20 When He had said this, He ashowed them His hands and His side. bThen the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.
21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! aAs the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”
22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
23aIf you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
Seeing and Believing
24 Now Thomas, acalled the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.
25 The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”
When Christ breathed on His disciples, He gave them a memorable preview, a small sign and foretaste, of Pentecost's "rushing mighty wind." Still unconverted (Luke 22:32), they were told to wait for "the Promise of the Father," and were filled with the Holy Spirit on Pentecost (Acts 2:4). He did not say, "You have now received," past tense, yet His Spirit was opening their minds. Breath, like wind, is inanimate; the Holy Spirit is not a personality. The Greek emphusao means "to puff or breathe on," while pneuma means "a current of air" or "breath," and, by implication, God's Holy Spirit. As God breathed life into Adam, He breathes eternal life into His elect through His Spirit.
John 20:22
When God, in Jesus Christ, wanted His disciples to understand what was going to happen on the day of Pentecost, He did not blow a dove out of His mouth—He breathed! This illustrates a great deal about whether the Holy Spirit is a personality or an inanimate thing. Wind is inanimate; it has no personality.
When Christ breathed on His disciples, He gave them a memorable preview, a small sign and foretaste, of Pentecost's "rushing mighty wind." Still unconverted (Luke 22:32), they were told to wait for "the Promise of the Father," and were filled with the Holy Spirit on Pentecost (Acts 2:4). He did not say, "You have now received," past tense, yet His Spirit was opening their minds. Breath, like wind, is inanimate; the Holy Spirit is not a personality. The Greek emphusao means "to puff or breathe on," while pneuma means "a current of air" or "breath," and, by implication, God's Holy Spirit. As God breathed life into Adam, He breathes eternal life into His elect through His Spirit.