Is the Holy Spirit Worthy of Worship? Wayne Jackson: Review

Wayne Jackson Jesus in the Form of God? No:

Rom. 1:3 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord,
                  which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;
 Rom. 1:4 And declared to be the Son of God [theou] with power,
                  according to the spirit of holiness,
                  by the resurrection from the dead:

By Wayne Jackson 

Is the Holy Spirit God in nature? If so, is it appropriate to worship him?

God is SPIRIT in nature: as humans live on a substratum of flesh,  God exists in the realm of Spirit  or Mind. Neither in Hebrew or Greek does "spirit" identify a person but in a highly figurative sense the mental disposition of a person.  Remembering  repositional phrases, the Spirit OF Christ can never be another person.

John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me,
        the works that I do shall he do also;
        and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
John 14:13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

We are NOT to pray to the Holy Spirit: whatever you do you MUST do it in the name of the Lord.

The words literally mean and should be translated as wing.

There is a controversy that appears to be swirling about the Christian community these days, and it is this: “Is the Holy Spirit a proper object of Christian worship?” Some adamantly claim he is not. They challenge for a passage that specifically commands: “Worship the Holy Spirit.”

But the issue is not whether one can locate a text that explicitly commands: “Worship the Spirit.” There are many biblical propositions that cannot be established on the basis of a solitary “command-text.” There is no text that explicitly puts all conditions of salvation into a single command. There is no single passage that instructs the Christian to eat bread and drink the fruit of the vine each first day of the week in order to commemorate the Lord’s death.

The only "worship" concept in the New Testament means to give attention to the Word of Christ which IS Spirit and Life. You will notice that only God the Father is worshipped in the PLACE of the human spirit as opposed to the PLACE of temples or houses on mountains.

John 4:20 Our fathers worshipped in this mountain;
        and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.
John 4:21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.
John 4:22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.
John 4:23 But the hour cometh, and now is,
        when the true worshippers shall worship the Father
        in spirit and in truth: [A place]
        for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
John 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Without any advanced education, the women as the well understood that te SOLE PURPOSE of Messiah was:

John 4:25 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ:
        when he is come, he will tell us all things.
John 4:26 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.

The synagogue, set up as the Church in the wilderness, had no ceremonial but was A school of the Word of God. Jesus endorsed that and commanded it with the word "ekklesia" which does not perform "praise services."

Phil. 3:1 Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord.
        To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe.
Phil. 3:2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.
Phil. 3:3 For we are the circumcision,
        which worship God IN the spirit,
        and rejoice in Christ Jesus,
        and have no confidence in the flesh.

These are solid propositions, but they are determined by what is called the synthetic analytical method, and not because there is an isolated, comprehensive command that embraces all components of the obligation.

Synthetic (cf. synthesis — “to bring together”) study means that one assembles the relevant biblical information on the same theme, and then draws reasonable conclusions of action based upon a harmonization of the material. Let us consider, from the analytical viewpoint, what the Christian’s attitude toward the Spirit of God should be.

The Spirit Is a Person

Contrary to the ideas of some cults (e.g., the “Jehovah’s Witnesses”), the Holy Spirit is a personality. He is referred to in personal terms (John 15:26; 16:7-8,13-14). He acts as a person would act; he speaks (1 Timothy 4:1), he loves (Romans 15:30), he teaches (John 14:26), he intercedes (Romans 8:26), etc.

John 15:23 He that hateth me hateth my Father also.
John 15:24 If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin:
        but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father.

Luke 10:21 In that hour Jesus rejoiced in SPIRIT, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of
heaven and earth,
        that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent,
        and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight.

The Wise are the Sophists who will never hear the SPIRIT which Jesus said is MY WORDS

Panourg-êma , atos, to, A.knavish trick, villainy,  SOPHIST. panourgeuma. Panourgeo play the knave, similr to citharizo

Sophis-tês , ou, ho, master of one's craft, adept, expert, of diviners, Hdt.2.49; of poets, meletan sophistais prosbalon Pi.I.5(4).28 , cf. Cratin.2; of musicians, sophistês . . parapaiôn chelun A.Fr.314 , cf. Eup.447, Pl.Com. 140; sophistêi Thrêiki (sc. Thamyris) E.Rh.924, cf. Ath.14.632c: with mod

II. from late v B.C., a Sophist, i.e. one who gave lessons in grammar, rhetoric, politics, mathematics, for money, such as Prodicus, Gorgias, Protagoras, a quibbler, cheat,  a RHETORICIAN as the primary meaning of a HYPOCRITE.

hoi s. tōn hierōn melōn” A sophist, serpent, makes MUSICAL MELODY with a congregation AS a harp and cannot grasp that IN THE HEART is a place.

Sophis-teia , hê, A.sophistry, D.S.12.53, Plu.2.78f, D.L.2.113, etc.; opp. sophia [skill], Ph.1.10; s. mantikê, of Balaam, Apollon name of a number. The number of a man

Mantikos  
2. technê m. faculty of divination, prophecy. Having a daimonios heaven-sent, miraculous, marvellous
Erist-ikos A. eager for strife or battle 2. involving a contest (or perh. debate), pros ton dialektikon, technê sophistry, sullogismos, logos, sophism, fallacy,II. esp.fond of wrangling or arguing.

Playto, Cratylus says
"the part of appropriative, coercive, hunting art which hunts animals, land animals, tame animals, man, privately, FOR PAY, is paid in CASH, claims to GIVE education, and is a hunt after rich and promising youths, must--so our present argument concludes--be called SOPHISTRY.

