AUTHORITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT: THE "MISSING LINK" IN OUR CONTEMPORARY UNDERSTANDING OF DIVINE AUTHORITY?, THE

Trinity Journal, Fall 2004 by Studebaker, John A Jr

Athanasius's first reply to Arius attempted to demonstrate the Spirit's divinity by pointing to such divine attributes as immutability and supremacy over all things:

Again, the Spirit of the Lord fills the universe. Thus David sings, "Whither shall I go from your Spirit?" (Psalm 139:7). Again, in Wisdom it is written, "Your incorruptible Spirit is in all things" (Wis. 12:1). ... But if the Spirit fills all things, and if the angels, being his inferiors, are circumscribed, and where they are sent forth, there are they present; it is not to be doubted that the Spirit does not belong to things originated, nor is he an angel at all, as you say, but by nature is above the angels.12

Perhaps Athanasius's most famous argument lies in the contrast he drew between the nature of creatures and the nature of the Spirit. He employed Gen 1:1-23 to demonstrate that creatures are created from nothing and come into being at a particular time, and 1 Cor 2:10-12 to show that the Spirit is not created but emerges directly from God.13

For if, as no one knows the thoughts of a man save the spirit who is in him (εv αυτψ) [1 Cor 2:11]: would it not be evil speech to call the Spirit who is in God (εv τψ Θεψ) a creature, him who searches even the depths of God [1 Cor 2:10]? For from this the speaker will learn to say that the spirit of man is outside himself, and that the Word of God, who is in the Father (εv τψ πατρι) is a creature.14

Even more central to Athanasius's argument, however, was his association of the Spirit with our sanctification, which is indeed a vital part of our salvation. Upon this basis he concluded that the Spirit must therefore be our savior, together with the Father and the Son. Other patristic writers, such as Gregory of Nyssa and Basil, look to the Spirit's equality and shared attributes with other members of the Trinity as evidence of his divinity.

B. Scriptural Evaluation

Whereas patristic writers were mainly concerned with finding in Scripture specific attributes proving the Spirit's divinity, Scripture indeed presents attributes that allow us to infer his divine authority as well. The most critical attributes for determining whether or not someone has divine authority seem to be divine transcendence (or supremacy), dominion (or lordship, which implies both transcendence and immanence), full access to Cod, and divine personhood (which is the ultimate locus of authority). Psalm 104 portrays Yahweh as Creator and Ruler throughout all features of the "cosmos"; vv. 29-30 demonstrate the transcendence of Yahweh's divine authority in terms of his Spirit:

Thou dost hide Thy face, they are dismayed; Thou dost take away their spirit, they expire, And return to their dust. Thou dost send forth Thy Spirit, they are created; And Thou dost renew the face of the ground.15

The message of the psalmist is clear: the spirit of every living thing depends on God's Spirit for physical sustenance. According to Kidner, this comparison of the divine Spirit to the human spirit, "so far from implicating Him in our misdeeds, deepens our accountability, since we handle only what is His."16 Alexander holds that, in this passage, "The absolute power of God over the life of his creatures is expressed by representing him as annihilating and creating the whole race at pleasure, by a breath."17 The contrast between vv. 29 and 30 indicates the supremacy of the Spirit with respect to life and the dependency of the creature upon the Spirit. The Spirit thereby possesses rightful dominion with respect to all living things.18