirit being a force is that a living being cannot fill others with parts of themselves (Acts 4:31, 6:3, 7:55 etc.). But such an argument diminishes the power of God. Human standards and the physics of this universe do not confine God. Unlike humans and other beings, God is an all-powerful Spirit that is not bound by the same limitations. However, if that is not sufficient to dismiss the argument that the Holy Spirit is a mere force or power then what about Satan? Most proponents of the Holy Spirit being a force acknowledge the reality and personhood of Satan. They accept that he is a fallen created being who is an enemy of God and His people. If Satan is a spiritual being and not a force, how could he enter the heart of Judas (Read Luke 22:3). Or how could Satan fill the hearts of Ananias and Sapphira and cause them to lie to the Holy Spirit? (Acts 5:3). If people can accept that Satan, an evil spiritual being/person, can fill people’s hearts to do evil. Why is it so difficult to believe that Holy Spirit as a member of the Godhead can fill Christians with His presence and empower them to preach the gospel and do good?
3. Spirits don’t have personality traits.
A weak argument that is sometimes mentioned in support of the Holy Spirit being a force is that He is a spirit. He is God’s Holy Spirit, and spirits don’t have their own personality traits. Firstly, who says? God the Father is also Spirit (John 4:24), yet everyone acknowledges He is a being, not a mere force. Angels are spirits, yet they have distinct personalities (Hebrews 1:14). So, this kind of argument makes no sense.
4. The Holy Spirit lacks a proper name.
Another weak argument is that the Holy Spirit doesn’t have a proper name. He is just described as a Spirit who is Holy, indicating that He comes from the Father. However, even if the term Holy Spirit is a description, that doesn’t mean it isn’t a name or that the Holy Spirit isn’t a spiritual being. Many people in the Bible went by names that were descriptions of various things. For instance, just to name a few, Adam means man (Genesis 2:20), Eve was the mother of all living (Genesis 3:20), Abraham means father of many (Genesis 17:5), Sarah means princess/woman of strength (Genesis 17:15), Peter’s name means a small rock (Matthew 16:18) and even Jesus means the Lord saves (Matthew 1:21, see also verse 23). However, if people want to get technical, why does Jesus order his disciples to be baptised “in the NAME of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit…” (Matthew 28:19). You can’t get baptised into a name if the term Holy Spirit isn’t a name given to a spiritual being. And, by the way, the Holy Spirit is also called God (Acts 5:3-4).
5. The Holy Spirit is more like a transmitter.
Some who believe the Holy Spirit is force consider Him to be like a transmitter for God. A medium through which God can speak and transfer power. But that degrades the Spirit and doesn’t make sense in light of the passages that indicate that the Holy Spirit can speak and act. Additionally, in Romans 8:26-27, Paul says of the Holy Spirit that He is an intercessor, not a transmitter. Intercessors are active in both speaking and advocacy. The Holy Spirit speaks and advocates on behalf of Christians before the Father. There is a clear interaction between all parties. You would not have that if the Holy Spirit were a conduit or medium. Similarly, Jesus is also mentioned as an intercessor between God and man, especially regarding their sins (Romans 8:34, 1 John 2:1). Would anyone suggest that Jesus is an impersonal transmitter or medium?
Final Thought:
In analysing these arguments that are held by those who believe that the Holy Spirit is a force and not a member of the Godhead, its should be clear that there are significant holes in their reasoning. For me, it makes much more sense to understand the Holy Spirit as spiritual being with His own distinctive personality but at the same time an equal member of the Godhead. Of course, understanding the Holy Spirit in this way explains why the Holy Spirit is mentioned alongside the Father and the Son in so many passages (Matthew 3:13-17, 28:16-20, Romans 1:1-6, 1 Corinthians 2:6-16, Ephesians 1:3-14). As Paul says in 2 Corinthians 13:14, “May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”
