December 26, 2025 | www.gospelofjesuschrist.blog | River Wilde
The Bible teaches us that there are THREE members of the Godhead.
God
Jesus Christ
The Holy Spirit, or Holy Ghost
So, what is the Holy Spirit? What is its purpose? How does a person receive it? Let’s go to the Bible for the answers:
The Holy Spirit is exactly as the title describes… It is a SPIRIT. It does not have a physical body, as it exists only in a spirit form.
It is explicitly named in passages of the Bible like: “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word (refers to Jesus), and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one (in purpose).”
The Holy Ghost possesses personal attributes, such as teaching, interceding, comforting, and prompting thoughts that would lead a person to safety, or guidance.
Defining Scripture related to the Holy Ghost
The Holy Ghost serves as the Comforter promised by Jesus in John 14:26: “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” He also convicts the world of sin (John 16:8), regenerates believers (Titus 3:5), and distributes spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12:7-11).
Personal Experience
When My son was killed in a motorcycle accident at a young age, I was completely ‘broken’ when I realized that he was gone. I immediately got down on my knees and asked God to help me navigate such a challenging hardship in my life. IMMEDIATELY after my prayer, I felt this overwhelming wave of PEACE gush throughout my body. It was the PEACE and COMFORT sent by God through the Holy Ghost. I had this feeling that I was not alone, and that God would help me in the leadership role that I would have in getting my family through such challenging event.
Think of this for a moment… How would God communicate with us, His followers? We know of a few times, recorded in the Bible, when God spoke with a verbal voice so that others could hear. Here is one of those occasions:
At Jesus’ baptism, a voice from heaven declared Him the beloved Son, audible to those present. Matthew 3:17 records: “And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
These verbal instances are rare. How do you think that God would communicate with YOU? He does it through the HOLY GHOST. As you continue to study the Bible and learn about God and Jesus Christ, you will experience that Holy Ghost communication with you. He does this through “Thoughts,” “Ideas” as well as leading to you to additional information, gospel talks, scriptures, or presentations by others, etc.
How is this possible, and how will we know it is the Holy Ghost and NOT our own thoughts? Let me share my own experiences that I have had to help you learn this concept.
As I was studying something about God, or even times when I had prayed for God to help me with something related to work, I always seemed to find the answer when I was taking a shower. =)
Thoughts and ideas would come to my mind. Brilliant solutions and teachings. I Honestly know that I am not as smart as the ideas and knowledge that was coming to my mind. It was the God communicating with me through the Holy Ghost, through my thoughts.
These thoughts were not VOICES not anything audible…Just THOUGHTS. So, why the shower?
We take the time to pray, but do we ever take the time to listen for God’s response? Each time that I would enter the shower, my mind was in a focused state of “listening” to my thoughts. No distractions, noise, or things that would take my focus away from listening…Just quiet focus. Being in the state of calm and listening made it possible to HEAR God speak to me through my thoughts.
I must tell you that the role of TEACHER that the Holy Ghost has is INCREDIABLE! Honestly, it is like have a personal tutor. I would certainly have to put in the time and effort to study, learn, or contemplate, but without fail, my TUTOR would enhance my learning, as some of my lack of knowledge would be filled in with new thoughts that were certainly not my own.
The Holy Ghost is also one of the ways that God helps us know what is true and what is not.
When “honest” Church leaders teach you some things that you later find out are not true, who then can you trust? You can ALWAYS trust God, and Jesus Christ. And just as important, THEY will tell you what the truth is and what is false. How do they do this?
There are two ways that I have found, that are solid ways to know that something is true from God. The first is that when I am studying a topic, and praying for God to help me know if it is true or not, I will have such a calm peaceful feeling for the things that I’m studying which are true.
And for the things that I study which are false, I will have a feeling of confusion…and a feeling that feels as if something is not right.
The second way, which is happening so frequently to me right now, is when I pray for answers and open my bible, I will be led to certain scriptures that actually answer the question that I am studying. And again, I will receive that comforting feeling inside as well when studying those scriptures that I am studying.
God works through other people as well in answering prayers using the Holy Ghost. Other people might be prompted to take action, which again is God getting involved. Let me again share a personal example…Something that I hold very sacred.
Our neighbor had a baby. This baby was about a month or two old at the time when this experience occurred.
My wife, received a very urgent prompting in her mind to rush over to this neighbor’s house. No logical reason, just an urgent FEELING that she needed to go there right away.
She dropped everything, and rushed over to the neighbor’s house and rang the doorbell. It took the neighbor a minute or two to answer the door, and she greeted my wife in a bathrobe.