Luke 10:22 All things are delivered to me of my Father:
        and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father;
        and who the Father is, but the Son,
        and he to whom the Son will reveal him.
Luke 10:23 And he turned him unto his disciples, and said privately,
        Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see:

John 15:26 But when the Comforter (paraklete) is come,
        whom I will send unto you from the Father,
        even the Spirit of truth,
        which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

John 15:27 And ye also shall bear witness,
        because ye have been with me from the beginning.

John 16:7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth;
        It is expedient for you that I go away:
        for if I go not away,
        the Comforter will not come unto you;
        but if I depart, I will send him unto you.  

The Spirit OF Christ will be sent in HIS NAME. Therefore, the Name of the Holy Spirit Comforter is:

MY little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: 1Jn.2:1

You will notice that in all of the salutations there is no person  called The Holy Spirit.

1Tim. 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ 
        by the commandment of God our Saviour,
        and Lord Jesus Christ, which is our hope;
1Tim. 1:2 Unto Timothy, my own son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace,
        from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. 

The proof text  does not speak of a Holy Spirit

1Tim. 3:16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness:
        God was manifest in the flesh,
        justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles,
        believed on in the world, received up into glory.

1Tim. 4:1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly,
        that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith,
        giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 

The Spirit Is Deity

The Holy Spirit possesses the nature of deity (he is neither angelic nor human in essence). He is eternal (Hebrews 9:14). He is everywhere present (Psalm 139:7-10). The Spirit is omniscient, i.e., he knows “all things,” yes, the “deep things” of God (1 Corinthians 2:10-11). He taught the apostles “all things” (John 14:26; 16:12-13). He was involved in the creation process (Genesis 1:2; Job 33:4; Psalm 104:30).

The Spirit OF Christ is THE ETERNAL SPIRIT: There is only one SPIRIT God.  The Abrahamic Covenant was a covenant made by God IN Christ.  Christ was the ROCK and other manifestations.

THE TYPE: PHYSICAL

Heb 9:13 For if the blood of bulls and of goats,
        and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean,
        sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:

THE SPIRITUAL REALITY:

Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ,
        who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God,
        purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

Heb 9:15 And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament,
        that by means of death,
        or the redemption of the transgressions
        that were under the first testament, they
        which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.

The Eternal Spirit is the Spirit OF Christ and not another 'people.'

Romans 8:9 But ye are not in the FLESH,
        but IN the SPIRIT, if so be that the Spirit OF God dwell in you.
        Now if any man have not the Spirit OF Christ, he is none of his.
1Peter 1:11 Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit OF Christ which was in them did signify,
        when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.

Paul Tillich wrote:

"The Spirit is sometimes personified in the Bible, as in John 16:7-8, and this has led many to believe that it is a person. They do so because they do not take into account an idiom of the original Greek language. In Greek, inanimate objects which in English would be couched in the neuter gender, are given a masculine or feminine gender, if those objects are identified with any particular individual. ' For example, a chair is described as "it" in English, because it is neuter, being neither masculine nor feminine. But in Greek that chair can be identified with its owner. If it belongs to me, the chair is described as he; if it belongs to my wife, as she. Click Here.

"For this reason, the Holy Spirit has frequently been personified in Scripture, identifying it with God, and so it is personified as he.

"However, if the Holy Spirit were actually a person it should be rendered as he in every place where the word is referred to; but it is not. It is sometimes rendered in the neuter. In Romans 8:16, Paul writes: "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit." The neuter, itself is used, and this is in accord with the Greek text, as any Greek scholar will acknowledge.

"To personify inanimate objects is normal in Scripture. Wisdom is represented as a woman (Proverbs 9:1), mammon is described as a friend (Luke 16:9), sin is personified as a slave-owner (Romans 6:16), the Holy Spirit as a comforter (John 14:26), expressing the spirit of Truth. So Micah declared: "I am full of power by the spirit of the Lord" (Micah 3:8). The prophets were moved by the spirit to record the Scriptures (Nehemiah 9:20; 2 Peter 1:21), and God used the same means to speak to Israel through His Son (Hebrews 1: 1). For the rest of the quote Click Here.

"Personification.-- This is a figure of speech by which inanimate beings are spoken of as animated, or endowed with life and volition; animals are endowed with feelings akir to those of men.

"This is well suited to an imaginary condition of mind, and therefore frequently employed in Hebrew Scriptures. Indeed, it is now a staple in the market of communication, and we use it so commonly ourselves that whe have almost ceasted to speak of it as a figure of speech." (Prof. D. R. Dungan, Hermeneutics, p. 324, Gospel Light Publishing)

The Holy Spirit is spoken of in intimate association with both the Father and the Son (Matthew 28:19; John 14:16; 1 Corinthians 12:4-6; 2 Corinthians 13:14; 1 Peter 1:2).

Matt. 28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, 
        All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
Matt. 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations,
        baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Matt. 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things
        whatsoever I have commanded you:
        and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Trinitarians have no intention of obeying that direct CENI: they need a spirit person to authorize corrupting the Word or selling learning at wholesale.  And violating the direct command that the elders as pastor-teachers are to "teach that which has been taught." Since Jesus didn't REPUDIATE the monotheism of the True God in the Old Testament, he claimed that the "father" was in him doing the work. Jlesus SPOKE the very words of God because God breathed on him or gave the Spirit (breath) without measure (maybe meter).

Philip wanted to SEE the Father if Jesus was the Son: The Jews were polytheists and father, son and spirit at Mount Sinai had been Osiris, Isis and Horus as the trinity represented by Apis the golden calveS.  We know the multiple gods worshipped by Israel and Judah from Amos and Acts 7.  All pagan triads were usually father, spirit (mother) and son.  Sophia or wisdom was the Spirit of the Jews. God intended to demonstrate ONE BEING who bore the NAME (singular) of the pagan father, mother and son.  The DOVE image was to prove that Jesus was the Son of a Father and not the Daughter of a Mother.

