Some Thoughts on the Book “What’s the Least I Can Believe and Still Be a Christian?” (Post #20): Chapter 19- “Jesus’ Promise”

We are almost done with Martin Thielen’s book What’s the Least I Can Believe and Still Be a Christian? Chapter 19 is entitled JESUS’ PROMISE and subtitled “Who Is the Holy Spirit?”

Thielen’s doctrine of the Holy Spirit is orthodox. He gives examples of how we miss the Spirit in our churches, allowing ourselves to fall into church comas. The Holy Spirit (and, for that matter, the doctrine of the Trinity) is a mystery. But the Spirit is God’s empowering presence in the church, in the world, and in ourselves.

MY RESPONSE: My only challenge to this chapter is that Thielen could have pointed out Scripture that show the Holy Spirit’s deity and personality (such as Acts 5 and Ephesians 4). My Jehovah Witness friends will be quite happy with the description of the Spirit as “God empowering presence,” but Thielen means more. And I believe we should take seriously the possibility of developing a personal relationship with God the Holy Spirit.