Our world can often feel askew, upside-down. How can things be righted? How do we get in touch with what God is doing? The Holy Spirit. Who is the Holy Spirit? What is he doing in this world? And where is he going with it? We explore all of these questions in our recent message, The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit.
CITY LIFE STATEMENT OF FAITH*
The Holy Spirit is fully divine, a full person of the Trinity. He inspired men to write the Scriptures, illuminates us to understand truth, convicts us of sin, righteousness, and judgment and exalts the person and work of Christ. He calls men to the Savior, and accomplishes regeneration. At the moment of regeneration, the Spirit baptizes every Christian into the Body of Christ. The Spirit also cultivates Christian character, comforts Christians, and bestows the spiritual gifts, all of which are valid today, for service to God through his church. The Spirit seals us unto the day of final redemption. His presence is the guarantee that God will bring us into the full stature of Christ. He also enlightens and empowers the church for worship, mission, and service.
RESOURCES
- The Holy Spirit in Mission – In this excellent book, Gary Tyra emphasizes the Spirit’s prophetic work through the church, in speech and action, for the mission of God.
- The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament – In this brief book Chris Wright does a great job explaining who the Spirit is in the Old Testament and how that relates to our New Testament experience.
- The Spirit-filled Church – This book by a veteran church and organizational leader contains a lot of wisdom for Spirit-filled living. The chapters on leadership and prayer are excellent.
- Practicing the Power – A balanced book on the miraculous gifts of the Spirit. You may not agree with everything but it’s helpful in exploring key passages on the miraculous gifts and how to apply them.
- The Holy Spirit – A solid theology of the Spirit, this book provides a lot of insight on the Scriptures concerning person and work of the Holy Spirit.
*This statement includes excerpts from other orthodox Christian statements of faith, including the Gospel Coalition.