Articles of Faith

We affirm that the Holy Spirit is God with the Father and the Son. He is a person. He was at the beginning of Creation (Genesis 1:2), and came to earth as the fulfillment of Christ’s promise to the Church.  (Acts 1:8; John 14:16-17) Today, He convicts, regenerates, indwells, seals, infills, empowers, and guides the believer.

Further, we affirm that the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, is God making Him co-equal, co-existent, and co-substantial, being one with the Father and the Son (Matthew 28:19; Acts 5:3-4; 1 Corinthians 3:16).

The Holy Spirit’s deity is manifested by His possession of the Incommunicable attributes of:

• Omnipotence (Creation),
• Omniscience (1 Corinthians 2:10-11),
• Omnipresence (Psalms 139:7),
• Truth (1 John 5:6), and
• Holiness (Luke 11:13).

The Holy Spirit is not merely a force or influence but a person as evidenced by His possession of intellect (Romans 8:26-27; 1 Corinthians 2:10), emotion (Ephesians 4:30), and will (1 Corinthians 12:11).

As God the Holy Spirit, He has been involved in work only associated with God:

• Creation (Genesis 1:1-3, 26; Job 33:4; Psalms 33:6),
• Giving of Life (2 Peter 1:20-21),
• Revelation and Inspiration of  God’s Word (2 Peter 1:20-21, Matthews 22:43; Acts 1:16; 28:25),
• the Incarnation of Christ (Matthew 1:18, 20; Luke. 1:35); and
• Christ’s Resurrection (Romans 8:11).

After Christ’s Ascension the Holy Spirit came on the Day of Pentecost fulfilling Christ’s promise to send another Comforter to the Church (John 14:16-17; 15:26; Acts 1:4-5; 2:1-18).

The Spirit now restrains and reproves the World of sin, righteousness, and judgement to come (2 Thessalonians 2:7-8; John 16:7-11) and leads the believer into God’s truth, knowledge of God’s future plan, and the glorification of Christ [He does not glorify Himself but the Son (John 16:12-15)].

The Spirit works for the believer in that He:

• regenerates (John 3:3-8; Titus 3:5),
• baptizes (1 Corinthians 12:13),
• seals (Ephesians 1:13-14),
• indwells (Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20),
• sanctifies (2 Thessalonians 2:13),
• gifts (1 Corinthians 12:1-11),
• fills (Ephesians 5:18),
• comforts and teaches (John 14:26),
• guides (Romans 8:14),
• assures (Romans 8:16),
• intercedes (Romans 8:26),
• illuminates (1 Corinthians 2:6-16), and
• enables and empowers the believer to manifest the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23; Acts 1:8).

The Holy Spirit is the down payment of our eternal inheritance and He is not to be:

• lied to (Acts 5:3-4),
• resisted (Acts 7:51),
• grieved (Ephesians 4:30), or
• quenched (1 Thessalonians 5:19).