He did not say NAMES: the Name of Father, Son and Spirit in the economical sense is Jesus Christ. Peter understood Him perfectly and when he and everyone else baptized in the NAME of Father, Son and Spirit he commanded:

Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you
        in the name of Jesus Christ
        for the remission of sins,
        and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 

Some passages in the Old Testament that are attributed to Jehovah, are applied to the Spirit in the New Testament (cf. Isaiah 6:8; Acts 28:25 and Exodus 16:7; Hebrews 3:7-9).

Is. 6:8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me

Acts 28:25 And when they agreed not among themselves, they departed, after that Paul had spoken one word, Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet unto our fathers,
Acts 28:26 Saying, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: 

This was the  Spirit OF Christ:

1Pet. 1:11 Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow

Ex. 16:7 And in the morning, then ye shall see the glory of the LORD; for that he heareth your murmurings against the LORD: and what are we, that ye murmur against us? 

Heb. 3:5 And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after;
Heb. 3:6 But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.
Heb. 3:7 Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice,
Heb. 3:8 Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:
Heb. 3:9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years.
Heb. 3:10 Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways.
Heb. 3:11 So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.)

When the Prophets spoke it was the Spirit OF CHRIST: OF is a preposition.

Who was the Lord in the Wilderness?

1Cor. 10:1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
1Cor. 10:2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
1Cor. 10:3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat;
1Cor. 10:4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink:
        for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. 

Deity Is Worthy of Worship

A divine person is worthy of worship. Jehovah is “worthy to be praised” (Psalm 18:3). God is great and greatly to be praised (Psalm 48:1). We are commanded to worship God (Matthew 4:10; Revelation 19:10; 22:9). If, then, the Spirit is deity, he is a worthy object of worship. And what will be the consequence if one condemns others who engage in such worship?

Psalms 18:1 I will love thee, O LORD, my strength.
Psalms 18:2 The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.
Psalms 18:3 I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.

Luke 4:7 If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine.
Luke 4:8 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: f
        or it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve
John 9:31 Now we know that God heareth not sinners: 
        but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth. 

Consider this logical point. If it is the case that Christ’s acceptance of worship (Matthew 14:33; Luke 24:52) is a strong argument for the fact that he is divine, would not it likewise be the case that if the Spirit is deity, such would argue for the necessity of worshipping him?

God IS Spirit: He does not have any subbordinates in the godhead.

Benjamin Warfield (1851-1921) was one of the most respected scholars in the conservative Presbyterian Church at the turn of the last century. He taught at the Western Theological Seminary in Pittsburg (1878-87) before becoming a professor of theology at Princeton. A half-century ago a volume of his writings was published that contained a masterful essay on “The Biblical Doctrine of the Trinity.” One point Professor Warfield pursued relentlessly is the fact that the term “God” is used countless times in the Scriptures in a generic sense. By that he meant that the sacred term frequently embraced the entire Godhead — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — rather than merely alluding to the Father alone. Here is his statement:

“Everywhere and by all it was fully understood that the one God whom Christians worshipped and from whom alone they expected redemption and all that redemption brought with it, included with His undiminished unity the three: God the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, whose activities relatively [sic] to one another are conceived as distinctly personal” (p. 49).

The NAME of the Godhead is Jesus: it is Father, Son and Spirit and never God, Jesus and a Spirit person.

Jesus was not BORN as Lord or Christ:

Acts 2:36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly,
        that God
        hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified,
        both Lord and Christ

Noted scholar Francis Pieper stated that the worship of the Holy Spirit is “taught in all those Scripture passages where divine majesty, attributes, and works are ascribed to the Holy Ghost [Spirit]” (p. 387). The command to “worship God” includes the sacred Spirit.

New Testament Precedent

In addition to the support from both “command” and “necessary implication,” as sketched above, there is a substantial case that may be made for the position that the Holy Spirit is worthy of human worship upon the ground of “example.”

(1) When the early disciples praised God, the work of his Spirit was included in the anthem (Acts 4:24ff). As one scholar noted, "this act of worship on the part of the disciples terminated on the Holy Spirit (Shedd, p. 331).

Acts 4:24 And when they heard that, 
        they lifted up their voice to God with one accord,
        and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven,
        and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is:
Acts 4:25 Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said,
        Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things?

IF YOU READ FROM OTHER VERSIONS:

Acts 4:25 who by the Holy Spirit, by the mouth of our father David thy servant, didst say,
        Why did the Gentiles rage, And the peoples imagine vain things?

It is still JEHOVAH as the only ELOHIM who BREATHED on David so that David was the WORD
Jehovah does not need a third member of the "God family" to cause David to Speak

Acts 4:26 The kings of the earth stood up,
        and the rulers were gathered together
        against the Lord, and against his Christ.

Again: Acts 2:36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly,
        that God
        hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified,
        both Lord and Christ 

This attribution to God the Father and Jesus Christ is ended. Then, it is stated:

Acts 4:31 And when they had prayed, 
        the place was shaken where they were assembled together;
        and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost,
        and they spake the word of God with boldness

THERE ARE ONLY TWO ACTORS IN REVELATION

John 5:36 But I have greater witness than that of John:
        for the works which the Father hath given me to finish,
        the same works that I do, bear witness of me,
        that the Father hath sent me.

John 5:37 And the Father himself,
        which hath sent me,
        hath borne witness of me.
                Ye have neither heard his voice at any time,
                 nor seen his shape.

John 6:45 It is written in the prophets,
        And they shall be all taught of God.
        Every man therefore that hath heard,
        and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me.

