The phrase that is consistently used is receive the Spirit or be filled
1Corinthians 12
For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.
For the body does not consist of one member but of many.…
As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.…
If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.
Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.
John 3:5,6
Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
All Christians have the Spirit
All of us have the Spirit living in us
Rom 8:9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.
Rom 8:14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
Having the Spirit = new life
Receiving an empowerment of the Spirit = equipping for the Kingdom
Receiving the Spirit
Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you
Acts 2:4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit
Acts 2:38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 8:15 who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit,
Acts 8:17 Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.
Acts 8:19 “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”
Receiving the Spirit cont’d
Acts 9:17 …laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”
Acts 10:47 “Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?”
Acts 19:2 And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?”
2Cor 11:4 For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received
Gal 3:2 Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?
Was Pentecost unique?
There is no doubt that this was a unique event in salvation-history
Never again are people told just to wait
Luke 24 & Acts 1
And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
…But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Luke 4 —Jesus empowered by the Spirit
And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness
And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and a report about him went out through all the surrounding country.
Normal Sequence Acts 2:38
And Peter said to them,
“Repent
and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins,
and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
Same sequence with: Samaria, Ethiopian, Paul, the 12 Ephesians
Acts 19
…Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples.
And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John’s baptism.”
And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.”
Acts 19 cont’d
On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.
There were about twelve men in all.
Manefestations
Jesus: supernatural signs and wonders
Pentecost: flames, foreign languages (tongues) & boldness to speak
Acts 4: Building shaken, boldness to speak, “great power”
Paul: “scales” fell from his eyes, boldness to preach
Cornelius: foreign languages (tongues)
Ethiopian: filled with joy
Filling and re-filling
Acts 2:4 (Pentecost) And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Acts 4:31 (Later) And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.
What is the difference? Were they not all already Spirit-filled at Pentecost?
Acts 6
Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty.
Refilling: Ephesians 5
And do not get drunk with wine, which is debauchery, but be (continually) filled by the Spirit,
(Greek tense indicates a continual action)
Outline
“Baptized” is the wrong word
Receiving & being filled does not happen automatically
There are a wide range of manifestations, but always empowerment
It is not all or nothing—we can all have more
How do I get more?
Getting more
It is possible to be a Christian yet not to have received the Spirit as an empowerment
This empowering is simply the first filling that needs to be continually repeated
It is pointless to analyze our experience to know if we have been filled
In some circles, this question divides people into two
Simply ask to be filled again! (and again—it’s free!)
What do I do?
Believe (and be baptized)
Be humble enough to recognize your need
Ask: Luke 11:13 …how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”