The Gift of the Holy Spirit

Rom 5:5 "And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us."  Among the greatest gifts that the Father has given us is the Holy Spirit.  Since Pentecost the Spirit has been available to all who call on His Name.  Through the Spirit, God pours out His love upon us.  Through the person of the Holy Spirit we have intimate access to the Father.
Luke 11:13 "If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"
In the Old Testament the Spirit of God was poured out to only a few.  Often only one or two men in a generation were anointed by the Holy Spirit.  However, before Jesus went back to the Father He made us a promise.  He told us that He was not abandoning us, that it was necessary for Him to go back to the Father so that the Spirit could come.  While Jesus was in His physical form He chose to limit Himself to time and space.  The Spirit has no such limitations and so He can reside in each one of us at the same time.
John 14:16-17 "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever— the Spirit of truth."
The gift of the Holy Spirit is one of the most neglected ones in the modern American church.  We have, in essence, designed a new Trinity that fits our intellectual mindset.  The Father, Son and Holy Bible with the Bible replacing any need for the Holy Spirit in our lives.  The argument is that with the completion of the New Testament we have everything we need because God's revelation is complete.
While it is true that doctrinally everything needed for our salvation is contained in the Bible it would be foolish to believe that all there is to know about God is contained in the Bible.  Before you accuse me of heresy let's see what the Bible itself has to say on the topic:
John 21:25 " Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written."
While the revelation of God's attributes and mode of salvation are complete and cannot be added to, it does not mean that God has stopped talking to us or revealing Himself to us through His Holy Spirit.  While the Bible gives us intellectual knowledge it is only through the work of the Spirit that it becomes relational knowledge.
It is the Spirit that reveals to us the love of the Father.  He does that in an individual and personal way.  The Spirit illuminates and empowers God's Word.
John 14:26-27  "But the Counselor, 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."
This is not to diminish the Word of God in any way.  Anything that we think we hear from the Holy Spirit needs to be run through the filter of the Word because God always holds true to His character and His character is revealed in the Word.  It's just that while we revere the Scriptures we should never, ever substitute them for the giver of the Word.
No, it is through the Spirit that God reveals His love for us in an intimate way.  Let's not forget the sacred romance.  We are Christ's bride.  God's woos us to Himself by faith in His Son through the revelation of His Spirit. 
I love to worship God.  In worship I get transported to the throne room of God.  While I love to sing His praises, I long to be invited to the bridal chamber where I can become one with Christ.  It is the Spirit that brings this revelation and through His power makes it possible; "because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit".
What joy, what rapture, that He should love me so much that He would give me the gift of His Holy Spirit.

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