The Holy Spirit's Work Isn't Finished Yet

When one traces the golden thread of salvation history, the Holy Spirit is never absent. He is there, veiled or visible, from the dawn of creation to the descent at Pentecost. It was the Spirit who hovered over the deep (Gen. 1:2); the same Spirit who inspired the prophets of Israel (Ezek. 37:1-14); the same Spirit who overshadowed Mary, bringing about the Incarnation (Luke 1:35); and the same Spirit who descended upon Jesus at his baptism, publicly marking him for the messianic mission (Matt. 3:16-17). Likewise, Basil the Great declared that, “through the Holy Spirit comes restoration to paradise, ascension into the kingdom of heaven, and adoption as children of God.”lxxii Indeed, this is what he does. The Holy Spirit restores what was lost, elevates what is inherent and natural, and divinizes what is material and earthly.  

This Spirit of God, this divine breath, was not content to merely hover over the annals of human history. In fact, he has made his dwelling in a very real, personal, and intimate way within the soul of the baptized who lives in a state of friendship and grace of God. This literally means that the sanctifying fire of God’s own life resides in us: in you, in me, and in all the members of Christ’s Body who live in a state of grace. This is no minor detail of theology, it is a central fact of the entire Christian life and the doctrine of elevation in the life of grace. 

The question must be asked by us, however: What does the indwelling of the Holy Spirit look like in our daily lives? It is not, first and foremost, the capacity to perform signs and wonders, nor is it ecstasy or speech in tongues. It is holiness. It is transformation. It is the quiet miracle of a life conformed to Christ.  

The sacraments are the Spirit’s great instruments for our sanctification. Baptism initiates us into divine life. Confirmation seals us with power. The Eucharist becomes the place where, by his action, Christ is made present (CCC 1116). Likewise, in our life of prayer, St. Paul writes that the Spirit intercedes within us with “groanings too deep for words” (Rom. 8:26, ESV), teaching us to cry out, “Abba, Father.” It is the Spirit who convicts us of sin, who grants us the power to forgive, to love, to serve, to persevere. It is he who stirs in us the gifts and fruits that mark divine life: wisdom, counsel, fortitude, and that most necessary of all: charity (1 Cor. 13; Gal. 5:22-23). Augustine of Hippo gives a beautiful meditation on what it means to “have the Spirit of God”: 

In the earliest times, the Holy Ghost fell upon them that believed: and they spoke with tongues, which they had not learned, as the Spirit gave them utterance (Acts 2:4). These were signs adapted to the time. . . . If then the witness of the presence of the Holy Ghost be not now given through these miracles, by what is it given, by what does one get to know that he has received the Holy Ghost? Let him question his own heart. If he love his brother the Spirit of God dwells in him. Let him see, let him prove himself before the eyes of God, let him see whether there be in him the love of peace and unity, the love of the Church that is spread over the whole earth.

The Church is not merely an organized institution; it is, as Aquinas taught, a living organism animated by the Holy Spirit as its soul. Through love, the Church becomes the great sign of the Spirit’s presence in our midst. 

The Spirit elevates nature without destroying it. He infuses our intellect with divine light, strengthens our will against temptation, and empowers our body to become a vessel of holiness. Without him, we are dust that returns to dust. With him, however, we are destined for everlasting, heavenly, divine glory. 

Continue your journey into the transforming power of God's grace with Not Finished Yet by Marcus Peter. Order your copy today!