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The Role of the Holy Spirit in Salvation 1. Our baptism and rebirth (born again) cannot be reversed. The conception and birth of a baby cannot be reversed: John 1:13 " —children not born by human parents or by human desire or a husband’s decision, but by God." John 3:3 Jesus replied, “I tell you the solemn truth, unless a person is born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 3:4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter his mother’s womb and be born a second time, can he?” 3:5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the solemn truth, unless a person is born of water and spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 3:6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Titus 3:4 But “when the kindness of God our Savior appeared and His love for mankind, 3:5 He saved us not by works of righteousness that we have done but on the basis of his mercy, through the washing of the new birth and the renewing of the Holy Spirit, 3:6 whom He poured out on us in full measure through Jesus Christ our Savior. 1 Peter 1:23 "You have been born anew, not from perishable but from imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God." 2 Peter 1:4 "Through these things he has bestowed on us his precious and most magnificent promises, so that by means of what was promised you may become partakers of the divine nature, after escaping the worldly corruption that is produced by evil desire." 1 John 3:9 "Everyone who is fathered by God does not practice sin, because God’s seed resides in him, and thus he is not able to sin, because he has been fathered by God." 2. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is a permanent part of the believer: John 7:37 On the last day of the feast, the greatest day, Jesus stood up and shouted out, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me, and 7:38 let the one who believes in me drink. Just as the scripture says, ‘From within him will flow rivers of living water.’” 7:39 (Now He said this about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were going to receive; for the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.) Romans 5:5 "And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us." Romans 8:9 "You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, this person does not belong to him." 1 Corinthains 2:12 "Now we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things that are freely given to us by God." 1 Corinthains 6:19 "Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?" 3. The baptism of the Holy Spirit that joins us to the body of Christ: 1 Corinthians 6:17 "But the one united with Christ is one spirit with Him." 1 Corinthians 12:13 "For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body. Whether we are Jews or Greeks or slaves or free we were all made to drink of the one Spirit." Galatians 3:23 "Now before faith came we were held in custody under the law, kept as prisoners until the coming faith would be revealed." 4. The presence and seal of the Holy Spirit will endure forever: 2 Corinthians 1:21 "But it is God who establishes us together with you in Christ and who anointed us, 1:22 who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a down payment." Ephesians 1:13 "And when you heard the word of truth (the gospel of your salvation)—when you believed in Christ—you were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit, 1:14 who is the initial installment of our inheritance, until the redemption of God’s own possession to the praise of His glory." Ephesians 4:30 "And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption."  Recommended Reading: Portions of this study were taken from "Major Bible Themes" Chafer/Walvoord pages 224-228. Zondervan Publishing House Revised Edition Copyright 1974 by Dallas Theological Seminary Academic and Professional Books Grand Rapids, MI 49530  |