Acts 2:34 For David is not ascended into the heavens:
         but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord,
        Sit thou on my right hand,
Acts 2:35 Until I make thy foes thy footstool.
Acts 2:36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly,
        that God
        hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, 
                both Lord and Christ.

(2) Biblical literature abounds with a literary form commonly called a “benediction.” The benediction is defined as the “invocation of blessing, and the expression in prayer for happiness and well-being” (Purkiser, p. 217). These prayer offerings are found in the Patriarchal period (cf. Gensis 14:19-20; Hebrews 11:20-21), and in the Mosaic regime as well (see 2 Chronicles 30:27, and note the parallelism between the “blessing” and “prayer”).

There is only Abraham and the Most High God: there cannot be three most high Gods.

Genesis 14:19 And he blessed him, and said,
        Blessed be Abram
                of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:
Genesis 14:20 And blessed be the most high God,
        which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.

THERE IS ONLY ONE GOD PERSON IN THESE PASSAGES

The “benediction” motif is apparent also in some of the epistles of Paul (see: 1 Thessalonians 5:28; 2 Thessalonians 3:18, etc.). Of these benedictions, Michael Martin writes.

1Th. 5:19 Quench not the Spirit.
1Th. 5:20 Despise not prophesyings.

The Spirit literally means WIND. In a figurative sense it means the Breath of God. When God breaths  on you you speak WORDS.

Psa. 33:6 By the [1] word of the [2] LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them
         by the [3] breath of his mouth.
Psa. 33:7 He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: he layeth up the depth in storehouses.
Psa. 33:8 Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.
Psa. 33:9 For he spake, and it was done;
        he commanded, and it stood fast.

1Th. 5:21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
1Th. 5:22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.

1Th. 5:23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; 
        and I pray God YOUR whole spirit and soul and body
        be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

1Th. 5:28 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen

There  is no Holy Spirit person singled out. In any of the salutatioons:
.
1Th. 1:2 We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers;
1Th. 1:3 Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love,
        and patience of hope
        in our Lord Jesus Christ,
        in the sight of God and our Father;

2Th. 1:1 Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians
        in God our Father and
        the Lord Jesus Christ:
2Th. 1:2 Grace unto you, and peace,
        from God our Father and
        the Lord Jesus Christ.

In this connection let us focus on 2 Corinthians 13:14. “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.” Of this text Albert Barnes wrote: “It is a prayer; and if it is a prayer addressed to God, it is no less so to the Lord Jesus and to the Holy Spirit. If so, it is right to offer worship to the Lord Jesus and to the Holy Spirit” (p. 274 — emp. original).

It is not addressed to the Holy Spirit: it is asking the ONE God the Father to bestow a blessing upon the Corinthians.

When the Spirit Lord appeared to and  spoke to Paul He said "I am Jesus of Nazareth." He promised to be with Paul and "guide him into all truth" as He had the other apostles.  That is why Paul say:

2Cor. 13:3 Since ye seek a proof of Christ speaking in me, 
        which to you-ward is not weak, but is mighty in you.
2Cor. 13:11 Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort,
        be of one mind, live in peace; and
        the God of love
        and peace shall be with you. (peace is not another "God" person)

Proof text that the Spirit is a PERSON	But, Only TWO Actors
2Cor. 13:14 The grace of        the Lord Jesus Christ,         and the love of God,         and the communion of the Holy Spirit,        be with you all. Amen	Eph. 1:3 Blessed be         the God and Father         of our Lord Jesus Christ,         who hath blessed us                 with all spiritual blessings                 In heavenly places in Christ:
koinōn-ia A. communion, association, partnership, Co-education	eulogia fine speaking, benediction blessing, prosperity

Pneuma blast, wind, aidoiō p. khōras with air or spirit of respect on the part of the country, Id.Supp.29(anap.);
4. breath of life, “p. zōēs” LXXGe.6.17, 7.15, cf. Plu.Per.13,etc.; p. ekhein retain life, Plb.31.10.4; living being, “egō Ninos palai pot' egenomēn p.” Phoen.1.16; ou p. panta broteia soi (sc. Ploutōni）“ nemetai;” IG14.769 (Naples)
III. divine inspiration, “agria . . pneumata theuphoriēs”
IV. the spirit of God, “p. theou” LXXGe.1.2, etc.: freq. in NT, “to p. to hagion” Ev.Marc.3.29,al.

Paul says it in different ways in all of his epistles

	We commune with God in OUR spirit	Christ, the Spirit, communes with our spirit
	Phil. 3:1 Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord.     To write the same things to you,      to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe. Phil. 3:2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers,      beware of the concision. Phil. 3:3 For we are the circumcision,         which worship God IN the spirit,         and rejoice in Christ Jesus,         and have no confidence in the flesh.	John 4:23 But the hour cometh, and now is,      when the true worshippers shall worship the Father      in spirit and in truth: [A place]       for the Father seeketh such to worship him. John 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him      must worship him in spirit and in truth. John 4:25 The woman saith unto him, I know that      Messias cometh, which is called Christ:      when he is come, he will tell us all things.

ALL OF THE SALUTATIONS PREVENT US FROM THINKING OF MORE THAN TWO ACTOR.

1Cor. 1:1 Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ
        through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,
1Cor. 1:2 Unto the church of God which is at Corinth,
        to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints,
        with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

They do NOT call upon the Name of the Holy Spirit because The Holy Spirit is the Spirit or Mind of Christ. And another identical statement without any hint of a third being.

1Cor. 1:3 Grace be unto you, and peace,
        from God our Father,
        and from the Lord Jesus Christ.  