The neighbor was just walking into the bathroom to take a shower when the doorbell rang. My wife, noticed the baby in a swing in the living room, and immediately said, I haven’t seen your baby yet, and walked over to the child. When my wife went to pick up the baby, it was blue and was not breathing.
The mother quickly took the baby and gave her some thrusts on her back. The baby coughed up a potato chip which was lodged in her airway, making it impossible for the child to breathe.
Her other child was nearby, a 3–4-year-old boy. When questioned by the mom, he said that he had given his new sister a potato chip just as the mother started towards the shower. The chip became lodged, and the baby began to suffocate.
If my wife would not have been prompted to go to their house, the neighbor would have been in the shower for 15-20 minutes, and the baby would have likely died as a result of not being able to breathe, and no one there to notice that she was turning blue.
It was a miracle! God, using the prompting thoughts from the Holy Ghost to my wife, intervened, and saved this baby.
As they sat together to realize the severity of what just happened, as well as a loving God who answered the daily prayers of a mother in asking for God’s help in keeping her children safe throughout the day. The emotion, gratitude and testimony of God’s involvement was paramount.
Let’s continue learning.
How does a person receive the Holy Ghost? Does everyone have it?
Acts 2:38 states: “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.“
In the days of the New Testament, the Holy Ghost came upon believers through laying on of hands. In Acts 19:6, “And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.“
So, there are examples of people laying on their hands to give others the holy Ghost, but is this the ONLY way that a person can receive it?
Receiving the Holy Ghost does not require the laying on of hands according to the King James Version of the Bible. Scripture shows examples where it happens directly from God upon hearing the word.
Examples without Laying on of Hands
At Pentecost in Acts 2, the Holy Ghost filled about 120 believers with no mention of hands being laid: “And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues” (Acts 2:4).
In Acts 10:44-46, while Peter preached to Gentiles, “the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word,” evidenced by tongues, before any baptism or hands.
Laying on of hands served as a practice for blessing or imparting gifts in some cases but lacks any mandate as a requirement for receiving the Holy Ghost. God sovereignly bestows the Spirit through faith and hearing the Gospel.
We have also learned that when a person learns about Jesus Christ and accepts His atonement, repenting of their sins, and devoting their life to Jesus Christ, they are given the Holy Ghost, as a blessing from being “born again.” No laying on of hands, just a gift from God to His child as they devote their life to Jesus Christ.
Acts 1:8 promises: “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me.”
The Holy Ghost is certainly one of the greatest gifts that I have ever received. It brings me comfort in troubled times. It is my teacher of truth, and the way that I confirm truth in such a deceptive world. It is a communicator of God’s words and desires for my life.
I have a great desire for the Holy Ghost to continue to always be with me. Because of this, I try to live a life that allows him to be with me constantly. You will notice that the Holy Ghost is not present in an environment of contention, hate or anger. He is no longer there when a person is chasing sin. God freely gives us the Holy Ghost, but only allows it to stay when we are trying to live a Christ-like Life.
If you are contemplating a desire to get to know God and Jesus Christ, those promptings are from the Holy Ghost. It is nudging you to find the truth for yourself. I invite you to “listen” to your thoughts right now, and act upon them.
Start by simply praying to God. Let Him know that you are living in a confusing world, and that you wish to seek the truth. Ask that He guide you in your search, and help you along the way. THEN, take the time throughout the coming days and just “Listen” to your thoughts. Then act on your thoughts.
You will be led to books, blogs, on-line sites, etc., where you can start to study. In your studies, pay attention to your feelings. If you are studying things that are false, you will feel that you are off track. If will feel uneasy inside of you. So, stop, and consider a different form of information.
I want to tell you through my own experiences that you will only find the consistent truth in the BIBLE. You will likely find BITS of TRUTH in other locations, but those truths are mixed in with deceptions. Do not trust a source FULLY that does not only use the Bible for its teaching information. Even then, always take your concerns for truth to God for validation.
When including God in your study, you can screen out all false teachings. Ask that He always be your study companion, and will help you learn through the Holy Ghost.
I must tell you that in your studies, you will come across topics where you feel neutral. You do not receive any guidance if this is true or false. Recognize that there are just some things that do not matter for you right now. It might be that you need to learn other truths first, before taking on such a deep topic. Should this happen, just move on to something different.
You very well will be prompted at a later date to re-visit that same topic that felt “neutral” to you.
With time simply coming to an end, your focus of certain gospel learning should be on things such as being born again, the atonement of Jesus Christ, and being saved by Grace, not works. Make this your immediate focus of study.
I appreciate you following me along in this series of getting to know Jesus Christ’s Gospel as taught in the Bible. Please join me once again tomorrow as we explore another topic.
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