"It is the Holy Spirit’s job to magnify and glorify Jesus, and bring us into the truth." Kathy Spampinato

The Apostle John was very close to Jesus while on this earth, and is the author of the Gospel of John, and Revelation, which describes the revelations of heaven that John received in a powerful vision. In his gospel, John quotes the words of Jesus that introduce the Holy Spirit.

John 14:15-17a ESV “If you love me, keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever- the Spirit of truth.”

Verse 25 “All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”

John 15:26 “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father- the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father- he will testify about me.”

John 16:13-14a “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is to come. He will glorify me…”

It is the Holy Spirit’s job to magnify and glorify Jesus, and bring us into the truth. He will be our advocate and guide. There is still more written about the insight and truth the Holy Spirit brings to us. The prophet Isaiah foretold the coming of Jesus, hundreds of years before His birth. Here is how Isaiah describes how the Spirit of God would rest on Jesus.

Isaiah 11:1-2 ESV “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him- the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the LORD- and he will delight in the fear of the LORD.”

When John was called up to heaven in a vision, he describes it like this:

Revelation 4:1,5 ‘After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it.’ “From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. In front of the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God.”

Rev 3:1,6 “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars... Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Scripture is describing seven lamps and seven stars in heaven. It is Jesus who is holding them. Seven is the Biblical number of completion and perfection. The flashes of lightning and peals of thunder accompany the Spirit of God. Isaiah and John both explain that the Spirit is a seven-fold spirit. There are seven different characteristics displayed. Let’s take a look at the Isaiah verse again. Each of the functions is indeed the Holy Spirit being mentioned with seven different terms. We can encounter God’s manifest presence and all seven functions flow out of His presence.

·       The Spirit of God- Presence,        Wisdom,        Understanding,        Counsel,        Might,    Knowledge,        the Fear of the Lord.

Proverbs 9:10 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”

Psalm 111:10 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding…”

God is offering an invitation to each of us.

Revelation 3:20 “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.”

An invitation to experience the seven-fold Spirit of God is open to each of us. God is saying to us: “Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” As you seek wisdom and understanding about the things of God, invite the Holy Spirit to speak to you and reveal Jesus in all His glory! That is what He does.

Romans 8:2 “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.”