1Cor. 4:1 Let a man so account of us,
        as of the ministers of Christ,
        and stewards of the mysteries of God.
1Cor. 8:5 For though there be that are called gods,
        whether in heaven or in earth,
        (as there be gods many, and lords many,)
1Cor. 8:6 But to us
        there is but ONE GOD, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him;
        and ONE LORD Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him  

In an excellent article on the nature of benedictions, Alfred Faulkner comments regarding this passage. “This verse prays for a holy fellowship in the Divine life mediated by the Spirit, and it is a fitting conclusion to an Epistle agitated by strife” (p. 147).

1Tim. 2:1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers,
        intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
1Tim. 2:2 For kings, and for all that are in authority;
        that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
1Tim. 2:3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;
1Tim. 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

There are only Two Actors: God the Father in heaven and the man Christ Jesus as the ONLY mediator: if you impose the Spirit of Christ to be WORSHIPPED you belittle Jesus Christ as the MAN Mediator.

1Tim. 2:5 For there is one God, 
           and one mediator between God and men, 
           the man Christ Jesus;
1Tim. 2:6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

Of the "another Comforter" where  Jesus said "I will come to you" the same John named the ONLY Comforter or Mediator.

1John 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not.
        And if any man sin,
        we have an advocate with the Father,
        Jesus Christ the righteous:  

In his commentary on Paul’s second epistle to the Corinthians, Charles Hodge, the celebrated professor at the Princeton Theological Seminary, wrote: “The distinct personality and the divinity of the Son, the Father, and the Holy Spirit, to each of whom prayer is addressed, is here taken for granted” (p. 314).

Father, Son and Spirit are NEVER the names of people.   Jesus Christ owned the economical title of Father, Son and Spirit in John 14: if you have seen the Son you have seen the Father and Jesus said the Spirit had been WITH them and would be IN them iin the same sense that obedient believers were IN both Father and Son.  The Spirit is not said to be part of the  Father-Son in John 14.

In an essay on the “Trinity,” Loraine Boettner says that 2 Corinthians 13:14 “is a prayer addressed to Christ for His grace, to the Father for His love, and to the Holy Spirit for His fellowship” (p. 92).

Again, Paul is not praying to THREE PEOPLE: this is asking a blessing upon the people.

Warfield describes the apostle’s benediction here as “a closing prayer” (p. 46). And Augustus Strong observed, “If the apostolic benedictions are prayers, then we have here a prayer to the Spirit” (p. 316). Barnett declares that Paul “prays that ‘the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit’ be ‘with’ them” (p. 618).

(3) There are several New Testament contexts in which the cooperative activity of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in the scheme of redemption are set forth, and in those contexts an anthem of praise flows from the apostles’ inspired pens (see: Ephesians 1:3-14; 1 Peter 1:1-12). It is very difficult to see how anyone could reasonably conclude that only the Father is the object of such adoration.

However, the benediction NEVER gives a role to a  Holy Spirit which is the Spirit OF Christ or the MIND of Christ:

Compare:

Eph. 1:1 Paul, an apostle 
        of Jesus Christ
        by the will of God,
        to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus:
Eph. 1:2 Grace be to you, and peace,
        from God our Father,
        and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

You will notice that both grace and peace comes only from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Spirit is that "breath" or communion which passes between  Father (thought) and Son (articulated  Word). And the blessing or worship is:

Spiritual blessings	Mean communion with the Spiritual.
Eph. 1:3 Blessed be         the God and Father         of our Lord Jesus Christ,         who hath blessed us                 with all spiritual [g4152] blessings                 In heavenly places in Christ:	2Cor. 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,       and the love of God,       and the communion      of the Holy Spirit, [g4151]            be with you all. Amen.

When the TWO participants--God the Father and Jesus of Nazareth Whom the ONE GOD made to be our Lord and Christ--communicate ALL SPIRITual blessing we have the "communion of the Spirit.."

1Pet. 1:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
        to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,
1Pet. 1:2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,
        through sanctification of the Spirit,  [gives US A holy spirit]
        unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ:
        Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

1 Peter 3:21 BAPTISM SAVES US because we request that  God give us A good conscience which is A holy spirit.  It is OUR spirit which is sanctified or made holy.

Through
EN endu, into, at or by, of the instrument, means of,
Eis into, resting in, 

1Pet. 1:3 Blessed be
        the God and Father
        of our Lord Jesus Christ,
               which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope
               by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead

1Pet. 1:11 Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow
1Pet. 1:12 Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you
        by them that have preached the gospel unto you
        with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven;
        which things the angels desire to look into.

That Spirit sent down is the Words of Jesus Christ:

John 6:62 What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?
John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing:
        the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life

That is how the Spirit OF Christ is "communicated."

2Pet. 1:1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ,
        to them that have obtained like precious faith with us
        through the righteousness of God
        and our Saviour Jesus Christ:
2Pet. 1:2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through
        the knowledge of God,
        and of Jesus our Lord,

2Pet. 1:19 We have also a more sure word of prophecy;
        whereunto ye do well that ye take heed,
        as unto a light that shineth in a dark place,
        until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:
2Pet. 1:20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
2Pet. 1:21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man:
        but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

Again, the Spirit OF Christ:

1Pet. 1:11 Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.

(4) Psalm 95 is a marvelous song erupting in praise for God. It begins: “Oh come, let us sing unto Jehovah; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise unto him with psalms” (vv. 1-2).

1Cor. 10:4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.

Then, a little later: “Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before Jehovah our Maker: for he is our God” (vv. 6-7). The text then proceeds with a rebuke to the nation of Israel. The people are admonished not to harden their hearts, as their fathers did in the wilderness, when they “tempted me.” Note this first person pronoun.

