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Contra Stavrinides
by Frank Nelte

PART VII: THE HOLY SPIRIT IS NOT "GOD"

One of the claims made in the tapes about the nature of God is that "the Holy Spirit is God". This claim is clearly wrong. Consider the following:

  1. The New Testament very clearly refers to both, God the Father and to Jesus Christ as being God. However, NOWHERE IS THE HOLY SPIRIT CALLED GOD! A statement to that effect is simply not found in the Bible.
  2. The expression "Spirit of God" is used exactly 12 times in the New Testament. These 12 places are the following:
  3. The expression "Holy Spirit" and the word "God" are used in the same verse exactly 20 times in the New Testament. NONE OF THESE SAY THAT THE HOLY SPIRIT IS GOD. Rather, the Holy Spirit is something that God "gives" to those who obey Him (Acts 5:32).
  4. The only possible justification for claiming that the Holy Spirit IS God is based on Acts 5:3-4. This is typical of Dr. Stavrinides' flimsy biblical support, from which he reasons to unwarranted conclusions.
    But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart TO LIE TO THE HOLY GHOST, and to keep back [part] of the price of the land? 4 Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? THOU HAST not LIED unto men, but UNTO GOD. (Acts 5:3-4)

    In verse 3 Peter tells Ananias that he has lied to the Holy Spirit. In verse 4 Peter says that Ananias has not lied to men but to God.29.

    Please note the following:

  5. EXAMINING ACTS 5:3-4: Let's look at this situation carefully. In his own mind Ananias was trying to deceive the apostles, i.e. human beings. He did not say to himself: "I will now deceive God or the Holy Spirit". He wanted to look better and more generous than he really was before men. Peter obviously realized this. So then WHY did Peter say that Ananias had "... lied to the Holy Spirit"?

    The answer is that Peter knew very well that he and the other apostles were being LED by God's Spirit. Thus the lie was told to human beings that were EMPOWERED by and LED by the Holy Spirit. The lie was not told to a specific entity or "hypostasis" of God. It was told to PEOPLE who had God's Spirit in them.

    In verse 4 Peter simply rephrased this statement slightly differently by saying that Ananias had lied "to God". Peter and the apostles represented the leadership that God had established in His Church. Thus telling a lie to Peter in a Church-context amounted to lying to God who had given His Spirit to these leaders.

  6. The slight rephrasing of a subject with a slightly different focus is a very common occurrence in the Bible. Peter was very familiar with this Jewish custom. To use these two verses like a mathematical equation and draw the conclusion: "Therefore it is proved that the Holy Spirit is God ... QED" is totally misrepresenting the intent of Peter's words.
  7. A SIMILAR NEW TESTAMENT VERSE: What Peter meant in Acts 5:3-4 is made VERY PLAIN by the apostle Paul in 1Thessalonians 4:8. There he wrote about those in the Church who would transgress in sexual matters:
    "He therefore that despises, despises not man, but God, who has also given unto us His Holy Spirit" (1 Thessalonians 4:8).

    This is precisely what Peter meant in Acts 5:3-4. The parallel of this verse to Acts 5 should be very obvious. To despise the leadership God had appointed amounts to despising God, who had given these leaders His Holy Spirit. It is not talking about the Holy Spirit "being" God.

  8. In this whole argument the clear and plain scriptures that show that God's Holy Spirit is indeed the essence and the power that both, God the Father and Jesus Christ use to work and to create are ignored. If someone raises them as objections, then a way will be found to explain them away ... even the angels would be told by Dr. Stavrinides that they are wrong.

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