The Holy Spirit is kind of a mystery and much more difficult to study than are the Father and the Son. This is probably because the Holy Spirit was responsible for writing the Bible, and being humble (one of God’s attributes), He doesn’t mention Himself as much.
First I’d like to address the question as to whether we can lose the Holy Spirit once we’re saved. Is He always in us and active in our lives?
Old Testament saints’ like Samson had a different relationship with the Holy Spirit than Christians’. Prior to Christ, a believer could be indwelled by the Holy Spirit, and the Spirit could leave them. Samson is a good example of this. In Judges 15:14, the Spirit of God (God Himself) rushes upon (fills) Samson. Judges 16:20 then says the Spirit of the Lord had left Him. So, we see the Holy Spirit entering and leaving Old Testament saints.
We don’t see this in Christians. Once Jesus paid the price for our sins, we are sealed with the Holy Spirit never to lose Him.
Ephesians 1:13 (ESV) 13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,
So, once the Holy Spirit has entered us, has sealed us, He will never leave. This is also good evidence Christians can never lose their salvation.
Now there is another odd thing about the Holy Spirit for us as Christians. The Bible speaks of the Holy Spirit being in, on, upon, and filling us. What is all that about?
We see “upon” relating to the Holy Spirit used in the Old Testament quite a bit. It’s even used this way speaking of Samson in Judges 15:14. But since most of the interest in how the Holy Spirit works in our lives as Christians and I have limited space, let’s concentrate on how these terms are used in the New Testament.
The Holy Spirit is often spoken of as “on,” “upon,” “in,” even “unto.” One of the most common words in the Greek New Testament is “epi.” It appears 896 times in the New Testament and means “on,” “upon,” “in,” and even “unto.” So, whenever we see the Holy Spirit coming upon someone or on someone or in someone, it’s the same thing.
The question sometimes arises, “Why would the Holy Spirit need to refill us?” The verse cited for this is usually Acts 4:31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.
The word “filled” means to be filled in the sense of being inspired, affected, or influenced by something. It is not a refilling but an inspiration.
There is another interesting phrase connected with the Holy Spirit: “in the Spirit.” In the Spirit speaks of the overpowering of the Holy Spirit. Simeon is described as being in the Spirit in Luke 2:27. Paul was under the power of the Holy Spirit when he resolved to go to Macedonia (Acts. 19:21). Romans 8:9 tells us we are no longer under the power of the flesh but “in the Spirit, under His power. Most clearly, we see this phrase describing God’s power through the Person of the Holy Spirit in 1 Peter 3:18 where we see Jesus was raised by the power of the Holy Spirit and in Revelation 1:10 where John tells us the vision he records in that book was given through the power of the Holy Spirit influencing him.
Why is this important?
This is important to understand for a lot of reasons among which is the need to know and understand God better especially the Spirit.
A friend told me of a message outlining the different “fillings” of the Holy Spirit. This is a bit silly since the words in, on, upon, and unto all are translations of the same Greek word and mean the same thing in the originals. Use of “in,” “on,” “upon”, and “unto” varies among translations, so there is ground for a teaching on a variety of implications.
It is important to better understand how the Person we know as the Holy Spirit works in our lives, that He will never leave us or forsake us, that He is the Third Person of the Trinity sharing the same power, essence, and authority as the Father and the Son. Sometimes we make less of the Holy Spirit because He is spoken of less obviously in Scripture. It is important to see Him there and how He acts.
The Christian should be filled, heavily influenced, by the Holy Spirit and pray for that daily. He is the Person of the godhead who lives in us, guides us, and reaches the world through us. May we always live our lives in the Spirit.
Believers Armed and Dangerous 