You Have a Comforter

I am learning something wonderful about the Holy Spirit. He has a unique characteristic; he does not like to talk about himself. He does not make himself the primary object of our attention.

I have tried earnestly to study the Holy Spirit, digging into entire volumes about him written by respected authors, books about his nature and personality. Some of these books are very deep and often hard to understand. They are all very interesting but not always enlightening. The fact is that they can’t instruct us or bring us closer to God because we can only understand what the Spirit himself reveals, and he won’t talk about himself!

I have tried digging into the meaning of the Holy Spirit’s names — Comforter, Paraclete, Advocate, Intercessor — looking for some insight as to who he is. I finally realized that we Christians don’t have to understand the person of the Holy Spirit because he doesn’t want to tell us hidden things about himself. All we need to know is that he is one of the Godhead, eternal, the very Spirit of Christ, sent down to this earth to live in us who believe. Even more important, his eyes are always on Christ!

The Holy Spirit doesn’t want us to know about him so much as to know about his mission, and that mission is to bring us to Jesus and to keep us in purity and holiness. He is always at work, making Christ known in our hearts; and he delights in our seeking knowledge about why he has come.

Jesus said, “When he, the Spirit of truth, has come, he will guide you into all truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak; and he will tell you things to come. He will glorify me, for he will take of what is mine and declare it to you. …These things I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:13-14, 33, NKJV).