“For His name’s sake . . . “
Speaking about God the Holy Spirit, Jesus said: “He will glorify Me because it is from Me that He will receive what He will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from Me what He will make known to you.” (John 16:14:15)
The Holy Spirit has come and is present and active in the world to glorify Jesus. Christ-followers are called to be led by the Spirit (Romans 8:14) not by our own thoughts, feelings, desires, beliefs, and opinions. Unfortunately, many Christians have a Holy Spirit phobia and are afraid to fully and openly surrender to God the Holy Spirit. Thus, we (often unintentionally) “quench” and “grieve” the Spirit.
(The genuine fear of God doesn’t make a person afraid of the presence and power of Holy Spirit. It causes people to be overcome with awe, with adoration, and with surrender to God the Spirit.)
I believe that Holy Spirit phobia is the greatest problem of contemporary Christianity. It causes us to continually dodge the presence of God. Holy Spirit phobia can be called theophobia. It’s the fear that seeks to avoid the reality of God the Holy Spirit and it’s quite common, even among religious people.
To allow being afraid of God the Holy Spirit to cause you to ignore or resist Him (or to pretend like He isn’t actively and lovingly pursuing you) is to avoid Him who perfectly loves you, who wants to heal you, set you free, and fill you with “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22-23)
When people become aware that the Holy Spirit is present, they realize that He can shake up the status quo and disrupt their comfort zones. People with theophobia don’t trust God the Holy Spirit and dread what He might do. Thus, they (often unconsciously) do all they can to avoid the literal presence of the Spirit.
Holy Spirit phobia involves numerous things: The fear of being misled. The fear of the supernatural. Fear of the loss of personal control. The desire to protect our religious traditions and spiritual comfort zones. The fear of change. The fear of the controversial. The fear of intimacy with God. The fear of what God the Holy Spirit may tell us to do. Anxiety about what God the Spirit may show us about ourselves.
Holy Spirit phobia causes Christians to avoid the “righteousness, peace, and joy” that the Holy Spirit brings. (Romans 14:17) It keeps us away from ongoing intimate connection with the Source of all that is good.
There is a cure for Holy Spirit phobia. It is trust, reliance, and obedience. Refuse to allow fear and discomfort to cause you to quench God the Holy Spirit. Learn to trust the Spirit by courageously surrendering to His presence. Step out in faith. “O taste and see that the Lord is good.” (Psalm 34:8)
Deeply and fully realize that if you ask God for the Spirit, He won’t give you something bad. “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”
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Thank you for this. You spoke about Holy Spirit phobia. Being scared of the Holy Spirit limits the understanding of His theology. The Holy Spirit is like a companion who goes everywhere with you, to help you to speak the Truth in wisdom, reverently and fearlessly. You cannot accept Jesus Christ and reject the Holy Spirit because they are the same person. The Holy Spirit is Jesus active in us. He is not dead, He is alive. Before Jesus departed, He handed us the Holy Spirit.