Psa. 95:2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving,
        and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.
Psa. 95:3 For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.
Psa. 95:4 In his hand ARE THE DEEP PLACES OF THE EARTH: THE STRENGTH OF THE HILLS IS his also.
Psa. 95:5 The sea IS HIS, AND HE MADE IT: AND HIS HANDS FORMED THE DRY LAND.
Psa. 95:6 O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker. 

The same God who was worshipped was, at other times, “tempted” by Israel. Now here is the amazing thing. When these words from Psalm 95 are quoted in the book of Hebrews as a warning to certain Christians who were in danger of apostasy, the words of the Speaker are attributed to the Holy Spirit (Hebrews 3:7-11). No other conclusion can be drawn than this. The same deity who was “put to the test” was also worthy of worship, and this at least included the Holy Spirit.  

Psa. 95:7 For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, 
        and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice,
Psa. 95:8 Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness:
Psa. 95:9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work.
Psa. 95:10 Forty years long was I grieved with this generation,
        and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways:
Psa. 95:11 Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest.

Notice all of the singular pronounce.  

Heb. 3:7 Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice,
Heb. 3:8 Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:
Heb. 3:9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years.
Heb. 3:10 Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways.
Heb. 3:11 So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.)

The Spirit was the Spirit OF Christ the ROCK

2Cor. 3:14 But their minds were blinded: 
          for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away
         in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ.
2Cor. 3:15 But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart.
2Cor. 3:16 Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.
2Cor. 3:17 Now the Lord is that Spirit:
        and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
2Cor. 3:18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord,
        are changed into the same image from glory to glory,
        even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

What is the name of the Spirit?

1Pet. 1:10 Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, 
        who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:
1Pet. 1:11 Searching what, or what manner of time
        the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify,
        when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.

Rev. 19:10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy 

(5) References in the book of Revelation to the “seven spirits” (1:4; 3:1; 4:5; 5:6) are almost uniformly conceded to be an acknowledgment of the Holy Spirit.

The number seven is used symbolically for completeness or perfection. Several arguments point in this direction. For example, the “seven Spirits” are encased in a “Trinitarian” format — “him who is and who was and who is to come” [the Father], the seven Spirits that are before his throne [the Holy Spirit], and from Jesus Christ [the Son]" (1:4). The “seven Spirits” operate in conjunction with Christ (3:1; cf. John 14:16-18; 15:26; 16:14).

The seven SPIRITS are  all forms of Divine knowledge which are  "communioned" to us with God's breath which IS His Spirit.

Jesus as the Messiah is likened to the Menorah in the Holy Place: seven flickering lamps represent the SEVEN BREATHINGS of Light or Spirit.

In Revelation 4, out of the very throne of God proceeded lightnings and voices and thunders. Too, there were seven lamps of fire that represented the “seven Spirits of God” (v. 5). One scholar has observed: "The spirits are grouped with other manifestations of the theophany proper (lightning and thunder); significantly the seven spirits are never said to join in the adoration of God by this court (4:8; 9-11) (Paige, p. 1120).

Is. 11:1 And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, 
        and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:
Is. 11:2 And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him,
        the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
        the spirit of counsel and might,
        the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;
Is. 11:3 And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD:
        and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears:
Is. 11:4 But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth:
        and he shall smite the earth
        with the rod of his mouth,
        and with the breath (Spirit) of his lips shall he slay the wicked.   

In the scenes of both chapters 4 and 5, observe the close association of the Spirit with both the Lord God and the Lamb (4:5; 5:6). As praise profusely issues from the entire realm of the rational, spiritually-oriented creation, it is directed to the united operations of the Holy Three (4:8ff; 5:7ff). This clearly evinces the inclusion of the Holy Spirit in the worship that ascends from the earth.

One of the designators of Jesus Christ sends messages to the seven churches. At the end, it is the Spirit sendig messages.

Rev. 2:1 Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks

When the message  is finished,

Rev. 2:7 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

And so in all of the seven churches: the message  begins with Christ under one title or another and ends by proving that Jesus Christ is the SPIRIT of God speaking.

Rev. 2:18 And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass

When the message  is finished,

Rev. 2:29 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches

Rev. 4:2 And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold,
        a throne was set in heaven, and ONE sat on the throne.
Rev. 4:5 And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: 
        and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, 
        which are the seven Spirits of God

Rather than say that the SEVEN Spirits is the ONE Holy Spirit, the seven spirits ARE IN FACT the Lamps of divine knowledge

The seven Spirits of knowledge or candlesticks are NOT to be worshipped. These "spirits" are NOT worshipped.

Rev. 4:10 The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne,
        and worship him that liveth for ever and ever,
        and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
Rev. 4:11 Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: 
        for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created

Additionally, as John T. Hinds observed, “a blessing is invoked from the three” mentioned in 1:4. John petitions for “grace and peace” from “him who was and who is and who is to come” [the Father], and “the seven spirits,” and “Jesus Christ.” One should note the coordinating conjunctions connecting the three. Hinds argued that since it is wrong to pray to any one except deity, the conclusion that follows demands that the “seven spirits” must be a reference to the Holy Spirit (p. 20).

Notice that all of the salutations speak of the One God the Father and Jesus Christ as the "body prepared for Me" whom the Ong God made to be both Lord and Christ:

Rev. 1:1 The Revelation 
        of Jesus Christ,
        which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants
        things which must shortly come to pass; a
        nd he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:
Rev. 1:2 Who bare record
        of the word of God,
        and of the testimony of Jesus Christ,
        and of all things that he saw.

Rev. 19:1 And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God:

Rev. 19:10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus:
        worship God:
        for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy

You worship God the Father: you do not worship the prophecies inspired by the Spirit of Christ.
You will notice that there is no third person or people involved.

