Who or what is the Holy Ghost? Is the spirit the 3rd person of the Trinity, or is it merely a divine influence, a power of God? 200 years ago John Marsom explored the topic and produced this little-known, but effective book. His findings will change the way you view the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is the one member of the Trinity that gets no respect. Even in the Nicene Creed in 325 A.D. the creed simply ended with a tiny statement of belief "in the Holy Ghost." The Bible is silent on the deity of the Holy Ghost. When pressed, many point to Acts 5 as proof of the deity of the spirit: "But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thy heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back part of the price of the land? While it remained, did it not remain thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thy power? How is it that thou hast conceived this thing in thy heart? thou has not lied unto men, but unto God." ASV
Do you notice that the last part is directed towards Peter when it says, "thou has not lied unto men?" They lied to Peter, who was "filled with holy spirit" Acts 4:8. And when they lied to Peter, they lied to God. Later on, in the same chapter, we have a similar situation in vss 38 and 39 where these words were directed towards Peter and the disciples, "Refrain from these men, and let them alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will be overthrown: but if it is of God, ye will not be able to overthrow them; lest haply ye be found even to be fighting against God." Peter and his men were not God, but they represented God, and when something is done against them, it is done against God. That is why the Scofield Study Bible cross-references Acts 5:4 to Scriptures like Numbers 16:11, 1Samuel 8:7 and 1 Thess 4:8 which says, " Therefore he that rejecteth, rejecteth not man, but God, who giveth his Holy Spirit unto you." ASV
As you can see, the strongest proof-text for the deity of the holy ghost evaporates on closer inspection.
This book is available on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08LKPBJ7S
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