Person (13) spirit

We think of our Spirit as the part of our person where the Holy Spirit dwells. It is like an antenna that enables us to link with God and operate in the spiritual realm.

Deducing the role of the spirit from the New Testament is quite difficult. The Greek word “pneuma” is also the word for wind and breath. This word is used for the Holy Spirit, evil spirits and our human spirit. The Greek text is all in upper case so, we can only determine which of these the New Testament is referring by the context. It has far more about the Spirit than it does about our spirits.

The best references in the New Testament is those where God is said to dwell in our spirits.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit (Phil 4:23; Gal 6:18).

The Lord be with your spirit (2 Tim 4:22).

The Holy Spirit dwells in the Spirit of the person who believes. The spirit is probably the place where evil spirits dwell, if a person is possessed, but New Testament does not actually say that.

The spirit is closely connected to the heart (2 Cor 1:22).

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you (Ez 36:26).

The person with a new heart has a new spirit too.

Our spirit is the source of our life. In the beginning, God breathed life into Adam.

Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath (spirit) of life, and the man became a living being (Gen 2:7).

When Jesus touched the dead girl “her spirit returned” (Luke 8:55). When Jesus died on the cross, “he gave up his spirit” (Matt 26:41). When Stephen was stoned, he surrendered his spirit to Jesus (Acts 7:59). A body without a spirit is dead (James 2:26).

When we pray in the Spirit, it is our spirit that prays.

If I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful (1 Cor 14:14).

When prophets are prophesying, they receive the words spoken by the Holy Spirit in their spirits.

The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets (1 Cor 14:32).

The Holy Spirit speaks into our spirit.

The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children (Rom 8:16).

Our spirit also knows our own thoughts.

For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them (1 Cor 2:11).

Christians should need to be strong in their Spirit. John the Baptist was strong in his spirit when he was a child.

And the child grew and became strong in spirit (Luke 1:80).

Our spirit can be easily crushed by events around us.

My spirit grew faint (Psalm 77:3).

Answer me quickly, Lord; my spirit fails (Psalm 143:7).

Grief and sadness weakens our spirit.

When the heart is sad, the spirit is crushed (Prov 15:13).

However God loves to restore a broken spirit (Is 15:17; 66:2).

We nourish our spirit by engaging in prayer and listening to the Holy Spirit. Jesus said to his disciples,

Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak (Matt 26:41).

We are in the same situation as the disciples, except the Holy Spirit has been given to us. Our flesh is weak, but our spirits are willing. We must pray and seek the Spirit, so our spirits are strong.

Paul served God out of his spirit

God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness (Rom 1:9).

We do not want our spirit to be dead on the day of judgement (1 Cor 5:5).