Rev. 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth,
        and they that hear the words of this prophecy,
        and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.
Rev. 1:4 John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you,
        and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come;
        and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;

These are the Lamps or Divine Knowledge. If this is The Holy Spirit then assuredly there be  SEVEN SPIRITS as members of the Godhead.

Rev. 1:5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness,
        and the first begotten of the dead,
        and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us,
        and washed us from our sins in his own blood,
Rev. 1:6 And hath made us kings and priests
        unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Rev. 1:7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him,
        and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.
Rev. 1:8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. 

The Testimony of the Patristic Writers

Joseph Bingham, in his celebrated work, The Antiquities of the Christian Church, has provided a mountain of evidence establishing the fact that the Christians of the early post-apostolic age did not hesitate to offer worship to the Holy Spirit (pp. 586ff). For example, in a letter that was circulated by the church in Smyrna following the death of Polycarp (c. A.D. 69-155), a disciple of the apostle John, who was being burned alive, these words were recorded:

“Wherefore also I praise you [God, the Father] for all things, I bless you, along with the everlasting and heavenly Jesus Christ, your beloved Son, with whom, to you and the Holy Spirit, be glory both now and to all coming ages. Amen” (Epistle from Smyrna, XIV).

In the Nicene creed the Holy Spirit was not part  of the TWO ACTORS of the Godhead: they later added the statement "and we believe in the Holy Spirit." See Augustine in Faith and Creed.

Polycarp Did Not Teach that the Holy Spirit Was God

Where did the idea of the Holy Spirit being one hypostasis of a trinity come from?

It did not come from Polycarp. It actually came from the famous heretic Valentinus in the early to mid 2nd century (note that Valentinus is considered to be a heretic by Catholics, Orthodox, Protestant, and Church of God adherents).

Here is what it is recorded that a one-time 4th century Catholic bishop named Marcellus of Ancyra wrote about Valentinus' writings, which appears to be discussing perhaps the earliest citation about the Holy Spirit extant (other than scriptural references or references that make no specific claims):

Now with the heresy of the Ariomaniacs, which has corrupted the Church of God...These then teach three hypostases, just as Valentinus the heresiarch first invented in the book entitled by him 'On the Three Natures'.  For he was the first to invent three hypostases and three persons of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and he is discovered to have filched this from Hermes and Plato (Source: Logan A. Marcellus of Ancyra (Pseudo-Anthimus), 'On the Holy Church': Text, Translation and Commentary. Verses 8-9.  Journal of Theological Studies, NS, Volume 51, Pt. 1, April 2000, p.95).

Hermeneutics is derived from HERMES or MERCURY.

T. Maccius Plautus, Amphitryon, or Jupiter in Disguise And I too, as well, who am the son of Jupiter, t

1 Merck indize: "Mercimoniis." Mercury was the God of trading and merchandize, and was said to have received his name from the Latin word "merx." See the tradesman's prayer to him in the Fasti of Ovid, B. v., l. 682.

2 With joyous news: Mercury was the messenger of the Gods, and, therefore, the patron of messengers; and, if we may so say, the God of News.

Mercŭrĭus , ii, m., = Hermēs, I. Mercury, the son of Jupiter and Maia, the messenger of the gods; as a herald, the god of dexterity; in speaking, of eloquence; the bestower of prosperity; the god of traders and thieves; the presider over roads, and conductor of departed souls to the Lower World: Mercurius a mercibus est dictus. stella Mercurii, the planet Mercury: infra hanc autem stella Mercurii

Hermēs , ou, ho, nom. A.“Hermēs” Od.5.54, etc.: acc. “Hermēn” 8.334
3. ho tou Hermou astēr the planet Mercury, Pl.Ti.38d, Epin.987b, Arist.Mete. 342b33, Metaph.1073b32, Thphr.Sign.46, etc.: later Hermēs, ho, in same sense, Placit.2.32.1, Plu.2.1028b, Cleom.2.7 : hence, “Hermou hēmera” D.C.37.19.

Also, Polycarp called the Father God and Jesus God, he never referred to the Holy Spirit that way (see Polycarp's Letter to the Philippians).

Polycarp of Smyrna wrote:

But may the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ Himself, who is the Son of God, and our everlasting High Priest, build you up in faith and truth, and in all meekness, gentleness, patience, long-suffering, forbearance, and purity; and may He bestow on you a lot and portion among His saints, and on us with you, and on all that are under heaven, who shall believe in our Lord and God Jesus Christ, and in His Father, who "raised Him from the dead (Polycarp. Letter to the Philippians. From Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 1as edited by Alexander Roberts & James Donaldson. American Edition, 1885. Chapter 12 modified by B. Thiel to correct omission in translation).

The epistle also closes with a benediction of “glory for ever and ever” to Lord Jesus Christ, the Father, and the Holy Spirit (XXII).

In the Ante-Nicene Fathers (Roberts & Donaldson, Eds.), there is the record of an ancient Christian hymn with these words: “We praise the Father and the Son, and the Holy Spirit of God” (p. 298). Testimony of this nature can be multiplied many times over.

Justin Martyr wrote:

"God begot before all creatures a Beginning, who was a certain rational power from himself and whom the Holy Spirit calls . . . sometimes the Son, . . . sometimes Lord and Word ... We see things happen similarly among ourselves,

for whenever we utter some word, we beget a word, yet not by any cutting off, which would diminish the word in us when we utter it.

We see a similar occurrence when one fire enkindles another. (Justin Martyr, c 100-165, First Apology)

"The Son of God is the Word of the Father in thought and actuality. By him and through him all things were made, the Father and the Son being one. Since the Son is in the Father and the Father is in the Son
        by the unity and power of the Spirit,
        "the Mind and Word of the Father is the Son of God.

