First, we need to realize that the Holy Spirit is a Person. In fact, He is God and part of the Holy Trinity. When we say “Holy Trinity” we mean “God is one God who at the same time subsists in three Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. One verse that brings out this truth clearly is Matthew 28:19 where Jesus commanded His disciples to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (NKJV). In baptism a believer in Christ is “identifying themselves with the Triune Godhead” (William MacDonald). Notice, Jesus used the word “name” (which is singular) in this commission to baptize instead of “names.” Why? Because God is ONE God. Yet He went on to list the three Persons who make up the Godhead. Some people have taught that the Holy Spirit is merely a “force” or a “power” that is used by God the Father or the Lord Jesus Christ, but that is obviously not true. He is a Person, and as we shall see one of His Divine attributes is Omnipotence (all-powerful). But God the Father and God the Son are also Omnipotent. All three Persons share the exact same Divine attributes, which also includes Omniscience (all-knowing) and Omnipresence (present everywhere).

Now let’s consider the “POWER of the Holy Spirit.” In Luke 1:35 we read, “And the angels answered and said to her (Mary), ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the POWER of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.’” This verse speaks of the “Incarnation of the Son of God” (where the eternal Son “became flesh and dwelt among us”…see John 1:14). Earlier, in verse 31, the angel Gabriel had told Mary, “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.” Mary was amazed and asked, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” (Verse 34). Mary had never “known a man” (had sexual relations with a man) and could not understand how she could bear a child. We already read the angel’s answer to her; she would “conceive and bear a son” by a miracle of the Holy Spirit! The Holy Spirit would “overshadow her” and would bring about the conception of Jesus. This is truly the “POWER of the Holy Spirit.”

 In Acts 1:8, Jesus told His disciples (after His resurrection), “But you shall receive POWER when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” In Acts 2:1-4 we read, “When the Day of Pentecost had full come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:1-4). If you read through the rest of the chapter (and throughout the book of Acts) we see that these disciples, who had been filled with fear after the crucifixion, were now “filled with POWER and great boldness” and witnessed mightily to their fellow-Jews of their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

In closing, we have proven from Scripture that the Holy Spirit is a Person who brought about the Incarnation of the Son of God with POWER and endued believers with POWER. In these cases, it is not the “power of God the Father” or the “power of Jesus…God the Son,” but the Holy Spirit’s inherent power. If you were to do a word study in the New Testament on the word “power” you will find many passages that do refer to the “power of God the Father” and the “power of Jesus the Son of God.” They all teach us what we saw at the beginning; God is “one God”, yet He is made up of “three Persons” (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit) and they each share the attribute of Omnipotence (all-powerful).  (DO)  (592.1)