Holy Spirit: Always Has Been, Always Will Be

The Holy Spirit has always been and will always be. This facet of the trinity was present at Creation and His characteristics were evidenced by the anointed ones in the Old Testament, the inception of Jesus on Mary (the immaculate conception) (Matthew 1:18-25), at the Baptism of Jesus in the river Jordan (Matthew 3:13-17), and in throughout the lives of the apostles and disciples after the death and resurrection of Jesus (Acts 2 specifically). Following the Holy Spirit is difficult through both the Old and the New Testaments, but it is important to glean from both covenants to be able to understand the current and relevant work of the Holy Spirit in the earth today. First, the understanding must be made that the Holy Spirit was not a new idea God had after His son had died upon the cross and rose again! It is significant to notice the spirit of God, or Ruach, in Hebrew is mentioned at the time of Creation in Genesis 1:1-1, “First this: God created the Heavens and Earth—all you see, all you don’t see. Earth was a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky blackness. God’s Spirit brooded like a bird above the watery abyss” (The Message Version). There is a common misconception that the Holy Spirit was not present or operating in the Old Testament. Yes, the death, burial, and resurrection changed how the Spirit of God was able to move on the earth, but there was not a new part of the trinity which magically appeared as a result of Christ’s work. To evidence my assertion, I looked for the next time the Hebrew word Ruach was used in the Strong’s online concordance. The next time which this phrase is mentioned, the Spirit of God, is in Genesis 41:38, “And Pharaoh said unto his servants ‘Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?’ ”. Therefore the Spirit of God was indeed present on someone. The Spirit of God on someone is what I will call this the anointing. When there was an anointing on a priest, prophet or king in the Old Testament there the Spirit of God moved and lead. This anointing though was different from the indwelling of the Holy Spirit which is seen in the New Testament. Therefore, emphasis and functions of the Holy Spirit have evolved throughout different eras of the church from its beginnings in the Hebrew nations, to the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, and onto the Gentiles becoming Christ followers and beyond. Just as there was a master plan for Jesus to be the Savior of the world, so is the divine outpouring of the Spirit of God tied to the great plan and purpose of an all knowing Godhead whose ways are never random! The Holy Spirit, after the resurrection and ascension of Jesus into Heaven, is now able be tapped into by all mankind. Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit as in John 14:16-17: “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, and Standby), that He may remain with you forever––The Spirit of Truth, Whom the world cannot receive (welcome, take to its heart), because it does not see Him or know and recognize Him. But you know and recognize Him, for He lives with you [constantly] and will be in you.” (The Amplified Bible).
This was a turning point for the apostles and disciples of Christ, because Jesus was promising that the Spirit of God who empowered Him in His life and earthly ministry was now going to come onto all believers! The apostles did not experience the indwelling of the Holy Spirit until they were the first to be baptized in the Spirit with the express evidence of speaking in tongues, or as the founder of great university says: prayer language. This story can be found in Acts 2, where the apostles had gathered together to celebrate the feast of Pentecost. While they were all gathered there, a mighty wind came on the apostles and the first “tongues” were spoken, “And they were all filled (diffused