Genuinely God

Art forgery is big business, and the tools for catching peddlers of fake paintings are becoming more sophisticated. Sotheby’s, one of the world’s largest and most esteemed brokers of fine art, now has its own forensic art analysis department. In order to spot a forgery, the first step is researching its place of origin. You need to determine if a work of art is truly from the time period in which the author lived. But tracing the work’s ownership history becomes more difficult the older the art.

Scientific methods of investigation are often used to catch fake works. Ultraviolet fluorescent light can pick up the age of paint and reveal with clearer light the original work. Optical microscopes allow one to see fine details in brushstrokes or ink patterns. Even X-rays and infrared reflectography can reveal what’s under the surface.

When it comes to determining whether the Holy Spirit is truly God, we can discover through the best tool available—the Bible—that the Holy Spirit is fully divine. The history of the Holy Spirit can be traced all the way back to Creation. The Scriptures tell us, “The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:2, emphasis added).

Not only is the Spirit called “truth” (John 16:13), but the Holy Spirit is omnipotent and delivers spiritual gifts to all believers (1 Corinthians 12:11). The Spirit is omnipresent and will abide with believers “forever” (John 14:16). The Holy Spirit is also omniscient, for “no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God” (1 Corinthians 2:11).

Ananias tried to lie to the Holy Spirit and discovered that he was lying to God. He learned just how skilled the Divine Spirit is in spotting a fake.

Apply It:

Think of a time when you confused a counterfeit for the real thing. What does this teach you about discovering Bible truth?

Dig Deeper:

Job 33:4; Acts 5:1–11; Romans 8:11

Key Bible Texts

But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? (Acts 5:3 KJV)