In John 4:24 the Lord Jesus says, “God is Spirit.” To say that God is Spirit must mean that the Triune God is Spirit. We should not think that only the Spirit of God is Spirit and that the Father and the Son are not Spirit. It would be ridiculous to say that only one third of God is Spirit and that the other two thirds are not Spirit. In John 4:24 “God” must refer to the entire God, the Triune God—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. Hence, to say that God is Spirit means that the entire God, the complete God, is Spirit.
Due to the influence of traditional teaching concerning the Trinity, many believers, perhaps unconsciously, hold to a form of tritheism, the belief in three Gods. Today some claim that the Father, the Son, and the Spirit are not only distinct, but are also three separate Persons. Those who hold to this concept may say that only the Spirit is Spirit and that the Father and the Son are not Spirit. This is to say that only one third of the Godhead, the Spirit, is Spirit.
If we admit that the word spoken by the Lord Jesus in John 4:24 means that the entire God is Spirit, then we must also admit that the Father and the Son, and not only the Spirit, are Spirit. The Father, the Son, and the Spirit are the entire God, and the entire God, not merely a part, is Spirit. Therefore, all Three of the Godhead—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit—are Spirit. Regarding this, we do not care for traditional teaching. Instead, we care for the revelation of the pure Word of God. The Scriptures tell us that the entire God, the Triune God, is Spirit.
Do you know how the Triune God reaches us? He reaches us as the Spirit. The Spirit of the Triune God is actually God reaching us. Apart from the Spirit, neither the Father nor the Son can reach us.
Paul’s word in 2 Corinthians 13:14 indicates that the Triune God reaches us as the Spirit: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” The grace of the Lord is the Lord Himself as life to us for our enjoyment, the love of God is God Himself (1 John 4:8, 16) as the source of the grace of the Lord, and the fellowship of the Spirit is the Spirit Himself as the transmission of the grace of the Lord with the love of God for our participation. This verse indicates that we need not only the grace of Christ and the love of God, but also the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. The word “fellowship” indicates transmission. Through the fellowship of the Holy Spirit the Triune God reaches us and communicates with us. Therefore, the entire God is Spirit, and the Spirit as the Third of the Trinity is God reaching us for our experience and enjoyment of Him.
It is common for Christians to appreciate the fact that the Lord Jesus is God. John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” According to John 1:14, this Word, which was God, became flesh. Christians also know that the Lord Jesus is our Redeemer, Savior, Lord, and Master, the One who died for our sins. However, not many Christians have seen from 1 Corinthians 15:45 that the last Adam, the Lord Jesus, has become a life-giving Spirit.
Because of the influence of traditional teaching concerning the Trinity, many Christians will not admit that Christ today is the life-giving Spirit. Concerning 1 Corinthians 15:45 some say, “This verse doesn’t mean that Christ became the Holy Spirit. This verse says only that Christ is a Spirit. When He was on earth, He was in the flesh. Now through resurrection He became a Spirit.”
However, Paul added the modifier “life-giving” before the word “Spirit.” If the life-giving Spirit in 1 Corinthians 15:45 is different from the Holy Spirit who gives life, then there are two Spirits who give life. But it is a fact that there is only one life-giving Spirit. In addition to the Holy Spirit, there is not another life-giving Spirit. It is heretical to say that in addition to the life-giving Spirit, Christ in resurrection has become another kind of Spirit who gives life. Do you believe that there are two divine Spirits, two Spirits who give life? We absolutely do not believe this.
Paul was careful in writing 1 Corinthians 15:45. He did not say, “The last Adam became a Spirit.” He added the modifier, “life-giving,” and said, “The last Adam became a life-giving Spirit.” Who is the Spirit who gives life? Do you believe that besides the Holy Spirit there is another divine Spirit who gives life? This is impossible.
In 2 Corinthians 3:17 Paul clearly says, “Now the Lord is the Spirit.” In Darby’s New Translation, verses 7 through 16 of 2 Corinthians 3 are in parentheses, showing that verse 17 is the continuation of verse 6. Verse 6 says, “The Spirit gives life.” The Spirit mentioned in 2 Corinthians 3:17 is the very Spirit who gives life spoken of in verse 6. This proves that the Lord is the Spirit who gives life.