Pictures of Holy Spirit

Pictures of Holy Spirit? Let me explain.

I am an official, picture-carrying member of the “Grandma Club.” Have been for years. I know I look much too young to be a member. LOL Nuff said!

 I love being a grandma. I’ve had two of my grands this weekend. It was awesome! Ashlyn got sick–that was no fun for either of us. But we still got to make some crafts and eat yummy potato cheese soup. Here are some of the pictures of my doll babies.

I love showing off their pictures and telling their stories–sharing with you the joy of being a grandma!  

But there is a joy that exceeds the joy of being a grandparent. It is the joy of knowing and experiencing Holy Spirit.  I have no greater joy than my relationship with Him!

What Is the Holy Spirit Like?

I wish I could share Him with you the way I can pull an orange apart and hand you half. We’d sit together, enjoying the sweet juice as it dripped off our chins and laugh like little kids.

Oh, how I wish I could show you a picture of the Holy Spirit.

But I can’t share Him that way, and I can’t show you a photograph because He is a spirit.

That’s not weird or spooky. It’s simply a reality that can sometimes make it difficult for us to get to know Him.

Yet God wants us to know Him.

That’s why God has given us a beautiful photo album in Scripture—not pictures of what the Holy Spirit looks like, but pictures that reveal His nature, His character, and His personality. Through these illustrations, God helps us recognize Him and understand what He is like.

Why Does God Use Pictures to Describe the Holy Spirit?

The pictures God gives us in Scripture are painted with bold strokes and illustrated through the natural world around us.

These word pictures help us understand what we cannot see with our natural eyes.

Just as a family photo album helps us learn about people we’ve never met, God’s Word helps us learn about the Holy Spirit. The images He chose are deliberate, meaningful, and full of life.

The Holy Spirit Is Like the Wind

The Wind Brings Life

It is no coincidence that on the Day of Pentecost, the sound of heaven came like a rushing mighty wind.

Acts 2:2 tells us:

“Suddenly a sound like a mighty rushing wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.”

God was intentional in using this picture.

Wind—or breath—brings life.

If someone has an accident, one of the first things we check is whether they are breathing. Breath is a sign of life.

In the same way, the Holy Spirit brings life to Scripture. He causes God’s Word to come alive and become productive in the heart of a believer. He energizes Christians to live fruitful, victorious lives.

You Can’t See the Wind, But You Can See Its Effects

No one has ever seen the wind itself.

We see trees sway, hear leaves rustle and watch waves move across a lake.

The evidence of the wind is everywhere.

The Holy Spirit works much the same way. We may not see Him with our physical eyes, but we see His influence, His guidance, His comfort, and His transforming power.

Jesus explained it this way:

“The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.” (John 3:8 NLT)

There is a beautiful mystery to the work of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit Is Like Fire

Fire Purifies

Another picture God intentionally gives us is fire.

Acts 2:3 describes tongues of fire resting upon the believers gathered in the upper room.

Throughout Scripture, fire is associated with purification. Precious metals are refined by fire to remove impurities and reveal their beauty.

The Holy Spirit works in our lives in much the same way. He gently exposes attitudes, habits, and behaviors that need to change so that Christ can be more clearly seen in us.

Fire Represents Passion and Love

We often use fire as a description of intense love and commitment.

We talk about a fiery passion, a fiery heart, or a burning desire.

One of the wonderful ministries of the Holy Spirit is helping us love God and love others.

Romans 5:5 tells us:

“And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”

Holy Spirit Is Like Water

Jesus Described the Holy Spirit as Living Water

Jesus used this picture on the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles in John 7:38-39 NIV:

“Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”

“By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.”

Water Brings Life, Nourishment, and Refreshment

Thoughts of hot summer days and a refreshing plunge into a cool mountain stream can only begin to connect us with the refreshing benefits of water.

Or if you’ve visited the desert, you see the barrenness of water’s absence or the abundant life that grows along the banks of a river that twists and turns through its valley.

Again, water is a picture of Holy Spirit. He…

brings life.

nourishes.

refreshes.

Pictures Help Us Understand, But They Don’t Tell the Whole Story

Still, my “Granny Picture Album” doesn’t begin to tell you how funny Brayden is or how smart Keira is or how loving Ashlyn is.

Even when I describe Brayden by telling you he is the family clown, you know about him, but you don’t know him.

God Wants Us to Experience the Holy Spirit

God loves sharing His pictures with us, not so we have some abstract knowledge to repeat or parrot back, but so we can experience the benefits that come with living Spirit-filled, Spirit-influenced lives.

He wants to fill believers and, like oil, permeate everything we touch!

Don’t miss what He has for you.

Lean into His presence to hear His voice, to experience His love and His hope.

Saturate your mind and attitudes with His Words to become the person He intended.