“Baptism with the Spirit” is a second experience after conversion
There are two kinds of Christians, those who have been and those who have not
(Traditional Pentecostals say you must speak in tongues)
This has been very divisive.
My Mom was radically saved in a Pentecostal church
She had an ecstatic filling of joy for two weeks and became fearless in telling people about Jesus
But because she didn’t speak in tongues, she was made to feel a 2nd-class Christian and ended up leaving that particular church
Good arguments on both sides
Let’s look at what actually happened
Replacing myths with the Bible
“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
1. Baptism with the Holy Spirit
John the Baptist:
“I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. Mark 1:8
John was the last of the Old-Testament prophets
Baptism was a rite of entry
John the Baptist effectively categorized all of Israel as outside of God’s covenant and then re-admitted them to the People of God through his baptism.
But he prophesied a new Baptism which would admit people into the new people of God.
The phrase that is consistently used is receive the Spirit or be filled
We are never told to be baptized in the Spirit, we are told to be filled!
The problem is that we are using the wrong terminology —confusion of terms
Let me show you the real problem with this confusion:
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.
People who want to deny that there is a need to receive the Holy Spirit point out that
Baptism in the Spirit = being part of the body
In fact it means the same as being “born of the Spirit”
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.
The confusion comes that at Pentecost both things happened
It was the birth of the church
The beginning of the New Creation
The Spirit was poured out with power, filling them all
Once we disentagle these two expressions, then the Bible has a very clear teaching
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
2. Receiving & being filled
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?
But not baptized
Was Pentecost unique?
There is no doubt that this was a unique event in salvation-history
Never again are people told just to wait
3. Empowerment
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.”
in Acts 12:21 the king is arrayed in royal garments. A soldier is clothed with armour.
So Pentecost was primarily about receiving power for spreading the kingdom
Following after Jesus
He was empowered immediately after his baptism at the beginning of his ministry
The Spirit came down like a dove
Up to that point he had lived a quiet life—suddenly he was doing mighty miracles
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.
The early church practised this as the norm
Empowerment came after they were baptized
The sequence was different with Cornelius
The norm in the New Testament is to have received the Spirit!
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
My own experience
4. We can have more
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?
The difference was that Pentecost was the first time
They initially received the Spirit
But needed to be refilled (Old man who had been filled 50 years ago)
So does every Christian now have the Spirit?
It’s not an all or nothing
All of us need more!
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)
Nobody is ever told to examine themselves to see if they are spirit-filled!
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?
5. Getting 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!)
don’t put God in a box—the man who prayed all night and then went for a walk
What do I do?
Believe (and be baptized) -Peter tells them to “repent” —what does that mean?
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!”
Laying on of hands (does not need a “bishop”)
Trust in God’s timing but keep asking
We are going to pray now for everyone here who believes in Jesus as their saviour to be filled with the Spirit and empowered.
This may be your first filling, in which case you are receiving the Spirit
You may already be Spirit-filled and so this will be an opportunity to get more
Everybody stand and I am going to pray
Ephesians 3
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father,
from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named,
that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being,