Austin Bible Church
Prophecy of the sustaining ministry in the life of Jesus Christ was given over 700 years before He came to earth at the First Advent. Isaiah prophesied that when the Messiah would come, the Holy Spirit would sustain, empower and fill Him so that the Father’s perfect will would be accomplished in His life. Isaiah 11:2-3; Isaiah 42:1; Isaiah 61:1-2.
“The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. And He will delight in the fear of the LORD, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear;” (Isaiah 11:2-3, NASB)
“"Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations.” (Isaiah 42:1, NASB)
“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives And freedom to prisoners; To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn,” (Isaiah 61:1-2, NASB)
The Holy Spirit sustained the humanity of Jesus Christ at His birth. Matt. 1:18-21; Luke 1:35.
“Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. "She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins."” (Matthew 1:18-21, NASB)
“The angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.” (Luke 1:35, NASB)
The humanity of Jesus Christ relied on the sustaining ministry of the Holy Spirit and was led and guided by the Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ was sustained by the Holy Spirit only in His humanity because Jesus Christ is co-equal with the Holy Spirit in His deity. As the God-Man, He revealed the Essence of God. Matt. 4:1; Mark 1:12; Heb. 1:3.
“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” (Matthew 4:1, NASB)
“Immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness.” (Mark 1:12, NASB)
“And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,” (Hebrews 1:3, NASB)
Our Lord didn’t depend upon His divine attributes to perform functions. Jesus Christ subordinated His deity to the will of the Father. He did not use the characteristics of His deity independently of the Father’s plan. Therefore, Jesus Christ, during His incarnation, depended entirely upon the sustaining ministry of the Holy Spirit. Heb. 2:14-15; Phil. 2:6-8.
“Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.” (Hebrews 2:14-15, NASB)
“who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:6-8, NASB)
He did not give up His divine essence. His deity was always present, but also omnipresent. He walked as a man and as true humanity. His humanity was also indwelt by the Holy Spirit. He was never commanded to be filled with the Holy Spirit because He was always filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was given to Him without measure. John 3:34.
“"For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God; for He gives the Spirit without measure.” (John 3:34, NASB)
The Holy Spirit was present in a special way at the baptism of Jesus Christ to guarantee that He would sustain Jesus Christ during His ministry. Matt. 3:16.
“After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him,” (Matthew 3:16, NASB)
The Holy Spirit empowered the humanity of Jesus Christ during His ministry, in His preaching and performing miracles in the power of the Holy Spirit. Luke 4:14-15; Luke 4:18; Matt. 12:18. In Matthew 12:28, “if” is the first class condition and means it is a reality, “if and I do.”
“And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about Him spread through all the surrounding district. And He began teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all.” (Luke 4:14-15, NASB)
“"THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR. HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED,” (Luke 4:18, NASB)
“"BEHOLD, MY SERVANT WHOM I HAVE CHOSEN; MY BELOVED IN WHOM MY SOUL is WELL-PLEASED; I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT UPON HIM, AND HE SHALL PROCLAIM JUSTICE TO THE GENTILES.” (Matthew 12:18, NASB)
“"But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.” (Matthew 12:28, NASB)
Jesus Christ gave Himself for crucifixion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Heb. 9:14.
“how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Hebrews 9:14, NASB)
The omnipotence of the Holy Spirit sustained Jesus Christ during His substitutionary spiritual death on the Cross for the sins of mankind. Heb. 9:16.
“For where a covenant is, there must of necessity be the death of the one who made it.” (Hebrews 9:16, NASB)
The Holy Spirit had a part in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Rom. 8:11; 1 Peter 3:8; Rom. 1:4.
“But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” (Romans 8:11, NASB)
“To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit;” (1 Peter 3:8, NASB)
“who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,” (Romans 1:4, NASB)
The present ministry of the Holy Spirit to Jesus Christ is to glorify Jesus Christ in the life of every Church Age believer. John 16:14; John 7:39.
“"He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you.” (John 16:14, NASB)
“But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” (John 7:39, NASB)
The believer in fellowship glorifies Jesus Christ is a result of the intake and application of Bible doctrine from the edification complex of the soul. This results in the manifestation of the new nature. Jesus Christ set the pattern for the Church Age.
Just as the Holy Spirit sustained the humanity of Christ during His ministry, the Holy Spirit sustains the Church Age believer. The Holy Spirit indwells the believer’s body and fills the believer’s soul following confession of sin to God the Father through application of 1 John 1:9. John 14:12; Eph. 5:18.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9, NASB)
“"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.” (John 14:12, NASB)
“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit,” (Ephesians 5:18, NASB)
When the believer is filled with the Holy Spirit, the character of Christ is formed in their life. Gal. 4:19; Rom. 13:14.
“My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you—” (Galatians 4:19, NASB)
“But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.” (Romans 13:14, NASB)