Athanagoras wrote:

"And if, in your exceedingly great wisdom, it occurs to you to inquire what is meant by `the Son,' I will tell you briefly: He is the first- begotten of the Father,

not as having been produced, for from the beginning God had the Word in himself,
God being eternal mind and eternally rational,
but as coming forth to be the model and energizing force of all material things"
(Athanagoras, 177 AD, Plea for the Christians 10:2-4).

And Irenaeus wrote:

"It was not angels, therefore, who made us nor who formed us, neither had angels power to make an image of God, nor anyone else . . . For God did not stand in need of these in order to the accomplishing of what he had himself determined with himself beforehand should be done, as if he did not possess his own hands.

For with him [the Father] were always present the Word and Wisdom, the Son and the Spirit, by whom and in whom, freely and spontaneously, he made all things, to whom also he speaks, saying, 'Let us make man in our image and likeness' [Gen. 1:26" (Irenaeus, Against Heresies 4:20:1)

Tertullian who invented the word Trinity or Trias Warned:

Tertullian and others never used the word "person." A person is a "people" a human being. Rather, they used the word personae which means "mask" or mode of expressing self.

"There are some who allege that even Genesis opens thus in Hebrew: "In the beginning God made for Himself a Son." As there is no ground for this, I am led to other arguments derived from God's own dispensation, in which He existed before the creation of the world, up to the generation of the Son.

For before all things God was alone - being in Himself and for Himself universe, and space, and all things. Moreover, He was alone, because there was nothing external to Him but Himself.

Yet even not then was He alone; for He had with Him that which He possessed in Himself, that is to say, His own Reason.

"For God is rational, and Reason was first in Him; and so all things were from Himself. (Spirit is the rational nature)

This Reason is His own Thought (or Consciousness) which the Greeks call logos, by which term we also designate Word or Discourse and therefore it is now usual with our people, owing to the mere simple interpretation of the term,

to say that the Word was in the beginning with God; although it would be more suitable to regard Reason as the more ancient; because God had not Word from the beginning, but He had Reason even before the beginning; because also Word itself consists of Reason, which it thus proves to have been the prior existence as being its own substance....

He became also the Son of God, and was begotten when He proceeded forth from Him (from chs. 5,7).

Professor Everett Ferguson is the premier authority of general church history among churches of Christ. His scholarship is respected far beyond our own borders. In his book, Early Christians Speak, he calls attention to a hymn from the Oxyrhynchus collection (A.D. 3rd century) that calls for “the praise of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” (p. 160). Ferguson also notes that while prayers were normally rendered to the Father, there is evidence of prayers to both God and Christ, and sometimes to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (p. 143).

Conclusion

In view of the foregoing, it is somewhat perplexing to read the sentiments of one who writes: “Since the Holy Spirit is divine, is it proper to worship him? Yes, in fact, it is wrong not to worship him” (Cottrell, p. 286; emp. original).

But Professor Cottrell, whom I respect though not always agreeing with him, then says: “there are no biblical examples or precedents for addressing the Holy Spirit directly in praise or prayer.” With due respect, we believe the evidence introduced above demonstrates otherwise. Besides, if one cannot directly praise the Holy Spirit — either in song or prayer — how is such worship to be rendered?

For years Christians have sung hymns in which the Spirit of God was praised along with the Father and the Son. A Latin hymn from around A.D. 350 was popularized by Greatorex in 1851:

“Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.”

Bourgeois’s composition (1551) has these familiar lines:

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Heber’s famous song (1826) has these lyrics:

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
All thy works shall praise thy name, in earth and sky and sea;
Holy, holy, holy! Merciful and mighty!
God in three persons, blessed Trinity!

We can only ask respectfully, therefore; whence the origin of this new notion that only the Father is worthy of human worship?

Sources/Footnotes

• Barnes, Albert (1955), Notes on the New Testament — II Corinthians and Galatians (Grand Rapids: Baker).
• Barnett, Paul (1997), The Second Epistle to the Corinthians (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans).
• Bingham, Joseph (1865), The Antiquities of the Christian Church (London: Henry G. Bohn).
• Boettner, Loraine (1953), Studies in Theology (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans).
• Cottrell, Jack (2002), The Faith Once For All (Joplin, MO: College Press).
• Faulkner, Alfred (1915), “Benediction,” Dictionary of the Apostolic Church, James Hastings, Ed. (Edinburgh: T.&T. Clark), Vol. I.
• Ferguson, Everett (1971), Early Christians Speak (Austin, TX: Sweet).
• Hinds, John T. (1955), A Commentary on the Book of Revelation (Nashville: Gospel Advocate).
• Hodge, Charles (1860), An Exposition of the Second Epistle to the Corinthians (New York: Robert Carter & Bros.).
• Martin, D. Michael (1995), 1, 2 Thessalonians — The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman).
• Paige, Terrance (1997), Dictionary of the Later New Testament & Its Development, Ralph Martin & Peter Davids, Eds. (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity).
• Pieper, Francis (1950), Christian Dogmatics (St. Louis: Concordia), Vol. I.
• Purkiser, W.T. (1999), Wycliffe Bible Dictionary, Charles Pfeiffer, Howard Vos, John Rea, Eds. (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson).
• Roberts, Alexander & Donaldson, James, Eds. (1995), Ante-Nicene Fathers (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson), Vol. 2.
• Shedd, William (1971), Dogmatic Theology (Grand Rapids: Zondevan), Vol. I.
• Strong, A.H. (1907), Systematic Theology (Old Tappan, NJ: Fleming Revell).
• Warfield, Benjamin (1952), Biblical and Theological Studies (Philadelphia: Presbyterian & Reformed).

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