Summary
Summary of The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit
The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit at a glance
Summary: 7 min to read
- Reading time
- About 4 h 45 min3 h 45 min fast, 5 h 40 min slow
- Length
- 67,500 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1910by R. A. Torrey
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
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Key ideas
Key idea 1
The Spirit is someone to know
Torrey begins with a question that shapes everything else: is the Holy Spirit a force we use, or a Person with his own mind and will? He points to the Spirit's knowledge, feelings, actions, and role as the other Comforter promised by Jesus. The Spirit can also be grieved and lied to.
This changes the believer's question. Instead of asking how to get more spiritual power, we ask how the Spirit can have more of us. For Torrey, that shift replaces pride with humility and personal trust.
Key idea 2
The Spirit is fully God
Torrey moves from the Spirit's personality to his deity.
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Key idea 3
The Comforter stands beside you
Comforter is the name Torrey especially loves.
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Key idea 4
The Spirit makes Christ known
How does someone come to faith?
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Key idea 5
New life comes from the Spirit
Torrey pictures the Word as seed, the preacher as sower, and the heart as soil.
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Key idea 6
Spiritual fruit grows through surrender
Torrey contrasts the struggle in Romans seven with the freedom in Romans eight.
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Key idea 7
Guidance stays faithful to Scripture
The Spirit leads believers as God's children, not as people governed by endless rules of their own making.
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Key idea 8
Spiritual power is given for service
Torrey describes baptism with the Holy Spirit as a definite experience distinct from new birth.
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Key idea 9
Let the Spirit have more of you
Torrey's teaching brings the Spirit's identity and work together.
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Who it’s for
Readers who enjoy Bible study, practical Christian living, and plainspoken preaching will appreciate this book. It suits church workers and anyone who values teaching grounded in verses and stories.
What this book is
A woman who had belonged to her church for many years once told R. A. Torrey that she had never thought of the Holy Spirit as a Person. To her the Spirit was only an it, a force in the background. Torrey wrote a whole book to close that gap.
The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit comes from an American evangelist who worked beside D. L. Moody. He builds his case verse by verse and adds scenes from his own meetings. You learn who the Spirit is, what he is called, and what he does. Is the Spirit a Person, or a power for you to use?
In this summary
- 1The Spirit is someone to knowFree
- 2The Spirit is fully God
- 3The Comforter stands beside you
- 4The Spirit makes Christ known
- 5New life comes from the Spirit
- 6Spiritual fruit grows through surrender
- 7Guidance stays faithful to Scripture
- 8Spiritual power is given for service
- 9Let the Spirit have more of you
The Holy Spirit is a Person, not a power
Torrey begins with the most basic question. Is the Holy Spirit a force that God lends us, or a Person with a mind of his own? He says everything else in the book hangs on the answer.
He gives four lines of proof. The Spirit has knowledge, feeling, and will. He teaches, speaks, prays, and guides. He holds an office, the other Comforter whom Jesus promises. And he can be grieved, lied to, and spoken against.
Notice what changes in daily life. If the Spirit is only a power, you ask how to get more of him, and that breeds pride. If he is a Person, you ask how he can have more of you, and that brings humility. Because he is a Person, he also loves, and a hidden thought can hurt him.
Ask not how you can use the Spirit but how the Spirit can use you.
That’s 1 of 9 key points.
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Check yourself
How does recognizing the Holy Spirit as a Person change the believer's question?
Right. “Instead of asking how to get more of the Spirit, you ask how he can have more of you.”Not quite. “Instead of asking how to get more of the Spirit, you ask how he can have more of you.”
What safeguard does Torrey give for recognizing the Spirit's guidance?
Right. “The Spirit never leads against the written Word he inspired.”Not quite. “The Spirit never leads against the written Word he inspired.”
What is the purpose of baptism with the Holy Spirit in Torrey's teaching?
Right. “Its purpose is service rather than ecstasy.”Not quite. “Its purpose is service rather than ecstasy.”
Go deeper: the whole of The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit
About 4 h 50 min to read.Start freePaperback, hardcover and large print, printed for you at cost, are on their way.Email me when it is printed
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 67,500 words
- Reading timeAbout 4 h 45 min
Questions about The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit
What is The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit about?
It explains who the Holy Spirit is and what he does. Torrey covers his personality, deity, names, and work in conviction, new birth, guidance, prayer, and power, using Bible passages and stories from his own ministry.
Who was R. A. Torrey?
Torrey was an American evangelist and Bible teacher who worked alongside D. L. Moody. He preached widely in the United States and abroad and led a Bible institute and church in Chicago. He died in 1928.
What does Paraclete mean in this book?
It is the Greek word Torrey finds behind the name Comforter. It means one called alongside to take your side. He uses it to show the Spirit as an ever present helper and friend.
What does Torrey mean by baptism with the Holy Spirit?
He means a definite experience of the Spirit coming upon a believer to give power for witness and service. He sees it as separate from new birth and offers seven steps to receive it.
Is this book easy to follow?
Yes, it moves in clear steps, each chapter handles one question, and Torrey explains his points with plain language, Bible verses, and lively stories from meetings, travels, and everyday life.
Cite this edition
Torrey, R. A. The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-person-and-work-of-the-holy-spirit.
Torrey, R. A. (2026). The person and work of the Holy Spirit. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-person-and-work-of-the-holy-spirit (Original work published 1910)
Torrey, R. A. The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-person-and-work-of-the-holy-spirit.
@book{torrey2026person,
author = {Torrey, R. A.},
title = {The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-person-and-work-of-the-holy-spirit},
note = {First published 1910}
}
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Get the full summary of The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit, free
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