A 05 - the spirit and jesus
THE SPIRIT AND JESUS THE relation sustained by the Holy Spirit to Jesus Christ is a twofold one. First: He predicted by the holy prophets the great facts in the life of the coming one. Second: He associated himself with that one after he came.
1. THE TIME OF HIS COMING WAS CLEABLY FORETOLD. He was to come "in the last days," or in the end of the Jewish Dispensation. "And it shall come to pass in the latter days, that the mountain of Jehovah’s house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it" (Isaiah 2:2).
2. HE WAS TO COME WHILE THE SECOND TEMPLE WAS IN EXISTENCE. "Behold, I send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant, whom ye desire, behold, he cometh, saith Jehovah of hosts" (Malachi 3:1).
3. THE PLACE OF HIS NATIVITY WAS A MATTER OF PROPHECY. "But thou, Bethlehem Ephrathah, which art little to be among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall one come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting" (Micah 5:2).
4. HIS LINEAGE WAS DECLARED IN THE JEWISH SCRIPTURES.
(1) He was to be a descendant of Abraham. "In thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed" (Genesis 12:3). "For verily not of angels doth he take hold, but he taketh hold of the seed of Abraham" (Hebrews 2:16).
(2) He was to be of the tribe of Judah. "For it is evident that our Lord hath sprung out of Judah; as to which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning priests" (Hebrews 7:14).
(3) He was to be of the house of David. "And it shall come to pass in that day, that the root of Jesse, which standeth for an ensign of the peoples, unto him shall the nations seek; and his resting-place shall be glorious" (Isaiah 11:10).
5. HIS CHARACTER WAS MINUTELY DESCRIBED BY THE PROPHETS.
(1) His wisdom. "And the Spirit of Jehovah shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of Jehovah" (Isaiah 11:2).
(2) His obedience. "For I am come down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me" (John 6:38).
(3) His love of righteousness. "Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated wickedness: Therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows" (Psalms 45:7).
(4) His gentleness and tenderness. "He will not cry, nor lift up his voice, nor cause it to be heard in the street. A bruised reed will he not break, and a dimly burning wick will he not quench: he will bring forth justice in truth" (Isaiah 42:2-3).
(5) His compassion. "The Spirit of the Lord Jehovah is upon me; because Jehovah hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound" (Isaiah 61:1).
6. HIS BETRAYAL AND TRIAL. As we approach the closing scenes of Christ’s life the prophecies become more minute and remarkable.
(1) The betrayal. "And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my hire; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my hire thirty pieces of silver. And Jehovah said unto me, Cast it unto the potter, the goodly price that I was prized at by them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them unto the potter, in the house of Jehovah" (Zechariah 11:12-13).
(2) His demeanor when on trial. "He was oppressed, yet when he was afflicted he opened not his mouth; as a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep that before its shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth" (Isaiah 53:7).
(3) When crucified, the soldiers were to part his garments among them and cast lots for his vesture. "They part my garments among them, And upon my vesture do they cast lots" (Psalms 22:18).
(4) He was to be numbered with the transgressors. "Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he poured out his soul unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors" (Isaiah 53:12).
(5) He was to perish amid cruel mockings. "But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people. All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, Commit thyself unto Jehovah; let him deliver him: let him rescue him, seeing he delighted in him" (Psalms 22:6-8).
7. HIS RESURRECTION AND CORONATION.
(1) He was to rise from the dead.
"For thou wilt not leave my soul to Sheol; neither wilt thou suffer thy holy one to see corruption" (Psalms 16:10).
(2) His ascension was also a subject of prophecy. "Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led away captives; thou hast received gifts among men, yea, among the rebellious also, that Jehovah God might dwell with them" (Psalms 68:18).
(3) His coronation is foretold and described. "I saw in the night visions, and, behold, there came with the clouds of heaven one like unto a son of man, and he came even to the ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations, and languages should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed" (Daniel 7:13-14). The above are only a few of the many predictions made by the Holy Spirit as to the character, life, sacrifice and dominion of our Lord. We notice now the work of the Spirit in, upon and through him.
1. HE WAS CONCEIVED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. "Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found with child of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 1:18). "And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee: wherefore also the holy thing which is begotten shall be called the Son of God" (Luke 1:35).
2. HE WAS ANOINTED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. "And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway from the water: and lo, the heavens were opened unto him and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming upon him; and lo, a voice out of the heavens, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:16-17). "And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in the Jordan. And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens rent asunder, and the Spirit as a dove descending upon him: and a voice came out of the heavens, Thou art my beloved Son, in thee I am well pleased" (Mark 1:9-11). "Now it came to pass, when all the people were baptized, that, Jesus also having been baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended in a bodily form, as a dove, upon him, and a voice came out of heaven, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased" (Luke 3:21-22). "And John bare witness, saying, I have beheld the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven; and it abode upon him, and I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize in water, he said unto me, Upon whomsoever thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and abiding upon him, the same is he that baptizeth in the Holy Spirit" (John 1:32-33).
3. HE WAS LED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. "Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil’’ (Matthew 4:1). "And straightway the Spirit driveth him forth into the wilderness" (Mark 1:12). "And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was led in the Spirit in the wilderness’’ (Luke 4:1).
4. HE WROUGHT MIRACLES BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. "But if I by the Spirit of God cast out demons, then is the kingdom of God come upon you" (Matthew 12:28). "But if I by the finger of God cast out demons, then is the kingdom of God come upon you" (Luke 11:20).
5. HE OFFERED HIMSELF UP THROUGH THE HOLY SPIRIT. "How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish unto God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" (Hebrews 9:14).
6. HE WAS RAISED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. "But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth in you, he that raised up Christ Jesus from the dead shall give life also to your mortal bodies through his Spirit that dwelleth in you" (Romans 8:11). "Who was declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead" (Romans 1:4).
7. HE GAVE THE COMMISSION BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. "The former treatise I made, O Theophilus, concerning all that Jesus began both to do and to teach, until the day in which he was received up, after that he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit unto the apostles whom he had chosen" (Acts 1:1-2).
8. HIS ASCENSION AND CORONATION WERE ANNOUNCED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. "Being therefore by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he hath poured forth this, which you see and hear" (Acts 2:33). "Let all the house of Israel therefore know assuredly, that God hath made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom ye crucified" (Acts 2:36).
Thus the Spirit predicted the coming of Jesus and the great facts of his birth, baptism, anointing, miracles, death, burial and resurrection, ascension and coronation, and then came from the Father to carry on the work of extending his kingdom. In the light of this testimony we can truly say with Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:3:
"Wherefore I make known unto you, that no man speaking in the Spirit of God saith, Jesus is anathema: and no man can say, Jesus is Lord, but in the Holy Spirit."
"I manifested thy name unto the men whom thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them to me; and they have kept thy word. Now they know that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are from thee: for the words which thou gavest me I have given unto them; and they received them, and know of a truth that I came forth from thee, and they believe that thou didst send me. . . . While I was with them, I kept them in thy name which thou hast given me: and I guarded them, and not one of them perished, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled. . . . I have given them thy word; and the world hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldst take them from the world, but that thou shouldst keep them from the evil one" (John 17:6-8; John 17:12; John 17:14-15).